I am not sure who is the more ignorant: Jonathan Coles, who wrote the article, or 73-year-old Francois Graftieaux, who claims that he is the heir to the British throne.
Francois says he "has twice requested a DNA sample from the Queen without success." He claims his "family were cut from the royal bloodline in the early 1900s following the alleged illicit tryst."
Apparently, his father, Pierre-Edouard, was allegedly the son of the Prince of Wales (Edward VIII) and a French seamstress Marie-Leonie Graftieaux. Francois is alleging that his daddy "never found his way to the throne" after Edward VIII abdicated in 1936.
He asserts that his family "lost land, titles and wealth," and now Francois wants grandmother "to be included in the history books."
Francois also said that the "true line of succession was unlawfully concealed to block his family from the history books.
"Whilst my father and I would have had no direct claim to the throne on account of Edward's abdication, which also precluded his descendants from becoming king, the Graftiteauxs would have become nobility at the very least.
"As the last of my family of Graftieauxs, I will take whatever action is possible and necessary to protect our legacy and to shed light on one of the greatest Royal sex scandals in living memory."
Dear Jonathan and Francois, I am about to shed light on one of the crappiest royal stories written in some time. Jonathan needs to be schooled in a bit of royal history.
If the Prince of Wales and this French seamstress had a child out of wedlock, the child would be a BASTARD. Until 2011, succession to the throne was based on the Act of Settlement and the Royal Marriages Act. The new Succession to the Crown Act is a modified and updated version of the Act of Settlement.
Being a bastard may have worked in William the Conqueror's favor, but being the son of an affair would not have helped Francois' daddy. Bastards cannot inherit the throne. Yes, Charles II created several of his mistresses' duchesses. William IV bestowed a peerage, the Earldom of Munster on his eldest son, and his younger children by Dorothy were given the style and rank of younger sons and daughters of a marquess.
George V would not have bestowed a noble title on a bastard grandson.
I have sincere doubts about this story. Illegitimate children have no rights to the throne, now or in 1916. Edward would have needed permission to marry due to the Royal Marriages Act. I expect the French seamstress was Roman Catholic. A marriage with a Roman Catholic would have meant a loss of succession rights for Edward.
Pierre Edouard died in 1994. It was at this time when Francois began his search for his roots. He was told that Francois' father had never been named although the father was "someone famous" had not been 'allowed to marry your grandmother."
In 1914, the Prince of Wales joined the Grenadier Guards and had hoped to serve at the front, but Lord Kitchener, the Secretary of State, would not permit the heir to the throne to serve in an active role at the front. He visited the front in France for the first time in November 1914. He remained in France with the General Staff until the spring and spent time in Nancy and Rouen, according to reports in The Times. He was back home by April 1916, as the Court Circular records his visit to his grandmother, Queen Alexandra. Pierre Edouard was born in 1916. His birth certificate does not include a father's name.
Edward did have an affair with a French courtesan Marguerite Alibert (1890-1971). This affair occurred in 1917. They met at the Hotel de Crillon in Paris Edward broke off the relationship toward the end of the war, as he had met Freda Dudley Ward.
Francois told Cole: "I am not asking the Palace for money, title, or power but merely to ascertain the identity of my grandfather and the circumstances surrounding my father's birth.
"If the Palace again refuses to cooperate, which I strongly suspect it will, then I am happy to seek legal advice and let what amounts to the largest Royal sex scandal in history play out in public through the courts."
Cole also noted that Francois resembles the late Duke of Windsor, so I guess the story must be true ... which I don't.
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/man-sue-buckingham-palace-claiming-20590193
Memo to Francois: there is no evidence that your granny had an affair with the Prince of Wales. But if granny did have an affair with the Prince of Wales, your father was born illegitimate. This means he had no rights of succession, rights to a title, rights to land, rights to the money."
Jonathon should have done a bit of research before interviewing Francois. Unfortunately, Jonathon skipped the fact-checking part and decided to write this article ... and the Mirror published it.
Buckingham Palace has declined comment. I doubt the Queen is worried about her throne. She has the law on her side.
