By Bryanne Salazar
6:40am PDT, May 6, 2024
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Britain's royal family — and the world — mourned when Queen Elizabeth II passed away at 96 on Sept. 8, 2022, following a historic 70-year reign.
It was a bittersweet moment as her loss meant United Kingdom and the Commonwealth immediately welcomed a new sovereign, who went on to celebrate his coronation in May 2023. Join us as we take a look at the line of succession and where the top 34 royal relatives fall in line for the throne…
The eldest of Queen Elizabeth II's children, who for 73 years was known as Prince Charles, became the monarch upon his mother's death in September 2022. He's now King Charles III, with his second wife styled as Queen Camilla.
Read on to see the top 34 royals in the line of succession…
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Prince William is first in line to the throne. After the death of grandmother Queen Elizabeth II and the accession of King Charles III, William assumed two new titles from his father: He and wife Kate are now not only the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and Cambridge but also the Prince and Princess of Wales, which is particularly meaningful: The latter title was last used by William's late mother, Princess Diana.
MORE: The best photos from King Charles III and Queen Camilla's coronation
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Second in line to the throne is Prince George, who will be crowned king upon the death of his father, Prince William. While that day is many years in the future, it's interesting to note that the youngest monarch ever crowned in British history was King Henry VI, who ascended to the throne when he was only 8 months and 26 days old.
MORE: The best photos of William and Kate's three heirs
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Following her brother in the line of succession is Princess Charlotte, who is third in line to the British crown. Thanks to a law passed in 2011 by Parliament, the long-held practice of male-heir preference officially ended, meaning that even though Duchess Kate and Prince William's third child is a boy, Charlotte will not be skipped (which is what happened to Queen Elizabeth II's only daughter, Princess Anne).
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Prince William and Princess Kate's third child — a son born in April 2018 — is fourth in line to the British throne. Prince Louis will only be crowned king in the event that both of his siblings pass away (or renounce the throne) before they start families of their own.
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Fifth in the royal line of succession is Prince Henry of Wales, better known as Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex. Though Harry and wife Duchess Meghan, whom he married in 2018, exited as senior working members of the royal family in 2020, he remains in the line of succession, as do his children…
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Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan's first-born child, son Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor — who arrived in May 2019 — is sixth in line to the throne of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Though he was not given a royal title at birth and was instead styled as Master Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, technically, in September 2022 — when his grandfather King Charles III became sovereign — he automatically became Prince Archie, a title Buckingham palace finally acknowledged six months later.
Keep reading for an explanation on the title change…
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Despite being born in America without a title, Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan's second child, Lilibet "Lili" Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, still took her place in the line of succession upon her arrival in June 2021 in Santa Barbara, California. In 2022 upon the death of Queen Elizabeth II, she became seventh in line to the throne — and, technically, became Princess Lilibet Diana, though it took Buckingham Palace another six months to acknowledge it in March 2023.
Lili's princess title was confirmed when Harry and Meghan announced that she'd been christened at their home in California in March 2023 — and they referred to her for the first time, publicly, as Princess Lilibet Diana. The reason for the title change? Back in 1917, King George V issued a Letters Patent that conferred the title of prince or princess on male-line grandchildren of the sovereign — and when Charles became king in 2022, that meant that his grandchildren could claim their birthright and use Prince and Princess before their names.
"Lili is named after her great-grandmother, Her Majesty The Queen, whose family nickname is Lilibet. Her middle name, Diana, was chosen to honor her beloved late grandmother, The Princess of Wales," the couple explained when they announced Lili's birth on their Archewell foundation website.
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Prince Andrew, the second son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, is now eighth in line. Despite losing permission to use his HRH title in an official capacity in 2022 as a civil sexual assault case against him moved forward — he's denied any wrongdoing but settled with his accuser for a reported $16 million in 2022 — the Duke of York remains in the line of succession.
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Ninth in line for the throne is Princess Beatrice of York, the daughter of Prince Andrew and ex-wife Sarah, Duchess of York. Before Princess Charlotte's birth in May 2015, Beatrice was the highest ranking female in the royal line of succession.
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In September 2021, Princess Beatrice and her husband, property developer Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, welcomed their first child together — daughter Sienna Elizabeth Mapelli Mozzi — who's now 10th in line for the throne.
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Coming in 11th is Princess Beatrice's little sister, Princess Eugenie. As one of the queen's granddaughters, Eugenie has experienced all the highs and lows of life as a member of the British monarchy, including her October 2018 royal wedding to commoner Jack Brooksbank and the very public divorce of her parents, Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson.
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Princess Eugenie and husband Jack Brooksbank's son, August Philip Hawke Brooksbank — who was born in February 2021 — is 12th in the line of succession.
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Princess Eugenie and husband Jack Brooksbank's second child, son Ernest George Ronnie Brooksbank — who was born in May 2023 — is 13th in the line of succession. Wnen announcing his birth, Eugenie revealed that Ernest "is named after his great great great Grandfather [King] George [V], his [paternal] Grandpa George and my [maternal] Grandpa Ronald."
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Queen Elizabeth II's youngest son, Prince Edward, is 14th in line to the throne. He was made Earl of Wessex right before he married Sophie Rhys-Jones in 1999. And on the occasion of his 59th birthday in March 2023, big brother King Charles III gave him a new title: Duke of Edinburgh, which previously belonged to their late father, Prince Philip.
However, there's a caveat: "The title will be held by Prince Edward for His Royal Highness's lifetime," Buckingham Palace announced, meaning unlike most dukedoms, Edward's son will not inherit the title, which will revert back to the crown upon Edward's death.
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Coming in at No. 15 in line for the throne? The son of Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh's son. He was known as James, Viscount Severn, until shortly after he turned 15. In March 2023, James assumed his father's previous title, Earl of Wessex, after Edward was made Duke of Edinburgh. Although James is technically the youngest child in his family, he snagged a higher place on the list than his big sister, Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor, due to the archaic (and now defunct) rule that favored male over female heirs. Although the rules have changed, they only impact children born after 2011.
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Sixteenth in line for the throne is Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor, eldest child of Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh. Louise got robbed of her rightful spot because Britain's outdated line of succession rules favored boys over girls (until things changed in 2011), so her place went to her little brother.
Despite her father becoming Duke of Edinburgh in 2023, as a female, Lady Louise's title did not change even though her brother's did.
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The second-born child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Princess Anne — the Princess Royal — is in 17th place in the line of succession due to archaic rules that, until 2011, favored male heirs.
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No. 18 in line for the throne is Peter Phillips, who holds no official royal title, though he is the grandson of Queen Elizabeth II and the son of Princess Anne. Peter wasn't afforded a title because of the tradition that only fathers can pass titles to their children, not mothers.
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Coming in right behind her father in the No. 19 spot in line for the crown is young Savannah Phillips (second from right), the great-granddaughter of Queen Elizabeth II, granddaughter of Princess Anne and daughter of Peter Phillips.
The 20th royal family member in line for the throne is Savannah's little sister, Isla Phillips (second from left). Their mother is Peter's ex-wife, Canada-born Autumn Kelly.
The girls are seen here with their father and aunt, Zara Tindall, who's next on the list…
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Coming in at No. 21 is Zara Tindall (née Phillips), the younger sister of Peter Phillips and daughter of Princess Anne. Zara is an award-winning Olympic equestrian and a mother of three with her husband, retired rugby player Mike Tindall.
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Zara Tindell's eldest daughter with husband Mike Tindall, a former rugby star, is Mia Tindall (left) — she's 22nd in line for the British throne. Little sister Lena (right) — who was born in 2018 — is 22nd in line.
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Zara Tindall and husband Mike welcomed their third child, son Lucas Philip, in 2021. Little Lucas is now 24th in line to the throne. He bumped a much older relative down a spot…
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David Armstrong-Jones, Earl of Snowdon (previously known as David Linley), is now 25th in line to the British throne. He is the nephew of Queen Elizabeth II and the son of Elizabeth's sister, Princess Margaret, who passed away in 2002. While he grew up alongside Prince Charles, the heir to the throne, David followed a different path in his adult life. He became a renowned furniture maker and once served as the chairman of Christie's, the elite auction house.
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In the 26th spot is David Armstrong-Jones's son, Charles Armstrong-Jones, Viscount Linley. A viscount is a nobleman who is one level below an earl and one above a baron. He is the only one of the late Princess Margaret's grandchildren who has a title.
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The 27th person in line for the throne is David Armstrong-Jones's daughter, who's the granddaughter of Princess Margaret — Lady Margarita Armstrong-Jones. In 2011 when Margarita was 8, she served as one of Princess Kate's bridesmaids.
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Princess Margaret's daughter, Lady Sarah Chatto, is in the 28th spot. As the niece of Queen Elizabeth II and the sister of David Armstrong-Jones, Sarah experienced all the pomp and circumstance that came with growing up in the inner circle of the royal family. However, as an adult, Sarah has chosen to live a more low-key life out of the spotlight. Even though she's a lesser-known royal, she is still quite close to her aristocratic family.
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In 29th place is the late Princess Margaret's grandson Samuel Chatto (second from right), the son of Lady Sarah Chatto and her husband, Daniel Chatto. Samuel studied the history of art at the University of Edinburgh and now works as a potter. He's also a trained yoga teacher.
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Right behind big brother Samuel Chatto in the No. 30 spot for the throne is Arthur Chatto, the hunky son of Lady Sarah Chatto and grandson of Princess Margaret. He worked as a personal trainer while studying geography at the University of Edinburgh and is now a Royal Marine.
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Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester (seen here with his wife, Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester) is 31st in line to the throne.
The former architect is a first cousin of the late Queen Elizabeth II and a grandson of Britain's King George V and Queen Mary.
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The aristocrat who's 32nd in line to the throne is Alexander Windsor, Earl of Ulster. He's the great-grandson of King George V and the eldest child and only son of Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester and Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester.
Alexander — who's a British army veteran — is seen here with his wife, pediatric physician Claire Booth, aka the Countess of Ulster.
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The children of Alexander Windsor, Earl of Ulster are next up.
The earl's son — Xan Windsor, Lord Culloden — is 33rd in the line of succession. His daughter, Lady Cosima Windsor, is 34th in the line of succession.
The young royals, who are the grandchildren of Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester — a first cousin of the late Queen Elizabeth II — are seen here with their mother, Claire, the Countess of Ulster.
