Princess Beatrice of York (Beatrice Elizabeth Mary; born 8 August 1988) is the elder daughter of
Prince Andrew, Duke of YorkPrince Andrew, Duke of York KG GCVO , is the second son, and third child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh...
, and
Sarah, Duchess of YorkSarah, Duchess of York is a British charity patron, spokesperson, writer, film producer, television personality and former member of the British Royal Family. She is the former wife of Prince Andrew, Duke of York, whom she married from 1986 to 1996...
. She is fifth, and the first female, in the line of succession to the thrones of the
16 Commonwealth RealmsA Commonwealth realm is a sovereign state within the Commonwealth of Nations that has Elizabeth II as its monarch and head of state. The sixteen current realms have a combined land area of 18.8 million km² , and a population of 134 million, of which all, except about two million, live in the six...
.
Whilst studying at Goldsmiths, University of London, Princess Beatrice was not expected to undertake regular Royal duties, although she did make appearances at some Royal events; for instance, she and her sister,
Princess EugeniePrincess Eugenie of York Eugenie Victoria Helena; born 23 March 1990) is the younger daughter of Prince Andrew, Duke of York, and Sarah, Duchess of York...
, represented their father at a service of thanksgiving for her late aunt
Diana, Princess of WalesDiana, Princess of Wales was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, whom she married on 29 July 1981, and an international charity and fundraising figure, as well as a preeminent celebrity of the late 20th century...
, in 2007.
Early life
Beatrice was born on 8 August 1988 at 8.18 pm at the
Portland HospitalThe Portland Hospital for Women and Children, usually referred to simply as the Portland Hospital, is a hospital in Great Portland Street, London...
, the first child of
Prince Andrew, Duke of YorkPrince Andrew, Duke of York KG GCVO , is the second son, and third child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh...
, and
Sarah, Duchess of YorkSarah, Duchess of York is a British charity patron, spokesperson, writer, film producer, television personality and former member of the British Royal Family. She is the former wife of Prince Andrew, Duke of York, whom she married from 1986 to 1996...
, and fifth grandchild of Elizabeth II and
The Duke of EdinburghPrince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh is the husband of Elizabeth II. He is the United Kingdom's longest-serving consort and the oldest serving spouse of a reigning British monarch....
. She was baptised in the
Chapel RoyalA Chapel Royal is a body of priests and singers who serve the spiritual needs of their sovereign wherever they are called upon to do so.-Austria:...
at
St. James's PalaceSt. James's Palace is one of London's oldest palaces. It is situated in Pall Mall, just north of St. James's Park. Although no sovereign has resided there for almost two centuries, it has remained the official residence of the Sovereign and the most senior royal palace in the UK...
on 20 December 1988, her godparents being:
Viscount Linley-Ancestry:-External links:* * * *...
(her father's cousin); the
Duchess of RoxburgheThe Duke of Roxburghe is a title in the peerage of Scotland created in 1707 along with the titles Marquess of Bowmont and Cessford, Earl of Kelso and Viscount Broxmouth. John Ker, 5th Earl of Roxburghe became the first holder of these titles...
(now Lady Jane Dawnay); The Hon Mrs John
Greenall-Surname:A British locational or topographical surname which has been abbreviated from Green Hollow/Hole, Green Hill or Green Halgh.-People:* Colin Greenall , English footballer* Doug Greenall, English rugby league footballer and coach...
; and Mrs Henry Cotterell. She was named after
The Princess BeatriceThe Princess Beatrice was a member of the British Royal Family. She was the fifth daughter and youngest child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Juan Carlos, King of Spain, is her great-grandson...
(youngest daughter of Queen Victoria), after
Queen MaryMary of Teck was the queen consort of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, as the wife of King-Emperor George V....
(the The Queen's grandmother) and after the Duchess' mother's second name. As a male-line grandchild of the Sovereign, Beatrice was styled
Her Royal Highness with the title
Princess Beatrice of York.
Beatrice and her sister are the only granddaughters of The Queen to hold the title of
Princess and the style
Her Royal HighnessRoyal Highness is a style ; plural Royal Highnesses...
by Letters Patent issued by
King George VGeorge V was king of the United Kingdom and its dominions from 1910 to 1936.George V or similar terms may also refer to:-People:* George V of Georgia * George V of Imereti * George V of Hanover...
. However, their cousin
Lady Louise WindsorThe Lady Louise Windsor is the elder child of Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, and Sophie, Countess of Wessex. She is the youngest granddaughter and second-youngest grandchild of Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh...
, although she could be formally titled
Princess, is styled as the daughter of an Earl, at the request of her parents. Other cousins, Peter and
Zara PhillipsZara Anne Elizabeth Phillips, MBE is the second child and only daughter of Princess Anne and her first husband Captain Mark Phillips and is 13th in the line of succession to the throne...
, are the children of Princess Anne; the title of Prince/Princess is not carried through the female line.
Education
Beatrice began her early education at the independent Upton House School in
WindsorWindsor is an affluent suburban town and unparished area in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England. It is widely known as the site of Windsor Castle, one of the official residences of the British Royal Family....
, in 1991. From there, she and her sister both attended the independent Coworth Park School from 1995. Beatrice continued her education at the independent
St. George's SchoolSt George's School, Ascot is an independent boarding and day school in Ascot, Berkshire, England. It is now a single-sex girls' school , which selects all of its incoming pupils on the basis of examined ability, usually at age 11, with a few entrants at 13 and 16.-History:The school was founded in...
in
AscotAscot is a village within the civil parish of Sunninghill and Ascot, in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, Berkshire, England. It is most notable as the location of Ascot Racecourse, home of the prestigious Royal Ascot meeting...
, where she was a pupil from 2000 to 2007. Having been diagnosed with
dyslexiaDyslexia is a very broad term defining a learning disability that impairs a person's fluency or comprehension accuracy in being able to read, and which can manifest itself as a difficulty with phonological awareness, phonological decoding, orthographic coding, auditory short-term memory, or rapid...
as a child, she delayed sitting her
GCSEThe General Certificate of Secondary Education is an academic qualification awarded in a specified subject, generally taken in a number of subjects by students aged 14–16 in secondary education in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and is equivalent to a Level 2 and Level 1 in Key Skills...
exams for one year. She remained at St. George's to take her A-Levels, gaining a grade
A in drama, and
B grades in history and film studies. She was elected
Head GirlHead Boy and Head Girl are terms commonly used in the British education system, and in private schools throughout the Commonwealth.-United Kingdom:...
in her final year.
In September 2008, Beatrice went up to read History at Goldsmiths, University of London., and graduated in 2011 with a 2:1 degree (BA) in History and History of Ideas.
Personal interests
In an interview to mark her 18th birthday, Beatrice said that she wanted to use her position to assist others through charity work; she had already undertaken charitable duties alongside her mother through the various organisations the Duchess supported. In 2002, Beatrice visited HIV-infected children in
RussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, and, in Britain, she supported Springboard for Children (a literacy project for primary-school children with learning difficulties) and
the Teenage Cancer TrustTeenage Cancer Trust is a charity that focuses on the needs of teenagers and young adults with cancer, leukaemia, Hodgkin’s and related diseases by providing specialist teenage units in NHS hospitals. The units are dedicated areas for teenage patients, who are involved in their concept and creation...
. During the summer of 2008, Beatrice volunteered as a sales clerk at
SelfridgesSelfridges, AKA Selfridges & Co, is a chain of high end department stores in the United Kingdom. It was founded by Harry Gordon Selfridge. The flagship store in London's Oxford Street is the second largest shop in the UK and was opened on 15 March 1909.More recently, three other stores have been...
, and it was reported Beatrice and a friend have plans to found a fashion label. In April 2010, running to raise money for
Children in CrisisChildren in Crisis is a charity based in London, United Kingdom which states that it "exists to improve the lives of children around the world affected by conflict, deprivation, poverty or other hidden crises, by working in partnership with local communities to provide education, healthcare and...
, she became the first member of the Royal Family to complete the
London MarathonThe London Marathon is one of the biggest running events in the world, and one of the five top world marathons that make up the World Marathon Majors competition, which has a $1 million prize purse. It has been held each spring in London since 1981. The race is currently sponsored by Virgin Money,...
.
Beatrice has also been involved in the film industry, becoming the first member of the Royal Family to appear in a non-documentary film when she made a brief non-speaking appearance as an "extra" in
The Young VictoriaThe Young Victoria is a 2009 period drama film based on the early life and reign of Queen Victoria, and her marriage to Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The film was directed by Jean-Marc Vallée and written by screenwriter Julian Fellowes. Graham King, Martin Scorsese, Sarah, Duchess of...
(2009), based around the accession and Coronation of Beatrice's fourth-great-grandmother, Queen Victoria. Beatrice had a minor, non-speaking role in a number of scenes.
Official duties
Beatrice has been present at a number of official Royal occasions, such as
Trooping the ColourTrooping the Colour is a ceremony performed by regiments of the British and the Commonwealth armies. It has been a tradition of British infantry regiments since the 17th century, although the roots go back much earlier. On battlefields, a regiment's colours, or flags, were used as rallying points...
in London, and The Queen's 80th birthday. She and her sister were also guests at the
Concert for DianaConcert for Diana was a concert held at the then new Wembley Stadium in London, England, United Kingdom in honour of Diana, Princess of Wales, on 1 July 2007, which would have been her 46th birthday; 31 August that year brought the 10th anniversary of her death...
, in memory of
their late auntDiana, Princess of Wales was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, whom she married on 29 July 1981, and an international charity and fundraising figure, as well as a preeminent celebrity of the late 20th century...
organised by their cousins, Princes William and
HarryPrince Henry of Wales , commonly known as Prince Harry, is the younger son of Charles, Prince of Wales and the late Diana, Princess of Wales, and fourth grandchild of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh...
. Both princesses attended the service of thanksgiving for Diana on 1 September 2007, representing their father, who was on an official visit to
Malaysia. Beatrice was present at the
wedding of Prince William and Catherine MiddletonThe wedding of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, and Catherine Middleton took place on 29 April 2011 at Westminster Abbey in London. Prince William, the eldest son of Charles, Prince of Wales, first met Catherine Middleton in 2001, when both were studying at the University of St Andrews. Their...
. At the wedding, Beatrice's hat designed by
Philip TreacyPhilip Treacy OBE is an Irish milliner.Born in Ahascragh,in the West of Ireland, he lived with his parents, seven brothers and sister across the road from the village church...
was remarked upon by some as an odd choice of fashion. Nonetheless, in May 2011, the hat was offered for sale on the internet auction site
eBayeBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
with the proceeds going to charity: it was sold for £81,000 ($123,325), with the money split between Unicef and
Children in CrisisChildren in Crisis is a charity based in London, United Kingdom which states that it "exists to improve the lives of children around the world affected by conflict, deprivation, poverty or other hidden crises, by working in partnership with local communities to provide education, healthcare and...
.
Titles and styles
- 8 August 1988: Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrice of York
The Princess's style and title in full:
Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrice Elizabeth Mary of York. As a British Princess, Beatrice has no official surname; however, she uses the name of the area over which her father holds title, i.e.
York (as
Prince HarryPrince Henry of Wales , commonly known as Prince Harry, is the younger son of Charles, Prince of Wales and the late Diana, Princess of Wales, and fourth grandchild of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh...
uses
Wales, per his father,
Prince Charles, Prince of WalesPrince Charles, Prince of Wales is the heir apparent and eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Since 1958 his major title has been His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. In Scotland he is additionally known as The Duke of Rothesay...
).
Ancestry
External links