# Which of the dispossessed royal families has the best chance to regain its throne?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [October 24, 2010, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170 "2010-10-24T06:40:52Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Mississippienne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mississippienne)
#### Post date: [October 24, 2010, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/1 "2010-10-24T06:40:52Z")
Over the last few hundred years, but especially since the two World Wars, a number of ruling houses of Europe were dethroned, exiled, and/or massacred (the Romanovs come to mind). Although most of these former royal families have spent decades in exile, there have been cases where they were reinstated as a constitutional monarchy, as happened in Spain following Franco’s death.
It seems that, frome time to time, some of these nations seem to flirt with the idea of reinstating these former ruling families in the form of constitutional monarchies – there’s the example of France, which following its Revolution, Napoleon’s Empire, the Bourbon restoration and downfall, plus an attempt to restore the Bonapartes, now has god knows how many pretenders to its vacant throne, each representing a different dynasty.
So, in your opinion, which of the current pretenders has the best snowball’s chance in hell of ever getting their ancestral throne back? Let me stress that it doesn’t have to be very likely, just the _likeliest_.
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### Author:  [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)
#### Post date: [October 24, 2010, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/2 "2010-10-24T06:50:49Z")
Whichever one has been around the least amount of time, and has the best reputation for not trying to usurp power or otherwise be bad at the job.
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### Author:  [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)
#### Post date: [October 24, 2010, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/3 "2010-10-24T06:56:48Z")
Maybe Nepal’s monarch? He was just forced out in 2008 and still lives in the country, and at least back when it happened there were some elements that supported him. I do believe at the time the country was very much against him, but any country like Nepal that has a recent history of monarchy and an unstable political system could see public sentiment rapidly shift.
I believe there are very very minor monarchist parties in several European states such as Germany, Italy, Greece, and Portugal (googling a few of them shows most have no representation in the legislatures of those countries and poll sub 1% in elections.)
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### Author:  [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)
#### Post date: [October 24, 2010, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/4 "2010-10-24T11:40:02Z")
Russia is rather unstable, & the murdered Romanoffs were made saints recently.
People have been forgetting the Romanoff sins, with the passage of time.
They must have a living heir or three.
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### Author:  [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)
#### Post date: [October 24, 2010, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/5 "2010-10-24T12:46:08Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#):
>
> Russia is rather unstable, & the murdered Romanoffs were made saints recently.
> People have been forgetting the Romanoff sins, with the passage of time.
> They must have a living heir or three.
Vladimir Kyrillovitch, great grandson of Czar Alexander II, died in 1992. His daughter Maria Vladimirovna is now _Head of the Imperial Family of Russia and Titular Empress and Autocrat of All the Russias_. She’s married to a Hohenzollern; the Heir to the German Reich is one of her cousins. Maria Vladimirovna is also 109th in line to succeed Queen Elizabeth II of the U.K.!
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### Author:  [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)
#### Post date: [October 24, 2010, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/6 "2010-10-24T13:04:54Z")
Oh, that has got to be a _weird_ social circle.
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### Author:  [@Todderbob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Todderbob)
#### Post date: [October 24, 2010, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/7 "2010-10-24T13:13:58Z")
> [@Zsofia](#):
>
> Oh, that has got to be a _weird_ social circle.
All if the royal families in Europe are related.
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### Author:  [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)
#### Post date: [October 24, 2010, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/8 "2010-10-24T13:15:24Z")
I’d love to see Crown prince Leka (Albania) return to power.
His graddaddy (King Zog I) was a cool dude.
Another question: did King Farouk (Egypt) have any sons? He must take the title for the GROSSEST monarch ever!
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### Author:  [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)
#### Post date: [October 24, 2010, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/9 "2010-10-24T15:01:38Z")
> [@ralph124c](#):
>
> Another question: did King Farouk (Egypt) have any sons? He must take the title for the GROSSEST monarch ever!
The Wall Street Journal recently ran a profile of his son, [Ahmed Fouad II](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuad_II_of_Egypt), who lives in Switzerland. He seems to have little interest in pressing his claim.
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### Author:  [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)
#### Post date: [October 24, 2010, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/10 "2010-10-24T16:10:57Z")
The best chance in Europe was in the Balkans, but it seems those countries have gotten their act together. If you see Bosnia break apart you might be able to get some royalty in there.
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### Author:  [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)
#### Post date: [October 24, 2010, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/11 "2010-10-24T16:19:42Z")
> [@septimus](#):
>
> Vladimir Kyrillovitch, great grandson of Czar Alexander II, died in 1992. His daughter Maria Vladimirovna is now _Head of the Imperial Family of Russia and Titular Empress and Autocrat of All the Russias_. She’s married to a Hohenzollern; the Heir to the German Reich is one of her cousins. Maria Vladimirovna is also 109th in line to succeed Queen Elizabeth II of the U.K.!
I was a bit surprised to see pictures of Maria Vladimirovna for sale in Dom Knigi when I was in Saint Petersburg, right next to the pictures of Putin and Medvedev. I’m not sure what that really says for her popularity, though, and I never checked to see how dusty they might be–DK was always too crowded to linger over anything I didn’t really want to buy.
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### Author:  [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)
#### Post date: [October 24, 2010, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/12 "2010-10-24T16:57:57Z")
It would be a hoot to see Russia go back to the czars.
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### Author:  [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)
#### Post date: [October 24, 2010, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/13 "2010-10-24T17:40:20Z")
> [@Todderbob](#):
>
> All if the royal families in Europe are related.
They’re certainly much more closely related to one another than they are to their subjects (current and former). In many ways, they’re a distinct ethnic group of their own, albeit a small one.
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### Author:  [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)
#### Post date: [October 24, 2010, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/14 "2010-10-24T23:13:54Z")
> [@Alessan](#):
>
> They’re certainly much more closely related to one another than they are to their subjects (current and former). In many ways, they’re a distinct ethnic group of their own, albeit a small one.
and inbred …
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### Author:  [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)
#### Post date: [October 25, 2010, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/15 "2010-10-25T03:45:52Z")
> [@ralph124c](#):
>
> Another question: did King Farouk (Egypt) have any sons? He must take the title for the GROSSEST monarch ever!
How so?
I vote for Crown Prince Alexander of Serbia. He seems to be very popular over there, and unlike many monarchs, he’s actually of Serbian descent.
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### Author:  [@Sternvogel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sternvogel)
#### Post date: [October 25, 2010, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/16 "2010-10-25T04:04:19Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#):
>
> How so?
A few excerpts from [this page:](http://english.ruvr.ru/radio_broadcast/2248764/2316276/)
> [@](#):
>
> Psychologically unhinged, he could shed tears seeing a dead bird during a promenade and the very next moment he could grab a cat and smash it smack against the wall.
> [@](#):
>
> Always a glutton, the king would devour huge amounts of meat, fish, and eggs and was a real sucker for carbonated soft drinks. His gluttony for fine cuisine soon made the six-foot-tall former king dangerously obese, weighing nearly 300 pounds (136 kilos).
> [@](#):
>
> A great fan of night clubs and gambling, Farouk would often sit in casinos entertaining himself by spitting on passing waiters and guests and flirting with women. Those of the latter who ignored his attentions could easily wind up in one of his five palaces without their consent. Farouk was particularly partial to married women often blackmailing them to divorce their husbands.
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### Author:  [@chizzuk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chizzuk)
#### Post date: [October 25, 2010, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/17 "2010-10-25T04:33:36Z")
> [@aruvqan](#):
>
> and inbred …
For example, King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia of Spain are third cousins. And Sofia is directly related to Queen Victoria through both parents.
Fortunately, they “let” Crown Prince Felipe marry a commoner, so they’ve got some new alleles now. Though the rumor I heard was that the king approved the match because Felipe threatened to run off if he didn’t. I know there were rows over two previous girlfriends.
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### Author:  [@\_mostly\_Harmless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/_mostly_Harmless)
#### Post date: [October 25, 2010, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/18 "2010-10-25T05:23:17Z")
I hope that none of them do. Down with monarchy!
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### Author:  [@Capitaine\_Zombie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capitaine_Zombie)
#### Post date: [October 25, 2010, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/19 "2010-10-25T10:56:05Z")
> [@Sternvogel](#):
>
> A few excerpts from [this page:](http://english.ruvr.ru/radio_broadcast/2248764/2316276/)
Dangerously obese at 136 kg?
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### Author:  [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)
#### Post date: [October 25, 2010, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-the-dispossessed-royal-families-has-the-best-chance-to-regain-its-throne/558170/20 "2010-10-25T13:54:19Z")
> [@Capitaine\_Zombie](#):
>
> Dangerously obese at 136 kg?
6 foot, 300 lbs won’t get you on _Biggest Loser_, that’s for sure.
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