Monarchical title of inheritance
Anheir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of a person with a better claim to the position in question.[ 1] [ 2] heir apparent , whose claim on the position cannot be displaced in this manner.
Depending on the rules of the monarchy, the heir presumptive might be the daughter of a monarch ifmales take preference over females and the monarch has no sons, or the senior member of a collateral line if the monarch is childless or the monarch's direct descendants cannot inherit either because
they are daughters andfemales are completely barred from inheriting the monarch's children areillegitimate , or some other legal disqualification, such asbeing descended from the monarch through amorganatic line or the descendant's refusal or inability to adopt a religion the monarch is required to profess. The subsequent birth of a legitimate child to the monarch may displace the former heir presumptive by creating an heir apparent or a more eligible heir presumptive. It is not assumed that the monarch and his or her consort are incapable of producing further children despite age or infirmity; on the day before QueenElizabeth II ascended the throne, her fatherGeorge VI was gravely ill and her mother was 51 years old, but Elizabeth was still the heir presumptive rather than the heir apparent. An heir presumptive's position may not even be secure after they ascend their throne, as aposthumous child of the previous monarch could have a superseding claim. Following the death ofWilliam IV in 1837, he was succeeded by his nieceVictoria . Per theRegency Act 1830 , Victoria's accession was only permanent so long as a child of William was not born in the following months to his widow,Adelaide , and the possibility of such an event was also mentioned in Victoria's accession proclamation even though Adelaide was 44 years old and had last been pregnant 17 years earlier. Had a child been born, he or she would have replaced Victoria on the throne.[ 3] [ 4] Spain in 1885, when KingAlfonso XII died and left behind awidow who was three months pregnant. His five-year-old daughter and heir presumptive,María de las Mercedes , was not declared queen because she would be displaced if a son was born, and instead there was a six-monthinterregnum until the birth of her brotherAlfonso XIII , who assumed the throne as king immediately upon birth. Had the pregnancy been lost or resulted in another daughter, Mercedes would have become queen regnant and been retroactively recognized as such during the interregnum.[ 5] [ 6]
Heir presumptive, like heir apparent, is not a title or position. Rather, it is a general term for a person who holds a certain place in theorder of succession . In some monarchies, the heir apparent bears,ipso facto
Simultaneous heirs presumptive [ edit ] In theEnglish and Welsh common law ofinheritance , there is no seniority between sisters; where there is no son to inherit, any number of daughters share equally. Therefore, certain hereditary titles can have multiple simultaneous heirs presumptive. Since the title cannot be held by two people simultaneously, two daughters (without a brother) who inherit in this way would do so asco-parceners and before they inherit, both would be heirs presumptive. In these circumstances, the title would in fact be held inabeyance until one person represents the claim of both, or the claim is renounced by one or the other for herself and her heirs, or the abeyance is ended by the Crown. There arespecial procedures for handling doubtful or disputed cases.
Past heirs presumptive who did not inherit thrones [ edit ] The list is limited to heirs presumptive who did not succeed due to death, abolition of monarchies, or change in succession law.
Marcus Claudius Marcellus was heir presumptive to his uncle and father-in-lawAugustus until his death in 23 BC.Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa was heir presumptive to his father-in-lawAugustus until his death in 12 BC.Marcus Aemilius Lepidus was heir presumptive to his brother-in-lawCaligula until his death in 38.Britannicus was heir presumptive to his stepbrotherNero until his death in 55.Marwan ibn Abd al-Malik was heir presumptive to his brotherAl-Walid I until his death circa 715.Prince Sawara was heir presumptive to his brotherEmperor Kanmu until his death in 785.Robert Curthose was heir presumptive to his brotherWilliam II of England until he was disinherited for rebellion in 1088.Edmund of Scotland was heir presumptive to his uncleDonald III of Scotland until his uncle's overthrow in 1097.Empress Matilda was heir presumptive to her fatherHenry I of England but upon Henry's death in 1135, Matilda's cousinStephen, King of England took the throne instead.Arthur I, Duke of Brittany , was heir presumptive to his uncleRichard I of England but upon Richard's death in 1199, Arthur's uncleJohn, King of England took the throne instead.Peter I, Count of Urgell , was heir presumptive to his nephewAfonso III of Portugal until his death in 1258.Margaret of Scotland, Queen of Norway , was heir presumptive to her fatherAlexander III of Scotland until her death in 1283.Uzana of Bassein was heir presumptive to his fatherNarathihapate until he was assassinated in 1287.Edward Bruce was heir presumptive to his brotherRobert I of Scotland until he claimed the throne of Ireland.Marjorie Bruce was heir presumptive to her fatherRobert I of Scotland until her death in 1316.Charles, Count of Valois , was heir presumptive to his nephewCharles IV of France twice until his death in 1325.Binnya E Laung was heir presumptive to his fatherBinnya E Law until his death.Maria of Calabria was heir presumptive to her sisterJoanna I of Naples until her death in 1366.Beatrice of Portugal was heir presumptive to her fatherFerdinand I of Portugal but upon Ferdinand's death in 1383, Beatrice's half-uncleJohn I of Portugal took the throne instead.Bawlawkyantaw was heir presumptive to his fatherRazadarit until his execution in 1390.Theiddat was heir presumptive to his brotherMinkhaung I until his nephewMinye Kyawswa was made heir instead.Joan of Navarre was heir presumptive to her fatherCharles III of Navarre until her death in 1413.Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany , was heir presumptive to his nephewJames I of Scotland until his death in 1420.Thomas of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Clarence , was heir presumptive to his brotherHenry V of England from his brother's succession in 1413 to his death in 1421.Catherine, Princess of Asturias , was heir presumptive to her fatherJohn II of Castile until her death in 1424.Murdoch Stewart, Duke of Albany , was heir presumptive to his cousinJames I of Scotland until he was attained and executed in 1425.John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford , was heir presumptive to his nephewHenry VI of England until his death in 1435.Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl , was heir presumptive to his grandnephewJames II of Scotland until he was executed in 1437 for his part in killing the previous king James I.Margaret Stewart, Dauphine of France , was heir presumptive to her brotherJames II of Scotland until her death in 1445.Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester , was heir presumptive to his nephewHenry VI of England until his death in 1447.Joanna la Beltraneja was heir presumptive to her fatherHenry IV of Castile until he named his brotherAlfonso as heir instead.Alfonso, Prince of Asturias , was heir presumptive to his half-brotherHenry IV of Castile until his death in 1468.George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence , was heir presumptive to his brotherEdward IV of England until he fled after rebelling against him in 1470.Isabella of Aragon, Queen of Portugal , was heir presumptive to her parentsIsabella I of Castile andFerdinand II of Aragon until her death in 1498.Miguel da Paz, Prince of Portugal , in addition to being heir apparent to his fatherManuel I of Portugal , was heir presumptive to his maternal grandparentsIsabella I of Castile andFerdinand II of Aragon until his death in 1500.James Stewart, Duke of Ross , was heir presumptive to his brotherJames IV of Scotland until his death in 1504.Alexander Stewart, Duke of Ross , was heir presumptive to his brotherJames V of Scotland until his death in 1515.John Stewart, Duke of Albany , was heir presumptive to his cousinJames V of Scotland until his death in 1536.Carlos, Prince of Asturias , in addition to being heir apparent to his fatherPhilip II of Spain , was also heir presumptive to his cousinSebastian of Portugal until his death in 1568.James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran , was heir presumptive toJames VI of Scotland until his death in 1575.Ranuccio I Farnese, Duke of Parma , was heir presumptive to his granduncleHenry, King of Portugal until thesuccession crisis that emerged after Henry's death in 1580.Francis, Duke of Anjou , was heir presumptive to his brotherHenry III of France until his death in 1584.Charles de Bourbon was heir presumptive to his nephewHenry IV of France until his death in 1590.Dmitry of Uglich was heir presumptive to his half-brotherFeodor I of Russia until his death in 1591.Dmitry Shuisky was heir presumptive to his brotherVasili IV of Russia until his brother was overthrown in 1610.Sigismund III Vasa was heir presumptive of Russia to his sonVladislav until his son's overthrow in 1613.Gaston, Duke of Orléans , was heir presumptive to his brotherLouis XIII of France until his death in 1611.Charles Philip, Duke of Södermanland , was heir presumptive to his brotherGustavus Adolphus of Sweden until his death in 1622.Catherine of Sweden, Countess Palatine of Kleeburg , was heir presumptive to her nieceChristina, Queen of Sweden , until her death in 1638.Margaret Theresa of Spain was heir presumptive to her brotherCharles II of Spain until her death in 1673.Maria Antonia of Austria was heir presumptive to her uncle Charles II until her death in 1692.Joseph Ferdinand, Electoral Prince of Bavaria , in addition to being heir apparent to his fatherMaximilian II Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria , was heir presumptive to his granduncle Charles II until his death in 1699.Sophia, Electress of Hanover , was declared heir presumptive to the English, Scottish and Irish thrones by theAct of Settlement 1701 , but died before acceding to the throne of her distant cousin,Queen Anne . Sophia's sonGeorge I became King instead.Philippe II, Duke of Orléans , was heir presumptive toLouis XV of France until his death in 1723.Duke Charles Louis Frederick of Mecklenburg was heir presumptive to his half-brotherAdolphus Frederick III, Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz , until his death a few months before his brother in 1752.Prince Augustus William of Prussia was heir presumptive to his brotherFrederick II of Prussia until his death in 1758.Prince Edward, Duke of York and Albany was heir presumptive to his brotherGeorge III of Great Britain, Ireland and Hanover from 1760 until the birth ofPrince George (later George IV) in 1762.Frederick Michael, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken was heir presumptive to his brotherChristian IV, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken until his death in 1767.Duke Louis of Mecklenburg-Schwerin was heir presumptive to his brotherFrederick II, Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin , until his death in 1778.Prince Joseph of Saxe-Hildburghausen was heir presumptive to his great-grandnephewFrederick, Duke of Saxe-Hildburghausen until his death in 1787.Ferdinand Karl, Archduke of Austria-Este was heir presumptive to his father-in-lawErcole III d'Este, Duke of Modena until Ercole was deposed by Napoleonic forces in 1796.Inthraphithak was heir presumptive to his fatherTaksin until Taksin was overthrown and both were executed in 1802.Prince Louis of Anhalt-Köthen was heir presumptive to his brotherAugustus Christian Frederick, Duke of Anhalt-Köthen until his death in 1802.Maha Sura Singhanat was heir presumptive to his brotherPhutthayotfa Chulalok until his death in 1803.Anurak Devesh was heir presumptive to his unclePhutthayotfa Chulalok until his death in 1806.Franz Joseph, Prince of Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst was heir presumptive to his brotherCharles Albert III, Prince of Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Schillingsfürst until their territory wasmediatised in 1806.Maha Senanurak was heir presumptive to his brotherPhutthaloetla Naphalai until his death in 1817.Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich of Russia was heir presumptive to his brotherAlexander I of Russia until he renounced his rights in 1823.Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany , brother of KingGeorge IV of the United Kingdom and Hanover, was heir presumptive from his brother's accession in 1820 to his (Frederick's) own death in 1827.Maximilian, Hereditary Prince of Saxony , was heir presumptive to his brotherAnthony of Saxony until he renounced his rights in favour of his sonFrederick Augustus in 1830.Infante Carlos of Spain, Count of Molina , brother of KingFerdinand VII of Spain. Ferdinand VIIchanged the succession law in favour to his daughter, who becameIsabella II after the King's death in September 1833. This led to theCarlist Wars in Spain.Sakdiphonlasep was heir presumptive to his nephewNangklao until his death in 1832.WhenQueen Victoria succeeded in 1837, her uncleErnest Augustus, King of Hanover was heir presumptive to the British throne until the birth of the Queen's first child,Victoria, Princess Royal , in 1840; Princess Victoria was heir presumptive until 1841 when her younger brother,Albert Edward (later Edward VII), was born. Louis, Prince of Anhalt-Pless was heir presumptive to his brotherHenry, Duke of Anhalt-Köthen until his death in 1841.Archduke Franz Karl of Austria , brother of EmperorFerdinand I of Austria , was heir presumptive throughout his brother's reign until therevolution that saw his brother forced to abdicate also saw Franz renounce his rights in favour of his sonFranz Joseph in 1848.Ahmad Rifaat Pasha was heir presumptive to his half-uncleSa'id of Egypt until his death in 1858.Prince Henry, Count of Bardi , was heir presumptive to his brotherRobert I, Duke of Parma , until the monarchy was abolished in 1859.Archduke Karl Salvator of Austria was heir presumptive to his brotherFerdinand IV, Grand Duke of Tuscany , until the monarchy was abolished in 1860.Prince Louis, Count of Trani , was heir presumptive to his half-brotherFrancis II of the Two Sicilies until the monarchy was abolished in 1861.Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha , was heir presumptive to his brotherErnest II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha , until his death in 1861.Infante João, Duke of Beja , was heir presumptive to his brotherLuís I of Portugal until his death in 1861.Ferdinand, Hereditary Prince of Denmark , was heir presumptive to his nephew KingFrederick VII of Denmark until his death five months before his nephew in 1863.Albert Edward, Prince of Wales , in addition to being heir apparent to his motherQueen Victoria , was also heir presumptive to his uncleErnest II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha , until renouncing his rights in favour of his younger brothers in 1863.Pinklao was heir presumptive to his brotherMongkut until his death in 1866.Prince William of Hesse-Kassel was heir presumptive to his cousinFrederick William, Elector of Hesse , until the monarchy was abolished in 1866.Prince William of Hesse-Philippsthal-Barchfeld was heir presumptive to his brotherAlexis, Landgrave of Hesse-Philippsthal-Barchfeld , until the monarchy was abolished in 1866.Prince Frederick of Württemberg was heir presumptive to his cousin and brother-in-lawCharles I of Württemberg until his death in 1870.Prince Charles of Hesse and by Rhine was heir presumptive to his brotherLouis III, Grand Duke of Hesse , until his death a few months before his brother in 1877.Leopold, Prince of Hohenzollern , was heir presumptive to his brotherCarol I of Romania until he renounced his rights in favour of his sons.William, Prince of Hohenzollern , was heir presumptive to his uncleCarol I of Romania until he renounced his rights in favour of his younger brotherFerdinand .Wichaichan was heir presumptive to his cousinChulalongkorn until his death in 1885.Mercedes, Princess of Asturias , daughter ofAlfonso XII of Spain, was the heir presumptive at her birth. After her father died, her posthumously born brother Alfonso became king asAlfonso XIII and she remained the heir presumptive until her death in 1904.Victoria, Princess Royal was heir presumptive to her motherQueen Victoria until 11 months later when her brother futureEdward VII was born.Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil , was the heir presumptive to her fatherPedro II of Brazil on the throne of theEmpire of Brazil . However, acoup d'etat Archduke Karl Ludwig of Austria was the heir presumptive of his brotherFranz Joseph I of Austria from the suicide of his nephewRudolf, Crown Prince of Austria , until his death in 1896.Duke William of Württemberg was heir presumptive to his cousinWilliam II of Württemberg until his death in 1896.Princess Sophie of the Netherlands was heir presumptive to her niece QueenWilhelmina of the Netherlands until her death in 1897.Grand Duke George Alexandrovich of Russia was heir presumptive to his brotherNicholas II of Russia until his death in 1899.Duke Nicholas of Württemberg was heir presumptive to his cousinWilliam II of Württemberg until his death in 1903.Ernest, Count of Lippe-Biesterfeld was heir presumptive to his cousinAlexander, Prince of Lippe until his death in 1904.Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders , was the heir presumptive of his older brother KingLeopold II of Belgium after the death of his nephewPrince Leopold, Duke of Brabant , until his own death in 1905.Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn , was heir presumptive to his brotherAlfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha , until he renounced his rights and that of his sonPrince Arthur of Connaught in favour of his nephewCharles Edward .Prince Moritz of Saxe-Altenburg was heir presumptive to his brotherErnst I, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg , until his death in 1907.Afonso, Prince Royal of Portugal , was the heir presumptive of his nephewManuel II of Portugal until themonarchy was abolished in 1910.Pujie was heir presumptive to his brotherPuyi until theXinhai Revolution in 1911, andRepublic of China founded in 1912. He became heir presumptive again after the puppet regimeManchukuo after theMukden Incident , while Puyi became the emperor of Manchukuo as well until thesurrender of Japan in 1945.Luitpold, Prince Regent of Bavaria , was heir presumptive to his nephewOtto, King of Bavaria until his death in 1912.Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria was the heir presumptive of his uncle EmperorFranz Joseph I of Austria until hisassassination June 28, 1914, inSarajevo .Duke Philipp of Württemberg was heir presumptive to his cousinWilliam II of Württemberg until his death in 1917.Prince Maximilian of Baden was heir presumptive to his cousinFrederick II, Grand Duke of Baden , until themonarchy was abolished in 1918.Charles Michael, Duke of Mecklenburg , was heir presumptive to his cousinAdolphus Frederick VI, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz , until the throne became vacant and was later abolished in 1918.Ernst, Prince of Saxe-Meiningen , was heir presumptive to his half-brotherBernhard III, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen , until the monarchy was abolished in 1918.Albrecht, Duke of Württemberg , was heir presumptive to his cousinWilliam II of Württemberg until the monarchy was abolished in 1918.Wolrad, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe , was heir presumptive to his brotherAdolf II, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe , until the monarchy was abolished in 1918.Sizzo, Prince of Schwarzburg , was heir presumptive to his cousinGünther Victor, Prince of Schwarzburg , until the monarchy was abolished in 1918.Heinrich XXVII, Prince Reuss Younger Line , in addition to ruling his own principality, was heir presumptive to his cousinHeinrich XXIV, Prince Reuss of Greiz , until both monarchies were abolished in 1918.Chakrabongse Bhuvanath was heir presumptive to his brotherVajiravudh until his death in 1920.Asdang Dejavudh was heir presumptive to his brotherVajiravudh until his death in 1924.Varananda Dhavaj was heir presumptive to his uncleVajiravudh until being replaced as heir by his other unclePrajadhipok in 1924.Mahidol Adulyadej was heir presumptive to his half-brotherPrajadhipok until his death in 1929.Kiril, Prince of Preslav was heir presumptive to his nephewSimeon II of Bulgaria , until his execution by Communists in 1945.Prince Nicholas of Romania was heir presumptive to his nephewMichael I of Romania until themonarchy was abolished in 1947.Princess Charlotte, Duchess of Valentinois , was heir presumptive to her fatherLouis II, Prince of Monaco , untilrenouncing her rights in favour of her sonRainier .Prince Knud of Denmark was the heir presumptive of his brother KingFrederik IX of Denmark , but an amendment to the Danish Constitution in 1953 replaced the previously semi-Salic succession with male-preference primogeniture and proclaimed King Frederick's eldest daughter Princess Margrethe, later QueenMargrethe II of Denmark , heir presumptive.Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh was heir presumptive to her fatherGeorge VI in India until it became a republic in 1950, as well asNewfoundland untilit joined Canada in 1949 (she reigned as Queen of Canada from 6 February 1952 untilher death on 8 September 2022 ).Mohammed Ali Tewfik was heir presumptive toFuad II of Egypt until themonarchy was abolished in 1953.'Abd al-Ilah was heir presumptive to his nephewFaisal II of Iraq until they were bothexecuted in 1958.Tunku Abdul Malik was heir presumptive to his brotherAbdul Halim of Kedah until his death in 2015.
