An island was once partly ruled by a great Empire. After the Empire fell, a Celtic tribe settled on this island. Centuries later, their King set the foundation for a nation, that is no longer one.
Cináed mac Ailpín was born around 800 to Ailpín, King of Dál Riata. Dál Riata was a Gaelic Kingdom in the northern part of Great Britain. The southern part was once a Roman province but after the departure of the Roman troops around 410, it was overrun by Germanic tribes. 1/10
The Gaels were a Celtic people who had settled in present day Ireland. In fifth century AD, one of the Gaelic tribes, called Scotis by the Romans, crossed the North Channel and established themselves in the north of Great Britain, setting up the Kingdom of Dál Riata. 2/10
By Cináed's time, Dál Riata had lost its Irish provinces and was limited to Great Britain. They were one of the many Kingdoms in the northern part of Great Britain, alongside the Kingdom of Picts, the Brythonic Kingdom of Strathclyde and the Anglican Kingdom of Northumbria. 3/10
In 834, Alpín died fighting the Picts. With the decline of Dál Riata in Ireland, they had faced with similar struggles against their neighbours as well. Pictish King, Óengus mac Fergusso, had become the overlord of Dál Riata in the 8th century. 4/10
Cináed inherited a weak Dál Riata from his father and looked at their neighbours for expansion. He got the opportunity in 843, due to an ambiguity over succession. Though the circumstances are not entirely clear, Cináed had become the King of Picts by 850. 5/10
King Uuen mac Óengusa of the Picts had died in battle against the Vikings in 839. It is possible Cináed had a claim to the title or the Picts were weak after their defeat. There are other rival Kings recorded as well. But by 850, Cináed had united Dál Riata & Picts as Alba. 6/10
The merger led to more Scoti moving east to the land of the Picts and a slow merger of the communities. King Cináed also headed south towards Lothian in Northumbria capturing Melrose and Dunbar, but also had to deal with Strathclyde and Viking raids as well. 7/10
King Cináed died in 858 and was succeeded by his brother, Domnall. Cináed's sons, Causantin and Áed, also became Kings of Alba later and it was under their descendants that Kingdom of Alba transformed into the Kingdom of Scotland. 8/10
The line of King Ailpín ended with Máel Coluim in 1034, after which his grandsons via daughters, Donnchadh of Atholl and MacBheatha of Moray vied for rule. Scotland had annexed Strathclyde by then. In the end, it was Máel Coluim, son of Donnchadh, who came victor in 1058. 9/10
In 1603, the King of Scotland inherited the crown of England. In 1707, the two crowns were united as one to form Kingdom of Great Britain, as moved by the Parliaments of the England and Scotland after voting, and ending Scotland's existence as a distinct nation. 10/10
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Victor Amedee François de Savoie was born in 1666 to Charles Emmanuel, Duke of Savoy, and Marie Jeanne Baptiste de Savoie-Nemours. On his father's death in 1675, his mother became his regent and pursued a pro French agenda. 1/10
Savoy is a landlocked region in the ancient Kingdom of Burgundy, situated in the Western Alps. It became a County in 1003 and, with the addition of County of Nice, got access to the Mediterranean Sea in 1388. In 1416, it was raised to a Duchy, in the Holy Roman Empire. 2/10
Friedrich von Brandenburg was born in 1657 to Friedrich Willhem, Elector of Brandenburg and Duke of Prussia, and Luise Henriette von Nassau. The same year Prussia became an independent Duchy free off Polish suzerainty, in exchange for support in its war against Sweden. 1/10
Friedrich's father, Friedrich Wilhelm, had been able organize his family's estates into the state of Brandenburg-Prussia. Though Prussia had become independent, there was one title Friedrich Wilhelm wanted but remained elusive, that of a King. 2/10
Richard was born in 1209 to King John of England and Countess Isabelle of Angoulême. In the middle of a civil war in 1216, King John died and was succeeded by his elder son, Henry. The English barons had allied with French Prince, Louis, to overthrow King John. 1/10
William Marshal, the Regent for King Henry, turned the tide in favour of the King by pacifying the barons and defeating the French at Lincoln in 1217.
In 1225, Henry made Richard Earl of Cornwall. Cornwall was an ancient region, a Celtic Kingdom during Anglo Saxon times. 2/10
Konstantin Roger Friedrich von Staufen was born in 1194 to Henrich von Staufen, Holy Roman Emperor (King of Germany) and Constance, Queen of Sicily. Heinrich's death in 1197 led to the disarray of his realms. Opposing factions elected two new Kings to succeed Heinrich. 1/10
Otto of Brunswick and Heinrich's younger brother, Philipp von Staufen, were both elected. In 1198, Constance died, and young Konstantin became King of Sicily taking the name Federigo (Friedrich). Federigo remained in Sicily with Pope as Regent, away from the German rivalry. 2/10
Marcus Cocceius Nerva was born around 30 AD to Marcus Cocceius Nerva and Sergia Plautilla. He came from a Roman noble family with ties to the imperial family and Nerva continued in the same vain becoming Praetor Elect in 65. 1/10
In 65, Nerva is supposed to have played an important role in revealing a conspiracy to assassinate Emperor Nero. But in 68, Nero got himself killed bringing the imperial dynasty to an end. Without an heir, the Empire plunged into chaos as different factions sought power. 2/10
25 years later, the brother of the French King who was dethroned (and executed later) became King of France. The Old World Order stuck around for a bit longer in Europe, and the oldest and the most diverse dynasty of Europe, the Capets / Robertiners, ruled France till 1848. 1/11
Thread on the 8 prominent rulers and 2 notable consorts of this dynasty on whom I have written so far. The earliest among them was before Capets were called Capets and from when France was not called France. 2/11