King of Sweden Strips His Grandchildren of Their Royal Titles
The King of Sweden, King Carl XVI Gustaf, stripped the title of Royal Highness from five of his grandchildren on Monday.
“The purpose of these changes is to establish which members of The Royal Family may be expected to perform official duties incumbent on the Head of State or related to the function of the Head of State.” the Swedish royal court announced.
According to People, the children specified will no longer be called His/Her Royal Highness, nor will they be expected to perform royal duties.
However, the children will still be included in the Royal Family and will retain their titles of prince and princess.
Sweden: Princess Madeleine’s and Prince Carl Philip’s children are no longer members of the Swedish Royal Court https://t.co/WSff3aOXD2 Radio Sweden
— Nordic News (@Nordic_News) October 7, 2019
“His Majesty The King has decided that the children of Their Royal Highnesses Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia, and the children of Her Royal Highness Princess Madeleine and Mr Christopher O’Neill will no longer be members of The Royal House,” the royal court press release said.
These changes apply to the children of Princess Madeleine and Christopher O’Neill — Princess Leonore, 5, Prince Nicolas, 4, and Princess Adrienne, 1 — as well as the children of Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia — Prince Alexander, 2, and Prince Gabriel, 2.
Princess Madeleine posted about the change on Instagram.
“Earlier today, the court announced that Leonore, Nicolas and Adrienne will no longer belong to the royal house,” a translation of her post reads. “This change has been planned for a long time. Chris and I think it’s good that our children are now getting a greater opportunity to shape their own lives as private individuals in the future.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/B3UV9jGorjx/
Prince Carl Philip also posted on Instagram after the announcement.
“Today, the King announced the decision that our children no longer hold the Royal Highness position. We see this as positive as Alexander and Gabriel will have freer choices in life,” a translation reads.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B3UVzMJnUTZ/
“They will retain their prince titles and their duchies, Södermanland and Dalarna, which we value and are proud of. Our family has strong connections to both landscapes and we maintain our commitment there,” he continued.
“We will continue to focus on our heart issues and commitment. We will also continue to support the King and Crown Princess – our future head of state – and participate in the King’s House activities as we wish.”
However, the children of the Crown Princess Victoria — Princess Estelle, 7, and Prince Oscar, 3 — did not have their titles revoked.
The picture on the Swedish royal family’s website has undergone a change since this announcement. The photo was changed from a portrait of the whole royal family to a photo of only King Gustaf, Crown Princess Victoria and Princess Estelle.
Crown Princess Victoria is the heir to the Swedish throne after King Gustaf. Princess Estelle is next in line after her mother.
This decision is not unheard of in modern royal families. In May, Prince Harry and Megan Markle decided against giving their son Archie a royal title, according to People.
I’ve had it confirmed Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor will have no title. He will simply be Master Archie.. #Archie #Royalbaby
— Rebecca English (@RE_DailyMail) May 8, 2019
Removing or withholding royal titles from children of royal families is often intended to protect the children’s privacy and allow them to pursue their own personal goals.
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