 |
|
Are You the King of Scotland?
Michael Stewart thinks he is, and he’s got evidence to back it up.
In his book The Forgotten Monarchy of Scotland he outlines
his case, arguing: "I may not be able to unify the entire nation,
but as the rightful Prince and High Steward of the Scots, and as the direct
senior descendant of our Patriot King, Robert the Bruce, I can certainly
help to encourage Scotland’s traditional spirit of self-determination
and independence." Basically, Prince Michael James Alexander Stewart,
7th Count of Albany, claims to be the real successor to the Stuarts, Kings
of Scotland and then England until the House of Hanover ascended in 1714.
|
|
 |
Who
is Michael Stewart? He was born in Belgium on April 21, 1958 and was raised
at the Château du Moulin in the Ardennes. He had succeeded to the
‘de jure’ Stewart throne in 1963, upon the death of his great-uncle,
Prince Anthony James Stewart. Prince Michael thus became 7th Count of
Albany, Count Stuarton, Duke of Kendal and Kintyre, 26th Lord High Steward
of Scotland, and Head of the Royal House of Stewart. Prince Michael was
son of Princess Renée Stewart, also Lady Dernley and Princess Royal
of Strathearn. His father was Baron Gustave Joseph Clement Fernand Lafosse
de Chatry, Comte de Blois.
Many dispute his case, and it’s a minefield for genealogists. But,
as Stuart Fleming from the Scottish Genealogical Society points out,
"Many Scots may have had a link to landed gentry so it’s worth
investigating Burke’s Peerage and the Scottish Dictionary of Biography
(an early Who’s Who), even if you're unlikely to inherit a stately
pile, or even a Kingdom!"
Next in the Histories series here.
Thanks to
Harper Collins, all rights reserved.
|
|
|
