History Main / RoyalBlood

SuperTrope of RoyaltySuperpower and ReallyRoyaltyReveal. Almost always required for the RightfulKingReturns. May lead to the ManInTheIronMask or HiddenBackupPrince. Will likely be inherent in a PrincessClassic and PrinceCharming. Obviously common in the StandardRoyalCourt or DecadentCourt. Will often appear with ErmineCapeEffect and RequisiteRoyalRegalia, where royalty uses visible clothing to show off their status -- all the time. Conversely, ModestRoyalty may appear humbly dressed all the time (in RealLife, royalty will usually dress practically, and in special circumstances, dress to impress).

%% This is how the quote formatting is suppose to look: One indent, then dialog, then two indents, then the source. Don't mess with it.

Useful rule for at least curbing a bloody SuccessionCrisis. On the other hand, the {{Arranged Marriage}}s to preserve it [[RoyalInbreeding may lead]] to RoyallyScrewedUp [[BigScrewedUpFamily Families]], especially since the parents, and grandparents, etc. of the bride and bridegroom were also, likely KissingCousins (the ArrangedMarriage is very common, although fictional royalty find it remarkably easy to throw off the arrangements, marry for love, and face no repercussions. Like, say, war in the event of a dynastic marriage). HeirClubForMen and IWantGrandkids are common.

Idealistic stories on the SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism generally have the rightful king also be the better ruler. More cynical stories split them up, and then even LawfulGood characters may support the worse ruler because the one who would be a ReasonableAuthorityFigure would create a dangerous precedent in ignoring the laws of succession. Royal Blood may require your putting up with {{Royal Brat}}s, TheEvilPrince and TheCaligula -- all the time, if it's VillainousLineage.

** During the 1st Era, St. Alessia led a [[SlaveLiberation slave revolt]] of her Nedic ([[{{Precursors}} ancestors]] of most of the modern races of Men) people against the [[AbusivePrecursors Ayleid Empire]] of Cyrodiil. With the support of the [[OurGodsAreDifferent Aedra]] (who backed Alessia against the primarily [[ScaryAmoralReligion Daedra-worshipping]] Ayleids), her revolt was a success and she [[FounderOfTheKingdom established the first Empire of Men in Cyrodiil]]. As part of her victory, she recognized the Aedra who assisted her as the Eight Divines, and made their worship the [[SaintlyChurch official religion]] of her empire. As part of this arrangement, Akatosh, the [[DragonsAreDivine draconic]] God of [[TimeMaster Time]] and [[TopGod chief deity]] of the Eight Divines pantheon, made "[[BargainWithHeaven Covenant]]" with Alessia. Akatosh imbued Alessia with "Dragon Blood" and her soul was placed into the [[OnlyTheChosenMayWield Amulet of Kings]], used to seal the barriers between Mundus and Oblivion against future Daedric influence. All "recognized" Emperors of Tamriel, said to be "Dragonborn", throughout the ages that followed served as {{Barrier Maiden}}s, performing a ritual known as "Lighting the Dragonfires" to seal the barrier. "Recognized" being the keyword, this status proved not to be strictly hereditary. After Alessia's line came to end and the First Empire fell, the Reman Dynasty of the Second Empire claimed metaphysical descendence from Alessia. Later, Tiber Septim made the same claim when he founded the Third Empire. Even within the dynasties, blood relation was apparently not a true requirement. For example, when [[TheCaligula Pelagius the Mad]] was placed into asylum, his wife, the Dunmeri former Duchess of Vvardenfell, Katariah, was named [[RegentForLife Empress Regent]] and later [[TheEmperor the Empress]] in her own right after Pelagius' death, becoming the only non-Mannish ruler of the Third Empire. Her 50 year reign is regarded as one of the most peaceful and prosperous in the Empire's history. Later, her son via consort with no Septim blood at all, Uriel IV, took the throne without supernatural issue. (After his death, however, the Elder Council chose to pass over his son for the throne and instead name a cousin more closely related to the Septim family as Emperor.) It seemed that as long as Akatosh himself recognized the individual making claim to the throne, actual blood relation to the ruling dynasty was secondary.

* ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'' has the [[PhysicalGod Diamond Authority]], which are revered as the next best things to goddesses by the other Gems. With the reveal of [[spoiler:Rose Quartz being actually Pink Diamond, Steven is not half-Quartz, but rather ''[[SemiDivine half-Diamond]]''; therefore, as the son of Pink Diamond, he is the second generation of the Diamonds, yet ironically he is the only one with blood.]]

** It was also played more or less straight without the superstitious element, as the various thrones in Europe were frequently occupied by rulers of foreign lineage, which all passed without comment because they were still of Royal Blood -- the different royal/noble houses of Europe were occasionally treated like one big intermarrying family.

* In most of the kingdoms of southern Nigeria (especially the iconic ones like Benin and Oyo), local religious beliefs hold that the gods, ancestors and other spirits upholding the kingdom have a contract of sorts with the royal family. Exercise of this franchise allows the king to perform special ceremonies to avert disaster or solve crises. For instance in 2010, amid increasing incidences of armed robbery around the city of Benin, the Oba of Benin conducted a new ritual intended to cleanse the town and place a curse on all robbers. So revered is the Oba and his office that (according to police), crime rates dropped acutely in the following monthly reports.

* Arguably, the ''entire human race'' can claim at least some strain of royal blood. It's been stated that most everyone in the Western world is descended from Charlemagne. This is because with every generation going backwards through time, your number of ancestors doubles[[note]]except where marriage between distant relatives narrows the family tree[[/note]] - you have two parents, four grandparents, eight great-grandparents, etc. - and the population of the world has been such that it would be almost impossible for an individual to not claim at least one royal ancestor. [[http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2002/05/the-royal-we/2497/ The concept is explained in detail here.]] However, your ancestors don't ''necessarily'' double with each generation. A lot of people marry their cousins, although the practice has become less popular in more recent generations.

!!!'''By Author:'''
* Commonplace in Creator/EdgarRiceBurroughs's works, especially the ''Literature/JohnCarterOfMars'' ones. [[RagsToRoyalty Though some don't know it]].
** In ''The Chessman of Mars'', Corpals "[[{{Necromancer}} that by commanding the spirits of the wicked dead gains evil mastery over the living]]" are said to be killable only by those of Royal Blood. And the weak and cowardly king cannot be deposed for a noble and brave nobleman; fortunately, he also has a brave and popular son whom he hasn't killed yet.
** In ''Literature/TheMadKing'', the hero is an American visiting the {{Ruritania}}n kingdom of Lutha, where his mother was born. Partway through the novel, he learns that his mother was a runaway member of the Luthanian royal family, and he himself is in line for the throne. This is a mixed blessing; it means he's got some chance with the Luthanian noblewoman he's fallen in love with, but it also stokes the king's paranoia about the hero being part of a plot to usurp him. [[spoiler:In the end, the king gets himself killed, and the hero marries the noblewoman and succeeds to the throne]].
* Invoked in Creator/GKChesterton's ''Magic'':
-->'''DUKE'''. Why, the Professor here who performs before the King [''puts down the programmes'']--you see it on the caravans, you know--performs before the King almost every night, I suppose...\\
'''CONJURER'''. [''Smiling.''] I sometimes let his Majesty have an evening off. And turn my attention, of course, to the [[BlueBlood very highest nobility]].
** ''Literature/TheNapoleonOfNottingHill'': This has been abandoned.
--->''To avoid the possible chance of hereditary diseases or such things, we have abandoned hereditary monarchy. The King of England is chosen like a juryman upon an official rotation list.''
* In Creator/UrsulaKLeGuin's works:
** In ''Literature/AlwaysComingHome'', it is stated that when the Condor's son was to be executed, no one dared to raise a hand against a man of Royal (near-divine, according to their ideology) Blood. Instead they gave him the chair, and said it was electricity that killed him.
** ''Literature/{{Earthsea}}'': In ''Literature/AWizardOfEarthsea'', Ged found an old man and woman stranded on an island. In the sequel ''Literature/TheTombsOfAtuan'', Tenar explains that they were a prince and princess, the last of their family, whom the God Emperor had abandoned at sea as infants as he feared to kill those of Royal Blood.
!!!'''By Work:'''

* There was a Literature/ChooseYourOwnAdventure book, ''Black Vein Prophecy'' where you are a member of a family of Royal Wizards.

* In Creator/RobertEHoward's Literature/ConanTheBarbarian story "Literature/ThePeopleOfTheBlackCircle", Yasmina is very proud of hers. It makes the BreakTheHaughty all the more humiliating.
-->''"But for all your stupidity, you are a woman fair to look upon. It is my whim to [[MadeASlave keep you]] for [[SexSlave my slave]]."\\
The daughter of a thousand proud emperors gasped with shame and fury at the word.\\
"You dare not!"\\
His mocking laughter cut her like a whip across her naked shoulders.''

* In Mary Stewart's ''Literature/TheCrystalCave,''since it's a retelling of the Arthurian story, only Arthur can claim the sword and hence the throne. [[/folder]]

* ''Anime/{{Daltanious}}'': Kloppen has a complex about being superior because he's the son of the last Emperor of Helios, before the empire fell. [[spoiler: To his horror, Kloppen finds out that he's a clone, and the real Prince of Helios is his ArchEnemy Harlin.]]

* ''Anime/MyOtome'': The members of the Windbloom royal family have the inherited ability to activate LostTechnology. This becomes important later, as some believe Mashiro to be an impostor, and therefore unable to activate the Harmonium. [[spoiler:While Mashiro was able to activate it a little, since she knew the song and had an Otome with her, she couldn't unlock its full power because she was indeed an impostor. ''Nina'', however, is the real Mashiro, and since she fills all three requirements (is a Windbloom, knows the song, and is an Otome), she unlocks its full power.]]
* ''Anime/CastleInTheSky'': The ancient floating city of Laputa was ruled by a royal family in its heyday, and only full-blooded members of that family could use its technology/magic fully. By the present day, the Laputan royal family has died out, with no known survivors. [[spoiler:Both Sheeta and the [[BigBad main villain]], Muska, are later revealed to be descendants of the Laputan royalty, making them (very distant relatives). Muska needs Sheeta (or more specifically, the necklace she wears that is a royal heirloom) in order to access the ruins of Laputa; once he succeeds, he intends to restore Laputa to its former glory and take over Earth as its ruler.]]

* In ''WesternAnimation/ThePrincessAndTheFrog'', Naveen has it on both sides of his family, according to Facilier -- who claims that he himself is royal on his mother's, though it's hard to tell whether he's serious.