Page:King Edward VII, his life & reign; the record of a noble career 1.djvu/31

 to him, or remains in abeyance until he has a son. If, however, a Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall dies in his father's the sovereign's lifetime, leaving a son and heir, both dignities cease to exist, because the son, although he is his heir, is neither a King of England nor the first-begotten son of a King of England. The title of " Prince of Wales ", then, is not inherited, but must be received from the sovereign by patent and investiture, or by simple declaration.

Edward the Seventh, as Prince of Wales, directly inherited the title of Duke of Saxony by right of his father, and, by right of his mother, he became Duke of Cornwall, Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles (i.e. the Hebrides), and Great Steward of Scotland. A dispute arose concerning the armorial bearings of the Prince. He had been gazetted at once, in honour to Prince Albert, as Duke of Saxony, with precedence for that title over the other inherited titles. The title of Prince of Wales, however, on the issue of the letters patent, took precedence over that of Duke of Saxony, and some British jealousy of German influence was thus allayed. As regards the armorial matter, the Queen and Prince Albert wished that their son should quarter the arms of Saxony along with the Royal arms of Britain. The Heralds of the College, and some others, thought that the Saxony arms ought not to be foisted upon the royal arms. The Queen desired to have the matter settled at once on the next meeting of the Council, but Sir Robert Peel objected to anything but a decision of the Council on the right date. The Earl Marshal thought what the sovereign desired inconsistent with the rules and laws of heraldry. After a lengthy correspondence between the Prime Minister and high functionaries, the Home Secretary (Sir James Graham) took it on himself to order the Earl Marshal to have a coat of arms drawn out, right or wrong, according to the Queen's wishes. It was also settled that, in the Liturgy, the words "His Royal Highness" should not be inserted before "Prince of Wales". In giving some account of the keeping of the Christmas festival at Windsor, the Queen refers to her two children "who, they know not why, are