Successions of the 10 Modern European Monarchies

[Music] royalty 101 successions of the 10 modern European monarchies 10 hereditary monarchies survive in Europe today Belgium Denmark the Netherlands Norway Spain Sweden the United Kingdom Luxembourg Liechtenstein and Monaco each of them passed their Thrones within their respective Royal or noble families based on different rules some give daughters equal right to Sons some are women and their children entirely princes and princesses may be born into or removed from the line based on their religion if they're raised in the country who they marry and other factors some monarchies have tight laws and succession lines of less than 10 people While others have lines which include thousands of extended relatives let's take a look at who is and is not in line for the Thrones of each of the 10 modern European monarchies and take a look at the historic events and Royal scandals which have shaped succession rules over the centuries plus we'll find out which Royals are in line for more than one throne all 10 monarchies use some form of primogeniture to determine the order of the succession this gives the right of inheritance to the eldest child of the Monarch if the eldest child has died before their Monarch parent then the crown goes instead to the eldest child's eldest child if a monarch dies with no living descendants then the crown would pass to their next eldest sibling and then their children if the dead Monarch has no living brothers sisters nephews or nieces then the crown would move up a generation until the nearest living relative can be found whenever someone in a line of succession dies everyone behind them moves up one place when a new royal baby is born those behind them move back a place the ranks of those ahead of the person in question are never affected there are three types of primogeniture in use in Europe today agnatic male preference and absolute agnatic primogeniture bars women and their descendants from the succession entirely this rule was widespread for most of History which is why there have been so many kings and so few Queens reagnant male preference primogeniture does allow women and their descendants to inherit but puts them in the back of the line behind their brothers older or younger England and Spain use this rule for most of their histories so they have each had a handful of ruling Queens in 1887 all three of King villain III of the Netherlands Sons had pre-deceased him the law of the nation was changed from agnatic to male preference primogeniture to allow his daughter Wilhelmina to become Queen in 1953 King Frederick IX of Denmark had three daughters and no Sons their succession was changed to male preference to allow his eldest child margreta to inherit the throne in 1971 Crown Prince Harold of Norway welcomed his first child a daughter Marta Louise their succession was updated to male preference that year absolute primogeniture gives male and female children equal right in the succession in 1979 the Swedish Parliament was the first to change to this Rule King Carl the 16th Gustav was against it he had a two-year-old daughter Victoria and a baby son Carl Philip and he thought his son should get his throne but the Swedish people disagreed and it is Crown Princess Victoria who will one day be queen other monarchies modernized to Absolute in the following decades the Netherlands in 1983 Norway in 1990 Belgium in 1991 Denmark in 2009 Luxembourg in 2011 and the United Kingdom in 2013. currently only Spain and Monaco still use male preference primogeniture in 2004 prior to the birth of Crown Prince Felipe's children there was discussion in Spain about adopting absolute primogenitor his first child was a daughter Leonor discussions heated up during princess leticia's second pregnancy but when Sophia was born the movement fizzled out and the law was never changed Leonor has been created princess of astorias the title of the heir to the throne but she is technically only Heir presumptive if her father has a legitimate son and the law is never changed she would be displaced in the succession today in Europe only the principality of Liechtenstein still uses agnatic primogeniture in 2004 the United Nations raised concerns about the discriminatory nature of the Dynasty's inheritance policy which goes against the international Covenant on civil and political rights which Lichtenstein has signed Prince Hans Adam II's response was that excluding women is a family tradition going back to 1606 and predating the existence of Liechtenstein as a nation succession 2 The Throne of Belgium in 1991 Belgium adopted absolute primogeniture which applies to all legitimate descendants of the king at the time Albert II before then agnatic primogeniture was used so technically any male-line descendants of previous Belgian monarchs going back to the first king Leopold the first could be in line to the throne however there are none living dynasts must seek the Monarch's approval to marry in order to remain in the succession anyone who rules a foreign Nation cannot inherit the Belgian Throne under these rules there are currently 16 people in the Belgian line of succession after King Philippe is his daughter Elizabeth Duchess of brabant in the likely course of events her eldest child will someday inherit the throne but until she has an heir she is followed by her siblings Gabrielle Emmanuel and Eleanor next is the King's sister Astrid she is married to Prince laurent's Duke of Austria Este whose ancestors are previous Holy Roman emperors including Maria Theresa their son Amadeo is sixth in line followed by his children Anne Astrid and Maximilian next are Maria Laura yokam Louisa Maria and Leticia Maria youngest brother Prince Laurent is 13th in line followed by Louise Nicholas and Emerick King Albert has a fourth child Delphine who was born of an adulterous affair she sued for the right to be titled a princess but because she is illegitimate she is not in the line of succession Belgium is the only monarchy in which the Earth the throne does not automatically inherit upon the death or abdication of the previous Monarch instead there is a 10-day interregnum before the new monarch assist the throne by taking a solemn oath in front of parliament there is one foreign Royal who is close to the Belgian Dynasty Henri Grand Duke of Luxembourg is a grandson of King Leopold III however because he is a female lion descendant and because he is the head of another Nation he is barred from the Belgian succession succession to the throne of Denmark Denmark moved first to male preference primogeniture in 1953 to allow Margaret to the second to inherit than to Absolute in 2009. dinus must be a legitimate descendants of King Christian the tenth Danish monarchs have alternated between Frederick and Christian since the house of Oldenburg took control in 1448. Margaret II took the place of a Christian her son will be Frederick the tenth and her grandson Christian at the 11th until he has an heir of his own he is followed by his siblings Isabella Vincent and Josephine next is the Queen's second child Prince jocham and his children Nikolai Felix Henrik and Athena in an effort to slim down the monarchy and its cause her majesty announced in 2022 that she was stripping these four grandchildren of their titles of prince and princess Joachim was saddened by his mother's day decision and his ex-wife was Furious the children remain in the succession dynasts must marry with the Monarch's approval and other conditions may be set for the eligibility of Offspring Frederick IX second daughter benedicta sought her father's permission to marry a German Prince so she is in the succession but the condition was set that her children must be raised in Denmark because they grew up in Germany they were removed from the succession Frederick's youngest daughter Anne-Marie married King Constantine II of Greece because her children would be in line for that Throne the princess renounced her claim to the Danish Throne the closest foreign Monarch to the Danish line is King Charles III through his father Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark he is a great great grandson of King Christian IX however when his great-grandfather was elected King George the first of Greece he was required to renounce his right to the Danish succession as a foreign Monarch himself Charles is out of the running for the Danish throne succession to the throne of the Netherlands the Netherlands went from agnatic in 1533 to male preference in 1887 and after three popular queens in a row to Absolute in 1983. the line of succession is limited to three degrees of kinship from the current Monarch dynasts must wed with Parliament approval in 2021 Parliament stated that Royals could wed a person of the same sex and remain in the succession there are currently eight people in line for the Dutch Throne after the current King Willem Alexander is his daughter Katarina Amalia she holds the traditional title of The Heir Apparent princess of orange next are her sisters Alexia and Ariane former Queen beatrix's Second Son Prince freesol lost his place in the succession when he married Mabel Vice Smit in 2004. she was found to have lied to the government meant about her past relationship with a drug trafficker so they did not seek parliamentary permission for the marriage friso died in 2013 from head injuries sustained during a skiing accident his two daughters are not in the succession third brother Constantine is in as are his children Eloise Klaus Casimir and Leonor next the children of Queen Juliana her second daughter Irene was removed when she married Carlos Hugo Duke of Parma who was a pretender to the Spanish Throne approval of the marriage would have caused a crisis between the monarchs of the Netherlands and Spain third daughter Princess Margaret is eighth and last in line her sons maritus and Bernard are eligible but are not in the succession because they are four degrees of kinship from the King because of the unlikelihood of inheriting younger others Peter Christian and Flores did not seek approval for their marriages and are thus barred from the succession princess Christina and her children are eligible but are not included because primogeniture places them after Margaret's children I love to travel through Europe and see the Palaces occupied by modern Royals and the castles built by historic ones plus eat delicious food and soak up the culture and next year I'd like to bring you with me so we can talk about history together in person perhaps we'll explore the picturesque castles of Germany or the rugged Scottish Highlands Venture through ancient ruins in Greece or I'm always up for a trip back to Jolly Old England if you're interested in traveling with me in 2024 please take the survey linked below for more information and to help me decide where we'll go succession to the throne of Norway in 1990 King Harold V updated the Constitution to Absolute primogeniture which applied to his grandchildren and generations after his children however are still ordered based on male preference primogeniture Crown Prince hakon is first in line followed by his daughter ingred she is expected to be Norway's first queen regnant since Margarita the first in the 1300s she is followed by younger brother svade the king's elder child princess Martha Louise is fourth in line followed by her daughter's Maude Leah and Emma Martha Louise is a controversial figure in Norway because of her association with Clairvoyance and engagement to a shaman who many see as a con man so there is little opposition to her brother skipping her to become the next Monarch The Constitution limits the succession to legitimate descendants of monarchs and their siblings King Harald had two older sisters princess rongnil and princess Astrid but because agnatic primogeniture was in effect when they were born they and their descendants are not in line for the throne with only seven people Norway has the shortest succession line in Europe if ever no one is eligible for the throne Parliament may elect a new monarch succession to the throne of Spain ever since Queen Isabelle of Castile and King Fernando of Aragon both passed Their Kingdoms to their daughter Juana uniting much of Spain in 1516. the throne has been passed by male preference primogeniture in 1931 on popular King Alfonso the 13th was deposed and the Spanish monarchy abolished fascist dictator Francisco Franco had no Sons so he named King Alfonso's grandson Juan Carlos as his Heir when the old dictator died the new king surprised the nation by turning Spain into a democratic constitutional monarchy the new constitution kept male preference primogeniture and limited the line to the successors of the King's father on font Juan count of Barcelona dinas may be removed if they marry against the express prohibition of the Monarch so they don't have to get a approval they just can't marry someone the Monarch doesn't like after King Felipe VI is his daughter Heir presumptive Leonor princess avastorias next is on Fanta Sophia Felipe's sisters follow him first Elena and her children Felipe and Victoria sixth in line is Christina followed by Juan Pablo Miguel and Irene the law is unclear about whether Juan Carlos's two sisters Pilar and margareta are considered successors because they are women but as their descendants are unlikely ever to inherit it is a moot point succession to the throne of Sweden in 1810 King Carl the 13th had no legitimate children so he adopted a French soldier and protege of Napoleon named Jean bernadotte he became king Carl the 14th Johann and founded the dynasty which still Reigns over Sweden a new Act of succession used agnatic primogeniture dinus must be legitimate Lutheran and raised in Sweden they can be removed if they occupy foreign Thrones or wed without Royal approval originally the ACT barred princes from marrying commoners but after World War One there were very few foreign Royals left so the rule was struck down in 1937 the current succession is limited to the descendants of the current King Carl XVI Gustav in 1979 Sweden became the first monarchy in Europe to modernize to Absolute primogenitor Crown Princess Victoria is a expected to be at the fourth Queen ragnant in Sweden's history her daughter Estelle will likely be the fifth she is followed in the succession by her brother Oscar next is Prince Carl Philip and his children Alexander Gabriel and Julian princess Madeline is eighth followed by Leonor Nicholas and Adrienne no less than four foreign Royals are descendants of previous Swedish Kings Margarita II of Denmark Carl V of Norway Philippe of Belgium and Henri of Luxembourg under pure primogeniture they would all be part of the Swedish succession however as none of them are descendants of the current King and they were not raised in Sweden they are not eligible succession to the throne of the United Kingdom the British succession has the least restrictive rules and therefore by far the most people in it it followed male preference primogeniture since Henry VII's daughters Mary the first and Elizabeth the first ruled in the 1500s by 1707 Queen Anne was the last Living member of the Stewart Dynasty who hadn't been kicked off the throne for being Catholic she had 17 pregnancies but all of her children were stillborn or died young to avoid a war parliament passed an act giving the throne to Anne's closest living Protestant relative Sophia of Hanover the 83 year old German princess died before her British cousin and so her son became King George the first today everyone in the British succession must be a legitimate Protestant descendant of Sophia of Hanover as she lived over 300 years ago and has thou thousands of descendants there are a lot of people in line for this Throne let's take a look at just the beginning of this very long list after King Charles III is his son William Prince of Wales in 2013 before the birth of his first child absolute primogenitor was adopted it only applies to children born after 2011. William's children George Charlotte and Louis are next Prince Harry is fifth in line followed by Archie and lillibet because Anne Princess Royal was born before the switch to Absolute primogeniture she is behind her younger brothers prince Andrew is eighth followed by Beatrice and Siena Eugenie and August Philip 13th is Prince Edward and James and Louise then Anne Peter Savannah and Isla Zara Mia Lina and Lucas the British succession includes a handful of foreign Royals King Harold V of Norway is the descendant of king Edward VII and is 85th in line Carl the 16th Gustav of Sweden and margareta the second queen of Denmark our descendants of Queen Victoria's son Arthur under approximately 309th and 361st in line to the British throne King Felipe VI of Spain is a descendant of Queen Victoria through no less than three of her daughters the highest ranking puts him about 567th in line but he is disqualified because he's Catholic Queen Elizabeth's husband Prince Philip Duke of Edinburgh was a descendant of Queen Victoria's third child Alice before his death he was in line for his wife's Throne at around Place 679 but his children are not in the line twice dynasts are only included in lines of succession why events at their highest possible rank other monarchies have restricted their successions to the descendants of more recent monarchs making for much shorter lines this may be something King Charles III plans to do in his slimmed down monarchy only the first six people in the line of succession have to seek the Monarch's approval to Mary succession to the throne of Luxembourg after Napoleon's downfall the Congress of Vienna met in 1815 to drop new borders across Europe they established the modern state of Luxembourg as a possession of King villum the first of the Netherlands the small nation passed down the line of Dutch Kings until Queen Wilhelmina the Luxembourg succession was eggnatic so the grand duchy went instead to her cousin Adolf Grand Duke IV had six daughters so in 1907 the succession was changed to male preference to allow Marie Adelaide to Reign absolute primogeniture was adopted in 2011 but it hasn't always been clear how it is applied retroactively Grand Duke Henry's daughter Alexandra was eventually recognized as part of the succession before her younger brother however she has two cousins both named Charlotte who are not included in the succession at all after Grand Duke onry is his son hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume followed by his son Prince Charles next is Felix and his children Amelie and Liam third son Louis had a baby out of wedlock and gave up his succession rights to marry his girlfriend without approval next are Alexandra and Sebastian in eighth place is the Duke's brother Guillaume followed by his children Paul Louis Leopold and Jean Andre up another generation is Prince Robert Alexandra and Frederick succession to the throne of Liechtenstein the house of Liechtenstein has barred women and their descendants since Prince Carl the first established the monarchy in 1606 and they seemed set on keeping it that way the micronation limits their succession to legitimate male patrilineal descendants of Prince Johan the first Joseph since he lived in the 18th century the list is quite extensive including some 53 living dinos let's take a look at the immediate family after the current Monarch Prince Hans Adam II is his son hereditary Prince aluise next is his son Prince Joseph vinsau until he has a son he is followed by Brothers Georges and Nicolas next are Maximilian and Alphonse Constantine Morts and Benedict tenth is Philippe followed by Alexander Vince's loss Rudolph and Carl Ludwig Nicolas and Joseph Emmanuel are 15th and 16th succession to the throne of Monaco prior to 2002 only children of the current Monarch were included in the succession but as Prince Rainier III Grew Older and the reign of his son Albert Drew near the law was changed there was fear that the Playboy Prince then 44 and single might never marry and produce a legitimate Heir if ever there is not a member of the Grimaldi family on the throne of Monaco the micronation will lose its independence and revert back to France today all legitimate descendants of Rainier III are included in the succession Prince Albert's two eldest children Jasmine and Alexandra are illegitimate and are not in line for the throne the prince did eventually marry and has twins with his wife Princess Charlene male preference primogeniture ranks Jacques first Gabriella second next is Prince Rainier and Grace Kelly's eldest child princess Caroline and her children and grandchildren Andre Alexandra Maximilian and India male preference ranks younger brother Pierre next then Stefano and Francisco Charlotte's eldest child Raphael was born out of wedlock and is not included in the succession her second Balthazar was born before she married his father but because the parents did eventually wed he is included Alexandra was born of Caroline's second marriage to Prince Ernst Auguste the senior Clement to the throne of Hanover which was abolished in 1866 Hanover's succession is agnatic so even if it were still a kingdom Alexandra would not be in their succession through her father she is a descendant of King George III of the UK and was in the British line of succession until 2018 when she converted to Catholicism back to the monogask succession 14th Place is Princess Stephanie followed by her two Elder children Louis and Pauline youngest Camille is illegitimate and not eligible for the throne want even more tea on History check out the history Tea Time Podcast available on Spotify Apple podcasts and Google podcasts a special thank you goes to my patrons Leah lygot and Aaron green if you enjoyed this video please like subscribe comment your thoughts and check out my other Royal history videos if you really want to help please consider supporting me on patreon a link is in the description thank you for watching

Channel: History Tea Time with Lindsay Holiday

Views: 392,894

Keywords: documentary, royal family, royalty, european royalty, queens of europe, prince william, prince george, Prince frederik of Denmark, Princess Victoria of Sweden, princess Leonor of Spain, prince haakon of norway, prince alois of liechtenstein, Prince of Monaco, grand duke of luxembourg, absolute primogeniture, king charles iii, succession to the throne, line of succession, modern monarchs of europe, modern monarchies, modern royal family, modern royal families, royal succession

Id: i9vlWs4heHw

Length: 27min 27sec (1647 seconds)

Published: Tue Jul 04 2023