A new title but the same person and somehow that underlines just why it matters that The King’s only sister in law is now HRH The Duchess of Edinburgh.
As King Charles III made his youngest brother the Duke of Edinburgh, he added a new chapter to two of his royal dynasty’s most striking success stories. For the House of Windsor has relied heavily on duchesses throughout its century and a bit of existence. And the latest to take that title has been fundamental to its strength in the 21st century. Bringing the title and the woman together seemed a perfect fit.
In recent years, Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh has even been labelled the ”secret weapon” of the Windsors. Over two decades, she’s built up an image as one of the hardest working members of the Royal Family and she’s taken on some of the hardest hitting causes, too. Her work has included fighting for justice for victims of sexual violence in conflict and supporting organisations working to stamp out abuse. Sophie hasn’t shied away from giving royal backing to sometimes overlooked issues and she’s made the Windsors much more relevant as a result.
Her role has also grown in recent years. When she married Prince Edward, in 1999, there was a whole roster of royals out and about, carrying out engagements. But in the two decades since, the landscape has changed and regal boots on the ground have thinned out somewhat. As age led to Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip scaling back their engagements and cousins, including the Duke of Kent, passing on patronages, more duties fell to Sophie and her husband. And they were ready to take it all on.
However, it was always within the pattern of monarchy laid out by Queen Elizabeth II and her successor, now King Charles III. Just ten years ago, Sophie wouldn’t have expected to have the same royal role she does now. As the Diamond Jubilee lefts its glitter on the Firm, King Charles looked to the future and a slimmed down monarchy, centred around himself and his sons. The decision of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to leave their royal roles changed much including the long term duties of Edward and Sophie.
They became a much more integral part of the royal rota run by King Charles. More engagements, more causes and a more central part in the pattern of family suddenly spread out before them. They didn’t flinch.
In fact, Sophie appears to have used the moment to take on even more causes that matter to her. She’s been vocal about the issues faced by women going through perimenopause and menopause while her work around improving access to life changing treatments for impaired vision has made a real difference to many lives. And as the new reign of King Charles III got under way, it was Sophie who took on the trickiest overseas visit the Windsors have tackled in years. In October 2022, she became the first member of the Royal Family to travel to the Democratic Republic of Congo where she worked to tackle sexual and gender based violence in conflict and support victims.
Her role within the family has also been crucial. She enjoyed a strong and affectionate relationship with her parents-in-law, even referring to Queen Elizabeth II as mama, and she was clearly devasted when she lost them both. The decision of the Royal Family to say its own goodbye to Prince Philip with an image taken by Sophie was very telling. The happy, carefree photo not only showed the deep bond and total ease between subjects and snapper. It highlighted Sophie’s integral place within the family she married into.
It’s not always been easy. That trust and respect was tested in the early years of her marriage when Sophie was caught in a newspaper sting in which she was misled by a reporter posing as a sheikh into talking about the royals. She gave up her remaining work in PR soon afterwards and settled fully into a life of engagements and duties. She’s not put a foot wrong since.
And that is perhaps why her new title feels like such a perfect fit. Is it a promotion? Sophie has been an HRH since her 1999 wedding when it was announced that her new husband would, one day, become Duke of Edinburgh but would, until then, be the Earl of Wessex. That decision was made at a time of controversy for the Royal Family, coming just two years after the death of Diana, Princess of Wales and a simmering row about the decision to take her HRH away when her marriage legally ended. Sophie became the only royal countess in town and stuck with that in the intervening years, even as newer wives took apparently higher titles. Now, she is a royal duchess.
And that seems very appropriate. For the House of Windsor has always needed its duchesses. Since George V, he of the now eternally famous Letters Patent of 1917, started handing out dukedoms to his sons, his dynasty has been been made stronger by the women they married and turned into duchesses. Sophie has kept up that devotion to royal duty. Which is why the new Duchess of Edinburgh seems the perfect fit for this very special title.
