Is Bail the King of Alderaan?

Hmm...if the Queen of Alderaan is the true monarch by blood, how did Bail end up marrying her?

I mean, did he come from a wealthy family, is the Queen able to marry whom ever she wants?

 

Does it matter?

 

Breaking it down:

1. Bail Organa, as of the Clone Wars and the rise of the Empire, holds the various titles of "Crown Prince," "Prince Consort," "Viceroy and First Chairman [of the Alderaan system]."



2. His wife is Breha Organa, née Antilles. Queen of Alderaan, Bail's husband.



3. Breha's brother is Raymus Antilles, captain of the Tantive IV. Essentially a glorified chauffeur.



4. Bail Antilles is another probable family connexion (retroactively the Adrian Dunbar character, Cloak of Deception).



5. His wife also serves in the role of Alderaan's "Minister of Education" (per the ROTJ novelization).



6. Around 37 BSW4, Jedi master Jorus C'baoth leads a Republic team on Alderaan, attempting to determine which family possesses the rightful claim to the title of "Viceroy."



7. Bail Antilles is no longer serving as Alderaan's senator on Coruscant as of 22 BSW4; Prince Organa now covers both roles...royal ruler of his planet, and representative.

Now, connecting the dots:

Previously, it was believed that Bail Organa was sole reigning monarch over the Alderaan system; comments from George Lucas and evidence from the first three movies pointed to this fact, particularly Leia's retention of her father's family name and her generally imperious mien. Other sources, such as the Return of the Jedi novelization, provided further details generally considered non-contradictory (unlike the "Owen Lars-as-Obi-Wan's-brother" backstory) and accepted during the two decades between Episode VI and Episode III.

Now, the important point: Although coming from a non-filmic source, the history involving the 37 BSW4 Jorus C'baoth mediation is -- on the whole -- still valid, since it's stated in the novel Dark Force Rising that the mediators' aim was to determine who held the proper Viceroy title claim...not necessarily the title of "prince" or "king" or "queen." Very likely, as in real life and as we've seen in the case of Nute Gunray in the films, the positions of Viceroy and First Chairman are a political station, not a wholly royalty-oriented one.

Breha Organa's bother, Raymus Antilles, however, remains a mystery even strictly when one considers only the films: If his family holds the throne, why is he merely steering the ship, bus-driving his brother-in-law (someone who might or might not carry less blue blood than he) around the galaxy? From the NPR radio dramas, Captain Antilles defers to Princess Leia even in minute affairs, submitting to her leadership in scene after scene, giving no evidence of his heritage.

What this all boils down to is, Bail Organa -- whose father was reaffirmed as system Viceroy -- married into the Antilles royal family, was coronated as Prince Consort, his wife remaining Queen, and his new brother-in-law apparently content to mingle with the muggles as the family carriage-boy. Bail Organa supplanted Bail Antilles in the Galactic Senate at some as-yet-indeterminate point between Episode I and Episode II.

Breha Organa -- Leia's adopted foster mo

 

So is Alderaan like England? The monarchy is hereditary but the Queen has little real power?

it would seem so, but nothing prevents members of the royal family from getting involved in politics.

 

Leto II um...wow...you gave this a lot of thought!

And right after d-s wrote rhetorically, does this even matter?

But it's the most thorough explanation of Alderaanean politics I've ever seen

 

I recall hearing that Bail Antilles was Bail Organa's predecessor in the Senate. I don't think they're related.