The late Queen Elizabeth changed a royal law in 2013 to make sure Princess Charlotte would not be at a disadvantage as a result of her gender.
When the late Queen had her children, sons always took precedence in the line of succession. This meant that even though Princess Anne was her second eldest child, Princess Royal, now 74, was put below her younger brothers in the line of succession as male sons came first.
However, the late Queen decided to scrap this rule in 2013 when she issued the Succession of the Crown Act. This act updated royal laws and meant that children would have equal rights to the throne regardless of their gender.
As reported by The Mirror, this signalled a major change for Princess Charlotte, nine, as this meant she kept her place in line to the throne and was not overtaken by a younger Prince Louis, now six, when he was born.
Constitutional expert Iain MacMarthanne explained: “The 2013 Act sought to bring multiple pieces of outdated and discriminatory legislation relating to the monarchy up to date.”
He continued: “Through this Act male primogeniture was abolished, allowing the firstborn child irrespective of gender to become heir apparent.
“The disqualification from inheriting the throne by marrying a Catholic was removed; and the Royal Marriages Act of 1772 was repealed, resulting in only the first six in line to the throne being required to obtain the sovereign’s permission.”
At the moment, Charlotte’s dad Prince William is first-in-line to the throne, with her older brother Prince George, 11, second.
She is third-in-line to the throne, followed by her brother Prince Louis, who is fourth.
While the children are set to play big roles in the Royal Family in years to come, especially when William takes to the throne, at home they live relatively ordinary childhoods.
The children all attend Lambrook School together, which is a short drive from their four-bedroom cottage on the Windsor Castle estate.
Prince William and Princess Kate decided to relocate to the cottage from Windsor to give their children a more normal upbringing and allow them more privacy.
Despite their place in line to the throne, the children live a relatively ordinary life away from the cameras and even help out around the house with chores and cooking.
