List of place names with royal patronage in the United Kingdom

The following list of place names with royal patronage in the United Kingdom includes both those granted a royal title or status by express wish of a specific monarch, and those with prefixes or suffixes such as "King's" or "Regis" that relate to historic ownership of the area by the Crown.

England

Royal

The following places have been explicitly granted or confirmed the use of the title "royal" by royal charter, letters patent or similar instrument issued by the monarch. Since 1926 the entitlement to the title "royal borough" has been strictly enforced.[1] Devizes in Wiltshire, which had previously used the title without authorisation, was forced to end the practice.[2]

Location Type Local government Charters Charter lapsed Notes
Berkshire Royal county County council (1889–1998)
6 unitary authorities (1998–)		 1957,[3] 1974[4][5] N/A Location of Windsor Castle
Greenwich Royal borough London borough council 2012 N/A To mark the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II.[6][7] Location of the erstwhile Palace of Placentia, birthplace of Henry VIII, Mary I and Elizabeth I
Kensington Royal borough Metropolitan borough council 1901[8] 1965 In memory of Queen Victoria, born at Kensington Palace[9]
Kensington and Chelsea Royal borough London borough council 1965[9] N/A Transferred from Kensington[9][10]
Kingston upon Thames Royal borough Municipal borough council in Surrey Ancient prescriptive right, confirmed in 1927[1] 1965 Coronation place of King Æthelstan in 924–925. Æthelstan described Kingston as royal town in a charter, as did Eadred later in the 10th century. In 1927 the mayor of Kingston upon Thames petitioned George V for the right to use the title of "royal borough". In reply to the petition the king declared that Kingston was entitled to the status, having been described as a royal borough since time immemorial.[1]
London borough council 1965 N/A Transferred from municipal borough
Leamington Spa "Royal" prefix Civil parish with town council 1838,[11] 1974,[12] 2002[12] N/A Spa town established in late 18th century. The town received the title of "Royal Leamington Spa" in 1838 following a visit by Queen Victoria.[11][13] Royal Leamington Spa was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1875, and on the borough's abolition in 1974 charter trustees were formed.[12] The charter trustees were themselves abolished when a town council was formed in 2002.[12]
The Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield Royal town Historic town, now a civil parish within the City of Birmingham. 1528 N/A Honour bestowed by Henry VIII[14]
Tunbridge Wells "Royal" prefix Unparished area 1909,[15] 1974[16] N/A Spa town, incorporated as a municipal borough in 1888. In 1909 Edward VII allowed the prefix "Royal" in recognition of the town's connections with the royal family since the Stuart dynasty.[15] The Borough of Royal Tunbridge Wells was abolished in April 1974, and charter trustees were briefly appointed to preserve the mayoralty of the town. The trustees, who were themselves abolished in December 1974, obtained letters patent reauthorising the prefix "Royal" to the name of the town.[16]
Windsor, also known as New Windsor Royal borough Municipal borough council From reign of Henry I in early 12th century[17] 1974 Location of Windsor Castle
Windsor and Maidenhead Royal borough Non-metropolitan district council (1974–1998)
Unitary authority (1998–)		 1974 N/A Transferred from Borough of Windsor
Wootton Bassett "Royal" prefix Civil parish with a town council 2011 N/A Repatriation of military personnel[18]

Former

Regis
For a list of places suffixed Regis, see Regis (place).

Regis, Latin for "of the king", occurs in numerous placenames. This usually recalls the historical ownership of lands or manors by the Crown.[19] The "Regis" form was often used in the past as an alternative form to "King's", for instance at King's Bromley and King's Lynn.[20][21]

Examples include Houghton Regis in Bedfordshire, Salcombe Regis in Devon, Bere Regis, Melcombe Regis and Lyme Regis in Dorset, Milton Regis in Kent, Beeston Regis in Norfolk, Grafton Regis in Northamptonshire, Brompton Regis in Somerset, Newton Regis in Warwickshire and Rowley Regis in the West Midlands.

There is one modern example of the granting of the suffix "regis". In 1929, George V, having spent several months recuperating from a serious illness in the seaside resort of Bognor, West Sussex, allowed it to be renamed as "Bognor Regis".[22]

King's

Somerset

Queen's

Prince's

Scotland

King and Rìgh

Kingsburgh, Skye is a corruption of Cinnseaborgh, which is in turn a corruption of a Norse name.

In many places "Kin(g)" is a suffix meaning "head", an anglicisation of Ceann: Kinghorn and Kingussie, for example, are nothing to do with royal patronage.

Regis

Queen

Royal

Former royal burghs
Main article: Royal burgh

In Scotland a royal burgh was a burgh or incorporated town founded by, or subsequently granted, a royal charter. By 1707, when the Act of Union with England and Wales came into effect, there were 70 royal burghs.[24] None were created after 1707, and they were formally abolished in 1975. Notwithstanding their abolition, the term is still used in many of the former burghs.[25]

Wales

Royal

See also

References
  1. "Royal Borough of Kingston-upon-Thames". The Times. 27 October 1927. p. 14.
  2. "Royal Boroughs". The Times. 26 April 1926. p. 16.
  3. ""The Royal County of Berkshire". Title Confirmed by the Queen". The Times. 30 December 1957.
  4. Berkshire Record Office. "Berkshire, The Royal County". Golden Jubilee 2002 collection. Archived from the original on 2007-03-10. Retrieved 2007-04-22.
  5. Email response from Berkshire Record Office 2 February 2006: "The Letters Patent granting Berkshire the style 'Royal County' date from 1974. However, Royal approval had been given in 1957/8 when the Queen agreed to permit the style 'Royal County of Berkshire' recognising that the term had been used for many years. The Letters Patent of 1974 merely confirmed their existing usage. The status applies to the county of Berkshire..."
  6. "Greenwich to become Royal Borough". Greenwich London Borough Council. 5 January 2010. Archived from the original on 8 January 2010. Retrieved 5 January 2010.
  7. Letters Patent dated 3 February 2012 "No. 60205". The London Gazette. 11 July 2012. p. 13300.
  8. Letters patent dated 18 November 1901 "No. 27378". The London Gazette. 19 November 1901. p. 7472.
  9. "An introduction to the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea" (PDF). Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Retrieved 20 March 2011.
  10. "News in Brief". The Times. 7 August 1963. p. 6.
  11. Berrows Worcester Journal. Worcester. 26 July 1838. Her Majesty, it is said, has graciously aceded to the request of the inhabitants of Leamington "that they may be permitted to call the Spa the Royal Leamington Spa". Missing or empty |title= (help)
  12. "Welcome to Royal Leamington Spa Town Council". Royal Leamington Spa Town Council. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  13. "Towns of Warwickshire - Leamington Spa". Warwickshire County Council. Archived from the original on 1 February 2011. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  14. "Sutton Coldfield is officially a Royal Town". Sutton Coldfield Observer. 12 June 2014. Archived from the original on 17 July 2014. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
  15. "Royal Tunbridge Wells". The Times. 3 May 1926. p. 11.
  16. "Mayoral Brochure 2009-2010" (PDF). Tunbridge Wells Borough Council. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  17. P H Ditchfield and William Page, ed. (1923). "The royal borough of Windsor: The borough". A History of the County of Berkshire. 3. Victoria County History. pp. 56–66. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  18. "Wootton Bassett to get 'Royal' title in war dead honour". BBC News. 16 March 2011. Retrieved 16 March 2011.
  19. "Brompton Regis". Exmoor National Park. Archived from the original on 13 November 2010. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  20. Wilson, John Marius (1870). "BROMLEY (King's), or Bromley-Regis". Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales.
  21. "King's Lynn, Norfolk". Vision of Britain. University of Portsmouth and Others. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  22. "King George V gave Bognor the Title "Regis"". Bognor Regis Town Council. Archived from the original on 4 September 2010. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  23. "Cramond Regis". Douglashistory.co.uk. Retrieved 2018-09-16.
  24. Pryde, George S (1965). The Burghs of Scotland: A Critical List. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  25. Select Committee on Privileges Second Report, September 1999
  26. "Court Circular". The Times. 10 August 1963. p. 8.
  27. Davies, M. Lloyd (19 January 2009). "Caernarfon; Caernarvon". Coflein. Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales. Retrieved 6 October 2012.
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