With an awareness of European aristocracy in the family tree, and with the understanding that the European aristocracy has been ridiculously incestuous over the centuries, it shouldn’t be so surprising to discover that, not only do I descend from famous and infamous rulers of Europe, but I descend from several individuals through multiple branches. Researching the noble part of the family has turned into a tangled connect-the-dots, where I learn (again and again) how far back I can go in a branch before I come across names already in another branch of the tree.
Of course, my connection to all of these people has absolutely no impact on the current day. I’m hardly expecting to get any perks or inherit responsibilities from the modern-day royal houses of Europe. But I still find it interesting.
Out of Charlemagne’s 17 children, 3 of them are my ancestors: Louis I "the Pious" of the Franks, Adeltrude du Maine, and Pepin Carolingian of Italy. Two of Pepin’s children are my ancestors. One of Adeltrude’s children is my ancestor. Five of Louis’s children are my ancestors.
I’m hardly the only one alive today who has discovered they are blood relations of Charlemagne. Charlemagne had a lot of children. With 40-ish generations between him and people alive today, it’s theoretically possible that everyone with European ancestry is a relative of the man. Adam Rutherford, writing for the Guardian, published this article about it.
Charlemagne and his lineage are not the only ones in my family tree who had gene-damaging marriages. But to stick to Charlemagne for the moment, I examined how he is related to me. My connection to Charlemagne can be traced back through my mother’s ancestors. (Note: Some sources I’ve found say I am descended from Charlemagne through my father’s side of the family, too, but other sources say this is false. That’s fine with me.) Here is how Charlemagne’s descendants led to Hugh Wake (the ancestor I thought connected both sides of my family) and then onwards to me.
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