Quote Originally Posted by McClef View Post
But do they? All royal titles that have had a direct male heir have been inherited by that heir without a new creation in the Peerage. Only when there is none or the holder succeeds to the throne do they revert to the Sovereign.

For example the Dukes of Kent and of Gloucester inherited theirs (conferred upon them by their father George V) from their fathers. York did not because the previous holder became King (George VI) and he had no male heirs to begin with. Prince Andrew the current Duke of York has no male heirs either. Interestingly this title has never been passed on since 1474 as previous holders have either died without male issue of ended up succeeding to the throne.
Actually this is really simple, although somewhat arcane. For the benefit of those readers who are more concerned about collecting their laundry than the destination of royal titles, let me explain.

While all British titles emanate from the Sovereign, those held by members of the royal family are treated differently than the others. This all dates from the reign of George V, who (during WWI) limited the use of the HRH prefix, and who also limited the use of the title "prince/princess", amongst other things.

Within the royal family there are some titles which attach themselves to the Sovereign and the sovereign's successors. These are, in effect, the subsidiary titles of the monarch. The children of a sovereign are, at birth, princes and princesses and the sovereign may-- or may not-- grant them a subsidiary title. The grandchildren of a sovereign are also princes and princesses and, if their parent has a subsidiary title (such as Duke of Kent or Duke of Gloucester) then that is the title they will inherit, along with the prefix of HRH. However, the great grandchildren of a sovereign are not considered "royal" and the HRH prefix is dropped, unless it is allowed by the reigning monarch. In the instance of titles specifically created for the children of a sovereign these transmit from one generation to the next in the same way "non-royal" titles are transmitted.

Which brings us to the Dukedom of Edinburgh. This was created anew especially for HRH Prince Philip as a form of "compensation" for his having had to resign all of his foreign titles when he married Princess Elizabeth, heir apparent to the the British crown. It was obvious that, should they have children, the eldest son would inherit the crown and all of the royal subsidiary titles (such as Duke of Normandy), and any other sons would have to be provided for by the creation of newly created royal dukedoms. It was decided, to favour the Queen Mother (whose husband, the king, had been Duke of York at the time of their marriage), that a second son would be given the Dukedom of York, and that a third son would be given... Edinburgh, which was then, as now, the property of HRH Prince Philip.

The not so recent "announcement" that HRH Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, would accede to the Dukedom of Edinburgh at sometime in the future was merely a public confirmation of that fact.

Now, let me see... did by blue suit come back from the laundry yet?