The Franco-Iberian Royals Message Board: Male-preference primogeniture

What I meant was to trace the descent of Maria Teresa in accordance with this order, as opposed to Salicism or semi-Salicism. The fact is that as long as a legitimate (strict) male-line descent survives, there is no difference in the line of succession between the Salic and semi-Salic law. The only difference is that in the latter, when the said line becomes extinct, the nearest female relative succeeds.

It's worlds different from male-preference primogeniture -- applicable until 2013 in the UK, where male heirs took precedence only over their sisters (not all the female dynasts). And the fact is that Spain, too, has historically operated under this law (known as the Castilian law) -- still applicable today. Parliament in 2007 did toy with the idea to making it fully cognatic. However, the present queen (back then Princess of the Asturias) underwent an ultrasound exam, and learned that she was expecting another daughter.

So the Spanish Parliament, like the Danish, dropped the motion -- as a change of law would have made no practical difference in the line of succession. Of course, Denmark did eventually alter its constitution; and Spain might one day do so, too.

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But hasn't the Spanish royal succession been bound by the Castilian law, known as male-preferred primogeniture? Would the line you cited be in accordance with that order?

The semi-Salic law allows a female to succeed only upon the extinction of the dynastic male line. The successor is the female most closely related to the last male -- even though she may be genealogically junior to other females in the house. They would have been passed over in the succession because, at the time, the male line still survived.

According to this scheme, a king who was the last male of his house might die leaving two sons, each of whom is married and with one daughter but no son. The throne would first pass to the elder son, and then upon his death to the younger son. If the younger son died without sons of his own, his daughter would inherit -- since she (and not her cousin) was most closely related to the last male of the house.

But that's not how male-preferred primogeniture works: according to this scheme, the daughters of a prince are behind his sons in the succession -- but ahead of all his younger brothers, as well as all his sisters, and their descendants.

Would Pedro be the heir-general according to this
order?

There are plenty of male-line descendants of Louis XIV if that's what you are asking....?