Prince William’s DNA test proves he has Indian ancestry
This makes Prince William Britain's first ever king to have proven Indian ancestry.
According to BritainsDNA, the Prince’s maternal line traces back just eight generations to Eliza Kewark, an Indian woman born around 1790s in Surat. Kewark lived in India during the period when it was governed by the East India Company.
She was housekeeper to his 5th great grandfather Theodore Forbes (1788-1820), a Scottish merchant who worked for the East India Company in Surat, a busy port north of Bombay
The Duke of Cambridge carries her mitochondrial DNA or mtDNA -- a small piece of DNA, inherited mostly unchanged from a mother to her children.
“It can be a very useful marker of ancestry,” according to the company.
“All the evidence we have gathered shows that Kewark’s genetic heritage through her motherline is Indian.
The Duke was born in 1982 to Prince Charles and the late Princess of Wales Diana. He is expecting his first child, the royal baby, with wife Kate Middleton next month. The royal baby will also have an Indian heritage because of Prince William’s heritage.
“It is very likely that Prince William has not only inherited a small proportion of Indian DNA from Eliza Kewark but his heirs will also carry it,” BritainsDNA said.
The Duke’s Indian heritage revelations will prompt calls for him to make his maiden visit to India soon.
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