Rope Family History page 1 of 12 Rope Family History Some thoughts on genealogy At previous reunions we had access to a family tree that went back to Edward II. It was a single line someone had established back from Edward Mingay Rope. In reality our ancestry is represented more like a circle than a line. If we were to place any of the first New Zealand generation of Ropes at the centre (in my case, Ted), off to one side we have his mum Emma Morely Powell, and off to the left, we have Edward Mingay Rope, by the time we go back 20 generations, (to the late 1200s) Ted Rope would have over one million ancestors. Ted So now we have a family tree that looks a little like this. We know very little on the Powell side, but the Rope side has been filled out a lot. From Dorothy Wentworth from our original family tree, born in 1532, our tree now fills out dramatically, revealing some fascinating stories. This is thanks to the Latter Day Saints (Mormon) website, Wikipedia and other genealogy sites on the Internet. We knew that we went back to prominent people – which means that their history is recorded and lines of descent are easy to follow. Now we know that we are descended from Vikings (Denmark and Norway), Normans, Spanish, Scots and Irish. And that’s just from this small segment of billions of ancestors. These lines go back to the distant past – AD 160 for the Viking line, and if you follow the Irish line on Wikipedia – it will take you back even further to a place where truth and myth merge. Rope Family History page 2 of 12 Here are some vignettes from some of these lines. The Irish/Scottish line Niall Mor (or Noigiallach) aka Niall of the Nine Hostages lived from about 311 to 378 A.D. He was a King of Ireland. There are several versions of how he succeeded the throne. This version is particularly Irish. In another story, the succession is not settled when Eochaid dies, and Mongfind's brother Crimthann takes the High Kingship. But while he is away on a tour of his lands in Scotland, Mongfind's sons seize Ireland. Crimthann returns to Ireland intending to give battle. Mongfind, purporting to make peace between her brother and her sons, holds a feast, at which she serves Crimthann a poisoned drink. Crimthann refuses to drink it unless she does too; they both drink, and both die. Niall succeeds to the High Kingship, and Brión becomes his second in command. Another version has Mongfind try to poison Niall, but she takes the poison herself by mistake.1 If you check out Niall on Wikipedia you can trace his ancestors back to antiquity. Niall is an ancestor of Duncan I, King of Scotland immortalised as MacBeth’s victim by William Shakespeare. Evidently Shakespeare took quite a lot of poetic license with the story. The early period of Duncan's reign was apparently uneventful, perhaps a consequence of his youth. Macbeth (Mac Bethad mac Findláich) is recorded as his dux, literally duke, but in the context — "dukes of Francia" had half a century before replaced the Carolingian kings of the Franks and in England the over-mighty Godwin of Wessex was called a dux — this suggests that Macbeth was the power behind the throne. In 1039, Duncan led a large Scots army south to besiege Durham, but the expedition ended in disaster. Duncan survived, but the following year he led an army north into Moray, traditionally seen as Macbeth's domain. There he was killed, at Pitgaveny near Elgin, by his own men led by Macbeth, probably on 14 August 1040.2 It appears that Duncan may have been one of our many incompetent ancestors. (It’s a miracle that we are here at all). Figure 1: Some Scots of the time settling a political issue3 1 from Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niall_of_the_Nine_Hostages#cite_note- mackillop-8 2 from Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duncan_I_of_Scotland 3 from http://www.armchairgeneral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=59716&page=10 Rope Family History page 3 of 12 The Viking Connection If we follow Edward the First’s line back through his ancestors it looks like this Edward I Henry III King John Matilda Henry II Empress of Henry I Germany Norman and William the Norse Conquorer ancestors Note that Henry I’s wife Matilda Princess of Scotland is King Duncan’s granddaughter. William the Conqueror’s direct ancestors were Dukes of Nomandy, going back to Rollo, immortalised as one of the “six dukes” in this statue in the Normandy town Falaise4. Normandy is named after the Norsemen who conquered the region. In 885, Rollo was one of the lesser leaders of the Viking fleet which besieged Paris under Sigfred second official king of the Danes. Legend has it that an emissary was sent by the king to find the chieftain and negotiate terms. When he asked for this information, the Vikings replied that they were all chieftains in their own right. In 886, when Sigfred retreated in return for tribute, Rollo stayed behind and was eventually bought off and sent to harry Burgundy. 4 image from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Rollo_statue_in_falaise.JPG Rope Family History page 4 of 12 Later, he returned to the Seine with his followers (known as Danes, or Norsemen). He invaded the area of northern France now known as Normandy. In 911 Rollo's forces were defeated at the Battle of Chartres by the troops of King Charles the Simple. In the aftermath of the battle, rather than pay Rollo to leave, as was customary, Charles the Simple understood that he could no longer hold back their onslaught, and decided to give Rollo the coastal lands they occupied under the condition that he defend against other raiding Vikings. In the Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte (911) with King Charles, Rollo pledged feudal allegiance to the king, changed his name to the Frankish version, and converted to Christianity, probably with the baptismal name Robert.5 Rollo apparently regretted his conversion to Christianity. As he approached his death he went mad and had 100 Christians beheaded to appease his Norse Gods. Rollo’s (and our) ancestors include Sveidi “the sea king” Svidrasson, born about 650 and Frosti Karasson King in Kvenland (born about 240 AD. This branch of our tree goes back to 160 AD. 6 5 from Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rollo 6 image from http://nemomeme.livejournal.com/ Rope Family History page 5 of 12 The Plantagenets of Medieval England This was a fascinating era. Medieval England was becoming quite sophisticated. Cities were growing and there was significant specialisation of trades and skills. The Norman’s bought their brand of feudalism to influence the existing Saxon feudalism. Serfs and villeins were obliged to serve their feudal lords, especially through supporting military campaigns and in taxes. Richard Lionheart and his brother John were both Kings of England. John spent most of his time overseas, notably during the Crusades. If you recall the stories of Robin Hood, Richard was loved by his people (so the story goes) and John was despised. We are descended from John. The Pope excommunicated him. John was remarkably incompetent and was so unpopular that he was a catalyst for the development of the Magna Carta. He signed it under duress. John’s grandson, Edward the First, was called the “Hammer of the Scots” and “Longshanks”. Edward was a Crusader and during his reign, the Crusaders finally lost their long battle with the Moors. Figure 2: I visited Acca (Acre) in 2008. The bottom story of the citadel has been excavated to reveal the Crusader's fortifications Edward I was a tall man for his age, hence the nickname "Longshanks". He was also temperamental and this, along with his height, made him an intimidating man and he often instilled fear in his contemporaries. Nevertheless, he held the respect of his subjects for the way in which he embodied the medieval ideal of kingship, both as a soldier, administrator and a man of faith. Modern historians have been more divided on their assessment of the king; while some have praised him for his contribution to the law and administration, others have criticised him for his uncompromising attitude to his nobility. Currently, Edward I is credited with many accomplishments during his reign, including restoring royal authority after the reign of Henry III, establishing parliament as a permanent institution and thereby also a functional system for raising taxes, and reforming the law through statutes. At the same time, he is also often criticised for other actions, such as his brutal conduct towards the Scots, and the expulsion of the Jews from England in 1290.7 7 from Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_I_of_England Rope Family History page 6 of 12 Our original family tree stops at Edward III. Perhaps that was because Edward II was gay and very unpopular. The man who is purported to be his lover, Hugh le Despenser, was even more unpopular. Hugh was cruel and avaricious. When Edward was deposed by his wife and Roger Mortimer, and Despenser lost the protection of the king, he was executed in a variety of ways. Edward also met an undignified end. Edward II’s forces were defeated by Robert the Bruce (the “flower of Scotland”) at Bannockburn. Edward had 16,000 men and the Bruce had 6,500. (Ironically, Robert the Bruce could well be an ancestor of mine).