Princess Beatrice: Where is the new royal baby in line to the throne?

Princess Beatrice and her husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi have announced they are expecting their first child this autumn.

In a post on the Royal Family’s Twitter account, the couple said the Queen has been informed and that she is delighted with the news.

Beatrice and Edoardo married in a small, private ceremony at The Royal Chapel of All Saints on the grounds of The Royal Lodge, Windsor, in July 2020. They were initially due to marry in May but plans were delayed by coronavirus.

The baby will be the Queen’s 12th great-grandchild following the planned arrival of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s daughter this summer.

When a royal baby is born, the line of succession to the throne changes.

Here is what you need to know about the change in the order when Princess Beatrice’s first child is born.

Where is Princess Beatrice on the line of succession?

Princess Beatrice is currently ninth in line to the throne, but will become 10th in line after the birth of the Sussexes’ second child.

First in line to the throne is Charles, the Prince of Wales, the Queen’s eldest son.

He is followed by his eldest son, the Duke of Cambridge, and the duke’s three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

After the three Cambridge children comes Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex; followed by his son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor.

Then comes the Duke of York, the Queen’s second-eldest son; who is then followed by his two children, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie.

Anne, Princess Royal, is the Queen’s second-eldest child but will be 17th in line to the throne after the birth of the Sussexes’ second child and Princess Beatrice’s first child.

This is because royal custom traditionally followed that the birth of a royal male baby would displace his female sibling in the line of succession, even if she was older than him. Therefore, when the Duke of York and the Earl of Wessex, and their subsequent children were born, she was pushed further down the line.

Where will Princess Beatrice’s baby be in line to the throne?

Princess Beatrice’s baby will fall in 11th place on the line of succession, one place behind his or her mother.

Together with the Sussexes’ new baby, this will push Queen’s third-eldest son, Prince Edward, from 12th to 14th place.

When the Duke and Duchess of Sussexes’ son Archie was born in May 2019, the Duke of York moved from seventh to eighth place in the line of succession. He will move to ninth place after the birth of the Sussexes’ daughter.

How have the laws of succession changed in recent years?

In 2013, a new parliamentary act, the Succession to the Crown Act, came into effect.

The passing of the act changed the rules regarding the line of succession, which previously dictated that if a male royal baby with an older sister was born, the boy could displace his female sibling on the line of succession, even if she was older than him.

The rule of male primogeniture no longer applies for royal babies born after 28 October 2011. This means that Princess Charlotte will remain fourth in line to the throne, regardless of the birth of Prince Louis. As Princess Anne was born in 1950, the change does not affect her.

What will the line of succession look like by the end of 2021?

After the arrival of the Sussexes’ baby girl this summer and Beatrice and Edorado’s baby in the autumn, this is how the line of succession will look:

1. The Prince of Wales

2. The Duke of Cambridge

3. Prince George of Cambridge

4. Princess Charlotte of Cambridge

5. Prince Louis of Cambridge

6. The Duke of Sussex

7. Master Archie Mountbatten-Windsor

8. The Sussexes' baby daughter

9. The Duke of York

10. Princess Beatrice, Mrs. Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi

11. Princess Beatrice and Edoardo's son or daughter

12. Princess Eugenie, Mrs. Jack Brooksbank

13. Master August Brooksbank

14. The Earl of Wessex

15. Viscount Severn

16. The Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor

17. The Princess Royal

18. Mr. Peter Phillips

19. Miss Savannah Phillips

20. Miss Isla Phillips

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