Prince of Wales soil and speaking no other language"). William Camden wrote in his 1607 work "Britannia" that originally the title "Prince of Wales" was not conferred automatically upon the eldest living son of the King of England because Edward II (who had been the first English Prince of Wales) neglected to invest his eldest son, the future Edward III, with that title. It was Edward III who revived the practice of naming the eldest son Prince of Wales, which was then maintained by his successors: Nevertheless, according to conventional wisdom, since 1301 the Prince of Wales has usually been the eldest living
Investiture of the Prince of Wales Investiture of the Prince of Wales The investiture of the Prince of Wales is the ceremony marking formal acknowledgement of a newly-created Prince of Wales. During the investiture ceremony, the prince is presented and invested with the ensigns of his rank and dignity, similar to a coronation. An investiture is purely ceremonial, as the title is created via letters patent. Investitures fell into abeyance and the revival of investing the Prince of Wales in 1911 was largely due to David Lloyd George's instigation. A similar ceremony was also held in 1969 for Queen Elizabeth II's son and heir, Prince Charles.