Types of Inheritance and How to Use Them In Worldbuilding

Succession is an important part of medieval fantasy worlds. It dictates who inherits the throne or lands, and ultimately how power changes hands from person to person and generation to generation.

Here, we’ll look at 8 different types of succession strategies used at various times in history. Each one will go into what it was and, importantly for world building, how it can go wrong. Use these to not only add some variety to your societies, but also to understand the different types of conflicts that might arise in them.

Keep in mind, succession can apply to more than just the king or a high-titled monarch. People like Barons or Counts also planned for who would inherit their titles, land, and wealth!

Agnatic Primogeniture

Eldest Male Heir Inherits. Medieval Period - Particularly in England and France

This is generally the default for most fantasy worlds and breeds two distinct types of conflict. The first is the “heir and the spare” where the eldest son has their path set while the younger ones are forced to find other means to support themselves. This often meant becoming military commanders, taking on administrative positions, or joining religious institutions. It also led to a lot of infighting between heirs. William I’s (The conqueror) sons are a good example of this, as are Henry II's sons. This presented an interesting problem for monarchs: too many sons and you risk creating numerous rival factions, too few and you risk not having an heir.

The second is the need for a monarch to have a son to become heir. Many rulers had this problem, particularly if they had trouble having children or had only girls. A good example of a lack of heir causing issues was when Henry I's son died in the White Ship Disaster in 1120. This directly led to a period of civil war in England called “The Anarchy”

Ultimogeniture

Youngest Son Inherits. The Mongol Empire and parts of medieval England known as Borough-English

This is the opposite of the classic inheritance, with ultimogeniture the youngest son is set to inherit the bulk of their father’s realm. This was popular among more expansionist cultures where the eldest sons were expected to already be commanding armies and carving out their own lands. This also, ideally, levels the playing field a bit as the youngest son, who has less time to establish themselves, has their inheritance defined by default.

It has its own problems, though, as it can lead to a young and inexperienced son inheriting the core of the realm. This can lead to extreme imbalances where the legal ruler is by far the weakest and most inexperienced. This often led to war as the elder siblings try to take by force what they feel belongs to them, while also going up against an opponent who lacks the skills necessary to resit them.

Partible Inheritance

Split Evenly Among Heirs. Ancient Germanic/Celtic Tribes and the Carolingian Empire.

In partible inheritance, the realm is split evenly among the ruler's heirs. This often meant dividing up the realm, with each son now ruling over a piece of the now split empire. In theory, this was meant to cut down on conflict and civil war as well as maintain fairness in rulership over the realm. In practice, the opposite often happened.

A good example of this was Carolingian Europe, where Charlemagne’s grandsons each inherited a third of the empire, which was formalized in the Treaty of Verdun. This ultimately did not stop war from happening, and Middle Francia was quickly absorbed into the other two realms. In many cases where partible inheritance happened, wars broke out as one or more of the ruling sons sought to expand their territory and power.

Agnatic Seniority

The Eldest Male Relative Inherits. Kievan Rus and parts of the Ottoman Empire.

In this type of succession, rulership was passed to the monarch’s eldest living male relative, usually the brother. This helped ensure that the next ruler would likely be an older and more experienced statesman, and attempted to avoid situations where a child would inherit the throne. The next generation, the monarch’s sons, would only become eligible to inherit once the previous generation had died.

While this did cut down on the issues of young kings, it had its own problems. Since the king’s relatives were directly in line for succession, it often led to a culture of paranoia and betrayal. On one hand, you had experienced and powerful men vying for the throne and likely having vast resources to fall back on. On the other, you had the next generation forced to wait for their inheritance, which was often enough of a motivation to take matters into their own hands. The death of Grand Prince Yaroslav and his rota system is a good example of how this could lead to decades of bloodshed.

Elective Monarchy

A Vote is Held to Determine the Next Ruler. Holy Roman Empire (Prince-Electors).

In this system, the next monarch is voted on by a group of people given the privilege to do so. These electors were usually members of the upper class or nobility, and might include dukes, powerful nobles, religious leaders, or others who held prominent positions in society.

While it may seem ‘fair’ to elect a monarch in such a way, it came with its own host of problems. Many of the powerful men who were the electors had their personal reasons for wanting a certain candidate on the throne, and this inevitably was at odds with others. This led to political maneuvering and even war between rival groups. The election of 1314 in the Holy Roman Empire saw exactly this when two rival groups elected different emperors, and subsequently went to war over it.

Another issue that could arise in elective structures was the “weak king”. This is what happens when the electors purposely vote into power an ineffective monarch in order to preserve their own power. This preserved power for the nobles in the short term, but left the kingdom as a whole vulnerable to stronger neighbors.

Porphyrogeniture (Born in the Purple)

The Firstborn Son After Their Father Came to Power. The Byzantine Empire.

This is the idea that the first in line for succession is the firstborn male heir born after their father became the reigning monarch. This meant that a child born before their father came to power, even if they were older, would be passed over for their younger sibling. In Byzantine tradition, it also required that the heir be born in a specific, purple-lined imperial chamber.

Part of the history behind this is, at the time, purple dye (Tyrian purple) was expensive and difficult to obtain. This meant it was associated with royalty, and there were often laws in place that prevented the common folk from wearing it.

This could lead to intense family drama as the older and more experienced son is denied an inheritance simply due to the time they were born. Of course, that could lead to conflict that risked severely damaging the family. It was also a claim used by, perhaps dubiously, Henry I in order to justify taking the throne over his older brother Robert Curthose.

Matrilineal Succession / Avunculate

The King’s Sister’s Son Inherits. Medieval Ghana, parts of India.

This is an inheritance structure where the king’s sister’s son would be first in line for inheritance, passing over the king’s own children. The logic is that it is much easier to prove maternal relations than paternal, thereby ensuring rulership remains in the family.

Of course, it’s easy to see that this could cause familial issues as the king’s own children are denied inheritance. This could lead to war, but also other, more subtle problems for the kingdom. The king might, for example, spend their reign siphoning off money and resources to give to his children. This would then leave the incoming monarch a vastly reduced treasury and a much weaker position to rule from.

Tanistry

A Vote For the Next Ruler While The Current One Is Still Alive. Gaelic Ireland and the early Kingdom of Scotland.

Tanistry is similar to an elective monarchy, but with the crucial difference that the vote takes place while the current ruler is still alive. This ensures that there is no power vacuum after the current ruler’s death; there is an adult waiting in the wings ready to take up the mantle. It also avoided any sort of child king, which came with its own host of problems.

Along with the issues present in the elective monarchy, this also presented the problem that it created two distinct bases of power. The ruler-to-be immediately became the second most powerful person in the kingdom, and many were often not content with this. This is especially the case when the current ruler lived far longer than expected, and the next in line became impatient.

Broad Themes

Lastly, I just wanted to give you a quick list of broad themes to keep in mind when writing stories or building worlds that deal with succession and inheritance. These won’t apply in every situation, but they are a nice general overview and much easier to skim through than remembering the specifics of each one above.

• Powerful individuals will scheme to get the best outcome for themselves and their families.
• Child rulers are generally problematic, and many societies wish to avoid them where possible.
• Systems which ignore the biological children of the current ruler often lead to that ruler siphoning off resources to their children during that reign.
• Historically, only men have been rulers, with some exceptions.
• Differences in succession between areas can cause problems when marriage is involved. This is what happened when Henry II married Eleanor of Aquitaine.