Royals have been marrying their cousins since time immemorial, traditionally as a means of strengthening political alliances. What might be surprising though is that members of the royal family have continued to marry their cousins, right up to the present day!
In Europe, the practice was most prevalent from the medieval era until the outbreak of World War I, but evidence of intermarriage between royal dynasties in other parts of the world can be found as far back as the Late Bronze Age.
Queen Victoria married Prince Albert, her first cousin.
Queen Victoria married her first cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, in 1840, according to National Geographic. The pair were first cousins who were in a loving relationship wherein they had nine children, according to the outlet.
Inbreeding May Have Been a Practice of Old Royal Families but That Isn't the Case Today. Is the Royal Family inbred? It's a known practice of older royal families, but inbreeding isn't a practice for the British royal family anymore.
Cousin marriage has often been practiced to keep cultural values intact, preserve family wealth, maintain geographic proximity, keep tradition, strengthen family ties, and maintain family structure or a closer relationship between the wife and her in-laws.
The short answer to the headline question is yes, you can marry your second cousin in Australia. Some people may be surprised that you can marry your first cousin! In fact, it may shock many people that in Australia there are quite a number of your relatives whom it is legal for you to marry.
First cousins have an inbreeding coefficient of 0.0625. Anything at or above 0.0156, the coefficient for second cousins, is considered consanguineous; that includes relationships between people and their nephews and nieces.
Diana's royal roots
In addition, this royal connection means that Diana and her husband Prince Charles were very distant cousins, via several lines. In particular, they each descend from a daughter of Henry VII: Margaret, who married James IV of Scotland, and Mary, who married Charles Brandon.
King Charles II of Spain was the bloodline's final descendant and “one of the most afflicted.” The study says his distinct feature and inability to produce an heir show how inbreeding and incest impact genetics.
It comes as little shock to some, as millions of people do indeed have ties to the Royal Family in some way. According to the U.K.'s Channel 4, Patrick explained Kate's familial connection to William as being "fourteenth cousins once removed through his mother and fifteenth cousins through his father."
Scientists have identified Akhenaten, the “heretic” king who introduced monotheism to ancient Egypt, as Tutankhamun's father. Akhenaten first married Nefertiti, who was renowned for her great beauty, but had no sons so he then married his sister in an effort to have a son.
Despite growing up in different countries, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are distant cousins. Below are other royal family members who share common ancestors with their spouses. According to Harper's Bazaar, Meghan is apparently a descendant of King Edward III through her father, Thomas Markle.
Camilla's son Tom was born in 1974. King Charles is both his godfather and his step-father.
“The Habsburg dynasty was one of the most influential in Europe, but became renowned for inbreeding, which was its eventual downfall. We show for the first time that there is a clear positive relationship between inbreeding and appearance of the Habsburg jaw.”
Studies have confirmed an increase in several genetic disorders due to inbreeding such as blindness, hearing loss, neonatal diabetes, limb malformations, disorders of sex development, schizophrenia and several others.
1. The Royal Family of Saudi Arabia. The royal family of Saudi Arabia is the House of Saud and is undoubtedly the wealthiest royal family in the world. The royal family has been ruling the country since 1744 and is worth $1.4 trillion.
Charles II of Spain was impotent and could not father children. It was part of his family legacy of inbreeding. He probably suffered from two genetic disorders. First, there was combined pituitary hormone deficiency, a disorder that made him short, impotent, infertile, weak, and have a host of digestive problems.
Having had the same great-great-grandmother, Queen Victoria, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip were third cousins.
Camilla Is Related to Both Diana and King Charles
Strangely, they are also both related to the late Princess Diana through shared ancestry dating back to King Charles II. Also note that Camilla's great-grandmother was a mistress to King Edward VII, the great-great-grandfather of King Charles.
There is no evidence of any connection between Camilla Parker Bowles and Princess Diana's mother, Frances Shand Kydd. Following the completion of her task, her relationship with Johnnie Spencer further deteriorated, with reports of furious rows.
If Simon Charles Dorante-Day was a wild story about the Royal Family, wait until you hear about the story about King Charles III and Princess Diana's illegitimate daughter. Her name is supposed too be Sarah and she was born in 1981, before Prince William's birth.
In the United States, second cousins are legally allowed to marry in every state. However, marriage between first cousins is legal in only about half of the American states. All in all, marrying your cousin or half-sibling will largely depend on the laws where you live and personal and/or cultural beliefs.
Having children with your eighth, sixth, or even a fifth cousin, is not inbreeding, whereas first-cousin parenting is inbreeding to such a degree that there are laws dealing with it.
In the western world, marriage between first cousins is labeled incest or inbreeding, and in the United States the practice is banned or restricted in 31 states. But a new essay argues that such laws are based on an outdated notion of the genetic risks involved in cousins marrying and reproducing.