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The Branches of the House of Windsor

The House of Windsor is young by royal standards: it took its name in 1917 [1][2]. Even so, it already has distinct branches. The line that reigns today descends from Elizabeth II and carries the surname Mountbatten-Windsor when a surname is needed. Two older cadet lines, Gloucester and Kent, descend from younger sons of George V [3][4][5]. This page sets out those branches using only the sources listed at the end. For the house's history, see our House of Windsor page.

1917: one name for the male-line descendants of Victoria

Before 1917, members of the British Royal Family had no surname, only the name of their house or dynasty [3]. Edward VII and George V belonged to the Saxe-Coburg and Gotha branch of the House of Wettin, through their descent from Prince Albert [1]. In 1917, anti-German feeling during the First World War led George V to adopt the family name Windsor, after the castle [2]. The Royal Proclamation of 17 July 1917 declared that the "House and Family" would be known as Windsor. It also declared that all descendants of Queen Victoria in the male line who were subjects of the realms, "other than female descendants who may marry or may have married", would bear that name [1].

This is why the Windsor branches below are defined by descent in the male line from George V. Their members carry the Windsor name unless they are women who have married into other families [1][3].

The reigning line: Mountbatten-Windsor

In 1947, Princess Elizabeth married Philip Mountbatten, born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark. Philip was a member of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, a branch of the House of Oldenburg [1]. On becoming naturalised in 1947 he took the name Philip Mountbatten [3]. After her accession in 1952, the Queen confirmed the name of Windsor for the royal house [3].

In 1960, the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh decided they would like their own direct descendants to be distinguished from the rest of the Royal Family, without changing the name of the Royal House [3]. A declaration in the Privy Council provided that the Queen's descendants would carry the name Mountbatten-Windsor. This covered all of them except those with the style of Royal Highness and the title of Prince or Princess, and female descendants who marry [3]. In practice, members of the family who are Royal Highnesses rarely need a surname. When they do, for example on marriage, it is Mountbatten-Windsor [3].

Genealogically, Wikipedia notes, the male-line descendants of Elizabeth II and Philip also belong to the House of Oldenburg through Philip's Glücksburg descent [1]. The house nevertheless remains, by royal declaration, the House of Windsor [1][3].

King Charles III heads this line. He became King on the death of his mother on 8 September 2022 [6]. His heir is his elder son, William, Prince of Wales, born on 21 June 1982 [6][7]. William and Catherine, Princess of Wales, have three children: Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis [7].

The Gloucester line

The Gloucester line descends from Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, a son of George V [1][4].

• Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester, was born on 26 August 1944 in Northampton. He is the second son of Prince Henry and Princess Alice, a grandson of George V and a first cousin of the late Queen [4].
• He became heir to his father's titles after the death of his elder brother, Prince William of Gloucester, in 1972 [4].
• He married Birgitte van Deurs in 1972. The Duke and Duchess live at Kensington Palace and have three children and six grandchildren [4].
• He read architecture at Magdalene College, Cambridge. He later resigned his architectural partnership to take responsibility for the family estate at Barnwell, Northamptonshire [4].

The Kent line

The Kent line descends from Prince George, Duke of Kent, a son of George V and younger brother of Edward VIII and George VI [1][5]. He married Princess Marina, daughter of Prince Nicholas of Greece. He died in a wartime flying accident near Caithness, in Scotland, in 1942, and the title passed to his elder son [5].

• Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, was born on 9 October 1935 at 3 Belgrave Square in London. He is a first cousin of both Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh [5].
• He married Katharine Worsley in York Minster [5]. They have three children: George, Earl of St Andrews (born 28 June 1962), Lady Helen Taylor (born 18 July 1964) and Lord Nicholas Windsor (born 25 July 1970) [5].
• None of the Duke of Kent's children carries out official royal duties, and the couple have ten grandchildren [5].
• Princess Alexandra was born on Christmas Day 1936, the second child and only daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Kent. She is a working member of the Royal Family [8].
• Prince Michael of Kent is the younger brother of the Duke of Kent and of Princess Alexandra [5][8].

Summary

Licence: contains material adapted from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). This article is released under the same licence. Primary and institutional sources are summarised or briefly quoted.