Edward gets a title for his 55th birthday
THE Queen has marked the 55th birthday of Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, by granting him a title to use in Scotland.
The Earl and Countess of Wessex will now be known as the Earl and Countess of Forfar when they are north of the border.
The Earldom of Forfar was created in 1661 and became extinct as a title in 1715 when the second Earl died leaving no children.
A post on the Royal family’s Twitter page yesterday read: “Wishing The Earl of Wessex a very happy birthday”, accompanied by a photo of the Queen holding Prince Edward as a baby.
Another tweet said: “The Queen has been pleased to grant the Earl of Wessex the additional title of Earl of Forfar. Their Royal Highnesses will use the title The Earl and Countess of Forfar when in Scotland.”
The British Army in London yesterday posted a video on Twitter showing a military band performing to honour the Earl’s birthday. The Earl, who is 10th in line to the throne, and the Countess have two children, Lady Louise Windsor, 15, and James, Viscount Severn, 11.
The Earl is the patron of a number of Scottish charitable organisations, such as the Edinburgh International Festival, the National Youth Orchestras of Scotland and Badminton Scotland. As trustee of the Duke of Edinburgh Award, he has supported the non-formal education of thousands of young people in Scotland and holds Gold Award presentations at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh.
In 2014 he was Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, the Queen’s personal representative to the assembly.