Almost one in five people living in Bristol believe they are related to the Royal Family. This is according to ancestry.co.uk, which revealed that 19% of British people believe they have a royal connection.
With the Coronation celebrations set to kick off, the website - which traces family histories through DNA - said the names most likely to have some connection to the crown includes Howard, Seymour, Percy, Byron, Grosvenor and Fitzroy.
Brad Argent, family history expert at Ancestry and presenter on ITV’s DNA Journey, said: “With the right information, it’s entirely possible to trace your roots back to nobility and the Royal Family. The combination of the digitisation of billions of records, millions of family trees being created every year, plus a growing number of people doing DNA tests, means it’s more likely now than at any other time in history that people will be able to trace their lineage back to nobility and find a royal connection.”
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He added that as well as potential connections to royalty, there may be many other links indicating past family members were close to royals. He said: “It’s important not to underestimate the incredible stories waiting to be discovered about how our ancestors may have been connected to the crown via their work or proximity to nobility.
“Careers working for large aristocratic houses of Great Britain were often passed down through generations and our collection of records is a great place to uncover untold stories of royal connection.
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Dr Michala Hulme, a lecturer in British history from the University of Birmingham, said: “With the impending coronation of King Charles III, you might be wondering what your family were doing during the previous coronations? Were they part of the celebrations, or were they part of the Royal entourage?”
Ancestry’s top tips to get started on your family tree are:
- Parish records, census document, birth certificates and military records.
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- Look out for names in your family tree which are found in trees of nobility. If you find linked names, search for signs of wealth such as checking land and business holdings. Wills and probate records are also useful, as well as searching for records of ancestors who travelled first class, which would definitely be a sign of money and status
- Talk to your oldest living relatives and tap into their knowledge to get further information and confirm details. This is useful for information which can be missing - especially for female ancestors whose work was not captured on official public record.
- Consult published royal family trees and see if you can make any connection between your ancestors and descendants of the monarchy. For example, Ancestry holds a database Plantagenet Roll of the Blood Royal which traces the descendants of King Edward III (1312 - 1377)
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