What happens if no one is left in the line of succession the British throne?
What would happen to the British throne if all the descendants of Electress Sophia disappeared? The answer is that Parliament would have done something about it in advance. With thousands of people in the line of succession, Parliament is not likely to ever be taken by surprise by their complete disappearance. There is a precedent for such a situation. In 1701, William III was reigning alone and childless. His heir apparent was Anne, married to Prince George of Denmark. She had given birth to twelve children between 1683 and 1700, but only one had survived past infancy, and he had died at the age of 11 in July 1700. Beside Anne, there was no one in the line of succession established in 1689. For that reason, Parliament passed the Act of Settlement “for a further provision of the succession of the Crown in the Protestant line.” Should Parliament really be caught by surprise, and the throne left vacant without any successor, a de facto king (chosen somehow) could call a valid Parliament
