Duke of Rothesay ( ; ; ) is the main
dynastic title traditionally given to the male
heir apparent
An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...
to the
Scottish and, later,
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
* British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
thrones. The dukedom was created in 1398 by
Robert III of Scotland
Robert III ( – 4 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 (1368–1390 ...
for his eldest son.
Duke of Rothesay is the title mandated for use by the heir apparent when in
Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
, in preference to the titles ''
Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...
'' and ''
Duke of Cornwall
Duke of Cornwall () is a title in the Peerage of England, traditionally held by the eldest son of the reigning Monarchy of the United Kingdom, British monarch, previously the English monarch. The Duchy of Cornwall was the first duchy created i ...
'', which are used in the rest of the United Kingdom and overseas. The title is named after
Rothesay on the
Isle of Bute, but is not associated with any legal entity or landed property. The Duke of Rothesay also holds other Scottish titles, including
Earl of Carrick
Earl of Carrick (or Mormaer of Carrick) is the title applied to the ruler of Carrick, Scotland, Carrick (now South Ayrshire), subsequently part of the Peerage of Scotland. The position came to be strongly associated with the Scottish crown when ...
,
Baron of Renfrew,
Lord of the Isles
Lord of the Isles or King of the Isles
( or ; ) is a title of nobility in the Baronage of Scotland with historical roots that go back beyond the Kingdom of Scotland. It began with Somerled in the 12th century and thereafter the title was ...
, and
Prince and Great Steward of Scotland.
The current holder of the title is
William, Prince of Wales
William, Prince of Wales (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982), is the heir apparent to the British throne. He is the elder son of King Charles III and Diana, Princess of Wales.
William was born during the reign of his pat ...
, and his wife,
Catherine, is the current Duchess of Rothesay.
History
David Stewart, Duke of Rothesay, the son of
Robert III of Scotland
Robert III ( – 4 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 (1368–1390 ...
, first held the dukedom from its creation in 1398. After his death, his brother
James, later King James I, received the dukedom. Thereafter, the heir apparent to the Scottish Crown held the dukedom; an Act of the
Parliament of Scotland
In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
passed in 1469 confirmed this pattern of succession.
The
Earldom of Carrick existed as early as the 12th century. In 1306, Robert the Bruce, Earl of Carrick, became
King Robert I of Scotland, with the earldom merging in the Crown. In the following years, successive Kings of Scotland created several heirs apparent Earl of Carrick. The Act of 1469 finally settled the earldom on the eldest son of the Scottish monarch.
The office of the
Great Steward of Scotland (also called High Steward or Lord High Steward) dates back to its first holder,
Walter fitz Alan, in the 12th century. The seventh Great Steward, Robert, ascended the Scottish throne as
Robert II in 1371. Thereafter, only the heirs apparent to the Crown held the office. The 1469 Act also deals with this.
Between the 1603 union of the crowns and
Edward VII
Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910.
The second child ...
's time as heir apparent, the style "Duke of Rothesay" appears to have dropped out of usage in favour of "Prince of Wales".
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 Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...
mandated the title for use to refer to the eldest son and heir apparent when in Scotland, and this usage has continued since. This may have been as a result, direct or indirect, of the 1822
visit of King George IV to Scotland.
Lord of the Isles
Another of the non-peerage titles belonging to the heir apparent, that of ''
Lord of the Isles
Lord of the Isles or King of the Isles
( or ; ) is a title of nobility in the Baronage of Scotland with historical roots that go back beyond the Kingdom of Scotland. It began with Somerled in the 12th century and thereafter the title was ...
'', merits special mention. The Lords of the Isles, of the MacDonald family, originally functioned as
vassal
A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain ...
s of the Scottish, or Norwegian, kings who ruled the
Western Isles
The Outer Hebrides ( ) or Western Isles ( , or ), sometimes known as the Long Isle or Long Island (), is an island chain off the west coast of mainland Scotland.
It is the longest archipelago in the British Isles. The islands form part ...
. The ambitious John MacDonald II, fourth Lord of the Isles, made a secret treaty in 1462 with King
Edward IV
Edward IV (28 April 1442 – 9 April 1483) was King of England from 4 March 1461 to 3 October 1470, then again from 11 April 1471 until his death in 1483. He was a central figure in the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars in England ...
of England, by which he sought to make himself an independent ruler.
In 1475,
James III discovered the Lord of the Isles' actions, and the Lordship became subject to forfeiture. MacDonald later regained his position, but
James IV again deprived him of his titles in 1493 after his nephew provoked a rebellion. In 1540
James V
James V (10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was List of Scottish monarchs, 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 a ...
of Scotland granted the Lordship to the heirs apparent to the Crown.
Legal basis
An Act of the
Parliament of Scotland
In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
passed in 1469 governs the succession to most of these titles. It provides that "the first-born Prince of the King of Scots for ever" should hold the dukedom. If the firstborn Prince dies before the King, the title is not inherited by his heir – it is only for the firstborn son, like the
Duchy of Cornwall – nor is either inherited by the deceased duke's next brother, unless that brother also becomes heir apparent. Though the Act specified "King", eldest sons of queens regnant subsequently also held the dukedom. The interpretation of the word ''Prince'', however, does not include women. Therefore, in the event of an
heiress presumptive or heiress apparent (this being a distinct and even likely possibility in the future after the passage of the
Succession to the Crown Act 2013
The Succession to the Crown Act 2013 (c. 20) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that altered the laws of succession to the British throne in accordance with the 2011 Perth Agreement. The Act replaced male-preference primogenitur ...
), she cannot become Duchess of Rothesay.
The eldest son of the British Sovereign, as Duke of Rothesay, had the right to vote in elections for
Scottish representative peer
This is a list of representative peers elected from the Peerage of Scotland to sit in the House of Lords after the Acts of Union 1707 abolished the unicameral Parliament of Scotland, where all Scottish Peers had been entit ...
s from 1707. (The 1707
Acts of Union between the Parliament of Scotland and
Parliament of England
The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England from the 13th century until 1707 when it was replaced by the Parliament of Great Britain. Parliament evolved from the Great Council of England, great council of Lords Spi ...
formally unified both kingdoms to create the
Kingdom of Great Britain
Great Britain, also known as the Kingdom of Great Britain, was a sovereign state in Western Europe from 1707 to the end of 1800. The state was created by the 1706 Treaty of Union and ratified by the Acts of Union 1707, which united the Kingd ...
.) This right continued until 1963, when the
UK Parliament
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of ...
abolished the election of representative peers.
List of dukes of Rothesay
Holders of the Dukedom of Rothesay, with the processes by which they became dukes of Rothesay and by which they ceased to hold the title:
Family tree
Current holder
Since 2022
William, Prince of Wales
William, Prince of Wales (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982), is the heir apparent to the British throne. He is the elder son of King Charles III and Diana, Princess of Wales.
William was born during the reign of his pat ...
, has held the title of Duke of Rothesay, and uses it when in Scotland. He has the formal Scottish
style
Style, or styles may refer to:
Film and television
* ''Style'' (2001 film), a Hindi film starring Sharman Joshi, Riya Sen, Sahil Khan and Shilpi Mudgal
* ''Style'' (2002 film), a Tamil drama film
* ''Style'' (2004 film), a Burmese film
* '' ...
of ''HRH The Prince William, Duke of Rothesay''.
The personal arms of the
preceding Duke were bestowed upon him in 1974 by the Queen. The
escutcheon features on the 1st and 4th quarters the arms of the
Great Steward of Scotland, with the 2nd and 3rd quarters featuring the arms of the
Lord of the Isles
Lord of the Isles or King of the Isles
( or ; ) is a title of nobility in the Baronage of Scotland with historical roots that go back beyond the Kingdom of Scotland. It began with Somerled in the 12th century and thereafter the title was ...
.
The arms of the current Duke are distinguished from those of
Clan Stewart of Appin through the addition of an
inescutcheon
In heraldry, an inescutcheon is a smaller Escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon that is placed within or superimposed over the main shield of a coat of arms, similar to a Charge (heraldry), charge. This may be used in the following cases:
* as a sim ...
displaying the arms of the
heir apparent
An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...
to the
King of Scots
The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the form of government used by the United Kingdom by which a hereditary monarch reigns as the head of state, with their powers regulated by the British cons ...
, namely the
Royal arms of Scotland
Royal may refer to:
People
* Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name
* A member of a royal family or royalty
Places United States
* Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community
* Royal, Illinois, a village
* Roy ...
with a three-point
label
A label (as distinct from signage) is a piece of paper, plastic film, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or product. Labels are most often affixed to packaging and containers using an adhesive, or sewing when affix ...
. The full
achievement of the current Duke's arms are a variation of the
Royal coat of arms of Scotland
The coat of arms of Scotland, colloquially called the Lion Rampant, is the coat of arms historically used as arms of dominion by the monarchs of the Kingdom of Scotland, and later used within the coat of arms of Great Britain and the present co ...
used prior to the
Union of the Crowns
The Union of the Crowns (; ) was the accession of James VI of Scotland to the throne of the Kingdom of England as James I and the practical unification of some functions (such as overseas diplomacy) of the two separate realms under a single ...
in 1603.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rothesay
Dukedoms in the Peerage of Scotland
Noble titles created in 1398
Heirs to the throne
Scottish monarchy
Succession to the British crown
Rothesay, Bute
British and Irish peerages which merged in the Crown