How tall are the European royals? The tallest monarchs revealed

Which European monarch is the tallest? Meet the candidates from King Willem-Alexander to Princess Charlene


Split image of King Felipe, Queen Maxima and Princess Charlene© Getty Images
August 27, 2024

It's quite easy to picture royalty as these grand gods and goddesses who tower over us mere mortals, but as it turns out, many have quite a relatable height, and it's more than likely that you'd be the taller one for any royal encounter.

While some of the royal men can tower over people, Prince William is an incredible 6'3, the royal ladies are more known for their petite frame. But when it comes to members of the royal families across Europe, who takes the crown on this occasion? Could it be Monaco's Princess Charlene, who was a former Olympic swimmer, or King Felipe of Spain?

Read on to find out...

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© Paolo Blocco

King Felipe

Coming in at a towering 6'4, King Felipe is the tallest European monarch. The King of Spain has ruled the European nation since 2014, following the abdication of his father, King Juan Carlos.

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© Patrick van Katwijk

King Willem-Alexander

Although King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands stands at 6'2, he is tiny in comparison to Felipe, a full seven centimetres.

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© Martin Sylvest Andersen

King Frederik

Although a mighty 6'0, King Frederik of Denmark loses out to Felipe and Willem-Alexander by another sizeable margin. Frederik is the most recent European monarch, acceding to the throne earlier this year.

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© Jean Catuffe

Prince Albert

Albert, the Prince of Monaco stands at 5'9. The royal's height came in handy when he was an Olympic bobsledder.

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© Iwi Onodera

King Carl Gustaf

King Carl Gustaf of Sweden is the shortest male royal on this list with a height of 5'8, however, this means he just pips the tallest female royal.

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© Patrick van Katwijk

Queen Maxima

Queen Maxima is the tallest female royal on this list, and while like King Carl Gustaf Maxima is 5'8, she does stand a few centimetres shorter than the Swedish monarch.

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© VALERY HACHE

Princess Charlene

Princess Charlene is another royal who stands in at 5'8, but she is just one centimetre shorter than Maxima.

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© Geert Vanden Wijngaert

Queen Mathilde

Queen Mathilde is the Queen of Belgium and she stands in at an impressive 5'7.

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© Martin Sylvest Andersen

Queen Mary

Getting towards the shorter side of the list, Denmark's Queen Mary stands at 5'6.

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© Carlos Alvarez

Queen Letizia

Despite her towering husband, Queen Letizia is actually tied for being the shortest royal on this list, standing in at 5'5.

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© Iwi Onodera

Queen Silvia

Letizia isn't the only royal lady who measures 5'5, and she is joined by Sweden's Queen Silvia.

PHOTOS: King Felipe and Queen Letizia enjoy low-key date night after summer holiday

MORE: King Frederik enjoys rare father-son trip with Crown Prince Christian

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