Prince William‘s future coronation will mark a major reshuffling of titles within the royal family.
Not only will William be crowned king and choose a regnal name, he will also have to decide whether to bestow his three children with new titles or wait til they’re a little bit older.
For example, William himself was made the new Prince of Wales the day after his father King Charles III ascended to the throne on September 8, 2022, with his wife Kate Middleton becoming the first Princess of Wales since the death of Diana in 1997.
However if William’s accession to the throne comes sooner than expected he may decide to delay the bestowing of titles like the one 11-year-old Princess Charlotte is expected to inherit.
This is the lifelong rank of Princess Royal, a position currently occupied by Charlotte’s 75-year-old great-aunt Princess Anne.
It is an honorary title customarily bestowed on the monarch’s eldest daughter, and the highest honor that can be given to a female member of the royal family.
Anne was 37 when she was bestowed with the title Princess Royal by her mother the queen.
Although Charlotte cannot inherit the title until Anne dies, and although William may ultimately choose to wait until an occasion like Charlotte’s wedding day to bestow it on her, it is very likely that Charlotte will someday be the next Princess Royal.
William doesn’t have many other options available to him to honor his eldest daughter—a dukedom, the highest rank in the peerage system, can only be bestowed on men and a woman can only become a duchess if she marries a duke.
This is how Meghan Markle became the Duchess of Sussex when she married Prince Harry on May 19, 2018. On the morning of their wedding Queen Elizabeth II made her grandson the Duke of Sussex, so that when Meghan married him a few hours later she automatically became a duchess.
When Charles dies William will immediately become king, even though his actual coronation ceremony may not be held for some time. (The British monarch operates on a principle of continuous succession, hence the phrase “the king is dead, long live the king”.)
His 12-year-old son Prince George will also automatically inherit a few titles in that moment. From then on he will be the Duke of Cornwall as well as holding the Scottish title the Duke of Rothesay.
While he’s set to inherit the title Prince of Wales from William this is not an automatic transfer, and William might wait until a future occasion to bestow it.
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What about 8-year-old Prince Louis? The title Duke of York is traditionally bestowed on the monarch’s second son. The queen’s father King George VI held the dukedom of York before his older brother King Edward VIII’s shock abdication in 1936.
But then there’s the problem of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who was the Duke of York before he was stripped of his titles last year. From a legal point of view he is still technically the Duke of York, but his brother the king has forbidden him from using the title on any official documents.
When Andrew dies the title will revert back to the crown. It’s been speculated that the royal family may allow the title to become dormant for a few generations in order to let the taint of its association with Andrew fade.
Little Louis, then, will probably be the next Duke of Edinburgh when his great-uncle Prince Edward dies and the title reverts back to the crown. Prince Philip, the queen’s husband, was the previous Duke of Edinburgh until his death in 2021.
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This story was originally published by Parade on Jun 6, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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