Why Princess Charlotte's children probably won't have royal titles - but Louis and George's will

She is fourth in line to the throne

Alison Millington
Friday 01 May 2020 12:00 BST
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Duke of Cambridge leads Princess Charlotte and Prince George to Lindo wing to meet new baby brother

Princess Charlotte, the second child of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge celebrates her fifth birthday on Saturday 2 May.

Thanks to a law put in place back in 2015, Princess Charlotte remains fourth in line to the throne, despite the fact the new royal is a boy. She falls behind Prince Charles, Prince William, and Prince George, due to birth order.

However, while Charlotte is certainly a Princess, her children are unlikely to ever have royal titles, despite the fact that Prince George will carry on the royal lineage when he has children.

There are only two ways to become a British Princess, according to magazine Town & Country. You either need to be born the daughter of a prince (or the British sovereign), or you have to marry one.

In the same fashion, grandchildren born to the sons of the monarch receive the title of Prince or Princess, but those born to the daughters of a monarch don't.

Lucy Hume, associate director of Debrett's, told Town & Country: "Royal titles are inherited through sons, so if Princess Charlotte has children they would not automatically inherit the titles 'HRH,' 'Prince,' or 'Princess.'"

This is why the daughters of Prince Andrew are princesses, while Zara Philips, daughter of Princess Anne, is not.

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Read the original article on Business Insider UK. © 2018. Follow Business Insider UK on Twitter.

This article was first published in May 2018. It has since been updated to reflect Princess Charlotte's present age.

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