Imperial and Royal Highness (abbreviation HI&RH) is a style possessed by someone who either through birth or marriage holds two individual styles, Imperial Highness and Royal Highness. His/Her Imperial Highness is a style used by members of an imperial family to denote imperial – as opposed to royal – status to show that the holder is descended from an emperor rather than a king or queen. Holders of the style Imperial Highness generally rank above holders of the style Royal Highness.
A primary example of the contemporary usage of this style is the Belgian royal family. HI&RH Lorenz, Archduke of Austria-Este, Prince of Belgium, is a member of the Imperial House of Habsburg-Lorraine by birth, but upon his marriage to HRH Princess Astrid of Belgium, he also became a member of the Belgian royal family by marriage. As such, their children currently use the styles HI&RH as members of both the royal family of Belgium and the Imperial House of Habsburg-Lorraine.
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