Because Charles sired so many illegitimate children who had no royal claim, Britain has the unique distinction of having an unusually high number of people, both nobles and commoners, who can brag of descent from the Merry Monarch.

Through his thirteen illegitimate children with his seven mistresses, Charles II has populated much of the British aristocracy. Several of the dukedoms that Charles awarded his sons are still held by their descendants though an unbroken male line.

Moreover, the future heirs to the throne are directly descended through the bloodlines of his two most notorious mistresses: Barbara Palmer and Louise de Kérouaille!

A poetic ascendancy

When Prince Charles, the current heir to the throne, takes his place as king, he will become King Charles III.

His ex-wife, Diana Princess of Wales, and his current wife, Camilla Duchess of Cornwall, are both descended from Barbara Palmer and Louise de Kérouaille, meaning that the descendants of the royal mistresses of Charles II will have been the consorts to the new King Charles III.

An interesting circle in the world of the royal family!

The Louise Effect

Louise de Kérouaille is the ancestress of three major female figures in the royal family; Diana, Princess of Wales, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall who have been married to the future King Charles III, and Sarah, Duchess of York, wife of his brother, Andrew Duke of York.

The doomed marriage between Diana and Prince Charles was tainted by affairs on both sides - his being with Camilla! And the Duchess of York was discovered to have sold access and meetings to her husband, Andrew for huge sums of money - an echo of the tricks that her ancestresses used to exploit their place in Charles II’s life.

Therefore the notorious mistress Louise has direct descendants in the modern royal family who have also been involved in their own scandals, gossip, and affairs with heirs to the throne.

The Spencer Line

Diana Spencer, later the Princess of Wales, has her family lineage in the roots of two of Charles II’s children: Henry Fitzroy, 1st Duke of Grafton, and Charles Lennox, 1st Duke of Richmond.

In fact, she is from the line of not just one but two Stuart kings, as James II’s illegitimate daughter, Henrietta FitzJames, is also an ancestress of the Spencer family!

The Spencer family line is ancient as it was founded back in the fifteen century, and is full of noble connections. It was Diana’s grandparents that joined the descendants of the Houses of Stuart and Spencer together.

This all means of course that Diana’s son’s, Prince William and Prince Harry, and in turn their children, are also descendants of Charles II and the Duchesses of Cleveland and Portsmouth.

Charles II’s Descendant on the throne

Should he become king after his father, as is expected, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, will be the first ever descendant of Charles II to sit on the British throne.

As an heir to the throne he will always be referred to as being of the House of Windsor, and he traces his claim to the throne from father’s bloodline.

But of course, as we have seen, on his mother’s side he is also the descendant of some wayward mistresses and illegitimate sons of the House of Stuart - something which many people may find infinitely more interesting!

As William now has three children, it is very likely that this psuedo-Stuart House will be reigning for many generations to come!

The King in the North!*

Probably one of the most well-known descendants of Charles is none other than Kit Harington aka Jon Snow!

Don’t let that northern accent fool you… Kit’s father is Sir David Robert Harington, 15th Baronet, and their ancient family line is partly descended through Charles Lennox, 1st Duke of Richmond and Lennox.

*sorry, of course he isn’t really a king, nor a member of the royal family, but he just had to be included!