Mountbatten-Windsor surname
Arms of theGlücksburg andMountbatten branch of theBattenberg, the Badge of theWindsor
Parent family	Glücksburg (agnatic) Mountbatten branch of theBattenberg (enatic) Windsor (enatic)
Country	United Kingdom List Antigua and Barbuda(1981–present) Australia(1960–present) Bahamas(1973–present) Barbados(1966–2021) Belize(1981–present) Canada(1960–present) Ceylon(1960–1972) Fiji(1970–1987) The Gambia(1965–1970) Ghana(1960) Grenada(1974–present) Guyana(1966–1970) Jamaica(1962–present) Kenya(1963–1964) Malawi(1964–1966) Malta(1964–1974) Mauritius(1968–1992) New Zealand(1960–present) Nigeria(1960–1963) Papua New Guinea(1975–present) Saint Kitts and Nevis(1983–present) Saint Lucia(1979–present) Saint Vincent and the Grenadines(1979–present) Sierra Leone(1961–1971) Solomon Islands(1978–present) South Africa(1960–1961) Tanganyika(1961–1962) Trinidad and Tobago(1962–1976) Tuvalu(1978–present) Uganda(1962–1963)
Founded	1960
Founder	Elizabeth II Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Current head	Charles III
Members	14
Connected families	British royal family Danish royal family Greek royal family

Mountbatten-Windsor is the familysurname available to and used by descendants ofQueen Elizabeth II andPrince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, when a surname is required. Generally, those who are entitled to, and use, the royal styleHRH Prince orPrincess have no need of a surname. A surname may become needed, for example to register a marriage, and for non-royal children.Mountbatten-Windsor combines theBritish royal family'shouse name ofWindsor and Prince Philip's adopted surname ofMountbatten branch of theBattenberg. Its use was authorised in a declaration by thePrivy Council in 1960.

Mountbatten-Windsor was created by combining the royal family'sHouse name ofWindsor andPrince Philip's adopted surname ofMountbatten—anAnglicised version ofBattenberg.^[1] In 1960 the Queen declared:^[2]

Whereas on the 9th day of April 1952, I did declare in Council My Will and Pleasure that I and My children shall be styled and known as the House and Family of Windsor, and that My descendants, other than female descendants who marry and their descendants, shall bear the name of Windsor:

And whereas I have given further consideration to the position of those of My descendants who will enjoy neither the style, title or attribute of Royal Highness, nor the titular dignity of Prince and for whom therefore a surname will be necessary:And whereas I have concluded that the Declaration made by Me on the 9th day of April 1952, should be varied in its application to such persons:

Now therefore I declare My Will and Pleasure that, while I and My Children shall continue to be styled and known as the House and Family of Windsor, My descendants other than descendants enjoying the style, title or attribute of Royal Highness and the titular dignity of Prince or Princess and female descendants who marry and their descendants shall bear the name of Mountbatten-Windsor.

The Privy Council declaration made it so that Elizabeth's descendants who bear princely titles keep the name Windsor, pursuant to a declaration she made in a previous Privy Council meeting at the beginning of her reign, while those who do not use the surname Mountbatten-Windsor. This is the case forJames Mountbatten-Windsor, Earl of Wessex. Any female descendants who marry, and their descendants, do not hold the surname Mountbatten-Windsor; this is the case forZara Tindall, who was born with the surname Phillips as a daughter ofAnne, Princess Royal, andMark Phillips.

The British monarchy asserted that the nameMountbatten-Windsor should be used by members of the royal family when a surname is required.^[3] For example, Anne, Princess Royal and her brother (then HRH Prince) Andrew, children of Queen Elizabeth II, used the surnameMountbatten-Windsor in official marriage registry entries in 1973 and 1986 respectively.^[4] Likewise,William, Prince of Wales, used the name when filing a French lawsuit related to the topless pictures ofhis wife published by the French magazineCloser.^[5]At the time of the 1960 declaration, palace officials claimed in private communications that it created a 'hidden' surname that would emerge several generations later when some of Queen Elizabeth II's descendants became further removed from the throne.^[6] On thewedding of Prince Edward and Sophie Rhys-Jones in 1999, the Queen decided, with their agreement, that any of their future children should not be styled His or HerRoyal Highness.^[7] Consequently, the birth of their daughter in 2003 marked the first emergence of the Mountbatten-Windsor surname (hyphenated). Their daughter was named Louise Alice Elizabeth Mary Mountbatten-Windsor, and she goes by the title ofLady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor.^[8]

Mountbatten-Windsor as a surname differs from the official name of theBritish royal family, which remains theHouse of Windsor.^[3] In accordance with law and custom in the English-speaking world, the surnameMountbatten-Windsor belongs to all male-line descendants of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, and can be used by them if and when a surname is needed. In contrast, male-line descendants ofKing George V, the first monarch of the House of Windsor, useWindsor as their surname in cases where a surname is needed if they are not direct descendants of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, as for exampleLady Davina Windsor andLady Marina Windsor, respectively descended from George V's sonsPrince Henry, Duke of Gloucester andPrince George, Duke of Kent. (George V's other sons have no male-line descendants:King George VI had only daughters whileKing Edward VIII had no issue andPrince John died young and was unmarried.) After the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was renamed Windsor, other descendants ofQueen Victoria andPrince Albert could also use the name Windsor, as for example,Alastair Arthur Windsor, 2nd Duke of Connaught and Strathearn, grandson of their sonPrince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn. None do so today, however, because the only extant male line (apart from the descendants of King George V) is throughCharles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, whose descendants use the surname Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (English) or von Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha (German).

The former Prince Andrew becameAndrew Mountbatten-Windsor after Charles III's October 2025 decision to initiate the processes of stripping him of all royal styles and titles and agreement that he would move out of Royal Lodge.^[9] While the initial announcements spelt the surname "Mountbatten Windsor", on 12 November it was reported it would be hyphenated as "Mountbatten-Windsor" in conformity with the 1960 declaration.^[10]

The family tree is based on the currentline of succession to the British throne (addition of last heir)

• Windsor – Queen Elizabeth II's paternal family.
• Bowes-Lyon – Queen Elizabeth II's maternal family.
• Glücksburg – Prince Philip's paternal family.
• Mountbatten – Prince Philip's maternal family.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toMountbatten-Windsor (surname).

• 1960 Declaration

• Mountbatten-Windsor family
• Surnames of European origin

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Use dmy dates from December 2019
• Commons category link is on Wikidata