Succession to the British throne is determined by descent, sex (for people born before October 2011), legitimacy, and religion. Under common law, the Crown is inherited by a sovereign's children or by a childless sovereign's nearest collateral line. The Bill of Rights 1689 and the Act of Settlement 1701 restrict succession to the throne to the legitimate Protestant descendants of Sophia of Hanover that are in "communion with the Church of England".[1] Spouses of Roman Catholics were disqualified from 1689 until the law was amended in 2015. Protestant descendants of those excluded for being Roman Catholics are eligible.[2] Queen Elizabeth II is the sovereign, and her heir apparent is her eldest son, Charles, Prince of Wales. Next in line after him is Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, the Prince of Wales's elder son. Third in line is Prince George, the eldest child of the Duke of Cambridge, followed by his sister, Princess Charlotte and younger brother, Prince Louis. Sixth in line is Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, the younger son of the Prince of Wales. Any of the first six in line marrying without the sovereign's consent would be disqualified from succession. The first four individuals in the line of succession who are over 21, and the sovereign's consort, may be appointed Counsellors of State. Counsellors of State perform some of the sovereign's duties in the United Kingdom while he or she is out of the country or temporarily incapacitated. Otherwise, individuals in the line of succession need not have specific legal or official roles. The United Kingdom is one of the 16 Commonwealth realms. Each of those countries has the same person as monarch and the same order of succession. In 2011, the prime ministers of the realms agreed unanimously to adopt a common approach to amending the rules on the succession to their respective Crowns so that absolute primogeniture would apply for persons born after the date of the agreement, instead of male-preference primogeniture, and the ban on marriages to Roman Catholics would be lifted, but the monarch would still need to be in communion with the Church of England. After the necessary legislation had been enacted in accordance with each realm's constitution, the changes took effect on 26 March 2015 |
from oldest | to | youngest | |
Children: | Number in the line of succession: (also see notes below) | ||
1. Prince Charles Philip Arthur George , Prince of Wales | born 1948 | 1. | |
2. Princess Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise, , Princess Royal | born 1950 | 17 | |
3. Prince Andrew Albert Christian Edward Duke of York | born 1960 | 9. | |
Prince Edward Antony Richard Louis ,Earl of Wessex & Forfar | born 1964 | 14 | |
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Grandchildren: | |||
1. Peter Mark Andrew Phillips | born 1977 | 18 | son of Anne. Princess Royal & Mr. Mark Phillips |
2. Zara Anne Elizabeth Tindall (neé Phillips) | born 1981 | 21 | daughter of Anne. Princess Royal & Mr. Mark Phillips |
3. Prince William Arthur Philip Louis , Duke of Cambridge | born 1982 | 2. | son of Charles, Prince of Wales & Diana, Princess of Wales (née Spencer) |
4. Prince Henry Charles Albert David , Duke of Susex | born 1984 | 5. | son of Charles, Prince of Wales & Diana, Princess of Wales (née Spencer) |
5. Princess Beatrice of York, Mrs Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi | born 1988 | 10. | daughter of Andrew, Duke of York & Sarah, Duchess of York, née Ferguson |
6. Princess Eugenie of York, Mrs. Jack Brooksbank | born 1990 | 12 | daughter of Andrew, Duke of York & Sarah, Duchess of York, née Ferguson |
7. Lady Louise Alice Elizabeth Mary Mountbatten-Windsor | born 2003 | 16 | daughter of Edward, Earl of Wessex & |
8. James Alexander Philip Theo Mountbatten-Windsor | born 2007 | 15 | son of Edward, Earl of Wessex & Sophie, Countess of Wessex, née Rhys-Jones |
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Great grandchildren: | |||
1. Savannah Anne Kathleen Phillips | born 2010 | 19 | daughter of Peter Phillips & Autumn Phillips (neé Kelly) |
2. Isla Elizabeth Phillips | born 2012 | 20 | daughter of Peter Phillips & Autumn Phillips (neé Kelly) |
3. Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge | born 2013 | 3. | son of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge & Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge (née Middelton) |
4. Mia Grace Tindall | born 2014 | 22 | Daughter of Zara Tindall & Mr. Mike Tindall |
5. Princess Charlotte Elizebth Diana of Cambridge | born 2015 | 4. | daughter of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge & Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge (née MIddelton) |
6. Prince Louis Arthur Charles of Cambridge | born 2018 | 5. | son of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge & Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge (née Middelton) |
7. Lena Elizabeth Tindall | born 2018 | 23 | Daughter of Zara Tindall & Mr. Mike Tindall |
8. Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor | born 2019 | 7. | son of Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex & Meghan, Duchess of Sussex (née Markle) |
9. August Phillip Brooksbank | born 2021 | 13 | son of Princess Eugenie, Mrs Jack Brooksbank & Mr. Jack Brooksbank |
10 Lucas Phillip Tindall | born 2021 | 24 | son of Zara Tindall & Mr. Mike Tindall |
11 Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor | born 2021 | 8. | daughter of Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex & Meghan, Duchess of Sussex (née Markle) |
12 Sienna Eliabeth Mapelli Mozzi | born 2021 | 11 | daughter of Princess Beatrice & |
United Kingdom
The decendants of
H.M. Queen Elizabeth II
