When Prince William is crowned King, there will be many changes in store for the rest of his immediate family. Kate Middleton will be named Queen, Prince George will move up in the line of succession to the throne, and Princess Charlotte will become the Princess Royal...eventually.
Charlotte won't immediately take on the title of the Princess Royal because someone else in the family already holds it.
“The title of Princess Royal is traditionally bestowed on the eldest daughter of the monarch," royal expert and author of Prince Harry: The Inside Story Duncan Larcombe tells TownandCountrymag.com, pointing out that Princess Anne, Queen Elizabeth II's eldest daughter, is the current Princess Royal.
"It is a title that remains for life, so Princess Charlotte will have to wait at least until the death of the current Princess Royal," Larcombe adds.
But even after Princess Anne's death, there is no guarantee that the title change will happen automatically. Larcombe says it will then be up to Charlotte's father, William, to decide if and when Charlotte gets the title.
Waiting for the title change is nothing new; Charlotte's great aunt also had to be patient for over twenty years.
"Princess Anne had to wait until 1987 before her mother the Queen bestowed the title of Princess Royal on her, even though the title had been vacant since 1965," Larcombe says. It previously belonged to Princess Mary, eldest and only daughter of King George V and Queen Mary, who was Princess Royal from 1932 to 1965.
Currently, Princess Charlotte is only three and doesn't understand all of the responsibilities that come along with having such a title, but she may not be in such a hurry to receive it once she learns what being a Princess Royal actually entails. According to Larcombe, there are very strict rules for dating the Princess Royal.
"Under ancient British law, any man who sleeps with the Princess Royal before they are married is guilty of high treason—punishable by execution!" Larcombe says. "Perhaps Princess Charlotte’s future boyfriends had better look out. At the very least, Wills and Kate are likely to wait until after Charlotte marries before giving her the title."
