Paul Farquhar
Legend
Unknown. Last time there was a coronation paternity DNA testing had not been invented.Last time a bastard took the English throne.
Unknown. Last time there was a coronation paternity DNA testing had not been invented.Last time a bastard took the English throne.
Spells could help. A zone of truth on the King or speak with dead once he dies, or the mother dies.Unknown. Last time there was a coronation paternity DNA testing had not been invented.
Arguably in 1558 - Elizabeth I had been declared illegitimate when Henry VIII executed her mother for treason, and although she was restored to the line of succession (and then removed again, and then added again - it was an interesting time), she wasn't restored to legitimacy.Last time a bastard took the English throne.
Both of those will only go so far - they will tell the truth as they know it. People have a great capacity for choosing what to believe.Spells could help. A zone of truth on the King or speak with dead once he dies, or the mother dies.
Are you thinking of Mary of Modina, wife of James II, and the alleged "baby in the warming pan"?There is at least one other story of a miraculous pregnancy, from some time before that.
I don't think so, though that would certainly count.Are you thinking of Mary of Modina, wife of James II, and the alleged "baby in the warming pan"?
In the game of thrones, the biggest bastard is the one who is alive and sitting on the throne when the music stops.I'll leave it as an exercise for the reader to decide which of them was the bastard in that situation
He's not the supposedly legitimate son and heir of A Baron he is The legitimate son and heir of A BaronessGiven that the character in question is an individual, they can act in whatever way the player or GM chooses - there's no 'would' about it.
That said, if he's been raised as the supposedly-legitimate son and heir of a baron and has just learned that he's the illegitimate son of the king (and nobody else knows), then by far the smart thing to do is destroy any and all evidence of this and carry on as if he'd never found out - he has no meaningful support base for taking over the kingdom; it's very likely very few people would believe him anyway; the other heirs would want to see him dead... and in most places succession laws specifically exclude illegitimate children - meaning that if he outs himself as the king's illegitimate son his best-case outcome under the law may well be to see him lose his inheritance as baron for no gain at all.
One thought occurred to me last night: real world monarchs are very big on "the divine right of kings". (Indeed, I think even tomorrow King Charles is going to claim that he is king by the grace of God.) But of course in most D&D settings the gods are a matter of provable fact and can be contacted by their most powerful priests.Spells could help. A zone of truth on the King or speak with dead once he dies, or the mother dies.