ROYALS

The King of Sweden Has Rescinded Five of His Grandchildren’s Royal Titles

Apparently, there are already almost too many Swedish royals to count.

Oct. 8, 2019

The Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden's 40th birthday Celebrations in Stockholm

Michael Campanella/Getty Images

Particularly ever since Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton joined the British monarchy, royals seem to be everywhere—and King Carl XVI Gustaf seems to agree. Perhaps too many of them, in his opinion. In a statement that the Royal Court of Sweden released on Monday, the Swedish sovereign announced that he was effectively removing five of his grandchildren from the category of “royals,” as well as the current 10-person line of succession to the Swedish throne.

To be clear, the King hasn’t banished them entirely: “Prince Alexander, Prince Gabriel, Princess Leonore, Prince Nicolas and Princess Adrienne will continue to be members of the Royal Family,” he said in the statement. “However, they will no longer enjoy the style of Royal Highness and, in the future, will not be expected to perform duties incumbent on the Head of State.” (Not that they got to enjoy much it all, anyway: None of them is above the age of five years-old.)

The king has also benevolently permitted his grandchildren to maintain their titles, meaning they can still go by the names of the Duke of Södermanland (Prince Alexander), the Duke of Dalarna (Prince Gabriel), the Duchess of Gotland (Princess Leonore), the Duke of Ångermanland (Prince Nicolas), and the Duchess of Blekinge (Princess Adrienne). As you may have noticed, each can also still go by “prince” or “princess,” but only in a “personal” capacity; the title won’t extend to any future children or spouses.

There’s no drama within the family however. Princess Madeliene, mother to the three of the affected young royals, welcomed the news on Instagram. “This change has been planned for a long time,” she wrote. “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.”

The King did make two exceptions: Seven-year-old Princess Estelle and three-year-old Prince Oscar—whose mother is Crown Princess Victoria, heir to the throne—will stay on as members of the Royal House. As for the rest, well, they can take a page out of Princess Märtha Louise of Norway’s book, and settle for being an influencer rather than an official royal.