Princess Charlotte Holds a Very Important Role “For the First Time in British History”

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At 10 years old, Princess Charlotte is already one of the most beloved members of the Royal Family. Prince William and Princess Kate have been careful to give her as normal of a childhood as possible, with Charlotte enjoying hobbies like ballet, netball and arts and crafts. Despite living a (relatively) average tween existence, Charlotte actually holds a unique and historic position in the Royal Family.

“For the first time in British history, the spare is a princess, even though she has a younger brother,” said historian Dr. Nige Fletcher in a new Channel 5 documentary exploring the roles of heirs and spares to the throne (via the Daily Mail). “Princess Charlotte is in line after George, after a change in the law, and she now outranks her brother, Louis.”

The new law was passed ahead of Prince George’s 2013 birth and threw out male primogeniture, meaning if Charlotte had been born before big brother Prince George, she would’ve become Queen. This also means that princesses like Charlotte will keep their place in the line of succession, even if brothers are born down the line.

Princess Charlotte, seen at Trooping the Colour, is the first female spare in the British Royal Family.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis are seen at The King’s coronation in 2023.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Charlotte, George and Louis are seen chatting with dad Prince William at the VE Day commemorations in May.

(Image credit: Getty Images

In the new documentary, historian and author Tom Quinn noted that Prince William and Princess Kate’s children are facing a different royal existence than Prince Charles and Prince Andrew, or Prince Harry and Prince William.

Unlike Princess Charlotte, Princess Anne was not the “spare” to her older brother, Charles. Because she was a girl, her younger brother, Prince Andrew, became next in line to the throne, and Quinn said that with George, Charlotte and Louis, the new rule “will make things a lot easier because there won’t be two males like two deer clashing antlers anymore.”

Queen Elizabeth’s former press secretary Ailsa Anderson also weighed in on the Channel 5 program, sharing that Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis will get to enjoy a greater “freedom and choice than their father had.”

Various royal sources have hinted that Charlotte and Louis might not even take on full-time royal roles one day.