Alternative King

[battersby]

Did anyone watch this programme last night on Discovery with Tony Robinson? He traced the Plantagent family to the present day and ended up in Australia meeting who could have been the King today had it not been for an ancestor who gambled away all his land etc. Michael,the "alternative king" emigrated to Australia year's ago and said he would never want to king. He's actually anti royal! Fantastic viewing.

[jake-the-peg]

It wasn't that he gambled away his land that was important(that was later in the family history) but rather that Edward IV became king.

The premise of the program was that Edward IV was illegitimate and that if you assumed that he'd not taken the throne who would have been the rightfull king.

Of Course Henry VII had the most dubious claim to the throne and he overthrew Richard III.

Had Edward not become king then George, Duke of Clarence would have become King - he was executed for plotting against his brother Edward.

It is however quite possible that had George become king all that would actually have happened is that Henry would have overthrown him at Bosworth and not his brother Richard.

Good program all the same - it was called Britain's real monarch
http://www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/h istory/i-m/monarch.html

[heathfield]

No, I missed it.

[mightywease]

If you are interested in a fictional version of the Edward IV succession then C.J. Sansom's excellent novel "Sovereign" based in Henry VIII's time uses this as a central premise

[battersby]

Jake, you explained it much better than I did..duh. Thanks for the link btw. Mighty, I'll see if the library has "Sovereign" so thanks for that. You missed a good programme heathfield so I've given you a star instead..lol.

[garner]

this was a repeat, so it will no doubt be shown again. interesting viewing for a change.

[heathfield]

Thanks Battersby, I appreciate the gesture!

[battersby]

Another one for you heathfield just for being nice:-)) So it's been on before garner? Yeh great viewing indeed.