Duke of Albany is a peerage title that has occasionally been bestowed on the younger sons in the Scottish and later the British royal family, particularly in the Houses of Stuart and

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

History

The Dukedom of Albany was first granted in 1398 by King

Robert III of Scotland Robert III (c. 13374 April 1406), born John Stewart, was King of Scots from 1390 to his death in 1406. He was also High Steward of Scotland from 1371 to 1390 and held the titles of Earl of Atholl (1367–1390) and Earl of Carrick (1368&ndas ...

on his brother, Robert Stewart, the title being in the Peerage of Scotland. "

Alba ''Alba'' ( , ) is the Scottish Gaelic name for Scotland. It is also, in English language historiography, used to refer to the polity of Picts and Scots united in the ninth century as the Kingdom of Alba, until it developed into the Kingdom ...

ny" was a broad territorial term representing the parts of Scotland north of the

River Forth The River Forth is a major river in central Scotland, long, which drains into the North Sea on the east coast of the country. Its drainage basin covers much of Stirlingshire in Scotland's Central Belt. The Gaelic name for the upper reach of t ...

, roughly the former Kingdom of the

Picts The Picts were a group of peoples who lived in what is now northern and eastern Scotland (north of the Firth of Forth) during Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. Where they lived and what their culture was like can be inferred from e ...

. The title (along with the Dukedom of Rothesay) was the first Dukedom created in Scotland. It passed to Robert's son Murdoch Stewart, and was forfeited in 1425 due to the

attainder In English criminal law, attainder or attinctura was the metaphorical "stain" or "corruption of blood" which arose from being condemned for a serious capital crime (felony or treason). It entailed losing not only one's life, property and hereditar ...

of Murdoch. The title was again created in 1458 for Alexander Stewart but was forfeit in 1483. His son John Stewart was restored to the second creation in 1515 but died without heirs in 1536. In 1541 Robert, second son of

James V of Scotland James V (10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was King of Scotland from 9 September 1513 until his death in 1542. He was crowned on 21 September 1513 at the age of seventeen months. James was the son of King James IV and Margaret Tudor, and du ...

, was styled Duke of Albany, but he died at less than a month old. The fourth creation, along with the Earldom of Ross and Lordship of Ardmannoch, was for

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of S ...

' king consort

Lord Darnley Lord Darnley is a noble title associated with a Scottish Lordship of Parliament, first created in 1356 for the family of Stewart of Darnley and tracing a descent to the Dukedom of Richmond in England. The title's name refers to Darnley in Sco ...

, whose son, later James VI of Scotland, I of England and Ireland, inherited the titles on his death. That creation merged with the Scottish crown upon James's ascension. The title, along with the title of Duke of York, with which it has since been traditionally coupled, was created for a fifth time in 1604 for Charles, son of

James VI and I James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...

. Upon Charles's ascent to the throne in 1625, the title of Duke of Albany merged once again in the crowns. The title was next granted in 1660 to Charles I's son,

James James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguati ...

, by Charles II. When James succeeded his elder brother to the throne in 1685, the titles again merged into the crown. The cities of New York and

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York C ...

, were thus both named after James, as he was the Duke of York and of Albany. The pretender, Charles Edward Stuart, gave the title Duchess of Albany to his illegitimate daughter

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

; she died in 1789. The title "

Duke of York and Albany Duke of York and Albany was a title of nobility in the Peerage of Great Britain. The title was created three times during the 18th century and was usually given to the second son of British monarchs. The predecessor titles in the English and Sc ...

" was granted three times by the Hanoverian kings. The title of "Albany" alone was granted for the fifth time, this time in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, in 1881 to Prince Leopold, the fourth son of

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...

. Prince Leopold's son, Prince Charles Edward (who had succeeded as reigning

Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (german: Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha), or Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (german: Sachsen-Coburg-Gotha, links=no ), was an Ernestine, Thuringian duchy ruled by a branch of the House of Wettin, consisting of territories in the present- ...

in 1900), was deprived of the peerage in 1919 for bearing arms against the United Kingdom in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. His grandson, Ernst Leopold (1935–1996), only son of Charles Edward's eldest son

Johann Leopold, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha , house = Saxe-Coburg and Gotha , father = Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha , mother = Princess Victoria Adelaide of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg , birth_date = , birth_place = Callenberg Castle, Co ...

(1906–1972), sometimes used the title "Duke of Albany", although the Titles Deprivation Act 1917 stipulates that any successor of a suspended peer shall be restored to the peerage only by direction of the sovereign, the successor's petition for restoration having been submitted for and obtained a satisfactory review of the appropriate Privy Council committee.

Dukes of Albany

First creation, 1398

:''Other titles (1st Duke):

Earl of Fife The Earl of Fife or Mormaer of Fife was the ruler of the province of Fife in medieval Scotland, which encompassed the modern counties of Fife and Kinross. Due to their royal ancestry, the earls of Fife were the highest ranking nobles in the re ...

(1371),

Earl of Buchan The Mormaer () or Earl of Buchan () was originally the provincial ruler of the medieval province of Buchan. Buchan was the first Mormaerdom in the High Medieval Kingdom of the Scots to pass into the hands of a non-Scottish family in the male li ...

(1374–1406),

Earl of Atholl The Mormaer or Earl of Atholl was the title of the holder of a medieval comital lordship straddling the highland province of Atholl (''Ath Fodhla''), now in northern Perthshire. Atholl is a special Mormaerdom, because a King of Atholl is repor ...

(1403–1406)'' *

Robert Stewart, 1st Duke of Albany Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany (c. 1340 – 3 September 1420) was a member of the Scottish royal family who served as regent (at least partially) to three Scottish monarchs ( Robert II, Robert III, and James I). A ruthless politician, Albany ...

(–1420), third son of Robert II :''Other titles (2nd Duke):

Earl of Menteith The Mormaer or Earl of Menteith was the ruler of the province of Menteith in the Middle Ages. The first mormaer is usually regarded as Gille Críst (or Gilchrist), simply because he is the earliest on record. The title was held in a continuous ...

(bef 1189), Earl of Fife (1371), Earl of Buchan (1374)'' * Murdoch Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany (1362–1425), eldest son of the 1st Duke was attainted and his honours forfeit in 1425

Second creation, 1458

:''Other titles (1st Duke):

Earl of March Earl of March is a title that has been created several times in the Peerage of Scotland and the Peerage of England. The title derived from the "marches" or borderlands between England and either Wales ( Welsh Marches) or Scotland (Scottish Mar ...

(1455),

Earl of Mar There are currently two earldoms of Mar in the Peerage of Scotland, and the title has been created seven times. The first creation of the earldom is currently held by Margaret of Mar, 31st Countess of Mar, who is also clan chief of Clan Mar. T ...

and Earl of Garioch (1482)'' * Alexander Stewart, 1st Duke of Albany (–1485), second son of James II, forfeited his honours in 1479, was restored in 1482, then forfeited them again in 1483 :''Other titles (2nd Duke):

(1455)'' *

John Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany John Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany (8 July 14822 July 1536) was the regent of the Kingdom of Scotland and the count of Auvergne and Lauraguais in France. Early life John was a son of Alexander Stewart, Duke of Albany, son of King James II of S ...

(1482–1536), only legitimate son of the 1st Duke, was restored to his father's dukedom and Earldom of March in 1515. The honours became extinct upon his death without issue

''Only styled'', 1541

, Robert Stewart

House of Stuart The House of Stuart, originally spelt Stewart, was a royal house of Scotland, England, Ireland and later Great Britain. The family name comes from the office of High Steward of Scotland, which had been held by the family progenitor Walter fi ...

1541–1541 , no portrait , 12 April 1541

Falkland Palace Falkland Palace, in Falkland, Fife, Scotland, is a royal palace of the Scottish Kings. It was one of the favourite places of Mary, Queen of Scots, providing an escape from political and religious turmoil. Today it is under the stewardship of ...

, Falkland
son of

King James V James V (10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was King of Scotland from 9 September 1513 until his death in 1542. He was crowned on 21 September 1513 at the age of seventeen months. James was the son of King James IV and Margaret Tudor, and dur ...

and Queen Mary , not married , 20 April 1541

, Falkland
aged 8 days , -

Third creation, 1565

, - , Henry Stuart

1565–1567
''also:

Earl of Ross The Earl or Mormaer of Ross was the ruler of the province of Ross in northern Scotland. Origins and transfers In the early Middle Ages, Ross was part of the vast earldom of Moray. It seems to have been made a separate earldom in the mid 12 ...

and Lord Ardmannoch (1565)'' , Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley

, 19 November 1545

Dunfermline Palace Dunfermline Palace is a ruined former Scottish royal palace and important tourist attraction in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland. It is currently, along with other buildings of the adjacent Dunfermline Abbey, under the care of Historic Environment ...

, Dunfermline
son of Matthew Stewart and Lady Margaret Douglas ,

29 July 1565
1 child , 10 February 1567

Kirk o' Field The Collegiate Church of St Mary in the Fields (commonly known as Kirk o' Field) was a pre-Reformation collegiate church in Edinburgh, Scotland. Likely founded in the 13th century and secularised at the Reformation, the church's site is now covered ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

aged 21 , - , James Stuart

1567
''also:

and Lord Ardmannoch (1565)'';
'' Duke of Rothesay (1398)'' , JamesIEngland

, 19 June 1566
Edinburgh Castle,

son of

and Henry Stuart, Duke of Albany ,

Princess Anne of Denmark Princess is a regal rank and the feminine equivalent of prince (from Latin ''princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or for the daughter of a king or prince. Princess as a subst ...

23 November 1589
9 children , 27 March 1625
De Vere Theobalds Estate,

Cheshunt Cheshunt ( ) is a town in Hertfordshire, England, north of London on the River Lea and Lee Navigation. It contains a section of the Lee Valley Park, including much of the River Lee Country Park. To the north lies Broxbourne and Wormley, ...

aged 58 , - , colspan=5, ''Prince James succeeded as James VI in 1567 upon

his mother ''His Mother'' is a 1912 American silent film produced by Kalem Company. It was directed by Sidney Olcott with Gene Gauntier and Jack J. Clark in the leading roles. It was one of more than a dozen films produced by the Kalem Company filmed in Ir ...

's abdication, and his titles merged with the crown.'' , -

Fourth creation, 1604

, - , Charles Stuart

1600–1625
''also: Marquess of Ormond,

, Lord Ardmannoch (1600–1625);
Duke of York (1605–1625);

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

(1616), Duke of Cornwall (1337) and Duke of Rothesay (1398)'' , , 19 November 1600

, Dunfermline
son of

King James I James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until hi ...

and Queen Anne ,

Henrietta Maria of France Henrietta Maria (french: link=no, Henriette Marie; 25 November 1609 – 10 September 1669) was Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland from her marriage to King Charles I on 13 June 1625 until Charles was executed on 30 January 1649. She wa ...

13 June 1625
9 children , 30 January 1649

Whitehall Palace The Palace of Whitehall (also spelt White Hall) at Westminster was the main residence of the English monarchs from 1530 until 1698, when most of its structures, except notably Inigo Jones's Banqueting House of 1622, were destroyed by fire. H ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

aged 48 , - , colspan=5, ''Prince Charles succeeded as Charles I in 1625 upon his father's death, and his titles merged with the crown.'' , -

Fifth creation, 1660

, James Stuart

1633 or 1644 – 1685Callow, John, The Making of King James II: The Formative Years of a King, Sutton Publishing, Ltd, Stroud, Gloucestershire, 2000. Page
''also: Duke of York (1633/1644),

Earl of Ulster The title of Earl of Ulster has been created six times in the Peerage of Ireland and twice in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Since 1928, the title has been held by the Duke of Gloucester and is used as a courtesy title by the Duke's elde ...

(1659)'' , , 14 October 1633
St. James's Palace,

son of King Charles I and

Queen Henrietta Maria Henrietta Maria (french: link=no, Henriette Marie; 25 November 1609 – 10 September 1669) was Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland from her marriage to King Charles I on 13 June 1625 until Charles was executed on 30 January 1649. She was ...

Anne Hyde Anne Hyde (12 March 163731 March 1671) was Duchess of York and Albany as the first wife of James, Duke of York, who later became King James II and VII. Anne was the daughter of a member of the English gentry – Edward Hyde (later created ...

3 September 1660
8 children

Mary of Modena
21 November 1673
7 children , 16 September 1701
Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye,

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

aged 67 , - , colspan=5, ''Prince James succeeded as James II in 1685 upon his brother's death, and his titles merged with the crown.'' , -

Sixth creation, 1881

, Prince Leopold

House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha The House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (; german: Haus Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha) is a European royal house. It takes its name from its oldest domain, the Ernestine duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, its members later sat on the thrones of Belgium, Bu ...

1882–1884
''also: Earl of Clarence and

Baron Arklow Baron Arklow was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom that has been created twice. Arklow is a town in County Wicklow in Ireland. History First creation, 1801 It was created first in 1801 as a substantive title by King George III for hi ...

(1881)'' , Leopoldalbany

, 7 April 1853
Buckingham Palace,

son of

and Prince Albert ,

Princess Helena of Waldeck and Pyrmont Princess Helen of Waldeck and Pyrmont (later Duchess of Albany; 17 February 1861 – 1 September 1922) was a member of the British royal family by marriage. She was the fifth daughter and child of George Victor, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont, ...

27 April 1882
2 children , 28 March 1884
Villa Nevada,

Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. T ...

aged 30 , - , Prince Charles Edward

1884–1919
''also: Earl of Clarence and Baron Arklow (1881)'' , Carl Eduard Sachsen Coburg und Gotha

, 19 July 1884
Claremont,

Esher Esher ( ) is a town in Surrey, England, to the east of the River Mole. Esher is an outlying suburb of London near the London-Surrey Border, and with Esher Commons at its southern end, the town marks one limit of the Greater London Built-Up ...

son of Prince Leopold and Princess Helena ,

Princess Victoria Adelaide of Schleswig-Holstein Princess Victoria Adelaide of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg (german: Viktoria Adelheid Helene Luise Marie Friederike; 31 December 1885 – 3 October 1970) was Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha as the consort of Duke Charles Edward fr ...

11 October 1905
5 children , 6 March 1954

Coburg Coburg () is a town located on the Itz river in the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Long part of one of the Thuringian states of the Wettin line, it joined Bavaria by popular vote only in 1920. Until the revolution of 1918, it ...

aged 69 , - , colspan=5, ''The Titles Deprivation Act 1917 suspended the title on 28 March 1919.'' , -

Family tree

Dukes of Albany in fiction

* Thomas Norton and Thomas Sackville's play '' Gorboduc'' includes Fergus, the Duke of Albany, who tries to claim the British throne after Gorboduc's death through his royal descent. *

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's ''

King Lear ''King Lear'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his power and land between two of his daughters. He becomes destitute and insane ...

'', set in no particular century, includes as a major character the Duke of Albany, who is husband to Lear's daughter Goneril. *In the 2001 film ''

Kate & Leopold ''Kate & Leopold'' is a 2001 American romantic-comedy fantasy film that tells a story of a physicist by the name of Stuart (Liev Schreiber), who accidentally pulls his great‑great‑grandfather, Leopold (Hugh Jackman), through a time portal fr ...

'',

Hugh Jackman Hugh Michael Jackman (born 12 October 1968) is an Australian actor. Beginning in theatre and television, he landed his breakthrough role as James "Logan" Howlett / Wolverine in the 20th Century Fox ''X-Men'' film series (2000–2017), a role ...

plays "Leopold Mountbatten, Duke of Albany," who holds the title in 1876, making him a fictional analog of Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany, who held the title at that time. However, the surname

Mountbatten The Mountbatten family is a British dynasty that originated as an English branch of the German princely Battenberg family. The name was adopted on 14 July 1917, three days before the British royal family changed its name to “Windsor”, by ...

is an anachronism, as the equivalent family at the time would have been called Battenberg.

References