History Main / RebelPrince

* ''VideoGame/TroubleshooterAbandonedChildren'': Sion is a downplayed example. While he did reject his family heritage and his personal privileges and duties in favor of trying his luck on his own in Valhalla, he wasn't the heir, and he has stayed in touch with his family. His family, on the other side, disapprove, but they are also grudgingly proud that he protecting people, and is good enough at it to make headlines.

* ''VideoGame/TroubleshooterAbandonedChildren'': Sion is a downplayed example. While he did reject his family heritage and his personal privileges and duties in favor of trying his luck on his own in Valhalla, he wasn't the heir, and he has stayed in touch with his family. His family, on the other side, disapprove, but they are also grudingly proud that he protecting people, and is good enough at it to make headlines.

* ''VideoGame/TroubleshootersAbandonedChildren'': Sion is a downplayed example. While he did reject his family heritage and his personal privileges and duties in favor of trying his luck on his own in Valhalla, he wasn't the heir, and he has stayed in touch with his family. His family, on the other side, disapprove, but they are also grudingly proud that he protecting people, and is good enough at it to make headlines.

* ''{{TabletopGame/Cyberpunk}}'': Yorinobu Arasaka, upon finding out what his father planned for him after he came of age, left his father's palace in the middle of the night, and began fighting a guerilla war against his father's MegaCorp. However, by the time of ''Videogame/Cyberpunk2077'' he's returned to the fold as an Arasaka executive, albeit one who still has ambitions of bringing his father down from within.

* Prince Elias Acorn in ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics'' turned out to be this: he was hidden away on Angel Island after Overlanders shot down the craft carrying him and his mother, Queen Alicia, and only returned prior to Robo-Robotnik's return. When King Acorn was taken out of action, Elias was forced to take over, with Geoffrey St. John as his Advisor, who abused that power to get back at Sonic. However, when Geoffrey and his men were revealed to be infected with nanites, Elias suffered a HeroicBSOD and fled, realizing that this sort of thing wouldn't of happened if he wasn't on the throne. Elias, however, is forced to return to prevent the MirrorUniverse version of Antoine from taking the throne.

* Lex, Holin and Jamuka from ''VideoGame/FireEmblemGenealogyOfTheHolyWar''. Levin is this until the events of chapter 4.
** Shanan takes up the RebelPrince mantle in Part 2 since he's one of the leaders of Celice's army which is hell-bent into destroying the tyrannical Empire of Grandbell. [[spoiler:There's something of a subversion, however: while a rebel against the Empire, he also is the ''legitimate'' heir to the throne of Isaac (a nation of {{Proud Warrior Race Guy}}s that was usurped and oppressed for years), and he intends to gain his homeland back to rebuild it. If he lives through the whole second part of the game, he succeeds.]]
** Also Hector from ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBlazingBlade Fire Emblem: Blazing Sword]]'', who, while still loyal to Ostia, decided to do things his own way.

* The ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' has had a few of these as main protagonists, with the sub-archetype getting more defined starting in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBlazingBlade'' with Hector and ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheSacredStones'' with Ephraim, both of whom are HotBlooded young princes who are more focused on being warriors than their duties as heirs of their nations. More often than not they need to undergo CharacterDevelopment and learn to be more responsible, maturing once they take the reins of their respective countries.

* The early life of UsefulNotes/FrederickTheGreat reads like a nasty [[DeconstructedTrope Deconstruction]] of the RebelPrince. Tyrannical, controlling father whom he doesn't get along with? Check. Enjoys scholarly and artistic things his father doesn't approve of? Check. Resents the idea of an arranged marriage? Check. Plans to run away and start a new life with his [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Hermann_von_Katte best friend and possible lover?]] Check. Gets caught, is made to watch as his father has his friend beheaded, suffers a HeroicBSOD, and never talks about it again? [[RealityEnsues ...Err.]]

See also of RejectingTheInheritance and RoyalBrat. Contrast ReluctantRuler who's immediately ready to be TheWisePrince. Also contrast TheEvilPrince who's rebelling against his father about who gets to be king, not because he doesn't want to be king. Being a PrinceCharming who wants to marry for love instead of station isn't enough to qualify. Also, he can put himself in danger like a WarriorPrince or KnightInShiningArmor but still say he wants to be a good king. If he says that he doesn't want to be king, that's what makes him count. In each example, please state when he refused or wanted to refuse his inheritance.

Subtrope of RejectingTheInheritance. Contrast ReluctantRuler who's immediately ready to be TheWisePrince. Also contrast TheEvilPrince who's rebelling against his father about who gets to be king, not because he doesn't want to be king. Being a PrinceCharming who wants to marry for love instead of station isn't enough to qualify. Also, he can put himself in danger like a WarriorPrince or KnightInShiningArmor but still say he wants to be a good king. If he says that he doesn't want to be king, that's what makes him count. In each example, please state when he refused or wanted to refuse his inheritance.

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* Mark Chang from ''WesternAnimation/TheFairlyOddparents''.
* With the reveal that [[spoiler:[[Characters/StevenUniverseRoseQuartz Rose Quartz]] is actually [[Characters/StevenUniverseDiamondAuthority Pink Diamond]]]] in ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'', this reveals that [[Characters/StevenUniverseStevenQuartzUniverse Steven]] is technically gem royalty. Because [[spoiler:Pink Diamond faked her own death, leaving her alias Rose Quartz as Homeworld's most wanted]], the odds of Steven being given his birthright (willingly or otherwise) is slim at best.

* From the British Royal House: [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_VIII_of_the_United_Kingdom King Edward VIII]] (who ''abdicated'' the throne to his younger brother George, father of Queen Elizabeth, in order to marry the American divorcee Wallis Simpson). Generally considered, these days, to be colossally fortunate for Great Britain specifically and for the free world in general: Edward was an admirer of the German Chancellor of the period, one UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler; his abdication being viewed as pretty much a real-life case of NiceJobFixingItVillain.
** And now Prince Harry, former SpareToTheThrone (his older brother now has three children), has resigned from all his royal duties and positions, taking the position of Duke of Sussex, and chosen to leave the UK along with his wife. The behaviour of the more unapologetically vile UsefulNotes/BritishNewspapers after he chose to marry a biracial American woman is apparently to blame, though that was apparently the icing on the cake in a long and fractious relationship with said newspapers, which he blames (and not without good reason) for his mother's death. He outright stated that he feared the same thing would happen again, this time to his wife, and he decided that he wasn't having it.

* Prince Elias Acorn in ''ComicBook/ArchieComicsSonicTheHedgehog'' turned out to be this: he was hidden away on Angel Island after Overlanders shot down the craft carrying him and his mother, Queen Alicia, and only returned prior to Robo-Robotnik's return. When King Acorn was taken out of action, Elias was forced to take over, with Geoffrey St. John as his Advisor, who abused that power to get back at Sonic. However, when Geoffrey and his men were revealed to be infected with nanites, Elias suffered a HeroicBSOD and fled, realizing that this sort of thing wouldn't of happened if he wasn't on the throne. Elias, however, is forced to return to prevent the MirrorUniverse version of Antoine from taking the throne.

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->'''King Francis:''' I will simply deny you the crown... and... live for ever!\\

* ''{{TabletopGame/Cyberpunk}}'': Yorinobu Arasaka, upon finding out what his father planned for him after he came of age, left his father's palace in the middle of the night, and began fighting a guerilla war against his father's MegaCorp.

* [[RealPersonFic Prince Harry]] in ''Theatre/KingCharlesIII'', whose SpareToTheThrone position behind his brother William has led to his laissez faire attitude and carefree bachelor lifestyle -- until he begins to date Jess, an opinionated Republican. As their relationship grows more serious, Prince Harry begins to believe that he'll find happiness and fulfillment if he rejects his royal duties and settles down with Jess to lead the life of a commoner. He goes so far as to request that his father Charles revoke his royal titles and inheritance, [[spoiler: but he ultimately breaks up with Jess and retains his titles, dedicating himself (unhappily) to upholding the institution of British monarchy alongside his family]].

** And now Prince Harry, current SpareToTheThrone, has resigned from all his royal duties and positions and chosen to leave the UK along with his wife. The behaviour of the more unapologetically vile UsefulNotes/BritishNewspapers after he chose to marry a biracial American woman is apparently to blame.

** More accurately, Sabin didn't want the throne but agreed to deciding it on a coin flip. He "lost" and Edgar became king. [[spoiler:Turns out that, knowing Sabin didn't want to be king, Edgar used a trick coin.]]

* Aragorn from Creator/PeterJacksons's ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'' film adaptations chose exile instead of leadership of his people.

* Aragorn from Peter Jacksons's ''Film/LordOfTheRings'' film adaptations chose exile instead of leadership of his people.

* Prince Johnathan is an ''inverted'' version in the ''Literature/SongOfTheLioness'' books. He wants to defeat demons and become the Voice of the People to be the best king he can be.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994'': Simba is actually manipulating ''into'' rejecting his birthright by Scar, who kills Mufasa and makes Simba feel responsible. He then stopped being a ShelteredAristocrat and ran away.