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The British Royal Family has had historical ties with various European royal families, some of whom are Catholic. However, these ties have not influenced the religious stance of the British royal family. There are no current senior members of the British royal family who practice Catholicism. They are all members of the Church of England. The Act of Settlement of 1701 bars Catholics and those married to Catholics from ascending the throne. This act aimed to secure a Protestant succession and prevent any return to Catholic rule. One member of the royal family, Lord Nicholas Windsor, renounced his right of succession to the British throne when he embraced Catholicism in 2001. His mother, Katharine, Duchess of Kent, converted to Catholicism in 1994 and was the first member of the House of Windsor to become Catholic.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Members of the British royal family who are Catholic | Katharine, Duchess of Kent, Lord Nicholas Windsor, Lord Downpatrick, and Lady Marina |
| First member of the House of Windsor to become Catholic | Katharine, Duchess of Kent |
| First male convert to Catholicism in the British royal family in several centuries | Lord Nicholas Windsor |
| Act of Settlement 1701 | Barred Catholics and those married to Catholics from ascending the throne |
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What You'll Learn
Lord Nicholas Windsor, a Catholic convert
Lord Nicholas Windsor, born in 1970, is a member of the British royal family and a Catholic convert. He is the son of Katharine, Duchess of Kent, the first member of the House of Windsor to become a Roman Catholic, and the Duke of Kent, who is a first cousin of Queen Elizabeth. In 2001, Lord Nicholas renounced his right of succession to the British throne when he embraced Catholicism, following his mother's conversion in 1994.
Lord Nicholas has been vocal about his strong commitment to protecting the rights of the unborn and has expressed strong anti-abortion views. He is also a patron of the Society of King Charles the Martyr and identifies as a Catholic within this largely Anglican society. In his writing for the Society's website, he praises King Charles's virtues, including his piety, devotion to the Church, and ecumenical understanding.
Lord Nicholas's conversion to Catholicism has been a topic of interest, and he has spoken about it in interviews. He has stated that he was attracted to the Catholic faith as it offered a whole new way of seeing the world and living a Christian life as a great adventure. He has also addressed anti-Catholic prejudice in England, encouraging engagement and dialogue to promote Christian values and counter cultural aberrations.
Lord Nicholas married Paola Doimi de Lupis Frankopan Šubić Zrinski in 2006 at the Church of St. Stephen of the Abyssinians in Rome. They reside in Rome with their two sons, one of whom, Albert, was the first royal child to be baptised a Catholic since 1688. Lord Nicholas is the vice president of the Friends of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham and a member of the Pontifical Academy for Life. He has also been involved with organisations supporting refugees and the homeless, such as the Refugee Council in London and the DePaul Trust.
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Katharine, Duchess of Kent, first royal to convert since 1701
Katharine, Duchess of Kent, is the first member of the British royal family to convert to Catholicism since the Act of Settlement in 1701. She was born Katharine Lucy Mary Worsley on 22 February 1933 and is a member of the British royal family by marriage to Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, a grandson of King George V.
The Duchess of Kent converted to Catholicism in 1994, becoming the first member of the royal family to do so publicly since the Act of Settlement in 1701. This Act stated that any royal who married a Catholic would have their right to the throne dissolved. However, it did not include marriage to an Anglican who later converted to Catholicism. As such, her husband, the Duke of Kent, did not lose his place in the line of succession. The Duchess's decision to convert was a personal one, and she received the approval of the reigning Queen at the time, Queen Elizabeth II.
In an interview with the BBC, the Duchess shared her thoughts on her conversion: "I do love guidelines, and the Catholic Church offers you guidelines. I have always wanted that in my life. I like to know what's expected of me. I like being told: You shall go to church on Sunday and if you don't you're in for it!". Following her conversion, the Duchess's son, Lord Nicholas, and grandchildren, Lord Downpatrick and Lady Marina Windsor, also joined the Catholic Church.
The Duchess of Kent stepped back from royal duties in 1996 and took up a position as a music teacher at Wansbeck Primary School in Kingston upon Hull. She also gave piano lessons in a rented studio flat near her official residence at Kensington Palace. Despite her decision to withdraw from public life, the Duchess has continued to make appearances at major events, including royal weddings and celebrations.
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Queen Elizabeth II's role as head of the Church of England
Queen Elizabeth II was the titular head of the Church of England, also known as the Supreme Governor of the Church of England, a position vested in the British monarch. The role of the Supreme Governor indicates that the monarch retains a constitutional role regarding the established Church of England but does not govern or manage it. The monarch's authority over the Church is largely ceremonial and symbolic, yet still relevant to the established church.
The position of Supreme Governor dates back to the reign of King Henry VIII, who broke with the Catholic Church, seized its assets in England and Wales, and declared himself the head of the newly formed Church of England. The monarch's role is acknowledged in the preface to the Thirty-Nine Articles of 1562, which states that the monarch is the "Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church".
Queen Elizabeth II embraced her role as Defender of the Faith, encouraging members of all faiths to be present at great church occasions and the annual Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey. She regularly met with different faith leaders, including five popes, demonstrating her commitment to religious inclusivity and dialogue.
As Supreme Governor, Queen Elizabeth II formally appointed Archbishops, Bishops, and Deans of the Church of England, who in turn swore an oath of allegiance to the Sovereign. She addressed the General Synod every five years, further emphasising her commitment to the Church and her role within it.
In summary, Queen Elizabeth II's role as head of the Church of England was largely ceremonial but symbolically significant. She used her position to foster interfaith dialogue and inclusivity, while also fulfilling traditional duties such as appointing high-ranking members of the Church and addressing the General Synod.
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The Act of Settlement 1701 barring Catholics from the throne
The Act of Settlement 1701 was passed in the political turmoil that followed the so-called glorious revolution of 1688, during which the last Catholic king, James II, fled the country. The Act was designed to secure the Protestant succession to the throne, and to strengthen the guarantees for ensuring a parliamentary system of government. It also strengthened the Bill of Rights (1689), which had previously established the order of succession for Mary II’s heirs. Mary’s father, James II, had Roman Catholic sympathies and believed in the divine right of the Crown, which resulted in disgruntled parliamentarians offering the throne to his eldest Protestant daughter, Mary.
The Act of Settlement provided that the throne would pass to the Electress Sophia of Hanover, a granddaughter of James VI and I and a niece of King Charles I, and her descendants, but it excluded "forever" "all and every Person and Persons who... is are or shall be reconciled to or shall hold Communion with the See or Church of Rome or shall profess the Popish Religion or shall marry a Papist". Thus, those who were Roman Catholics, and those who married Roman Catholics, were barred from ascending the throne. The act contained eight additional provisions that were to only come into effect upon the death of both William and Anne: Firstly, the monarch "shall join in communion with the Church of England". This had the effect of deposing the remaining descendants of Charles I, other than his Protestant granddaughter Anne, as the next Protestant in line to the throne was Sophia of Hanover.
The Act of Settlement not only addressed the dynastic and religious aspects of succession, but also further restricted the powers and prerogatives of the Crown. Under the Act, parliamentary consent had to be given for the Sovereign to engage in war or leave the country, and judges were to hold office on good conduct. The Act also laid down the conditions under which the Crown could be held. No Roman Catholic, nor anyone married to a Roman Catholic, could hold the Crown. The Sovereign now had to swear to maintain the Church of England (and after 1707, the Church of Scotland).
In recent years, there have been increasing demands for the law to be abolished. Britain's Catholic cardinals have called for abolition, and Michael Howard, the then Tory leader, even promised it before the 2005 election. The disqualification arising from marriage to a Roman Catholic was removed by the Succession to the Crown Act in 2013. However, defenders of the Act say that its abolition would cause the UK constitution to unravel.
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The Anglican faith of the modern royal family
The Church of England, also known as the Anglican Church, is the official state religion of the UK. The monarch is the titular head of the Church and defender of the faith. As such, the royal family are expected to be Anglicans and those in the line of succession who marry Catholics are excluded from that line.
Despite this, there have been several members of the royal family who have converted to Catholicism. Katharine, Duchess of Kent, converted in 1994, becoming the first member of the royal family to do so since the passing of the Act of Settlement in 1701. Her son, Lord Nicholas Windsor, followed in his mother's footsteps, converting to Catholicism and renouncing his right of succession to the throne. Lord Nicholas's wife, Paola Doimi Lupis Frankopan, and their two sons are also Catholics, as are Lord Nicholas's brother, Lord Downpatrick, and his sister, Lady Marina.
The Church of England allows its members to simultaneously be members of any other Trinitarian Christian Church. This means that, in theory, the royal family could be Anglican and Catholic at the same time. However, the Catholic Church considers this a sin.
While the royal family's religious affiliations are a matter of public record, their personal beliefs and practices are not always known. Queen Elizabeth, for example, was a member of the Church of Scotland and only celebrated communion privately, indicating that she was not into high church rituals.
Despite being the head of the Church of England, Queen Elizabeth signed into law legislation allowing same-sex marriage, which the Church officially opposes. This indicates that the Queen's personal beliefs may have differed from those of the Church she led.
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Frequently asked questions
No current senior members of the British royal family practice Catholicism. They are all members of the Church of England. However, some members of the extended royal family are Catholic.
Katharine, Duchess of Kent, converted to Catholicism in 1994. She was the first member of the royal family to convert publicly since the passing of the Act of Settlement in 1701. Her son, Lord Nicholas Windsor, followed in her footsteps and converted to Catholicism in 2001, renouncing his right of succession to the British throne. Lord Nicholas's wife, Paola Doimi Lupis Frankopan, and their two sons are also Catholic. Additionally, the Duchess of Kent's grandson, Lord Downpatrick, and granddaughter, Lady Marina, are Catholics.
The Act of Settlement 1701 bars Catholics and those married to Catholics from ascending the British throne. As a result, members of the royal family who convert to Catholicism or marry Catholics relinquish their right of succession to the throne.
The British monarch is the titular head and Supreme Governor of the Church of England. This role involves overseeing the church's administration and maintaining its traditions. The monarch's role in the Church of England underscores the deep-rooted connection between the monarchy and the Anglican Church.
