Bio 101 - Family Tree

The British Royal Family

• Eye color

Brown eyes are generally dominant over other colors, but eye color is a complex trait that involves several genes. Two parents with the same color eyes will not necessarily have a child with the same color eyes. However, the vast majority of the members of the royal family have blue eyes, besides only Kate Middleton with green eyes, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie with hazel eyes, and Mark Phillips with brown eyes.

• Hair

Balding

Not much is known about the genetics behind male pattern baldness. Since it's a common condition that 50% of men in their 50s suffer from, researchers have discovered that it's not important whether or not men go bald, but at what age they start balding. They have also discovered that the gene connected to balding is found on the x chromosome, meaning male pattern baldness is inherited from the mother's side. Several men in the royal family began suffering from baldness, known "the curse of the Windsors" at an early age:

Prince Philip, Queen Elizabeth II's husband, began balding at 28. Prince Charles, Prince Philip's son, began balding at the same age as his father and is rumored to have gotten a hair transplant. Prince Edward, Prince Charles' brother, began balding by age 21 Prince William, Prince Charles' son, began balding in his early 20s.

• Widow’s peak

The widow's peak trait is a dominant single-gene trait. It typically does not skip generations, and the degree of the peak can vary. Since it is a single-gene trait, a child will display the dominant phenotype as long as one parent has the dominant gene. 8 out of 21 members of the royal family have a widow's peak. The name "widow's peak" comes from the old belief that women with that trait were destined to be widows.

• A family genetic disorder

The best-known example of a genetic disorder within the British monarchy involves blood more literally: It is hemophilia. Queen Victoria herself was a carrier of this X-linked...