Who is the Duke of Gloucester? Meet the Queen's cousin who used to be an architect

He’s a senior royal who has carried out hundreds of engagements over four decades and represents numerous charities.

But even the most avid royal fan could be forgiven for not being sure who Prince Richard, the Duke of Gloucester is.

He is a working royal who never intended to hold his position, but has given up his career to dedicate his time to the Queen, his cousin, and to Britain.

Richard was born Prince Richard of Gloucester on 26 August 1944, but as the younger brother of Prince William of Gloucester, he wasn’t thought to be destined to a particular royal life.

He is the grandson of King George V, so he and Queen Elizabeth are cousins.

As Richard had an older brother, he never expected to inherit the dukedom, or ever carry out royal duties.

He trained as an architect, going to Cambridge University from 1963 to 1966, and then from 1967 to 1969.

He then became a practising partner in an architect firm, Hunt Thompson Associates in London.

The tragedy struck the family. Richard’s older brother, Prince William of Gloucester, died after he crashed his plane during a flying competition.

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William was taking part in an event in Wolverhampton when his plane hit a tree and crashed into the ground. The resulting fire took two hours to control, and he and his flying companion were identified by their dental records.

It meant that Richard became heir apparent of the dukedom, and two years later, quit his job to focus on royal life.

But being a full time royal hasn’t completely stopped Richard’s work with architecture. Many of his patronages reflect his previous career, including Habitat for Humanity, which works to eliminate poverty housing, and the Construction Youth Trust, which helps people under 30 get into the industry.

He’s also president of the Society of Architect Artists and a commissioner on the Historic Building and Monuments Commission for England.

The duke is married to Birgitte van Deurs, who he met at university. Because of his position to the throne at the time, he had to request permission from the Queen to marry her - which was granted.

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Van Deurs is now the Duchess of Gloucester, and she carries out royal engagements too, and has her own patronages.

They have three children, and six grandchildren, but none of them carry out royal duties.

The duke and duchess are neighbours of Prince William and Kate when the younger royals are in London, as they also live in Kensington Palace.

Despite both being past retirement age, the duke, 76, and duchess, 74, continue in their royal work, and kept up with their patronages with phone calls during lockdown.

The duke first represented the Queen in 1970, when he travelled to the wedding of Crown Prince Birendra of Nepal.

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He’s also been to the independence celebrations of the Seychelles, the Solomon Islands, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Vanuatu.

And he’s been vital to the Queen since she has stopped being able to travel abroad, representing her at the funeral of King Tupou V of Tonga in March 2012, and at the inauguration of Pope Francis at the Vatican in March 2013.

In March 2018 he went to Malawi for the Commonwealth Day celebrations.

As working royals, the duke and duchess receive a portion of the sovereign grant, but most of their income is supplemented by the Queen.