This Grandchild of Queen Elizabeth’s Likely Won’t Take on a Royal Title, Just Like His Sister

Hannah MalachThu, August 13, 2026 at 7:17 PM UTC

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Queen Elizabeth in 2016.Credit: Getty ImagesThe Gist -

James, Earl of Wessex seemingly won’t be adopting the styling of His Royal Highness.

As a grandson of Queen Elizabeth, he’s entitled to go by HRH.

His sister, Lady Louise Windsor, also hasn’t used the title since becoming an adult.

As James, Earl of Wessex enters adulthood, he seemingly won’t be using the royal title that he inherited at birth. Buckingham Palace recently indicated that James, Prince Edward’s 18-year-old son, isn’t using the styling of HRH, which stands for His or Her Royal Highness.

On August 13, the palace revealed what’s next for James now that he’s completed his final secondary school exams. “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,” a spokesperson for the royal family told People.

Prince Edward and James, Earl of Wessex on April 20, 2025.Credit: Getty Images

As a grandchild of the late Queen Elizabeth, James is entitled to adopt HRH styling, though the wording of Buckingham Palace’s statement suggests that he’s opted out of it.

Both James and his 22-year-old sister, Lady Louise, were allowed to decide if they wanted to use their titles when they turned 18, though Louise has also seemingly decided against it. When she graduated from University of St Andrews last month, she reportedly went by Louise Mountbatten-Windsor.

James, Earl of Wessex and Lady Louise Windsor in 2023.Credit: Getty Images

“We try to bring them up with the understanding they are very likely to have to work for a living,” James and Louise’s mother, Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, said in a 2020 interview. “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.”

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Typically, HRH titles are reserved for working members of the royal family, indicating that James and Louise have chosen to pursue private careers.

James has taken on a summer job at his uncle King Charles’s Sandringham Estate, where he’s preparing for his agricultural degree by serving as a farmhand. As reported by The Sun on August 7, one member of the property’s staff was admittedly surprised about the teenager’s new gig.

James, Earl of Wessex and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh on June 19, 2026.Credit: Getty Images

“Everyone is so used to only seeing James smartly turned out with his family at functions at Christmas and Easter so I had to do a double take,” the employee said.

Still, the unnamed source lauded his work ethic: “He might be the King’s nephew but he is more than happy to get his hands dirty and muck in,” they added. “Driving tractors around Sandringham is not an easy task and it can mean long hours.”

“It doesn’t matter how rich you are, learning a good work ethic at a young age can always help,” the staffer went on. “The King is known for his ­fondness of the countryside and he couldn’t be prouder knowing the younger royals share his love.”

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”