Liechtenstein changes succession laws to include women but there’s a catch

Royal families are renowned for being institutions with archaic beliefs and rules but, in recent years, some monarchies have slowly made moves to modernise.

Liechtenstein has become the latest royal house to change its succession rules to allow women to ascend the throne.

Until now, only men have been eligible to rule the small European principality, which has a population of just 44,000.

The update, however, will only apply to those born in the future, meaning all current princesses are excluded.

Liechtenstein is tiny land-locked country between Switzerland and Austria, whose ruler enjoys sweeping political powers, unlike many of his counterparts in Europe.

Its current head of state is 81-year-old Sovereign Prince Hans-Adam II, who has been in power since 1989.

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His firstborn son, and heir, is Hereditary Prince Alois who has carried out most official royal duties since 2004 as his father’s deputy.

Prince Alois, 58, announced the changes to the succession laws on Liechtenstein’s national day, August 15.

“The order of succession is being changed from male primogeniture to absolute primogeniture,” the House of Liechtenstein said in a statement.

“This means that in future the first-born child, regardless of sex, will become heir to the throne and later princess or prince of Liechtenstein.”

The current line of succession remains the same and the law change will only apply to descendants of the four children of Hereditary Prince Alois and his wife, Hereditary Princess Sophie.

Their daughter Princess Marie Caroline remains excluded from the changes even if something were to happen to her older brother, Prince Joseph Wenzel.

Princess Marie Caroline married last year but her three brothers, including Prince Joseph, are yet to marry.

Addressing the principality on television, Prince Alois said: “With this change in the law, we want to ensure that both the Principality of Liechtenstein and the Princely House are led by the person who has been best prepared for this responsibility.

He added: “This is generally the sons and daughters of the reigning monarch, who grow up in Vaduz and are familiarised from their youth with the special characteristics of the Principality and the Princely House.”

Hereditary Prince Alois called the change “a decision of great importance to our house, which has been discussed within the family for decades”.

The House of Liechtenstein said the amendment to the House Law was adopted with the required two-thirds majority, “strengthening its long-term strategy”.

Liechtenstein became an independent principality of the Holy Roman Empire in 1719 and in 1866 it became fully independent.

In 1984, women were granted the right to vote in national elections, the last country in Europe to do so. In 2003, the royal family won sweeping new powers in a constitutional referendum, which gave them the power to veto parliamentary decisions and to sack the government.

The Sovereign Prince, along with Hereditary Prince Alois and his family, live inside Vaduz Castle.

The declaration from the House of Liechtenstein comes just weeks after Japan’s government announced historic revisions to the Imperial House Law while reinforcing a rule dictating only men can become emperor of the Chrysanthemum Throne.

Other monarchies slowly modernising

Sweden

Sweden was the first European monarchy to introduce gender-neutral succession, in 1979, with the change coming into effect on January 1, 1980.

At the time of her birth in 1977 Crown Princess Victoria, who was born the first child of King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia, was ineligible for the throne.

The king and queen’s son Prince Carl Phillip, born two years after Victoria, had been heir and held the title of crown prince until the law change.

The update saw Victoria immediately jump to the top of the order of succession, elevated to crown princess.

The next two monarchs of Sweden will be female: Crown Princess Victoria and next, her eldest child, and daughter, Princess Estelle.

Britain

In 2013, Britain’s government ended succession to the crown based on gender.

Under the former rules of male primogeniture, royal sons took precedence over their female siblings, including first-born royal daughters.

The legislation was agreed in principle at the Commonwealth heads of government meeting in Perth, Australia, in October 2011.

The changes to the rules of succession were rushed through parliament ahead of the birth of Prince George in 2013.

But the law didn’t actually come into effect until March, 2015. All the countries in which Queen Elizabeth II was head of state had to pass any necessary legislation before it took effect.

The law came into effect two months before the birth of Princess Charlotte who followed Prince George in the line of succession. The law change meant she was not overtaken by her younger brother, Prince Louis, who was born in 2018.

Other monarchies end gender-based succession

The Netherlands followed Sweden and changed its laws in 1982, then came Norway in 1990, Belgium in 1991 and Luxembourg in 2011. Currently, the next monarchs of the Netherlands, Norway and Belgium are female.

Denmark amended its succession laws in 2011, after the issue was first raised in 2005 when then-Crown Princess Mary (now Queen Mary) was pregnant to ensure that her eldest child would be first in line to the throne even if it was a girl.

The country’s constitution, at the time, stated that even when the eldest royal child was female, her younger brother still inherited the crown.

A referendum in 2009 saw 85.4 per cent vote “yes” to change the constitution, while 14.6 per cent opposed it. The Danish parliament had already adopted the law in 2008.

Princess Isabella, who was born in 2007, is currently second-in-line to the throne after her older brother, Crown Prince Christian.

Queen Margrethe II, who abdicated in 2024 for her son King Frederik, ruled for 52 years. But a referendum was required in 1953 to allow her to succeed her father, King Frederik IX.

And the monarchies lagging behind

Japan’s government is in the process of changing the Imperial House law, aiming to solidify the principle of the imperial bloodline, but it pushes aside the emperor’s daughter leading to criticisms the law is anachronistic and sexist.

Princess Aiko, 24, is the only child of Emperor Naruhito and she is hugely popular with many Japanese wanting her to be his successor but, as a woman, she is ineligible.

The revision allows princesses to keep their status and perform royal duties if they marry a commoner, but their husbands and children will remain non-royals.

Another change will allow unmarried male descendants aged 15 or older of very distant imperial male relatives to be adopted into the immediate royal family to father heirs. Only those of paternal lineage can be chosen for adoption.

Japan’s current ruler is Emperor Naruhito, 66. First in line to the throne is Crown Prince Fumihito, 60, the emperor’s younger brother. His son, Prince Hisahito, 19, is second in line.

Third in line for the throne, and the last eligible candidate for the top job, is the emperor’s 90-year-old uncle, Prince Hitachi.

Spain’s next monarch will be Princess Leonor, 20, the eldest daughter of King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia. Her younger sister, Infanta Sofia, is second-in-line.

However, if the king and queen had a son he would take priority over his elder sisters because of Spain’s male-preference cognatic primogeniture, under the constitution.

In Monaco, the heir to the principality is Prince Jacques who was born two minutes after his twin sister, Princess Gabriella.

The 11-year-old prince is heir because of Monaco’s primogeniture laws, which state males take precedence over any females in the line of succession.