Why do people call the British princes "wales" instead of their real last name?

Question

For instance, Prince Harry.. Henry.. whatever...his real name is Henry Charles Albert David. But in the military he's called Lt Wales instead of Lt. David. I know his lineage is from Wales.. but thats not his real name.

Answer 1

Under an ambiguously-worded Order-in-Council issued in 1960, the name Mountbatten-Windsor is the personal surname of some of the descendants of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. It differs from the official name of the British Royal Family or Royal House, which remains Windsor. The adoption of this surname does not apply to members of the royal family who are not descended from the Queen. The Order specifically applies the surname to those descendants of the Queen not holding Royal styles and titles but it has been applied to or informally used by members of the British Royal Family descended from Queen Elizabeth II as their surname, as shown at the marriages of the Duke of York and the Princess Royal, both having been registered with Mountbatten-Windsor in their entries in the marriage registers.

History of the name Mountbatten:
Mountbatten originates in the German Battenberg. Prince Louis of Battenberg changed his surname to Mountbatten (a literal English translation) during the First World War at the request of King George V. When the then Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark took British citizenship, he used this as his surname, since he descends from the Mountbatten family through his mother, Princess Alice of Battenberg. It may also be seen as an act in honour of the British Admiral of the Fleet Earl Mountbatten of Burma, the Prince's uncle.

Users of the surname Mountbatten-Windsor:

The following people have made use of, in current practice, or have made use of, the surname Mountbatten-Windsor. They are listed in the order of succession to the Crown.

* Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and his wife, Camilla, The Duchess of Cornwall (formerly Parker Bowles, née Shand)
o Prince William of Wales
o Prince Henry of Wales (more commonly known as Prince Harry)
* Prince Andrew, Duke of York
o Princess Beatrice of York
o Princess Eugenie of York
* Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex and his wife, Sophie, The Countess of Wessex (née Rhys-Jones)
o Lady Louise Windsor (simply styled with the name Windsor)
* Princess Anne, Princess Royal (until her marriage with Mark Phillips in 1973 (div. 1992), when she assumed his surname; her surname has subsequently changed again on the occasion of her marriage with Timothy Laurence in 1992)

None of the above actually officially hold the surname as part of their legal name, owing to the styles that are used for members of the Royal Family, and to the ambiguous wording of the proclamation. For example, when the Duke of York was in the Navy, he was referred to as Lieutenant His Royal Highness, The Prince Andrew before he became The Duke of York, and Lieutenant His Royal Highness, The Duke of York afterwards - but not Lieutenant Mountbatten-Windsor. While Mountbatten-Windsor was entered into the marriage register for Prince Andrew and Princess Anne, the Prince of Wales was entered as simply "The Prince Charles Philip Arthur George".

Both Princes William and Harry have used "Wales" as a last name during their schooling. Both were known as Officer Cadet Wales at the Sandhurst Military Academy. Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie of York both similarly use "York" as a last name.

The Earl of Wessex has styled himself "Edward Wessex" for his television series Crown and Country since acquiring that title upon his marriage. Prior thereto, the show's credits listed him as "Edward Windsor."

Seemingly the only personages who would officially hold the surname under the Order-in-Council would be any male-line great-grandchildren of the Queen not in direct line to the throne, i.e. the children of any sons of the Duke of York or Earl of Wessex. Similarly, in the event that any male-line granddaughter of the Queen were to have a child whilst unwed.

Answer 2

HERE IS THE REAL ANSWER!!!!

Royals don't have last names!
Technically they belong to the house of Windsor-Mountmatten. THIS IS TRUE. But it isn't technically their last name. Royals don't have last names. They are addressed by their title. For Example HRH Charles, Prince of Wales. You would NEVER say HRH Charles Windsor Mountmatten, Prince of Wales....never!

This applies in other European Countries. For example when Louis XVI was executed they tried him under the ancestral name of his family, thus insulting his royal status by using his last name, Cadet. If he was in power he would have had someone executed for this.

Prince Edward uses the name Edward Windsor, simply, without ANY stylings in his television productions. This would be similar to how any celebrity child like Emilio Estevez might change their name so as not to capitalize on the family name., or be overshadowed by it.

SO TO PROPERLY ANSWER YOU QUESTION. They use "Prince of Wales" because titles override the House Name. This is why Camilla and Charles are called "The Wales" and properly. Same for Will and Harry.

Queen Elizabeth II never signs her name Windsor or Windsor Mountbatten...ever!

Answer 3

First of all his last name is Windsor(as are most of the immediate family of the Queen) not David. Secondly, with his father being The Prince of Wales, William and Harry are also referred to as a Prince of Wales.

Answer 4

The difference is that it's a title, not a name. Prince Harry belongs to the House of Windsor. Since his father is Prince of Wales, both he and his brother have used the suffix "of Wales" added to their first names, shortened to Lt. Wales for military use.

Answer 5

Because technically they have no last name (the letters patent says that the will be the house of Windsor -- it doesn't say that it's their last name).

Instead, they use their title -- In Harry's case his title is HRH Prince Henry of Wales (of Wales because he is the son of the PRINCE OF WALES).

So, he uses the last name of his title.

Answer 6

He is Prince Henry of Wales. He is known as Harry Wales to distinguish his particular House.Charles' is Wales,Andrew's is York,and Edward's is Wessex.

Answer 7

Because it shows that they are in DIRECT succession for the THRONE with the title WALE'S, as in "The Prince of Wales'" and His family!

Therefore their TITLE OF WALES outranks ALL but WINDSOR! By the way, Prince Edward ONLY uses Windsor as his last name, NOT "Mountbatten-Windsor" as was directed by Parliament, however, Charles and Andrew wanted to honor (why, I have no idea) their father by using his surname of Mountbatten also. Mountbatten ALWAYS is SECONDARY to WINDSOR!!! Then, when the time comes, the Wales' will become the Windsors until a new Prince or Princess of Wales is named in time.

Answer 8

Before World War I the Bristish Royal family was the House of Hanover. After World War I they decided to be called the House of Windsor. British royalty for several centuries are German. Now Elizabeth's mother was half Scottish and half English. However, Elizabeth married Philip, who though he was a Greek national, his family name was Battenburg and so her children are mostly German. If Charles and Diana's children achieve the crown, they will be the most English monarchs in several centuries.

Answer 9

Yes , this is only a reference to his father's title and I can't remember this being done before. For some reason they try to avoid using their real names.
He has absolutely no connection with the country of Wales and his father has never lived there.

Answer 10

windsor is the actual last name of the royal family. they are called wales because of the country. so prince harry's real name is henry charles albert david windsor. the queen's grandparents changed their last name from saxe-coburg-gotha in the early twentieth century.