During his annual speech at the National Day of Liechtenstein on Saturday, 15th August 2026, The Regent, Hereditary Prince Alois revealed a historic change implemented by the Alpine Monarchy. He said that future female members of The Princely House will be eligible for an equal standing with male members on matters of the House and The Succession will change to absolute Primogeniture. That means, female members of The Princely House born after August 2026 will not be overshadowed by younger male siblings in line of succession, and the Sovereign's firstborn child, regardless of gender, would be heir apparent, expected to succeed as Sovereign Prince of Princess. Liechtenstein, a devout Roman Catholic Principality of ~ 44,000, will thus become the latest of European Monarchies to change the line of succession from cognatic (male-preference) to absolute (gender-neutral) primogeniture; with Spain and Monaco the only remaining dynastic monarchies in the continent where male descendants of the Monarch are prioritized in succession line.
Hereditary Prince Alois (58), to whom his father Prince Hans-Adam II (81) entrusted the country's day-to-day affairs back in 2004, delivered his public address to Liechtenstein's officials and people, gathered in a staged valley downhill from Vaduz Castle in the tiny Principality's capital. He first mentioned the importance of "the ability to combine continuity and renewal", before announcing the decision involving the amendment of The House Rules, for which a two-thirds majority of all voting members was required. The changes were launched at the end of last year, the modification of the Princely House Law voted in last Wednesday (12.08.2026). The two changes of this amendment are: the equal participation of female descendants of the Princely House in rights and matters it governs, with male descendants; and the change of The Succession Law from male-preferenced primogeniture to absolute primogeniture. The latter was naturally a breakthrough for the dynasty that in over four centuries of rule has only had male Monarchs.
Members of The Princely Family, including The Sovereign Prince (not standing in the front-line for the first time) and The Hereditary Princess Sophie (eldest daughter of the heir of the Salic Jacobite Line, claiming the British throne, and formerly ruling over Bavaria); watched over as The Hereditary Prince delivered the historic announcement. He later clarified that those changes will affect the generation born after this month; thus Alois & Sophie's only daughter, Marie Caroline (married to Leopoldo Maduro Vollmer last year), will still be ineligible to enter the line of succession. Her eldest brother, Prince Joseph Wenzel (31), who is second in line to the throne but yet unmarried, was not seen present at The National celebrations. The Prince Regent added that those changes aimed that the new heir to the throne and eventual Monarch be well prepared for duties lying ahead, by growing up (& educated) in Liechtenstein and by being "acquainted" with responsibilities over the Country and Princely House "from an early age."
Hereditary Prince Alois, as Deputy of The Sovereign Prince (reigning since 1989) since 15 August 2004, can excercize the powers of head of state, including and veto over Landtag (parliament), and rules over the management of The House and Princely Foundation (a source of personal wealth for The House of Liechtenstein). He and Hereditary Princess Sophie (born a Duchess IN Bavaria) have four children, out of whom only their daughter (& second child) has been married. Both the younger sister of Alois and of Prince Hans-Adam II (his father) are excluded from the line of succession of The Catholic Principality, which adopted female voting rights only in 1984 and still bans abortions. Among the ten European states with dynastic Monarchies, Liechtenstein (2026) becomes the eighth to adopt absolute primogeniture in its line of succession following: Sweden (1979), The Netherlands (1983), Norway (1990), Belgium (1991), Denmark (2009), Luxembourg (2011) & The United Kingdom (2013).
Sources (in English):
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn9nnxrxg4qo
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Succession_to_the_Liechtensteiner_throne#2026_Princely_House_Law
https://fuerstenhaus.li/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Staatsfeiertag-2026_Rede-S.D.-Erbprinz-Alois-final-Englisch.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liechtenstein_National_Day
https://fuerstenhaus.li/en/princely-house/house-law/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_monarchs_of_Liechtenstein
https://royalcentral.co.uk/europe/liechtensteins-royals-make-a-major-change-as-they-announce-women-can-finally-succeed-to-the-countrys-throne-218703/
https://www.msn.com/en-ie/politics/government/liechtenstein-changes-rules-to-allow-women-to-inherit-throne/ar-AA2ab4JT?ocid=BingNewsVerp
