Proximity of blood, or proximity by degree of kinship, is one of the ways to determine hereditary succession based on genealogy. In effect, the application of this rule is a refusal to recognize the right of representation, a component of primogeniture.[1]
- Grey: incumbent
- Square: male
- Circle: female
- Black: deceased
- Diagonal: cannot be displaced
In some feudal entities, proximity of blood was a generally accepted principle. For example, according to the "ancient custom" (French: ancienne coutume) in the Duchy of Burgundy, a grandson could not take precedence over a son or daughter, and it was not even clear whether the ruler's grandson could claim precedence over the ruler's brother.[2]
- ^ Kidd 2014, p. 88.
- ^ Chattaway 2006, p. 92.