He inherited the dukedom on 10 June 1974 upon the death of his father, Prince Henry, the third son of George V. When Thomas of Woodstock, youngest son of Edward III and Philippa of Hainault, was created duke of Gloucester around 1385, his wife Eleanor de Bohun, daughter of Humphrey de Bohun, 7th Earl of Hereford, and Joan Fitzalan, became duchess of Gloucester.

The dukedom merged with the crown upon his accession to the throne in 1483 and Anne became queen consort.

[citation needed] The next iteration of the title was as the joint dukedom of Gloucester and Edinburgh, created in 1764 for Prince William Henry, younger brother of George III.

Prince William Henry married Maria Waldegrave, Dowager Countess Waldegrave, the illegitimate daughter of Sir Edward Walpole, in 1766, thus making her the first Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh.

His son and successor, Prince William Frederick, married his first cousin Princess Mary in 1816.

They had no children and Prince William Frederick died in 1834, the dukedom becoming extinct on his death.