Twin royal babies – who’ll rule the throne?
OK, not our throne - but Monaco following the announcement that Princess Charlene and Prince Albert II of Monaco are expecting twins
There is more than one royal baby on the way, hurrah! Prince Albert II of Monaco and his wife Princess Charlene have announced that the Princess is pregnant with twins.
The fact that two babies are due at the end of this year has now prompted speculation as to which child would become the future King or Queen of the Principality.
According to The Daily Mail, the Constitution of Monaco says that the first-born baby will be the closest in line to the throne, with priority given to males. But it is not clear what will happen if the first-born is a girl.
One thing is certain, even if Princess Charlene has a caesarean birth, one baby will be born before the other - although the difference is only a couple of minutes.
Despite the legal uncertainly about who will be next-in-line, Princess Charlene seems to be taking her pregnancy in her stride, as she told Hello magazine that she feels “absolutely great.”
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The twins will be the first children for the 36-year-old, who married the Prince back in 2011.
Prince Albert already has two children, a 22-year-old daughter Jazmin Grace Grimaldi and a 10-year-old son Alexandre Coste. However, as the Prince wasn't married to their mothers, neither are considered official heirs or have any claim to the Crown.
In 2002, when Prince Albert (known for being a long-term bachelor) was single, his father Prince Rainier changed the constitutional laws to allow his daughters and their children to inherit the throne, should Albert fail to marry and produce an heir.
But in an almost fairytale-like story, Prince Albert married Charlene Wittstock, a former Olympic swimmer, back in 2011.
The palace of Monaco statement said: "T.S.H. the Prince and the Princess of Monaco are delighted to announce the pregnancy of H.S.H. Princess Charlene. The birth is expected at the end of the year."
Picture credit: Helga Esteb / Shutterstock.com
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Having been a journalist for 15 years – and Reviews Editor at MadeForMums for five of those – Hazelann has accrued a lot of experience testing and reviewing every baby product imaginable.
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