History Main / AChildShallLeadThem

** Prince Marth of Altea, TheHero from the ''VideoGame/FireEmblemShadowDragonAndTheBladeOfLight'', is merely 14 when he is exiled from his country, 16 when he fights in the first war, and by the end of ''VideoGame/FireEmblemMysteryOfTheEmblem,'' he [[spoiler:becomes the king of Archanea as well.]]
** One of the rare ''villainous'' examples is Price Julius from ''VideoGame/FireEmblemGenealogyOfTheHolyWar'', who at the tender age of 15/16 is pretty much the one holding the power instead of [[spoiler: his father, Emperor Arvis]]. He also directs the horrible [[spoiler: child hunts]] and is the DragonInChief to [[BigBad Manfroy]]. [[spoiler: And then we have a straighter example in his half-brother and rival Seliph, who at the end of the game becomes a benevolent Emperor at the age of 17/18 - with the help of his somewhat younger girlfriend/wife (if he's paired up) and Julius's more benevolent twin sister, Princess Julia.]]
** There's Leif, who at age 15 is the leader of LaResistance in the interquel ''Videogame/FireEmblemThracia776'', and then joins Seliph's own group in the second half of ''Genealogy''. If he makes it to the end, he becomes the King of Lester ([[spoiler: and later, of the New Kingdom of Thracia which includes Thracia ''and'' Lester]]) and rules peacefully alongside his older sister Altena (who is just 20) and his also-around-16 girlfriend/wife ([[spoiler: his childhood friend Nanna]]).

* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'': Subverted in the season 8 finale. When Twilight and her friends need to travel far away for an emergency, Cozy Glow, Twilight's young assistant, promises to keep the school together without her. [[RealityEnsues Twilight leaves Starlight Glimmer, an adult, in charge instead]]. Despite Cozy being a HypercompetentSidekick, she's still just a child, and no adult would leave her in charge if there were any other choice. [[spoiler:Except the whole thing was a trick by Cozy to get rid of Twilight and take over the school. Once she gets rid of Starlight, she forges a note putting her in charge; while most of the students (who Cozy has been [[FalseFriend cultivating fake friendships with]]) find this perfectly logical, the Young Six point out how weird it is. And when Chancellor Neighsay shows up, who has always had a problem with Twilight, he takes over the school since clearly any adult who would leave a child in charge should never be in charge themselves. Cozy carefully manipulates the students into rioting against him, once again leaving her in charge]].

** Gaara was elected as Kazekage of his village at some point during the time skip and by Part II, he is still 15 years old. [[RealityEnsues In fact]], he is criticized (and even ridiculed) by some of the other kages for his age, inexperience, and idealism. It's even mentioned that because of this, other leaders may refuse to take him seriously. Though in this case, Gaara is currently proving himself WiseBeyondTheirYears as well as giving the other kages [[ArmorPiercingQuestion an armor-busting inquiry]] and he's getting more respect now.

* In The Dragon Prince, young Aanya became queen of Duren after the deaths of her mothers.

* [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_II_of_Hungary II. Lajos of Hungary/Ludvík II of Bohemia]] was formally declared co-ruler by his father II. Ulászló[=/=]Vladislav II when he was not quite two, and said father died when he was ten. Youthful enthusiasm was probably not the ''only'' reason for the political[[note]](protip: When the ambassador from a considerably more powerful empire shows up to collect fairly longstanding tribute, make sure you have secured military backup '''before''' sending the guy's severed head back to his master)[[/note]], administrative, and tactical blunders that led up to the rout at [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Moh%C3%A1cs Mohács]] where he died at age twenty, but it is unlkely to have helped.

* In ''Literature/RedoulnRising'' Riley Bank and his fellow Redoulnite Leaders of the new generation rule over the kingdom of planet Redouln.

* ''Fanfic/SonOfTheSannin'': Both [[spoiler:Ino and Hinata]] lost their fathers when they were 8 and have replaced them as the official heads of their respective clans by the time they turned 16 (the latter's mother acted as the leader in the interim and continued in an advisory capacity afterwards).

* ''Franchise/StarWars'': Naboo Queens, as shown in ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'', Amidala, who was aged fourteen (and may have been even younger when first elected). In ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'', she mentions that she was ''not'' the youngest Queen in Naboo's history, showing that this is an enforced trope.

* ''ComicBook/WonderWoman1942'': In two of the ComicBook/WonderGirl imaginary tales Diana meets young magical princesses who are the rulers of their own magical lands due to their queen mothers being missing.

* Franchise/StarWars: Naboo Queens, as shown in ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'', Amidala, who was aged fourteen (and may have been even younger when first elected). In ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'', she mentions that she was ''not'' the youngest Queen in Naboo's history, showing that this is an enforced trope.

* Franchise/StarWars: Naboo Queens:
** ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'': Amidala, who was aged fourteen (and may have been even younger when first elected). In ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'', she mentions that she was ''not'' the youngest Queen in Naboo's history, showing that this is an enforced trope.

** ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'': Amidala, who was aged fourteen (and may have been even younger when first elected).
** ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'', Padmé, who is about fourteen and she also mentions that she was ''not'' the youngest Queen in Naboo's history, showing that this is an enforced trope.

* ''Literature/TheBeastPlayer'': Halumiya ascended to the throne at only five after the deaths of her mother and grandmother.

* When Luxa is introduced in ''Literature/TheUnderlandChronicles'', she's eleven, and the Queen of Regalia.

* Laharl of ''VideoGame/DisgaeaHourOfDarkness''. [[YoungerThanTheyLook He's only 1313 years old.]] Quite young by demon standards.

** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyCrystalChroniclesMyLifeAsAKing'', you play as a 10-year-old king who took the throne after his father's disappearance.
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII'' has Larsa Solidor, who was picked to be the next emperor by his dying father because his older brother Vayne was ObviouslyEvil. Once both his brother and father realize that the {{Evil Chancellor}}s would try to manipulate him, they decide to have Vayne murder dear old dad and frame the council in order to protect him. Which causes Larsa to not become the emperor until the very end of the game.

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics'' had Princess Ovelia and Prince Orinas, each set up with a regent and sent to lead troops. Ovelia was not quite 18 at the time while Orinas was 2 years old. Though the game kept an active calendar, and with a little [[LevelGrinding grinding,]] you could age the boy prince into his teens, twenties, or even sixties, thus destroying the story.

* Cardith Lorda from the ''VideoGame/{{Civilization}} IV'' mod VideoGame/FallFromHeaven II.

* Lord Kalrathia from ''VideoGame/DungeonSiegeII'' is a WiseBeyondTheirYears ruler of the town that bears his name, despite being in his early teens. [[spoiler: At least until he is poisoned by one of his advisors who sympathizes with Valdis.]]
* Happens often enough in ''VideoGame/CrusaderKings'' as rulers often die in battle or [[DecadentCourt from a dagger in the back.]] In the first game, this could be catastrophic, as children haven't developed their stats yet. In the second game, a regent rules until they are sixteen and become adults.
** Specifically, The Old God DLC added an event where, if the Shia Caliphate does not exist, a large adventurer-type host might spawn and rebel against a random Sunni ruler. The host is led by a very young (usually between 3 and 6 years old) Sayyid who claims to be the Shi'ite Caliph, now emerging after years of hiding.
* ''VideoGame/DiabloIII'' has Hakan II, emperor of Caldeum. He was found as an infant and declared by the leaders of the local religion to be the reincarnation of his predecessor. He is well-spoken for his age and seems to have at least some idea of his duty, despite spending his entire life in a palace. [[spoiler: In fact, he's the demon lord Belial in disguise. It's unclear whether a living child ever really existed]].
* In ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'' series' backstory, Reman Cyrodiil, the [[FounderOfTheKingdom founder]] of the Second Cyrodiilic Empire, was no older than 13 when coronated. According to the in-game book ''Remanada'', he was still an ''infant''. This proved to be well-justified, as Reman was a ChildProdigy who, along with his status as TheChosenOne (having been born possessing the [[OnlyTheChosenMayWield Amulet of Kings]]), quickly brought both halves of Cyrodiil back together (Colovia and Nibenay) and then the other kingdoms of Men, High Rock and Skyrim.
* This is the core plot of ''VideoGame/NiNoKuniIIRevenantKingdom.'' The hero, Evan, is a young boy about to ascend to the throne of the kingdom of Ding Dong Dell when there's a coup and he's forced to flee. Rather than try to reclaim his kingdom, he instead decides [[StartMyOwn to found a new kingdom]] with the aim of bringing the major nations of the world into alliance.
* In ''VisualNovel/MarcoAndTheGalaxyDragon'', the mayor of Gold Cord is a young girl. She means well, but she's not terribly good at her job.
* Lord Vitiate in ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' became the Sith leader at just 12 years old after starting his evil ways at just age 6.
* ''VideoGame/HorizonZeroDawn'': The Mad Sun-King Jiran had three sons who could inherit his throne. Jiran killed his eldest Kadaman for speaking out against him, and then his second son Avad raised a rebellion and killed Jiran. But due to DivineRightOfKings, killing the Sun-King tainted Avad in the eyes of many of his people, so they decided to follow Jiran's youngest son, Itamen, instead. They became the Shadow Carja. The idea was that Itamen was a pure vessel, ready to be filled with the Sun's will. Unfortunately, the priests quickly turned Itamen into a PuppetKing. [[spoiler:When Aloy rescues Itamen and brings him to Avad, it's pointed out that the Shadow Carja have lost what little legitimacy they had, and will be re-absorbed into the Sundom soon. Unfortunately, until that happens, they're still dangerous, and they remain the primary antagonists for the rest of the game]].

* ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' had Anduin Wrynn lead Stormwind while his father was missing in action. He was assisted by [[EvilChancellor Lady Katrana]] [[MeaningfulName Prestor]] and [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Bolvar Fordragon]]. While he was indeed the offical ruler everyone knew that he was more or less blatantly controlled by his advisors... And Bolvar usually deferred to Lady Katrana[[spoiler: until it turns out that she is Onyxia in disguise and has charmed him (the magical way) to agree always with her opinion]]. It's a classic-era storyline

* Prince Roan from ''VideoGame/GrandiaII''. Who spends most of his time as a main character in the hero's party and who continues to fight with them even after circumstances have forced him to take the throne.
* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyCrystalChroniclesMyLifeAsAKing'', you play as a 10-year-old king who took the throne after his father's disappearance.
* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII'' has Larsa Solidor, who was picked to be the next emperor by his dying father because his older brother Vayne was ObviouslyEvil. Once both his brother and father realize that the {{Evil Chancellor}}s would try to manipulate him, they decide to have Vayne murder dear old dad and frame the council in order to protect him. Which causes Larsa to not become the emperor until the very end of the game.
* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII'', Balamb Garden trains students from the age of 5 to become mercenaries, with several students taking on positions of leadership by the time they reach their late teens. The results of this practice are VERY mixed. It eventually turns out that the reason for this practice is because [[spoiler: Edea Kramer knows that Squall will, in his teens, defeat an incredibly dangerous Sorceress from the future, so they ''have'' to train these kids into leadership positions at a young age to keep the time loop stable.]]
* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'' has Princess Garnet, who turned 16 at the start of the game and by the end, [[spoiler:she is ruling her kingdom after the death of her mother. She seems to handle the job quite competently, as it's implied she was able to rebuild her destroyed Alexandria in the span of only a few years.]]
* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics'' had Princess Ovelia and Prince Orinas, each set up with a regent and sent to lead troops. Ovelia was not quite 18 at the time while Orinas was 2 years old. Though the game kept an active calendar, and with a little [[LevelGrinding grinding,]] you could age the boy prince into his teens, twenties, or even sixties, thus destroying the story.
* [[spoiler:Lymsleia]] is installed as a puppet ruler in ''VideoGame/SuikodenV''. Unfortunately, even though the bad guys keep her aide hostage as leverage, they don't count on her actually ''exerting'' her power as Queen.

* Mercedes from ''VideoGame/OdinSphere'' takes up the throne after her mother, the fairy queen, dies from battle. She is quite overwhelmed by her responsibilities early on, but in time grows to be an extremely capable ruler.
* ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' had Anduin Wrynn lead Stormwind while his father was missing in action. He was assisted by [[EvilChancellor Lady Katrana]] [[MeaningfulName Prestor]] and [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Bolvar Fordragon]]. While he was indeed the offical ruler everyone knew that he was more or less blatantly controlled by his advisors... And Bolvar usually deferred to Lady Katrana[[spoiler: until it turns out that she is Onyxia in disguise and has charmed him (the magical way) to agree always with her opinion]]. It's a classic-era storyline
* Deconstructed in ''Videogame/LostTechnology''. Agnes, the Empress of the Reinald Empire, is only fourteen years old at the start of the story. As a result of her age, she reigns as a puppet to her ministers. Oddly, even though all of her administration is run by her prime minister, she can make a rather effective battlefield commander.
* In ''[[VideoGame/MightAndMagic Might & Magic VI]]'', Prince Nicolai, who seems to be only ten years old or so at the start of the game, is the monarch of Enroth, technically, while King Roland is missing. (His advisor, Regent Wilbur Humphrey rules in all but name; Nicolai feels he's in a GildedCage where he is and convinces the PlayerParty to "kidnap" him to let him get out for a while, a major part of the plot.)
* In the first part of ''VideoGame/VirtualVillagers'', the birth of the Golden Child signals a new era for the villagers, as he guides them to a new area on the island (continuing on the next game).

** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'', Makeela Riju became the Chief of the [[OneGenderRace Gerudo]] tribe after the untimely death of her mother. While her exact age is never specified, the fact that she is still a child is evidenced by comments by minor Gerudo characters, her being noticeably shorter than Link despite all adult Gerudo being at least a head or two taller than him, and by the fact that she [[GirlsLoveStuffedAnimals still plays with stuffed Sand Seals]] in her free time.

* Cardith Lorda from the ''VideoGame/{{Civilization}} IV'' mod VideoGame/FallFromHeaven II.

* In ''VideoGame/MedievalTotalWar'' and ''VideoGame/MedievalIITotalWar'', it is entirely possible, through extremely nasty bad luck, to end up with a fourteen-year-old king/sultan. This usually only happens if all other eligible faction heirs get killed and the king kicks the bucket, leaving only a young, untested son as the last available option. Alternately, the king could be batty and simply designate the boy as his heir over more eligible options because he's completely nuts. If the king is ''really'' nutty, the heir won't be a blood relation but a captain who was adopted as a son after he killed a single-unit company of brigands.
* In ''Videogame/{{Drawn}}: Dark Flight'', your ultimate goal is to drive out the shadows over the kingdom so that the child Iris can take her place as rightful ruler.
* Adulthood in ''VideoGame/DwarfFortress'' starts at twelve. Since children don't work, they tend to spend a lot of time socializing and making friends. Twelve-year-olds getting elected mayor (determined by friends and social skills) are not uncommon.
** MemeticBadass Cacame Awemedinade apparently became King of the Dwarves at the age of sixteen. Despite being an [[OurElvesAreDifferent elf]].

* In ''VideoGame/UnderTale'' this is implied with the Fallen Child character you play as well as the king's own [[spoiler: adopted]] child [[spoiler: Chara.]] [[spoiler:Asgore asks Frisk to be their ambassador to help human and monster relationships. He may have also planned to do the same with Chara based on what he said on their death bed, "You are the future of humans and monsters..."]]

* In ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2'', Emperor Niall of Mor Ardain is just a kid but is still considered a ReasonableAuthorityFigure whose good leadership and even temper are considered to be primary factors in war with Uraya being averted for so long. He does at least get a lot of guidance from his Blade Aegaeon, his older sister Mòrag, and Mòrag's Blade Brighid. He admits a few times that he feels overwhelmed, though, not least because Mòrag would have been Empress [[HeirClubForMen if he hadn't been born]].
* In ''VisualNovel/LongLiveTheQueen'', the age of majority is fifteen, and player character Elodie is abruptly thrust into ruling at the age of fourteen when her mother dies at the beginning of the game. While her father is nominally acting as her regent until she is of age, she is given almost complete freedom to make whatever decisions she wants, and most of the other characters in the game treat her as if she is already queen.
** Also present in a friend of Elodie's named Gwenelle, who reaches her fifteenth birthday in the second half of the game and inherits her deceased biological father's title. At her birthday party she gets in a fight with her mother, who was previously acting as her regent and wants to remain Gwenelle's adviser, and it's not made completely clear who is in the right; Gwenelle is still very young and has only just come into her title, but in this society she is now a legal adult and is expected to be ruling on her own.
** Elodie's cousin Charlotte is around Elodie's age and in line for the thrown after her father Laurent, Elodie's uncle. [[spoiler: It turns out that her mother Lucille is trying to invoke this by bumping off Elodie and Laurent, thus leaving Charlotte to inherit. It's set up in one ending wherein Elodie absconds from the throne to go be an evil minion, if Laurent was killed before this point, but the nobility rebels against the idea of another underage princess, and civil war breaks out.]]

* The unattainable character Himiko from ''VideoGame/AkaSeka'' is a young girl, but is the queen of the Inishie country.

* Tsunayoshi Sawada from ''Manga/KatekyoHitmanReborn'' is chosen to be Boss of the most powerful [[TheMafia Mafia family]] in Italy at only 14 years old. Likewise, his fellow boss Uni, who is ''even younger''.

* This trope is obviously the case with Pevensies in any Golden Age Literature/TheChroniclesOfNarnia fic as it is what happens in canon, but ''FanFic/{{Carpetbaggers}}'' is an especially interesting case because in the fic, most Narnians -- having never seen a human before and being smaller than humans -- don’t even realize that the Pevensies are, in fact, children.

* Subverted in ''LightNovel/YoujoSenki'': at the tender age of eleven, Tanya Degurechaff is the leader of a battalion of [[MageMarksman Mage Marksmen]] and one of the most respected ([[TheDreaded and feared]]) members of the Fatherland's military. Little does anyone know, she is actually the reincarnation of a {{Jerkass}} {{Salaryman}} who is in her current predicament as a result of [[DidYouJustFlipOffCthulhu dissing God]], whose intact memories of his previous life and willingness to do whatever it takes to achieve his own ends makes him/her a force to be reckoned within the military.

* Downplayed in Creator/JulesVerne's ''Dick Sand: A Captain at Fifteen''. Dick Sand, a fifteen-year-old sailor at a whaler ship, is forced to become captain when the rest of the crew dies trying to hunt one whale and he is the only one in the ship with sailing experience. Deconstructed when the ship's cook uses Dick's inexperience and that of the improvised crew to take the ship to Africa and enslave everyone.

* ''Literature/{{Conqueror}}'': Xuan at the end of ''Lords of the Bow'' is proclaimed Emperor of the Chin at the age of seven, after [[EvilChancellor Zhi Zhong]] murders his father.

* ''Fanfic/SonOfTheSannin'': Both [[spoiler:Ino and Hinata]] lost their fathers when they were 8 and have replaced them as the official heads of their respective clans by the time they turned 16.

** MemeticBadass Cacame Awemedinade apparently became King of the Dwarves at the age of sixteen. Despite being an [[OurElvesAreBetter elf]].

* ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'': Queen Amidala, who was aged fourteen (and may have been even younger when first elected). In ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'', Amidala has stepped down and Naboo has a new teenaged queen (and she also mentions that she was ''not'' the youngest Queen in Naboo's history), showing that this is an enforced trope.

* The basic plot of ''VideoGame/LittleKingsStory'' is this.