What's In A Royal Name?

     George Alexander Louis Mountbatten-Windsor. That’s the name of the future king of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

HRH Prince George of Cambridge

     As a titled member of the royal family with the status of Royal Highness however, he will not use his surname of Mountbatten-Windsor except perhaps for documents like his birth certificate and the marriage register. Instead, he is titled and styled as His Royal Highness Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge, based on the territorial designation of his father Prince William’s dukedom of Cambridge. Eventually, he may be commonly known as George Cambridge, just as his father is known as William Wales in the military (as well as when he was in school), based on the territorial designation of his father Prince Charles’s principality of Wales. (Before he became Duke of Cambridge, William was titled and styled as Prince William of Wales). But since William is also Earl of Strathearn (Scottish title) and Baron Carrickfergus (Northern Irish title), it may also be possible that George could be known by those territorial designations when appropriate. 

     But titles aside, the choice of George Alexander Louis, in my opinion, is an effective attempt to satisfy history, tradition, family heritage, and geopolitics. 

Story Behind the Names 

George 

     The first name of George is significant for a couple of reasons. For one thing, St. George was the Christian martyr who became the patron saint of many countries, including England, and was also legendarily famous for the tale of him slaying a dragon. In Shakespeare's play about King Henry V of England, at the Battle of Agincourt, during which Henry led his army to victory over the French, his soldiers were rallied to the cry of, "For God, Harry, England, and St. George!"

King George I of Great Britain and Ireland,
seen in a portrait by Sir Godfrey Kneller.

George II of Great Britain and Ireland,
by Thomas Hudson.

     But the name is more significant for being the names of six previous British kings, beginning with George I. In fact, despite St. George being England’s patron saint, the name “George” did not become commonly used in England or throughout Britain until George succeeded his cousin Queen Anne in 1714. He was not a popular king because he was a German who did not speak English and because of his treatment toward his wife (due to an affair she had with a Swedish soldier). His son George II is best known as being the last British monarch to lead his troops personally into battle in a victory over the French at Dettingen.

George III of the United Kingdom,
by Allan Ramsay.

     King George III succeeded his grandfather George II in 1760, beginning a 59 ½ year long reign, which to this day makes him the longest reigning king in British history. Aside from this factoid, he is known today for his interests in farming (earning the nickname “Farmer George”), being the “king who lost America” and for his bouts of mental illness, immortalized by Nigel Hawthorne in The Madness of King George. When George was declared unfit to rule in 1811, his son – also named George – became Prince Regent (with all of the powers, but not the status, of a king) for the last decade of his father’s reign.

George IV of the United Kingdom,
by Thomas Lawrence.

He himself became George IV upon the death of his father in 1820. This King George was known for his debauchery and extravagant lifestyle, which included copious quantities of food, alcohol, financial expenditure, and women. But he was also a great patron of the arts and a barometer of fashion (for dispensing with powdered wigs and popularizing the wearing of trousers). In 1822, he became the first reigning monarch to visit Scotland since Charles II was crowned there in 1651, and along with Sir Walter Scott, is credited for reestablishing a solid relationship between Scotland and the monarchy.

     
     George V (the present Queen’s grandfather) presided over some of the most tumultuous periods of modern British history, including World War I and the Great Depression.

George V, King of the United Kingdom
and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India,
in his coronation portrait by Sir Luke Fildes.

It was because of anti-German sentiment during the war that George renamed his royal house from the German-sounding Saxe-Coburg-Gotha to the more British-sounding Windsor, which it remains to this day. He also reformed the honors system to give recognition those whose achievements the old honors ignored, especially those who performed voluntary services to their communities. The apex of these new honors was the Order of British Empire, which today has a membership of over 100,000 people. It was also George V (along with Queen Mary) who brought the monarchy closer to the people by, among other things, visiting industrial sites (including going down mine shafts), expanding Palace guest lists to include more common people, and delivering radio broadcasts (including the first of the annual Christmas broadcasts) to Britain and the Empire.

     When George V died in 1936, he was succeeded by his eldest son, who became Edward VIII. But Edward would abdicate in disgrace before the year was out due to his determination to marry a twice-divorced American woman – Wallis Simpson. He was succeeded in turn by his brother Albert (the present Queen’s father, who was known as “Bertie” in the family) who chose to reign as George VI to emphasize the stable continuity from his father. In 

George VI, the last Emperor of India and
the first Head of the Commonwealth, who
became known for overcoming his stuttering issues.

the lead-up to World War II, George became the first reigning monarch to visit the United States, where he and Queen Elizabeth were the guests of President and Mrs. Roosevelt. With Winston Churchill as his prime minister, he led Britain and the Empire through the war, and endeared himself to his people by staying in Buckingham Palace through much of Blitz - barely escaping death when the Palace took a direct hit from the Nazi’s - and visiting bombed-out sites throughout Britain. George suffered from stammering for much of his life, but he was able to improve his public speaking abilities with the help of the Australian speech therapist Lionel Louge, and this was featured in the 2010 Oscar-winning film, The King’s Speech.

     George is also one of Prince Charles’s middle names (Charles Philip Arthur George) and he has allegedly said that he may want to be crowned as George VII instead of Charles III when he comes to the throne because of the relative stability associated with that name.

     So George has historical meaning and on a personal level, it may be a tribute to the Queen’s beloved father. 

Alexander 

     When one thinks of Alexander, it is easy to think of Alexander the Great of ancient times. But the first middle name of the new prince may have its meaning in more modern history and geopolitics. 

Statue of King Alexander III of Scotland on the West Door of St. Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh.

     There have been three kings of Scotland named Alexander, with Alexander III being one of Scotland’s most illustrious rulers. He is best remembered for claiming the Western Isles from Norway, and then defeating the Norwegians led by their king, Haakon IV, at the Battle of Largs in 1263 for control of the Isles. In more recent memory, William and Kate met at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. With the Scottish independence referendum coming up in September of next year, the choice of Alexander may well be a way of showing the royal family’s commitment to Scotland within the United Kingdom (for if anything, it can be argued that they themselves are more Scottish than English, but that is for another article).

Queen Alexandra, by Sir Luke Fildes.

The Queen's full name is
Elizabeth Alexandra Mary.

     
     

     

     







     
     
     
       
     On a more personal and family level, Alexander may be a clever tribute to the Queen, because it is the masculine form of her own first middle name of Alexandra (which itself was a tribute to her great-grandmother Queen Alexandra, wife of Edward VII). 

Louis 

     Whereas George and Alexander appear to have several meanings that can be applied to them, the new prince’s second middle name has a clear and direct reference: Lord Louis Mountbatten.

Admiral of the Fleet,
Lord Louis Mountbatten.

Lord Mountbatten (known as “Dickie” to family and friends) enjoyed a distinguished career as a naval officer and statesman, best known for being the last Viceroy of India, First Sea Lord, Chief of the Defense Staff, and Chairman of the NATO Military Committee. He was an uncle to Prince Philip (the Queen's husband), and encouraged Philip to join the Royal Navy, as well as – allegedly – to court the then-Princess Elizabeth. Mountbatten was a confidant to the royal family in general and a mentor to Prince Charles in particular. His assassination by the Provisional Irish Republican Army in 1979 was a blow to Charles, who revered his great-uncle. When Prince William was born, he received “Louis” as his third middle name (William Arthur Philip Louis) in honor of Mountbatten. Now William’s son carries this name of a person of great importance to Charles, as well as Prince Philip. 

Change of name? 

     It is worth mentioning that despite the fact that his first name is George, this new prince will be under no obligation to use it when he becomes king. If he does use it, he will be known as King George VII (or George VIII if Charles decides to use the name). But if Prince George decides to follow the lead of his great-great-grandfather George VI, he could use one of his middle names. If Alexander is chosen – and assuming Scotland remains part of the United Kingdom, he will be known as King Alexander IV, based on Alexander having a higher ordinal number in Scotland (like the Queen being Elizabeth II based on Elizabeth having a higher ordinal number in England). If however it is Louis, then he will simply be King Louis, since there has not been a reigning king named Louis in British history.

     But regardless of whatever name he chooses to go by when he accedes to the throne, George Alexander Louis is a traditional and solid name that attempts to pay tribute to several constituencies. It accomplishes that job effectively and as a result, is a name which everyone can enjoy.

As a postscript, I should say that I take a bit of personal pride in the child’s first name being George, for my home state of Georgia in the United States is named after his great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather, King George II of Great Britain and Ireland.

Photo Credit: Kim Traynor via Wikimedia Commons cc