How Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's baby will change the line of succession

The new member of the family will have an impact on the current positions

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have announced that they're expecting their first child!

Kensington Palace has confirmed that the baby is due in Spring 2019 and that the newlyweds are "delighted" to be able to share the good news.

Along with queries around titles, name choices and the date we can expect to welcome the new arrival, the question of where the new royal baby will fit line into the line of succession is also being raised - and we already know the answer to this one.

Harry and Meghan on their visit to Sussex earlier in October
Samir HusseinGetty Images

Harry and Meghan's child will be seventh in line to the throne, whether it is a boy or a girl. This means he or she will bump Prince Andrew, the Queen's second oldest son, down to eighth place, with his daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, moving into ninth and tenth places.

The baby's cousins - Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis - will all remain ahead of the newest member of the family. This is because their father, Prince William, is older than Prince Harry.


However, thanks to a new act passed in 2013, a baby boy will not take precedence over a baby girl. This ground-breaking amendment declared that the order of succession now be determined by the order of birth, rather than gender. So, if the Duke and Duchess of Sussex welcomed a daughter, she could one day wear the crown herself.

Here's how the new line of succession will look:

  1. Prince Charles
  2. Prince William
  3. Prince George
  4. Princess Charlotte
  5. Prince Louis
  6. Prince Harry
  7. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's baby
  8. Prince Andrew
  9. Princess Beatrice
  10. Princess Eugenie
  11. Prince Edward
  12. James Viscount Severn
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