I was thinking about the British Royal Family, particularly the Queen Mother and why she had that title. I started wondering if Queen Elizabeth II died before Prince Phillip (and Charles became King) would Phillip get an equivalent title (at least in the Press, which loves short nicknames for everyone). "King Father" would obviously be wrong as he has never been King but "Prince Father" also sounds odd and suggests "Father of a Prince" rather than "Father of the King". I see Wikipedia talks about "Queen dowagers" and that "dowager Princess" has sometimes been used, so "dowager Prince Phillip" would fit except "dowager" always refers to a female, specifically a widow. So is there any equivalent for a widower?
As far as I know, no male consort has survived his wife in British Royalty but has it happened in other countries or is there an example in British Nobility that could set a precedent for this?
Best Answer
It is still "dowager." In instances where a king consort has been widowed by a queen regent, he is referred to as the dowager king or dowager king-consort, as exemplified by Ferdinand II of Aragon when his wife Isabella I of Castile preceded him in death. From 1506 to his death in 1516, in the kingdom of Castile, Ferdinand II was referred to as the Dowager King-Consort of Castile or King Dowager of Castile, ruling Castile as regent, because his daughter with Isabella I, Joanna, was not yet of age.
Here are a few of other examples: Dowager Duke Eastman, Dowager King Consort, King Dowager Beets, and Dowager Duke.