Charlemagne (747-814) was King of the Franks, King of the Lombards, Emperor of the Carolingian Empire. He had eighteen children with eight of his known wives and concubines (TV didn’t exist, so forget about Netflix…). Among his many descendants are several royal dynasties such as the dynastie capétienne (Capetian dynasty, founded by Hugues Capet (ca 939-996)), the Habsburg dynasty, you, and me!
Charlemagne is my ancestor at the 35th generation, and Hugues Capet at the 30th generation.
If you have discovered ancestors in France, you descend from Charlemagne. It’s just mathematical. And therefore, you have royalty and nobility branches in your tree; and therefore, you and I share some of the same ancestors. Among the many articles and videos found online, here are a few articles to explain this:
Articles in English:
Scientific American: Humans Are All More Closely Related Than We Commonly Think
NPR: Are You Related To King Charlemagne?
National Geographic: Charlemagne’s DNA and Our Universal Royalty
Articles en français :
The Conversation : Vous êtes descendant de Charlemagne, votre voisin aussi
France Inter : Nous descendons tous de Charlemagne… ou presque
This post would be 10 km long if I started to write about his life here, but if you are interested in the life of this man who was so important in Europe, you’ll find tons of information online.
Genealogy
Here is Charlemagne on my Geneanet tree
Here is Hugues Capet on my Geneanet tree.
(FYI: on Geneanet, the little “green circle” on an individual’s picture indicates my direct lineage with them).
My French Lineage 