If you go back far enough, you will find out that we are all related. Yes, that is truly possible. But what are the chances that all American presidents are in relation to one another? And to the exact same King of England? Well, that must be an astonishing revelation. And it is all thanks to a 12-year old. She was the one to lay down the all President’s related theory.
The United States has had 44 presidents. Out of those, 43 are in relation to the same King of England. Modern science shows that nearly 4 million people descent of King Edward III. When you think about that, 4 million is a small number compared to the population of the United States of America.
The fact 43 of 44 US Presidents are in relation to one another is an improbable statistic. We are not mathematicians, but the probability should be close to zero.
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How did Everything start?
BridgeAnne d’Avignon was 12 years old when she started doing genealogy research on her lineage. That was back in 2012. During her research, she wanted to try to change the course. She wanted to decipher the genealogy of all Presidents in order in America. Turns out, most of them are King John descendants.
Her research involved more than 500,000 names throughout history. BridgeAnne wanted to find the ancestry of all Presidents, including Democratic Presidents and Republican Presidents. To her surprise, and everyone’s else, her research showed they all trace back to a single person. And that is John Lackland Plantagenet, King of England.
The only president in the presidential bloodline she could not connect was Martin Van Buren. He was the 8th President of the United States.
The remaining 43 presidents are descendants to King John of England. But they are also distant cousins of Elizabeth, the Queen of England. The little girl then created a chart, and she sells it on Amazon.
BridgeAnne asked her 80-year old grandfather to help her. He has been tracing roots for nearly six decades. Before her discovery, genealogists could link only 22 families of presidents. But they put the focus only on male bloodlines. Fun fact: she also found out she is the 18th cousin of then-President Obama.
Recent genetic research suggests that the most common ancestor of Europeans was about 1000 years ago. And since all Presidents have European descent, you can understand how are all Presidents related.
Who is King John?
King John ruled England from 1199 to 1216. He was not an impressive figure in English History. His father Henry II gave him the nickname Lackland. He thought John would never inherit substantial lands.
King John was the third king of the House of Plantagenet. He lost the Duchy of Normandy and most of his other French lands to King Philip II of France. This resulted in the collapse of the Angevin Empire and the growth of power of the French Capetian dynasty.
Due to the baronial revolt at the end of his reign, he had to sign the Magna Carta. Today, this document is one of the most important documents in history. The document established the principle that everyone is subject to the law, including the king. Magna Carta guarantees the rights of individuals, the right to justice, and the right to a fair trial.
Until the revisionism of the 20th century, John was one of the worst kings in history. Writers and historians rarely write about him. He lost wars and land. History points to him as the loser by signing the Magna Carta.
But without Magna Cart, we would not have the rights we have today.
US Presidents Indirect Relatives
Let’s take a look at some of the indirect relatives among US presidents. You will see how all presidents related to King John works. We will not list the Presidents of the United States in chronological order. Instead, we will take a look at their closest relatives.
Second Cousins:
- James Madison and Zachary Taylor
- James Madison and James K. Polk
- Zachary Taylor and James K. Polk
Third Cousins:
- Martin Van Buren and Theodore Roosevelt
- Martin Van Buren and Franklin Roosevelt
- John Adams and Calvin Coolidge
- James Madison and Barack Obama
Fourth Cousins:
- Ulysses Grant and Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Zachary Taylor and Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Franklin Pierce and Calvin Coolidge
- John Adams and William Taft
- James Garfield and George W. Bush
- Millard Fillmore and George H. W. Bush
- Franklin Pierce and Herbert Hoover
Fifth Cousins:
- Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin Roosevelt
- Millard Fillmore and Grover Cleveland
- John Quincy Adams and William Taft
- Franklin Pierce and George H. W. Bush
- Millard Fillmore and Gerald Ford
Sixth Cousins:
- Richard Nixon and Jimmy Carter
- Millard Fillmore and William Taft
- Franklin Pierce and Franklin Roosevelt
- Rutherford Hayes and Gerald Ford
- Rutherford Hayes and George H. W. Bush
- William Taft and George H. W. Bush
- Franklin Roosevelt and George H. W. Bush
Ninth Cousins:
- Warren Harding and Richard Nixon
- Richard Nixon and George H.W. Bush
- Richard Nixon and George W. Bush
- James Knox Polk and Donald Trump
Tenth Cousins:
- Herbert Hoover and George H. W. Bush
- Gerald Ford and Barack Obama
- George H. W. Bush and Barack Obama
- James Monroe and Donald Trump
There are also direct descents in US American presidential history. George H. W. Bush and his son George W. Bush, as well as John Adams and John Quincy Adams, are father and son. William Henry Harrison and Benjamin Harrison are grandfather and grandson.
What is the Lesson?
Looking at the all President’s related chart and list, you have to take a lesson. The worldwide genealogical web is not difficult to spin. There is one common theme in the history of mankind. And that is our ability to get around the planet.
Some examples include:
- The migration of the first Siberian hunter-gatherers into North America
- Conquering armies of Julius Caesar
- Conquering armies of Alexander the Great
- Raping and pillaging hordes of the Vikings and Mongols
- The Empire builders of Spain and Portugal
- Refugees of the Irish Potato Empire
At the end of the day, no matter the language we speak or the color of our skin, we share the same ancestors. Our ancestors planted rice on the banks of the Yangtze, but they also domesticated horses on the steppes of Ukraine.