Who is in line to the throne? Full list of Royal Family members in line of succession
The line of succession in the British Royal Family is rooted deep in history, dating back centuries. Since Queen Elizabeth II died in September 2022, however, and her eldest son – formerly Prince Charles – became King, the line of succession has shifted.
While there has long been a male preference for royal successors, the law was changed in 2011 to ensure males born after that year would no longer proceed their older female sisters.
With that in mind, here is a full list of the line of succession.
Who is in the line of succession to the throne?
1. Prince of Wales
Prince William has been largely absent from the public gaze since his wife announced her cancer diagnosis in March.
However, as the late Diana, Princess of Wales and the King’s eldest son, Prince William, is the first in line to the throne after his father, 75.
Before the 41-year-old Prince, officially called “the heir apparent”, had children with his wife Catherine, the Princess of Wales, his brother was next in line to the throne.
Now, though, the Duke of Sussex has moved down in the line of succession, with Prince William’s oldest child having become second in line.
2. Prince George of Wales
As the King’s grandson and the late Queen’s oldest great-grandchild, Prince George is set to be the ruling monarch once his father no longer sits on the throne.
When George, 10, was born, three generations in direct line of succession to the British throne were alive at the same time, for the first time since the reign of Queen Victoria.
Because the young prince is yet to have any children of his own, the next in line to the throne is his sister.
3. Princess Charlotte of Wales
Kate and William’s second-oldest child, Princess Charlotte was born almost nine years ago, with her birth being marked by the landmarks around London being illuminated pink.
Her name was announced two days after as Charlotte Elizabeth Diana, honouring her grandfather Charles, great-grandmother Queen Elizabeth and grandmother Diana.
4. Prince Louis of Wales
The next in line is George’s youngest sibling, Prince Louis, who celebrated his sixth birthday on 23 April.
Again, his full name, Louis Arthur Charles, honours the King and his grandfather.
Louis has often captured the hearts of the public with spontaneous reactions to public events.
5. The Duke of Sussex
After Prince William’s children, the line of succession passes to the King’s second oldest child, Prince Harry, 39.
Two years after marrying Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex in 2018, the Prince stepped down as a working royal and moved to California.
Prince Harry has since been at the centre of various royal scandals with the Duke taking legal action against the Home Office and a number of newspaper publishers.
In an interview with Oprah Winfrey, Harry and Mehgan also claimed a member of the Royal Family had questioned the skin colour of the couple’s son Archie before he was born.
6. Prince Archie of Sussex
Like his father, cousins and uncle, Archie, aged four, was born during the reign of Queen Elizabeth.
To mark his birth, the London Eye was illuminated, along with Niagra Falls and the CN Tower in Canada.
Two years later, his sister Lilibet was born.
7. Princess Lilibet of Sussex
The two-year-old princess was named after Queen Elizabeth, whose childhood nickname was Lilibet.
She is reportedly called “Lili” by her parents.
Lilibet currently lives in Montecito, California with her brother and parents.
8. The Duke of York
As the late Queen’s second-eldest son, Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, 64, was born second in line to the throne, but is now eighth.
In 2020, however, the royal resigned from public duties, following criticisms over Andrew’s association with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Virginia Giuffre, an alleged victim of Mr Epstein, also claimed she was sex trafficked to Andrew when she was 17 years old – an allegation Andrew had repeatedly denied.
9. Princess Beatrice, Mrs Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi
After Prince Andrew, the next in line to the throne is his oldest child, Princess Beatrice, 35.
She was briefly an employee of the Foreign Office and Sony Pictures before joining software company Afiniti as vice president of strategic partnerships in 2016.
In 2020, the Princess married English-born Italian noble Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi.
A year later, the pair gave birth to their daughter, Sienna.
10. Ms Sienna Mapelli Mozzi
Though two-year-old Sienna does not hold the title of princess, like her mother, her father’s noble heritage means Sienna is an Italian “Contessa” and “Nobile Donna”.
Beyond Sienna, here is the current line of succession to the British throne:
11. Princess Eugenie of York (b. 1990)
12. August Philip Brooksbank (son of Princess Eugenie) (b. 2021)
13. Ernest George Brooksbank (son of Princess Eugenie) (b. 2023)
14. Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh (b. 1964)
15. James, Earl of Wessex (b. 2007)
16. Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor (b. 2003)
17. Princess Anne, Princess Royal (b. 1950)
18. Peter Phillips (b. 1977)
19. Savannah Phillips (b. 2010)
20. Isla Phillips (b. 2012)
21. Zara Tindall (b. 1981)
22. Mia Grace Tindall (b. 2014)
23. Lena Elizabeth Tindall (b. 2018)
24. Lucas Philip Tindall (b. 2021)
25. David Armstrong-Jones, Earl of Snowdon (b. 1961)
26. Charles Armstrong Jones, Viscount Linley (b. 1999)
27. Lady Margarita Armstrong-Jones (b. 2002)
28. Lady Sarah Chatto (b. 1964)
29. Samuel Chatto (b. 1996)
30. Arthur Chatto (b. 1999)
31. Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester (b. 1944)
32. Alexander Windsor, Earl of Ulster (b. 1974)
33. Xan Windsor, Lord Culloden (b. 2007)
34. Lady Cosima Windsor (b. 2010)
35. Lady Davina Windsor (b. 1977)
36. Senna Lewis (b. 2010)
37. Tane Mahuta Lewis (b. 2012)
38. Lady Rose Gilman (b. 1980)
39. Lyla Gilman (b. 2010)
40. Rufus Gilman (b. 2012)
41. Prince Edward, Duke of Kent (b. 1935)
42. George Windsor, Earl of St Andrews (b. 1962)
Edward Windsor, Baron Downpatrick (excluded by becoming a Roman Catholic)
Lady Marina Charlotte Windsor (excluded by becoming a Roman Catholic)
43. Lady Amelia Windsor (b. 1995)
Lord Nicholas Windsor (excluded by becoming a Roman Catholic)
Albert Windsor (excluded by being Roman Catholic)
Leopold Windsor (excluded by being Roman Catholic)
Louis Windsor (excluded by being Roman Catholic)
44. Lady Helen Taylor (b. 1964)
45. Columbus Taylor (b. 1994)
46. Cassius Taylor (b. 1996)
47. Eloise Taylor (b. 2003)
48. Estella Taylor (b 2004)
49. Prince Michael of Kent (b. 1942)
50. Lord Frederick Windsor (b 1979)
51. Maud Windsor (b. 2013)
52. Isabella Windsor (b. 2016)
53. Lady Gabriella Kingston (b. 1981)
54. Princess Alexandra the Hon Lady Ogilvy (b. 1936)
55. James Ogilvy (b. 1964)
56. Alexander Ogilvy (b. 1996)
57. Flora Ogilvy, Mrs Timothy Vesterberg, (b. 1994)
58. Marina Ogilvy, Mrs Paul Mowatt, (b. 1966)
59. Christian Mowatt (b. 1993)
60. Miss Zenouska Mowatt (b. 1990)
61. David Lascelles, 8th Earl of Harewood (b. 1950)
62. Alexander Lascelles, Viscount Lascelles (b. 1980)
63. Hon Ivy Lascelles (b. 2018)
64. Hon Kit Lascelles (b. 2023)
65. Hon Edward Lascelles (b. 1982)
66. Sebastian Lascelles (b. 2020)
67. Hon James Lascelles (b. 1953)
68. Rowan Lascelles (b. 1977)
69. Tewa Lascelles (b. 1985)
70. Fran (son of Tewa) Lascelles (b. 2014)
71. Sophie Lascelles (b. 1973)
72. Hon Jeremy Lascelles (b. 1955)
73. Thomas Lascelles (b. 1982)
74. Cleo Lascelles (b. 2017)
75. Celeste Lascelles (b. 2020)
76. Ellen Lascelles (b. 1984)
77. Amy Lascelles (b. 1986)
78. Tallulah Lascelles (b. 2005)
79. Henry Lascelles (b. 1953)
80. Maximilian Lascelles (b. 1991)
81. David Carnegie, 4th Duke of Fife (b. 1961)
82. Charles Duff Carnegie, Earl of Southesk (b. 1989)
83. Lady Chloe Francoise Carnegie (b. 2022)
84. Lord George William Carnegie (b. 1991)
85. Lord Hugh Alexander Carnegie (b. 1993)
86. Lady Alexandra Etherington (b. 1959)
87. Amelia Mary Carnegie Etherington (b. 2001)
88. King Harald V of Norway (b. 1937)
89. Crown Prince Haakon of Norway (b. 1973)
90. Prince Sverre Magnus of Norway (b. 2005)
91. Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway (b. 2004)
92. Princess Martha Louise of Norway (b. 1971)
93. Maud Angelica Behn (b. 2003)
94. Leah Isadora Behn (b. 2005)
95. Emma Talullah Behn (b. 2008)
96. Haakon Lorentzen (b. 1954))
97. Olav Lorentzen (b. 1985)
98. Christian Lorentzen (b. 1988)
99. Sophia Lorentzen (b. 1994)
100. Ingeborg Ribeiro (b. 1957)
How does the line to the British throne work?
The rules of succession were established amid constitutional changes in the 17th century, leading to the enactment of the Bill of Rights (1689) and the Act of Settlement (1701).
Before then, it was common for various claimants of the throne – often male descendants of the previous king – to fight over who should inherit the crown, sparking lengthy power struggles and, in some cases, civil war.
Formal legislation relating to the line of succession was enacted after King James II fled the country in 1688 and parliament declared that he had “abdicated the government”, leaving the throne vacant.
Instead of passing it to James’ son, the throne was offered to his daughter Mary and her husband William of Orange as joint rulers.
This set the precedent of the sovereign governing only with the support of parliament, with elected lawmakers holding the ultimate authority over the line of succession and the power to remove a monarch if they are deemed to be ruling poorly.
According to The Act of Settlement, only descendants of Princess Sophia – the Electress of Hanover and granddaughter of James I – are eligible to inherit the throne. Subsequent Acts have upheld this provision.
Parliament also established certain requirements for the sovereign; a Roman Catholic is explicitly barred from the line of succession. (Although, as of 2011, marrying a Roman Catholic no longer disqualifies royals from the line of succession.)
The sovereign must also be a member of the Church of England, swear to protect the established Church of England and Church of Scotland, and uphold the Protestant succession.
