For other uses, see Princess of Wales (disambiguation).
Princess of Wales
PostPrincess
BodyWales
InsigniaCoat of arms of Catherine, Princess of Wales.svg
InsigniacaptionArms of Catherine, Princess of Wales
IncumbentCatherine
Incumbentsince9 September 2022
StyleHer Royal Highness
Member ofBritish royal family

Princess of Wales (Welsh: Tywysoges Cymru; Latin: Principissa Cambriae/Walliae) is a title used since the 14th century by the wife of the Prince of Wales. The Princess is the apparent future queen consort, as "Prince of Wales" is a title reserved by custom for the heir apparent to the British throne, and earlier the English throne. The current title-holder is Catherine (née Middleton).

When the title was first recorded it was not connected to the English throne; it developed in an independent Wales when it was held by Eleanor de Montfort, wife of the native Prince of Wales Llywelyn ap Gruffydd.

Background

Prior to "Princess" (Welsh: Tywysoges) the title of "Queen" (Welsh: Brenhines) was used by some spouses of the rulers of Wales. Examples are Angharad ferch Owain, wife of Gruffudd ap Cynan, and Cristin verch Goronwy, wife of Gruffudd's son, Owain Gwynedd (specifically, she was known as "Queen Dowager").[1]

The title in independent Wales

Main article: Wales in the High Middle Ages
See also: List of rulers of Wales

Joan (Siwan)

Joan, also known as Siwan (her Welsh name), was the illegitimate daughter of John of England. She was the wife of Llywelyn ab Iorwerth (initially King of Gwynedd), effective ruler of all of Wales.[2] During her tenure, she used the titles "Lady of Wales" and "Lady of Snowdon".

Eleanor de Montfort and Gwenllian

Following her wedding ceremony in 1278, Eleanor de Montfort was officially known as Princess of Wales.[3][4][5][6] On 19 June 1282, she died giving birth to her first child, Gwenllian.[7]

The infant was captured by English forces the following year, after her father, Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, was killed in December 1282. At Edward I's orders, she was kept in the remote Sempringham Priory in Lincolnshire, where she remained until her death in 1337.[citation needed]

Gwenllian's status was acknowledged at least once by the English Crown. When writing to the pope, attempting to secure more money for Sempringham Priory, the king stated that "...herein is kept the Princess of Wales, whom we have to maintain". The title "Princess of Wales" as used here did not have its usual accepted meaning.[8][9]

Margaret Hanmer and Catrin, daughter of Glyndŵr

Margaret Hanmer, sometimes known as Marred ferch Dafydd (her Welsh name), was the wife of Owain Glyndŵr.[10][11] Some modern historians have accorded her the title "Princess of Wales".[12]

Catrin was one of the children of Owain Glyndŵr and Margaret Hanmer. In November 1402, she married Edmund Mortimer, the second son of Edmund Mortimer, 3rd Earl of March and through his mother, a great-grandson of Edward III of England.[13]

Edmund Mortimer died during the siege of Harlech Castle in 1409, of unknown causes.[14] Catrin was subsequently captured alongside her three daughters, and they were taken to the Tower of London, along with Catrin's mother and one of her sisters. The deaths and burials of Catrin and her daughters are recorded, but the causes of their deaths remain unknown. They were laid to rest at St Swithin's Church in London.[15]

List

ImageNameBirthSpouseDeathNotes
Joan1191Llywelyn ab Iorwerth2 February 1237Known as Siwan in Welsh;
Lady of Wales and Snowdon;[16]
Proposed to have been Princess of Wales[17]
Isabella de Braose1222Dafydd ap Llywelyn1248Proposed to have been Princess of Wales[18]
Eleanor de Montfort1252Llywelyn ap Gruffydd19 June 1282Princess of Wales;
Lady of Snowdon[4][5][6]
Elizabeth Ferrers1250Dafydd ap Gruffydd1300Proposed to have been Princess of Wales[citation needed]
Gwenllian ferch LlywelynJune 12827 June 1337Princess of Wales;[8]
daughter of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd
Margaret Hanmer1370Owain Glyndŵr1420Later attributed[19]
Catrin ferch Owain GlyndŵrEdmund Mortimer1413Proposed to have been Princess of Wales;
daughter of Owain Glyndŵr[20]

Spouse of the British (formerly English) heir apparent

Joan of Kent married Prince of Wales, her cousin Edward the Black Prince, in early 1361; their marriage lacked needed dispensation and was annulled in the same year, but afterwards the pair was granted necessary documents by the Pope, and married again, making Joan the Princess of Wales for the second time.[21]

Cecily Neville, wife of Richard of York, 3rd Duke of York, is omitted from this list. While her husband was briefly given various titles, including Prince of Wales, by an Act of Parliament as part of his arrangement to succeed Henry VI, he is not generally recognised as such and is not mentioned in any published summary of the topic.

Although not granted the title in her own right, the future Mary I was, during her youth, invested by her father, Henry VIII, with many of the rights and properties traditionally given to the Prince of Wales, including the use of the official seal of Wales for correspondence. For most of her childhood, Mary was her father's only legitimate child, and for this reason, she was often referred to as the Prince(ss) of Wales, although Henry never formally created her as such. For example, contemporary scholar Juan Luis Vives dedicated his Satellitium Animi to "Dominæ Mariæ Cambriæ Principi, Henrici Octavi Angliæ Regis Filiæ" ("Lady Mary, Prince of Wales, Daughter of Henry VIII, King of England").[22]

Welsh politicians suggested that George VI's elder daughter, Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth II), be granted the title on her 18th birthday, but he rejected the idea because he felt such a title belonged solely to the wife of a Prince of Wales and the Prince of Wales had always been the title of the heir apparent.[23]

Camilla, Charles III's second wife, was the Princess of Wales from 2005 to 2022, but did not use the title due to its popular association with her husband's first wife, Diana. Camilla chose to be known as "Duchess of Cornwall" instead, which is traditionally a subsidiary title.[24]

On 9 September 2022, a day after his accession to the throne, Charles III bestowed the title of "Prince of Wales" upon his elder son, William, making his wife, Catherine, the Princess of Wales.[25]

List

ImagePrevious nameCoat of ArmsBirthMarriageBecame Princess of WalesSpouseChange in styleDeathNotes
Joan of Kent19 September 1328Early 1361 (1st time);
10 October 1361 (2nd time)		Edward of Woodstock (both times)1361
Marriage annulled (1st time);
7 June 1376 (2nd time)
Husband's death;
became Dowager Princess of Wales		7 August 1385 
Anne Neville11 June 145613 December 1470Edward of Westminster4 May 1471
Husband's death;
became Dowager Princess of Wales		16 March 1485Later became queen consort as the wife of Richard III
Catherine of Aragon16 December 148519 May 1499 (by proxy)
14 November 1501		Arthur Tudor2 April 1502
Husband's death;
became Dowager Princess of Wales[26]		7 January 1536Later became queen consort as the wife of Henry VIII
Wilhelmina Charlotte Caroline of Brandenburg-Ansbach1 March 168322 August 170527 September 1714[27]George Augustus11 June 1727
Husband acceded to throne as George II;
became queen consort[28]		20 November 1737 
Augusta of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg30 November 171917 April 1736[29]Frederick Louis31 March 1751
Husband's death;
became Dowager Princess of Wales		8 February 1772 
Caroline Amelia Elizabeth of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel17 May 17688 April 1795[30]George Augustus Frederick29 January 1820
Husband acceded to throne as George IV;
became queen consort[31]		7 August 1821 
Alexandra Caroline Marie Charlotte Louise Julia of Denmark1 December 184410 March 1863[32]Albert Edward22 January 1901
Husband acceded to throne as Edward VII;
became queen consort[33]		20 November 1925 
Victoria Mary Augusta Louise Olga Pauline Claudine Agnes of Teck26 May 18676 July 18939 November 1901[34]George Frederick Ernest Albert6 May 1910
Husband acceded to throne as George V;
became queen consort[35]		24 March 1953 
Diana Frances Spencer1 July 196129 July 1981[36]Charles Philip Arthur George28 August 1996
Divorced;
assumed the style of Diana, Princess of Wales[37]		31 August 1997 
Camilla Rosemary Shand17 July 19479 April 2005[38][39]8 September 2022
Husband acceded to throne as Charles III;
became queen consort[40]		livingKnown as Duchess of Cornwall during her tenure
Catherine Elizabeth Middleton9 January 198229 April 20119 September 2022[41]William Arthur Philip LouisIncumbentliving 

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Messer, Danna R. (2020-09-30). Joan, Lady of Wales: Power and Politics of King John's Daughter. Pen and Sword History. ISBN 978-1-5267-2932-3. Archived 13 January 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
  2. ^ Kate Norgate and A. D. Carr: "Joan [Siwan", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (Oxford: OUP, 2004), Retrieved 2 February 2019.]
  3. ^ Bliss, W. H., editor. Calendar of Papal Registers Relating To Great Britain and Ireland: Volume 1, 1198–1304. Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London, 1893.
  4. ^ Calendar of Patent Rolls, 1272–81, 306; CPR, 1281–92, 11
  5. ^ Calendar of Ancient Correspondence, 75–76
  6. ^ Foedera I, ii, 576, 584, 587
  7. ^ The Chronicle of Bury St Edmunds, pp. 74–76
  8. ^ Fisher, Deborah (2005). Princesses of Wales. University of Wales Press. pp. viii-ix. ISBN 9780708319369.
  9. ^ "Gwenllian The Lost Princess of Wales". Historic UK. Archived 23 March 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2022-09-11.
  10. ^ The History of the Princes, the Lords Marcher, and the Ancient Nobility of Powys Fadog. 1. London: T. Richards. pp. 199, 211–219. The History of the Princes, the Lords Marcher, and the Ancient Nobility of Powys Fadog. 1. London: T. Richards. pp. 199, 211–219.
  11. ^ "Owain Glyndwr – The Parish of Hanmer and Tallarn Green". parish.churchinwales.org.uk. Archived 5 October 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2019-06-12.
  12. ^ Deborah Fisher, Princesses of Wales (University of Wales Press, 2005)
  13. ^ Gwynfor Evans (1974). Land of my fathers: 2000 years of Welsh history. John Penry Press. ISBN 9780903701037. Archived 13 January 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  14. ^ The Last Mab Darogan, Charles Parry (Novasys, 2010) pp. 273–4.
  15. ^ Issues of the Exchequer, Hen. III – Hen. VI, ed. F Devon (Record Commission, 1837), p. 327
  16. ^ Messer, Danna R. (2020-09-30). Joan, Lady of Wales: Power and Politics of King John's Daughter. Pen and Sword History. p. 172. ISBN 978-1-5267-2932-3.
  17. ^ Sims-Williams, Patrick (2010-11-25). Irish Influence on Medieval Welsh Literature. OUP Oxford. p. 297. ISBN 978-0-19-159159-4. Archived 13 January 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
  18. ^ Fisher, Deborah C. (2005). Princesses of Wales. University of Wales Press. p. 6. ISBN 978-0-7083-1936-9. Archived 13 January 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
  19. ^ Deborah Fisher, Princesses of Wales (University of Wales Press, 2005)
  20. ^ Issues of the Exchequer, Hen. III – Hen. VI, ed. F Devon (Record Commission, 1837), p. 327
  21. ^ Shaw, Amy (2002). Joan of Kent: Life and Legends. The Ohio State University. p. 55.
  22. ^ Vives, Juan Luis (1883). Satellitium animi (in Latin). Apud A. Pichleri viduam et filium. Archived 13 January 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
  23. ^ Pimlott, Ben (2001). The Queen: Elizabeth II and the monarchy. Golden Jubilee ed. London: HarperCollins. ISBN 0-00-711435-4. OCLC 59496079
  24. ^ "House of Commons – Royal Marriage". parliament.uk. Archived 26 June 2009 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 7 February 2015.
  25. ^ RegalFille (2022-09-09). "The New Prince and Princess of Wales". RegalFille. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  26. ^ Courtney Herber, 'Katherine of Aragon: Diligent Diplomat and Learned Queen', Aidan Norrie, Tudor and Stuart Consorts: Power, Influence, and Dynasty (Palgrave Macmillan, 2022), p. 58.
  27. ^ e.g. copies of London Gazette, 1714–1727.
  28. ^ Arkell, R. L. (1939). Caroline of Ansbach. London: Oxford University Press. p. 160.
  29. ^ No. 7984. 27 January 1740. p. 1.
  30. ^ Robins, Jane (2006). Rebel Queen: The Trial of Queen Caroline. Simon & Schuster. p. 80. ISBN 978-0-74324-862-4
  31. ^ No. 17683. 24 February 1821. p. 467.
  32. ^ No. 7310. 17 March 1863. p. 357.
  33. ^ No. 27284. 12 February 1901. p. 1139.
  34. ^ No. 27382. 3 December 1901. p. 8559.
  35. ^ No. 28401. 26 July 1910. p. 5485.
  36. ^ "International Special Report: Princess Diana, 1961–1997". The Washington Post. 30 January 1999. Archived 19 August 2000 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 13 October 2008.
  37. ^ "Diana, Princess of Wales". The Royal Family. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
  38. ^ "Royal Marriage". 4 April 2005. "House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 4 Apr 2005 (Pt 42)". Archived 26 June 2009 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  39. ^ "The Royal Title that Camilla and Princess Diana Shared". Harper's Bazaar. 13 November 2018. Archived from the original on 3 January 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2019. When she married Prince Charles, "Camilla was not popular or well liked, [though] this has changed a lot since the marriage as Camilla has taken on a lot of patronages and Charles is a lot happier," [Marlene] Koenig says. "Still, [there was] a lot of tension and anger among a certain element of the population—so it was decided that Camilla would be styled as the Duchess of Cornwall, even though, of course, she is the Princess of Wales."
  40. ^ Robson, Steve (7 May 2023). "Camilla is now just 'the Queen' following coronation as Royal Family shelves consort title in rebrand". inews.co.uk. Archived 4 June 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
  41. ^ "King Charles III pays tribute to his 'darling mama' in first address". BBC.com. 9 September 2022. Archived 12 September 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 11 September 2022.

Bibliography

  • Princesses of Wales by Deborah Fisher. University of Wales Press, 2005.
  • 'Tystiolaeth Garth Celyn' Y Traethodydd 1998 ISSN 0969-8930

Further reading

  • Fryer, M.; Mary Beacock Fryer; Arthur Bousfield; Garry Toffoli (1983). Lives of the Princesses of Wales. Toronto: Dundern Press Limited. ISBN 978-0-919670-69-3.