Chapter 32

Chapter 32 - 1324 to 1332: The Emperor of Love

The majority of the Council of Britannia votes to focus on the Northern Islands. With the matter settled, the Council is dismissed, and Emperor Loup II returns to Norfolk.

As he returns to the Castle Thetford, one of his courtiers, a Hungarian man named Lampert, approaches him and asks him what will be done with the prisoners from the latest conquest of Scotland. Loup tells the man to offer all those that are not claimants of Scotland or Moray positions as courtiers of Britannia and to bring those who accept to him, so he can evaluate their worth. A few hours later, Lampert is back with a young Scottish woman named Peigi Ua Canannain, daughter of one of the last counts of Tyrconnell before it was conquered. She is an unusually attractive, friendly woman, who is quite knowledgeable in the ways of intrigue. Loup immediately orders her released, offering her a position as a courtier in Norfolk. She accepts.

Loup quickly falls in love with her, despite his wife with whom he has five children, for he has become a lustful hedonist in the past few years, hence his multitude of children. Soon, Peigi becomes his closest courtier.

His wife has, in recent years, fallen from grace. A rumor has gone around for the past year that she was involved in the murder of one of her rivals, and she has even been caught speaking badly about her husband the Emperor. All in all, Loup's fondness of his wife has grown thin and divorce is imminent.

Unfortunately, it seems that Mafalda is pregnant again, just after the war ends. A son is born in 1325, whom they name BPM.

It is not too long before Loup's little ventures into Peigi's room bares fruit. She is pregnant in September. No longer in love with his wife, wishing nothing more than to be free of her and to be with Peigi, he sends a request to the Pope to allow him to divorce Mafalda. The Pope reluctantly accepts, and Mafald and Loup are officially divorced in October of 1325. He stands as the first Emperor of Britannia, or even King of England, to sever his marriage prior to death.

Mafalda sails back to her native Aquitaine no longer an empress. Soon after the sails disappear over the horizon, Peigi, the new Empress, is married to Loup.

The divorce and then marriage, within weeks of each other, does not go over well with the vassals, especially when a daughter is born to Peigi and Loup within a week of their marriage. They name her ZZZ.

As Britannia changes evermore, so does the rest of the known world. In the world of Islam, the two dominating Dynasties, the Fatimids and the Seljuks, have fallen out of power in the last decade. In 1317, an ambitious Turk by the name of Bugra toppled the Seljuk Sultanate, placing himself as Sultan of the vast eastern Muslim realm. In 1325, the last Fatimid Sultan was defeated by a man called Zaia, who imprisoned the former Fatimids and took the throne for himself. However, he proved to be incapable of keeping the realm together, and many vassals gained independence in the ensuing chaos.

In Europe, the Holy Roman Empress, Gerhild, dies in battle after she led her men against the Sultanate of Zaiaid. With no children and no husband, her Empire is inherited by her younger sister Ulrike, the Empress of Byzantium. Ulrike reforms the HRE of old, that stretches from Frisia to Anatolia.

Jerkera comes of age in July of 1327. She is not very talented in any area, although she is quite scholarly. She is married matrilineally to a talented Norwegian soldier named Halkjell Olavsson. He is offered the position of Commander soon after arriving in Britannia.

Idhrendura comes of age in September of 1328. She is a scholoarly, attractive young woman and is easily married to the King of Brittany, a historical ally of Britannia. But alliance is not the only reason Loup has for the marriage...

Radekza reaches 14 not long after her sister. She lacks most any skills, but she is still married (matrilineal) to a well known Hungarian administrator named György.

Inwær, uncle of Emperor Loup II, passes away in February of 1331. Although he was once enemy of Britannia, he felt repentance at his attempt on the throne and, after he was released from imprisonment, he became a commander of Britannia. After the Scottish war ended, Loup, now quite fond of his former enemy, granted him the Duchy of Ulster. He now dies at the age of 54, leaving the Duchy to his only living brother Dunaden.

Loup and Andre Massena come of age on December 30th, 1331. Loup III is an excellent heir to the throne, decently skilled in both diplomacy and administration. Although somewhat off putting due to his clubfoot, humble, kind, and diligent nature makes him friends wherever he goes.

His twin sister is very different; she is a natural fighter, always ready to throw fists with anyone, regardless of relative size.

It is at this moment that Emperor Loup decides to begin the Norwegian campaign, for he knows that the gathering of levies and ships will take several months. He declares war on Norge for the islands of Orkney and Hjaltland...



NOTE:
-I forgot to mention in the AAR, the King of Brittany dies soon after Idhrendura and he are married. Idhrendura returns to Britannia and is married instead to a prince of Aquitaine.
-It turns out one of DKM's son, who died during the great plague, had impregnated his wife right before his death. I did not see that he had a son because the son was not born until a few months after I had checked! DKM IV lives!
-PLEASE READ, I just want your opinion, this is no sort of vote. I could marry heir Loup to the Empress of the HRE. She is unmarried, only 20, and has no children. What do you guys think? I'm still not too familiar with the dynasty and heir mechanics of the game, despite having been playing it for years, so explanations of possible outcomes would be great!