Submitted via IRC for TheMightyBuzzard
Japan has passed legislation paving the way for 83-year-old Emperor Akihito to abdicate. The law sets the stage for the first abdication of a reigning monarch in two centuries, in a royal family which has a history stretching back 2,600 years.
[...] According to the 1947 Imperial House Law that regulates the line of imperial succession, the emperor cannot step down. The last Japanese monarch to abdicate was Emperor Kokaku, who left in favor of his son back in 1817.
Another issue the Japanese government will discuss is the continuity of the heirs, as women are not allowed to inherit the throne. Additionally, a woman from the imperial family who marries outside the family is then excluded. Akihito has another son, Prince Akishino, and a grandson, Hisahito, aged just 10. All the other members of the royal family are female.
Source: RT
(Score: 2) by Nobuddy on Monday June 12 2017, @05:44PM (1 child)
The Queen can specify an Heir. I believe she made it clear a few years back that Charles was not it. IIRC she said William would be the one.
(Score: 2) by dry on Tuesday June 13 2017, @05:24AM
No, the succession is controlled by the Parliaments of the Commonwealth, they all have to agree to a change in succession such as the recent changes that allowed the oldest child to succeed whether male or female.
Charles can quit as soon as he is declared King but as long as he is alive, he is next in line.