Buckingham Palace shares big news!

[FSUZeta]

http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/p...chess/1742541/

[AZTheta]

Wonderful news! Wishes for a trouble-free pregnancy and a healthy baby.

[AlphaFrog]

It annoys me that they still refer to her as Kate Middleton. She's HRH, The Duchess if Cambridge, Lady Kate...pick one. Did they refer to Diana as "Diana Spencer" for awhile?

[thetygerlily]

I must have missed this succession rule change. Very cool:

Boy or girl, the baby, will be third in the line to the throne, now that Britain's antique rules of royal succession have been changed to allow a first-born girl to succeed even if she later has younger brothers... Shortly after the wedding, hundreds of years of law and tradition were upended when Britain and the 15 Commonwealth countries that recognize the queen as their head of state agreed to get rid of the succession rules that say boys take precedence over girls no matter what their birth order.

It must be frustrating to be expected to get pregnant so quickly after you get married. I enjoyed being married for 5 years before getting pregnant... of course, both my husband and I have older brothers who have two young children- so the pressure was off. And we aren't royalty. I suppose it's par for the course for them.

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by AlphaFrog

It annoys me that they still refer to her as Kate Middleton. She's HRH, The Duchess if Cambridge, Lady Kate...pick one.

Well, in Scotland she's the Countess of Strathearn.

And no, she's not Lady Kate. Lady is not used for duchesses, especially royal duchesses. She could be called Princess William, but the royal duchy title actually outranks the prince title, so that makes the preferred style "HRH the Duchess of Cambridge" or "Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge."

FWIW, Kate's full title is Her Royal Highness Princess William, Duchess of Cambridge, Countess of Strathearn, Baroness Carrickfergus.

Did they refer to Diana as "Diana Spencer" for awhile?

No, they called her Princess Diana, which was also incorrect. (Ditto Princess Grace.) With the possible exception of a princess consort (of which Camilla Parker Bowles will be the first), only someone who is a princess by blood is entitled to be called "Princess [Name]."

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Okay, but Diana was Lady Diana BEFORE she was married. Kate Middleton is a commoner!

[amIblue?]

These people have zero impact on my life, but I am still ridiculously happy for them.

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Okay, but Diana was Lady Diana BEFORE she was married. Kate Middleton is a commoner!

Right. (Well, was a commoner. She's a royal duchess now.)

I'd wager that "Kate Middleton" has stuck because the American press has at least learned that "Princess Kate" is incorrect and they think if they call her the Duchess of Cambridge, too many people won't know who they're talking about. Besides, they still tend to call her husband Prince William rather than the Duke of Cornwall.

[Psi U MC Vito]

Originally Posted by MysticCat

Right. (Well, was a commoner. She's a royal duchess now.)

I'd wager that "Kate Middleton" has stuck because the American press has at least learned that "Princess Kate" is incorrect and they think if they call her the Duchess of Cambridge, too many people won't know who they're talking about. Besides, they still tend to call her husband Prince William rather than the Duke of Cornwall.

Since he is a Duke in his own right, that would outweigh his courtesy title as Prince right? Also, would the Duchess of Cornwall be a Princess Consort instead of a Queen Consort? And isn't Kate technically speaking a commoner since she is a Duchess and Countess only by marriage?

[AlphaFrog]

Originally Posted by MysticCat

And no, she's not Lady Kate. Lady is not used for duchesses, especially royal duchesses.

Sorry. Brain stuck in Renaissance Festival mode where most of the noble women used "Lady" since most were playing *daughters* of Nobles. I also had a few insist on calling me Lady Sirena, since I played a Duchess-ranked character, which was necessary since they wanted my costumes to be royal blue. The whole fairy thing just added to the grey area there when it came to titles & pecking order.

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by Psi U MC Vito

Since he is a Duke in his own right, that would outweigh his courtesy title as Prince right?

He was created a duke the day they got married, and yes, his title of Duke of Cambridge takes precedence over "Prince." So while he can still be referred to as "Prince William," he is formally HRH The Duke of Cambridge (or in Scotland HRH The Earl of Strathearn), whereas before his wedding day he was HRH Prince William of Wales. But the parallel to Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge is not William, Duke of Cambridge, but rather Prince William, Duke of Cambridge.

(FWIW, his full title: His Royal Highness Prince William Arthur Philip Louis, Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathearn, Baron Carrickfergus, Royal Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, Knight of the Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle.

Also, would the Duchess of Cornwall be a Princess Consort instead of a Queen Consort? And isn't Kate technically speaking a commoner since she is a Duchess and Countess only by marriage?

The Prince of Wales' office has said that if/when Charles becomes king, Camilla will bear the title "princess consort." If that is indeed what happens, she will be the first wife of a British king to hold that title.

As for Kate, I believe that she is no longer considered a commoner by virtue of being a royal duchess. The more accurate (I think) way to put it is that she comes from a family that is neither royal nor noble.


I need a life.

[DubaiSis]

I'm glad they've changed the rule, and surprised I didn't hear this. In their history, the women have been the best, and the kings were either meh or outright bad, except for the short reign of Elizabeth's father.

I'm still waiting for the psychic prediction to come true that I heard when Princess Diana was pregnant, that she would have a son, her son would be the next king (that Charles for whatever reason would never reign), and that he would be a great king. And if I'm not mistaken, Charles would have to die for this to become true because even if he didn't want to be king, he would have to accept the crown and then hand it to his son. And of course, he is getting old, so he could die of old age (I know, you don't actually die of old age), while his mother lives on to be a gazillion years old. Not that I'm rooting for this eventuality. I've just held onto this prediction (from the Oprah show) for years and keep waiting to find out if it's accurate or not.

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by Low C Sharp

Strange but true: technically, Diana was born a commoner as well. The daughters of earls are not members of the nobility, and are styled "Lady Firstname" as a courtesy. See also Lady Marjorie of "Upstairs, Downstairs," daughter of the Earl of Southwold.

Exactly, which brings it back around to the way I phrased it -- from a family that is neither royal nor noble. While Lady Diana was not herself noble, her father/family was.

And yes, born a commoner would be another way to say it. But once Kate had the right to be called Her Royal Highness, she was most certainly not a commoner anymore.


I admire your geekiness.

[adpimiz]

Congratulations to them! They deserve it.

[honeychile]

On another board, someone was moaning about "it's too soon!" and really being a Debbie Downer about it. She was quickly reminded (not by me, I defriended this burst of sunshine) that the Duke and Duchess lived together for something like eight years prior to their marriage, and are both over thirty. If they want the big family they threaten to have, thirty years old is a little late to be starting it!

And I heart my Jamestown cousin for his knowledge of the peerage!