A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2008) |
A posthumous birth is the birth of a child after the death of a parent.[1] A person born in these circumstances is called a posthumous child or a posthumously born person. Most instances of posthumous birth involve the birth of a child after the death of its father, but the term is also applied to infants delivered shortly after the death of the mother, usually by caesarean section.[2]
Legal implications
Posthumous birth has special implications in law, potentially affecting the child's citizenship and legal rights, inheritance, and order of succession. Legal systems generally include special provisions regarding inheritance by posthumous children and the legal status of such children. For example, Massachusetts law states that a posthumous child is treated as having been living at the death of the parent,[3] meaning that the child receives the same share of the parent's estate as if the child had been born before the parent's death. Most states recognize a posthumous child born within a set time frame, normally 280 to 300 days after the death of the decedent father.[4][5]
Another emerging legal issue in the United States is the control of genetic material after the death of the donor.[6] United States law holds that posthumous children of U.S. citizens who are born outside the United States have the same rights to citizenship that they would have had if the deceased U.S. citizen parent had been alive at the time of their birth.[7] In the field of assisted reproduction, snowflake children, i.e. those "adopted" as frozen embryos by people unrelated to them, can result in the birth of a child after the death of one or both of their genetic parents.
In monarchies and nobilities
A posthumous birth has special significance in the case of hereditary monarchies and hereditary noble titles following primogeniture. In this system, a monarch's or peer's own child precedes that monarch's or peer's sibling in the order of succession. In cases where the widow of a childless king or nobleman is pregnant at the time of his death, the next-in-line is not permitted to assume the throne or title,[citation needed] but must yield place to the unborn child, or ascends and reigns (in the case of a monarch) or succeeds (in the case of a peer) until the child is born (see Alfonso XIII, Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha or John Pelham, 9th Earl of Chichester).[citation needed]
In monarchies and noble titles that follow male-preference cognatic primogeniture, the situation is similar where the dead monarch or peer was not childless but left a daughter as the next-in-line, as well as a pregnant widow. A posthumous brother would supplant that daughter in the succession, whereas a posthumous sister, being younger, would not. Similarly, in monarchies and noble titles that follow agnatic primogeniture, the sex of the unborn child determines the succession; a posthumous male child would himself succeed, whereas the next-in-line would succeed upon the birth of a posthumous female child.
Modern complications
Posthumous conception by artificial insemination or in vitro fertilization, whether done using sperm or ova stored before a parent's death or sperm retrieved from a man's corpse, has created new legal issues.[3] When a woman is inseminated with her deceased husband's sperm, laws that establish that a sperm donor is not the legal father of the child born as a result of artificial insemination have had the effect of excluding the deceased husband from fatherhood and making the child legally fatherless.[8]
In the United Kingdom before 2000, birth records of children conceived using a dead man's sperm had to identify the infants as fatherless, but in 2000 the government announced that the law would be changed to allow the deceased father's name to be listed on the birth certificate.[9] In 1986, a New South Wales legal reform commission recommended that the law should recognize the deceased husband as the father of a child born from post-mortem artificial insemination, provided that the woman is his widow and unmarried at the time of birth, but the child should have inheritance rights to the father's estate only if the father left a will that included specific provisions for the child.[9]
In 2001, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court was asked to consider whether the father's name should appear on the birth record for a child conceived through artificial insemination after her father's death, as well as whether that child was eligible for U.S. Social Security benefits. The court ruled in January 2002 that a child could be the legal heir of a dead parent if there was a genetic relationship and the deceased parent had both agreed to the posthumous conception and committed to support the child.[3] Different U.S. state courts and federal appellate courts have ruled differently in similar cases. In 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Astrue v. Capato that twins born 18 months after their father's death using the father's frozen sperm were not eligible for Social Security benefits, which set a new precedent.
Naming
In the Middle Ages, it was traditional for posthumous children born in England to be given a matronymic surname instead of a patronymic one. This may in part explain why matronyms are more common in England than in other parts of Europe.[10]
In Ancient Rome, posthumous children of noble birth were often given the cognomen (or third name) 'Postumus'. One example is Agrippa Postumus.
In Yoruba culture, posthumous children are given names that refer to the circumstances concerning the birth. Examples of this include Bàbárímisá, meaning that the Father saw (the child) and ran; Yeyérínsá, meaning that the mother saw (the child) and ran; Ikúdáyísí (or any name with the root dáyísí), which means that death spared the child; and Ẹnúyàmí, meaning that "I was surprised", referring to the fact that the tragic death of the father, mother, or both was sudden and surprising for the family.
Notable people born posthumously
Antiquity
Name | Born | Late parent | Parent died | Gap | Cause of parent's death |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bindusara Mauryan Emperor |
320 BCE | Durdhara Mauryan Empress |
320 BCE | Same day | Poisoning. He was delivered through caesarean section.[11] |
Alexander IV King of Macedon |
August 323 BCE | Alexander the Great King of Macedon |
11 June 323 BCE | 2 months | Disease. |
Cornelia Postuma | 77 BCE | Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix Roman dictator |
78 BCE | Disease, possibly related to chronic alcoholic abuse. | |
Agrippa Postumus Grandson of Augustus Caesar |
12 BCE | Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa Roman general and statesman |
12 BCE | A few weeks | Disease. |
Shapur II Sasanian Emperor |
309 AD | Hormizd II Sasanian Emperor |
309 AD | 40 days | Assassination. Shapur is said to be the only monarch in history who was crowned in utero. |
Flavia Maxima Constantia Roman Empress |
1 January 362 | Constantius II Roman Emperor |
3 November 361 | 1 month, 29 days | Fever. |
Middle Ages
Name | Born | Late parent | Parent died | Gap | Cause of parent's death |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Muhammad Prophet of Islam |
570 | Abdullah ibn Abdul-Muttalib Arab trader |
569 | <6 months | Disease while returning from a trade mission in Medina. |
Umm Kulthum bint Abi Bakr Early Muslim scholar |
634 | Abu Bakr al-Siddiq Caliph |
23 August 634 | <3 months | On 23 August 634, Abu Bakr fell sick and did not recover. He developed a high fever and was confined to bed. His illness was prolonged, and when his condition worsened, he died in Medina. |
Constantine Byzantine prince |
1 January 798 | Constantine VI Byzantine Emperor |
19 April 797 | 8 months, 13 days | Died of wounds after being blinded by his mother, Irene, who proclaimed herself Empress. |
Robert I King of France |
15 August 866 | Robert the Strong Count of Anjou |
2 July 866 | 1 month, 13 days | Killed at the Battle of Brissarthe. |
Charles the Simple King of France |
17 September 879 | Louis the Stammerer King of France |
10 April 879 | 5 months, 7 days | Disease contracted during a campaign against the Vikings. |
Al-Mustakfi Abbasid caliph[12][13] |
11 November 908 | al-Muktafi Abbasid caliph |
13 August 908 | 3 months, 2 days | Unspecified illness. |
Lothair III Holy Roman Emperor |
1075 | Gebhard of Supplinburg Saxon count |
9 June 1075 | Killed at the Battle of Langensalza. | |
Saint Drogo Flemish saint |
14 March 1105 | His mother died in childbirth, leaving him orphan from birth | |||
Valdemar I King of Denmark |
14 January 1131 | Canute Lavard Duke of Schleswig |
7 January 1131 | 7 days | Murdered by Magnus the Strong. |
Raymond II of Turenne Viscount of Turenne |
1143 | Boson II of Turenne Viscount of Turenne |
1143 | 4 months | |
Constance I Queen of Sicily |
2 November 1154 | Roger II King of Sicily and Africa |
26 February 1154 | 8 months, 5 days | |
Baldwin V King of Jerusalem |
August 1177 | William of Montferrat Count of Jaffa and Ascalon |
June 1177 | 2 months | Possibly malaria. |
Arthur I Duke of Brittany |
29 March 1187 | Geoffrey II Duke of Brittany |
19 August 1186 | 7 months, 10 days | Disputed. One source claims he was trampled to death in a joust, other that he died of a sudden chest affliction. |
Maria of Montferrat Queen of Jerusalem |
Summer 1192 | Conrad of Montferrat King of Jerusalem |
28 April 1192 | A few months | Assassination. |
Theobald I King of Navarre |
30 May 1201 | Theobald III Count of Champagne |
24 May 1201 | 6 days | |
Raymond Nonnatus Catholic Saint |
1204 | His mother | 1204 | Same day | Childbirth. He was retrieved through caesarean section afterward.[2] |
Walter IV Count of Brienne |
1205 | Walter III Count of Brienne |
14 June 1205 | Killed in battle. | |
Charles I King of Sicily |
early 1227 | Louis VIII King of France |
8 November 1226 | ?? | Dysentery. |
Stephen the Posthumous Hungarian prince |
1236 | Andrew II King of Hungary and Croatia |
21 September 1235 | at least 2 months | |
Robert II Count of Artois |
September 1250 | Robert I Count of Artois |
8 February 1250 | 7 months | Killed in battle. |
Przemysł II King of Poland |
14 October 1257 | Przemysł I Duke of Greater Poland |
4 June 1257 | 4 months, 10 days | |
Władysław of Legnica Duke of Legnica |
6 June 1296 | Henry V, Duke of Legnica Duke of Legnica |
22 February 1296 | 4 months | Illness following imprisonment. |
John I King of France and Navarre |
15 November 1316 | Louis X King of France and Navarre |
5 June 1316 | 5 months, 10 days | Pneumonia or pleurisy from drinking excess cooled wine after a real tennis match. |
Isabel de Verdun Baroness Ferrers de Groby |
21 March 1317 | Theobald de Verdun Justiciar of Ireland |
27 July 1316 | 7 months, 22 days | Typhoid. |
Maria of Calabria Latin Empress consort of Constantinople |
6 May 1329 | Charles Duke of Calabria |
9 November 1328 | 5 months, 27 days | |
John, 3rd Earl of Kent | 7 April 1330 | Edmund of Woodstock English prince |
19 March 1330 | 19 days | Executed for treason against his nephew, Edward III of England. |
Joan of France | May 1351 | Philip VI King of France and Navarre |
22 August 1350 | 9 months | |
William of Bavaria-Munich | 1435 | William III Duke of Bavaria |
12 September 1435 | up to 3 months | |
Joan of Portugal Consort queen of Castile |
31 March 1439 | Edward, King of Portugal | 9 September 1438 | 6 months, 22 days | Plague. |
Ladislaus VI King of Hungary, Bohemia and Archduke of Austria |
22 February 1440 | Albert II King of Germany, Bohemia and Hungary |
27 October 1439 | 3 months, 23 days | |
Henry VII King of England |
28 January 1457 | Edmund Tudor Earl of Richmond |
1 or 3 November 1456 | 2 months, 25 days | Bubonic plague. |
John Louis Count of Nassau-Saarbrücken |
19 October 1472 | John II Duke of Nassau-Saarbrücken |
15 July 1472 | 3 months, 4 days | |
Mencía Pacheco[14] Castilian noblewoman |
1474–1475 | Juan Pacheco Marquis of Villena |
1 October 1474 | Throat ailment. | |
Clement VII Pope of the Catholic Church |
26 May 1478 | Giuliano de' Medici Ruler of the Florentine Republic |
26 April 1478 | 1 month | Assassination in the Pazzi Conspiracy. |
16th–18th centuries
Name | Born | Late parent | Parent died | Gap | Cause of parent's death |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Catherine of Austria Consort queen of Portugal |
14 January 1507 | Philip I King of Castile and Duke of Burgundy |
25 September 1506 | 3 months, 18 days | Typhoid or poison. |
Alexander Stewart Duke of Ross |
30 April 1514 | James IV King of Scotland |
9 September 1513 | 7 months, 21 days | Killed at the Battle of Flodden. |
Wenceslaus III Adam Duke of Cieszyn |
December 1524 | Wenceslaus II Duke of Cieszyn |
17 November 1524 | 1 month | |
Henry Berkeley Baron Berkeley |
26 November 1534 | Thomas Berkeley Baron Berkeley |
19 September 1534 | 9 weeks, 4 days | |
Duarte Duke of Guimarães |
March 1541 | Duarte Duke of Guimarães |
20 September 1540 | 7 months | |
Françoise d'Orléans-Longueville Wife of Louis I of Bourbon |
5 April 1549 | François d'Orléans French nobleman |
25 October 1548 | 5 months, 8 days | |
Sebastian King of Portugal |
20 January 1554 | João Manuel Prince of Portugal |
2 January 1554 | 18 days | Tuberculosis or diabetes. |
Maria of Hanau-Münzenberg | 20 January 1562 | Philipp III Count of Hanau-Münzenberg |
14 November 1561 | 2 months, 6 days | |
Ben Jonson Elizabethan playwright |
c. 11 June 1572 | His father | April 1572 | 1–2 months | |
Henry II Prince of Condé |
1 September 1588 | Henry I Prince of Condé |
5 Mar 1588 | 5 months, 23 days | Disease. |
Charles of Austria Bishop of Wroclaw |
7 August 1590 | Charles II Archduke of Austria |
10 July 1590 | 28 days | |
Toyotomi Sadako Wife of Kugyō Kujō Yukiie |
1592 | Toyotomi Hidekatsu | 14 October 1592 | Killed in Korean Campaign. | |
Sveinn "Skotti" Björnsson Icelandic criminal |
1596–1597 | Björn Pétursson Only Icelandic serial killer |
1596 | Executed for murder. | |
Thomas Herbert Welsh seaman and author |
15 May 1597 | Richard Herbert Justice of the Peace and Member of Parliament |
15 October 1596 (buried) | 7 months | |
Friedrich Wilhelm II Duke of Saxe-Altenburg |
12 February 1603 | Friedrich Wilhelm I Duke of Saxe-Weimar |
7 July 1602 | 7 months, 5 days | |
Joseph of Cupertino Catholic saint |
17 June 1603 | Felice Desa Apulian carpenter[15] |
|||
Abraham Cowley English poet |
1618 | His father | |||
Elizabeth Gyllenhielm Swedish noblewoman |
1622 | Charles Philip Duke of Södermanland |
25 January 1622 | Disease during the 1622 siege of Narva. | |
François-Henri de Montmorency Duke of Luxembourg |
8 January 1628 | François de Montmorency-Bouteville Duke of Luxembourg |
22 June 1627 | 6 months, 15 days | Executed for dueling. |
Isaac Newton English scientist |
4 January 1643 | Isaac Newton, Sr. English farmer |
October 1642 | 3 months | |
Gulielma Penn wife of William Penn, founder of Pennsylvania |
February 1644 | Sir William Springett English Parliamentarian army officer |
3 February 1644 | a few days | Fever following Siege of Arundel. |
William III Stadholder of the Dutch Republic, King of England and Scotland |
14 November 1650 | William II Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic |
6 November 1650 | 8 days | Smallpox. |
Robert Molesworth Irish politician and writer |
7 September 1656 | Robert Molesworth, Sr. | 3 September 1656 | 4 days | |
Adolphus Frederick II Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz |
19 October 1658 | Adolphus Frederick I Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin |
27 February 1658 | 7 months, 21 days | |
Jonathan Swift Author of Gulliver's Travels |
30 November 1667 | Jonathan Swift, Sr. English lawyer in Ireland |
c. April 1667 | 7 months | Syphilis. |
William August Duke of Saxe-Eisenach |
30 November 1668 | Adolf William, Duke of Saxe-Eisenach Duke of Saxe-Eisenach |
21 November 1668 | 9 days | |
Thomas Greenhill English surgeon |
1669? | William Greenhill | |||
Emmanuel Lebrecht Prince of Anhalt-Köthen |
20 May 1671 | Emmanuel Prince of Anhalt-Köthen |
8 November 1670 | 6 months | |
Godscall Paleologue Last known member of the Paleologus dynasty |
12 January 1694 | Theodorious Paleologus Barbadian privateer |
August-December 1693 | Up to 5 months | |
Christine Marie Jacqueline Henriette FitzJames French nun |
29 May 1703 | Henry FitzJames Jacobite peer |
16 December 1702 | 5 months, 13 days | |
Edward Ward, 9th Baron Dudley British peer |
16 June 1704 | Edward Ward, 8th Baron Dudley | 28 March 1704 | 2 months, 15 days | Smallpox. |
Frederick Christian Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth |
17 July 1708 | Christian Henry Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach |
5 April 1708 | 3 months, 12 days | |
Georg Wilhelm Richmann Livonian physicist |
22 July 1711 | His father | Plague. | ||
William IV Stadholder of the Dutch Republic |
1 September 1711 | John William Friso Prince of Orange |
14 July 1711 | 1 month, 15 days | Drowning in a ferryboat accident. |
Robert Petre, 8th Baron Petre British peer and horticulturist |
3 June 1713 | Robert Petre, 7th Baron Petre | 22 March 1713 | 2 months, 7 days | Smallpox. |
Edmund Pendleton American politician |
9 September 1721 | Henry Pendleton | 1721 | 4 months | |
John Morton American politician |
1725 | John Morton, Sr. | 1724 | Zdroj:https://en.wikipedia.org?pojem=Posthumous_son |