LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - NOVEMBER 27: (EMBARGOED FOR PUBLICATION IN UK NEWSPAPERS UNTIL 24 HOURS AFTER CREATE DATE AND TIME) Prince Harry and Meghan Markle attend an official photocall to announce their engagement at The Sunken Gardens, Kensington Palace on November 27, 2017 in London, England. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been a couple officially since November 2016 and are due to marry in Spring 2018. (Photo by Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)
Royal watchers were thrilled to learn of Prince Harry’s engagement to American Meghan Markle. Their romance appears to be what dreams are made of. Not many American girls grow up thinking they will marry a Prince, but that is exactly what is happening to Meghan Markle.
But, a closer look at who Prince Harry and Meghan are has unearthed an interesting fact. Despite growing up on different continents, Prince Harry and his American fiancee are actually distant cousins.
This engaged couple is related by a 15th century relative of Queen Elizabeth. High Sheriff of County Durham Ralph Bowes was born in 1480. His family seat was Streatlam Castle. This makes Harry and Meghan cousins!
Ralph’s estate was passed onto Sir George Bowes and Bridget Bowes. Centuries later, another of their descendants became a household name. Lady Elizabeth Bowes Lyon became known across the globe as The Queen Mother and also the Queen Mum. She was Queen Elizabeth’s mother who passed away in 2002.
Meghan is descended from Ralph Bowes through her father. Bridget Bowes married John Hussey. Their grandson Christopher Hussey went to the New World in 1632 and helped found Nantucket, Massachusetts. Centuries later, one of his descendants is Doris Sanders, who is Meghan’s paternal grandmother.
A link this many generations back makes them far removed and of no concern genetically, but this is an interesting fact as Meghan and her family were likely unaware they are related to the Queen of England. The Royal family tree has many branches and Harry’s fiancee was on one of them. The breakdown of the relation is below!
The engagement has sparked a lot of interest because of their different backgrounds, outside of being 15th cousins. Also of interest is the fact that their courtship was done a bit in reverse. They kept things private and didn’t become public until their engagement. This allowed them to really get to know each other better and gave them the privacy that other royal relationships haven’t had.
The engaged couple’s first interview is below.
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Source: LAD Bible, Daily Mail
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