Individual Notes
Note for: Hannibal Downs, 5 NOV 1831 - 2 JUL 1863
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Individual Note: Hannabal Downs
Residence was not listed; 30 years old.
Enlisted on 9/12/1861 at Edwards, NY as a Private.
On 10/30/1862 he mustered into "F" Co. NY 60th Infantry
He was Killed on 7/2/1863 at Gettysburg, PA
Other Information:
Buried: Gettysburg National Cemetery, Gettysburg, PA
Gravesite: B-30, NY plot
Sources used by Historical Data Systems, Inc.:
- New York: Report of the Adjutant-General
- These Honored Dead: The Union Casualties at Gettysburg
Individual Notes
Note for: Thomas Greene, 10 FEB 1399/00 - 18 JAN 1460/61
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Individual Note: Sir Thomas Greene was the sheriff of Northamptonshire.
Individual Notes
Note for: Hughes Capet King Of France, 941 - 24 OCT 996
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Individual Note:
The royal lineage of France was descended from Hughes, nicknamed Capet, elected king in 987. From his nickname comes the historians' name for the lineage, Capetians, although this was never considered the family name of the kings of France. (Only in 1792, when Louis XVI was deposed, was he given the name of Louis Capet, in part by derision). It was the Nation's right to decide on another reigning family should this lineage become extinct.
The Direct Capetians, all descendants in direct male line from Hughes, ruled from father to son until 1328. Philippe IV le Bel (ruled 1285-1314) had three sons who reigned in turn: Louis X le Hutin (1314-16), Philippe V le Long (1316-24), Charles IV le Bel (1324-28). The wives of all three sons were implicated, to varying degrees, in an adultery scandal in the early 1300s (the scandal of the tower of Nesles), which cast strong doubts over the legitimacy of their offspring, in particular, Jeanne, only daughter of Louis. Louis repudiated his wife and married Clemence of Hungary; he died before his first son was born, Jean I who lived 5 days (1316). Thus, the question of succession of a female to the throne was posed for the first time under the Capetians. The expected regent, Philippe comte de Poitou, argued the possible illegitimacy of his niece to have her passed over for succession, and his decision was endorsed by the Parliaments and Councils. Likewise, he died without sons and his daughter was passed over for Charles IV who died without children.
Individual Notes
Note for: Charlemagne Emperor Of The Holy Roman Empire, 2 APR 742 - 28 JAN 813/14
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Individual Note: Even before a Carolingian, Charlemagne, became king of the Franks in 768 and emperor in 800, his grandfather Charles Martel had amassed sufficient power to "save" Europe from the Moors at Tours in 732. Martel's talents and military forces were passed on to Charlemagne's father, Pepin the Short, whose aid to the missionary Saint Boniface was compensated by the pope's endorsement of Pepin and his sons as the legitimate dynasty of the Frankish kingdom. Upon these foundations, Charlemagne waged innumerable wars and gained all Europe from the Pyrenees to the Vistula. His rule encompassed more than Gaul or the Frankish kingdom, but it left a strong imprint upon France nevertheless. It also foreshadowed the feudal system, which was already being born.
Within the Frankish state, the vigorous and attractive Charlemagne extended royal power and financial resources. In exchange for extensive but nonhereditary land grants and the right to levy local taxes, lords of manors furnished military and judicial services to the king, and the lower classes provided labor on road and other public works. As a check on the local notables, Charlemagne sent out teams of missi dominici (usually a bishop and a count) to inspect the districts and report on any irregularities. Two assemblies were held each year, possible forerunners of the States-General (parliament). In the spring session noblemen had opportunity to discuss their problems, and the king could present his program or impressions of the realm.
In his capital at Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle) and in other towns, Charlemagne rekindled intellectual life by gathering holy men, scholars, and literary figures like Alcuin. Works of Greek and particularly Latin were copied and analyzed in new schools founded by favored churchmen. Charlemagne's encouragement of learning had perhaps more long-range significance for French and Western civilization than his sensational military and political ventures.
Charlemagne
Encyclopędia Britannica Article
born April 2, c. 742
died Jan. 28, 814, Aachen, Austrasia [now in Germany]
also called Charles I , byname Charles the Great , French Charles le Grand , Latin Carolus Magnus , German Karl der Grosse king of the Franks (768814), king of the Lombards (774814), and emperor (800814).
As king of the Franks, Charlemagne conquered the Lombard kingdom in Italy, subdued the Saxons, annexed Bavaria to his kingdom, fought campaigns in Spain and Hungary, and, with the exception of the Kingdom of Asturias in Spain, southern Italy, and the British Isles, united in one superstate practically all the Christian lands of western Europe. In 800 he assumed the title of emperor. (He is reckoned as Charles I of the Holy Roman Empire, as well as Charles I of France.) Besides expanding its political power, he also brought about a cultural renaissance in his empire. Although this imperium survived its founder by only one generation, the medieval kingdoms of France and Germany derived all their constitutional traditions from Charles's monarchy. Throughout medieval Europe, the person of Charles was considered the prototype of a Christian king and emperor.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Individual Notes
Note for: Malcolm III King Of Scotland, 1031 - 13 NOV 1093
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Individual Note: Malcolm III (1058-93)
Malcolm Canmore ('great head' or 'chief') was the eldest son of Duncan I. After his father's death, he found refuge in England with his uncle Siward of Northumbria, where he stayed for more than 14 years. His first wife was Ingibjorg, widow of Earl Thorfinn of Orkney. She died, and in about 1070 he married Margaret, great-niece of King Edward the Confessor of England. She had sought refuge in Scotland with her brother, Edgar the Atheling (Anglo-Saxon heir to the English throne), when William I excluded him from the English succession. Margaret had a strong influence over her husband, who revered her piety and secretly had jewel-encrusted bindings made for her religious books, which he himself was unable to read, never having learned to do so. He also substituted Saxon for Gaelic as the court language. According to Margaret's biographer, she corresponded with Lanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury, brought Benedictine monks to Dunfermline and did away with local usages in the Scottish Church. Margaret also began building what was later to be known as St Margaret's Chapel, situated on the highest part of Edinburgh Castle.
Malcolm was determined to extend his kingdom southwards and take advantage of the upheaval caused by the Norman Conquest. Making the excuse that he was supporting the claim to the English throne of his brother-in-law Edgar Atheling, Malcolm invaded England five times (he was a formidable warrior-king, having killed his two predecessor kings). Three times defeated, Malcolm was forced under the treaty of Abernethy in 1072 to become 'the man' of the English king and give up his son Duncan as a hostage. Malcolm and his eldest son were finally killed in battle at Alnwick, Northumberland on 13 November 1093, aged about 62. His wife died when they brought her the news at Edinburgh Castle. She was canonised in 1249.
After Malcolm's death, the frontier between the kingdoms of Scotland and England was clearly defined for the first time. Anglo-Norman influence in Scotland was promoted by the subsequent marriages of Malcolm's sons to English brides.
Source: Official Website of the British Government
Individual Notes
Note for: Margaret Atheling Queen Of Scotland, 1045 - 16 NOV 1093
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Individual Note: "Saint Margaret" was a famous historical figure. Her biography can be found in many places. A good source is the website Notable Women Ancestors.
http://www.rootsweb.com/~nwa/margaret.html
Individual Notes
Note for: Duncan I King Of Scotland, ABT 1013 - 14 AUG 1040
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Individual Note: Duncan I (1034-40)
Duncan was the son of Malcolm II's eldest daughter Bethoc and her husband Crinan, Lay Abbot of Dunkeld. He was about 33 when he succeeded his grandfather. Married to a cousin of Siward, Earl of Northumberland he may have favoured southern ways and this is perhaps why he became unpopular with his subjects. In 1039 he did march south to besiege Durham but he was beaten off, with heavy losses. Duncan attempted to impose his overlordship over Moray (an independent dynasty) by military force. He was then twice defeated by the Earl of Orkney's son, Thorfinn, before being killed in battle by Macbeth, one of his commanders, near Elgin, Morayshire on 14 August 1040.
Source: Official Website of the British Government
Individual Notes
Note for: Malcolm II MacKenneth King Of Scotland, ABT 970 - 25 NOV 1034
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Individual Note: Malcolm II (1005-34)
Malcolm, son of Kenneth II, took advantage of the fact that the English were preoccupied with Danish raids and marched south, winning the Battle of Carham against the Angles in 1018 and thereby regaining Lothian. Thirteen years later, however, King Canute invaded Scotland, probably because Malcolm had been making alliances with the Danes, and forced the Scottish king to submit to him (submission was a traditional expression of personal homage). However, Canute seems to have recognised Malcolm's possession of Lothian. In the west, Malcolm had the alliance of Strathclyde, whilst the marriage of his daughter to Sigurd the Stout, Norse Earl of Orkney, extended Malcolm's influence to the far north. Malcolm died at Glamis, Angus on 25 November 1034, aged at least 80.
After Malcolm II's reign, Scottish succession was based on the principle of direct descent. (Previously, succession was determined by tanistry - during a king's lifetime an heir was chosen and known as tanaiste rig (second to the king).)
Source: Official Website of the British Government
Individual Notes
Note for: Kenneth II King Of Scotland, ABT 932 - 995
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Individual Note: Kenneth II (971-95)
Kenneth was the brother of Dubh. In 973 he acknowledged King Edgar of England as his lord in return for recognition that the Scots now held Lothian, which they had seized from the Angles. In about 994, however, he broke his promise to keep the peace and invaded England. He was defeated, and lost Lothian again. He killed Culen's brother in 977 and was himself killed in 995 in a blood feud at Fettercairn, Kincardineshire by Culen's son, Constantine.
Source: Official Website of the British Government
Individual Notes
Note for: Malcolm I King Of Scotland, ABT 897 - 954
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Individual Note:
Malcolm I (943-54)
Malcolm was the son of Donald II. He may have supported the establishment of a Danish kingdom of York in the 940s, and he harried the north of England. He was killed in battle, possibly at Fetteresso, Kincardineshire by rebels from Moray.
Source: Official Website of the British Government
Individual Notes
Note for: Donald II King Of Scotland, ABT 862 - 900
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Individual Note: Donald II (889-900)
Donald, son of Constantine I, struggled to repel the Norse invasions. He died at Forres, Moray in 900.
Source: Official Website of the British Government
Individual Notes
Note for: Edmund I Magnificent King Of England, ABT 922 - 26 MAY 946
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Individual Note: Edmund I (940-46 AD)
Son of Edward the Elder, succeeded his half-brother, Ęthelstan, with whom he had fought at Brunanburh. Combated the Norse Vikings in Northumbria and subdued them in Cumbria and Strathclyde. He entrusted these lands to an ally, Malcolm I of Scotland. Edmund met his death when he was killed at Pucklechurch, in Gloucestershire, by a robber.
Source: Britannia.com
Individual Notes
Note for: Ethelwulf King Of Wessex, ABT 800 - 13 JAN 857/58
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Individual Note: Ęthelwulf (839-58 AD)
Ęthelwulf was the son of Egbert and a sub-king of Kent. He assumed the throne of Wessex upon his father's death in 839. His reign is characterized by the usual Viking invasions and repulsions common to all English rulers of the time, but the making of war was not his chief claim to fame. Ęthelwulf is remembered, however dimly, as a highly religious man who cared about the establishment and preservation of the church. He was also a wealthy man and controlled vast resources. Out of these resources, he gave generously, to Rome and to religious houses that were in need.
He was an only child, but had fathered five sons, by his first wife, Osburga. He recognized that there could be difficulties with contention over the succession. He devised a scheme which would guarantee (insofar as it was possible to do so) that each child would have his turn on the throne without having to worry about rival claims from his siblings. Ęthelwulf provided that the oldest living child would succeed to the throne and would control all the resources of the crown, without having them divided among the others, so that he would have adequate resources to rule. That he was able to provide for the continuation of his dynasty is a matter of record, but he was not able to guarantee familial harmony with his plan. This is proved by what we know of the foul plottings of his son, Ęthelbald, while Ęthelwulf was on pilgrimage to Rome in 855.
Ęthelwulf was a wise and capable ruler, whose vision made possible the beneficial reign of his youngest son, Alfred the Great.
Source: Britannia.com
Individual Notes
Note for: Egbert King Of Wessex, ABT 775 - ABT 837
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Individual Note: [Egbert (802-39 AD)
Known as the first King of All England, he was forced into exile at the court of Charlemagne, by the powerful Offa, King of Mercia. Egbert returned to England in 802 and was recognized as king of Wessex. He defeated the rival Mercians at the battle of Ellendun in 825. In 829, the Northumbrians accepted his overlordship and he was proclaimed "Bretwalda" or sole ruler of Britain.
Source: Britannia.com
Weis gives 11 additional generations of ancestors for Egbert, back to Cerdic who died 534.
"King of the West Saxons, 519-534, was a Saxon Earldorman who founded a settlement on the coast of Hampshire, ingland, in 495, assumed the title of King of the West Saxons in 519, and became the ancestor of the English royal line."