Bowes & Coals to Windsor

The plaque below led me to look at the Bowes family tree, which I found to be very large with many branches;  I've picked a chain to link the Royal Family to Durham coal, based on details in geni.com

By convention the first-born male took the forename of his father.   If that son died before another was born, the new son also would be named after the father.   Because of repetition of names I've appended dates to differentiate.   Note that the first legitimate male heir would inherit titles, estates, etc, from his father.   Daughters, wives & widows could still be powerful & influential beyond bearing many children.

Sir William Bowes 1656-1707 of Gibside  &  Streatlam Castle  married Elizabeth Bowes 1651-1736.

Plaque commemorating Dame Elizabeth Bowes, John Bowes’ great-great grandmother,
"a pickaxe-wielding firebrand who fought to build the family’s fortune in coal".
She's interred in the chapel of St Mary the Less, on the opposite side of' South Bailey, Durham.
In the family tree, you could start with Dame Elizabeth .....

Sir William & Dame Elizabeth were parents of :

Sir George Bowes 1701-60, who was father of :

Mary Eleanor Bowes 1749-1800.  

Meanwhile in Scotland, Thomas Lyon, 8th Earl of Strathmore from Glamis Castle had a son, John ......

John Lyon, chief of the Clan Lyon 

John Lyon 1737-76, 9th Earl of Strathmore, married Mary Eleanor Bowes 1749-1800.   Because Mary was the only child of Sir John Bowes, John Lyon changed his name to John Bowes by act of parliament in order to inherit Gibside.

John & Mary were parents of John Bowes 1769-1820, 10th Earl of Strathmore & Kinghorne.

John Bowes 1769-1820 & Lady Hutt 1787-1860 had a son John Bowes 1811-85.

John Bowes 1811-85 could not inherit his father's titles because his parents only married on his father's deathbed, but he did get Streatlam & Gibside.   

John Bowes 1811-85 was behind the Marley Hill Coal Company, etc, but his branch of the family ended with him.

John Bowes 1811-85 (illegitimate son of John Bowes 1769-1820) racehorse owner & art collector
John Bowes 1811-85 married Joséphine Benoîte Coffin-Chevalliern 1825-74 
They established the Bowes Museum at Barnard Castle, but had no children

John Lyon 1737-76 & Mary Eleanor Bowes 1749-1800 were also parents of:

Thomas Bowes (later Lyon-Bowes) 1773-1846 who took the title of 11th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne over his older brother, who was deemed illegitimate.

Thomas Bowes (later Lyon-Bowes) 1773-1846 was the father of:

Thomas George Bowes-Lyon (Lyon-Bowes) 1801-34, Lord Glamis who was the father of:

Sir Claude George Bowes-Lyon  1824-1904, 13th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne who was the father of:

Sir Claude Bowes-Lyon 1855-1944, 14th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne who was the father of:

Lady Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon (Queen Elizabeth. the Queen Mother) 1900-2002, the key person who brought a Durham coal dynasty into the UK Royal Family

Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon 1900-2002, who brought
a Durham coal dynasty into the Royal Family

Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon 1900-2002 was the mother of:

Queen Elizabeth II 1926-2022 who was the mother of:

King Charles III 1948-

Prince Charles, now King Charles III, unveiling the plaque to his ancestor in 2018.
(photo from Durham University St John's College)

From the website of St John's theological college of Durham University:
"Our buildings, mainly townhouses dating to the Georgian period, also have a rich history.

Dame Elizabeth Bowes (1651-1736) lived at 4 South Bailey and is buried in the Bowes family vault at the Church of St Mary the Less. She had ten children and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother was descended from her third son, George Bowes.

Prince Charles unveiled a commemorative plaque honouring his ancestor Dame Elizabeth Bowes at St John’s College, during his visit to Durham City on Thursday, 15 February 2018. The Prince’s visit began at the Church of St Mary the Less, our College chapel where he visited the memorial stone of Dame Elizabeth Bowes. The commemorative plaque is placed in honour of Dame Elizabeth at Bowes House, her former family home. Bowes House now houses student accommodation and special function rooms."

Memorial stone to Dame Elizabeth & two of her ten children, Elizabeth & Jane
(from Northern Echo, November 2018)

A segment of the UK Royal Family tree with Queen Elizabeth II highlighted
See geneat.org 

For further detail of the lives, marriages, offspring & wealth of the Bowes family, see the Sunniside LHS article.