Queen Elizabeth led the royal family in wishing the Duke of Gloucester a happy birthday on Aug. 26 on social media. Prince Richard turned 76 years old and has been a working royal for most of his adult life.
According to The Royal Family Facebook account, Prince Richard is Queen Elizabeth's cousin, who been supporting Her Majesty by taking on extensive public duties on her behalf. However, many royal fans might not be aware of his role since he quietly works for The Firm.
Prince Richard is, also, the grandson of King George V, the Queen's grandfather. He is the second son of Prince Henry, King George VI's younger brother. He was the fifth in line to throne when he was born but he is currently the 27th.
The Duke of Gloucester was, apparently, not expected to take on royal duties in his younger years. He had an older brother, Prince William of Gloucester, who was supposed to inherit the dukedom from Prince Henry. So, Prince Richard set off to study architecture at the Cambridge University and became a practicing partner at the Hunt Thompson Associates by the 1970s.
But, the royal family was struck with tragedy when Prince William died in a plane crash. His body was charred because the fire from the plane was uncontrollable for two hours and he could only be identified through his dental records, as per Yahoo! Life.
With Prince William gone, Prince Richard inherited his father's dukedom. He quit is architecture practice to serve his cousin, Queen Elizabeth.
The Queen made sure that Prince Richard's duties were, also, connected to his training as an architect. His patronages include the Construction Youth Trust, Society of Architect Artists and Habitat for Humanity. Currently, over 150 charities are associated with the Prince Richard.
After seeking permission from the Queen, the royal married his college sweetheart, Birgitte van Deurs, who became the Duchess of Gloucester. They have three children -- Alexander Windsor, the Earl of Ulster, Lady Davina Windsor and Lady Rose Gilman. The Gloucester children do not carry out royal functions but they are present at family events like weddings or christenings.
The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, also, carry out royal engagements abroad for the Queen. Like Prince Charles and Prince William, they have been keeping tabs with their charities and patronages amid the coronavirus lockdown. They live next door to Prince William and Kate Middleton at Kensington Palace.
