Royal watchers are on the edge of their seats as they wait for news that Kate Middleton has delivered the next heir to the throne of England. The royal parents to be, Price William and the Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton have been keeping quiet about the sex of their baby. Unlike past royal baby births, no matter what the child's gender, William and Kate's first born will sit on the throne one day.
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If William and Kate have a girl first and then a boy, their daughter will still succeed to the throne over their son. The House of Lords has approved a law stating that the first born child of a couple in line to the throne will inherit. The law is gender neutral, giving girls and boys an equal chance of becoming sovereign.
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Now that the law has been passed by the House of Lords, it is up to Britain's Queen Elizabeth II to approve the law and put it into effect. As of right now the line of succession following Queen Elizabeth II, sits Prince Charles as first in line, Prince William is second, Kate's child comes third and Prince Harry is fourth.
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Historically the line of succession in England has followed a male line. There was never Salic law in England preventing a woman from ruling. Women have ruled England in the past, though usually when no close male relative could be found.
In a speech delivered by David Cameron, Britain's Prime Minister called the rule outdated.
"The idea that a younger son should become monarch instead of an elder daughter simply because he's a man ... this way of thinking is at odds with the modern countries that we've all become."
The change in the law of succession amends another historic rule barring a royal in-line for the throne from marring a Catholic. If approved by the Queen, Catholics may be allowed into the royal family but still will not be able to succeed to the throne.
The UK is largely Protestant. There remains a Catholic population in parts of Ireland as well as other territories, but England is a Protestant Nation.
The rule barring Catholics from succeeding stretches back to 1701 when the Act of Settlement secured the English throne as Protestant. The division between Catholic and Protest goes further back in time to 1530. The most famous king in English history, Henry VIII broke from the Roman Catholic Church and established himself as the Supreme Head of the Church of England. Modern monarchs still hold onto this title.
Henry VIII is now largely a tourist attraction. People flock to London and other parts of England to see his famous palaces and museum exhibits dedicated to his six wives. But Henry VIII is more than that. His tyrannical reign and six marriages are responsible for helping to shape the course of English history.
Up until 1530 England was a Catholic nation, loyal and firmly believing in the power and authority of the Pope in Rome. Henry VIII was even given the title "Defender of the Faith" by the Pope for denouncing the views of Martin Luther (the father of the Protestant religion).
Now here is where history and pop culture mix. Henry VIII wanted a divorce from his Spanish Queen, Katherine of Aragon. The king needed a son, a male heir to make his throne secure. His wife who was older than him and unable to have more children had delivered only one living child, a girl, Princess Mary Tudor.
Henry falls madly in love with one of the Queen's ladies in waiting, Anne Boleyn. Now there are many theories, rumors and myths that surround the ghost of Anne Boleyn. Was she evil? Was she conniving? Was she an innocent victim of a king's lust? These are not for us to discuss right now. So let's just say Henry wanted Anne and Anne refusing to be his mistress would only give herself up to the king in marriage.
The king already wanting a divorce promised to move Heaven and Earth in order to marry the alluring and presumably child baring Anne Boleyn. Now it is here that history becomes subjective. Many people credit Anne Boleyn with bringing about the Protestant Reformation in England. She showed Henry many books by Protestant writers and was allied with Protestant thinkers supporting the King's divorce from Katherine of Aragon.
Other historians credit Katherine of Aragon with bringing about the Protestant Reformation because she held on to her Catholic beliefs fighting the king tooth and nail refusing even on her death bed to accept the King's belief that their marriage was not valid.
Had Katherine not fought so hard and retired from public life quietly Henry VIII would have had no reason to battle with the Pope who supported Katherine and England quite possible would have remained Catholic under Henry VIII.
Following the reign of Henry VIII the nation was divided Catholic against Protestant and that division would result in riots, protests, rebellions and many deaths until it was finally decided in 1701 that the British people would be ruled by Protestants and Protestants only.
Six women have ruled England, mostly successfully. The first two were daughters of Henry VIII. Mary I was the daughter of Henry and Katherine. Her attempt to return England to a Catholic nation resulted in the burning at the stake of hundreds or Protestants. Since then the Queen has been known throughout history as "Bloody Mary."
Elizabeth I is arguably the most famous and successful monarch in British history. The daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn she is credited with bringing stability to England and ending the burnings her sister Mary began. Not wishing to "make windows into men's souls" the Queen gave her people freedom of religion.
After Elizabeth came Mary II, Queen Anne, Queen Victoria, who currently hold the record as Britain's longest reigning monarch and now Queen Elizabeth II, who is about to break her great-great-grandmother's record.
If William and Kate have a girl she will be the seventh female monarch in Britain's history. The official due date for the royal couple is July 13, which is two-weeks away. Will we meet Britain's future Queen? Or will we see another King succeed William on the throne?
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