Prince Louis to Inherit Prince Andrew’s Fallen Crown? Inside the Battle for the Duke of York Title

Prince Louis to Inherit Prince Andrew’s Fallen Crown? Inside the Battle for the Duke of York Title

Prince Louis of Wales, the younger son of Prince William, stands traditionally next in line for one of the most historic and politically fraught titles in the British peerage: the Duke of York. However, the path to this title is currently blocked by constitutional convention, the specific inheritance rules of the peerage, and the controversial legacy of its current holder, Prince Andrew.

The Tradition and the Legal Block

The Dukedom of York has a centuries-old tradition, often bestowed upon the monarch’s second son. Prince Andrew, the second son of the late Queen Elizabeth II, received the title upon his marriage to Sarah Ferguson in 1986.

However, British peerages, unlike styles such as "His Royal Highness," are governed by legal documents (Letters Patent) that dictate their descent. Since Prince Andrew has no legitimate male heirs (he has two daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie), the title is what is known as "in remainder" only to his male-line. When he dies, the title will legally revert, or merge, with the Crown.

Crucially, while Prince Andrew has recently relinquished the use of the Duke of York title and retired from public life, he has not been formally stripped of the peerage itself. Only an Act of Parliament can fully strip a person of a Dukedom while they are alive—a constitutional action the Crown and Government are hesitant to pursue.

This situation creates the fundamental block: Prince Louis cannot legally be created the Duke of York while Prince Andrew remains alive, regardless of whether Andrew uses the title or not. The title is occupied.

Related: What will Prince Andrew do Next?

The Unlucky Dukedom: A History of Misfortune

Beyond the current political controversy, the Dukedom of York carries a long and peculiar history of misfortune. Over the centuries, the title has never successfully passed from father to son, leading many royal historians to informally brand it as "The Unlucky Dukedom."

Previous Dukes of York have repeatedly met untimely or dramatic ends:

• Death in Battle: Edward of Norwich, 2nd Duke of York, was killed fighting at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, was killed during the Wars of the Roses.
• The Princes in the Tower: The most famous instance of tragedy belongs to Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York. He was one of the two Princes in the Tower who disappeared, presumed murdered, in 1483.
• The Crown Merger: The common outcome is that the title holder inherits the throne (e.g., Henry VIII, Charles I, George V, George VI), meaning the Dukedom is absorbed by the Crown rather than being passed down.

This historical pattern—dying without male issue or ascending to the throne—makes Prince Andrew's current position (where the title will legally revert upon his death due to lack of a son) simply the latest iteration of the Dukedom’s persistent jinx.

An Analogy for Peerage Law

To understand this technicality, consider the Dukedom of York not as a temporary style but as a piece of real estate governed by a very specific 75-year lease:

• The Crown is the landlord (the ultimate source of the title).
• Prince Andrew is the current leaseholder (the Duke).
• The Lease Terms (the Letters Patent) state the lease can only be terminated upon the leaseholder's death or by a rare, costly Act of Parliament.
• Prince Louis is the potential future tenant, but the space is legally occupied until the current lease expires.

In short, the title is legally dormant but not extinct, which keeps it locked up until Prince Andrew’s death.

Prince Louis’s Uncertain Future

Should Prince Louis marry after the title has reverted to the Crown (i.e., after the death of Prince Andrew, and while his father, Prince William, is King), he is the prime candidate to receive the Dukedom, following historical precedent.

However, the power to grant a new peerage rests solely with the reigning monarch (King William, at that time), who uses the Royal Prerogative. Given the long and deeply controversial association of the Dukedom of York with Prince Andrew, coupled with its dark and "unlucky" history, King William may decide one of three things:

1. Grant it as Tradition Dictates: Bestow the Dukedom upon Louis to maintain the centuries-old custom, challenging the "curse" in the process.
2. Grant an Alternate Dukedom: Choose a currently vacant or newly created title (such as the Duke of Clarence or Duke of Cambridge, if available) to spare Louis from the controversy and historical shadow associated with York.
3. Retire the Practice: In line with movements toward a "stripped-down monarchy," King William might choose not to grant any hereditary dukedoms to his younger children upon marriage, reserving them only for the heir.

Ultimately, while the history and tradition point directly at Prince Louis, the current legal reality of the title's holder, combined with the future monarch’s personal choice, makes the potential Dukedom of York one of the most unpredictable titles in the Royal Family.