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
Frederick, Prince of Wales patronage of the arts is "Rule, Britannia!", one of the best-known British patriotic songs. It was composed by the English composer Thomas Arne and written by the Scottish poet and playwright James Thomson as part of the masque "Alfred" which was first performed on 1 August 1740 at Cliveden, the country home of the Prince and Princess of Wales. Thomas Arne was also one of Frederick's favourite artists. A masque linking the Prince with both the medieval hero-king Alfred the Great's victories over the Vikings and with the contemporary issue of building up the British sea power obviously went well