Duchess of Gloucester

Duchess of Gloucester is the principal courtesy title used by the wife of the Duke of Gloucester. There have been five titles referring to Gloucester since the 14th century. The current duchess is Birgitte, the wife of Prince Richard. He inherited the dukedom on 10 June 1974 upon the death of his father, Prince Henry, the third son of George V.

History
When Thomas of Woodstock, youngest son of Edward III and Philippa of Hainault, was created duke of Gloucester around 1385, his wife Eleanor de Bohun, daughter of Humphrey de Bohun, 7th Earl of Hereford, and Joan Fitzalan, became duchess of Gloucester. Thomas was stripped of his dukedom after being declared guilty of treason in 1397. Their son Humphrey, 2nd Earl of Buckingham, did not inherit. Thomas died in 1397 and his duchess, Eleanor in 1399.

The next duchess was Jacqueline, Countess of Hainaut, daughter of William II, Duke of Bavaria, and Margaret of Burgundy, the wife of Humphrey of Lancaster, Duke of Gloucester, who had been created duke in 1414. They married in 1422 but the marriage was annulled in 1428. Humphrey then married his mistress, Eleanor Cobham, of the Cobham family, after the annulment of his marriage of Jacqueline, but this married was also annulled. Humphrey died in 1447 with no legitimate issue, thus the dukedom was extinct.

Anne, Dowager Princess of Wales, widow of Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales, married Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who had been made duke in 1461, in 1472. The dukedom merged with the crown upon his accession to the throne in 1483 and Anne became queen consort.

The next dukes of Gloucester, Henry Stuart, died unmarried. The next two, Prince William and Prince Frederick, were only styled as Duke of Gloucester and died unmarried or were unmarried during their time styled as duke.

The next iteration of the title was as the joint dukedom of Gloucester and Edinburgh, created in 1764 for Prince William Henry, younger brother of George III. Prince William Henry married Maria Waldegrave, Dowager Countess Waldegrave, the illegitimate daughter of Sir Edward Walpole, in 1766, thus making her the first Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh. Prince William Henry died in 1805. His son and successor, Prince William Frederick, married his first cousin Princess Mary in 1816. They had no children and Prince William Frederick died in 1834, the dukedom becoming extinct on his death.

George V created his third son Prince Henry duke of Gloucester in 1928. When he married Lady Alice Montagu Douglas Scott in 1935, she became his duchess. They had two sons, Prince William and Prince Richard. Prince Henry died in 1974, Prince William predeceased him and he was thus succeeded by his second son Prince Richard, whose wife, Birgitte van Deurs Henriksen, whom he had married in 1972, became duchess and has remained so since.

Duchess of Gloucester (England, 1385–1397)
Other titles: Duchess of Aumale, Countess of Buckingham, Countess of Essex

Bohun family 1385–1397 – daughter of Humphrey de Bohun, 7th Earl of Hereford, and Joan Fitzalan Thomas of Woodstock 5 children aged 32 or 33
 * Eleanor de Bohun
 * Arms of the House of de Bohun.svg
 * c. 1366
 * 1376
 * 3 October 1399
 * }

Duchess of Gloucester (England, 1414–1447)
Other titles: Countess of Pembroke

House of Wittelsbach 1422–1428 Le Quesnoy, County of Hainaut – daughter of William II, Duke of Bavaria, and Margaret of Burgundy Humphrey of Lancaster 1 child (stillborn) aged 35 Cobham family 1428–1441 Starborough Castle, Surrey – daughter of Reynold Cobham, 3rd Baron Cobham, and Eleanor Culpeper Humphrey of Lancaster 2 children aged 51 or 52
 * Jacqueline, Countess of Hainaut
 * Jan van Eyck 097.jpg
 * 15 July 1401
 * 1422–1428 (annulled)
 * 8 October 1436
 * Eleanor Cobham
 * Eleanor Cobham
 * Humphrey & Eleanor.jpg
 * c. 1400
 * 1428–1441 (annulled)
 * 7 July 1452
 * }

Duchess of Gloucester (England, 1461–1483)
House of Neville 1472–1483 Warwick Castle, Warwickshire – daughter of Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick, and Anne Beauchamp Richard, Duke of Gloucester 1 child aged 28
 * Anne, Dowager Princess of Wales
 * AnneNevilleRous.jpg
 * 11 June 1456
 * 1472
 * 16 March 1485
 * }
 * }

Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh (Great Britain, 1764–1834)
Other titles: Countess of Connaught

Walpole family 1766–1805 St James's, Westminster – daughter of Sir Edward Walpole and Dorothy Clement Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh 3 children aged 71 House of Hanover 1816–1834 Buckingham House, London – daughter of George III and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz Prince William Frederick, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh No children aged 81
 * Maria Waldegrave, Dowager Countess Waldegrave
 * Maria, Duchess of Gloucester (1739-1807).jpg
 * 10 July 1736
 * 6 September 1766
 * 22 August 1807
 * The Princess Mary
 * The Princess Mary
 * Mary of Great Britain duchess of Gloucester.jpeg
 * 25 April 1776
 * 22 July 1816
 * 30 April 1857
 * }
 * }

Duchess of Gloucester (United Kingdom, 1928–present)
Other titles: Countess of Ulster, Baroness Culloden

Montagu Douglas Scott family 1935–1974 Montagu House, London – daughter of John Montagu Douglas Scott, 7th Duke of Buccleuch and 9th Duke of Queensberry, and 	Lady Margaret Bridgeman Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester 2 children aged 102 Henriksen family 1974–present Odense, Denmark – daughter of Asger Henriksen and Vivian van Deurs Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester 3 children now 78 years, 29 days old
 * Lady Alice Montagu Douglas Scott
 * Princess Alice in King George VI´s Coronation (cropped).jpg
 * 25 December 1901
 * 6 November 1935
 * 29 October 2004
 * Birgitte van Deurs Henriksen
 * Birgitte van Deurs Henriksen
 * Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester 2015.jpg
 * 20 June 1946
 * 8 July 1972
 * }

Possible future duchesses
Richard and Birgitte's only son Alexander Windsor, Earl of Ulster, married Claire Booth in 2002. They are currently known by the courtesy titles Earl and Countess of Ulster. As Alexander is three generations removed from the crown he is not a prince. Upon his accession Claire would be styled Her Grace The Duchess of Gloucester.

Alexander and Claire’s only son Xan, born in 2007, is currently unmarried.