Titles of European royal heirs

Many past and present European monarchies have reserved titles used just by the heir apparent to the throne. The famous example of this is Charles, Prince of Wales, former heir to the British throne.[1] Many heir have had “crown prince” as their title.

Ferdinando de' Medici, Grand Prince of Tuscany heir to the Tuscan throne all his life.
Charles Emmanuel IV of Sardinia while known as the Prince of Piedmont.
His Royal Highness The Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg. Present day heir to the Luxembourgish grand ducal throne.

Titles in present and former kingdoms

Present Kingdoms

Former Kingdoms
  • Crown Prince of Greece, used by the heir to throne of Greece while the country was a monarchy.
    • The title Duke of Sparta was used once for Crown Prince Constantine I but abandoned for being contrary to the constitution.
  • Crown Prince of Hanover, used by the heir to the former Kingdom of Hanover before its annexation by Prussia.
  • Crown Prince of Prussia & German crown prince, used by the heir to the German Empire.
  • Dauphin of France, used by the heir to the throne of France while the country was a monarchy.
  • Duke of Tarnovo, used by the heir to the throne of Bulgaria while the country was a monarchy.
  • King of the Romans, used by the heir of the Holy Roman Emperor and thus the person expected to rule over the Holy Roman Empire.
  • Prince of Piedmont/Naples, used by the heir to the throne of Italy while the country was a monarchy.
  • Prince Royal of Portugal, used by the heir to the throne of Portugal while the country was a monarchy.
    • The title held by the heir used to be Prince of Brazil, Duke of Braganza.
  • Tsarevich of Russia, used by the heir to the Russian Empire.

Titles in present Principalities and Grand Duchies
  • Hereditary Prince of Monaco, used by the heir to the Principality of Monaco.
  • Hereditary Prince of Liechtenstein, used by the heir to the Principality of Liechtenstein.
  • Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg, used by the heir to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.

Territories prior to unification

German states

Prior to the unification of Germany, the area was made up of dozens of small principalities such as Duchies and Grand Duchies[2] and most of them used the titles of Hereditary Grand Duke or Hereditary Prince [followed by name of state] such as:

Italian states

Prior to the unification of Italy, the area was made up of independent Kingdoms, Duchies and Grand Duchies.

  • Grand Prince of Tuscany, used by the heir to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany.
  • Hereditary Prince of Naples, used by the heir to the Kingdom of Naples.
  • Hereditary Prince of Modena, used by the heir to the Duchy of Modena.
  • Hereditary Prince of Parma, used by the heir to the Duchy of Parma.
  • Prince of Piedmont, used by the heir to the Duchy of Savoy.
    • When the duchy became the Kingdom of Sardinia, the title Duke of Savoy was also used by the heir to the throne.

Examples

References
  1. Plantagenet Somerset Fry, The Kings & Queens of England & Scotland (New York: Grove Weidenfeld, 1990), p. 57
  2. Janet Robinson; Joe Robertson, Handbook of Imperial Germany (Bloomington, IN: AuthorHouse, 2009), p. 68
  3. Jonathan Steinberg, Bismarck: A Life (New York: Oxford University Press, 2011), p. 111
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