Queen’s teenage granddaughter Louise to make big decision on royal future
The Queen’s youngest granddaughter will decide soon whether or not she wants to take the title of princess.
Lady Louise Alice Elizabeth Mountbatten-Windsor, who is 16th in line to the throne, will celebrate her 18th birthday on November 8, which is when she is expected to make her decision.
The daughter of Prince Edward and Sophie, Countess of Wessex, the young royal stepped into the spotlight earlier this week to commemorate her grandfather, Prince Philip, in a BBC documentary.
Prince Philip: The Royal Family Remembers aired on BBC One on September 22, and featured interviews from all of the Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh's children and adult grandchildren, the Daily Mirror reports.
Among those who paid tribute was Lady Louise, who recalled her close bond with Prince Philip and their shared love for carriage driving.
When her parents Prince Edward and Sophie Rhys-Jones got married in 1999, Buckingham Palace announced their children would not be styled as prince or princess.
Instead, Louise and her younger brother James, Viscount Severn, are titled as children of an earl.
The decision was said to be part of Edward and Sophie's hopes for their children to have as normal a childhood as possible.
The Telegraph reports that the final decision on whether to take the title of princess will be left up to Louise when she turns 18.
She will choose whether or not to style herself Her Royal Highness Princess Louise after her birthday with her parents said to be leaving the decision up to her.
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If she decides to take the new title, she will be styled as Her Royal Highness Princess Louise.
The Queen's other grandchildren have a mixture of titles with Louise's cousins Princess Beatrice and Eugenie also styling themselves as HRH.
Princess Anne's children Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips have never held HRH status.
Due to the 1917 Letters Patent HRH titles could only be passed onto the children of the sovereign, the children of the sovereign’s sons, and the eldest living son of the eldest son of the Prince of Wales.
This was amended in 2013 to include all the children of the eldest son of the Prince of Wales.
As a result, all of the Duke of Cambridge's children have HRH status.
Royal expert, Phil Dampier, said that as she comes of age Louise could prove to be the monarchy's 'secret weapon.'
He said: "Because she’s the granddaughter of the Queen, Lady Louise can call herself a princess when she becomes 18… and there’s a strong argument for her doing it.
“She seems to be very mature for her age, and she’s shaping up to be precisely the kind of person the Queen can rely on in the future.
“Could there be a role for her in a slimmed-down monarchy? The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh had 1,500 patronages between them.
“You have to ask yourself who is going to continue their legacy, what with Harry and Meghan and Prince Andrew off the scene? There’s a huge workload there.”
Meanwhile, there have been several reports that Lady Louise is the Queen’s “favourite” grandchild due to their special bond.
A royal source previously told The Sun: "The Queen loves the fact that Louise and James relish their time at Balmoral, and she has become particularly close to Louise, who seems to have become her favourite grandchild, closely followed by James."
The source added: “Louise also endeared herself to everyone by looking after William and Kate’s children when they were up here.”
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