English Act of Succession
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The English Act of Succession (citation 25 Henry VIII. c. 22) was first passed on March 23, 1534, whereby Parliament decided the heir to the Crown of England from the children of King Henry VIII. The Act made Princess Elizabeth, daughter of Anne Boleyn, the true successor to the Crown by declaring Princess Mary, daughter of Catherine of Aragon, a bastard. The Act also required all subjects, if commanded, to swear an oath to recognize this Act as well as the King's supremacy. Any one who refused to take an oath was subject to a charge of treason.
This Act was overridden in 1536, when Elizabeth was declared illegitimate and was stripped of the title of princess following the conviction and execution of her mother. In 1537, Edward was born to Jane Seymour, Henry's third wife. Since Edward was male and both of his half-sisters had been removed from the line of succession, he became the heir apparent.
Henry's sixth and last wife, Catherine Parr, helped to reconcile the king with his two daughters. With the Act of Succession of 1544, Mary and Elizabeth were reinserted into the line of succession behind their half-brother Edward, Edward's children (if any) and Catherine Parr's children (if any). Under the law, however, both Mary and Elizabeth were still illegitimate.
The currently applicable law is the Act of Settlement 1701. It specifies conditions to be met in order to succeed, and specifies that it is for Parliament to determine who should succeed to the throne, not the monarch.
