Veszprem/Borzavar
I'm not British.
I don't claim to be an expert on the subject of royalty.
But I'm keenly aware of the fact that many members of the royal family are marrying commoners.
My Question:
Is this a purposeful ploy to dilute the long-inbred royal bloodline.....or do royals simply find some unnatural fascination with low-life commoners?
The trend might have begun with King Edward VIII who abdicated in order to marry the twice-divorced American Wallis Simpson.
I always held the theory that he was never really passionately in love with Simpson, but rather used her as a plausible excuse to escape from the burden of kingship.
What other British royals married commoners?
Princess Margaret, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, Prince Edward, Princess Eugenie, Prince William.....and more recently Prince Harry.
Methinks Harry might (secretly) be having buyer's remorse. It seems that annoyingly aggressive Megan Markle is having a potent and potentially lethal influence on the former independent bad-boy.
At any rate, commoners are drastically diluting the royal blood....and soon the royals will no longer be royal.
So, what is the purpose of all this royal/commoner stuff?
I'm suddenly thinking of my maternal great-grandfather John Gordon (Hungarian name Janos Gurdon) who married a commoner.
Janos Gurdon (John Gordon)
my great-grandfather
I've written about this before, but have an urge to rehash it. Here's a very brief version:
My great-grandfather was of royal blood but he was disinherited and stripped of his title when he married a peasant girl.
Janos Gurdon was from Borzavar, a small Hungarian village in the Bakony Mountains. There were many (very many) Gurdons who inhabited the village, and I traced the surname back to Baron Daniel Esterhazy - who founded Borzavar in 1761 and built a castle near there.
The Borzavar Esterhazy estate
After years of unsuccessfully attempting to trace my great-grandfather's lineage, I finally found documents that list him as being a count - - and also as being a baron.
The peasant girl that he married (my great-grandmother) was always known by our family as Justinia Schmidt - but I recently discovered that her real name was Julina Schmied.
Foreign names always had a way of drastically changing during the process of becoming an American.
The Borzavar church where my great-grandparents were married
Was this royal/commoner marriage a successful one? I suppose so.
They came to America in the 1890's, lived in Pennsylvania, settled in New Jersey. Had a farm. They also had twelve children (including my grandmother Anna Gordon Knoll). All of their dozen offspring were known for being remarkably good-looking with unconventionally quirky personalities ( I inherited the quirky part).
Interesting side note:
In 1906 their eldest daughter Katalin was murdered at the age of eighteen. Ironically, my great-mother's brother Frederick was the murderer.
I published an article about the murder in the New Jersey Monthly (long ago). I'm considering writing a book, since I've compiled a lot of information. Laziness is the only thing that keeps getting in my way....
I never knew my great-grandparents, since they both died before I was born. They were reportedly quiet and reserved, and led a sparse and simple country life.
John Gordon was an enthusiastic drinker. In 1936 - after indulging in too many whiskeys - he was hit by a car while crossing the street and died instantly. He was 73.
My family history is admittedly colorful and intriguing. I'm related to royalty.....and to a murderer.
Heck, what more could I ask for?
Borzavar winter
