Duke of Kendal

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The titles of Earl of Kendal and Duke of Kendal have been created several times, generally for people with a connection to the English/British royal family. The title refers to Kendal, a town in Cumbria.

• The first creation was for John, 4th son of King Henry IV, who was created Earl of Kendal, Earl of Richmond and Duke of Bedford in 1414. The titles became extinct at his death.
• The second creation was for John Beaufort, 3rd Earl of Somerset, a grandson of John of Gaunt, who was created Earl of Kendal and Duke of Somerset in 1443. He died the following year, and the titles became extinct.
• The third creation was for Jean de Foix, vicomte de Castillon, who was created Earl of Kendal in 1446. He gave allegiance to the King of France in 1462, and is thereby presumed to have forfeited his English peerage. However, his descendants in France (and, later, in Spain) continued to use the title under the name 'Candale' (or 'Candal').
• The next Kendal creation was for Prince Rupert of the Rhine, nephew of King Charles I and a Royalist commander in the Civil War, who is sometimes (perhaps erroneously) said to have been created Baron Kendal along with the other titles of Earl of Holdernesse and Duke of Cumberland in 1644. This Kendal title, if it ever existed, became extinct on his death without legitimate issue.
• The first use of Kendal as a ducal title was in 1666, when Charles Stuart, son of the Duke of York, was given the titles of Duke of Kendal, Earl of Wigmore and Baron Holdenby. He died the following year, and these titles became extinct.
• The next creation was for Prince George of Denmark, the husband of Princess (later Queen) Anne, who was created Duke of Cumberland, Earl of Kendal and Baron Wokingham in 1689. He died without surviving issue, and the titles became extinct.
• The next creation was for Ehrengard von der Schulenberg, Duchess of Munster, the mistress of King George I, who was created Duchess of Kendal, Countess of Feversham and Baroness Glastonbury in 1719. These titles were for life only and expired with their first holder.
• The last Kendal creation was for James Lowther, who was created Baron Kendal, Baron Burgh, Baron Lowther, Viscount Lowther, Viscount Lonsdale and Earl of Lonsdale in 1784. These titles became extinct at his death.
• In 1816, at the time of the marriage of Princess Charlotte of Wales (daughter of the Prince Regent) to Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg, it was announced that the groom was to be created Duke of Kendal. However, in the end this never happened.