HRH

United Kingdom

In British constitutional law, use of the style HRH or simply "Royal Highness" may only be conferred by letters patent. Since 1917, the style has usually been restricted to children of the monarch, or to male-line grandchildren (i.e., the children of the monarch's sons). It is typically associated with the rank of prince or princess (although this has not always applied, an exception being Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who received the style in 1947 prior to his marriage to Princess Elizabeth but was not formally created a British prince until 1957). When a prince has another title such as Duke (or a princess the title of Duchess), they may be called HRH The Duke of .... For instance HRH The Duke of Connaught was a prince and a member of the royal family. When Edward VIII abdicated the throne in 1936 he was granted the style and title of HRH The Duke of Windsor. The woman he then married became the Duchess of Windsor, but she was denied the style HRH. Edward for much of the rest of his life attempted unsuccessfully to persuade the crown to grant her the style.