All in the Family

For centuries, members of royal families across Europe have arranged marriages amongst themselves to increase their power, forge political alliances, and maintain the “prestige” of their bloodlines. Nowadays, marrying a family member is largely taboo for obvious reasons, but the remnants of this centuries-old practice are still present in the British Royal Family.

Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, Prince Philip, were actually related! The two royals were third cousins, which we guess isn’t as bad as being first cousins. Elizabeth and Philip shared Queen Victoria as a great-great-grandmother. The Crown has, thankfully, lightened up its marriage requirements so that royals can marry commoners. Even so, William and Kate are still very distant cousins, as are Harry and Meghan!