Viscount Severn
{{Short description|Title in the Peerage of England}}
{{infobox nobility title
| name = Viscount Severn
| image = Coat of Arms of Edward, Earl of Wessex.svg
| caption = Arms of Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh
| creation_date = 19 June 1999{{London Gazette |issue=55536 |date=28 June 1999 |page=7011 }}
| creation = First
| monarch = Elizabeth II
| peerage = Peerage of the United Kingdom
| present_holder = James, Earl of Wessex
| remainder_to = the 1st Viscount's heirs male of the body lawfully begotten.
| status = Extant
| family_seat = Bagshot Park
}}
Viscount Severn is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The name of the viscountcy is derived from the River Severn that runs through England and Wales. The title, along with the Earldom of Wessex, was bestowed on Prince Edward by his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, upon his marriage to Sophie Rhys-Jones.{{Cite news| title=Wessex titles for Edward and Sophie |publisher=BBC News| date=19 June 1999| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/special_report/1999/06/99/royal_wedding/373120.stm | access-date=10 March 2023}} Between 1999 and 2023, the title was a subsidiary title of the Earldom of Wessex and Earldom of Forfar. Since 2023, the title is a subsidiary title of the Dukedom of Edinburgh upon the granting of the dukedom to Prince Edward.
History
Viscount Severn was used by minor members of the royal family in the 18th century. There is a history of being given a secondary title so the eldest son can have it as a courtesy title.
The title Viscount Severn was given in allusion to the Welsh roots of Sophie Rhys-Jones's family. The significance of this title is that it alludes to her ancestors having ruled the land Between Wye and Severn.{{Cite news| title=Welsh Kings in Herefordshire and the origins of Rhwng Gwy a Hafren| url= http://www.castles99.ukprint.com/Essays/rhwnggyh.html | access-date=12 March 2023}} This was the first time a royal prince was granted a viscountcy since 1726 when the title was given to two of George II's sons.{{CN|date=May 2024}}
=First creation, 1999=
Between 17th December 2007 and 10th March 2023, Viscount Severn was used as a courtesy title by Prince Edward's son, James, Earl of Wessex. When his father was conferred the Dukedom of Edinburgh, James instead became styled Earl of Wessex. The title will once again be used as a courtesy title should James have a son.
{{Nobility table header|name=Viscount}}
| Prince Edward
House of Windsor
1999–present
also: Duke of Edinburgh (2023), Earl of Wessex (1999), Earl of Forfar (2019)
| 10 March 1964
Buckingham Palace, London
son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip
| 19 June 1999
Sophie Rhys-Jones
2 children
| {{spaced ndash}}
now {{age in years and days|1964|3|10}} old
|-
|}
Line of succession
{{Tree list}}
- 15px Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh (b. 1964)
- (1) 15px James, Earl of Wessex (b. 2007)
{{Tree list/end}}