Sweden’s royalty follows Dutch and confirms that same-sex marriage is not a child of the throne – Royal Central
Jonas Ekströmer, Royal Court
A future monarch or heir to the throne in Sweden would not have to give up their royal role if they were to enter into a marriage of the same sex.
The Marshall of the Realm confirmed that a same-sex union would not be an obstacle to succession, just days after the Dutch Prime Minister made a similar statement.
Aftonbladet tidning reported that Marshal Fredrik Wersäll had looked at the rules on royal marriage which stipulate that a prince or princess must have the government’s consent to marry in order for them to retain their place in the succession. He has come to the conclusion that a marriage of the same sex would not be treated differently and would only require the consent of the government at the request of the monarch.
His decision follows an announcement by Mark Rutte who last week said that a future Dutch monarch or heir could enter into the same sex union. His comments came after a new book asked if the current first in the throne, Princess Catharina-Amalia, could become queen if she married another woman. Mark Rutte said “” The government believes that the heir can also marry a person of the same sex. He also mentioned the succession status of children born to a royal couple of the same sex and said “it just depends a lot on the facts and circumstances of the specific case, which you can see by looking back at how family law can change over time.”
Same-sex marriage is now legal in most of the European countries that still have monarchies. So far, however, only the Netherlands and Sweden have openly stated that same-sex marriage would not be an impediment to the throne or a right of inheritance.