Prince William, the Prince of Wales, is next in line to the throne after his father, but there are plenty more family members with a claim.
What is the British Royal Family’s line of succession? Who is next in line after King Charles III?
King Charles III’s brother, former Prince William, has been arrested on his 66th birthday. The implications of the scandal and his relationship to Jeffrey Epstein have some asking if King Charles should abdicate.
In Britain, the throne passes immediately and automatically to the heir to the throne, meaning it is always occupied. With Charles as King, the new heir to the throne is his first-born child, Prince William, the Prince of Wales, who is now 43 years old.
Rules on succession in Britain
Charles inherited the crown by reason of being Elizabeth II’s first-born son. Prior to 2011, males preceded their elder sisters in the line of succession. However, the rules were changed to remove this rule of male primogeniture.
The order of succession is determined by descent, being inherited by a sovereign’s children. Once someone in line to the throne has had children, those children take their place in the line of succession no matter whether their parent predeceases the monarch. For example, had Prince Charles predeceased Queen Elizabeth, Prince William would have been first in line to the throne; the line of succession would not have moved to Prince Andrew as the Queen’s second son.
Equally now, if Prince William dies before King Charles, William’s son Prince George of Wales will be next in line to the throne, not Prince Charles’ second son, Prince Harry.
King Charles’ line of succession
The rules mean that the first 23 people in line to the throne are the direct descendants of King Charles III. He has two children and five grandchildren.
The current British line of succession
1. Prince William, Prince of Wales - King Charles’ eldest child
2. Prince George of Wales - Prince William’s first child
3. Princess Charlotte of Wales - Prince William’s second child
4. Prince Louis of Wales - Prince William’s third child
5. Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex - King Charles’ second child
6. Archie Mountbatten-Windsor - Prince Harry’s first child
7. Lilibet Mountbatten-Windsor - Prince Harry’s second child
8. Prince Andrew, Duke of York - Queen Elizabeth’s third child
Britain's former prince Andrew has been arrested on suspicion of misconduct during his time as a trade envoy, police say.
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) February 19, 2026
"As part of the investigation, we have today (19/2) arrested a man in his sixties from Norfolk on suspicion of misconduct in public office," the Thames… pic.twitter.com/ndNzropSvM
9. Princess Beatrice - Prince Andrew’s first daughter
10. Sienna Mapelli Mozzi - Princess Beatrice’s first daughter
11. Miss Athena Mapelli Mozzi
12 Princess Eugenie, Mrs. Jack Brooksbank
13. Master August Brooksbank
14. Master Ernest Brooksbank
15. The Duke of Edinburgh
16 Earl of Wessex
17. Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor, Prince Edward’s first child (the rule of male primogeniture applies to the children of Prince Edward, being born before 2011)
18. Anne, Princess Royal, the second child of Queen Elizabeth (despite being Queen Elizabeth’s second born the rule of male primogeniture applies to the Princess Royal)
19. Peter Philips - the Princess Royal’s eldest child
20. Savannah Philips - Peter Philips’ eldest child
21. Isla Philips - Peter Philips’ second child
22. Mrs. Michael Tindall
23. Mia Tindall - Zara Tindell’s first child
24. Lena Tindell - Zara Tindell’s second child
25. Lucas Tindell - Zara Tindell’s third child
At this point, the line of succession leaves the direct descendants of Queen Elizabeth II. The line then moves to the descendants of Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowden, the younger sister of Queen Elizabeth. Her two children, David Armstrong-Jones and Lady Sarah Chatto are 24th and 27th, respectively in line to the throne, with their children being 25th and 26, and 28th and 29th, respectively.
What name would William take as King?
British monarchs have the option of choosing a name when they take over the throne, meaning William would not have to go by his given forename. If we were to decide not to take a different name, he would be King William V.
The first William was William the Conquerer, the first Norman monarch of England. He died without leaving any male-line descendants, meaning the lineage to the current Royal family, while it exists, is loose. New King Charles is the great x28 grandson of William the Conquerer.
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