Buckingham Palace confirmed today that James, Earl of Wessex, has secured the A-level results required to take up a place at the Royal Agricultural University in Cirencester, Gloucestershire, this autumn.
The 18-year-old, who is the youngest grandchild of the late Queen Elizabeth and the son of the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, will study Rural Land & Property Management at the institution.
A Palace spokesman stated: “The Earl of Wessex will be going to the Royal Agricultural University to study Rural Land & Property Management. He will head straight there without taking a year out.”
The Palace’s choice to refer to James simply as “the Earl of Wessex” rather than employing the HRH styling in an official statement carries considerable weight.
As a grandchild of the late Queen, he is entitled by birthright to adopt the His Royal Highness designation.
The omission strongly suggests that James has opted not to take up his royal titles in adulthood, mirroring the path chosen by his elder sister, Lady Louise, now 22.
Louise set the precedent just last month when she was identified as “Louise Mountbatten-Windsor” at her University of St Andrews graduation ceremony, dispensing with any royal titles.
Both siblings were afforded the choice by their parents, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, to decide for themselves upon reaching 18 whether to adopt the titles.
The Edinburghs’ approach to royal titles has long been deliberate. Speaking to The Sunday Times in 2020, Sophie explained: “We try to bring them up with the understanding they are very likely to have to work for a living. Hence, we made the decision not to use HRH titles.
“They have them and can decide to use them from 18, but I think it’s highly unlikely.”
LATEST ROYAL NEWS
- Royal stripped of official titles after demonstrating ‘lack of respect’
- Kate Moss owes thousands of pounds to businesses including King Charles’s solicitors
- Queen Victoria edited royal pictures long before Catherine’s Photoshop row
James’s apparent decision places him alongside not only Louise but also several cousins. Princess Anne famously declined to bestow titles on her children, Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall, raising them free from the weight of royal expectation.
“I think it was probably easier for them, and I think most people would argue that there are downsides to having titles,” Anne told Vanity Fair in 2020. “So I think that was probably the right thing to do.”
The broader royal landscape underscores how unusual full-time working royal status has become among the late Queen’s grandchildren.
Prince William, the heir to the throne, stands as the sole member of that generation occupying such a role, following Prince Harry’s departure from royal duties and relocation to America with Meghan Markle in 2020.
The announcement of James’ university plans follows a summer spent getting his boots muddy on King Charles’ Sandringham estate in Norfolk, where he has been working as a farmhand.
The young earl has been spotted behind the wheel of tractors and throwing himself into the physical labour of the estate, catching longtime staff off guard.
The practical experience on one of Britain’s most celebrated rural estates provides a fitting prelude to his chosen degree.
Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter
