It is heritable by male descendants by primogeniture, and has been conferred upon various members of the British royal family several times throughout history.

The title became extinct several times before being revived in 2011, when Queen Elizabeth II bestowed it on her grandson Prince William on 29 April 2011 upon his marriage to Catherine Middleton.

[1] The title was again recreated in the peerage of the United Kingdom and was granted in 1801 by King George III to his seventh son Prince Adolphus (1774–1850), then aged 27.

[7] On 29 April 2011, the day of his wedding, it was announced that Queen Elizabeth II had created her grandson Prince William Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathearn and Baron Carrickfergus,[1] titles relating respectively to places in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, three of the constituent countries of the United Kingdom.

However, if he dies before becoming king, then his sons are eligible to inherit the dukedom: Includes dukes of: Albany, Albemarle, Bedford, Cambridge, Clarence, Connaught and Strathearn, Cumberland, Edinburgh, Gloucester, Gloucester and Edinburgh, Hereford, Kent, Kintyre and Lorne, Norfolk, Ross, Somerset, Sussex, Windsor, and York, but only when royally.