Royal succession: Alpine throne opens to women in historic shift

Ephrat Livni

Of the roughly four dozen countries where royal families reign, two have wrestled this summer with questions of gender and succession in the modern era, taking starkly different approaches.

Liechtenstein, a tiny nation of about 40,000 people wedged between Switzerland and Austria in the Alps, took one route: On Saturday, it announced that women would now be able to become the monarch and wield the broad political power of the throne.

The Princely House of Liechtenstein said in a statement that it was shifting from male-only succession to absolute primogeniture, making the future firstborn child of the ruling royal family heir to the throne, regardless of gender.

“With this legislative amendment, we wish to ensure that both the Principality of Liechtenstein and the Princely House are governed by the person best prepared for this task,” said Hereditary Prince Alois, the country’s de facto leader. The sons and daughters of the reigning royal “are familiarised from their youth with the unique characteristics of the Principality and the Princely House,” and will “in principle” be best suited for the ruling role, he said.

Prince Alois, 58, is the son of the reigning Prince Hans-Adam, 81, and he has for more than two decades served as his father’s deputy, handling the duties of head of state in his place. He is a father of four, with an elder son, a daughter and two younger sons, but the rule change does not apply to them or anyone already born. It will apply to all future births, Prince Alois told the local news media.

Liechtenstein’s move to adopt equal succession rights puts it in the majority among nearby nations with royal families.

Sweden, the Netherlands, Norway and Belgium adopted absolute primogeniture in the late 20th century, and Denmark, Luxembourg and Britain followed suit soon after, giving women equal succession rights.

Still, Liechtenstein’s decision is notable because it comes just weeks after Japan’s legislature took a different approach to royal succession amid a looming crisis.

The imperial family in Japan is now made up of only 16 people: five men and 11 women. This summer, the government advanced a proposal to allow this dwindling clan to adopt distant male relatives, in an effort to help ensure the survival of the world’s oldest monarchy, which only allows men to ascend the throne.

The proposal was supported by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, a conservative who last year became the first woman to lead Japan. But it angered many who saw this supposed workaround as unnecessary and argued that the country should instead allow women to reign as empress.

Japanese royals themselves harbour reservations. Asked about the plan, Crown Prince Akishino, brother to Emperor Naruhito and next in line, admitted mixed feelings.

“I believe there is no difference between men and women,” he said regarding imperial duties, adding that society must keep progressing through diverse viewpoints.