The king is dead, long live the king! term—here—of "dignitas") was transferred from the defunct sovereign to the new one. In the United Kingdom and other realms which permit female succession to the throne, the phrase can be altered to accommodate succession between monarchs of different sexes, e.g. "The King is dead, long live The Queen!", as happened in 1952, when King George VI died and was succeeded by his daughter, Queen Elizabeth II, or "The Queen is dead, long live The King!" as happened in 1901, when Queen Victoria was succeeded by her son, King Edward VII. "The King is dead, long live The King!" was last
Legitimacy of Queen Victoria Legitimacy of Queen Victoria The parentage of Queen Victoria has been the subject of speculation. Princess Charlotte of Wales was the only daughter and heiress presumptive of the Prince Regent (later King George IV). Her death in childbirth in 1817 set off a race between the Prince Regent's brothers, the six surviving younger sons of King George III, to see who could father a legitimate heir. Some of the brothers had been previously involved in scandals. Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany, the second in line to the throne, was amicably separated from his wife, Princess Frederica Charlotte of