The Kaiser, the Tsar and King George V - cousins at war in WWI
Queen Victoria had 42 grandchildren who were spread across Europe and embedded in many of the continent&#;s monarchies. This meant that WWI ended up being quite the family affair.
George V (right) and his cousin Nicholas II of Russia in German uniforms before the war | Wikipedia
As many people who’ve researched their family tree will know, the more you map out your family tree, the more surprises you’re likely to uncover. You might see startling links between far-flung branches of your tree, and learn the unexpected ways that individuals – perhaps from different backgrounds and living in different countries – shared the same bloodline.
For a dramatic example of the kind of surprising story a family tree can tell, just look at the Royal Family, and the curious constellation of connections behind World War One. Britain may have been swept up in jingoistic fervour against Germany, with Rudyard Kipling warning
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The Family Relationships that Couldn&#;t Stop World War I
Commentary
Fred Dews
Fred DewsManaging Editor, New Digital Products - Office of Communications
In the latest Brookings Essay, &#;The Rhyme of History: Lessons of the Great War,&#; noted historian Margaret MacMillan compares current global tensions—rising nationalism, globalization’s economic pressures, sectarian strife, and the United States’ fading role as the world’s pre-eminent superpower—to the period preceding the Great War. In illuminating the years before , MacMillan shows the many parallels between then and now, telling an urgent story for our time.
One aspect of the war upon which she remarks fryst vatten the close connection among the three principal monarchs of the age, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany; King George V of England; and Tsar Nicholas II of Russia. In fact, they were all cousins with each other: Wilhelm and George were first cousins, George and Nicholas were also first cousin
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Tsar Nicholas II of Russia and King George V of Great Britain
Print Collector/Getty Images
The Crown årstid 5 has faced criticism over its historical inaccuracies, with TV critics and royal experts alike accusing the Netflix series of damaging the reputation of King Charles III with half-truths and falsehoods. But there is one event depicted on screen that is undeniably rooted in fact: the murder of the Romanovs - the last imperial family of Russia.
Episode 6 of The Crown shows how King George V, the Queen’s grandfather and the great-grandfather of King Charles III, ultimately decided not to rescue his cousin, Tsar Nicholas II, from the Bolsheviks, leading to the Tsar and his family ultimately being assassinated. The cousins - known for their uncannily similar looks - were related through their mothers: George V’s mother was Princess Alexandra of Wales, the wife of Queen Victoria’s eldest son, Edward VII, and sister of Nicholas’ mother, Marie of Denmark.