Main Page | See live article | Alphabetical index

Adolphus Cambridge, 1st Marquess of Cambridge

Sir Adolphus Cambridge, 1st Marquess of Cambridge, Earl of Eltham, and Viscount Northallerton (13 August 1868-23 October 1927), formerly HSH Prince Adolphus of Teck and later HH The Duke of Teck, was a member of the British Royal Family. He was a younger brother of Queen Mary, the consort of King George V, and the elder brother of the Earl of Athlone.

His Serene Highness Prince Adolphus Charles Alexander Albert Edward George Philip Louis Landislaus of Teck, C.C.B., G.C.V.O., C.M.G., was born in Kensington Palace, the second child and eldest son of HSH Francis, Duke of Teck and his wife, HRH Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge. His father the product of a morganatic marriage between Duke Alexander of Württemberg and Countess Claudine Rhédey von Kis-Rhéde, later Countess von Hohenstein. His mother was the younger daughter of Prince Adolphus, 1st Duke of Cambridge, the seventh son of King George III. Due to his unwieldy string of nine Christian names, he was always known as "Dolly" among his family.

Prince Adolphus of Teck was a cavalry officer, following in the footsteps of his father, both of his grandfathers, and his maternal uncle. He received his education at Wellington College, before entering the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst. At the age of 19, he joined the 17th Lancers, the regiment of his maternal uncle, the Duke of Cambridge, who was the commander-in-chief of the British Army from 1856-1895. In 1894, he transferred to the 1st Life Guards. In October of that year, he married Lady Margaret Evelyn Grosvenor (9 April 1873-27 March 1929), the daughter of Hugh Lupus Grosvenor, 1st Duke of Westminster, and his wife, the former Lady Constance Gertrude Leveson-Gower. The couple had four children:

In January 1900, Prince Adolphus succeeded his father as Duke of Teck. The new Duke served with his regiment during the Boer War and at one time was a transport officer in the Household Cavalry. He then served as the British military attaché in Vienna from 1904 to 1910, retiring at the rank of lieutenant colonel. With the outbreak of World War I, he returned to active duty, serving first as temporary military secretary at the War Office and later as military secretary to the commander-in-chief of the British Expeditionary Forces (B.E.F.) in France, with the rank of brigadier general. He was created Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (K.C.V.O.)in 1897, promoted to Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (G.C.V.O.) in 1900, and made a Knight Grand Cross of the Most Honorable Order of the Bath (G.C.B.), in 1911.

In 1911, his brother-in-law King George V granted him the style Highness. Thereafter, he was styled His Highness the Duke of Teck. However, in July 1917, rising anti-German sentiment forced the British Royal Family to sever all connections with Germany. In addition to changing the name of the British Royal House, George V decided that his cousins and brothers-in-law, who were British subjects but who bore German princely and ducal titles, should cease to use those titles and instead become British peers. By Royal Warrant and License, the Duke of Teck relinquished the titles and styles of "Highness," "Prince," "Duke of Teck," and the designation "of Teck," and adopted the surname Cambridge for himself and his descendants. He was subsequently created Marquess of Cambridge, Earl of Eltham, and Viscount Northallerton in the peerage of the United Kingdom. His elder son took the title Earl of Eltham as a courtsey title. His younger children became Lord/Lady (Christian Name) Cambridge.

The Marquess of Cambridge died in 1927 at Shatton Hall, Shrewsbury, England. His elder son, Earl of Eltham, succeeded him as Marquess of Cambridge.

{| border="2" align="center" |- |width="30%" align="center"|Preceded by:
New Creation |width="40%" align="center"|Marquess of Cambridge |width="30%" align="center" rowspan="2"|Followed by:
George Cambridge |}