Alternative successions to the English and British Crown

British history provides several opportunities for alternative claimants to the English and later British Crown to arise, and historical scholars have on occasion traced to present times the heirs of those alternative claims.

Throughout this article, the names of "would-have-been" monarchs are in italics.

Abdication of Richard II

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Richard II abdicated in favour of Henry Bolingbroke on 29 September 1399. However, Henry was not next in the line to the throne; the heir presumptive was Edmund Mortimer, Earl of March,[1][2][3][4] who descended from Edward III's second surviving son, Lionel of Antwerp, whereas Henry's father, John of Gaunt, was Edward's third surviving son.

Map of succession
Edward III
Edward
the Black Prince
Lionel of Antwerp,
Duke of Clarence
Richard IIPhilippa,
5th Countess of Ulster
Roger Mortimer,
4th Earl of March
Edmund Mortimer,
5th Earl of March
Anne de Mortimer
Richard of York,
3rd Duke of York
Edward IV

Had Edmund inherited instead, the alternative succession would have been short-lived, for it re-united with the historical crown when Edward IV was declared king in 1461.

  1. Edward III of England
  2. Edward, the Black Prince, first son of Edward III
  3. Richard II of England, second son of Edward, the Black Prince
  4. Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence, third son (second son to survive infancy) of Edward III
  5. Philippa Plantagenet, 5th Countess of Ulster, only child of Lionel
  6. Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March, first son of Philippa
  7. Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March, first son of Roger, died without issue
  8. Anne de Mortimer, first daughter of Roger, succeeded her childless brother Edmund
  9. Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, only son of Anne
  10. Edward IV of England, first son of Richard

Descendants of George Plantagenet, Duke of Clarence

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This line's claim to the Crown is based upon the argument that Edward IV was not the son of Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, and thus had no legitimate claim to the Crown.[5] Therefore, when Richard was killed at the Battle of Wakefield, his claim passed first to his eldest legitimate son, Edmund, Earl of Rutland, who was executed shortly after the battle, and then to George, Duke of Clarence. Another point is that Henry VI passed a law in 1470 that should both he and his son Edward of Westminster die without further legitimate male issue, the crown was to pass to Clarence, as Henry had placed an attainder upon Edward IV. When Henry VI and Edward both died in 1471, Clarence became the legal heir of the House of Lancaster.[6]

The current descendant of this line is Simon Abney-Hastings, 15th Earl of Loudoun. The line of succession is as follows:

  1. George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence, third son (second "legitimate" son) of Richard, 3rd Duke of York
  2. Edward Plantagenet, 17th Earl of Warwick, first son of George
  3. Margaret Pole, 8th Countess of Salisbury, daughter of George, succeeded her childless brother Edward
  4. Henry Pole, 1st Baron Montagu, first son of Margaret
  5. Henry Pole, second son of Henry, his elder brother Thomas died in childhood
  6. Catherine Hastings, first daughter, succeeded her childless brother Henry
  7. Henry Hastings, 3rd Earl of Huntingdon, first son of Catherine
  8. George Hastings, 4th Earl of Huntingdon, second son of Catherine, succeeded his childless brother Henry
  9. Francis Hastings, first son of George
  10. Henry Hastings, 5th Earl of Huntingdon, only son of Francis
  11. Ferdinando Hastings, 6th Earl of Huntingdon, first son of Henry
  12. Theophilus Hastings, 7th Earl of Huntingdon, only son of Ferdinando
  13. George Hastings, 8th Earl of Huntingdon, second son of Theophilus, his elder brother died in childhood
  14. Theophilus Hastings, 9th Earl of Huntingdon, third son of Theophilus, his elder brother George had no legitimate children
  15. Francis Hastings, 10th Earl of Huntingdon, first son of Theophilus, 9th Earl
  16. Elizabeth Rawdon, 16th Baroness Botreaux, daughter of Theophilus, her brother Francis had no legitimate children
  17. Francis Rawdon-Hastings, 1st Marquess of Hastings, first son of Elizabeth
  18. George Rawdon-Hastings, 2nd Marquess of Hastings, eldest legitimate son of Francis
  19. Paulyn Rawdon-Hastings, 3rd Marquess of Hastings, first son of George
  20. Henry Rawdon-Hastings, 4th Marquess of Hastings, second son of George, his brother Paulyn died in childhood
  21. Edith Rawdon-Hastings, 10th Countess of Loudoun, first daughter of George, succeeded her childless brother Henry
  22. Charles Rawdon-Hastings, 11th Earl of Loudoun, first son of Edith, died without issue
  23. Paulyn Abney-Hastings, second son of Edith, succeeded his childless brother Charles
  24. Edith Maud Abney-Hastings, 12th Countess of Loudoun, first daughter of Paulyn
  25. Ian Huddleston Abney-Hastings, Lord Mauchline, only son of Edith, died in World War II without issue
  26. Barbara Abney-Hastings, 13th Countess of Loudoun, first daughter of Edith, succeeded her childless brother Ian
  27. Michael Abney-Hastings, 14th Earl of Loudoun, eldest son of Barbara
  28. Simon Abney-Hastings, 15th Earl of Loudoun, eldest son of Michael
  29. The Hon. Marcus William Abney-Hastings, younger brother of Simon (heir apparent)

Subsequent Earls of Huntingdon descended from Sir Edward Hastings (1541–1603?), the fourth son of Francis Hastings, 2nd Earl of Huntingdon and Catherine Pole after the male line of their third son, George Hastings, 4th Earl of Huntingdon (1540 – 3 December 1604) died out with Francis Hastings, 10th Earl of Huntingdon.[7][relevant?]

Descendants of Mary Tudor, Queen of France

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Parliament's Third Succession Act granted Henry VIII the right to bequeath the crown in his Will. His Will specified that, in default of heirs to his children, the throne was to pass to the children of the daughters of his younger sister Mary Tudor, Queen of France, bypassing the line of his elder sister Margaret Tudor, represented by the Catholic Mary, Queen of Scots. Edward VI confirmed this by letters patent. The legitimate and legal heir of Elizabeth I was therefore Anne Stanley, Countess of Castlehaven (the marriage of Lady Katherine Grey having been annulled, and her children declared illegitimate, by Elizabeth I).[8]

Hypothetical succession in the female line from Henry VII, through his daughter Mary and her second marriage

Henry VII
Henry VIIIMary Tudor, Queen of France
Edward VIMary IElizabeth I
HenryFrancesEleanor
JaneKatherineMaryMargaret
EdwardThomasFerdinando
AnneFrances
GeorgeJohn
MargaretJohn
GeorgeElizabethScroop
GeorgeAnne
HenryGeorge
HenryElizabethGeorge
George
Victor
George
George
Caroline

Her succession, under this theory, follows:

  1. Henry VIII of England
  2. Edward VI of England, only son of Henry VIII
  3. Mary I of England, eldest daughter of Henry VIII
  4. Elizabeth I of England, second daughter of Henry VIII
  5. Mary Tudor, Queen of France, second daughter of Henry VII
  6. Lady Eleanor Brandon, second daughter, third line of Mary
  7. Lady Margaret Clifford, only daughter, third line of Eleanor
  8. Ferdinando Stanley, 5th Earl of Derby, first son of Margaret
  9. Anne Stanley, Countess of Castlehaven, first daughter of Ferdinando
  10. George Brydges, 6th Baron Chandos, first son of Anne
  11. Margaret Brydges, first daughter of George
  12. Sir George Brydges Skipwith, 3rd Baronet, first son of Margaret
  13. Elizabeth Brownlow, first daughter of Margaret, succeeded their childless brother George
  14. George Brownlow Doughty, first son of Elizabeth
  15. Henry Doughty, only child of George
  16. Henry Doughty, only son of Henry
  17. Elizabeth Doughty, only daughter of Henry Doughty Sr

Since Lady Anne Stanley's line is thought to have become extinct with the death of Elizabeth Doughty, the line then passes to the descendants of Lady Anne's sister, Lady Frances Stanley:

  1. Lady Frances Stanley, second daughter of Ferdinando
  2. John Egerton, 2nd Earl of Bridgewater, first son of Frances
  3. John Egerton, 3rd Earl of Bridgewater, first son of John
  4. Scroop Egerton, 1st Duke of Bridgewater, third son of John
  5. Lady Anne Egerton, first daughter of Scroop
  6. George Villiers, 4th Earl of Jersey, only child of Anne
  7. George Child Villiers, 5th Earl of Jersey, first son of George, 4th Earl of Jersey
  8. George Child Villiers, 6th Earl of Jersey, first son of George, 5th Earl of Jersey
  9. Victor Child Villiers, 7th Earl of Jersey, only son of George, 6th Earl of Jersey
  10. George Child Villiers, 8th Earl of Jersey, first son of Victor, 7th Earl of Jersey
  11. George Child Villiers, 9th Earl of Jersey, first son of George, 8th Earl of Jersey
  12. Lady Caroline Child Villiers, only child of George's first marriage

Lady Caroline's heir-apparent is her son Timothy Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 7th Earl of Minto.

Although the 9th Earl of Jersey had sons from a third marriage, he had been divorced from his first wife, who was still alive when he married his third. Under a strict adherence to the succession laws and customs as they existed in 1603 (for it is argued that no laws passed by Parliament since 1603 are legitimate, as the heirs did not summon those Parliaments, nor did those laws receive the royal assent to become law), the 9th Earl of Jersey's divorce was not valid, and therefore both his remarriage during his ex-wife's lifetime was null and void, and the children of his third marriage illegitimate. Consequently, the current holder of the Stanley claim to the throne of England is the only child of the 9th Earl's first marriage, Lady Caroline Ogilvy (née Child Villiers).[9]

Descendants of Edward Seymour, Viscount Beauchamp and Lady Katherine Grey

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Although the marriage of Lady Katherine Grey and Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford, was annulled as illegal in 1562, and her children consequently rendered illegitimate, James I regarded the Seymour line as eligible heirs. This unofficial rehabilitation of the Seymours placed them ahead of the Stanleys in James's opinion. In 2012, Mary Freeman-Grenville, 12th Lady Kinloss was listed as the heir to the Mary Tudor claim rather than Frances Stanley's descendants.[10][11][12]

Her succession follows:

  1. Henry VIII of England
  2. Edward VI of England, only son of Henry
  3. Mary I of England, eldest daughter of Henry
  4. Elizabeth I of England, second daughter of Henry
  5. Mary Tudor, Queen of France, third daughter of Henry VII of England, younger sister of Henry VIII of England
  6. Lady Frances Brandon, first daughter of Mary
  7. Lady Katherine Grey, second daughter of Frances
  8. Edward Seymour, Viscount Beauchamp, first son of Katherine
  9. William Seymour, 2nd Duke of Somerset, second son of Edward, succeeded their childless brother Edward
  10. Henry Seymour, Lord Beauchamp, third son of William, his elder brothers William and Robert died in childhood
  11. Lady Elizabeth Seymour, only daughter of Henry
  12. Charles Bruce, 3rd Earl of Ailesbury, second son of Elizabeth, his elder brother Robert died in childhood
  13. Lady Mary Bruce, first daughter, succeeded their childless brothers Robert and George
  14. James Brydges, 3rd Duke of Chandos, only son of Mary
  15. Lady Anne Elizabeth Brydges, only child of James
  16. Richard Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos, first son of Anne
  17. Richard Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 3rd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos, only son of Richard
  18. Mary Morgan-Grenville, 11th Lady Kinloss, first daughter of Richard
  19. Luis Chandos Francis Temple Morgan-Grenville, second son of Mary, succeeded their childless brother Richard
  20. Mary Freeman-Grenville, 12th Lady Kinloss, first daughter of Luis
  21. Teresa Freeman-Grenville, 13th Lady Kinloss, first daughter of Mary

Lady Kinloss's heir-presumptive is her sister Hester Josephine Anne Freeman-Grenville, who is married to Peter Haworth and has three sons.

Continuation of the House of Stuart

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The Jacobite succession stemmed from the death of Charles II in 1685. When Charles’ younger brother James, Duke of York became king as James II of England and VII of Scotland, concerns arose that James, a recent Catholic convert, would return England to Catholicism, especially after the birth of a son, James Francis Edward Stuart, who would be raised Catholic. As James had two Protestant daughters, Mary and Anne, Parliament welcomed Mary and her husband William to depose James in what became the Glorious Revolution of 1688. James was sent into exile, and his heirs were passed over by the Act of Settlement 1701, which barred Catholics from ever again becoming the monarch.

The Jacobite and Hanoverian/Windsor successions

James VI and I
Charles IElizabeth
Charles IIJames VII and IIMaryHenriettaSophia
James VIII and IIIMary IIAnneWilliam IIIAnneGeorge I
Charles IIIHenry I and IXCharles EmmanuelGeorge II
Victor AmadeusFrederick
Charles IVVictorGeorge III
Mary IIGeorge IVWilliam IVEdward
Francis IFerdinandVictoria
Mary IIIEdward VII
RobertGeorge V
AlbertEdward VIIIGeorge VI
Francis IIElizabeth II
Charles III
  1. Charles I of England
  2. James VII and II, second son of Charles I
  3. James Francis Edward Stuart, only son of James VII and II; called "James VIII and III" by Jacobites.
  4. Charles Edward Stuart, elder son of James Francis. He had no legitimate issue by his wife. He had an illegitimate daughter who has descendants, but they have no succession rights. Also known as "Charles III" by Jacobites or as "Bonnie Prince Charlie" more widely.
  5. Henry Benedict Stuart, younger son of James Francis. He was a Cardinal of the Catholic Church and had no issue. Called "Henry I and IX" by Jacobites.

At Henry's death the claim passed to his second cousin twice removed, Charles Emmanuel IV of Sardinia, and then to his brother Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia. Charles Emmanuel and Victor Emmanuel were great-great-great-grandsons of King Charles I.[13]

  1. Charles I of England
  2. Henrietta Anne Stuart, youngest daughter of Charles
  3. Anne Marie d'Orléans, second daughter of Henrietta Anne
  4. Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia, second son of Anne Marie
  5. Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia, second son of Charles Emmanuel
  6. Charles Emmanuel IV of Sardinia, eldest son of Victor Amadeus
  7. Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia, second son of Victor Amadeus
  8. Maria Beatrice of Savoy, eldest daughter of Victor Emmanuel
  9. Francis V, Duke of Modena, elder son of Maria Beatrice
  10. Archduke Ferdinand Karl Viktor of Austria-Este, younger son of Maria Beatrice, succeeded their elder brother Francis who had no surviving adult children
  11. Maria Theresa of Austria-Este, only child of Ferdinand
  12. Rupprecht, Crown Prince of Bavaria, eldest son of Maria Theresia
  13. Albrecht, Duke of Bavaria, second son of Rupprecht, his elder brother Luitpold died in childhood
  14. Franz, Duke of Bavaria, elder son of Albrecht

When Franz dies, his claim on the English and Scottish crowns[14] will pass to his younger brother Prince Max. And after Max's death, this theoretical claim most likely will be inherited by Sophie, Hereditary Princess of Liechtenstein, daughter of Prince Max.

References

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  1. ^ Lehman, H. E. (2005). Lives of England's Monarchs: The Story of Our American English Heritage. AuthorHouse. p. 176. ISBN 978-1-4184-9692-0. was roger mortimer.
  2. ^ "Edward IV, king of England". The Penny Cyclopedia. Vol. IX: Dionysius–Erne. 1837. p. 294.
  3. ^ Willis, Browne (1755). The History and Antiquities of the Town, Hundred, and Deanry of Buckingham: Containing a Description of the Towns, Villages, Hamlets, Monasteries, Churches ... etc. p. 328.
  4. ^ Sargeant, Carol (December 2011). Love, Honour and Royal Blood: Book Three: Rose Red, Royal Blue Lancaster. Dog Ear Publishing. p. 229. ISBN 978-1-4575-0763-2.
  5. ^ "Britain's Real Monarch". Channel4. 2004. Archived from the original on 22 May 2016. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  6. ^ Rowse, A. L. (1966). Bosworth Field and the Wars of the Roses. Macmillan. p. 166.
  7. ^ Henry Nugent Bell, The Huntingdon Peerage (London: printed for Baldwin, Cradock & Joy, 1820)
  8. ^ Reitwiesner, William Addams. "Descendants of Anne, Countess of Castlehaven". wargs.com. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  9. ^ Reitwiesner, William Addams. "The Henrician succession to the Throne of England". wargs.com. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  10. ^ "Obituary: Lady Kinloss". The Daily Telegraph. London, UK. 30 October 2012. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  11. ^ "Lady Kinloss was Tudor claimant to the throne". Vancouver Sun. 2012.
  12. ^ "Lady Kinloss". The Herald. Glasgow. 2012. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  13. ^ Aronson, Theo (1979). Kings Over the Water. London: Cassell. p. 229.
  14. ^ The Jacobite claim is to the thrones held and claimed by James II and VII; as king of England, Scotland, France (claimed by English monarchs since the Hundred Years' War), and Ireland. The Acts of Union that created Great Britain and the United Kingdom are considered invalid by those who believe that the monarchs who gave the Acts the Royal Assent were not the legitimate occupants of the throne. Cf. The Legitimist Kalendar for the Year of Our Lord 1895 (London: Henry, 1895), p.22.