Danish royal family

Haakon VII of Norway, who was born Prince Carl of Denmark as Frederik VIII's younger son, was, like his uncle, George I of Greece, invited to reign over another nation.

[12] The first law governing the succession to the Danish throne as a hereditary monarchy was Kongeloven (Lex Regia), enacted on 14 November 1665, and published in 1709.

As for the duchies, Holstein and Lauenburg where the King ruled as duke, these lands adhered to Salic law (meaning that only men could inherit the ducal throne), and by mutual agreement, were permanently conjoined.

To ensure that future Kings of Denmark would continue also being Dukes of Schleswig, Holstein, and Lauenburg, the line of succession to the duchies was modified in the London Protocol of 1852, which designated Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, as the new heir apparent, although he was, strictly, the heir neither to the Kingdom of Denmark nor to the Duchies of Schleswig, Holstein, or Lauenburg by primogeniture.

Originally, the Danish prime minister Christian Albrecht Bluhme wanted to keep the separate hereditary principles, but in the end, the government decided on a uniform agnatic primogeniture, which was accepted by the Parliament.

As of 2024[update] the line of succession is: Following the transformation of Denmark's monarchy from elective (at least theoretically, although it had generally descended to the eldest son of the House of Oldenburg since 1448) to hereditary in 1660, the so-called Kongelov (Latin: Lex Regia) of 1665 established the reign "by the grace of God" of King Frederick III and his posterity.

Article 21 states "No Prince of the Blood, who resides here in the Realm and in Our territory, shall marry, or leave the Country, or take service under foreign Masters, unless he receives Permission from the King".

[13] Under this provision, princes of Denmark who permanently reside in other realms by express permission of the Danish Crown (i.e. members of the dynasties of Greece, Norway and the United Kingdom) do not thereby forfeit their royalty in Denmark, nor are they bound to obtain prior permission to travel abroad or to marry from its sovereign, although since 1953 those not descended in male-line from King Christian X are no longer in the line of succession to the Danish throne.

This is because the marriage consent given to her had very specific provisions; if Benedikte ever became the heir presumptive, she and her husband would have to take permanent residence in Denmark and her children would have succession rights only if they had applied for naturalization upon reaching adulthood, and taken up residence in Denmark: (a) at the time of becoming the immediate heir to the throne, and (b) no later than when they reached the age of mandatory schooling under Danish law.

[15] 2Queen Anne-Marie has no succession rights, and her descendants have none through her, because the permission granted for her marriage stipulated that she renounced her claim to the Danish throne upon becoming queen consort of the Hellenes.