Jezebel tells us that Ancestry.com reveals that Catherine, wife of Prince William and Duchess of Cambridge, and Jane Austen, the writer, are 11th cousins, 6 times removed.
Jezebel quotes lead historian Anastasia Harman, "Finding this connection between the Duchess of Cambridge and Jane Austen is very exciting since, in many ways, Catherine is the modern Jane Austen heroine: a middle-class girl marrying the future King of England."
Imagine! A heroine in a novel comes to life in the real world two centuries later, marrying up even higher than Elizabeth Bennet, to whom I assume the historian refers, when she married Mr Darcy. And the 11th cousin, 6 times removed, of the former middle-class lass and now duchess, wrote the book! What a gob-smacking coincidence......if you're digging really deep to find coincidences.
Thanks to Ann for the link.
Earlier this a'noon, drove by a car with an I'd sooner be reading Jane Austen" sticker. Just a weeny bit pretentious (hope you don't have one on your carriage, do you?) but fun. Those who think things have changed since JA's day need only contemplate the rfecently much-improved marriage prospects of Miss Austen's unmarried cousin, Pippa.
ReplyDeleteLapin, I don't do stickers. The only one I've had was on my car that we traded in for my present car, which said, "Bring Them Home". I stuck it on at the beginning of the Iraq, and it was quite faded. I should get another.
ReplyDeleteI read that Pippa is making the rounds with several wealthy men, including the future Duke of Northumberland.
Mim,
ReplyDeleteI never used stickers...until I turned 60! Suddenly I wanted to let people know where I stood. Weird, I know! I find that I really love the one, "Democrat and a Christian."
Ciss, that's a good one.
ReplyDelete