Just when it seems like the royal family has finally nixed all of those old-fashioned rules that put men above women, a new snag seems to slow things down. This time, it's the ancient rule of primogeniture, and it's putting Lady Louise Windsor's shot at a promotion behind that of her younger brother.
Louise will not inherit the Countess of Wessex title from her father.
Now that Prince Edward has been named Duke of Edinburgh, the 19-year-old should be receiving the title of Countess of Wessex. But instead, her 15-year-old brother, James Viscount Severn, will inherit the pomp (and property) that belongs to the family because of the outdated rule of primogeniture, giving him the title of Earl of Wessex, bypassing his sister altogether.
Primogeniture refers to when a younger male heir supersedes his elder sister when it comes to inheriting land or titles based solely on gender alone.
The royal family did away with this rule in 2013.
According to the Daily Mail, the royals decided to move away from this practice the year that Prince George was born, with the Crown Act of 2013. The new rule meant that princes would no longer be given priority over princesses when it came to the line of succession.
Unfortunately for Louise, the Crown Act wasn't backdated and because she was born before it was enacted, her inheritance is still subject to the misogynistic rule that had governed palace affairs since 1701.
This move will cost Louise more than just a title.
Not only will Louise be skipped over by her brother, but she also will lose out on the opportunity to serve in the House of Lords.
Lady Kinvara Balfour has called for what she described as an "unfair" and "unjust" practice to be outlawed, writing extensively about it for the Daily Telegraph.
"The current rules don't just malign a bunch of girls who want a jolly nice house and a title. With these titles comes the chance to be elected to one of the 92 seats still reserved for hereditary peers in the House of Lords which have been held almost exclusively by men," she argued in the Daily Telegraph per the Daily Mirror.
Louise had slowly been rising in the ranks of the royal family.
Once it became clear that Queen Elizabeth's health had begun to fail in the year leading up to her September 2022 death, many members of her family had stepped in and tried to lighten the load of the senior royals. Louise had been one of the new faces, standing beside the family during the Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
We can't help but wonder now if she and her family will feel slighted and pull further away from the royal fold.
The reality is that Louise should hold the title of princess.
She is the daughter of the Queen's son. Much like her cousins Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, Louise should also hold an HRH title. Her parents, however, decided not to go that route when both Louise and her brother were born, hoping they would get a better chance at a normal life without it.
Hopefully nobody is second guessing that plan now. It appears Louise may be getting the short end of the royal stick, and we imagine there has to be at least a bit of frustration because of it.
