British history provides several opportunities for alternative claimants to the English and later British Crown to arise, and historical scholars have on occasion traced to present times the heirs of those alternative claims.
Throughout this article, the names of "would-have-been" monarchs are in italics.
Abdication of Richard II
Richard II abdicated in favour of Henry Bolingbroke on 29 September 1399. However, Henry was not next in the line to the throne; the heir presumptive was Edmund Mortimer, Earl of March, who descended from Edward III's second surviving son, Lionel of Antwerp, whereas Henry's father, John of Gaunt, was Edward's third surviving son.
Had Edmund inherited instead, the alternative succession would have been short-lived, for it re-united with the historical crown when Edward IV was declared king in 1461.
Edward III of England
Edward, the Black Prince, first son of Edward III
Richard II of England, second son of Edward, the Black Prince
Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence, third son (second son to survive infancy) of Edward III Philippa Plantagenet, 5th Countess of Ulster, only child of Lionel Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March, first son of Philippa Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March, first son of Roger, died without issue Anne de Mortimer, first daughter of Roger, succeeded her childless brother Edmund Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, only son of Anne Edward IV of England, first son of Richard
Descendants of George Plantagenet, Duke of Clarence
This line's claim to the Crown is based upon the argument that Edward IV was not the son of Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, and thus had no legitimate claim to the Crown. Therefore, when Richard was killed at the Battle of Wakefield, his claim passed first to his eldest legitimate son, Edmund, Earl of Rutland, who was executed shortly after the battle, and then to George, Duke of Clarence. Another point is that Henry VI passed a law in 1470 that should both he and his son Edward of Westminster die without further legitimate male issue, the crown was to pass to Clarence, as Henry had placed an attainder upon Edward IV. When Henry VI and Edward both died in 1471, Clarence became the legal heir of the House of Lancaster.
The current descendant of this line is Simon Abney-Hastings, 15th Earl of Loudoun. The line of succession is as follows:
George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence, third son (second "legitimate" son) of Richard, 3rd Duke of York Edward Plantagenet, 17th Earl of Warwick, first son of George Margaret Pole, 8th Countess of Salisbury, daughter of George, succeeded her childless brother Edward Henry Pole, 1st Baron Montagu, first son of Margaret Henry Pole, second son of Henry, his elder brother Thomas died in childhood Catherine Hastings, first daughter, succeeded her childless brother Henry Henry Hastings, 3rd Earl of Huntingdon, first son of Catherine George Hastings, 4th Earl of Huntingdon, second son of Catherine, succeeded his childless brother Henry Francis Hastings, first son of George Henry Hastings, 5th Earl of Huntingdon, only son of Francis Ferdinando Hastings, 6th Earl of Huntingdon, first son of Henry Theophilus Hastings, 7th Earl of Huntingdon, only son of Ferdinando George Hastings, 8th Earl of Huntingdon, second son of Theophilus, his elder brother died in childhood Theophilus Hastings, 9th Earl of Huntingdon, third son of Theophilus, his elder brother George had no legitimate children Francis Hastings, 10th Earl of Huntingdon, first son of Theophilus, 9th Earl Elizabeth Rawdon, 16th Baroness Botreaux, daughter of Theophilus, her brother Francis had no legitimate children Francis Rawdon-Hastings, 1st Marquess of Hastings, first son of Elizabeth George Rawdon-Hastings, 2nd Marquess of Hastings, eldest legitimate son of Francis Paulyn Rawdon-Hastings, 3rd Marquess of Hastings, first son of George Henry Rawdon-Hastings, 4th Marquess of Hastings, second son of George, his brother Paulyn died in childhood Edith Rawdon-Hastings, 10th Countess of Loudoun, first daughter of George, succeeded her childless brother Henry Charles Rawdon-Hastings, 11th Earl of Loudoun, first son of Edith, died without issue Paulyn Abney-Hastings, second son of Edith, succeeded his childless brother Charles Edith Maud Abney-Hastings, 12th Countess of Loudoun, first daughter of Paulyn Ian Huddleston Abney-Hastings, Lord Mauchline, only son of Edith, died in World War II without issue Barbara Abney-Hastings, 13th Countess of Loudoun, first daughter of Edith, succeeded her childless brother Ian Michael Abney-Hastings, 14th Earl of Loudoun, eldest son of Barbara Simon Abney-Hastings, 15th Earl of Loudoun, eldest son of Michael