Pretender to the throne
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Pretender_to_the_throne".

A pretender is a claimant to an abolished throne or to a throne already occupied by somebody else. The English word pretend comes from the French word prétendre, meaning "to put forward, to profess or claim". The term pretender is also applied to those persons on whose behalf a claim to a throne is advanced, regardless of whether that person himself actually makes an active claim.^{citation needed} Significantly, the word pretender applies both to claimants with genuine rights to the throne (such as the various pretenders of the Wars of the Roses), and to those with fabricated claims (such as the pretender to Henry VII's throne Lambert Simnel). The papal equivalent of a pretender is an antipope.

Modern pretenders

The following list contains current pretenders. During the monarchical period of some countries listed here, there was no reigning house as it is known in the European sense – those are for example Tibet or the Central African Empire. These countries have a — in the column "House".

Europe

Country		Pretender	born	Pretender since	Link to past monarchy	House	Heir	born
	Albania	Crown Prince Leka	1939	1961	son of Zog I (self-proclaimed King from 1928 to 1939, afterwards unofficially in exile to 1961)	Zogu	Prince Leka	1982
		Giorgio Castriota Scanderbeg[1]	c. 1955	1997	descendant of Scanderbeg	Castriota-Scanderbeg	—
	Austria-Hungary	Crown Prince Otto[2]	1912	1922	son of Charles I (Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary etc. from 1916 to 1918)	Habsburg-Lorraine	Archduke Karl	1961
	Bulgaria	Simeon II[3]	1937	1946	Tsar from 1943 to 1946	Wettin (Saxe-Coburg and Gotha line)	Kardam, Prince of Turnovo	1962
	Courland	Prince Ernst-Johann Biron of Courland	1940	1982	descendant of Ernst Johann von Biron (Duke from 1737 to 1740 and 1763 to 1769)	Biron	Prince Michael	1944
	England (Jacobite)	Franz, Duke of Bavaria	1933	1996	great-grandson of Maria Theresia of Austria-Este, heir of the House of Stuart	Wittelsbach	Max, Duke in Bavaria	1937
	England (Yorkist)	Michael Abney-Hastings, 14th Earl of Loudoun[4]	1942	1944	heir-general of George, Duke of Clarence, assuming probable illegitimacy of Edward IV	York	Simon Abney-Hastings, Lord Mauchline	1974
	England (Saxon)	Princess Alice of Bourbon-Parma, Dowager Duchess of Calabria	1917	1994	Non-Salic descendant of the Scottish King Malcolm Canmore and his Queen, Margaret of Wessex, sister and heir of Edgar the Ætheling.	Bourbon-Parma	Infante Carlos, Duke of Calabria	1938
	France (Legitimist)	Louis Alphonse, Duke of Anjou	1974	1989	tenth-generation descendant of Louis XIV (King from 1643 to 1715)	Bourbon	Juan Carlos I of Spain	1938
	France (Orléanist and Unionist)	Henri, Count of Paris, Duke of France	1933	1999	great-great-great-grandson of Louis-Philippe of France (King from 1830 to 1848)	Orléans (sub-line of the House of Bourbon)	François, Count of Clermont	1961
	France (Bonapartist)	Charles Napoléon[5]	1950	1997	great-great-grandnephew of Napoléon I (self-proclaimed Emperor of France from 1804 to 1814 and in 1815)	Bonaparte	Jean-Christophe Napoléon	1986
	Greece	Constantine II	1940	1973	King from 1964 to 1973	Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg (sub-line of the House of Oldenburg)	Crown Prince Pavlos	1967
	Ireland (Jacobite)	Franz, Duke of Bavaria	1933	1996	great-grandson of Maria Theresia of Austria-Este, heir of the House of Stuart	Wittelsbach	Max, Duke in Bavaria	1937
	Ireland (Yorkist)	Michael Abney-Hastings, 14th Earl of Loudoun[6]	1942	1944	heir-general of George, Duke of Clarence, assuming probable illegitimacy of Edward IV	York	Simon Abney-Hastings, Lord Mauchline	1974
	Lithuania	Wilhelm Albert, Duke of Urach	1957	1991	grandson of Mindaugas II (nominal King in 1918)	Urach (a morgantic subline of the House of Württemberg)	Prince Karl Philipp	1992
	Mann	Simon Egerton Scrope	1934		descendant of William le Scrope, King from 1392 to 1399.	Scrope	Harry Scrope	1974
	Montenegro	Nicholas, Prince of Montenegro	1944	1986	great-grandson of Nikola I (King from 1910 to 1918)	Petrović-Njegoš	Hereditary Prince Boris	1980
	Portugal	Duarte Pio, Duke of Braganza	1945	1976	great-grandson of Miguel I (King from 1828 to 1834)	Braganza (male-line descent from the House of Capet)	Infante Afonso, Prince of Beira	1996
	Romania	Michael I	1921	1947	King from 1927 to 1930 and from 1940 to 1947	Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen	Frederick William, Prince of Hohenzollern (via last royal constitution)	1924
							Princess Margarita (via post-abolition family law)	1949
		Paul-Philippe Hohenzollern	1948	2006	grandson of Carol II (King from 1930 to 1940)	Lambrino (descended of an annulled Hohenzollern marriage)	Alexander Hohenzollern	1961
	Russia	Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna	1953	1992	descendant of Alexander II (Tsar from 1855 to 1881)	Romanov (a sub-line of the House of Holstein-Gottorp, a sub-line of the House of Oldenburg)	Grand Duke George Mikhailovich	1981
		Nicholas Romanov, Prince of Russia	1922	1992	descendant of Nicholas I (Tsar from 1825 to 1855)		Prince Dmitri Romanovich	1926
	Scotland (Jacobite)	Franz, Duke of Bavaria	1933	1996	great-grandson of Maria Theresia of Austria-Este, heir of the House of Stuart	Wittelsbach	Max, Duke in Bavaria	1937
	Serbia (Obrenović)	Nicholas, Prince of Montenegro	1944	1986	grandson of Prince Mirko of Montenegro, relative and designated heir of Alexander I of Serbia	Petrović-Njegoš	Hereditary Prince Boris	1980
	Serbia (Karađorđević)	Crown Prince Alexander	1945	1970	son of King Peter II, King from 1934 to 1945.	Karađorđević	Hereditary Prince Peter	1980
	Spain (Carlist)	Carlos Hugo, Count of Montemolin	1930	1977	sons of Xavier, Duke of Parma, declared regent by Alfonso Carlos of Bourbon, Duke of San Jaime	Bourbon	Carlos, Duke of Madrid	1970
		Sixtus, Duke of Aranjuez	1940	1979
	Warsaw	Maria Emanuel, Margrave of Meissen	1926	1968	great great great grandnephew of Frederick Augustus I (Duke from 1807 to 1813)	Wettin	Prince Albert	1934
	Yugoslavia[7]	Crown Prince Alexander	1945	1970	son of Peter II (King from 1934 to 1945)	Karađorđević	Hereditary Prince Peter	1980

Germany

Some of the former German monarchies are not listed here because all eligible dynasts of the respective formerly reigning houses are extinct: The Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin in 2001, the duchy of Saxe-Altenburg in 1991 and the principalities of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt and Schwarzburg-Sondershausen (since 1909 in personal union with Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt) in the male line in 1971. There may be potential claimants to the entirety of Schwarzburg, however.

Country		Pretender	born	Pretender since	Link to past monarchy	House	Heir	born
Empire
	Germany	Georg Friedrich, Prince of Prussia	1976	1994	great-great-grandson of William II (Emperor from 1888 to 1918)	Hohenzollern	Prince Christian-Sigismund	1946
Kingdoms
	Bavaria	Franz, Duke of Bavaria	1933	1996	great-grandson of Ludwig III (King from 1913 to 1918)	Wittelsbach	Max, Duke in Bavaria	1937
	Hanover	Ernst August V, Prince of Hanover	1954	1987	great-great-grandson of Georg V (King from 1851 to 1866)	Hanover (a sub-line of the House of Welf, a sub-line of the House of Este)	Prince Ernst August	1983
	Prussia	Georg Friedrich, Prince of Prussia	1976	1994	great-great-grandson of William II (King from 1888 to 1918)	Hohenzollern	Prince Christian Sigismund	1946
	Saxony	Maria Emanuel, Margrave of Meissen[8]	1926	1968	grandson of Frederick Augustus III (King from 1904 to 1918)	Wettin	Prince Albert	1934
	Westphalia	Charles Napoléon	1950	1997	great-great-grandson of Jérôme Bonaparte (King from 1807 to 1813)	Bonaparte	Jean-Christophe Napoléon	1986
	Württemberg	Carl, Duke of Württemberg	1936	1975	grand-nephew of William II (King from 1891 to 1918)	Württemberg	Hereditary Duke Friedrich	1961
Grand Duchies
	Baden	Maximilian, Margrave of Baden	1933	1963	great-grandnephew of Frederick II (Grandduke from 1907 to 1918)	Zähringen	Hereditary Prince Bernhard	1970
	Frankfurt	Nicolas, Duke of Leuchtenberg	1933	1988	descendant of Eugène de Beauharnais (Grand duke in 1813)	Beauharnais	Prince Constantin	1965
	Hesse and by Rhine	Moritz, Landgrave of Hesse	1926	1968	adoptive grandson (from the elder line of Hesse-Kassel or Hesse-Cassel) of Ernest Louis (Grand Duke from 1892 to 1918)	Hesse	Hereditary Prince Donatus	1966
	Hesse-Kassel (or Hesse-Cassel)[9]
	Mecklenburg-Strelitz	Duke Georg Borwin of Mecklenburg[10][11][12]	1956	1996	descendant of Georg (Strelitz line) (Grand Duke from 1816 to 1860)	Mecklenburg (Strelitz line), (a sub-line of the House of Nikloting)	Duke Alexander	1991
	Oldenburg	Anton-Günther, Duke of Oldenburg	1923	1970	grandson of Frederick Augustus II (Grand Duke from 1900 to 1918)	Holstein-Gottorp (a sub-line of the House of Oldenburg)	Duke Christian	1955
	Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach[13]	Michael, Prince of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach	1946	1988	grandson of William Ernest (Grand Duke from 1901 to 1918)	Wettin	Prince Wilhelm Ernst	1946
Duchies
	Anhalt	Eduard, Prince of Anhalt	1941	1963	son of Joachim Ernst (Duke from April to November 1918)	Ascania	— (Princess Julia Katharina is styled Hereditary Princess[14] on family site)	1980
	Brunswick	Ernst August V, Prince of Hanover	1954	1987	grandson of Ernest Augustus III (Duke from 1913 to 1918)	Hanover (a sub-line of the House of Welf, a sub-line of the House of Este)	Prince Ernst August	1983
	Nassau	Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg	1955	2000	great-great-grandson of Adolphe (Duke from 1839 to 1866)	Nassau-Weilburg (a sub-line of the House of Bourbon-Parma, a sub-line of the House of Bourbon)	Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume	1981
	Saxe-Coburg and Gotha	Andreas, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha	1943	1998	grandson of Charles Edward (Duke from 1900 to 1918)	Wettin	Hereditary Prince Hubertus	1975
	Saxe-Meiningen	Konrad, Prince of Saxe-Meiningen	1952	1984	grandnephew of Bernhard III (Duke from 1914 to 1918)		—
Principalities
	Hohenzollern-Hechingen	Frederick William, Prince of Hohenzollern	1924	1965	great-great-grandson of Karl Anton (Prince from 1848 to 1849)	Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen	Hereditary Prince Karl Friedrich	1952
	Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen
	Lippe	Armin, Prince of Lippe	1924	1949	son of Leopold IV (Prince from 1905 to 1918)	Lippe	Hereditary Prince Stephan	1959
		Friedrich Wilhelm, Prince of Lippe	1947	1990	great-nephew of Leopold IV (Prince from 1905 to 1918)		—
	Reuss-Köstritz (Reuss Junior Line)	Heinrich IV, Prince of Reuss-Köstritz	1919	1946	current head of the House after the extinction of the first hereditary line in 1945	Reuss	Prince Heinrich XIV	1955
	Reuss-Greiz (Reuss Senior Line)				hereditary line ceased in 1928 through the death of Heinrich XXVII (Prince from 1908 to 1918), so the claim passed to the Köstritz line that year
	Schaumburg-Lippe	Alexander, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe	1958	2003	grandnephew of Adolf II (Prince from 1911 to 1918)	Lippe	Hereditary Prince Heinrich-Donatus	1994
	Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, Schwarzburg-Sondershausen	Friedrich Magnus, Count of Solms-Wildenfels	1927	1984	heir via application of semi-salic law, descendant of Friedrich Günther (Prince of Rudolstadt from 1793 to 1863)	Solms	Hereditary Count Michael	1949
		Philip, Prince of Stolberg-Wernigerode	1967	2001	heir of Count Botho of Stolberg, to whom the Schwarzburg lands would have passed on the extinction of the house via a pact between the two houses	Stolberg	Prince Georg Heinrich	1970
	Waldeck and Pyrmont	Wittekind, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont	1936	1967	grandson of Friedrich Adolf (Prince from 1893 to 1918)	Waldeck	Hereditary Prince Carl Anton	1991

Italy

Modena, Naples and Parma do not mean the Italian cities but the former states on the territory of present-day's Italy.

Country		Pretender	born	Pretender since	Link to past monarchy	House	Heir	born
Unified Italy
	Italy	Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples	1937	1983	son of Umberto II (King from May to June 1946)	Savoy	Emanuele Filiberto, Prince of Venice and Piedmont	1972
		Amedeo, Duke of Aosta	1943	2006	cousin of Umberto II (King from May to June 1946)		Prince Aimone, Duke of Apulia	1967
pre-unificarian States
	Etruria	Carlos Hugo, Duke of Parma	1940	1979	great-great-grandson of Charles II (Louis II) (King from 1803 to 1807)	Bourbon	Carlos, Prince of Piacenza	1970
	Mantua	Prince Maurizio Gonzaga	1938	1943	descendant of Federico I Gonzaga (Marquess from 1478 to 1484)	Gonzaga	Prince Corrado Gonzaga	1941
	Modena and Reggio	Prince Lorenz of Belgium, Archduke of Austria-Este	1955	1996	head of the ducal family of Modena	Habsburg-Lorraine	Prince Amedeo of Belgium, Archduke of Austria-Este	1986
	Naples	Joachim, 8th Prince Murat	1944	1944	descendant of Joachim Murat (King from 1808 to 1815, appointed by Napoléon I of France)	Murat	Joachim, Prince of Pontecorvo	1973
	Parma	Carlos Hugo, Duke of Parma	1930	1977	grandson of Roberto I (Duke from 1854 to 1859)	Bourbon	Carlos, Prince of Piacenza	1970
	Piombino	Prince Niccolò Boncompagni-Ludovisi	1941	1988	descendant of Antonio I Boncompagni-Ludovisi (prince from 1778 to 1801)	Boncompagni	Prince Francesco Boncompagni-Ludovisi	1965
	Tuscany	Archduke Sigismund, Grand Duke of Tuscany	1966	1993	descendant of Ferdinand IV (Grandduke from 1859 to 1860)	Habsburg-Lorraine	Archduke Amadeo, Grand Prince of Tuscany	2001
	Two Sicilies	Infante Carlos, Duke of Calabria	1938	1964	descendants of Ferdinand II (King from 1830 to 1859)	Bourbon	Prince Pedro, Duke of Noto	1968
		Prince Carlo, Duke of Castro[15]	1963	2008			Prince Antoine of Bourbon Two Sicilies	1929

Africa

Country		Pretender	born	Pretender since	Link to past monarchy	House	Heir	born
	Burundi	Princess Rosa Paula Iribagiza	1934	1977	daughter of Mwambutsa IV (King from 1915 to 1966)	Ntwero	?
	Central Africa	Jean-Bédel Bokassa II	1975	1996	son of Emperor Jean-Bédel Bokassa I (1976 to 1979)	—	—
	Egypt	Fu'ād II	1952	1953	King from 1952 to 1953	Muhammad 'Ali	Muhammad Ali, Prince of Said	1979
	Ethiopia	Zera Yacob Amha Selassie	1953	1997	grandson of Haile Selassie I (Emperor from 1930 to 1936 and from 1941 to 1974)	Solomon	Paul Wossen Sagad Makonnen	1947
	Ethiopia (Iyasuist)	Girma Yohannis Iyasu	1961	?	grandson of Iyasu V (Emperor from 1913 to 1916)		—
	Libya	Muhammad as-Senussi	1962	1992	great nephew of Idris I (King from 1951 to 1969)	Senussi	—
	Rwanda	Kigeli V	1935	1961	King from 1959 (de facto from 1954) to 1961	Ndahindurwa	—
	South Kasai	Albert I Kalonji Ditunga	1919 or 1929	1961	proclaimed King in 1961	—	—
	Sudan	Fu'ād II	1952	1953	King from 1952 to 1953	Muhammad 'Ali	Muhammad Ali, Prince of Said	1979
	Tunisia	Prince Muhammad Bey	1928	2006	descendant of Muhammad V an-Nasir (Bey from 1906 to 1922)	Husainid	?
	Zanzibar	Jamshid bin Abdullah Al-Busaidi	1929	1964	Sultan from 1963 to 1964	Sa'îd	Sayyid Ali bin