Charles III and Felipe VI have a linked history with roots in centuries past. The pair share several bloodlines including ties to two of the most famous matchmakers in royal history. Here are the different ways Charles III and Felipe VI get to call each other cousins.
The Victorian Side
The queen who dominated the 19th century is an ancestor of both the British and Spanish monarchs several times over. Felipe VI and Charles III are both descendants of Queen Victoria through both their fathers and their mothers, making them distant cousins several times over.
Charles III’s mother, Elizabeth II, was a descendant of Victoria’s eldest son and successor, Edward VII. King Charles III is the great, great, great grandson of Queen Victoria through this maternal line.
King Charles is also descended from Victoria through his father. Prince Philip’s mother, Princess Alice, was the granddaughter of Victoria’s third child and second daughter, the Alice she took her name from. That means that, via his paternal ancestry, King Charles is, again, a great, great, great grandson of Queen Victoria.
Felipe VI’s father, King Juan Carlos I, was a descendant of Victoria’s youngest child, Princess Beatrice. Her daughter, Victoria Eugenie, became Queen Ena of Spain and among her grandchildren was Juan Carlos. That means that, through his dad, King Felipe VI is a great, great, great grandson of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.
Felipe VI is also descended from Queen Victoria several times through his mother, Queen Sofia. Her father, King Paul of Greece, was the son of Sophie of Prussia whose mother, Victoria, was the firstborn child of Queen Victoria. That means, through this part of his mother’s family tree, King Felipe is, once more, a great, great, great grandson of Queen Victoria.
However, Queen Sofia’s mother, Queen Frederika, was also descended from Queen Victoria. Frederika’s great grandmother was, again, Victoria, eldest child of Queen Victoria. That means Felipe VI is also a five times great grandson of Victoria and Albert.
As far as royal relations go, it means that King Felipe VI and King Charles are fourth cousins through Victoria and Albert. However, we’re not done yet.
The Danish Dimension
Victoria earned herself the nickname of ‘Grandmother of Europe’ thanks to the matchmaking that saw her descendants marry into many of the continent’s ruling houses. But another 19th-century royal who never expected to reign was giving her a run for her money when it came to sharing genes. King Christian IX of Denmark was no slouch when it came to arranging royal weddings and, as a result, we find him in the family trees of both Charles III and Felipe VI.
He is a great, great, great grandfather of King Charles through his daughter, Alexandra. She married Queen Victoria’s eldest son, the future Edward VII, in March 1863, just months before her father became King of Denmark. Their second son, King George V, was the great-grandfather of Charles III.
Felipe’s link to Christian is again twofold and once more comes via his mother, Sofia. Christian’ IXs youngest daughter, Princess Thyra, was the paternal grandmother of Sofia’s mother, Frederica. That makes the Danish king a great, great, great grandfather of King Felipe VI through this line.
However, perhaps the most famous link between the two newest kings in Europe is through the Greek royal family and that is also thanks to Christian IX.
Christian IX’s second son, George, became King of Greece and had five sons. The eldest of them, Constantine, succeeded him and Constantine’s son later became King Paul. Paul’s daughter, Sofia, is Felipe’s mother, making King George of Greece his great, great grandfather.
George I’s fourth son, Andrew, had just one son who he named Philip. That prince became the father of King Charles III. So King George I of Greece is the great grandfather of King Charles III.
It means that Felipe VI and Charles III are cousins many times over through different lines. The two men have enjoyed a long friendship, too, and now rule two of the most famous constitutional monarchies in the world.
Those are the stand-out royal links between these two monarchs although the complicated bloodlines of Europe’s ruling houses mean connections between all of today’s regal families are multiple. If you want to find out more about how royal houses across Europe are linked to one another, Royal Central’s Assistant Editor Moniek Bloks has written a book about Carolina of Orange-Nassau, ancestress of many modern kings, queens, princes and princesses which is available worldwide!