Ireland has had a complicated history with the Crown and the Royal Family, but just like our ability to find the only Irish pub to visit on a holiday abroad, we also have an incredible talent for finding connections to the homeland for anyone that we meet.
The British Royal Family are no different.
And these are not just tedious, "I know someone who used to own the pub where they stayed" connections, these are concrete links going back into Irish history.
Queen Elizabeth II
The current reigning monarch in the UK, can be traced back to Ireland's own High King Brian Boru, who ruled from 1002 to 1014, when he was defeated in the Battle of Clontarf.
Queen Elizabeth is descended from the High King through her mother's side of the family, Elizabeth Bowes Lyon, who herself was a descendant of the Irish-born Duke of Wellington.
Prince Charles
Prince Charles, Queen Elizabeth's oldest son, has two links to the Irish High King Brian Boru.
According to local archivist John Kirwan who wrote to the Prince at his Clarence House residence, he said: "One is from Brian Boru's son Teige while the other is from Boru's granddaughter Dearbforgail."
"[The lines] descend down through the McMorrough Kavanaghs, kings of Leinster, including Dermot McMorrough Kavanagh who enlisted the help of the Normans to regain his Leinster throne c. 1169-71.”
It has since been explained that High King Brian Boru was the ancestor of every English monarch from 1399 to the present, by DCU Dr Mark Humphreys.
"Almost certainly, more people in England can prove descent from Brian Boru than people in Ireland," said Dr Humphreys to the Irish Times.
Kate Middelton
The current Duchess of Cambridge also has links to the Emerald Isle through a prominent Irish noble family, Fitzmaurices of Co Kerry and also has genealogical links to the Irish singer Chris de Burgh.
The Fitzmaurices themselves, have links back to our very popular Irish High King Brian Boru.
Meghan Markle
The wife of Prince Harry, Meghan Markle has been shown to have Irish roots, including a Dublin wedding and Belfast catholic great-great-great grandparent.
The former Duchess of Sussex in fact has Irish ancestors in the form of Thomas Bird and Mary McCague, who were married in Donnybrook, Dublin in 1860, thanks to Fiona Fitzsimons and Helen Moss of the genealogical research group Eneclann.
Speaking on their findings, they told The Irish Daily Mirror : “Our research for the Duchess of Sussex started when we discovered the 1860 civil marriage certificate of Thomas Bird and Mary McCague, Meghan Markle’s great–great–great grandparents.
"It was known that Thomas Bird was in the army but no–one had thought to examine whether he might have served and married his Irish wife in Ireland.
“The 1860 civil marriage certificate and the entry in the Donnybrook Church of Ireland marriage register were important – they told us the name and occupation of Mary McCague’s father, Francis McCague, a farmer."
