George Windsor, Earl of St Andrews

Lord St Andrews
Born 26 June 1962[1]
London, United Kingdom
Other names George Philip Nicholas Windsor
Spouse(s) Sylvana Tomaselli
Children Edward, Lord Downpatrick
Lady Marina Charlotte Windsor
Lady Amelia Windsor
Parent(s) Prince Edward, Duke of Kent
Katharine, Duchess of Kent

George Philip Nicholas Windsor, Earl of St Andrews (born 26 June 1962), is the elder son of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent[2] and his wife, Katharine, Duchess of Kent. He is styled Earl of St Andrews, one of his father's subsidiary titles, which he holds by courtesy as heir apparent to the Dukedom of Kent.

Education and career

Lord St Andrews was educated at Eton College and Downing College, Cambridge where he earned a MA degree.

A former diplomat, he is a Trustee of the SOS Children's Villages UK charity and a Patron of the Association for International Cancer Research. In April 2012, he also became a Trustee of the Next Century Foundation, a charity working throughout the Middle East.

St Andrews is Patron of the Welsh Sinfonia, Wales' professional chamber orchestra, conducted by Mark Eager.

St Andrews is a Trustee of the Global eHealth Foundation.

Marriage and children

On 9 January 1988, St Andrews married divorcée Sylvana Tomaselli in a register office at Edinburgh.

The couple have three children:[3]

Succession issues

St Andrews' wife is a Roman Catholic, and since, in accordance with the Act of Settlement 1701, no person who is Roman Catholic or marries a Roman Catholic may succeed to the throne of any country whose constitution subscribes to that Act, from his marriage until 26 March 2015 St Andrews was barred from succession to the throne. After the Succession to the Crown Act 2013 came into effect on 26 March 2015, he is no longer barred from succession and is currently 34th in line, although his two older children, as Catholics, are still barred.

The Dukedom of Kent is not subject to the Act of Settlement, so St Andrews' son and heir, Lord Downpatrick, is in line to become the first Roman Catholic Duke or Earl of Kent since the Reformation.

Ancestry

Patrilineal descent

St Andrews's patriline is the line from which he is descended father to son.

His patrilineal descent (the principle behind membership in Germanic royal houses) can be traced back through the generations — meaning that were St Andrews to choose a historically accurate house name according to this principle it would be Wettin, to which all his male-line ancestors belonged.

This ancestral line diverges from the British royal line at Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, and from then on follows his paternal ancestors.

House of Wettin

  1. Burkhard I, Duke of Thuringia, d. 870
  2. Burchard, Duke of Thuringia, 836–908
  3. (possibly) Burkhard III of Grabfeldgau, 866–913
  4. Dedi I, Count in the Hessegau, 896–957
  5. (probably) Dietrich I, Count of Wettin, d. 976
  6. (possibly) Dedi II, Count in the Hessegau, 946–1009
  7. Dietrich II of Wettin, 991–1034
  8. Thimo I, Count of Wettin, d. 1099
  9. Thimo II the Brave, Count of Wettin, d. 1118
  10. Conrad, Margrave of Meissen, 1098–1157
  11. Otto II, Margrave of Meissen, 1125–1190
  12. Dietrich I, Margrave of Meissen, 1162–1221
  13. Henry III, Margrave of Meissen, c. 1215–1288
  14. Albert II, Margrave of Meissen, 1240–1314
  15. Frederick I, Margrave of Meissen, 1257–1323
  16. Frederick II, Margrave of Meissen, 1310–1349
  17. Frederick III, Landgrave of Thuringia, 1332–1381
  18. Frederick I, Elector of Saxony, 1370–1428
  19. Frederick II, Elector of Saxony, 1412–1464
  20. Ernest, Elector of Saxony, 1441–1486
  21. John, Elector of Saxony, 1468–1532
  22. John Frederick I, Elector of Saxony, 1503–1554
  23. Johann Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Weimar, 1530–1573
  24. John II, Duke of Saxe-Weimar, 1570–1605
  25. Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha, 1601–1675
  26. John Ernest IV, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, 1658–1729
  27. Francis Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, 1697–1764
  28. Ernest Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, 1724–1800
  29. Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, 1750–1806
  30. Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, 1784–1844
  31. Albert, Prince Consort, 1819–1861
  32. Edward VII of the United Kingdom, 1841–1910
  33. George V of the United Kingdom, 1865–1936
  34. The Prince George, Duke of Kent, 1902–1942
  35. Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, b. 1935
  36. George Windsor, Earl of St Andrews, b. 1962

References

    Lines of succession
    Preceded by
    Prince Edward, Duke of Kent
    Line of succession to the British throne
    (grandson of George, son of George V)
    Succeeded by
    Lady Amelia Windsor
    First
    Line of succession to the Dukedom of Kent
    1st position
    Succeeded by
    The Lord Downpatrick
    Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom
    Preceded by
    Alexander Windsor, Earl of Ulster
    Gentlemen
    Earl of St Andrews
    Succeeded by
    Prince George of Cambridge