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Royalties Founded By Commoners In History

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  Quote snowybeagle Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Royalties Founded By Commoners In History
    Posted: 15-Dec-2004 at 20:46
In China, three of the greatest dynasties (Han, Song and Ming) had founders who were commoners. The first and the third were outcomes of peasant rebellions, while the second resulted from a coup by a commoner who rose up through the rank and file to become a commander of the Imperial Guards.

I know of no European kingdom founded by a commoner. After the fall of the Roman Empire, the early kingdoms were founded by tribal chiefs and ever since the establishment of feudalism, there seems to be little opportunity for a commoner to establish for himself a kingdom until Napoleon who had to marry an Imperial princess to try to win approval from the traditional "bluebloods".

While there had been peasant rebellions in Europe, none were ultimately successful, until the French Revolution (if it can be deemed as a peasant rebellion). The English Civil War was won by Parliamentarians who were hardly peasants. In fact, it seemed that even when a peasant uprising was successful against its local ruler, neighbouring lords and kings promptly suppressed it, preferring to install a relative from a noble family as the new lord.

Does anyone know of a European example of an individual who founded his own dynasty (one that is not short-lived) within his own lifetime from a commoner's background?

What about historical kingdoms from the Near East, Middle East, Africa and India?
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  Quote Gubook Janggoon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Dec-2004 at 20:48
Hoobaekje was founded by a commoner name Kyun Hwun.
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  Quote snowybeagle Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Dec-2004 at 21:20

Originally posted by Gubukjanggoon

Hoobaekje was founded by a commoner name Kyun Hwun.

I assume that was in what is present day Korea?  It would be great if you could specify because not everyone (including myself) is familiar with that name.

How did Kyun Hwun establish his dynasty?

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  Quote Gubook Janggoon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Dec-2004 at 21:23
Hehe Sorry about that.  Well he was a common foot soldier and eventually worked his way up the Shilla army.  Eventually Shilla disintegrated into a bunch of mini states and Kyun Hwon founded Hoobaekje.  He later became one of the three later 3 kingdoms including Koryo and Shilla. 

I also Think Toyotomi Hideyoshi counts too.  His story was basically the same.  He started off looking after Nobunaga's shoes and eventually became shogun.
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  Quote snowybeagle Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Dec-2004 at 21:26
Originally posted by snowybeagle

I assume that was in what is present day Korea?  It would be great if you could specify because not everyone (including myself) is familiar with that name.

How did Kyun Hwun establish his dynasty?

Okay, I found it in Wikipedia under a different spelling - Hubaekje.

I assume that's the one?

Rather unfortunate that his kingdom was so short lived.

Wiki mentioned the succession struggle among his sons caused the downfall of the kingdom.  Quite unfortunate.

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  Quote snowybeagle Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Dec-2004 at 21:36

Originally posted by Gubukjanggoon


I also Think Toyotomi Hideyoshi counts too.  His story was basically the same.  He started off looking after Nobunaga's shoes and eventually became shogun.

I think Hideyoshi was close, but did not quite pass the final stage - official recognition.

According to Wikipedia, because of his humble birth, the Tenn (emperor) could not grant him the title of Shogun even though he held pretty much the power of one.  He even tried unsuccessfully to become Ashikaga Yoshiaki's (Muromachi shogun) godson to get round it.  In the end, he had to satisfy himself with the title of kampaku (regent).  If his successors had managed to hold on to power, they'd probably manage to get official recognition as a noble family and the shogun title.

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  Quote lars573 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Dec-2004 at 21:48
The only example I can think of is Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte. He started out as an enlisted man in the french army in 1780. If he was an enlisted man it means his family didn't have the monetary resources to get him a commission so he was of fairly common back ground. His actions as a french marshal along the rhine got him the title of Prince of Ponte Corvo. After he was sacked by Napoleon he was adopted by the childless king Charles XIII if Sweden. He ruled as king Charles XIV (18181844). The current swedish king Carl XVI Gustaf (1973) is his decendant.
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  Quote azimuth Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16-Dec-2004 at 00:53

the Ummayad Caliphat was founded by Muaweyah who was a cousin of the third Caliphat Othoman.

The Abbassid Caliphat was founded by Alsafah  who was a great great grandson of AL-Abbas who was Prophet Mohammed's uncle

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  Quote snowybeagle Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16-Dec-2004 at 02:50
Originally posted by azimuth

the Ummayad Caliphat was founded by Muaweyah who was a cousin of the third Caliphat Othoman.

The Abbassid Caliphat was founded by Alsafah  who was a great great grandson of AL-Abbas who was Prophet Mohammed's uncle

It does not seem that Muaweyah and Alsafah were from commoners' families, at least not from their births.

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  Quote azimuth Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16-Dec-2004 at 08:53

yes you are right i must misunderstood the topic

but Muaweyah was a littel commoner because he was just a governor of syria when his cousin was assasinated

and he stood against the 4th Caliphat Ali and declared himself as a Caliphat later

and he was borne as a commoner who fought against Isalm at the begining.

he was put a governor not by his cousin but by the 2nd Caliph Omar

 

 

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  Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02-Jan-2005 at 13:59
Muwiyyah was not a commoner, he was the son of Abu Sufyan, who was the ruler of the traderich city of Makkah and leader of the Quraish tribe - which is considered Royality among Arabs (then and now).

An example of a European (or Near East) dynasty that was founded by a commoner is the Ottoman dynasty and Empire. They ruled for some 800 years, never diposed or overthrown until 1924 but they were founded by a commoner.

Modern day example in Middle East would be House of Saud, which was founded by commoners and is still a ruling dynasty. Saddam would probably have been another example of a commoner rising up to rule and establish a dynasty but his dynasty is history. Same with Bashr al-Asad of Syria, another dynasty founded by a commoner.
Same with the ancient Kingdom of Israel, the first King Saul was a commoner.

Also the Rothschild Banking dynasty was founded a commoner.

too many examples to name them all
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  Quote Anujkhamar Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02-Jan-2005 at 14:40
if i remember correctly Chadragupta Maurya was also a commoner before he founded the Mauryan dinisty.
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  Quote Tobodai Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02-Jan-2005 at 16:15
The Pharoah Horemheb was a commoner who rose through the ranks of the army to become general and then pharaoh.
"the people are nothing but a great beast...
I have learned to hold popular opinion of no value."
-Alexander Hamilton
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  Quote mongke Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04-Jan-2005 at 18:07
What about the Grimaldis of Monaco? They were merchants who became princes.
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  Quote LeopoldPhilippe Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 22-Jul-2015 at 19:54
The Grimaldis emerged from the Crusades as one of the four major families of the Genoese urban nobility.
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