Heirs to the Crown: Who is who in the British royal family, and in what order is the throne inherited? (15 photos)

The British Royal Family, known as the House of Windsor since 1917, is the most famous and popular royal family today. There are not many countries left in the world that are headed by a monarch. Most of them are parliamentary, that is, those where the king or queen performs only ceremonial functions, but does not rule.





Members of royal families tend to engage in public activities: participating in charities, making official visits useful for the country's politics, and attending important ceremonies.

We decided to figure out how things stand in the most discussed royal family of our time with the order of succession, because the reign of Queen Elizabeth II took almost a century (70 years), and there are no longer any number of contenders for the throne! And it’s easy to get confused about who is who’s son or uncle. While Charles III, the eldest son of the late queen, sits peacefully on the throne, we will tell you how many such heirs there are today.

The list is presented in order from furthest to closest contender for the crown.

Anna, Princess Royal



Princess Anne, the only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip, is the 17th contender to the throne. She has two children, whom she asked at birth not to be given titles so that they could live like ordinary people. Therefore, Peter and Zara Phillips, as well as their children, are not heirs to the crown.

James, Earl of Wessex and Louisa Mountbatten-Windsor





The son and daughter of Elizabeth II's youngest son, Prince Edward, are 15th and 16th in line to the throne.

Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh



Youngest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. He is the 14th claimant to the throne. Now the prince is 59 years old, in the photo on the left he is during his studies at Cambridge College.

Princess Eugenie of York



The youngest daughter of Prince Andrew (third child of Elizabeth II) and Sarah, Duchess of York, is 11th in the ranking of heirs, her sons, August (2 years) and Ernest (6 months), are 12th and 13th contenders for the throne .

Princess Beatrice of York



Prince Andrew's eldest daughter, ninth contender to the throne. Photos from the wedding of the princess and Italian aristocrat Edoardo Mapelli-Mozzi. The couple have a daughter, Sienna Elizabeth (2 years old), who is 10th in line.

Prince Andrew, Duke of York



Second son and third child of Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, eighth in line of succession to the British throne.

Princess Lilibet of Sussex



The two-year-old daughter of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle is seventh in the line of succession to the royal throne.

Prince Archie of Sussex



The firstborn of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, he is sixth in the line of succession. The boy turned 4 years old on the day of the coronation of Charles III (May 6, 2023).

Prince Henry (Harry), Duke of Sussex



Youngest son of Charles III and Princess Diana, fifth in line to the throne. Since 2018, he has been married to American actress Meghan Markle.

Prince Louis of Wales



The youngest (5 years old) child of Prince William and Catherine Middleton is the fourth heir to the British crown.

Princess Charlotte of Wales



Third contender to the throne and daughter (8 years old) of Prince William and Princess Catherine.

Prince George of Wales



The ten-year-old prince comes in secondplace in the line of succession to the British throne.

William, Prince of Wales



Closest heir to the British throne.

Charles III (King of Great Britain)



Charles Philip Arthur George is the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Has two heir sons from his first wife Diana: Prince William and Harry. Married to Camilla Parker Bowles, now Queen of Great Britain.