He was born Prince Henry of York, later 1st Duke of Gloucester, the third son of Prince George, Duke of York and his wife Princess Mary of Teck, later King George V and Queen Mary. His eldest brother was Prince David, Prince of Wales, later King Edward VIII and then the Duke of Windsor. He next brother was Prince Albert, later Duke of York and then King George VI. Queen Victoria recorded his christening in her journal and noted the names, commenting that she had 'named the child,' N. Frankland, Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, London, 1980, p. 4. She described the christening robe which had first been worn by her eldest daughter, Princess Victoria, Dowager Empress of Germany (1840-1901) and commented on the choice of hymns, the first of which had been composed by Prince Albert and the second by her youngest daughter and fellow godparent, Princess Beatrice.

Prince Henry the first Royal prince to be educated publicly attending St. Peter's Court School in Kent and then Eton College. His elder brothers had attended the Royal Naval College in Dartmouth, but Prince Henry went to Sandhurst before joining first the King's Royal Rifle Corps and then the 13th Hussars, moving on to the 10 Hussars. He greatly enjoyed sports whilst at school and was an noted huntsman and shot. Throughout his military career he represented the King at various events including investing the Emperor of Japan with the Order of the Garter and the coronation of Emperor Haile Selassie.

In 1935 he married Lady Alice Montagu-Douglas-Scott, the daughter of the Duke of Buccleuch as they acquired the Barnwell Manor estate near Peterborough. He fought during the Second World War and became the first Royal Governor General of Australia in 1945. In the years of his brother's reign and those of his niece, Queen Elizabeth II he represented the monarch on many occasions including the independence of Ceylon, now Sri Lanka. He died in 1974 and following the death of his widow, Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester many of his possessions were sold at Christie's in a landmark sale held on the 26 and 27 January 2006, which included this salver.