King Charles Gives Prince Edward New Royal Title

Prince Edward's wife also inherited a title once belonging to Queen Elizabeth II.

King Charles III gave Prince Edward a special birthday gift on Friday, March 10—a new royal title.

Charles named his younger brother the Duke of Edinburgh, a title previously held by their late father Prince Philip.

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<em>King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex during Royal Ascot 2021 at Ascot Racecourse on June 15, 2021</em><p>Chris Jackson/Getty Images</p>
King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex during Royal Ascot 2021 at Ascot Racecourse on June 15, 2021

Chris Jackson/Getty Images

"His Majesty The King has been pleased to confer the Dukedom of Edinburgh upon The Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex and Forfar, on the occasion of His Royal Highness's 59th birthday," Buckingham Palace said in a statement. "The title will be held by Prince Edward for His Royal Highness's lifetime."

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Prince Edward's wife, Sophie, now holds the title of Duchess of Edinburgh.

Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, and Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, attend the 2022 Royal Variety Performance at Royal Albert Hall on Dec. 1, 2022, in London.<p><a href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/1245278274" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Mark Cuthbert/Getty Images;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">Mark Cuthbert/Getty Images</a></p>

The statement continued, "The Dukedom was last created for Prince Philip in 1947, upon his marriage to Princess Elizabeth, who held the title of Duchess of Edinburgh before acceding to the throne in 1952. The new Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh are proud to continue Prince Philip's legacy of promoting opportunities for young people of all backgrounds to reach their full potential."

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Prince Edward's son James, Viscount Severn, has newly inherited Edward's previous title of Earl of Wessex.

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The royal family's website has been updated to reflect the new changes.

Earlier this week, it was revealed that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's children finally have royal titles.

A spokesperson for the Sussexes announced that following Queen Elizabeth II's death, Archie and Lilibet are now titled Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. The royal website was only updated to reflect the change after the Sussexes announced the titles.

Next, find out if Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are going to King Charles' coronation.