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- The Duke of Edinburgh title was promised to Prince Edward but is reportedly going to Prince Charles.
- According to an ITV podcast, Prince Philip's title will be inherited by his eldest son first.
- Royal expert Chris Ship said Charles "won't use it because he's got his other titles."
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Prince Philip's Duke of Edinburgh title could bypass Prince Edward and go to Prince Charles, according to royal experts.
After the Duke of Edinburgh died on Friday, April 9, speculation began over who would inherit the title. Prince Edward had been set to take on the title and its corresponding responsibilities since it was officially announced in 2015, as reported by the Express, but Prince Charles could add the title to his long list of other accolades before his younger brother.
In 1999, when Edward married Sophie Rhys-Jones, it was confirmed that he would be given the title "in due course, when the present title now held by Prince Philip eventually reverts to the Crown."
Currently, he only holds the Earl of Wessex title, while Charles is known as The Prince of Wales, as well as the Duke of Rothesay when he is in Scotland, and the Duke of Cornwall when he is visiting the South West of England.
Lizzie Robinson, host of ITV's Royal Rota podcast, told listeners in an episode released on Monday: "It will pass to Prince Edward eventually, but right now it's passed to Prince Charles."
"When Prince Charles becomes king, the title returns back to the Crown. It's at that point that it can be given to Prince Edward," she explained.
Robinson's co-host and ITV News' royal editor Chris Ship added: "It passes to Prince Charles because he is the eldest son but he won't use it because he's got his other titles."
"Obviously Prince of Wales, heir to the throne, Duke of Rothesay, Duke of Cornwall and all the rest of it," he added. "So it will be Prince Edward who will be the future Duke of Edinburgh. He will now, therefore, take over and steer the Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme."
The award scheme is a youth awards program in the United Kingdom founded by Prince Philip in 1956. According to the website, the scheme encourages young people "to build essential skills, experience, confidence, and resilience."
As CBS News reported, the title was initially given to Prince Frederick by his grandfather, King George I, in 1726. Prince Philip was awarded the title when he gave up his former status as Prince of Greece and Denmark, in order to be able to marry the Queen in 1947.
CBS also noted that when Charles becomes king, the title will "merge with the crown" and he will be able to bestow it upon Edward, whose wife Sophie, Countess of Wessex will become the next Duchess of Edinburgh - a title previously held by Queen Elizbeth II until she ascended the throne.