20 Regular People Who Became Royals – And How They Really Went From Rags To Riches

There used to be a time when it was expected that royals would only marry other royals, or at least aristocrats who were high up in society. And these weren’t marriages done for love, but rather for political alliances. Luckily, times have changed. These 20 relatively normal people all romanced royals and then became one themselves.

20. Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway

Before the year 2000, Mette-Marit must have seemed like a very unlikely choice to be a princess of Norway. Not only was she a commoner, but she was a single mother whose child’s father was a felon. However, Crown Prince Haakon fell in love with her, and despite a lot of controversy he made her his wife.

Parts of the Norwegian media expressed their horror, but nonetheless come 2001 the marriage still took place. If some people were rooting for it to fail, they ended up disappointed. Mette-Marit and Haakon are still together two decades down the line and had more children to join Mette-Marit’s first son Marius.

19. Queen ’Masenate Mohato Seeiso

When ’Masenate Mohato Seeiso, a woman born as Anna Karabo Motšoeneng, wed King Letsie III of Lesotho, it made history. She was the first commoner to marry into the royal family for a very long time. When the two married in the national stadium, a crowd of more than 40,000 people turned up to watch.

The marriage between the two was seen as an important step forward for the country. And it still stands today. In 2014 ’Masenate Mohato Seeiso spoke lovingly of her husband to the Lesotho Times, saying, “His Majesty is a very reserved, respectful, patient, wise and humble person, and he is all that in a very sweet way.”