Will the royal titles of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor be conferred on anybody again?

Question

I know this is highly unlikely during the Queen's reign as she blamed Edward VIII (apparently) for her own fathers early death. Will this title ever be used again or will it remain redundant. Or can it be conferred separately on one person or must be two people?

Answer 1

The peerage title Duke of Windsor was created in the Peerage of the United Kingdom in 1937 for The Prince Edward, formerly King of the United Kingdom. Edward had abdicated on 11 December 1936 so that he could marry the American divorcee Wallis Simpson, who became the Duchess of Windsor. The dukedom takes its name from the town where the famous Windsor Castle is situated - having been the residence of English monarchs for over a thousand years the name emulated stability, tradition and the very essence of being British (Windsor was also the Royal Family's surname for much the same reasons). On the death of the duke in 1972 this title became extinct.
If the title was ever given to another person, he must be a legitimate descendant of the "Windsor" family from the male-line. Since this title was espeically created for King Edward VIII when he abdicated the throne, the next person who uses this tile must also be in the same "situtation and position" as King Edward VIII.
For example, if Prince William of Wales decided to marry Kate Middleton and abdicate in exchange to withdrawal from royal duties, Queen Elizabeth II (if she was still alive) or King George VII (formely Prince Charles of Wales) could choose to bring back the title "Duke of Windsor" and give it to Prince William of Wales. The courtsey title of "Duchess of Windsor" will be given to his wife. If he had any sons, the eldest son will inherit "Duke of Windsor" along with any other titles, and his daughters will probably be styled as "Lady Windsor."

Answer 2

With the death of the Duke, the the title reverted to the Crown. As such, the monarch always has the prerogative of creating a new individual as Duke or Duchess of Windsor.

King George VI created the former King Edward VII as Duke of Windsor, but took no separate action to grant the Duke's wife a title. She was entitled to use the style "Duchess of Windsor" upon marrying the Duke.

King George VI was pretty harsh in the document which made the former King a Duke...he expressly provided that while the Duke was a Royal Highness, any wife would not be.

The Crown cannot create one person as Duke of Windsor and another as Duchess. If someone is created Duke, his wife becomes Duchess. If someone is created Duchess, her husband doesn't acquire any title as a result (male chauvinism is alive and well in the peerage).

Will it be used again? Time will tell. Given the difficult history associated with the title, I can only imagine it being used for another abdicated monarch.

Answer 3

The Queen Mother blamed Wallis Simpson and David,Duke of Windsor for the untimely death of her husband.Her daughter,the present Queen Regent is not likely to confer that title upon anyone during her reign. Charles, Prince of Wales, was very close to his grandmother and may also feel leery about giving a title loaded with such unhappy family history to any one,either. Maybe, after a few generations it will be used again,but I don't think that it will be used in my lifetime.

A title is given to one person and is passed on down the generations if it is an hereditary title.A man may be made Duke of --;his wife will be Duchess of --, and the title will go to the eldest son upon the father's death. A title is not split in two snd given to seperate people/families.

Answer 4

The Queen was actually reasonably kind to her considering all the awful things she did. Wallis was invited to stay at Buckingham Palace and the Queen did support her through an allowance. The Duchess of Windsor died alone in exile by her own actions, and she didn't visit her husband's grave because she was frail, bedridden and suffering of dementia. The family did quite enough by attending her funeral which they held at St George's Chapel before burying her next to Edward at Frogmore. It was a very big move by the Queen Mother to attend the funeral considering she blamed Wallis for the premature death of her husband and the manner in which her daughter's entire life was changed. Wallis almost destroyed a government, a constitution and a thousand years of history; the way she was treated was more than the Royal Family owed her.

Answer 5

Duke Of Windsor Death

Answer 6

As the late Duke of Windsor died without issue the title reverted to the Crown. At the pleasure of the Crown it may be bestowed upon another individual in the future. The title, Duke of York, now held by Prince Andrew, has reverted to the Crown a number of times over the past two centuries and been bestowed upon succeeding members of the Royal Family. As Prince Andrew has two girls and no son to succeed Him the title 'Duke of York' will once again revert to the Crown.

Answer 7

These two titles are probably not going to be used again in OUR lifetimes. As for the Queen blaming her uncle for her father's early death, would YOU have? King David renounced ALL of his responsibilities for a shopworn piece of female flesh - who was not only a twice-divorced woman (which, in THAT day and age was not ONLY a scandal but was also cause for expulsion from the Church Of England - FINE thing to happen to the Defender Of The Faith, no?), but who was also a post-operative transsexual, m2f. No children!

The Duke of Windsor was a vain, shallow, selfish, egocentric and cowardly jerk. His "wife" was even worse. Both of them deserved each other, and, after all the publicity, neither one of them could get RID of the other. TOO bad. I met them both in several different social situations, and they were - well, AWFUL.

Answer 8

It's unlikely. The "Windsor" part would, if it were revived, imply that its holder is head of the House of Windsor - i.e., the Royal family. If one were in that position, then one would be the monarch.

If it were to be revived, it would almost certainly have to be someone from the Royal family - perhaps the surviving spouse of a deceased monarch (such as Prince Philip, if he outlives Elizabeth) would be given it as a courtesy title to indicate an honored role.

Answer 9

Probably not, as the Duke and Duchess were never thought of in England after their exile to France except with serious loathing by all.. and the Royal Family have long memories.

Answer 10

I would think that it will eventually be used again, just not while Queen Elizabeth is alive out of respect for her feelings.
I'd say probably in 10-20 years it may be bestowed upon someone. The title can be seperate.