upon their eldest sons and heirs-apparent to the crown; but in consequence of the short time which usually elapses between the birth of the prince and the creation of the title, the erroneous idea has been occasionally entertained that the style and dignity of Prince of Wales are inherited by the heir-apparent to the throne. The dukedom of Cornwall, moreover, being truly inherited by (instead of being conferred upon) each successive heir-apparent, has tended to encourage this misconception when taken in conjunction with the fact, that like all other sons of the sovereign, he is a "Prince" by birth.

But the practice is, that he should be created Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester by special patent, while he enjoys, by a sort of hereditary prescription, certain other titular distinctions.

1 The following is the last patent issued for this purpose :— Victoria, by the grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Queen, Defender of the Faith;

"To all Archbishops, Dukes, Marquisses, Earls, Viscounts, Bishops, Barons, Baronets, Knights, Justices, Provosts, Ministers, and all other our faithful subjects, greeting,—

"Know ye, that we have made and created, and by these our letters patent do make and create, our most dear Son, the Prince of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (Duke of Saxony, Duke of Cornwall and Rothsay, Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles and Great Steward of Scotland), Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester ; and to the same, our most dear Son, the Prince of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, have given and granted, and by this our present charter do give, grant and confirm, the name, style, title, dignity, and honour of the same principality and earldom, and him, our said most dear Son the Prince of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and

When Edward I. subdued Wales, he is said to have promised the people of that country a native prince who could not speak English, and taking advantage of the fact that his queen, Eleanor, was delivered of a child at Carnarvon Castle, in North Wales, he conferred the principality upon his infant son Edward, who was yet unable to speak. By the death of his eldest brother Alphonso, Edward became heir to the throne, to which he afterwards succeeded as Edward II.; but from this time forward, the principality has been appropriated solely to the eldest sons of the kings of England, who previous to this period had only borne the title of "Lord Prince."

In 1841, for the first time, the dukedom of Saxony was introduced among the reputed titles of the Prince of Wales. This dignity his Royal Highness derives merely in right of his own paternal descent, and it

Ireland, as has been accustomed, we do ennoble and invest with the said principality and earldom, by girting him with a sword, by putting a coronet on his head, and a gold ring on his finger, and also by delivering a gold rod into his hand, that he may preside there, and may direct and defend those parts; to hold to him and his heirs Kings of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland for ever: wherefore we will, and strictly command for us, our heirs, and successors, that our said most dear Son, the Prince of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland may have the name, style, title, rank, dignity, and honour of the principality of Wales, and earldom of Chester aforesaid, unto him and his heirs, Kings of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, as is abovementioned.

"In witness whereof, we have caused these our letters to be made patent. Witness ourself at Westminster this 8th day of December, 1841."

is not one of those titles which have anciently accompanied the principality.

Without any new creation, and previous to his acquiring the title of Prince of Wales, the heir apparent of the sovereign is Duke of Cornwall, the most ancient title of its degree in England. Edward the Black Prince

"Britain's hope and France's fear,
Victor of Cressy and Poitier,"

was created the first Duke of Cornwall in 1337, with the special limitation "habend' et tenend' eidem Duci et ipsius et heredem suor' Regum Angl' filiis primogenitis et dicti loci Ducib' in regno Angl' hereditar' successur'." By this peculiar descent the dukedom merges in the Crown when there is no heir apparent, and is immediately inherited by the prince on his birth, or by the accession of his father to the throne, as the case may be. Thus, on the death of the eldest son of the monarch without issue, the second immediately inherits the dukedom: but if the former should leave issue, then the dukedom reverts to the Crown, for it is necessary that the claimant to this title should be at once heir apparent to the throne, and eldest son or eldest surviving son of the king. George III., though Prince of Wales by patent for nine years before his accession, was only duke of Cornwall from the time he ascended the throne till the birth of his eldest son; because he succeeded to the Crown on the death of his grandfather, and not of his father. With respect to the duchy, the eldest son of the sovereign is not subject, it is said, to the incidents of minority, but he neces

sarily acts under the advice and direction of his friends.

The earldom of Chester is one of the titles conferred by patent, but it was formerly a principality, into which it had been erected by the 21st of Richard II. In the reign of Henry IV., however, the act of parliament, by which it had been constituted, was repealed, and it has ever since been granted in the same patent which confers the title of Prince of Wales.

As the eldest sons of the kings of Scotland have enjoyed the titles of Duke of Rothsay, Earl of Carrick, Baron Renfrew, and Hereditary Great Steward of Scotland, those dignities are also invariably attributed to the Prince of Wales. They were conferred by Robert III. of Scotland on his eldest son, and were perpetually appropriated to the future princes of Scotland at their birth. By the accession of James I. of England, the titles became annexed to the other honours of the heir apparent to the British throne.

Ireland confers no title on the monarch's eldest son, though it has been the practice to confer Irish as well as British peerages on all the junior issue of the sovereign.

His rank, though the highest in the realm next after the queen (and her consort), does not, however, free him from the condition of a subject. But he enjoys certain privileges above other subjects; to contrive or design his death, or to violate the chastity of his consort, is as much high treason as if he had ascended the throne of his ancestors. On all occasions of state and ceremony, he sits on the queen's right hand.

By the statutes of the Order of the Garter, the Prince of Wales is a constituent part of its original institution, and from the moment that the principality is conferred on him it becomes incorrect to describe him without the K.G. For the more minute history of this peculiarity, however, the reader is referred to the account of the Order of Knighthood, which it more immediately concerns.

PRINCESS OF WALES.

THIS title is borne by the consort of the Prince of Wales. It is asserted, however, in a note to Blackstone's Commentaries, that queen Mary and queen Elizabeth were created by their father Henry VIII. Princesses of Wales, each of them at the respective creations (the latter after the illegitimation of Mary) being heir presumptive to the throne; this is stated on the authority of Hume, who quotes Burnet on the point. But according to Sir Harris Nicolas, it appears, on examination, that the statement is unfounded. To violate the chastity of the princess of Wales, is high treason.

THE PRINCESS ROYAL.

THIS title is given to the eldest daughter of the Sovereign. To violate her chastity is high treason, inasmuch as she is the heir presumptive to the throne in default of male issue, and such a violation