For a long time, the makings of history were a preserve only royalties (kings and queens), could afford to keep up with. Thanks to our present, newly-found informational utopia with the internet, knowledge is available to all and sundry.
Even with the caveat of ‘false news’ doing the rounds every now and then, it’s now imperative more than ever for us to carefully weigh the salt in every assertion put to us. The latest findings from England sound like hogwash, yet still, there could be some truth in the news.
Unbelievably, the Queen of the United Kingdom may be a direct descendant of renowned Islamic Prophet Muhammad. Should this news prove to be true, the Queen would actually be the true ruler of two of the most popular religions known to man, Christianity, and Islam
How? Well, her present status as queen bequeaths to her the power to reign supreme as the ‘Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church of England. Such titles have long been associated with royalty since the reign of King Henry VIII. Notably, Pope Leo X was the first to grant the title to the king in 1521.
The recent news about the Queen being a descendant of Prophet Muhammad has been sensational to say the least. News outlets in various parts of the world from Morocco to the United Kingdom have been awash with all sorts of ‘proof’ about the lineage.
History
According to legend, Zaida converted to Christianity and became King Alfonso VI of Castile’s concubine. Importantly, there’s no concrete evidence that Zaida was actually related to Prophet Muhammad
However, one would be forgiven for thinking that the news has recently just broken out to the general public. In truth, the news has been in the public domain since 1986 when genealogist, Harold B. Brooks-Baker, became famous for publishing Burke’s Peerage, Britain’s ultimate guide to nobility.
During that time (1986,) Brooks-Baker wrote to then British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, about his beliefs that unbeknownst to many, the blood of Prophet Muhammed actually flows in the Queen’s veins. He firmly believed that Queen Elizabeth was connected to Prophet Muhammad through Zaida of Seville, who was an ancient Muslim princess during the 11 Century.
Another historian, Abdelhamid Al-Aouni, who wrote an article about this bizarre connection in the Al-Ousboue, concurs with Brooks-Baker’s findings. The two use Zaida as the fulcrum to make a connection between the Muhammad and the Queen. According to him, his research will help create a conduit like bridge to connect two facets of the world, religion, and kingdoms.
Media Darling
Prior to his death in 2005, Brooks-Baker was renowned for his fondness with media personalities. Due to his frequent excursions researching on the royal family, they often clashed heads. Members of the press loved him for helping them come up with headlines for their papers. As a media darling, his only flaw was perhaps the fact that most of his assertions were not true.
Despite his flawed history, Islamic scholars like Ali Goma have met Brooks-Baker’s findings with approval. As the 18th Grand Mufti of Egypt, Ali Goma admits that he was able to find the same connection. In his statement, he wished to send Queen Elizabeth blessing and peace
However, others do not share the same optimism about the topic. Lesley Hazleton, a journalist cum author, disagrees with the very notion that the Queen could possibly share a bloodline with Prophet Muhammad. According to her, the news is a well-intended interfaith spin. She goes further ahead to claim that any such assertions are merely ‘click-bait’ intended to hook readers with cheap traffic.
Hazleton declares that we are all related to each other once we all go far enough to our very origins. She believes that one can find a third cousin 99 times removed for anyone in the world.