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The truths and myths about royal inbreeding
The trope about inbred royals persists to this day. One of the most lobbed criticisms of the British royal family is that they’re inbred. Indeed, Prince Charles’ parents were related as both were descendants of Queen Victoria and King Christian IX of Denmark. Most monarchs on European thrones today are also descendants of Queen Victoria and King Christian. However, amongst the monarchs still reigning, only Queen Elizabeth married a fellow royal and relative.
Commoners are now the consorts of choice, a trend that truly began post World War Two. King Harald of Norway, Queen Margarethe of Denmark and King Carl Gustaf of Sweden all famously married commoners. Marrying a fellow royal had advantages. The spouse would be prepared for the duties and constraints of royal life, having been exposed to it since birth. Royal watchers have accused commoners, such as Queen Letizia of Spain, Crown Princess Mette Marit of Norway and Crown Prince Daniel of Sweden of being ill suited for the role and lessening the prestige of the monarchy. While some of these criticisms may be valid, as in the case of Diana, Princess of Wales who was ill prepared for the harsh treatment she would face as a royal, many of these commoners have excelled in their roles.
Intermarriage was not only a royal practice. Up until the last century, before travel became more accessible, you were largely limited to marrying people in your immediate geographical area. This would result in marriage to people who may be closely or distantly related to you. Royals often made more globalized marriages because they could afford travel that the average person could not. Conversely, the intermarrying of royal families was common as it was a way to forge alliances and keep possessions within the family. Marrying cousins with one another reduced friction and created lasting alliances. The theory being that you would be less inclined to declare war on your uncle if your wife was his daughter.
However, close marriage was not condoned for much of the medieval period. The Catholic Church had a policy of preventing marriages that were deemed too closely related. The Church forbid the marriage of persons who were related within seven degrees, meaning you could not marry your seventh cousin. Many marriages in the Middle Ages were dissolved for…
