The VERY young pretenders – meet the next generation of young princes and princesses in the queue to be Monarch. They might have quite a wait…
Change is sweeping through the royal houses of Europe.
After more than half a century on the throne, Margrethe is no longer Queen of Denmark.
And, almost unthinkably, Queen Elizabeth II has passed away after 70 years as Monarch of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
But for some young heirs, there is a little longer to wait yet before they get their chance to fulfil their destiny.
Long may their parents reign – although it is to be hoped that the next in line aren’t forced to endure the same record-breaking wait as our own King Charles III…
Prince Jacques of Monaco, nine
Nine-year-old Crown Prince Jacques is next in line for the throne of Monaco after Prince Albert is
Jacques was born at the Princess Grace Hospital Centre in December 2014 – two minutes after his twin sister, Princess Gabriella
Monaco is one of the few countries in Europe still governed by male-preference primogeniture. So Jacques will inherit the title even though he is a few minutes younger than his twin sister,
Next in line for the throne of Monaco after Prince Albert is Crown Prince Jacques.
The young Prince, who is the son of 65-year-old Prince Albert and Princess Charlene, also holds the title Marquis of Baux, which has been passed on to Monegasque heirs apparent since 1641.
Jacques was born on December, 10, 2014, having been delivered via caesarean section at the Princess Grace Hospital in Monaco, named after Albert’s mother, Hollywood actress, Grace Kelly.
He was born two minutes after his twin sister Gabriella, a statement from the palace confirmed at the time.
Their births were celebrated with 21 cannon shots each, 15 minutes of church bells and boat horns.
The twins, both eight, were formally presented to the public on January 7, 2015, and the date has since become a recognised as a public holiday in Monaco.
While Jacques is a few minutes younger than his twin sister, Monaco is one of the few countries in Europe still governed by male-preference primogeniture – meaning the eldest son inherits the throne over any older sisters.
It is only if a female heir has no eligible brothers or brothers with surviving male descendants that she will take the throne.
Jacques is said to be quieter and shyer than his sister
Jacques is a popular name in southern Africa, where Princess Charlene grew up
Jacques also has an older half-sister, Jazmin Grace Grimaldi, and an older half-brother, Alexandre Grimaldi-Coste, from their father’s previous relationships.
The young prince was baptized at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception on May 10, 2015, where he was also awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Grimaldi.
Princess Charlene chose the name Jacques as it is a name native to South Africa, where she grew up.
He and his sister are currently enrolled at the L’Institution François d’Assise-Nicolas Barré since September, which is a private school in Monaco.
Talking to People, Prince Albert added that the twins are ‘very curious about geography and science.’
‘We went through a whole phase of them wanting to know all about the oceans and planets and everything about the solar system,’ he explained
Prince Albert revealed to People that Jacques is quieter and shyer than his sister, but said he ‘comes up with some funny things’.
He added that the younger twin is an observer who first likes to size things up before making a decision.
Although the twins have made public appearances with their parents, their lives for the most part are kept out of the spotlight so that they can enjoy their childhood.
Princess Estelle of Sweden, 11
Princess Estelle is the eldest grandchild of King Carl XVI Gustaf and the eldest child of heir to the Swedish throne, Crown Princess Victoria
Crown Princess Victoria pictured with her father the King and daughter Princess Estelle
Born in 2012, Princess Estelle is the eldest grandchild of King Carl XVI Gustaf and the eldest child of heir to the throne, 46-year-old Crown Princess Victoria.
As Estelle was the firstborn child of the heir to the throne, her birth in Solna was celebrated with two rounds of twenty-one gun salutes.
She has a collection of royal godparents, including King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark.
The princess previously attended a pre-school near Stockholm which followed the Ur and Skur outdoor teaching methods to focus on the natural world.
She now attends Campus Manilla in Stockholm where she was joined last year by her younger brother, Prince Oscar.
The 1979 Act of Succession means that Estelle, as the eldest child, will inherit the throne rather than her younger brother and is now second in line to the throne after her mother.
The princess is second in line to the throne after her mother. She is pictured here with her father Prince Daniel, grandmother Queen Silvia, Crown Princess Victoria and her younger brother Prince Oscar
Estelle has attended a pre-school near Stockholm which follows outdoor teaching methods to focus on the natural world
Estelle is pictured here with her family on Swedish National Day
The young Princess Estelle regularly makes appearances with mother Crown Princess Victoria and father Daniel Westling. Westling, Victoria’s personal trainer, married her in 2010
The law, which came into effect some time ago (on 1 January 1980) had also meant that Estelle’s mother, Crown Princess Victoria, became heir to the throne when she was two years old – a title which was stripped from her younger brother, Carl Philip, at the time.
Reflecting on the change in an interview with local news channel SVT earlier this year, Estelle’s grandfather King Carl Gustaf said he felt it had been unfair to apply the new law to his children after they were already born.
‘It’s tricky to have laws that work retroactively. It doesn’t seem wise,’ he said.
‘You can accept the next generation – that’s okay. But it was my son who was born, and they got rid of it all,’ he said, adding: ‘It’s quite strange. You can’t do that.’
When the interviewer asked him if it had been unfair to strip his son of his title after he’d already been born, he replied: ‘Yes, I think so.’
The young Princess Estelle regularly makes appearances with her mother Crown Princess Victoria and her father Daniel Westling, who was Victoria’s personal trainer and married the royal in 2010.
She carried out her first royal engagement in 2014 at just two years old when she opened a ‘fairytale path’ at Linköping Castle.
Prince Charles of Luxembourg, three
Prince Charles was born on May 10, 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic
He was baptised on September 19, 2020, at the Abbey of St. Maurice and St. Maurus of Clervaux in Luxembourg
In March of this year, Charles became an older brother to Prince Francois, who is third in line
Prince Charles is second in the line of succession to the throne of Luxembourg.
He is the eldest child of Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume and Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie and was born on May 10, 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic.
He was born at Grand Duchess Charlotte Maternity Hospital in Luxembourg City and weighed 3.190kg.
Luxembourg’s Palace announced the happy news on Twitter, sharing that their son was born at 5.13am at la Maternité Grande-Duchesse Charlotte.
Images of baby Charles were also shared on Twitter and gave royal fans the first glimpse of the newborn.
The announcement read: ‘Time stood still at the Château de Berg during a video call during which the Grand Duke and the Grand Duchess had the immense joy of meeting their grandson for the first time: Prince Charles.’
In a series of snaps, the young royal proved he had quite the sweet tooth as he was pictured tucking into cake with his parents
He was first introduced to his grandparents, the Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa, over a video call given the lockdown regulations.
Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume, 42, also spoke a few hours after the birth of Prince Charles about the wonderful new addition to the family.
The new father shared his joy at becoming a father for the first time.
He said ‘today is a wonderful day…perhaps the most incredible day that we will have in our lives, to be able to greet a child that comes into one’s life is the most magical thing a couple can have.’
Prince Charles was baptised on September 19, 2020, at the Abbey of St. Maurice and St. Maurus of Clervaux in Luxembourg. His godparents are his maternal aunt Countess Gaëlle de Lannoy and his paternal uncle Prince Louis of Luxembourg
To mark the young royal’s birthday in May, his parents shared a series of snaps of Charles and his younger brother Prince Francois, who was born in March.
Prince George, ten
Prince George was the Page of Honour at King Charles’s coronation last year. Along with three other page boys, he helped carry his grandfather’s cape
Prince William and Princess Kate presented their newborn son, Prince George, to the world the day following his birth at St Mary’s Hospital, Paddington
George wore baby blue for his appearance at the annual Trooping The Colour – an echo of the outfit worn when William was himself a baby in 1984
With the passing of the late Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022 and King Charles’ ascension to the throne, Prince George was moved up to second in line for the British throne.
Prince George was born at 4.24pm on July 22, 2013, at St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington, London – he is the eldest child to Prince William, now 41, and 42-year-ld Catherine, Princess of Wales.
The royals left hospital with their new son on 23rd July, but not forgetting to pause on the steps of the Lindo Wing to show the world a first glimpse of the new prince.
George was christened on October 23, 2013, at The Chapel Royal, St James’s Palace by The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend Justin Welby.
The young prince made his royal tour debut when he was 9 months old when the family spent three weeks in New Zealand and Australia in April 2014 – giving him a taste of his role as future King.
The following year, George made his first public appearance on the balcony of Buckingham Palace following the Trooping the Colour parade and stole the show with his adorable facial expressions – which were identical to a young Prince William.
In January 2016, George began his education at the Westacre Montessori School nursery in Norfolk, before moving to Thomas’s Battersea School just over a year later.
In 2022, the family moved to Adelaide Cottage in Windsor. And since September, George and his siblings, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, have attended Lambrook, an independent preparatory school in Berkshire.
George recently served as a page of honour at his grandfather’s Coronation in May.