Prince William & Kate's Last Name: Mountbatten-Windsor

Now that Prince William and Kate Middleton are married, some are wondering their last name.

Like other descendants of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, William's surname is Mountbatten-Windsor, and it will be Kate's too by marriage.

As explained by the official British royal website, the Queen's descendants carry the royal surname Windsor, as well as the name Mountbatten to reflect her husband Prince Philip's surname.

The royal website explains further that the surnames are not always used, only when they are formally needed, such as the case of marriage.

While Prince William will be recorded as a Mountbatten-Windsor in the marriage registry today, he may choose a new name at a later point, specifically if and when he becomes king. As explained here, "Since a royal proclamation is not binding on succeeding rulers, King William could decide to add a name or two."

Prince William and Kate, who will go by the name of Catherine, also gained the titles Duke and Duchess of Cambridge upon their marriage today, conferred upon them by Queen Elizabeth II.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this post stated that the duke and duchess inherited their titles, which is not the case.

Comments

[Watching rock grow]

03:11 PM on 06/12/2011

For all that could be Prince William future names He could go with Arthur Middleton King of the United Kingdom etc. etc.

[Nettie Brodsky]

07:38 AM on 05/02/2011

Never mind, I tend to ask silly questions from time to time.

[Nettie Brodsky]

07:36 AM on 05/02/2011

Very royal, but didn't they have a last name to begin with?

[Fritziscool]

12:58 AM on 05/02/2011

There are two kinds of people on the planet: Human beings and German"-Rudyard Kipling.

I remember, when I was a boy, during the Queens 25th anniversary jubilee in 1977. An author appeared on a local talk show and he was discussing with the host that the Queen had no last name. He said that he had inquired through the palace what surname she might use. AS I recall, she was officially the head of so -so house. So he asked, Was it appropriate the refer to the monarch as "Elizabeth Head".

[omobob]

07:53 PM on 05/01/2011

One may remember Lord Mountbatten, Charles’ favorite Uncle who was assassinated by the IRA. The Highest member of the Royal Windsor Family ever to be murdered.

[agness nutter]

10:10 PM on 05/01/2011

He, along with a couple of children, as I recall.

[omobob]

11:01 PM on 05/01/2011

sad affair.

[techBob]

04:58 PM on 05/01/2011

Thanks to the many posters below who helped set things straight, I think?

[Wistfulslinking]

11:55 AM on 05/01/2011

The official name is WINDSOR, not Mountbatten-Windsor that name is informally adopted by the royals to honor the Duke of Edinburgh.

Article quite wrong on all points, notice it is the gist of the writer skimming a website who didn't really bother to READ or perform any research at all.

The royal couple decided their descendants would be known as Mountbatten-Windsor upon marriage, specifically decedents WITHOUT ROYAL TITLES. The Royal Family be known as Windsor per George V's proclamation at the onset of WW I.

It is only when Duke and Queen's children were closer to marriage in the 1960's did it become necessary to put their decision before the council, which they did.

The council decreed only the decedents of children of Andrew, Anne, Edward would officially bear the surname Mountbatten-Windsor IF they lacked royal titles.

The Queen has always informally used the hybrid surname to honor her husband as do her children, although by law, none are Mountbatten-Windsors, only non-titled descendants will bear that name, i.e. William is a Windsor, NOT a Mountbatten-Windsor.

[Prince Blake]

05:20 PM on 05/01/2011

Thank you for that clarification. Earlier I read an article containing the names of some of the gals that Prince William dated. Many of them had hyphenated last names indicating a combining of parental surnames. I am left wondering the extent to which it reflects a trend mirroring the rise of feminism in America or if name-hyphenation has a long history in British high society.

[Wistfulslinking]

08:36 PM on 05/01/2011

The practice began in Great Britain during the last century. It occurred when two prominent families were joined by married. i.e., the Spencer-Churchill's. Thes marriages combined fortunes, estates, industry, etc.

Example: The Grey and Wilson families were appointed as various Governor Generals of colonies by Queen Victoria's, at some point the married into each other and that is a very simplistic version of my surname, Grey-Wilson, naturally I won't write anything more personal ;)

Imagine the Churchills (Dukes of Marlborough) and the Earsl of Spencer (Lady Diana Spencer). They intermarried and created the additional surname Spencer-Churchill.

[agness nutter]

02:06 AM on 05/09/2011

As far as I'm aware, Andrew, Edward and Anne are all without decedents.

[kendahke]

11:41 AM on 05/01/2011

"Prince William and Kate, who will go by the name of Catherine, also inherited the titles Duke and Duchess of Cambridge upon their marriage today."

Um, no. They didn't inherit anything. They were created Duke and Duchess of Cambridge by letters patent, signed by the Queen.

[Wistfulslinking]

11:56 AM on 05/01/2011

True, writer must have been hired from a noodle shop.

[Tom Volkskrieger]

09:58 AM on 05/01/2011

Their real last name is Hanover... look it up.

[kendahke]

11:43 AM on 05/01/2011

Um, no. That was Queen Victoria's maiden name, through the Hanovers, who were her father's relatives. All of Victoria's descendants were Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, which was Prince Albert's, her husband, name. The name "Windsor" did not come into play until the reign of George V.

[wolfiegirl]

12:46 PM on 05/01/2011

Nope. Not since Victoria.

[S1m0n]

06:34 AM on 05/01/2011

That's only part the story. The part that the royal PR flacks prefer to leave out is that Philip's surname isn't Mountbatten but Battenberg, The latter began to sound way too German* during ww1, so it was hastily anglicised to the more english sounding Mountbatten.

[Rapier]

08:10 AM on 05/01/2011

And the Royals were then Saxe-Coburg also changed hastily to Windsor during WW II.

[Wistfulslinking]

12:05 PM on 05/01/2011

And No. The House of Windsor was created 1917.

The royal family has never had a surname, they belong to the House of Windsor.

[Wistfulslinking]

12:02 PM on 05/01/2011

No, his mother's maiden name was Battenburg, his father had no surname he was a Danish Prince of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg.

[tst1201]

04:20 AM on 05/01/2011

On their military uniforms William and Harry go by Wales. It was suggested that William (and Kate, I suppose) could use Cambridge as their surname now, but since he will eventually become The Prince of Wales himself one day it has been supposed that he won't want to change his name just to change it back again eventually. ;)

[Wistfulslinking]

12:05 PM on 05/01/2011

Royals have no surname, they have a House.

[tst1201]

06:36 PM on 05/01/2011

I should clarify--I don't mean surname as most of us would know it, however they are known by two names at work at least and Wales is the name both William and Harry have chosen to use. I think when signing things, most Royals just seem to go by their first names anyways so "last" names are really superfluous.

[Wistfulslinking]

11:50 PM on 04/30/2011

This "news" was first reported 64 years ago.

[Simone Jester]

01:50 AM on 05/01/2011

It may be history, but it is new to some of us.

[Wistfulslinking]

11:19 AM on 05/01/2011

The Allies also won WW II.

[knightie2008]

10:06 PM on 04/30/2011

I thought I heard that Camilla, if Charles became King, would be considered a "consort." Of course, to my way of thinking at least, Charles has given up that right by not only divorcing but by marrying a divorcee. I much prefer to think that Queen Elizabeth will hand her throne and crown to Prince William. And definitely the story has it wrong, Windsor is Queen Elizabeth's heritage, Mountbatten is Phillip's...

[susandiane]

07:31 AM on 05/01/2011

the queen mum was a queen consort also. the females ARE deemed queen, but the males that marry in are princes (can't let some guy declare "I'M KING" and take over you know) i'm not sure how camilla will be titled. charles (i hate to say this) lucked out when diana died. that made him in the eyes of the church a widower, not a divorced man. is camilla's ex still alive? that makes ALL the difference. while he lives, she's a divorcee.

[cjpmpd]

07:05 PM on 05/01/2011

susandiane, you're correct, Charles "lucked out" when Diana died (which is why there is so much controversy as to whether it was an accident) because it did free him up to marry. However, Camilla is still a divorced woman & what with the head of the country being the Head of the Church of England, I'm not sure that the Queen be allowed to let Charles take over. She may just pass it on over to William. Also, knightie2008, you are correct that a Windsor is Elizabeth's heritage & Mountbatten is Phillips..:)

[nana4g]

09:14 PM on 04/30/2011

I believe it may be the other way around. Mountbatten is Phillip's name, no? Windsor is Queen Elizabeth's. Saxe-Coburg-Gotha is correct. They changed it before, around WW I or II because it was too German sounding. Alice Battenberg was Phillip's Mother. Somewhere in Phillip"s pool is a relation to Greeks. I may be confused.

[Sharron Ray]

10:14 PM on 04/30/2011

You are partly right. Elizabeth's father declared that all in his family and all his descendants would be known as Windsor. When Elizabeth became Queen she made the same declaration, all in her family and all her descendants would be known as Windsor. There for William's and Catherine's last name will be known as Windsor. He has the right when he becomes King to declare a different name last name, but until then it is Windsor.
Now as for Phillip the husband of Queen Elizabeth his adopted English last name is Mountbatten. He took that last name when he started to live with Mountbatten in England. He gave up his right to both the Swedish and Greek crowns when he married Elizabeth.
He and Elizabeth are cousins.
Charles and Diana are cousins.
Catherine fits in the family as a distant cousin, although considered a commoner, they were not ever a Royal.

[Sharron Ray]

10:48 PM on 04/30/2011

Born Prince Phillip of Denmark and Greece from the house of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg. He gave up the right to the Denmark and the Greece Crowns when he married Queen Elizabeth of England.

[Chris Erion]

06:17 PM on 04/30/2011

This article isn't completely correct. Because the last name of Prince William and the rest of the people in that royal family is actually Saxe-Coburg-Gotha.

[Sharron Ray]

10:44 PM on 04/30/2011

Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh is of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg. Which means that would be his last name if he had not chosen the Mountbatten name. The name you are referring to is that of Queen Elizabeth's family, changed to WINDSOR.

[Wistfulslinking]

12:16 AM on 05/01/2011

Hardly, it never was SCG.

Phillip's parents surnames were Battenberg and Mounbatten.

His paternal grandfather was Georgios Christian Vilhelm I, A Dane and King Of Greece.

One of his great-grandmothers's maiden names was Saxe-Coburg. However, even his grand-mother was simple Victoria of Hesse, not SCG.

[Watching rock grow]

03:00 PM on 06/12/2011

Prince Philip is the oldest living descendent of Victoria and Albert though their daughter Princess Alice, of the United Kingdom and her husband Louis IV, the Grand Duke of Hesse and Rhine. The last name of his mother was Battenberg; his father’s last name was Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glucksburg.