UsefulCharts

• The Bible's earliest genealogies are primarily mythology rather than documented history. The presenter classifies Adam, Eve, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as mythological figures, noting that the patriarchal stories contain recognizable locations but also geographical references that appear roughly 1,000 years out of place.

• There is no Egyptian record confirming the biblical Exodus, although an older historical event may have inspired it. The presenter identifies the Hyksos, who entered Egypt around 1600 BC, ruled for approximately a century, and were subsequently expelled toward Palestine, as a possible source of the tradition.

“there is no mention of the Israelites ever having lived in Egypt as a nation”

• Israel's earliest known archaeological appearance dates to approximately 1200 BC, on Egypt's Merneptah Stele. Settlement evidence places early Israelites mainly in Palestine's hill country, suggesting they developed locally and gradually expanded into coastal areas disrupted by the Bronze Age collapse rather than conquering the region under Joshua.

• David and Solomon may have been historical rulers, but archaeology does not establish the wealthy, united kingdom described in the Bible. Around 1000 BC, Jerusalem appears to have been a small settlement, while a possible later reference to the House of David supports neither the biblical kingdom's extraordinary wealth nor its territorial extent.

• The northern kingdom of Israel probably developed before Judah and was considerably larger. Israel was centered on Samaria and practiced polytheism, while the smaller southern kingdom developed around Jerusalem, where the presenter argues that exclusive worship of one God likely emerged.

• Biblical history becomes substantially more reliable after Assyria conquers northern Israel and leaves Judah independent. Six of Judah's final ten kings are independently confirmed in Assyrian or Babylonian records, and the presenter connects this greater accuracy to much of the Hebrew Bible being written or compiled closer to those events.

• The stories of Joshua's conquest and David's united kingdom may have been political arguments for Judah's expansion rather than records of its past. After Assyria destroyed northern Israel, Judah had an opportunity to claim neighboring territories, but its ambitions failed when Babylon eventually conquered the southern kingdom.

“the stories of Joshua and of David were actually sort of a blueprint for what they wanted to happen”

• Babylon conquered Judah, but Persian ruler Cyrus later permitted the Jews to return and rebuild their temple, beginning the Second Temple period. Centuries later, under Roman rule, New Testament writers connected Jesus to David through genealogies the presenter considers legendary because of their poetic structure and significant contradictions.

• The Fitzgeralds became one of Ireland’s most powerful noble dynasties despite their Anglo-Norman origins. Their name means “son of Gerald,” referring to Gerald of Windsor, whose father governed Windsor Castle; the presenter also traces their earlier ancestry to the Gherardini family of Florence, Italy.

“more Irish than the Irish”

• The dynasty acquired Welsh royal ancestry through Gerald's marriage to Princess Nest of Deheubarth. Nest had previously borne Henry Fitzroy, an illegitimate son of the future Henry I of England; her children included William and Maurice Fitzgerald, while another son, Robert FitzStephen, came from her later marriage to Stephen.

• Members of Nest's family played leading roles in the Norman invasion of Ireland between 1169 and 1171. Robert FitzStephen and Gerald's grandson Raymond Fitzgerald commanded advance forces for Strongbow, whose success prompted Henry II to intervene in 1171 amid fears that Strongbow might establish a rival kingdom.

• The Fitzgerald dynasty divided into two major branches: the Earls of Kildare and the Earls of Desmond. Both descended from Maurice Fitzgerald, but the Kildare branch became especially powerful; its eighth Earl governed as Lord Deputy of Ireland, and his son, the ninth Earl, repeatedly held the same position.

“he was sometimes called the uncrowned king of Ireland”

• Thomas Fitzgerald, the tenth Earl of Kildare, rebelled against Henry VIII and was executed alongside several uncles. Known as Silken Thomas, he sought to exploit Henry's conflict with the Catholic Church; the presenter links his failed rebellion to Henry's adoption of the title King of Ireland and establishment of a permanent English military presence.

• The Fitzgeralds recovered their forfeited earldom and eventually became Dukes of Leinster, the premier dukes of Ireland. James Fitzgerald, the first Duke, married Emily Lennox, a descendant of Charles II; the family's former residence, Leinster House, subsequently became the seat of Ireland's parliament.

• The Fitzgerald coat of arms may have influenced Saint Patrick's Saltire, now incorporated into the United Kingdom's flag. The family's red diagonal cross on white predates its adoption by the Order of Saint Patrick, although the presenter acknowledges that a direct connection remains a possibility rather than an established fact.

• John F. Kennedy, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Mona Lisa are linked to the Fitzgerald family through different genealogical claims. Kennedy's mother belonged to the Fitzgerald family, the novelist's exact dynastic connection remains unspecified, and Lisa Gherardini's proposed relationship depends on the Fitzgeralds' claimed Florentine ancestry.

“although I'm not sure exactly how” — the presenter, discussing F. Scott Fitzgerald's ancestry.

• The Balobedu Rain Queens of South Africa represent a rare monarchy built around female-to-female succession. Unlike France's historically male-only monarchy or Britain's former male-preference system, the Balobedu traditionally reserved the throne for women descended through the maternal royal line.

• The Rain Queen dynasty began around 1800 with Maselekwane Modjadji I. Its origins are traced through competing legends to a chief associated with the Kingdom of Mutapa, which existed approximately from 1432 to 1760; the stories involve banishment following a serious transgression and a promise of rainmaking powers.

• Early Rain Queens lived in seclusion, performed annual rainmaking ceremonies, and traditionally ended their reigns through ritual suicide. Only trusted advisers could approach them, November ceremonies were believed to guarantee rainfall, and succession normally passed to the eldest daughter.

• The female succession system could continue through nieces when a reigning queen had no daughter. Modjadji II died without female offspring and was succeeded by her sister's daughter, Modjadji III, who lived until the late 1950s and became the earliest Rain Queen for whom the presenter located a photograph.

• Two deaths separated by just two days unexpectedly changed the royal succession. Modjadji V's intended successor, her daughter Makhaele, died immediately before her mother, leaving 23-year-old granddaughter Makobo next in line; traditional leaders waited two years before crowning her Modjadji VI at 25.

• Modjadji VI died in 2005 at just 27, leaving the monarchy without a reigning queen. The first formally educated Rain Queen had adopted a modern lifestyle and had a daughter with a commoner, prompting unproven suspicions that traditionalists opposed to her choices might have arranged her death.

“some people feel that she might have been murdered by those who wanted a more traditional Queen”

• Makobo's daughter, Masalanabo, was designated to become Modjadji VII upon turning 18 in 2023. The episode also identifies a rival candidate: the daughter of Makobo's brother, who served as regent, and his cousin from the maternal royal line; a recent succession ceremony favored Masalanabo.

• South Africa's recognition of the Rain Queen institution in 2010 transformed its formal political standing. Although South Africa remains a republic, the presenter expected Modjadji VII to receive the same official traditional-monarch rank as Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini, making her the most powerful Rain Queen, in that sense, since Modjadji IV.

• The Roman Empire survived the collapse of its western half in 476 CE. Its government continued from Constantinople until the Ottoman conquest in 1453, making the Byzantine Empire the most direct institutional continuation of ancient Rome.

• Charlemagne's coronation in 800 created a rival imperial claim while Empress Irene still ruled in Constantinople. The pope recognized Charlemagne as emperor, establishing the western imperial tradition that developed into the Holy Roman Empire, despite the original Roman state continuing in the east.

• The Ottoman claim rests primarily on conquering Constantinople in 1453. Sultan Mehmed II adopted the title Caesar of Rome, and a contributor cited recognition by the Ecumenical Patriarch and marriages into Byzantine nobility to support the claim of his dynastic successor, Dündar Ali Osman.

• Russia's claim comes through a marriage connecting Moscow's rulers to the final Byzantine imperial family. A daughter of Constantine XI's brother Thomas married Ivan III, helping establish Moscow's identity as the Third Rome; Andrew Romanov was proposed as a modern heir, although Russian dynastic succession remains disputed.

“they've got a blood connection that beats any will” — Romanov-supporting contributor.

• The Habsburgs possess centuries of western imperial succession through the Holy Roman Empire. Their dynasty dominated its imperial office from the fifteenth century and continued ruling as Austrian emperors after its dissolution in 1806, making Karl von Habsburg the principal modern representative of that tradition.

• Napoleon established a competing imperial claim by destroying the Holy Roman Empire and crowning himself emperor. His proposed successor Jean-Christophe Napoléon faces a dynastic challenge from his father Charles, whom one contributor considered the rightful heir under traditional father-to-son succession.

• The Spanish claim originates in a reported will transferring Byzantine imperial titles to Ferdinand and Isabella. Andreas Palaiologos, nephew of the last Byzantine emperor, allegedly made the bequest; the presenter traced its inheritance through Charles V to Philip II of Spain rather than Charles's brother Ferdinand, who inherited the Holy Roman imperial title.

• The presenter ultimately chose King Felipe VI of Spain, prioritizing legal inheritance over conquest, religion, or dynastic ancestry alone. None of the invited contributors supported Spain, with Russia receiving the most endorsements, but the presenter's conclusion depends on accepting the disputed validity and transmission of Andreas's imperial bequest.

“what I think they would be convinced by is a good solid legal argument” — UsefulCharts presenter.

• Before unification, each Hawaiian island had its own hereditary high chief, or Aliʻi Nui. Keawe II, who ruled the Big Island, became the most recent common ancestor of every monarch of the eventual Hawaiian Kingdom, despite later struggles between rival branches of his family.

• Captain James Cook was killed after attempting to take Hawaiian ruler Kalaniʻōpuʻu hostage. The confrontation followed British appropriation of sacred Hawaiian wood and the Hawaiians' seizure of a British boat, turning an initially peaceful encounter into violence.

• A violent encounter with foreign ships in 1790 helped Kamehameha acquire the weapons and expertise needed to conquer Hawaii. After Simon Metcalfe massacred approximately 100 villagers on Maui, Hawaiians captured his son Thomas's ship, leaving Kamehameha with foreign weapons and two British military advisers.

• Kamehameha I established the unified Hawaiian Kingdom by 1795, but his successors shared authority with a powerful second office. Following his death, his wife Kaʻahumanu became the first Kuhina Nui, a position resembling prime minister or regent that remained influential for several reigns.

• Kamehameha II and his wife died of measles during a royal visit to Great Britain. His younger brother succeeded him as Kamehameha III, whose long reign saw Hawaii adopt a constitution and develop its monarchy into a more formally organized government.

• Hawaii elected its kings after Kamehameha V died without naming a successor in 1872. His cousin Lunalilo won the first election but died approximately one year later, allowing Kalākaua to win a second election and establish a new royal dynasty.

• Kalākaua's trade arrangements with the United States strengthened Hawaii's sugar industry while increasing foreign political influence. American access to Pearl Harbor accompanied a free-trade agreement, attracting American settlers and contributing to mounting opposition to the monarchy.

• Queen Liliʻuokalani lost her throne after attempting to restore greater political power to Native Hawaiians. The last Hawaiian monarch was overthrown and forced to abdicate, after which the United States annexed Hawaii, governed it as a territory, and admitted it as a state in 1959.

• The U.S. presidential succession order begins with the vice president, House Speaker, and Senate president pro tempore. During Trump's presidency, these were Mike Pence, Nancy Pelosi, and Chuck Grassley, followed by the Secretaries of State, Treasury, Defense, and the Attorney General; Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was excluded.

• The presidency can pass to the opposing political party if both the president and vice president leave office. Democrats' victory in the 2018 House elections replaced Republican Speaker Paul Ryan with Nancy Pelosi, putting a Democrat next in line after Republican Vice President Mike Pence.

• John F. Kennedy's assassination in 1963 left the vice presidency vacant for more than a year. Lyndon Johnson was sworn in just 98 minutes after Kennedy was declared dead, making House Speaker John McCormack the next potential successor until a new vice president took office.

• Two separate scandals threatened to transfer Richard Nixon's presidency to Democrat Carl Albert. Nixon faced the Watergate cover-up, while Vice President Spiro Agnew faced corruption and tax-fraud allegations; Albert, the Democratic House Speaker, was next in line if both Republicans departed without a replacement.

• Nixon avoided a potential Democratic succession by appointing Republican Gerald Ford after Agnew resigned. Ford, previously the House Republican leader, became vice president, succeeded Nixon following his August 1974 resignation, and granted Nixon a presidential pardon approximately one month later.

• The presenter predicted Republicans would use Nixon's strategy if Trump and Pence both faced removal. He expected Pence to resign first, Trump to appoint a Republican replacement, and Trump potentially to resign afterward, allowing the new president to pardon both men rather than allowing Pelosi to succeed.

“I think what's more likely to happen is something similar to what happened with Nixon and Agnew.”

• The designated survivor is a real safeguard against the simultaneous deaths of senior American leaders. An eligible cabinet official remains away from major government gatherings to preserve presidential succession during a catastrophe; Energy Secretary Rick Perry held that role at the State of the Union address preceding the video.

• King Munmu unified much of Korea under Silla in the 660s with military assistance from China's Tang dynasty. The former allies subsequently fought, but Silla resisted Chinese domination and preserved a separate Korean monarchy.

• The Wang dynasty established Goryeo, the kingdom from which Korea gets its modern name. Founded by King Taejo after the Later Three Kingdoms period, Goryeo achieved a more complete unification that broadly endured until Korea's twentieth-century division.

• Goryeo preserved its monarchy even when foreign rulers controlled much of its political independence. The Mongols made Korea a vassal rather than formally annexing it, and a Goryeo king married Kublai Khan's daughter, making subsequent monarchs descendants of Genghis Khan.

• The Joseon dynasty began when a general refused King U's order to attack China and instead overthrew the Goryeo monarchy. After installing and removing several successors, the general became King Taejo, founding the Yi dynasty and introducing a kingdom that increasingly promoted Confucianism over Buddhism.

• King Sejong, widely regarded as Korea's greatest monarch, inherited a throne secured through his father's violent succession struggle. Taejong had killed a prime minister and two brothers before eventually becoming king; Sejong subsequently advanced science, education, and government while overseeing the creation of Hangul, Korea's writing system.

• Joseon survived two major foreign threats through very different political arrangements. Korea repelled a six-year Japanese invasion with Ming Chinese assistance, but later submitted to the Qing dynasty as a tributary kingdom, beginning approximately two centuries of relative peace.

• Japan ended Korea's monarchy after defeating China in 1894 and Russia in a subsequent war. Gojong proclaimed the Korean Empire but was later forced to abdicate; Japan annexed Korea in 1910, ruled until 1945, and the peninsula subsequently divided into two republics in 1948.

• Yi Seok, a grandson of Emperor Gojong, designated Korean-American Andrew Lee as his successor to the former royal house. Yi Seok had no sons, and the presenter acknowledged that Andrew Lee's precise genealogical relationship to the Yi dynasty was unclear.

• Mayer Amschel Rothschild transformed his position managing Prince William IX's finances into Europe's wealthiest banking dynasty. His five sons established branches in Frankfurt, Vienna, London, Naples and Paris, creating a network that transferred gold and information across Europe; by the 1820s, the family was Europe's richest.

• Nathan Rothschild helped finance Britain's Napoleonic war effort, but the famous story that his family profited from advance knowledge of Napoleon's defeat is false. Although the Rothschilds received the news early, the presenter attributes their subsequent profits to correctly predicting European financial markets and investing accordingly.

“they didn't actually make money off that fact”

• The Rothschilds used marriages between first cousins to preserve family wealth, but several original banking branches eventually disappeared. Frankfurt and Naples closed after their successors left no heirs, while the Austrian branch inherited senior family status before the British branch became senior in 1976.

• War, economic collapse and Nazi persecution devastated the Austrian Rothschilds. Austria's defeat in World War I caused loan defaults, the Great Depression brought banking failures, and Nazi authorities confiscated family assets and held Louis de Rothschild for a reported $21 million ransom.

• The British Rothschilds gained extraordinary political access despite initially facing religious restrictions. Lionel became the first Jewish MP to take his seat in the Commons, Nathan became the first Jewish member of the House of Lords, and Victor later served in MI5 and advised prime ministers.

• Different Rothschild relatives helped shape Zionism while others actively opposed establishing a Jewish state. Edmond financed early Jewish settlements in Ottoman Palestine, his son James funded the future Knesset building, and Walter helped draft the 1917 Balfour Declaration; another Rothschild MP founded the anti-Zionist League of British Jews.

“however not all of the Rothschilds were Zionists”

• A family feud separated the senior British Rothschild line from control of the original banking business. Jacob left the company following a dispute with Evelyn de Rothschild, and the British and French banking firms merged in 2003 under David de Rothschild, demonstrating that hereditary seniority did not determine business leadership.

“there was a family feud between Jacob and Evelyn”

• The Rothschilds possessed genuine historical financial power, but claims that they controlled world politics or owned $500 trillion are rejected. The presenter distinguishes Rothschild & Co from the separate Edmond de Rothschild business, identifies Benjamin as the family's only Forbes-listed billionaire at the time, and attributes exaggerated conspiracy theories partly to antisemitism.

“do they currently pull all the strings when it comes to world politics today”

• A 23andMe ancestry test requires a registered saliva sample and approximately four to six weeks for results. Users must avoid eating for 30 minutes beforehand, fill the tube to its marked line, release the preservative, and return the sample in the prepaid packaging.

• Matt Baker's DNA results largely matched his documented family history. His ancestry was estimated at 46.8% French and German, 32% British and Irish, and 1% Spanish and Portuguese, consistent with German ancestors who migrated to Canada around 1750, an Irish maternal grandmother, and a distant Sephardic Jewish ancestor.

• Ancestry percentages cannot always identify specific countries or populations. Another 14.8% of Baker's DNA was classified as broadly Northwestern European, which he suspects includes additional German ancestry, while small Scandinavian and Sardinian results introduced connections he had not expected.

• Genetic ancestry estimates can change as reference databases expand. Baker says European ancestry initially received more detailed classifications, while Indigenous North American ancestry was less precisely identified; he expects growing participation to improve results and recommends checking reports again after one or two years.

“the more people that take the 23andme test the more accurate these results will get” — Matt Baker

• 23andMe can identify relatives through shared DNA, but participation in matching is optional. Baker's results included his son, sharing approximately 50% of his DNA, two second cousins, and more distant relatives whom he could contact to investigate missing branches of his family tree.

“your results don't automatically become public you can opt in or opt out of sharing with others” — Matt Baker

• Raw DNA data can potentially unlock additional family connections through other genealogy services. Baker explains that MyHeritage accepted uploads from 23andMe customers, allowing them to search another relatives database without retesting, while Ancestry.com required customers to purchase its own DNA test at the time.

• Maternal and paternal haplogroups trace only two narrow ancestral lines, not someone's complete ancestry. Baker's maternal haplogroup was U4a and his paternal haplogroup was R-Z156, a branch of R1b; these follow uninterrupted mother-to-mother and father-to-father lineages across generations.

“these are only two lines out of thousands in your family tree” — Matt Baker

• Baker's shared paternal ancestry with King Louis XVI does not establish royal descent. His haplogroup report identifies an ancient common paternal ancestor, which Baker describes as a connection shared by a substantial portion of Western Europe rather than evidence of a close relationship with the French monarchy.

“half of Western Europe all share a common ancestor from 10,000 years ago” — Matt Baker

• Assyria broke free from the Mitanni Empire under Eriba-Adad I and became a dominant regional power under his son Ashur-uballit I. Internal conflict weakened Mitanni, allowing Assyria to regain independence and subsequently defeat its former overlord; diplomatic correspondence preserved in Egypt's Amarna letters provides evidence of Ashur-uballit's reign.

• A royal marriage connected the Assyrian dynasty to the kings of Babylon. Ashur-uballit I's daughter married the Kassite king Burna-Buriash II, making several subsequent Babylonian rulers, beginning with Kurigalzu II, probable descendants of the Assyrian royal family.

• The Middle Assyrian Empire peaked under Tukulti-Ninurta I, who became the first Assyrian ruler to adopt the title "King of Kings." After conquering Babylon with his father Shalmaneser I, Tukulti-Ninurta was murdered by his son Ashur-nadin-apli, who seized the throne; Assyria subsequently lost Babylon and eventually contracted to its heartland.

• The Neo-Assyrian revival began under Adad-nirari II, while Shalmaneser III left one of Assyria's most valuable surviving historical monuments. His nearly intact Black Obelisk contains an early Assyrian reference to ancient Israel and what the presenter identifies as the first known visual depiction of an Israelite.

• An Assyrian queen may have inspired the legendary Semiramis. Shammuramat initially governed as regent because her son Adad-nirari III inherited the throne as a child, and historians associate her with the legendary queen who subsequently appeared in Greek traditions and centuries of literature.

• Tiglath-Pileser III revived Assyrian military dominance by conquering Syria and Phoenicia and reconquering Babylon. Despite his achievements, his ancestry remains uncertain: he may have been a son or grandson of Adad-nirari III, or a usurper who seized power.

• Assyrian records from Tiglath-Pileser III's reign independently confirm several Israelite kings named in the Bible. Biblical accounts of his capture of Israelite cities also agree with Assyrian evidence; the Kingdom of Israel was subsequently destroyed during the reigns of his successors Shalmaneser V and Sargon II.

"the Bible as a whole should always be approached as a religious text not a historical text"

• Assyria reached its greatest territorial extent under Ashurbanipal but collapsed rapidly after his death. His campaigns expelled Kushite rule from Egypt and established a dependent pharaoh, yet imperial overextension and internal conflicts contributed to Assyria's decline and eventual replacement by the Neo-Babylonian Empire.