That certainly explains his intense interest as well.Ībout two years ago Ky started posting a daily diary of events that happened in medieval times in several FaceBook groups. Ky has gateway ancestors for 3 of his 4 grandparents. Ky has been compiling names, dates, and places, with documentation, for his entire adult life. Ok, so far we have a lot in common…well at least that medieval knight part. He has always found tales of family history, medieval history, and knights in shining armor to be irresistible. Ky White has a BS degree in Weapons Systems Engineering from the US Military Academy and an MA in History from Sam Houston State University. I never expected that.Īnd just because I needed to know… who was Ky, this man I was willing to send Paypal money to unmet and sight unseen? I explained to him my quandary…and much to my surprise…Ky offered to help me. However, I saw a few more of these charts and I DESPERATELY wanted one, so I decided to drop a note to Ky (rhymes with sky), the man making these pieces of art. Imagine my big 24X36 frameable chart with me at one end and King Edward I at the other end and a few scatters in-between. I’m a visual person and I wanted one, in the worst way, but I didn’t have nearly enough of my genealogy done. Then, one day on the Facebook Magna Carta group, someone showed a dramatic, stunningly beautiful chart of their royal connections…beginning with them. Now, I just had to put the pieces together, not search for the pieces of needles in a huge scavenger hunt haystack. Wow, was I overwhelmed, both by the sheer volume of information, and the fact that…glory be….the research has for the most part been done. And all this from one man who lived about 1200 years ago and was exceedingly prolific. Now, if what National Geographic reports is true, and you’re descended from Charlemagne, you’re cousins with everyone in contemporary Europe except for newcomers. I kept discovering that I was related to more and more people, like more Kings…King John, King Henry II and III, William the Conqueror, Alfred the Great, Kenneth MacAlpin, King of Scots, King Louis VI, VII and VIII of France…and yes… Charlemagne too. But, all of a sudden I have developed an intense interest and I just couldn’t soak up all of the information fast enough. They discussed the most interesting topics, and with the upcoming anniversary of the signing of the Magna Carta, the educational factor was what I’ll just call “spongeworthy.” Given that I had no particular reason to be interested in British royalty before, I wasn’t. I discovered the Magna Carta Facebook group and joined. That is, after all, how you kept the money, power and crown in the family. That’s because European royalty is all related to each other like a big ole kudzu vine. Little did I know that was only the tip of the iceberg. I started slowly working my way backward, after ordering boxes worth of reference material, and not long thereafter, discovered that I was descended, much to my surprise, from King Edward the First, also known as Longshanks. A gateway ancestor is considered to be an American or colonial settler who descends from documented royalty. I learned about a year ago that indeed, I did have a gateway ancestor through Sarah Ludlow born about 1640 in Fairfield, Connecticut, who married Nathaniel Brewster. You’re at least in the door, but you still have to figure out how all of that royalty ties together, and there is a lot of misinformation and wishful thinking out there, believe me. You see, once you tie into the royal lines with what is known as a gateway ancestor, you’re home free…well…kind of. King John (below), the King who signed the Magna Carta (above), and not really by choice, is my ancestor. It would have been like a virtual family reunion. Gosh, I wish I could have been there, as I could have met several cousins. Somehow, it’s fitting that this past week was the 800 th anniversary of the signing of the Magna Carta at Runnymede. Well, now I have to unwhine, because I have hit the ancestor lottery – and I mean the Mega-Millions Jackpot. Not long ago, I was whining to a friend that I hadn’t found a new ancestor in a long time.
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