A clear genetic line has been drawn between the Duke of Cambridge and a half-Indian woman, potentially marking him as the first King whose bloodline is descended from the country.
Analysis of saliva samples on relatives of Prince William revealed the link between the second in line to the throne and a distant relative from his mother’s family.
The revelation will prompt calls for the 30-year-old prince to make his maiden visit to India, following in the footsteps of his parents who travelled there in 1992.
The genetic link with India is believed to originate from Williams’s great-great-great-great-great grandmother Eliza Kewark.
Although often described as Armenian, DNA analysis has revealed that she was at least half-Indian and is known to have lived in the country’s western region.
Scottish scientists established the link after discovering that Eliza’s descendants carried a rare strand of DNA - known as mitochondrial DNA - which can only be passed on by a mother.
Only people from the Indian subcontinent have been found to carry the particular strand of DNA. It has been recorded in 14 other people - all Indian, apart from one Nepalese native.
The DNA is thought to have been passed down to Prince William and his brother Harry, as the scientist behind the research described the genetic link as ‘unassailable’.
The tests were carried out by genetics expert Jim Wilson, from the University of Edinburgh and a group called BritainsDNA, who said that the princes would be unable to pass the DNA to their children.
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