‘Britain’s real monarch’ gets coronation invitation

LONDON: As the son of a farmhand from the Australian outback, Simon Abney-Hastings might be an unlikely choice to receive an invitation to King Charles III´s coronation.

But when he takes his seat in Westminster Abbey next week, he will be the one person other than those in the line of succession who could actually have a claim on the throne. Unlikely though it might seem, the scenario is based on research by British medieval historian Michael Jones.

Two decades ago he uncovered a document in Rouen cathedral in France which he says is proof King Edward IV was illegitimate. During the five weeks when Edward might have been conceived, according to Jones, his fahter Richard of York was in fact 160-km from his wife Cecily Neville, the Duchess of York. As a result, Jones has argued, Edward was not the rightful heir to the throne and the line of succession should instead have gone through Edward´s younger brother George, Duke of Clarence, who is a direct ancestor of Abney-Hastings.

Although the family does not possess any lands or stately homes in the UK, by virtue of their lineage they inherited the ancient Scottish title of Earl of Loudoun. Abney-Hastings´ father Michael emigrated from the UK to Australia in 1960.

Michael inherited the title from his mother, the 13th Countess of Loudoun, in 2002 and it passed on his death in 2012 to Simon, who is the 15th earl. The earls of Loudon have traditionally been the bearers of the golden spurs as far back as the 12th century.