Primogeniture
Primogeniture is the common tradition of
inheritance by the first-born of the entirety of a parent's wealth, estate or office; or in the absence of children, by collateral relatives, in order of seniority of the collateral line.
It is often used in
monarchies. As a mechanism of succession in
hereditary monarchies, some sort of
primogeniture has for long been the most used, but it is not the only tradition; nor is it likely the oldest method. For other mechanisms of inheritance in hereditary monarchies, see "
Order of succession"; and see also "
elective monarchy".Primogeniture became the most common method of succession in hereditary monarchies as a slow development, correlating with the development of the average life-span in wealthier classes (particularly with the wealth of a monarch's family) increasing to a level where the eldest children of a parent were, on average, more or less adult at the time of the death of the parent. This correlated with the wealthier and healthier conditions and more and better food; and with less personal participation in violent activities, such as warring, marauding, robber expeditions and duels.
Agnatic primogeniture
Agnatic primogeniture or
patrilineal primogeniture (a form of
male primogeniture) is inheritance by the eldest surviving male child. This is sometimes referred to as a form of
Salic law.
Male primogeniture happens at least in two known systems: Agnatic Primogeniture and Quasi-Salic Succession. Only males may succeed to the throne. The mentioned two forms are distinct, depending upon whether a female is accepted as the legitimate recipient in a transfer of succession rights, or not.
Male-preference primogeniture
Male-preference primogeniture is inheritance by the eldest surviving male child, but females may inherit, provided the subject has no surviving sons. The term
agnatic-cognatic primogeniture is used in the same meaning. This is the usual "
feudal" primogeniture, in the Western European culture, such as the Castilian
Siete Partidas. Earlier definitions of "cognatic primogeniture" referred to any form of primogeniture which allows females; today the term may refer to equal primogeniture (below).
Absolute primogeniture
Absolute,
equal or
lineal primogeniture is inheritance by the oldest surviving child without regard to gender. It is also known as
full cognatic primogeniture today. Some monarchies adopted this practice during the late 20th century. It is well established that many female rulers have reigned throughout history but there is no evidence that earlier cultures practiced fully equal primogeniture. The ancient Nubians who have had a large number of queens especially during the meroitic period are belived to have practiced this form of primogeniture. Sweden adopted fully equal primogeniture in
1980. The beneficiary of this was
Victoria of Sweden. Several other monarchies have since followed, such as
Belgium,
the Netherlands and
Norway (with
Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway as second in line to the throne after her father,
Crown Prince Haakon). In
Japan, there are currently debates over whether to adopt lineal or some form of mixed primogeniture, as
Princess Aiko is the only child of
Crown Prince Naruhito. (Occasionally, equal primogeniture has won in historical cases of Japanese succession: While it is true that most succession events in Japan had since time immemorial went in favor of a male heir, not necessarily the eldest of the sons themselves, it nevertheless is established by two precedents [of 1629 CE and of 642 CE] that an imperial princess may ascend the throne in preference and prior to her younger brothers. In 1629, the imperial princess Okiko ascended the Japanese throne as Reigning
Empress Meisho tenno, as successor of her father, prior to her younger half-brother and other males. Only after her abdication 14 years later, her brother Tsuguhito (Emperor Go-Komyo tenno) ascended. However, her offspring would never have been allowed to ascend the throne.
Zapatero's government intends to reform the
Spanish Constitution of 1978 to assure the inheritance of
Infanta Leonor of Spain. In July 2006 the government of
Nepal passed a bill which changed the order of succession from agnatic to equal primogeniture.
Matrilineal primogeniture
No known monarchy in Europe applies or has applied
matrilineal primogeniture (uterine primogeniture) or any other form of hereditary succession to total exclusion of males. Certain tribes in Africa, however, apply matrilineal primogeniture, see
Rain Queen. There is some evidence that matrilineal descent and consort was an important factor deciding successions in ancient Egypt, though any matrilineal rule was certainly not consistent, nor was any primogeniture strictly patrilineality either.
Cambodian royal custom requires for an heir's relevancy that (s)he be born of the royal dynasty in both maternal and paternal sides.
A case of agnatic primogeniture is exemplified in the
French royal milieu, the
Salic Law (attributed to the
Salian Franks) forbade any inheritance of a crown through the female line. This accounts for the
dispute over the legitimate successor of
Charles IV of France (
Edward III of England or
Philip VI of France), the separation between
Hanover (where
Ernest I succeeded) and the
United Kingdom upon the accession of
Queen Victoria in
1837, the separation of the (arch)ducal house of
Luxembourg from the royal house of the
Netherlands, and partially explains the role of
Carlism in
Spain.
From Middle Ages, we have one practical system of succession in primogeniture, so-called Quasi-Salic inheritance: succession is allowed also through female line, just females themselves do not inherit, but the sons of females do. (For example, a grandfather, without sons, is succeeded by his grandson, a son of his daughter, when the daughter in question is yet alive. Or an uncle, without own children, is succeeded by his nephew, a son of his sister, when the sister in question is yet alive.)This actually fulfills the Salic condition of "no land comes to a woman, but the land comes to the male sex".
The most common hereditary system in feudal Europe was based on a form of primogeniture, where a lord was succeeded by his eldest son, and failing sons, by either daughters or by sons of daughters. Great Britain and Spain, where also females are allowed to succeed, are today continuing this old model of succession law. In most medieval Western European feudal fiefs, females (such as daughters and sisters) were allowed to succeed, brothers failing, but usually the husband of the heiress became the real lord and most often also got title, iure uxoris.
In more complex medieval cases, the sometimes conflicting principles of
proximity of blood and primogeniture battled, and outcomes could have been idiosyncratic. Proximity meant that a heir closer in degrees of kinship to the lord in question was given precedence although that heir was not necessarily the primogenitural heir.
* For example, the
succession of Duchy of Burgundy in 1361 was resolved in favor of John, son of a younger daughter, on basis of proximity, because he was a closer cousin of the dead duke than Charles, the grandson of the elder daughter. Proximity sometimes favored younger lines (directly contrary to the outcome from applying primogeniture), since it was more probable that from a younger line, a member of "earlier" generation was yet alive than among the descendants of the eldest.
* In dispute over
the succession of the Kingdom of Scotland 1290-91, the Bruce family pleaded tanistry and
proximity of blood, whereas Balliol primogeniture. The arbiter, Edward I of England, decided in favor of primogeniture. But later, the Independence Wars reverted the situation in favor of the Bruce, however, not because of legal arguments, but because of positions in the war and capability and sheer luck.
* The Earldom of Gloucester (in the beginning of 14th century) went to full sisters of the dead earl, not to earl's half-sister(s) who was/were elder, having been born of father's first marriage, when the earl himself was from 2nd marriage (full siblings were regarded more close, higher in proximity, than half-siblings).However, primogeniture increasedly won legal cases over proximity in later centuries.
Later, when lands were strictly divided among noble families and tended to remain fixed,
agnatic primogeniture (practically the same as
Salic Law) became the most usual: succession going to the eldest son of the monarch; if the monarch had no sons, the throne would pass to the nearest male relative through male line.
Some countries however accepted female rulers early on, so that if the monarch had no sons, the throne would pass to the eldest daughter. (This sort of primogeniture was the rule that let
Elizabeth II become Queen.)
In England, primogeniture was mandatory for inheritance of land. Until the
Statute of Wills was passed in
1540, a will could only control the inheritance of personal property. Real estate (land) passed to the eldest male descendant
by operation of law. The statute added a provision that a landowner could "devise" land by the use of a new device called a "testament". The rule of primogeniture in England was not changed until the
Administration of Estates Act in 1926.
Preference for males, existing in most systems of primogeniture (and in other mechanisms of hereditary succession) comes mostly from the perceived nature of the tasks and role of the monarch: A monarch most usually was, firstly and foremostly, a military protector.
* His income was very dependent on protection money collected from those people he was in office of protecting against wars, violence, crimes, other injustices (this sort of protection money, more or less extorted from people by use or threat of the violent powers of the protector himself, was labelled by the less-infuriating terms "tax" and "duty").
* It was very useful, or even requisite, that the monarch be a warrior, and a commander of military. And, also, war troops (consisting typically only of males) were perceived to approve only males as their commanders, or even warriors.
* Additionally, in some monarchies (such as France), the monarch held a certain mystical position, some task best described as priestly position (high priest or demigod). That sort of position was, depending on the tradition in question, often denied of females. In the French monarchy, one of the official explanations for the
Salic Law was that the monarch was obliged to use certain sacred instruments, which females are forbidden even to touch.
Proximity or seniority mean that power rests tighter in hands of older generation and also that monarchs have shorter reigns.They tend to lead to some form of partition of the inheritance.
Primogeniture has often meant underage monarchs and regency arrangements. Primogeniture tends to keep the inheritance undivided and even in increase.
Primogeniture prevents the
subdivision of estates and diminishes internal pressures to sell property (for example, if two children inherit a house and one cannot afford to buy out the other's share). In Western Europe most younger sons of the nobility, having no prospect of inheriting land or property, were obliged to seek careers in the Church, the
Armed Forces or in Government.Wills often included bequests to a
monastic order who would take the disinherited.Many of the Spanish
Conquistadors were young sons who had to make their fortune in war.In the late 17th and early 18th Centuries, many specifically chose to leave
England for
Virginia in the Colonies. Most, if not almost all, of the early Virginians who were plantation owners were such younger sons who had left England because of primogeniture laws. These Founding Fathers of the
United States of America were nearly universally descended from the landed gentry of England, with many being descended from English Kings of the late 14th and early 15th Centuries, especially through the prodigious offspring of
Edward III of England.
William Shakespeare's
King Lear can be seen as an argument in favor of primogeniture as the tragically flawed action of Lear is dividing his country into three amongst his daughters. The division of his land marks the beginning of the unraveling of everything else in the play.
The fact that the eldest son "scooped the pool" often led to ill-feeling amongst younger sons (and of course daughters). Through marriage, estates inherited by primogeniture were combined and some nobles achieved wealth and power sufficient to pose a threat even to the crown itself.Alternately, one might think that, as with most property, the land will go to its most useful purpose no matter what the initial distribution (the
Coase Theorem). Finally, nobles tended to complain about and resist rules of primogeniture (though this opposition might indicate primogeniture among nobles was good for the king).
Primogeniture also can lead to less than able successors. See for example
Christian VII of Denmark who was likely schizophrenic and
Afonso VI of Portugal who was a half-wit.
Main article: Succession order
There are several other ways to organize hereditary succession, which produce more or less different outcome than primogeniture. Some examples of widely used methods of alternative order of succession:
*
Seniority*
Tanistry* Degree of kinship, i.e
proximity of blood*
Elective monarchy, election from among one family
* "
Lottery"
* Rotation (Taking turns: seniority, tanistry, lottery and election are used and practical ways to organize rotation. Rotation may have aimed at some balance between branches of the House or the Clan.)
*
Partible inheritance, sharing (usually equal) among descendants
*
Gavelkind*
Ultimogeniture*
Succession order*
Salic Law*
Monarch*
Heir apparent*
Heir presumptive*
Nobility*
Royal family*
Notes On Types of Laws of Succession
