Not a favourite of the royal family: how Meghan’s ancestor met a grisly fate...
HER royal love story could yet end with a fairytale wedding.
But a 16th-century ancestor of actress Meghan Markle wasn’t so fortunate in his dealings with the royal family.
For Lord Hussey, 1st Baron Hussey of Sleaford, went from being knighted for his loyalty to Henry VIII to being beheaded on the king’s orders, it has been revealed. The fascinating genealogical chapter has emerged from research carried out by Michael Reed, an Australian teacher and amateur historian. The ill-fated Lord Hussey was the great-great-grandfather of Christopher Hussey, who left England in 1632 to help found Nantucket, Massachusetts.
It was this line of the family that eventually led to Meghan Markle being born in 1981 in Los Angeles, California. But back in Henry VIII’s reign, the Hussey family initially saw their stock rise through royal patronage and then spectacularly fall. According to a report of Mr Reed’s findings, Lord Hussey (born 1465) was knighted in the field for his loyalty to the King at the Battle of Blackheath.
He then worked as a diplomatic envoy, made esquire of the body – a personal attendant and courtier to the King – and chamberlain to the King’s daughter, Princess Mary. He was later present at the christening of Princess Elizabeth, carrying the canopy over her. Unfortunately his fall from favour was to follow after the 1536 Pilgrimage of Grace, a rebellion against Henry VIII that he failed to put down.
Lord Hussey was found guilty of treason, imprisoned in the Tower and eventually executed.
Mr Reed came across evidence during his research that the Markle family may already be aware of the fascinating ancestry. He found independent research by a Mike Markle, believed to be the actress’s great uncle, from 20 years ago.