Mountbatten family

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Mountbatten
German-British noble family
Coat of Arms of Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma.svg
Blazon: Quarterly, 1st and 4th: Azure, a Lion rampant double-queued Barry of ten Argent and Gules and ducaly crowned Or, within a Bordure compony of the second and third (Hesse); 2nd and 3rd: Argent, two pallets Sable (Battenberg).
Parent familyBattenberg branch of the House of Hesse-Darmstadt
Place of originGrand Duchy of Hesse
Founded14 July 1917; 104 years ago (1917-07-14)
Current headGeorge Mountbatten, 4th Marquess of Milford Haven
Titles
Connected members
Connected families
Cadet branches

The Mountbatten family is a British dynasty that originated as an English branch of the German princely Battenberg family. The name was adopted on 14 July 1917, just three days before the British royal family had its name changed to Windsor, by members of the Battenberg family residing in the United Kingdom, due to rising anti-German sentiment amongst the British public during World War I. The name is a direct Anglicisation of the German Battenberg (literally 'Batten Mountain'), a small town in Hesse. The title of count of Battenberg, later prince of Battenberg, was granted to a morganatic branch of the House of Hesse-Darmstadt, itself a cadet branch of the House of Hesse, in the mid 19th century.

The family now includes the Marquesses of Milford Haven (and formerly the Marquesses of Carisbrooke), as well as the Earls Mountbatten of Burma. Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, the late consort of Queen Elizabeth II, adopted the surname of Mountbatten from his mother's family in 1947, although he was a member of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg by patrilineal descent. Lady Louise Mountbatten became Queen Consort of Sweden, after having married Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden.

Origins[]

The Mountbatten family are a branch of the German house of Battenberg. The Battenberg family was a morganatic branch of the House of Hesse-Darmstadt, rulers of the Grand Duchy of Hesse in Germany. The first member of the House of Battenberg was Julia Hauke, whose brother-in-law Grand Duke Louis III of Hesse created her Countess of Battenberg with the style Illustrious Highness in 1851, on the occasion of her morganatic marriage to Grand Duke Louis' brother Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine. Julia was elevated in her title to Princess of Battenberg with the style Serene Highness (HSH) in 1858.[1]

Two of Alexander and Julia's sons, Prince Henry of Battenberg and Prince Louis of Battenberg, became associated with the British Royal Family. Prince Henry married The Princess Beatrice, the youngest daughter of Queen Victoria. Prince Louis married Victoria's granddaughter, Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine, and became the First Sea Lord of the Royal Navy. Due to anti-German feelings prevalent in Britain during World War I, Prince Louis, his children, and his nephews (the living sons of Prince Henry), renounced their German titles and changed their name to the more English sounding Mountbatten. (They rejected an alternative translation, "Battenhill".)[2] Their cousin, George V compensated the princes with British peerages. Prince Louis became the 1st Marquess of Milford Haven, while Prince Alexander, Prince Henry's eldest son, became the 1st Marquess of Carisbrooke.[1][3]

Members[]

Marquesses of Milford Haven[]

Louis Mountbatten, 1st Marquess of Milford Haven

The marquessate of Milford Haven was created in 1917 for Prince Louis of Battenberg, the former First Sea Lord, and a relation to the British Royal family. He was at the same time made Earl of Medina and Viscount Alderney, also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.[3] Princess Alice of Battenberg never took the name Mountbatten as she married Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark in 1903; her son, Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, took the name upon becoming a naturalised British citizen.[4]

The heir apparent to the marquessate is the present holder's son Henry Mountbatten, Earl of Medina (b. 1991)

The 1st Marquess's youngest daughter, Lady Louise Mountbatten, married the crown prince of Sweden in 1923. On his accession in 1950 as Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden, Louise became Queen consort of Sweden.[5][6]

Earls Mountbatten of Burma[]

Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma

Earl Mountbatten of Burma is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, created in 1947 for Rear Admiral Louis Mountbatten, 1st Viscount Mountbatten of Burma, youngest son of the 1st Marquess of Milford Haven and the last Viceroy of India. The letters patent creating the title specified the following special remainder to his daughters. The subsidiary titles of the Earldom are Viscount Mountbatten of Burma, of Romsey in the County of Southampton, created 1946, and Baron Romsey, of Romsey in the County of Southampton, created in 1947. Both of these titles, in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, have the same special remainder as the Earldom.[7]

The heir apparent to the earldom is the present holder's son, Nicholas Knatchbull, Lord Brabourne (born 1981).

Marquess of Carisbrooke[]

Alexander Mountbatten, 1st Marquess of Carisbrooke

Marquess of Carisbrooke was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, created in 1917 for Prince Alexander of Battenberg, eldest son of Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom and Prince Henry of Battenberg. He was made Viscount Launceston, in the County of Cornwall, and Earl of Berkhampsted at the same time, also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.[3] The titles became extinct upon Lord Carisbrooke's death in 1960, as he had no sons.

His siblings were:

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh[]

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, the son of Princess Alice of Battenberg and grandson of the 1st Marquess of Milford Haven, took the name Mountbatten when he became a naturalised British subject. Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten married Princess Elizabeth, daughter of King George VI of the United Kingdom, on 20 November 1947. In 1952, on the accession of his wife as Queen Elizabeth II, there was some dispute regarding the dynasty to which descendants of Elizabeth and Phillip would belong. Queen Mary (the new Queen's grandmother) expressed to Prime Minister Winston Churchill her aversion to the idea of the House of Mountbatten succeeding the House of Windsor as the royal dynasty.[4] Winston Churchill raised the matter in Parliament where it was decided that the name of the Royal House would remain Windsor, as decreed in perpetuity by Queen Mary's husband, King George V.[8]

Mountbatten-Windsor[]

Main article: Mountbatten-Windsor

Mountbatten-Windsor is the personal surname of some of the descendants of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh under an Order in Council issued in 1960, which has not been applied consistently. While the Order specifically applies the surname "Mountbatten-Windsor" to Elizabeth's male-line descendants not holding Royal styles and titles, "Mountbatten-Windsor" has been formally used by some of her descendants who do hold Royal styles. The surname was first officially used by Princess Anne in 1973, in the wedding register for her marriage to Mark Phillips.[9] Prince William and his wife Catherine used the names "Monsieur et Madame Mountbatten-Windsor" when filing a French lawsuit against the French magazine Closer.[10][11] Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and his wife Meghan have named their children Archie Mountbatten-Windsor and Lilibet Mountbatten-Windsor.[12][13]

Mountbatten-Windsor differs from the official name of the British royal family or royal house, which remains Windsor. The adoption of the Mountbatten-Windsor surname applies only to members of the royal family who are descended from Elizabeth, and not, for example, to her cousins, or descendants of her sister, Princess Margaret.[9]

Legacy[]

The city of Ottawa, Ontario, erected Mountbatten Avenue in memory of the 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma. A Royal Canadian Sea Cadets corps, RCSCC No. 134 Admiral Mountbatten, was named after him in 1946.[14] A 9 ft 5 in (2.9 m) bronze statue by Franta Belsky of Lord Mountbatten of Burma was erected in 1983 outside the Foreign Office, overlooking Horse Guards Parade. The earl is dressed in the uniform of an Admiral of the Fleet.[15]

The Mountbatten Institute (formerly known as the Mountbatten Internship Programme), an organization based in New York and London dedicated to fostering work experience and cultural exchange by placing international graduate students abroad to earn postgraduate and degrees was set up by his eldest daughter, Patricia, 2nd Countess Mountbatten. It was named in honour of the countess's father, the 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma.[16]

Despite the family's well-known connections with the Royal Navy, the , overlooking the Royal Naval Base of Devonport, England, is not named after them but after Sir William Batten, a 17th-century Surveyor of the Navy.

Coats of arms[]

Family tree[]

Genealogical Table of the Battenberg, Mountbatten and Mountbatten-Windsor Family


Battenberg/
Mountbatten		House of Hesse-DarmstadtBritish Royal FamilyHouse of Romanov
(Russia)		Greek Royal FamilySwedish Royal FamilySpanish Royal Family
T08 Grossherzog.svg
Louis II
(1777–1848)
Grand Duke of Hesse and by the Rhine
1830—1848

Arms of the Grand Duchy of Hesse 1806-1918.svg
Crown of Saint Edward (Heraldry).svg
Victoria
Arms of the United Kingdom.svg		Albert, Prince Consort

Arms of Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.svg		 Prince Charles of Hesse and by the Rhine
(1809–1877)		T08 Grossherzog.svg
Louis III
(1806–1877)
Grand Duke of Hesse and by the Rhine
1848—1877
Arms of the Grand Duchy of Hesse 1806-1918.svg		 Prince Alexander of Hesse and by the Rhine
(1823–1888)		Julia v. Hauke
Mainz Arms.svg[a]
(1825–1895)
Countess, later Princess of Battenberg

BattenbergArms.svg		Marie
(1824–1880)
Empress Maria Alexandrovna		Heraldic Imperial Crown of Russia.svg
Alexander II
(1818–1881)
Emperor of
All Russia
1855—1881
Coat of Arms of Russian Empire.svg
Crown of Saint Edward (Heraldry).svg
Edward VII
Arms of the United Kingdom.svg		Alice
(1843–1878)
Grand Duchess of Hesse and by the Rhine
Arms of Alice, Grand Duchess of Hesse.svg		T08 Grossherzog.svg
Louis IV
(1837–1892)
Grand Duke of Hesse and by the Rhine
1877—1892
Arms of the Grand Duchy of Hesse 1806-1918.svg		Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom
(1857–1944)

Arms of Beatrice, Princess Henry of Battenberg.svg		Prince Henry of Battenberg
(1858–1896)

Arms of Battenberg-Mountbatten.svg		T08 Grossherzog.svg
Prince Alexander of Battenberg
(1857–1893)
Prince of Bulgaria
(1879–1886)
Arms of Bulgaria 1880-1887.svg		Prince Francis Joseph of Battenberg
(1861–1924)		Heraldic Imperial Crown of Russia.svg
Alexander III
(1845–1894)
Emperor of All Russia
1881—1894
Coat of Arms of Russian Empire.svg		Crown of the Kingdom of Greece.svg
George I
(1845–1913)
King of Greece
1863—1913
Royal Arms of Greece (1863-1936).svg
Crown of Saint Edward (Heraldry).svg
George V
Arms of the United Kingdom.svg		T08 Grossherzog.svg
Ernest Louis
(1868–1937)
Grand Duke of Hesse and by the Rhine
1892—1918
Arms of the Grand Duchy of Hesse 1806-1918.svg		Alix
(1872–1918)
Empress of Russia
Lesser CoA of the empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia.svg		Heraldic Imperial Crown of Russia.svg
Nicholas II
(1868–1918)
Emperor of All Russia
1894—1917
Coat of Arms of Russian Empire.svg		Victoria
(1863–1950)		Coronet of a British Marquess.svg
Prince Louis of Battenberg[b]
(1854–1921)
Arms of Battenberg-Mountbatten.svg
from 1917 Louis Mountbatten, 1st Marquess of Milford Haven		Coronet of a British Marquess.svg
Alexander
(1886–1960)
Arms of Alexander Mountbatten, 1st Marquess of Carisbrooke.svg
from 1917 Alexander Mountbatten, Marquess of Carisbrooke		Leopold
(1889–1922)
from 1917 Lord Leopold Mountbatten		Prince Maurice of Battenberg
(1891–1914)		Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg
(1887–1969)

Arms of Princess Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg (1906).svg

Queen of Spain,1906 –1931		Heraldic Royal Crown of Spain.svg
Alfonso XIII
(1886–1941)
King of Spain
1886—1931
Arms of Spain (c.1880-1931).svg		Crown of the Kingdom of Greece.svg
Constantine I
(1868–1923)
King of Greece
1913-17 &
1920-22
Crown of Saint Edward (Heraldry).svg
George VI
Arms of the United Kingdom.svg		Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse
(1906–1937)		Louis, Prince of Hesse and by Rhine
(1908–1968)		Princess Alice of Battenberg
(1885–1969)
Coat of Arms of Princess Alice of Battenberg (Order of Queen Maria Luisa).svg		Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark
(1882–1944)
Arms of a Prince of Greece.svg		Louise Mountbatten
(1889–1965)
Queen of Sweden
Greater coat of arms of Queen Louise (Sweden).svg		Royal crown of the King of Sweden.svg
Gustaf VI Adolf
(1882–1973)
King of Sweden
1950—1873
Great shield of arms of Sweden.svg		Coronet of a British Marquess.svg
George
(1892–1938)
Earl Mountbatten of Burma-CoA-Shield.svg
2nd Marquess of Milford Haven		Coronet of a British Earl.svg
Lord Louis Mountbatten[c]
(1900–1979)
Earl Mountbatten of Burma-CoA-Shield.svg
1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma		Infante Juan
Count of Barcelona
(1913–1993)
Coat of Arms of Juan, Count of Barcelona, after the renounce of his claim to the Throne.svg		Crown of the Kingdom of Greece.svg
Paul
(1901–1964)
King of Greece
1947—1964
Crown of Saint Edward (Heraldry).svg
Elizabeth II
(1926—)
Arms of the United Kingdom.svg		Coronet of a Child of the Sovereign.svg
Philip[d]
(1921–2021)
Duke of Edinburgh
Arms of Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.svg		Prince
Gustaf Adolf
Duke of
Västerbotten
(1906—1947)
Armoiries du Prince Gustaf Adolf Oscar de Suède.svg		Coronet of a British Marquess.svg
David Mountbatten
(1919–1970)
3rd Marquess of Milford Haven		Lady Pamela Hicks
(1929–)		Coronet of a British Earl.svg
Patricia Knatchbull
(1924–2017)
2nd Countess Mountbatten of Burma
m. John Knatchbull, 7th Baron Brabourne		Heraldic Royal Crown of Spain.svg
Juan Carlos I
(1938—)
King of Spain
1975—2014
Arms of Juan Carlos I of Spain.svg		Sophia
(1938—)
Queen of Spain
1975—2014
Personal Coat of arms of Sofia, Queen of Spain.svg		Crown of the Kingdom of Greece.svg
Constantine II
(1940—)
King of Greece
1964–73
Coronet of the British Heir Apparent.svg
Prince Charles
Prince of Wales
(1948–)

Arms of Charles, Prince of Wales.svg		Coronet of a Child of the Sovereign.svg
Anne, Princess Royal
(1950–)
Arms of Anne, the Princess Royal.svg		Coronet of a Child of the Sovereign.svg
Prince Andrew, Duke of York
(1960–)
Arms of Andrew, Duke of York.svg		Coronet of a Child of the Sovereign.svg
Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex
(1964–)
Arms of Edward, Earl of Wessex.svg		Royal crown of the King of Sweden.svg
Carl XVI Gustaf
(1946–)
King of Sweden
1973—
Great shield of arms of Sweden.svg		Coronet of a British Marquess.svg
George Mountbatten
(1961–)
4th Marquess of Milford Haven		Lord Ivar Mountbatten
(1963–)		Coronet of a British Earl.svg
Norton Knatchbull
(1947–)
3rd Earl Mountbatten of Burma
Lord Mountbatten of Burma-CoA-Knatchbull-Shield.svg		6 othersHeraldic Royal Crown of Spain.svg
Felipe VI
(1968–)
King of Spain
2014—
Arms of Spanish Monarch.svg		Pavlos
Crown Prince
(1967—)
Arms of the Crown Prince of Greece.svg

Notes[]

  1. ^ This coat of arms is reported in the "Heraldry of the Royal Families of Europe", by Jiri Louda and Michael Maclagan, Clarkson N. Potter, Inc. Publishers, New York, 1981, p216, table 109. While these arms are virtually the same as the city of Mainz, it is a common heraldic law that identical arms are allowed when the bearers are of different nations, but within a nation they are not (see for England, Warbelton v Gorges and Scrope v Grosvenor). However, Wikipedia reports a different set of arms for the family at the article on Hauke-Bosak (Hauke Counts.jpg. However, these arms are for the family in Russia, and the reference given is an expired page in the Polish Wikipedia. There is no reference for the family seen in the Rietstap Armorial General.
  2. ^ Admiral of the Fleet, RN
    GCB, GCVO, KCMG, PC
    First Sea Lord, RN (1912–14)
  3. ^ Admiral of the Fleet, RN
    KG GCB OM GCSI GCIE GCVO DSO PC FRS
    Chief of Combined Operations, Chiefs of Staff Committee (UK) and Combined Chiefs of Staff (US & UK) (1941–1943)
    Supreme Allied Commander,  South East Asia Command(1943–1946)
    Viceroy and Governor-General of India(1947)
    Governor-General of India(1947-48)
    Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Fleet, RN (1952–1954)
    Fourth Sea Lord, RN (1950–1952)
    First Sea Lord, RN (1955-59)
    Chief of the Defence Staff (1959–1965)
  4. ^ Prince Philip was born a member of the Danish and Greek Royal House of Glucksborg and was known as Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark.
    On his marriage he became a naturalized British subject, disclaimed his Greek and Danish titles, and adopted his mother's maiden name of Mountbatten as his surname. As documented in the Mountbatten family and Mountbatten-Windsor articles, the dynastic name of the British Royal Family remains Windsor. However, the personal surname of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip's descendants is Mountbatten-Windsor (e.g. Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, James Mountbatten-Windsor, Viscount Severn and Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor).
    Philip was created Duke of Edinburgh on his marriage. In 1957, Queen Elizabeth created him a British Prince.

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b Montgomery-Massingberd, Hugh (1973). Burke's Guide to the Royal Family. London: Burke's Peerage. pp. 303–304. ISBN 978-0220662226.
  2. ^ Hough, Richard (1984). Louis and Victoria: The Family History of the Mountbattens. Second edition. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson. p. 317. ISBN 0-297-78470-6.
  3. ^ a b c "No. 30374". The London Gazette. 9 November 1917. p. 11594.
  4. ^ a b Bousfield, Arthur; Toffoli, Garry (2002). Fifty Years the Queen. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Dundurn Press. p. 101. ISBN 1550023608.
  5. ^ Aronson, Theo (1973). Grandmama of Europe: the crowned descendants of Queen Victoria, Part 352. Cassell. ISBN 9781910198049.
  6. ^ Judd, Denis (1976). Eclipse of kings: European monarchies in the twentieth century. Macdonald and Jane's. ISBN 9780685701195.
  7. ^ a b "No. 44059". The London Gazette. 21 July 1966. p. 8227.
  8. ^ "No. 30186". The London Gazette. 17 July 1917. p. 7119.
  9. ^ a b "The Royal Family name". The British Monarchy. n.d. Archived from the original on 15 February 2009. Retrieved 5 May 2011.
  10. ^ Lichfield, John (19 September 2012). "William and Kate win legal battle – but lose war to keep topless photos under wraps". Independent. Retrieved 4 March 2015.
  11. ^ "Tribunal de Grande Instance de Nanterre referes Judgement de Refere Rendu le 18 Septembre 2012" (PDF). Tribunal de Grande Instance de Nanterre. 18 September 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  12. ^ "Royal baby: Duke and Duchess of Sussex name son Archie". BBC. 8 May 2019. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  13. ^ Foster, Max; Said-Moorhouse, Lauren (6 June 2021). "Meghan and Prince Harry welcome second child". CNN. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  14. ^ "Mountbatten Avenue". National Inventory of Military Memorials. National Defence Canada. 16 April 2008. Archived from the original on 10 February 2015.
  15. ^ Baker, Margaret (2002). Discovering London Statues and Monuments. Bucks, UK: Shore Publications Ltd. p. 20. ISBN 0747804958.
  16. ^ "About Us". Mountbatten Institute. Archived from the original on 19 October 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2013.

External links[]

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