Duchess of York is the principal courtesy title held by the wife of the Duke of York. Three of the eleven Dukes of York either did not marry or had already assumed the throne prior to marriage, while two of the Dukes married twice; therefore, there have been only ten Duchesses of York.
Duchesses of York
The ten Duchesses of York (and the dates the individuals held that title):
30 May 1996 Divorced; assumed the style of Sarah, Duchess of York
In 1791, Princess Frederica Charlotte of Prussia (1791–1820) married Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany (second son of King George III); she thus became HRH The Duchess of York and Albany. Her husband held one double dukedom (of York and Albany) rather than two. The Duchess received a warm welcome to Great Britain but following a troubled relationship with her husband, the couple separated. The two previous dukes of York and Albany had never married; since her husband was the last duke of York and Albany, Frederica was the only duchess with that double title.
HMS Duchess of York (1898), a paddle steamer built by Barclay, Curle & Co. Ltd., Glasgow, used as a First World War minesweeper. Later renamed Duchess of Cornwall to allow for a new ship to take its name.[2]
SS Duchess of York (1928), a steam turbine ocean liner built by John Brown & Co Ltd., Clydebank for Canadian Pacific Steamships. Sunk after being bombed in 1943.[3]