Tatiana Maria
Majesty
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Returning to the styling of royal duchesses dowager, which has been discussed several times in this thread lately: I wonder if the styling of Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent after her oldest son's marriage in 1961 (which was copied in 1974 by Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester) was affected by the existing customs of the peerage.
Dowager Peeresses
"Black's" is listed as the 1932 edition of Titles and Forms of Address: A Guide to Their Correct Use, published by A. & C. Black Ltd., so most duchesses dowager apparently used the style Mary, Duchess of X, by 1932.
1961 was the first time that the situation of a royal duchess dowager needing to change her style arose in the British royal family. (It potentially could have arisen earlier as the Duchess of Albany's only son inherited the dukedom of Albany and married in his mother's lifetime, but the new duke inherited Coburg and Gotha before marriage and he and his new wife were known as the Duke and Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, so the duchess dowager continued to be known as The Duchess of Albany.) Therefore, there was no example in 1961 for royal duchesses dowager, but the current British custom for a non-royal duchess dowager would have been to announce in the press that she would be using the style Marina, Duchess of Kent.
In that light, the question for me is not necessarily why she didn't use The Dowager Duchess / Duchess Dowager of Kent (neither did most non-royal dowagers of her generation) but why she didn't use HRH Marina, Duchess of Kent (following the custom for non-royal duchesses dowager) or HRH The Princess George, Duchess of Kent.
Dowager Peeresses
According to Debrett's Correct Form:
"Officially the widow of a peer is known as the Dowager Countess (or whatever) of X, unless there is already a dowager peeress of the family still living. In the latter event, the widow of the senior peer of the family retains the title of Dowager for life, and the widow of the junior peer in that family is known by her Christian name, e.g., Mary, Countess of X, until she becomes the senior widow. . . . When the present peer is unmarried, by custom the widow of the late peer continues to call herself as she did when her husband was living, i.e., without the prefix of (a) dowager, or (b) her Christian name. Should the present peer marry, it is usual for the widowed peeress to announce the style by which she wishes to be know in future."(113) This last bit is twentieth century, and Black's agrees: most widows don't use "dowager" at all anymore, and simply use the Mary, Countess of X option, announcing in the press the style they will be using.
"Officially the widow of a peer is known as the Dowager Countess (or whatever) of X, unless there is already a dowager peeress of the family still living. In the latter event, the widow of the senior peer of the family retains the title of Dowager for life, and the widow of the junior peer in that family is known by her Christian name, e.g., Mary, Countess of X, until she becomes the senior widow. . . . When the present peer is unmarried, by custom the widow of the late peer continues to call herself as she did when her husband was living, i.e., without the prefix of (a) dowager, or (b) her Christian name. Should the present peer marry, it is usual for the widowed peeress to announce the style by which she wishes to be know in future."(113) This last bit is twentieth century, and Black's agrees: most widows don't use "dowager" at all anymore, and simply use the Mary, Countess of X option, announcing in the press the style they will be using.
"Black's" is listed as the 1932 edition of Titles and Forms of Address: A Guide to Their Correct Use, published by A. & C. Black Ltd., so most duchesses dowager apparently used the style Mary, Duchess of X, by 1932.
1961 was the first time that the situation of a royal duchess dowager needing to change her style arose in the British royal family. (It potentially could have arisen earlier as the Duchess of Albany's only son inherited the dukedom of Albany and married in his mother's lifetime, but the new duke inherited Coburg and Gotha before marriage and he and his new wife were known as the Duke and Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, so the duchess dowager continued to be known as The Duchess of Albany.) Therefore, there was no example in 1961 for royal duchesses dowager, but the current British custom for a non-royal duchess dowager would have been to announce in the press that she would be using the style Marina, Duchess of Kent.
In that light, the question for me is not necessarily why she didn't use The Dowager Duchess / Duchess Dowager of Kent (neither did most non-royal dowagers of her generation) but why she didn't use HRH Marina, Duchess of Kent (following the custom for non-royal duchesses dowager) or HRH The Princess George, Duchess of Kent.
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