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The Prince is the grandson of King George V and Queen Mary, and his father was Prince George, the Duke of Kent, who was killed in a military air-crash in 1942.
His brother, Prince Edward, the Duke of Kent, is a regular fixture at Royal engagements, and is seen annually handing out the winners’ trophies at Wimbledon.
Yet despite his brother’s prominence, Prince Michael is rarely if ever present on the Court Circular of official engagements carried out on behalf of the Queen.
Commenting on the peculiar tradition, the Prince’s website states: “Engagements undertaken by Prince and Princess Michael of Kent are not included in the Court Circular because they do not usually carry out official duties on behalf of the Queen.
“Under prima genitor rules it is Prince Michael’s older brother, the Duke of Kent, who carries out official duties which are included in the Court Circular.”
As the second son and third child of King George V’s fourth son, Prince Michael was never expected to undertake official Royal duties, which were instead conducted by his eldest sibling, the Duke of Kent.
The Prince has consequently never received parliamentary annuities under the civil list before it was abolished in 2011, and has never been given an allowance from the Privy Purse, unlike his brother and sister who both carry out official engagements.
Princess Alexandra would have also typically not undertaken Royal engagements as the second child of King George V’s fourth son, but the Queen made a special exception for her in the 1960s.
The Prince’s website notes: “Prince Michael’s sister, Princess Alexandra, was asked by the Queen to undertake such duties because of a lack of female members of the family during the 1960s.”
Yet despite not typically undertaking official engagements, the Prince has nevertheless represented the Queen on official duties in the Commonwealth and in the UK.
He has attended state funerals in Swaziland, Cyprus and India.
The Prince’s website also states: “However although not categorised as ‘official’, Prince and Princess Michael carry out a great many charitable and public engagements each year both in the United Kingdom and abroad.”
Yet the Prince has also drawn sharp criticism after it was revealed that he lives in a grace-and-favour apartment in Kensington Palace along his wife, which was given to him upon his marriage in 1978.
It was claimed in 2002 that Prince Michael was obliged to pay just £69 per week for the use of his apartment, which caused public outcry.
Buckingham Palace clarified this accusation, and stated the Queen paid commercial rates for the apartment on behalf of her cousin.
The Palace said: “The Queen is paying the rent for Prince and Princess Michael of Kent’s apartment at a commercial rate of £120,000 annually,from her own private funds.
“This rent payment by the Queen is in recognition of the Royal engagements and work for various charities which Prince and Princess Michael of Kent have undertaken at their own expense, without any public funding.”
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