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The topic of race has dominated conversations around the royal family since it was first announced that Prince Harry was engaged to Meghan Markle, a Métis woman.
Talks further erupted when the couple revealed in an explosive interview with Oprah earlier this year that their son Archie’s skin color was a concern for a member of the Royal Family.
Long before such conversations dominated social media, however, there was a member of the royal family who some believed to be the first black monarch.
Queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was Queen of England and Ireland from 1761 until her death in 1818.
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She was also the wife of King George III, both of German descent, but questions have arisen as to whether the 19th-century monarch had African ancestors.
Historian Mario de Valdes y Cocom maintains that the former queen, from her portraits, had features suggesting an African heritage. He also claims that Queen Charlotte was a direct descendant of the black branches of a Portuguese royal family linked to a 15th century nobleman, Margarita de Castro e Souza, whose ancestry dates back to the 13th century ruler Alfonso III and his partner. Madragana whom Valdes declares to be a Moor. – maybe a black African.
If Queen Charlotte does indeed have a black heritage, that means our royals today, including Prince William and Prince Harry, also have a black heritage.
However, this might be quite exaggerated as many historians disagree with Valdes’ theory that the generational difference (over nine generations) between Charlotte and her African roots makes the suggestion unconvincing. Moreover, the evidence that Alfonso III’s lover, Madragana, was black may be insufficient.
The earliest claims of Queen Charlotte’s biracial heritage date back to the 1810s, when German physician Christian Friedrich said Charlotte was “short and crooked with a real mulatto face.” This was largely based on a portrait by painter Allan Ramsay where many comments were made regarding Charlotte’s “heavy lips” and “wide nostrils”.
Whether Queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz really has a black heritage is still not confirmed, so the title of first black monarch is still up for grabs.
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