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Description
A family tree of a hypothetical royal English line if Henry VIII's will had been honored to the letter and the crown did pass from Elizabeth I to Lady Anne Stanley instead of the reigning king of Scotland.
The succession during the reign of the "Virgin Queen" had not always been a certainty. Henry VIII had excluded the descendants of his elder sister Margaret, Queen of Scots. His will had specified that descendants of his younger sister Mary would follow his children in the line of succession. Certain factions throughout the 16th century had sought to honor that specification. Lady Arbella had also been considered a possible successor, possibly to pass on the thrones of Scotland and England to different branches of the Stuart family. However, Lord Treasurer William Cecil and Secretary of State Sir Robert Cecil had largely committed to King James.

Updated to reflect the more commonly considered alternate succession via the descendants of Mary Tudor, Queen of France and Duchess of Suffolk -plus- descendants of Edward Seymour, Baron Beauchamp. The previous version failed to consider a daughter of George Brydges (alt George I) and daughters of Scroop Egerton. Why this alternate succession continues through a daughter rather than a son seems unclear.

Description
A family tree of a hypothetical royal English line if Henry VIII's will had been honored to the letter and the crown did pass from Elizabeth I to Lady Anne Stanley instead of the reigning king of Scotland.
The succession during the reign of the "Virgin Queen" had not always been a certainty. Henry VIII had excluded the descendants of his elder sister Margaret, Queen of Scots. His will had specified that descendants of his younger sister Mary would follow his children in the line of succession. Certain factions throughout the 16th century had sought to honor that specification. Lady Arbella had also been considered a possible successor, possibly to pass on the thrones of Scotland and England to different branches of the Stuart family. However, Lord Treasurer William Cecil and Secretary of State Sir Robert Cecil had largely committed to King James.

Updated to reflect the more commonly considered alternate succession via the descendants of Mary Tudor, Queen of France and Duchess of Suffolk -plus- descendants of Edward Seymour, Baron Beauchamp. The previous version failed to consider a daughter of George Brydges (alt George I) and daughters of Scroop Egerton. Why this alternate succession continues through a daughter rather than a son seems unclear.