In a move that’s shocked royal watchers, King Carl XVI of Sweden has stripped several of his grandchildren of their royal titles.
The surprising move means the children of Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia, and Princess Madeleine and Chris O’Neill will no longer have to perform official royal duties, and will not have HRH titles moving forward.
The feat was announced on Monday, October 7 via an official statement from the palace.
The statement began: “His Majesty The King has decided on changes to The Royal House.”
“The purpose of these changes is to establish which members of The Royal Family may be expected to perform official duties incumbent on the Head of State or related to the function of the Head of State.”
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This means that Princess Leonore, 5, Prince Nicolas, four and Princess Adrienne, one, who are the children of Madeleine, and Carl Philip’s two children Prince Alexander, three, and Prince Gabriel, two will no longer be members of the royal house.
Despite this, they will still retain their titles of Prince and Princess, however their future partners and children will not have a right to them down the track.
The children of Princess Madeleine and Prince Carl Philip will lose their official HRH titles.
(Getty)While the move has come as a shock to many, it’s actually not uncommon for royal family members in their position to forgo having titles.
Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan’s new son Archie is case in point – the pair have chosen not to give the five-month-old an official title, meaning that Archie will never be known as an HRH or Prince.
The same goes for Princess Anne’s children – Zara Tindall and Peter Philips.
The move is not an uncommon choice for royals – Meghan and Harry chose to forgo giving Archie an official royal title.
(Getty)And to clear up any concerns that there was any unrest in the Swedish royal family, Princess Madeleine responded to the news on her own Instaram account, referencing the decision for her children to have their royal titles abolished.
“This change has been planned for a long time. Chris and I think it’s good that our children are now getting a greater opportunity to shape their own lives as private individuals in the future.”
Carl Phillip also took to the social media platform to assure fans that all was well, explaining that he saw the decision as a “positive one”.
“Alexander and Gabriel will have freer choices in life,” he said.
“We will continue to focus on our heart issues and commitment. We will also continue to support the King and Crown Princess – our future head of state – and participate in the King’s House activities as we wish.”
Prince Carl Philip shared a formal statement assuring fans that he was happy with the decision.
(Getty)Meanwhile, the children of Crown Princess Victoria, who is next in line to the throne, will retain their HRH titles.
Indeed young Princess Estelle, seven and Prince Oscar, three will continue to be an official part of the royal house, which is not surprising given that one day, Princess Estelle will likely take over the throne.
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