The Prince of Wales hold honours in addition to his main title. He is also Earl of Chester and Duke of Cornwall in the Peerage of England, and Duke of Rothesay and Earl of Carrick in the Peerage of Scotland. His other Scottish titles are Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles and Prince and Great Steward of Scotland.

Only two of these dignities have to be specially created for the heir apparent, that of Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester. Charles III, as The Prince of Wales, received these in 1958 when he automatically became a Knight Companion of the Garter as a constituent part of the Order, but he was not invested and installed as Prince and Earl at Caernarvon Castle until 1969. The remainder of the titles had already passed to him, as heir apparent, the moment his mother succeeded as Queen.

The first Duke of Cornwall (and the first instance of the creation of a duke in England) was Edward the Black Prince, son and heir of King Edward III. The dukedom was created “with remainder to his heirs being Kings of England” and Henry VI expressly stated that his first begotten son at the time of his birth was Duke of Cornwall. Thereafter, heirs apparent who are also the Sovereign’s sons become Duke of Cornwall either at birth or immediately their parent succeeds to the Crown. The only heir apparent not to become Duke of Cornwall was George III, who was not filius regis, being a grandson of his predecessor, George II.

The first Duke of Rothesay was David, eldest son of Robert III, King of Scots, who received this peerage in 1398. Rothesay, and Albany (which was given to his uncle), were the first dukes to be created in Scotland. The charter conferring the Dukedom of Rothesay is not extant, but it was confirmed by Act of Parliament in 1469 that the heir apparent and he alone, holds the title of Duke of Rothesay. Traditionally, when the Prince of Wales is in Scotland, he is styled Duke of Rothesay. Since the union in 1603 of the Crowns of England and Scotland, the limitation of the Dukedom of Rothesay being identical with that of Cornwall, they descend together, as do the other Scottish honours.

The Earldom of Carrick was already in existence in about 1186 when Duncan, descendant of the Lords of Galloway, obtained from King William the Lion the district of Carrick. His granddaughter, who was Countess of Carrick in her own right, married Robert Bruce, and their son Robert, in 1306, became King of Scots as Robert I. Some of the later Earls of Carrick were heirs apparent, and by Act of Parliament in 1469 it was declared that the Earldom should be annexed forever to the first-born prince of the King of Scots. Under the same Act of Parliament, the Barony of Renfrew was also settled upon him. The heir apparent is also Lord of the Isles.

The Macdonalds were Lords of the Isles (the Irish annalists styled them kings), but after forfeitures, James IV, King of Scots annexed the Lordship of the Isles to the Crown, and from that time onwards the heirs to the Scottish throne and their successors have always held the title. Walter Fitz Alan, forebear of the Stewarts, was High Steward of Scotland in the reigns of David I and Malcolm IV. In 1371 Robert, 7th High Steward of Scotland, succeeded his half-uncle, David II, as Robert II, the first Stewart king. The hereditary office of High Steward was confirmed by Act of Parliament in 1469 on the first-born prince of the King of Scots forever.