Today we’re looking at the Luxembourgish line of succession, which has seen some changes to its rules since current Grand Duke Henri ascended to the throne.
Luxembourg now practices absolute primogeniture, which Grand Duke Henri established in 2011 to apply to his heirs. Before then, women were excluded from the line of succession, which we’ll see impacts the line with the addition of two women; one of whom currently occupies a prime spot.
The absolute primogeniture rule only applies to Grand Duke Henri’s heirs. Any woman born into the Luxembourg Grand Ducal Family that is not his heir falls under the rules of agnatic primogeniture – they’re still excluded from the line of succession. This affects another two women.
Two Luxembourgish princes renounced their succession rights and those of their children upon marriage: Prince Louis, third son of Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa, who has two sons, Prince Gabriel and Prince Noah; and Prince Jean, Grand Duke Henri’s younger brother, who has three sons and a daughter, Prince Carl-Johan, Prince Wenceslas, Prince Constantin, and Princess Marie-Gabrielle.
Current monarch: Grand Duke Henri, born 16 April 1955 to Grand Duke Jean and Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte.
Grand Duke Henri. © Grand Ducal Court / Sophie Margue
Grand Duke Henri married Grand Duchess Maria Teresa in 1981, and the couple have five children and four grandchildren. Grand Duke Henri ascended to the throne of Luxembourg in 2000 following the abdication of his father, Grand Duke Jean.
The Luxembourgish Line of Succession is as follows:
Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume
By Frankie Fouganthin – CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Born 11 November 1981, Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume is the eldest child of Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa. He has been the heir apparent since 2000 when his father ascended to the throne.
Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume married Countess Stéphanie de Lannoy, now Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie, in 2012.
Prince Félix
Princess Claire, Princess Amalia, Prince Liam, and Prince Félix after Liam’s christening. Copyright: © Grand Ducal Court / Lola Velasco / All rights reserved
Born 3 June 1984, Prince Félix is the second son of Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa. He married Claire Lademacher, a German woman who went to school with him in Switzerland, in 2013 and the couple have two children: Princess Amalia and Prince Liam.
Princess Amalia
Princess Amalia. Photo: Grand Ducal Court / Lola Velasco / all rights reserved
Born 15 June 2014 to Prince Félix and Princess Claire, Princess Amalia is the first female in the line of succession to the Luxembourgish throne who wasn’t added to it after absolute primogeniture was adopted.
She follows her uncle and father in the line of succession.
Prince Liam
Princess Amalia with her younger brother, Prince Liam. Photo: Grand Ducal Court / Lola Velasco / all rights reserved
Born 28 November 2016 to Prince Félix and Princess Claire, Prince Liam is the youngest person in line to the Luxembourgish throne.
Princess Alexandra
© Grand Ducal Court / Lola Velasco
Born 16 February 1991, Princess Alexandra is the fourth child and only daughter of Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa.
She was excluded from the line of succession from her birth until 2011 when absolute primogeniture was adopted, and her father established her in the line. Princess Alexandra currently volunteers for a number of organisations involving refugees and sometimes steps in for her mother on official duties overseas.
Prince Sébastien
Copyright: © Grand Ducal Court / Lola Velasco
Born 16 April 1992, Prince Sébastien is the fourth son and last child of Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa. He currently serves in the British Army with the Irish Guards after graduating from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. He is also an officer of the Luxembourg Army.
Prince Guillaume
Sultan Edijingo [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)]
His namesake is his nephew, Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume. He married Princess Sibilla in 1994 and the couple have four children: three sons and a daughter. Their daughter, Princess Charlotte, does not have a place in the line of succession, as she is not a female descendant of Grand Duke Henri.
Prince Paul Louis
Born 4 March 1998, Prince Paul Louis is the eldest son of Prince Guillaume and Princess Sibilla.
Prince Léopold
Born 2 May 2000, Prince Léopold is the twin brother of the afore-mentioned Princess Charlotte, who does not occupy a spot in the line of succession.
Prince Jean André
Born 13 July 2004, Prince Jean André is the youngest son of Prince Guillaume and Princess Sibilla.
Prince Robert
Born 14 August 1968, Prince Robert is the oldest son of Prince Charles – a son of Grand Duchess Charlotte and Prince Felix of Bourbon-Parma; a nephew of Grand Duke Jean, and a cousin of Grand Duke Henri.
He married an American woman named Julie in 1994, and as the marriage was not dynastically approved, his children were not named Princes and Princess upon birth, but granted the titles in 2004.
Prince Robert has a daughter, Princess Charlotte, who was born in 1995 and who is, like her cousin Princess Charlotte, not in the line of succession due to agnatic succession rules.
Prince Alexandre
Born 18 April 1997, Prince Alexandre is the eldest son of Prince Robert and Princess Julie (who’d been known as Julie Nassau prior to 2004).
Prince Frederik
Born 18 March 2002, Prince Frederik is the youngest son of Prince Robert and Princess Julie.
You can read the rest of our summer series on lines of succession here.
