Birgitte
Duchess of Gloucester
Spouse	Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester
Issue
Alexander Windsor, Earl of Ulster Lady Davina Lewis Lady Rose Gilman
Full name
Birgitte Eva[1]
House	House of Windsor
Father	Asger Preben Wissing Henriksen
Mother	Vivian van Deurs
Born	20 June 1946 (1946-06-20) (age 63) Odense, Denmark

Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester (Birgitte Eva(beer-gee-tae); formerly van Deurs; born Henriksen, 20 June 1946) is a member of the British Royal Family, the wife of Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who is a grandchild of King George V.

HRH The Duchess of Gloucester, with her husband, undertakes royal duties on behalf of the Duke's cousin, HM The Queen.

Contents 1 Early life 2 Marriage 3 Official role 4 Titles, styles, honours and arms 4.1 Titles and styles 4.2 Honours 4.2.1 Honorary military appointments 5 External links 6 References

[edit] Early life

Birgitte was born Birgitte (beer-gee-tae) Eva Henriksen, in Odense, Denmark, the younger daughter of Asger Preben Knud Wissing Henriksen, a lawyer, and his wife, Vivian van Deurs. She took her mother's last name, van Deurs, when her parents separated.

Birgitte moved to Cambridge, England and also worked at the Danish embassy in London.

[edit] Marriage

In February 1972, Birgitte became engaged to Prince Richard of Gloucester, the second eldest son of The Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester. Their marriage took place on 8 July 1972 at St. Andrew's Church, Barnwell, Northamptonshire. At that time, she was styled Her Royal Highness Princess Richard of Gloucester.

Six weeks after their wedding, Prince Richard's elder brother, Prince William, was killed in a flying accident. Prince Richard unexpectedly became heir to the Dukedom and upon his father's death in 1974, the couple became TRH The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester.

Together the couple have three children:

• Earl of Ulster (born 24 October 1974)
• The Lady Davina Lewis (born 19 November 1977)
• The Lady Rose Gilman (born 1 March 1980)

Their children do not carry out any royal duties.

[edit] Official role

The Duchess of Gloucester is patron of a large number of organisations, many of which have medical, educational or welfare connections. She has also accompanied the Duke of Gloucester on his official visits overseas: her first such visit was in 1973, when The Duke and Duchess represented The Queen at the 70th birthday celebrations of King Olav V of Norway.

The Duchess is sponsor of two Royal Navy Ships: HMS Gloucester and HMS Sandown. The Duchess is the patron of St Paul's Cathedral School and regularly attends school functions.

[edit] Titles, styles, honours and arms

British Royal Family
see also: Canadian Royal Family
HM The Queen HRH The Duke of Edinburgh HRH The Prince of Wales HRH The Duchess of Cornwall HRH Prince William of Wales HRH Prince Harry of Wales HRH The Duke of York HRH Princess Beatrice of York HRH Princess Eugenie of York HRH The Earl of Wessex HRH The Countess of Wessex Viscount Severn Lady Louise Windsor HRH The Princess Royal HRH The Duke of Gloucester HRH The Duchess of Gloucester HRH The Duke of Kent HRH The Duchess of Kent HRH Prince Michael of Kent HRH Princess Michael of Kent HRH Princess Alexandra
v • d • e

Royal styles of Birgitte, The Duchess of Gloucester Reference style Her Royal Highness Spoken style Your Royal Highness Alternative style Ma'am

[edit] Titles and styles

• 20 June 1946 – 15 January 1966^[2]: Miss Birgitte Henriksen
• 15 January 1966 – 8 June 1972: Miss Birgitte van Deurs
• 8 June 1972 – 10 June 1974: Her Royal Highness Princess Richard of Gloucester
• 10 June 1974 –: Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Gloucester

The Duchess of Gloucester's style and title in full: Her Royal Highness Princess Richard Alexander Walter George, Duchess of Gloucester, Countess of Ulster and Baroness Culloden, Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order.

[edit] Honours

• GCVO: Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order, 23 June 1989
• DStJ: Dame of the Order of St. John
  • GCStJ: Dame Grand Cross of the Order of St. John
• Royal Family Order of Queen Elizabeth II

[edit] Honorary military appointments

British

• Colonel-in-Chief, of the Royal Irish Rangers (until 1992)
• Colonel-in-Chief, of the Royal Army Dental Corps
• Deputy Colonel-in-Chief, of the Adjutant General's Corps
• Royal Colonel, of the 7th (V) Battalion The Rifles

Commonwealth Realms

• Colonel-in-Chief, Canadian Forces Dental Service
• Colonel-in-Chief, Royal Australian Army Educational Corps
• Colonel-in-Chief, Royal New Zealand Army Educational Corps
• Colonel-in-Chief, Bermuda Regiment

[edit] External links

• The Duchess of Gloucester at the official Royal website

[edit] References

United Kingdom order of precedence
Preceded by Lady Sarah Chatto	Ladies HRH The Duchess of Gloucester	Succeeded by The Duchess of Kent

v • d • e British princesses by marriage 1st generation Margravine Caroline of Brandenburg-Ansbach 2nd generation Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha 3rd generation Maria Walpole · Anne Luttrell 4th generation Duchess Caroline of Brunswick · Princess Frederica Charlotte of Prussia · The Princess Mary* · Princess Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen · Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld · Duchess Frederica of Mecklenburg-Strelitz · Princess Augusta of Hesse-Cassel 5th generation Princess Marie of Saxe-Altenburg 6th generation Princess Alexandra of Denmark · Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia · Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia · Princess Helena of Waldeck and Pyrmont · Princess Thyra of Denmark 7th generation Princess Mary of Teck · Princess Victoria Adelaide of Schleswig-Holstein · Princess Alexandra, Duchess of Fife* · Princess Viktoria Luise of Prussia 8th generation Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon · Lady Alice Montagu-Douglas-Scott · Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark · Princess Ortrud of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg · Countess Monika of Solms-Laubach · Princess Sophie of Greece and Denmark 9th generation Birgitte Henriksen · Katharine Worsley · Baroness Marie Christine von Reibnitz 10th generation Lady Diana Spencer · Camilla Shand · Sarah Ferguson · Sophie Rhys-Jones · * also princess of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in her own right.

v • d • e Order of Precedence in England and Wales (Ladies)* HM The Queen • HRH The Duchess of Cornwall • HRH The Countess of Wessex • HRH The Princess Royal • HRH Princess Beatrice of York • HRH Princess Eugenie of York • Lady Louise Windsor • HRH The Duchess of Gloucester • HRH The Duchess of Kent • HRH Princess Michael of Kent • HRH Princess Alexandra, The Hon Lady Ogilvy • The Rt Hon The Baroness Royall of Blaisdon PC • The Rt Hon The Baroness Hayman PC • The Rt Hon Harriet Harman QC MP *not including short-term appointments, visiting dignitaries and most peers

Persondata
NAME	Gloucester, Birgitte
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Windsor, Birgitte Eva; Deurs, Birgitte Eva van; Henriksen, Brigitte Eva
SHORT DESCRIPTION	Wife of Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester
DATE OF BIRTH	20 June 1946
PLACE OF BIRTH
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH