Unless you've been living under a rock for the last few months, you are aware that today was the day Prince Harry of the UK married American actress Meghan Markle.
Yes, this is an interesting event as not only is Harry marrying a commoner but *gasp* an American!
I am not an anglophile personally nor am I a Royal Watcher but being the whitest white woman on Planet Earth, and also having been researching my ancestry full-bore for the past 9 or so years, you probably know that I am related to the English royal family.
Prince Harry(and his brother Prince William)are my 19th cousins. Interestingly, we are cousins through both his father, Prince Charles' and Princess Diana's ancestry. Charles and Diana are BOTH my 18th cousins 1 x removed.(Charles through his maternal lines and Diana through her father's lines.)
I relate to Prince Harry through our shared ancestor George de Neville, 1st Baron Latimer, through his father, Ralph De Neville on both his parents' family trees.
And as it turns out I am also related to Meghan Markle. She's my 21st cousin 2 x removed.
I also relate to Megan Markle through George de Neville, 1st Baron Latimer, but through his mother, Joan de Beaufort, Countess of Westmoreland.
Meghan and I are also direct descendants of Edward III.
Good ol' Edward III
So this means Harry and Megan are also related to each other via many different lines of ancestry but nothing too close. I believe their closest shared ancestor is Ralph Bowes of Streatlam 1480-1516 which would make them 15th cousins.
Since my invite never arrived(I am "family" after all, right?) I will assume that the English postal system or USPS lost it somewhere along the line. sniff*sniff*
And all this other talk about this union being so historic as the Royal Family is having someone of African ancestry marry into the bloodline?
It's true that Meghan is bi-racial, her father is "white", her mother is "black"(actually her mother is bi-racial--not black as many of her direct ancestors are listed as "mulatto" in federal censuses) but this is NOT the first instance of ethnic ancestry being injected into the English Royal Family.
I posted about Queen Elizabeth II having a direct ancestral connection to the Profit Muhammad back in March HERE.
This line of descent connects her(and me)to various Spanish Royals so there has already been much Hispanic blood flowing through the veins of English royalty.
The first known royal with "African" ancestry was Queen Consort Charlotte Sophia of Mecklenburg-Strelitz who married King George III(the monarch we colonies revolted against).
This is one of the portraits of Charlotte painted by Allan Ramsay painted in 1761 when she was 17 years old not long after her marriage to George III. There are eye witness descriptions of her looks that allude to her African genes. If you look at the genealogical records you will find that Charlotte was descended from a branch of the Portugese family through Alfonso III. Alfonso's armies captured the Moorish town of Faro and demanded the Governor's daughter as a "spoil of war". The Governor's daughter, Ouruana, went on to have three children by Alfonso III. Martin, one of Alfonso and Ouruana's sons married into the de Sousa line. This noble line also held African ancestors so Charlotte owed her ethnic roots to both her paternal and maternal lines.
Interestingly enough, at the time of Charlotte's wedding, the question of slavery and it's abolishment was swirling around England(and also the civilized world). Allan Ramsay, the painter of many portraits of Queen Charlotte, was an ardent abolitionist on this issue. He was married to the niece of Lord Mansfield who ruled in 1772 that slavery within the British Empire should be abolished.
Allan Ramsay was also Uncle by marriage to Lord Mansfield's grand niece, Dido Elizabeth Lindsay.
Dido's father was Sir John Lindsay, the brother of Margaret Lindsay, who became Allan Ramsay's second wife. John and Margaret's mother was the sister of Lord Mansfield....got that?
Portrait of Dido and her cousin Elizabeth Murray, painted in a Zophanian style, now attributed to English artist David Martin.
You may have seen the feature film they made about the life of this child of naval officer and nobility member Sir John Lindsay and a captured slave from the West Indies named Maria Belle called "Belle" back in 2014.
And it seems fitting that Meghan will take her vows and become Princess in the very same place that Queen Charlotte is buried-St. George's Chapel in Windsor Palace.
If you want to see the pedigree of both Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and how they are related(at least their closest connection)go HERE.
Sluggy
Yes, this is an interesting event as not only is Harry marrying a commoner but *gasp* an American!
I am not an anglophile personally nor am I a Royal Watcher but being the whitest white woman on Planet Earth, and also having been researching my ancestry full-bore for the past 9 or so years, you probably know that I am related to the English royal family.
Prince Harry(and his brother Prince William)are my 19th cousins. Interestingly, we are cousins through both his father, Prince Charles' and Princess Diana's ancestry. Charles and Diana are BOTH my 18th cousins 1 x removed.(Charles through his maternal lines and Diana through her father's lines.)
Prince Henry Charles Albert David "Harry" WINDSOR(1984 - )
19th cousin
19th cousin
Princess Diana SPENCER (1961 - 1997)
mother of Prince Henry Charles Albert David "Harry" WINDSOR
mother of Prince Henry Charles Albert David "Harry" WINDSOR
John, 8th Earl Spencer SPENCER (1924 - 1992)
father of Princess Diana SPENCER
father of Princess Diana SPENCER
Albert, 7th Earl Spencer SPENCER (1892 - 1975)
father of John, 8th Earl Spencer SPENCER
father of John, 8th Earl Spencer SPENCER
Charles SPENCER (1857 - 1922)
father of Albert, 7th Earl Spencer SPENCER
father of Albert, 7th Earl Spencer SPENCER
Adelaide SEYMOUR (1825 - 1877)
mother of Charles SPENCER
mother of Charles SPENCER
Horace SEYMOUR (1791 - 1851)
father of Adelaide SEYMOUR
father of Adelaide SEYMOUR
Anne WALDEGRAVE (1762 - 1801)
mother of Horace SEYMOUR
mother of Horace SEYMOUR
James, 2nd Earl Waldegrave WALDEGRAVE (1715 - 1763)
father of Anne WALDEGRAVE
father of Anne WALDEGRAVE
James, 1st Earl Waldegrave WALDEGRAVE (1684 - 1741)
father of James, 2nd Earl Waldegrave WALDEGRAVE
father of James, 2nd Earl Waldegrave WALDEGRAVE
Henrietta FITZJAMES (1667 - 1730)
mother of James, 1st Earl Waldegrave WALDEGRAVE
mother of James, 1st Earl Waldegrave WALDEGRAVE
James II and VII STUART (1633 - 1701)
father of Henrietta FITZJAMES
father of Henrietta FITZJAMES
Charles I STUART (1600 - 1649)
father of James II and VII STUART
father of James II and VII STUART
James I and VI STUART (1566 - 1625)
father of Charles I STUART
father of Charles I STUART
Mary, Queen of Scots SCOTLAND (1542 - 1587)
mother of James I and VI STUART
mother of James I and VI STUART
James V of SCOTLAND (1512 - 1542)
father of Mary, Queen of Scots SCOTLAND
father of Mary, Queen of Scots SCOTLAND
Margaret Tudor (1489 - 1541)
mother of James V of SCOTLAND
mother of James V of SCOTLAND
Elizabeth of York Plantagenet (1466 - 1503)
mother of Margaret Tudor
mother of Margaret Tudor
Edward IV House of York Plantagenet (1442 - 1483)
father of Elizabeth of York Plantagenet
father of Elizabeth of York Plantagenet
Cecily De Neville
mother of Edward IV House of York Plantagenet
mother of Edward IV House of York Plantagenet
Ralph De Neville (1364 - 1425)
father of Cecily De Neville
father of Cecily De Neville
George 1st Baron Latimer de NEVILLE (1407 - 1469)
son of Ralph De Neville
son of Ralph De Neville
I relate to Prince Harry through our shared ancestor George de Neville, 1st Baron Latimer, through his father, Ralph De Neville on both his parents' family trees.
And as it turns out I am also related to Meghan Markle. She's my 21st cousin 2 x removed.
Rachel Meghan MARKLE (1981 - )
21st cousin 2x removed
21st cousin 2x removed
Thomas Wayne MARKLE (1944 - )
father of Rachel Meghan MARKLE
father of Rachel Meghan MARKLE
Doris Mary Rita SANDERS (1920 - 2011)
mother of Thomas Wayne MARKLE
mother of Thomas Wayne MARKLE
Gertrude May MERRILL (1887 - 1938)
mother of Doris Mary Rita SANDERS
mother of Doris Mary Rita SANDERS
George David MERRILL (1862 - 1924)
father of Gertrude May MERRILL
father of Gertrude May MERRILL
Mary Hussey SMITH
mother of George David MERRILL
mother of George David MERRILL
John SMITH
father of Mary Hussey SMITH
father of Mary Hussey SMITH
Martha DRAKE
mother of John SMITH
mother of John SMITH
Abraham Drake
father of Martha DRAKE
father of Martha DRAKE
Jane LUNT
mother of Abraham Drake
mother of Abraham Drake
Jane BROWNE
mother of Jane LUNT
mother of Jane LUNT
Jane SKEPPER
mother of Jane BROWNE
mother of Jane BROWNE
Rev. William SKEPPER
father of Jane SKEPPER
father of Jane SKEPPER
Edward SKEPPER
father of Rev. William SKEPPER
father of Rev. William SKEPPER
Joan LEGARD (1530 - 1585)
mother of Edward SKEPPER
mother of Edward SKEPPER
Isabel HILDYARD (1498 - 1540)
mother of Joan LEGARD
mother of Joan LEGARD
Joan de la SEE
mother of Isabel HILDYARD
mother of Isabel HILDYARD
Elisabeth Wentworth (1480 - 1540)
mother of Joan de la SEE
mother of Joan de la SEE
Sir Henry of Nettlestead WENTWORTH (1445 - 1500)
father of Elisabeth Wentworth
father of Elisabeth Wentworth
Lady Mary De Clifford, Baroness Wentworth le Despenser (1416 - 1478)
mother of Sir Henry of Nettlestead WENTWORTH
mother of Sir Henry of Nettlestead WENTWORTH
Lady Elizabeth Ann Percy, of North Cumberland, Baroness of Clifford, Countess of Westmoreland (1395 - 1436)
mother of Lady Mary De Clifford, Baroness Wentworth le Despenser
mother of Lady Mary De Clifford, Baroness Wentworth le Despenser
Elizabeth de Camoys (1371 - 1417)
mother of Lady Elizabeth Ann Percy, of North Cumberland, Baroness of Clifford, Countess of Westmoreland
mother of Lady Elizabeth Ann Percy, of North Cumberland, Baroness of Clifford, Countess of Westmoreland
Philippa Plantagenet (1355 - 1381)
mother of Elizabeth de Camoys
mother of Elizabeth de Camoys
Lionel of Antwerp Plantagenet (1338 - 1368)
father of Philippa Plantagenet
father of Philippa Plantagenet
Edward III Plantagenet (1312 - 1377)
father of Lionel of Antwerp Plantagenet
father of Lionel of Antwerp Plantagenet
John of Gaunt (1st Duke of Lancaster) Plantagenet (1340 - 1399)
son of Edward III Plantagenet
son of Edward III Plantagenet
Joan de Beaufort Countess of Westmorland (1375 - 1440)
daughter of John of Gaunt (1st Duke of Lancaster) Plantagenet
daughter of John of Gaunt (1st Duke of Lancaster) Plantagenet
George 1st Baron Latimer de NEVILLE (1407 - 1469)
son of Joan de Beaufort Countess of Westmorland
son of Joan de Beaufort Countess of Westmorland
Meghan and I are also direct descendants of Edward III.
Good ol' Edward III
So this means Harry and Megan are also related to each other via many different lines of ancestry but nothing too close. I believe their closest shared ancestor is Ralph Bowes of Streatlam 1480-1516 which would make them 15th cousins.
Since my invite never arrived(I am "family" after all, right?) I will assume that the English postal system or USPS lost it somewhere along the line. sniff*sniff*
And all this other talk about this union being so historic as the Royal Family is having someone of African ancestry marry into the bloodline?
It's true that Meghan is bi-racial, her father is "white", her mother is "black"(actually her mother is bi-racial--not black as many of her direct ancestors are listed as "mulatto" in federal censuses) but this is NOT the first instance of ethnic ancestry being injected into the English Royal Family.
I posted about Queen Elizabeth II having a direct ancestral connection to the Profit Muhammad back in March HERE.
This line of descent connects her(and me)to various Spanish Royals so there has already been much Hispanic blood flowing through the veins of English royalty.
The first known royal with "African" ancestry was Queen Consort Charlotte Sophia of Mecklenburg-Strelitz who married King George III(the monarch we colonies revolted against).
This is one of the portraits of Charlotte painted by Allan Ramsay painted in 1761 when she was 17 years old not long after her marriage to George III. There are eye witness descriptions of her looks that allude to her African genes. If you look at the genealogical records you will find that Charlotte was descended from a branch of the Portugese family through Alfonso III. Alfonso's armies captured the Moorish town of Faro and demanded the Governor's daughter as a "spoil of war". The Governor's daughter, Ouruana, went on to have three children by Alfonso III. Martin, one of Alfonso and Ouruana's sons married into the de Sousa line. This noble line also held African ancestors so Charlotte owed her ethnic roots to both her paternal and maternal lines.
Interestingly enough, at the time of Charlotte's wedding, the question of slavery and it's abolishment was swirling around England(and also the civilized world). Allan Ramsay, the painter of many portraits of Queen Charlotte, was an ardent abolitionist on this issue. He was married to the niece of Lord Mansfield who ruled in 1772 that slavery within the British Empire should be abolished.
Allan Ramsay was also Uncle by marriage to Lord Mansfield's grand niece, Dido Elizabeth Lindsay.
Dido's father was Sir John Lindsay, the brother of Margaret Lindsay, who became Allan Ramsay's second wife. John and Margaret's mother was the sister of Lord Mansfield....got that?
Portrait of Dido and her cousin Elizabeth Murray, painted in a Zophanian style, now attributed to English artist David Martin.
You may have seen the feature film they made about the life of this child of naval officer and nobility member Sir John Lindsay and a captured slave from the West Indies named Maria Belle called "Belle" back in 2014.
And it seems fitting that Meghan will take her vows and become Princess in the very same place that Queen Charlotte is buried-St. George's Chapel in Windsor Palace.
If you want to see the pedigree of both Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and how they are related(at least their closest connection)go HERE.
Sluggy
I couldn't get it out of my head that they were getting married on the anniversary of Anne Boleyn's execution. If I'm not mistaken, I saw the bride walk right over Henry VIII's tomb as she marched down the aisle. Can't say for sure, as I've never been to St. George's Chapel. I planned to with each of my trips to the U.K., but always wound up staying far too long revisiting/studying other favorite haunts.)
ReplyDeleteMeg, they did walk over his and Jane Seymour's grave.
DeleteInteresting side note: The first Duke of Sussex was an ardent Abolitionist, too.
If it were anyone else, I would swear you made this stuff up. I am quite sure your invitation was lost in the mail. I read about Charlotte and her ancestry. Interesting stuff.
ReplyDeleteI can't BELIEVE your invitation didn't arrive in time - why wasn't it hand delivered? At least you could watch it on TV :)
ReplyDeleteOf course you are related to them!
ReplyDeleteI am saddened your invitation did not arrive. I just hope you had not spent too much time and money getting your wedding chapeau from your custom milliner in advance.
Well the "fascinator" is going back to the hat shop and I won't be Fedex-ing those gold trimmed fish plates as a wedding gift. Humph!
DeleteEdward III and Ralph deNeville... there you go, we are cousins after all.
ReplyDeleteCousin!
DeleteWell, when your kiddos get married, at least you now know what family members NOT to invite! Their invites can get "lost" in the mail too! How rude of them to exclude you from such an important family event!
ReplyDeleteAhh, the Sluggy detective in full force. Oprah was invited but not you. Their loss.
ReplyDeleteYou prepared that lovely hat and know invite? I don't get it?
ReplyDeleteThanks for finally talking about >"Another Royal Wedding....Oh Goody!" <Loved it!
ReplyDelete