British journalist Rachel Johnson has admitted she didn’t cry upon discovering her great-great-grandmother was a victim of white slavery during the Circassian genocide, as she believes it gave the woman ‘better chances’.
Boris Johnson’s sister, 56, uncovered their family history while researching Channel 5’s TV programme 1000 Years a Slave, which revealed that their ancestor Hanife Feride was as young as 13 when she was sold to Ahmed Hamdi, 43, in Istanbul.
Fleeing Circassia to seek refuge in Turkey alongside other Circassian exiles being perpetrated by Russia, Feride married Ahmed before welcoming son Ali, Rachel and Boris’ great-grandfather.
She argued that Hanife’s marriage gave her ‘better opportunities’ and that she ‘gave a future politician to whom her great-grandson was a world leader’. She said that the discovery made it ‘pensive rather that sad’.
British journalist Rachel Johnson has admitted she didn’t cry upon discovering her great-great-grandmother was a victim of white slavery during the Circassian genocide, as she believes it gave the woman ‘better chances’
Writing for The Times, Rachel said: ‘I’m sure the crew wanted me to cry, but I didn’t.
‘How could I cry, when this girl’s life chances, as judged by her father, were far better if she married a rich merchant in Istanbul than if she stayed in a poor village by the Black Sea — and he was right? She gave birth to a future politician whose great-grandson was a world leader.
‘After all, if my forebear hadn’t been sold, she would have probably entered an arranged marriage anyway. “Just as poverty and occupation forced Caucasus fathers to sell their daughters in 19th century, so too are Afghan fathers selling their daughters today, as soon as the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 2021 and the economic collapse of the country, they are selling girls as young three.
Contemplating her journey to Istanbul, Rachel concluded: ‘It did not make me cry. It made me ponderous and made me question the foundations both of marriage and slavery.
Rachel Johnson’s great-great grandmother, Hanife Feride, is seen far right, alongside her granddaughter Durer (centre) and daughter Munevver (far left), who was Ali Kemal’s sister. Boris is Ali’s great-grandfather. Rachel is his great-grandfather.
Pictured: Boris Johnson (and Rachel)’s fascinating family tree
In 2008 Boris Johnson discovered his paternal great grandfather was a journalist and liberal politician who was killed after being kidnapped on a charge of treason as the Ottoman Empire entered its final days.
The BBC’s Who Do You Believe You Are? program featured Johnson, a Tory heavyweight. This programme shed light on the origins of Johnson.
It was revealed that Ali Kemal, Mr Johnson’s great-grandfather, was born in Constantinople (now Istanbul) in 1867. He was a prominent journalist.
However, his views led him to be exiled by Abdul Hamid II, 34th Sultan, who ruled from 1876 to 1909.
Boris Johnson (right), pictured as a child with his family (from left: mum Charlotte, sister Jo, father Stanley, and siblings Rachel, Leo and Boris)
Boris’ great-grandfather Ali Kemal, a prominent figure in Ottoman Empire at beginning of 20th Century, was also a prominent figure. He was a prominent journalist, poet, and politician who was executed by a mob in 1922.
Boris Johnson (pictured leaving London) in 2019 referred to his “Muslim great grandfather” during a Tory leadership discussion as he responded against Islamophobia allegations
In the years leading up to the First World War, Kemal was forced to flee the Empire because of increasing instability. His wife Winifred gave birth in England to Osman Wilfred Kemal. Selma was their first child.
After giving birth, his wife died. Kemal then moved in with Margaret Brun, his mother-in-law, whose maiden name is Johnson.
He later returned to the Ottoman Empire, where he remarried, and had another child.
He rose to political prominence in 1919 when he was appointed Minister for the Interior under Damat Ferid Pasha. At the time, he was the de facto prime minster.
Kemal reportedly resigned after only three months.
His life was ended in a tragic way in 1922 when he was kidnapped in Istanbul from a barber shop and was to face a charge for treason.
Ali Kemal (pictured here with his first wife Winifred), fled to England in the years prior to the First World War. Osman, the father of Stanley Johnson and Boris Johnson, was born to the couple.
Seen: Stanley Johnson. Boris’ father. His father changed his name from Osman Wilfred Kelmal to Wilfred Johnson.
He was supposed to be taken to Ankara in order to stand trial. However, a mob attacked his group and he was then lynched and killed as the Turkish War of Independence raged.
His son and his daughter, who were still living in London, adopted the name Johnson to avoid being bullied at school.
His son Osman also changed his middle name and first name, so that he became known by the nickname Wilfred J.
Wilfred would marry Irene Williams, and the couple had a son: Stanley Johnson. Boris was Boris’s father.
According to The Telegraph, at the time, the Tory leader commented in the BBC program that he was of a “completely mongrel” composition.
“It’s interesting to see how British I can feel, but, actually, what an entirely mongrel composition,’ he said.
“What it really teaches is that our genes pulse through our lives and we don’t know where they’ve come from or where they’re going.
The program also revealed that Johnson is a distant relative of Queen Elizabeth II.
His paternal grandmother was a descendant from Prince Paul Von Wurttemberg (German aristocrat), who was closely connected to King George II.
Johnson was shocked by the revelation, and said at the moment: ‘If I had been told that I was related with George II, I would have thought that you were absolute crackers.
Channel 5’s TV program 1000 Years a Slave airs on Tuesdays.
Boris Johnson, seen this weekend at the G20 summit, discovered that his paternal grandfather was a Turkish journalist who was also a liberal politician. He was kidnapped and convicted of treason just as the Ottoman Empire entered its last days.