alternatehistory.com

Note: I've posted this in the pre-1900 section as most people who will be using it will be looking at people born earlier than decent records have been kept. If a mod or someone thinks it should go somewhere else, please move it to the correct spot.

I've been using geni.com a little bit to try and figure out the relationship between various people who aren't immediately linked on Wikipedia or included on any family trees I have managed to find. However I have run into a number of instances that have caused me to doubt its validity and have taken most of the stuff on there with a grain of sand. For instance (sorry that these are all about 8th century people, that is simply the stuff I enjoy reading up on):
  • Childeric III is said to have had a son Theuderic at the age of 8. While biologically possible, it is extremely unlikely and similar situations appear an awful lot on there, especially when no-one is sure what dates to use. I am sure that Theuderic existed (Einhard or someone mentions him at one point), but he would have been born much later, probably around 750 or so.
  • Various birth and death dates are given without any other knowledge, contradicting other sources (wiki) or being completely made up (wives dying the same year their husbands did, or children being born to teenage- or younger parents. I realise 16 was considered a normal age for a child to be born, but 12? 10? I think I saw 6 once even.)
  • Theuderic (Childeric's kid) is said to have had a wife 'Theodora'. He was chucked in a monastery when he was a kid, so I highly doubt he would ever have married.
  • Karloman (Charlemagne's brother) 's second son is given the name 'Syagrius'. Wikipedia and every other source I have looked at have simply said that the name of this child is unknown, although the child is known to exist. I only ever found one Syagrius to have ever lived, and that was in the late 5th century, so it is unlikely Karloman would have chosen that name over something like Louis or Karl.
I am fine with trusting Wikipedia if there are no other webistes that say much, simply because the sources are listed at the bottom of 99% of pages and I am aware of extensive moderator action and things like that. However geni.com doesn't give any sources, except maybe a cut-and-paste of a persons wiki page occasionally. So I am starting to distrust it, except for the occasional figuring out of who was the parent of whom. Does anyone know of any sources it provides, or is it unreliable?

(Also if people happen to know the name of Karloman's second son, or can confirm Childeric's wife's name, that would be much appreciated.)

- BNC
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