yertle-the-turtle
ONE love, blood, life
http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5478,8267351%5E662,00.html
Royal battle of Hastings
By CHRISTOPHER WILSON
28dec03
MICHAEL Hastings, 62, a widower from Jerilderie, in southern NSW, has just been told he and his ancestors are, in all probability, the true inheritors of the English throne.
"Just call me Mike," says Mr Hastings, "everyone else does."
I am talking to the last great Plantagenet - the man who, it is claimed, should by rights be King Michael I of England and living in Buckingham Palace.
Instead, he is in a T-shirt and shorts, sitting in a bungalow with a glass of beer in hand after a hard day's work.
This is no joke but historical fact, based on startling research by leading historians.
Dr Michael Jones, an acclaimed historical biographer, believes he has proved a vital fact that should bring shudders to the Queen and her family: their right to rule is based on a lie that has been perpetuated for more than 500 years. It comes down to the fact that King Edward IV, who reigned from 1461 to 1483, was not of royal blood - he was the illegitimate son of a French archer.
This single fact invalidates the claim to sovereignty of the most famous of English monarchs, from Elizabeth I to Charles II to Victoria and the Georges.
For if Edward IV was illegitimate - and Dr Jones believes he has found the proof - the heirs of his younger brother, George, Duke of Clarence, are the rightful inheritors of the English throne.
Dr Jones said: "The consequences are staggering. It's exhilarating and terrifying in equal measure."
But "King" Mike is not quite as Australian as his rich accent suggests. Born in England and educated at posh Ampleforth School, he is the 14th Earl of Loudon, a direct descendant of George, Duke of Clarence, and possessor of a string of lesser titles. Grand though his lineage is, he says that in Australia it is bad enough being a Pom, let alone a titled one, and in his early days as a jackaroo he kept his background secret.
The crucial evidence comes from a document Dr Jones recently discovered in the library of Rouen Cathedral in France.
It proves, he says, that at the time of Edward IV's conception, his parents were 200km apart.
Edward's "father", Richard, Duke of York, was leading a skirmishing party against the French at Pontoise, near Paris. Edward's mother, Lady Cicely Neville - based at Rouen - was apparently deeply engrossed in the company of a local archer.
Mr Hastings didn't realise his claim to the throne until Dr Jones and the TV crew contacted him.
"Strewth!" was his reaction.
Will he be returning to Britain, to his birthright and all those palaces, money and servants?
"No," he says slowly, "I don't think so. I love Australia."
Royal battle of Hastings
By CHRISTOPHER WILSON
28dec03
MICHAEL Hastings, 62, a widower from Jerilderie, in southern NSW, has just been told he and his ancestors are, in all probability, the true inheritors of the English throne.
"Just call me Mike," says Mr Hastings, "everyone else does."
I am talking to the last great Plantagenet - the man who, it is claimed, should by rights be King Michael I of England and living in Buckingham Palace.
Instead, he is in a T-shirt and shorts, sitting in a bungalow with a glass of beer in hand after a hard day's work.
This is no joke but historical fact, based on startling research by leading historians.
Dr Michael Jones, an acclaimed historical biographer, believes he has proved a vital fact that should bring shudders to the Queen and her family: their right to rule is based on a lie that has been perpetuated for more than 500 years. It comes down to the fact that King Edward IV, who reigned from 1461 to 1483, was not of royal blood - he was the illegitimate son of a French archer.
This single fact invalidates the claim to sovereignty of the most famous of English monarchs, from Elizabeth I to Charles II to Victoria and the Georges.
For if Edward IV was illegitimate - and Dr Jones believes he has found the proof - the heirs of his younger brother, George, Duke of Clarence, are the rightful inheritors of the English throne.
Dr Jones said: "The consequences are staggering. It's exhilarating and terrifying in equal measure."
But "King" Mike is not quite as Australian as his rich accent suggests. Born in England and educated at posh Ampleforth School, he is the 14th Earl of Loudon, a direct descendant of George, Duke of Clarence, and possessor of a string of lesser titles. Grand though his lineage is, he says that in Australia it is bad enough being a Pom, let alone a titled one, and in his early days as a jackaroo he kept his background secret.
The crucial evidence comes from a document Dr Jones recently discovered in the library of Rouen Cathedral in France.
It proves, he says, that at the time of Edward IV's conception, his parents were 200km apart.
Edward's "father", Richard, Duke of York, was leading a skirmishing party against the French at Pontoise, near Paris. Edward's mother, Lady Cicely Neville - based at Rouen - was apparently deeply engrossed in the company of a local archer.
Mr Hastings didn't realise his claim to the throne until Dr Jones and the TV crew contacted him.
"Strewth!" was his reaction.
Will he be returning to Britain, to his birthright and all those palaces, money and servants?
"No," he says slowly, "I don't think so. I love Australia."
