Duke of Cumberland

Duke of Cumberland is a peerage title that was conferred upon junior members of the British royal family, named after the historic county of Cumberland.^[1]

The Earldom of Cumberland, created in 1525, became extinct in 1643. The dukedom was created in the Peerage of England in 1644 for Prince Rupert of the Rhine, nephew of King Charles I. When he died without male heirs, the title was created again in the Peerage of England in 1689 for Prince George of Denmark, husband of Princess Anne, younger daughter of King James II. He also died without heirs, in 1708. Neither of these men, however, was usually known by his peerage title.

The third creation, in the Peerage of Great Britain, was for Prince William, the third son of King George II. Other titles granted to Prince William were Marquess of Berkhampstead, Earl of Kennington, Viscount Trematon and Baron Alderney. Since the Prince died unmarried and without children, his titles became extinct at his death.

The titles Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn and Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale were later created in the Peerage of Great Britain.

Duke	Portrait	Birth	Marriage(s)	Death
Prince Rupert House of Wittelsbach 1644–1682 also: Earl of Holderness (1644)		17 December 1619 Prague son of Frederick V, Elector Palatine and Elizabeth Stuart, Queen of Bohemia	Never married	29 November 1682 Westminster aged 62
Nephew of Charles I, died without legitimate issue.

Duke	Portrait	Birth	Marriage(s)	Death
Prince George House of Oldenburg 1689–1708 also: Earl of Kendal and Baron Wokingham (1689)		2 June 1653 Copenhagen Castle son of Frederick III of Denmark and Sophie Amalie of Brunswick-Lüneburg	Anne 28 July 1683 5 children	28 October 1708 Kensington Palace aged 55
Husband of Queen Anne, died without surviving issue.

Duke	Portrait	Birth	Marriage(s)	Death
Prince William also Marquess of Berkhamsted, Earl of Kennington, Viscount Trematon and Baron Alderney (Great Britain, 1726)		26 April 1721 Leicester House, London son of George II of Great Britain and Caroline of Ansbach	Never married	31 October 1765 London aged 44
Also known as "Butcher" Cumberland and Sweet William.

The sole title-holder was Prince Henry (1745–1790), third son of Frederick, Prince of Wales. He died without legitimate issue, when the dukedom again became extinct.

This double dukedom, in the Peerage of Great Britain, was bestowed on Prince Ernest Augustus (1771–1851) (later King of Hanover), the fifth son and eighth child of King George III of the United Kingdom and King of Hanover. In 1919, it was suspended under the Titles Deprivation Act 1917 and, as of 2023^[update], has not been restored to its titular heir.

An historic fixed bridge hand is known as the Duke of Cumberland hand. The hand also appeared in Ian Fleming's James Bond thriller, Moonraker.^[2]