Glossary
Agnatic Primogeniture: inheritance can only pass through the male line. There are different versions of this, however, this primarily means that women cannot inherit, nor can the right of succession be passed through their familial line.
Cognatic Primogeniture: the first born male child will be the first in the line of succession (heir apparent), if there are no male children, then the first born female child will be first (heir presumptive) and they will be displaced if a male child is born.
Absolute Primogeniture: the first born or eldest surviving child will inherit regardless of gender.
Heir Apparent: denotes the first in line to inherit, they cannot be displaced
Heir Presumptive: denotes the first in line to inherit, they can be displaced, e.g. by a male child.
Salic Law: A type of Agnatic Primogeniture in which inheritance could not pass to women in any circumstances, including to male children via women’s lines.
Known to each other as Lilibet and Daisy, Queen Elizabeth II and Queen Margrethe II had been the only two Queen Regnants in Europe since Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands abdicated in 2013. With Margrethe’s decision to abdicate on the 14th of January 2024, the 52nd anniversary of her accession, as announced in her 2023 New Year’s Eve address, Europe, and the world, ceases to have a reigning Queen.
Queenship is a complex and difficult concept to study from a historical perspective and cannot be defined solely within the parameters that it is typically considered. It is often grouped with studies of women’s history more broadly, in ways that studies of kings are not grouped with ‘men’s studies’. This may be attributable to how ‘queenship’ as a concept is defined in studies of historical queens remains problematic. The word ‘queen’ is used to denote a ‘regnant’ (someone who rules in their own right), a ‘regent’ (someone who rules on behalf of another), a ‘consort’ (the wife of a king), a woman who holds similar or equivalent authority (such as an Empress, Pharoah or other leader), and the term ‘queen’ has developed another definition in contemporary LGBT slang. When we use the word ‘queen’ uniformly for all these definitions, even with their secondary definitions, it makes a study of what ‘queenship’ is, how it has developed and what it has meant through history incredibly difficult.
This article asks what does ‘queenship’ mean in the twenty-first century? (I will note here that I focus on European Royal histories and so am primarily relating this discussion to Europe). Historically and still by definition, ‘monarchy’ is the political system through which an individual rules autonomously as sovereign, usually achieving her position via hereditary means. Most monarchies today have minimal actual authority and are heads of state almost entirely in name only. As we move into a world without these women as queens, I ask what made them so significant, and how can they be used to define ‘modern queenship’?
The modern European monarch is decorative, a piece of national tradition and nostalgia whilst being effectively harmless. Regardless of your political view on modern monarchies, these families, and the institutions they are a part of maintain a significant place in the cultural identity of the nations they preside over. In Britain fascination with royalty is clear in the popularity of historic palaces as tourist attractions, period dramas which focus on the soap opera-like history of the monarchy and a borderline psychotic national obsession with the likes of Harry and Meghan, Kate and William and Princess Diana. Furthermore, eighteen months after her death, Elizabeth II continues to lead polls of the most popular British Royal at 75%. King Charles III placed sixth, at 51%, after Zara Phillips, Catherine, Princess of Wales, Princess Anne and Prince William. Furthermore, since Elizabeth’s death in September 2022 support for a British monarchy has dropped from a 38% positive rating to only 29% as of April 2023, and approximately 62% of Brits currently think that we should continue to have a monarchy whereas at the end of Elizabeth’s life this figure sat at 67%. More indicative of Elizabeth’s importance to the popularity of the British monarchy is that whilst 88% of Brits said that they liked Queen Elizabeth during her reign only 60% had a favourable view of Charles as king. Danish support for their Royals is similarly tied to their matriarch. Under her father’s rule, support for the Danish monarchy sat at 42%. Under Margrethe II, this figure has doubled to 84%. In fact, both women have been so popular, and instrumental in re-establishing the popularity of their respective monarchies that their sons, two long serving princes, King Charles III and King Frederik X face an insurmountable mission; to win over a public which has lauded their mothers and media which has disparaged them.
Neither Queen was expected to accede to the throne when they were born. Elizabeth, born 26th April 1926, was the daughter of a second son, the then Duke of York. Margrethe, born on the 16th April 1940, although the eldest child of the king, was prohibited from the line of succession by something called agnatic primogeniture. This meant that only male heirs could inherit the throne, therefore, Margrethe’s uncle was the heir presumptive to the Danish Crown.
At the age of 10, following her uncle’s abdication and father’s accession, Princess Elizabeth became the heir presumptive to the British throne. Elizabeth married Prince Phillip (of Greece and Denmark) in 1947 and the couple settled into a family life as close to normal as being a princess and working Royals would allow. Elizabeth and Phillip had two children, Charles in 1948 and Anne in 1950, before Elizabeth’s accession to the throne. When she became queen in 1952; at the age of 25 she and Phillip were in Kenya, on their way to a Royal Tour in Australia and New Zealand. Elizabeth returned to England and much like in The Crown, a black dress was brought on board the aeroplane for Elizabeth to change into. Her coronation in June of the same year was the first televised Royal Coronation, and began a prevalence of royal celebrity culture in the following decades.
Elizabeth’s reign was colourful, to say the least and it would be remiss not to mention that over the seven decades of her tenure as Queen, there was rarely a peaceful moment. From war, political upset, decolonisation, assassination attempts, an increase in celebrity culture, four Royal divorces and global attention on a family argument. Despite this, Elizabeth was often praised for her personal and royal orderliness. This may be credited to a lifetime of leading by example. Throughout their youth Elizabeth and younger sister, Princess Margaret became sweethearts of the nation. Their father’s choice to stay in London during the Blitz and Elizabeth’s service with the Auxiliary Territorial Service in the Second World War won the family, and Elizabeth in particular lasting popular support. Her demeanour throughout her reign continued this, easily progressing from sweetheart, to mother, to grandmother of the nation. Following her death, news outlets stated that her popularity came from her calm, cheerful and friendly attitude, that she exemplified a British ideology of ‘Keep Calm and Carry On’. This is particularly noticeable in media output during the recent Covid-19 Pandemic. News articles adopted a wartime-like attitude, heralding Queen Elizabeth as a steady lead against uncertainty. Media attention during this period evoked British memories of her youth and the impact of war on British Nationalism. She was for many, the only monarch they had ever had and in terms of British National Identity, even eighteen months after her death, she is synonymous with Britishness.
Queen Margrethe II, as mentioned, was also not the intended recipient for the throne. The House of Glucksberg, ascended the Danish throne in the 1850s due to a law which only permitted male incumbents called agnatic primogeniture (not dissimilar to Salic Law). This was changed in a long process beginning in 1947, when her father inherited the throne and it was clear that her mother, Queen Ingrid, would not have any further children after their three daughters. In 1953 the Danish Parliament passed the law which changed the constitution to allow for cognatic primogeniture, allowing Margrethe to become heir presumptive. Margrethe began playing a more visible role in the Danish monarchy after her eighteenth birthday, chairing meetings of the Council of State in the absence of her father. She went on to study in London, where she met French diplomat Henri de Laborde de Monpezat. The pair married in 1967, and now King, Prince Frederik was born less than a year later, his brother Joachim in 1969. Much like her English cousin, Margrethe ascended the throne with two young children, in 1972 at the age of 31. Her age likely played a significant part in her popularity, much like in Britain, the nation was allowed to enjoy a young family at its head, and Margrethe similarly evolved into the mother, then grandmother of the nation.
Margrethe’s impact on the Danish people’s perception of the monarchy as an institution, is more dramatic than Elizabeth’s. Studies state that throughout her 52 years as Queen, public support for the Danish Royal family has doubled, with approximately 84% of the public supportive of the Queen. Her success can be attributed to her longevity and her consistency in her reign. Supplementary to this, Margrethe is active and she is charismatic. She has forged a career outside of her monarchical identity, something Elizabeth did not. As a visual artist Margrethe has illustrated editions of the Lord of the Rings novels; worked as a set and costume designer; designed the monograms for herself, the Crown Prince and Crown Princess, their familial monogram, and others. She contributed screenplays to several films based on Hans Christian Anderson’s stories. She has also produced church textiles for use in churches in Denmark and other locations, including the Danish Church of St Katharine in Camden, London. Despite their similarities in the longevity of their reigns, their actions as queens have differed. Whilst Elizabeth became Britain, Margrethe maintained an identity separate to the crown. Perhaps this is what allows the latter to step down this weekend.
Like Elizabeth II's, Margarethe's reign has not been entirely smooth sailing. Her husband publicly protested in the decade before his death that he had never been able to use the title ‘king’ or ‘king-consort’, and complained about having to ask his wife for pocket money. He was later given a salary, although he continued to complain to the press. In 2023 she came under fire for the decision to strip her younger son and his family of their ‘prince’ and ‘princess’ titles and the right to be called ‘HRH’. The Crown stated that this was an effort to allow the younger grandchildren to live freer lives, without the pressure of Royal titles as they would not be expected to participate actively in the monarchy. Joachim and his family publicly protested this change, stating that they were unaware of her decision until the news broke in the media. Furthermore, her eldest son, the Crown Prince has a less than positive reputation in Denmark for being somewhat of a scandal, with rumours of affairs being given as a potential reason for Margrethe’s abdication. Conjecture like this isn’t really a helpful debate, but it is worth returning to the question of what do these sons inherit from such queens?
On Elizabeth’s death, some of the earliest news articles questioned if Charles III would remain King, or if he would pass the throne to Prince William. With Margrethe’s abdication hitting the news, the calls have a new sense of urgency, several claiming that Charles stepping down for William and Catherine would be the ‘correct’ thing to do. Negative popular opinion undoubtedly stems from Charles’ years-long affair with his now wife, Queen Camilla, and the tragedy that befell Princess Diana in 1997. Support for Prince William to become king is a sense of public justice for the People’s Princess. The British public is obsessed with the young family. News that the children of the then Duke and Duchess of Cambridge would retain their place in the line of succession regardless of gender was met with significant celebration. Princess Charlotte now retains her place in the line of succession before younger brother, Prince Louis.
In Denmark, the new King Frederik X is staring down the barrel of his kingship with several years of media drama in his back pocket. From photographs of him leaving hotels with other women and partying on a yacht with Mexican models, to semi-regular news articles that his wife, Australian born Queen Mary, has seen her life go from a real-life fairy tale to a soap opera. The questions in the media now: is Margrethe’s abdication an effort to save the monarchy by giving in to what Frederick wants (the crown) and force him to ‘grow up’? Will Mary and their young family be able to retain the popularity Margrethe has built up?
To return to the question of ‘what does modern queenship mean?’ the answer unfortunately remains unclear. On paper, they are figurative, ceremonious, largely redundant, and expensive. As both Britain and Denmark mourn the loss of their Queens however, it becomes clear that the figure of the monarch, and uniquely the women who wear the crown, have adopted a sub-human level of laudation and heroism. Time will tell if these women have redefined modern queenship for the upcoming European Queen regnants. Perhaps their popularity will remain a novelty to Lilibet and Daisy.
Future European Queen regnants
Both Crown Princess Victoria and her daughter Princess Estelle are in line for the Swedish crown. They will be the fourth and fifth Queens of Sweden, after Queen Margarethe (who also ruled Norway and Denmark), Queen Christina (who abdicated after adopting her nephew and converting to Catholicism), and Queen Ulrika Eleanora. Victoria, born in 1977, had originally been displaced by her brother as heir apparent, however, when absolute primogeniture was introduced in 1979, it was done so retroactively, allowing for Victoria to become Crown Princess at the age of two. Sweden was the first European country to make this change to absolute primogeniture and the only to have done so retroactively.
Princess Elisabeth is the heir apparent of Belgium. Absolute primogeniture was introduced 10 years before she was born, marking a significant difference from the country’s previous succession laws, a version of Salic Law, which restricted women from inheriting regardless of any other factor, even if she was the only immediate heir.
Princess of Orange, Catharina-Amalia will inherit the throne of the Netherlands from her father. She will become the fourth queen regnant, after her grandmother, Queen (now Princess) Beatrix, Queen Juliana, Catharina-Amalia’s great grandmother, and Queen Wilhelmina, her great-great-grandmother. Princess Amalia is however, the first of these queens to be born heir apparent, as absolute primogeniture was introduced in 1983.
Princess Leonor of Asturias is the heir presumptive in Spain. Spain continues to withhold cognatic primogeniture, meaning that although Leanor is the eldest of two teenage daughters, legally, she cannot be the heir apparent on the off chance that her father may have a son to inherit. The reasons for a reluctance to alter this part of the constitution is tied to concerns that if absolute primogeniture is introduced it may inspire women who have been excluded from lines of succession outside of the monarchy to retroactively claim inheritance. (Scandalous.) When she becomes Queen, Leonor will be the first queen of Spain since Isabella II, who abdicated in favour of her son after a series of rebellions in the late nineteenth century.
Finally, Princess Ingrid Alexandra will accede to the Norwegian throne after her father, the current Crown Prince, Haakon. Absolute primogeniture was introduced in Norway in 1990, 14 years prior to Ingrid’s birth, this was not enacted retroactively however, so her aunt, the elder sister of her father, Princess Martha Louise, remains displaced in the line of succession. Like Margarethe II in Denmark, Princess Ingrid will be the second queen of Norway, after Queen Margarethe in the fourteenth century.
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Statistics
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Serhan, Yasmeen, ‘Do Brits Still Want the Monarchy?’ Time, (02/05/2023), < https://time.com/6276478/british-monarchy-popularity-explained/>
‘The Most Popular Royalty’, YouGov, (2023), < https://yougov.co.uk/ratings/politics/popularity/royalty/all>
Hill, Amelia, ‘British public support for monarchy at historic low, poll reveals‘, The Guardian, (28/04/2023), < https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/apr/28/public-support-monarchy-historic-low-poll-reveals>
Smith, Matthew, ‘Where does Public opinion stand on the monarchy ahead of the coronation?’, YouGov, (03/05/2023), < https://yougov.co.uk/society/articles/45654-where-does-public-opinion-stand-monarchy-ahead-cor?redirect_from=%2Ftopics%2Fsociety%2Farticles-reports%2F2023%2F05%2F03%2Fwhere-does-public-opinion-stand-monarchy-ahead-cor>