Royal Families - France - 768 to 1848

French Royal Families - 768 to 1848

I've elected to start the French Lineage with Charlemagne (Charles the 1st). There were kings before him, but Charlemagne is recognized as uniting the majority of western and central Europe and was the first recognized emperor to rule from western Europe since the fall of the Western Roman Empire around three centuries earlier, and in 768 becoming King of the Francs. I am likely related to Charlemagne, but have not yet found that connection.

My entry into the French rulers is via Eadgifu of Wessex, the sister of Edward the Elder, King of the Anglo-Saxons from 899 to 924, who was my 32nd Great-Grandfather. France then entered into a period where monarchs were succeeded from different houses, and I have not yet discovered any relationships. In 1226, Louis IX ascended the Throne, the son of Louis VIII, who ties back to Edward the Elder. From that point on, my family has direct ties to the French Royalty until the end of the French Monarchy, starting with the proclamation of the First Republic;

I have (so far) focused on documenting the legitimate families of the Monarchs - they were very prolific with both the number of mistresses and their issue, so at this point I haven't got to the point of documenting some of the more famous, such as The Man in the Iron Mask, made famous by Alexandre Dumas (pere) in The Vicomte of Bragelonne: Ten Years Later, the final installment of his D'Artagnan saga - a series I read several times growing up. Although the name of this prisoner is unknown, various candidates include being Louis XIV's older (illigimate) brother or his twin. Note that the mask was likely black velvet cloth - Voltaire was responsible for suggesting that it was iron, which frankly made for a more exciting story.

My cousin Louis XIV has the longest recorded Monarchy in recorded history - and will unless my cousin Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom overtakes him in 2024.