Duke of Cambridge

Duke of Cambridge is a title (named after the city of Cambridge in England) which has been conferred upon members of the British royal family several times. The title is heritable to descendants of the titleholder in accordance with rights of primogeniture. The wife of the titleholder is called Duchess of Cambridge.

The title goes back to the 17th century, and superseded an earlier title of Earl of Cambridge. The title became extinct several times, before being revived after a hiatus of over a hundred years in 2011, when it was bestowed upon Prince William on 29 April 2011 upon his marriage on the same day to Catherine Middleton.

History

The title was first granted to Charles Stuart (1660–1661), the first son of James, Duke of York (later James II of England), though he was never formally created Duke of Cambridge because he had died at the age of six months. The first officially recognised creation of the dukedom was in the Peerage of England in 1664, when James Stuart, second son of the James, Duke of York by his first wife, was granted the title, but he died early in 1667 at the age of three, and the title again became extinct. The title was then granted later that year to the third son of the Duke of York by his first wife, Edgar Stuart, but he then died in 1671 at the age of three, and the title again became extinct. The Duke of York's eldest son by his second wife, Charles Stuart, was also styled Duke of Cambridge in 1667, but died when about a month old, not having lived long enough to be formally created duke.

Duke (disambiguation)

A Duke or Grand Duke is a title of nobility for aristocrats of very high rank.

Duke, Dukes, or The Duke may also refer to:

People

Fictional characters

Cambridge

Cambridge (/ˈkeɪmbrɪdʒ/KAYM-brij) is a university city and the county town of Cambridgeshire, England, on the River Cam about 50 miles (80 km) north of London. At the United Kingdom Census 2011, its population was 123,867, including 24,488 students.

There is archaeological evidence of settlement in the area in the Bronze Age and in Roman Britain; under Viking rule, Cambridge became an important trading centre. The first town charters were granted in the 12th century, although city status was not conferred until 1951.

Cambridge is the home of the University of Cambridge, founded in 1209 and one of the top five universities in the world. The university includes the Cavendish Laboratory, King's College Chapel, and the Cambridge University Library. The Cambridge skyline is dominated by the last two buildings, along with the spire of the Our Lady and the English Martyrs Church, the chimney of Addenbrooke's Hospital and St John's College Chapel tower.

Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology Silicon Fen with industries such as software and bioscience and many start-up companies spun out of the university. Over 40% of the workforce have a higher education qualification, more than twice the national average. Cambridge is also home to the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, one of the largest biomedical research clusters in the world, soon to be home to AstraZeneca, a hotel and relocated Papworth Hospital.

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, KG, KT, ADC(P) (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982) is the elder son of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Diana, Princess of Wales. He is second in line to succeed his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, after his father.

William was educated at four schools in the United Kingdom and obtained a degree from the University of St Andrews. He spent parts of a gap year in Chile, Belize, and Africa. In December 2006, he completed 44 weeks of training as an officer cadet, being commissioned in the Blues and Royals Regiment. In April 2008, he qualified as a pilot (earning his wings) by completing pilot training at Royal Air Force College Cranwell. He then underwent helicopter flying training in order to become a full-time pilot with the RAF Search and Rescue Force in early 2009. His more than seven-and-a-half years of full-time service with the British Armed Forces ended in September 2013.

William married Catherine Middleton, on 29 April 2011 at Westminster Abbey. Hours prior to the event, he was created Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathearn, and Baron Carrickfergus. Their first child, Prince George of Cambridge, was born on 22 July 2013, and their second, Princess Charlotte of Cambridge, was born on 2 May 2015.

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge (Catherine Elizabeth "Kate"; née Middleton; born 9 January 1982), is the wife of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge. Following his father Charles, Prince of Wales, William is second in line to succeed his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, as monarch of the United Kingdom and 15 other Commonwealth realms.

Middleton grew up in Chapel Row, a village near Newbury, Berkshire, England. She studied art history in Scotland at the University of St Andrews, where she met William in 2001. Their engagement was announced on 16 November 2010, and she attended several royal events before they married on 29 April 2011 at Westminster Abbey. The Duke and Duchess have two children: Prince George and Princess Charlotte of Cambridge, who are respectively third and fourth in line to the British throne.

She has had a major impact upon British and American fashion, which has been termed the "Kate Middleton effect", and in 2012 and 2013, she was selected as one of the "100 Most Influential People in the World" by Time magazine.