The 20th century indeed gives us a different story of fairytales. Apart from royals marrying non-aristocratic commoners, the monarchies have also decided to ditch the ancient succession law of male-preference primogeniture to respond to the call of times and switched to Absolute Primogeniture Succession.
The Absolute Primogeniture Succession allows the eldest child of the monarch, irrespective of gender, to become the heir-apparent. Other countries, like Norway and Great Britain, did not implement it retroactively but Sweden applied it retroactively affecting the position of King Carl XVI Gustaf's son, Prince Carl Philip.
Prince Carl Philip of Sweden, Duke of Varmland
He was born Carl Philip Edmund Bertil on May 13, 1979. At the time of his birth, he was the heir-apparent of his father, King Carl XVI Gustaf. And for seven months, he assumed the title of The Crown Prince of Sweden.Â
But the Absolute Succession law took effect on January 1, 1980, and the Parliament decided to implement it retroactively, affecting Prince Carl Philip's position.Â
Thus, on January 1, 1980, he was officially replaced by his older sister, now Crown Princess Victoria, to be the next Swedish monarch.Â
Today, he is fourth in the line of succession to the Swedish throne behind his older sister, Victoria, his niece, Princess Estelle, and nephew, Prince Oscar.
However, in Britain, where the Swedish royals are also listed in the line of succession as direct descendants of Queen Victoria's two sons, Prince Arthur and Prince Leopold, Prince Carl Philip is ahead of his sister in the line of succession to the British throne.
He studied graphic design for a year at the Rhode Island School of Design and went back to Sweden to study Agricultural and Rural Management at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. He is also a lieutenant in the Swedish Royal Navy.
In 2015, he married Sofia Hellqvist, a former glamour model and Reality TV star, and have three sons together: Prince Alexander, Prince Gabriel, and Prince Julian. They are currently residing at the Villa Solbacken in Djurgarden, a property he inherited from his great-uncle and godfather, Prince Bertil.
Prince Gabriel of Belgium
He is the second child and eldest son of King Philippe of the Belgians and Queen Mathilde. He was born on August 20, 2003, less than two years after the birth of his older sister, Princess Elisabeth, now the Duchess of Brabant.
The Absolute Succession law was adopted by the Belgian government years before his parents got married in 1999, so when Princess Elisabeth was born, her position in the line of succession has always been ahead of Prince Gabriel and her other younger brother, Prince Emmanuelle.
Prince Gabriel has just completed his secondary school at the International School of Brussels. He is set to attend a university in England this coming academic year.
Prince Sverre Magnus of Norway
He was born on December 3, 2005, as the second child and eldest son of the Crown Prince of Norway, Prince Haakon. However, he is the second son and third child of his mother, Crown Princess Mette-Mariet. She has already a son out of wedlock before meeting Prince Haakon.
The Norwegian government changed its law of succession to Absolute Primogeniture in 1990 but it was not done retroactively, thus, the heir-apparent is still Crown Prince Haakon and not his older sister, Princess Martha Louise.
Prince Sverre Magnus has an older sister, Princess Ingrid Alexandra, 18, the second-in-line to the Norwegian throne.
In Britain, where the Norwegian royals are listed in the line of succession as direct descendants of King Edward VII through his youngest daughter, Queen Maud of Norway, Prince Sverre Magnus is ahead of his sister in the line of succession to the British throne.
The Norwegian royals are the first foreign royals listed in the British succession line, just below the line of the descendants of Princess Louise, the eldest daughter of King Edward VII.
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