High Kings of the British
490 - 532: Arthur I (House of Pendragon) [1]
532 - 554: Brittanicus I "The Great" (House of Pendragon) [2]
554 - 589: Aurelius II "The Lame" (House of Pendragon) [3)
589 - 614: Æthelmund I "The Pious" (House of Pendragon) [4]
614 - 647: Coel II (House of Pendragon) [5]
647-661: Maelgwn I "The Unmourned" (House of Pendragon) [6]
661 -675: Arthur II "The Traveller" (House of Pendragon) [7]
675 - 690: Vortigern II (House of Pendragon) [8]
Emperors of the Holy Brythonic Empire
690 - 691: Vortigern II (House of Pendragon) [8]
691 - 736: Rhiannon I "The Liberator" (House of Pendragon) [9]
736 - 758: Pryderi I "The Unifier" (House of Pendragon) [10]
758 - 779: Wledig III (House of Pendragon) [11]
779 - 790: Pryderi II (House of Pendragon) [12]
790 - 819: Uther II (House of Paladin) [13]
819 - 856: Arthur III “The Rightful” (House of Pendragon-Bloðorn) [14]
856 - 887: Arthur IV “The Far Sighted” (House of Pendragon-Bloðorn)[15]
887 - 890: Brittanicus II "The Just" (House of Pendragon-Bloðorn) [16]
890 - 949: Rhiannon II "The Fairy" or "The Burner" (House of Pendragon-Bloðorn) [17]
949 - 967: Brutus III "The Brythian" (House of Pendragon) [18]
967 - 989: Uther III "The Old" (House of Pendragon) [19]
989 - 1033: Emrys II (House of Pendragon) [20]
1033 - 1054: Emrys III (House of Pendragon) [21]
1054 - 1125: Arthur V "The Wise" (House of Pendragon) [22]
Emperors of the Holy Brythonic Empire, Kings of Acre and Electors of Holland
1125 - 1132: Uther IV (House of Pendragon) [23]
1132 - 1165: Owain I (House of Pendragon) [24]
1165 - 1191: Emrys IV (House of Pendragon) [25]
1191 - 1195: Roland I “The Small” (House of Pendragon) [26]
1195 - 1225: Owain II (House of Pendragon) [27]
1125 - 1250: Cassivellanus II "The Converter" (House of Pendragon) [28]
1250 - 1256: Morgause I (House of Pendragon) [29]
1256 - 1258: Brutus IV (House of Pendragon) [30]
1256 - 1258: Cassivellanus III (House of Pendragon) [31]
1258-1273: Aramir I (House of Pendragon) [31]
Emperors of the Holy Brythonic Empire, Kings of Acre and Jerusalem, Electors of Holland and Ian of Alternate History
1258-1271: Aramir I (House of Pendragon) [31]
[31] Prince Aramir was never meant to be Emperor, as his elder twin brother, Cassivellanus was supposed to be Emperor, and became so after the death of his mother, though only in name. Cassivellanus, however, died due to smallpox shortly before the battle of Dicter, forcing Aramir to become Emperor, with his father as regent.
He spoke Brythian with a slight accent, like his father, as he had spent a large part of his formative years in his uncle, Brutus, the Prince of Gallicia's court.
The Prince of Kernow, Owain was taken hostage after the battle of Thande, which occurred on May 19, 1258. Aramis' first act as emperor (or rather, his father's first act as Regent) was to backdate Cassivellanus' reign to 1256, and Brutus IV was declared an usurper.
The Civil War continued, as Owain's younger brother, Constantine declared his elder brother as illegitimate, and himself as "true emperor". This split the supporters of Brutus into two factions, further helping Aramir's cause.
By 1262, enough of the Brythian nobility had come around to the Emperor that a semblance of peace had been achieved, atleast in the isles. Regent Aramis became Prince of Gallicia in the same year, making Emperor Aramir the Duke of _______ (heir apparent of Gallicia, I have no idea on what place it would be so please let me know 🙏).
In 1265, the 19 year old Emperor officially gained control over the matters of state, and promptly beheaded Owain, and declared war on Constantine, ordering him and his brothers to submit to the "might of the empire". Constantine, of course, refused, which triggered the 'reconquest of Holland'.
The Emperor began by allying himself with the Holy Roman Emperor and King of Norway, marrying himself to the 17 year old niece of the Emperor, and marrying his only sister, Morgause to the Crown Prince of Norway.
Claimant Emperor Constantine was killed in battle during the reconquest, but his younger brothers, ______ and ______ fled to the east, eventually finding refuge in their cousin, Ambrosius II of Jerusalem's court.
Ambrosius was an ambitious man, and valued his descent from from David. He declared that he was king of Jerusalem "not because his kinswoman had granted it to his father, but because he was the true successor of David." This was an unwise move, however, as the now dead Empress Morgause had been popular with the masses of Jerusalem, and this caused massive consternation in the kingdom of Jerusalem, with the king's younger half brother, Cassivellanus declared that Aramis was the true emperor, and, denouncing his brother, brought the civil war to the holy land.
While the Brythian holdings in the west recovered, the situation in the holy land began to deteoriate, until Pope Honorious IX had to intervene, where he excommunicated both Ambrosius and Cassivellanus, and invited ______ (eldest surviving son of Brutus IV) to the throne. This caused the Pope to get denounced by the supporters of Aramir, and he died due to severe stress. His political rival, Arthur FitzPendragon (bastard son of Brutus of Gallicia) came to the papal throne as Pope Hilarious V, he lifted the excommunication of Cassivellanus, and invited Aramis to the Jerusalemite throne, this caused him to get denounced by Brutus' supporters, following which he excommunicated the supporters of Brutus and Ambrosius. Aramis agreed to become king, and tried to stabilize the situation, although he did not fully succeed. The sons of Brutus fled, eventually ending up in Eastern France. Cassivellanus was made Governor of Jerusalem and Acre in the king's stead.
Aramis had had a close friend since his childhood, a man whose name is thought to have been Ian Turtledove. Ian was a man of learning, and held a special regard for history, and had many writings on the "what could have beens" of history, a genre he formally introduced as "Alternate History". Ian died in 1266 at the age of 21, and was heavily mourned by the Emperor. His original works were kept in the Emperor's personal library, and an order of historian was foundedby the emperor in 1269, where members met and discussed history. The head of this order was called an 'Ian', this title was posthumously awarded to Ian Turtledove and was taken upon by Emperor Aramir. This order was later validated by Pope Hilarious V in 1271.
He died in 1272, after reigning for 14 years, shortly before the birth of his third son. He is thought to have been poisoned by ________ although this has not been proven. He was succeeded by __________, leaving the regency to his elerly father, the Prince of Gallicia.
490 - 532: Arthur I (House of Pendragon) [1]
532 - 554: Brittanicus I "The Great" (House of Pendragon) [2]
554 - 589: Aurelius II "The Lame" (House of Pendragon) [3)
589 - 614: Æthelmund I "The Pious" (House of Pendragon) [4]
614 - 647: Coel II (House of Pendragon) [5]
647-661: Maelgwn I "The Unmourned" (House of Pendragon) [6]
661 -675: Arthur II "The Traveller" (House of Pendragon) [7]
675 - 690: Vortigern II (House of Pendragon) [8]
Emperors of the Holy Brythonic Empire
690 - 691: Vortigern II (House of Pendragon) [8]
691 - 736: Rhiannon I "The Liberator" (House of Pendragon) [9]
736 - 758: Pryderi I "The Unifier" (House of Pendragon) [10]
758 - 779: Wledig III (House of Pendragon) [11]
779 - 790: Pryderi II (House of Pendragon) [12]
790 - 819: Uther II (House of Paladin) [13]
819 - 856: Arthur III “The Rightful” (House of Pendragon-Bloðorn) [14]
856 - 887: Arthur IV “The Far Sighted” (House of Pendragon-Bloðorn)[15]
887 - 890: Brittanicus II "The Just" (House of Pendragon-Bloðorn) [16]
890 - 949: Rhiannon II "The Fairy" or "The Burner" (House of Pendragon-Bloðorn) [17]
949 - 967: Brutus III "The Brythian" (House of Pendragon) [18]
967 - 989: Uther III "The Old" (House of Pendragon) [19]
989 - 1033: Emrys II (House of Pendragon) [20]
1033 - 1054: Emrys III (House of Pendragon) [21]
1054 - 1125: Arthur V "The Wise" (House of Pendragon) [22]
Emperors of the Holy Brythonic Empire, Kings of Acre and Electors of Holland
1125 - 1132: Uther IV (House of Pendragon) [23]
1132 - 1165: Owain I (House of Pendragon) [24]
1165 - 1191: Emrys IV (House of Pendragon) [25]
1191 - 1195: Roland I “The Small” (House of Pendragon) [26]
1195 - 1225: Owain II (House of Pendragon) [27]
1125 - 1250: Cassivellanus II "The Converter" (House of Pendragon) [28]
1250 - 1256: Morgause I (House of Pendragon) [29]
1256 - 1258: Brutus IV (House of Pendragon) [30]
1256 - 1258: Cassivellanus III (House of Pendragon) [31]
1258-1273: Aramir I (House of Pendragon) [31]
Emperors of the Holy Brythonic Empire, Kings of Acre and Jerusalem, Electors of Holland and Ian of Alternate History
1258-1271: Aramir I (House of Pendragon) [31]
Due to size of post limits, for Arthur I to Arthur V, please follow this link to Arthur V's update.
[23] Named for his father's uncle and regent, he was born in 1074, Uther was the eldest son and named Duke and Prince of Kernow, at a ceremony in Castell Penfro in Dyfed and formed a claimant to the French throne, in his mother's honour. however Emperor Arthur V, would not allow in to step foot out of the British Isles, stating he lost one son to the French and wont lose another.
For the next fifty years, while his father was Emperor, as his father's future successor, Uther was trained in way of state and unifying the British Isles; he would spend a few days a month spectating over the Sennad and Parliament, learning the way of politics, the characteristics of individual candidates who would soon be working under him.
In 1100, following arrangements brought about by the successful Crusade, 26 year old Uther married 18 year old, Agnes of Bohemia, a daughter of Emperor Conrad II of the Holy Roman Empire. Agnes had previously been betrothed to Count Louis of Luxembourg, whom sadly died during the Crusade, while Uther, had taken mistresses and fathered illigitimate children, he never looked to settle down. The marriage also benefited Uther by Agnes giving birth to at least ten children. The marriage took place, a hour before Uther was crowned Electorate of Holland.
In 1111, Uther would cast his vote, following the death of Conrad II, some historians suggest that his name was mentioned as a successor, but no records close to the Electorate, has been found to prove this, the vote he casted was for his brother in law, who became Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor.
His succession in 1125, was smooth and supported by the Brythonic public, his consolidating powers meant the Empire his father re-conqured were kept under control by loyal lords, who marrying his daughters to successful lords or their sons. He was considered by many to be a harsh but effective ruler.
Agnes of Bohemia death on January 18, 1122 at the age of 35 in childbirth, lead to 47 year old, Uther to marry Nest ferch Rhys, a Brythonic lady, who would produce more children. Uther's death aged 58, of a heart attack, on May 11th 1132, came as a great shock to the nation, he was succeeded by his son, Conrad Owain.
[24] Prince Conrad Owain was the first child born to the Emperor Uther and Empress Agnes in 1102. When he was installed formally as the Duke and Prince of Kernow in 1120, he used his middle name as his princely name to focus on his Brythian heritage rather than his Germanic/Bohemian one. But to his friends and family he was known as Conrad, from his namesake who was his paternal grandfather's good friend and his own maternal grandfather, Conrad II Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.
During his father's reign while he was the Duke and Prince of Kernow, he traveled the Empire from Acre to Greenland (OTL Iceland,) which had been made part of the Holy Brythian Empire during his grandfather's reign along with Iceland (OTL Greenland) and Hyperborea (OTL North America) during the reconquest. He also spent time in Prague in the court of his uncle, Charles IV, the Holy Roman Emperor.
Emperor Owain's imperial reign was a peaceful one as the consolidation of the expanded Empire continued. One reform Owain got approved by the Parliament and Senned was to organize the nobility and the appropriate names. The hierarchy went Emperor then directly under the Emperor were Princes and Kings, then under them were Dukes and Counts, beneath them were Earls and Viscounts, and then beneath them were the lesser nobility known as Lords. The term 'baron' was an appropriate term for all nobility beneath the Emperor, Princes, and Kings. Another reform was that each kingdom or principality was to have it's own sub-Parliament and sub-Senned. In kingdoms under the Emperor where the Emperor was himself the King, an appointed Lord Governor General by the Emperor would govern in his name. Lord Governor Generals did this in Acre, Aquitaine, Holland, Greenland (OTL Iceland), and Hyperborea (OTL Canada and America.) The role of being an elector for Holland was kept in the Emperor's portfolio and not delegated to the Lord Governor General for Holland.
Owain married a grandniece of his maternal grandfather, Conrad II, thus the cousin of his mother and uncle, his own second cousin, Caroline of Marburg. They married in 1126 and had issue, many surviving to adulthood. Owain had many younger siblings and appointed them as sub-Kings or Lord Governor Generals when possible. He made his oldest younger brother, Prince Roland Coel Pendragon as the Lord Governor General of Hyperborea (OTL Canada and America) in 1133 and Prince Roland journeyed to Heastland (OTL New York) where he organized the Hyperborean state, nobility, and its Senned and Parliament.
The Emperor died of a heart attack in 1165 at the age of 63.
[25] Owain I's eldest son and child (being born almost exactly nine months after his marriage), Emrys IV's reign was a relatively long one, lasting for nearly 3 decades, and a peaceful one (quite unlike the chaos that seemed to be consuming Europe and the Middle East at the time), as having been raised by his father in a manner not that dissimilar from previous heirs, he visited the empire and was present at many sessions of the Senned and in the halls of government to gain experience of ruling.
In general, only two things make Emrys IV stand apart from his predecessors: his building projects and his personal life.
During his reign (well, and for a while of his time as Prince of Kernow), the emperor invested a great deal of time and resources (the latter not as worrying as it could sound, seeing the great fortune of the empire at the time) on building projects, but while Emrys invested in some more minor ones, like the reforming of roads and of city walls, three of them became famous for their sheer scale:
- Firstly came the Walls of Acre (built between 1151 and 1166), a set of three 30 feet walls surrounding the Kingdom of Acre from shore to shore (the outermost, Maria, being at the kingdom's most defensible borders; the middle one, Rosa, being around the mid-point between the two others, and the last, Sina, surrounding Acre the city), built, ironically, to defend the territory from the neighboring Crusader states, who had become increasingly belligerent, as well as the declining but strong Abbasid Caliphate to the East (the names of the walls were, interestingly, also the names of three of Emrys' concubines). They were meant to basically make the small kingdom (not much larger than simply Acre and her hinterlands) into a fortress
- Secondly came the "Great Floodwall" (built between 1169 and 1188) on the Electorate of Holland. During that time devastating storms and floods came to the region and, after it hurt the imperial finances (as the destruction damaged the territory's capacity as a trading hub at least through land), Emrys decided to do something about it, ordering the building of a "great floodwall" (although technically it should be a "seawall") on the western shores to break the strength of the surgest of the sea. He also tried his hand in making some of it on water, as to incentive the reclaiming of land between it and the continent
- Thirdly, came the building of the Rhyfeddod Gwyn, which would take the entirety of his reign to be built. As the Brythonic Empire was, at its heart, a naval power encompassing three continents, Emrys believed that a new capital was in order, as Camelot, while of great historical importance, was a bit too cumbersome for the center of imperial power and, instead, he looked at the Isle of Vannin (OTL Man) to to the job, projecting an entirely new capital around a bay on the isle, this city being colloquially called simply "The City". On top of the cliffs to the south of the bay, he built Rhyfeddod Gwyn, a gigantic palace complex (with over 2000 rooms) made of a mix of marble, granite and white-washed stone mixing a variety of architectural styles
Besides his buildings, Emrys' personal life was just as astounding (and probably insane), as without commenting on his interest for alchemy (discovering phosphorus during the process) and architecture, his love life was a tale for ages.
Married at 15 to his first cousin Moira, the eldest daughter of Roland Pendragon of Hyperborea, the two of them quite liked each other, but, outside of a single heir, did not have interest in producing children (the most common reasoning why was Moira's deep fear of childbirth, having lost her mother, two of her stepmother, three sisters and many friends in birthing bed). Instead, Moira had many paramours (although she used of herbal potions to not bear children) while Emrys grew an harem of lovers (whom he made his concubines after ascending to the throne) that he developed over the years (most of them being women), and with them had a grand total of 71 known children, most of whom lived to adulthood.
A monarch who quite liked his reign, Emrys IV died at the age of 63 in 1192 (only three days older than his father when he died), being succeded by his only child, Prince Roland of Kernow.
[26] The nickname was uttered the second he was born in 1147, by a midwife; weighing only 2 pounds, 3 ounces, modern doctors believe that his mother, Moira, had knowingly malnourished herself while pregnant so that the birth would be easy.
He was named after his mother’s father, Roland Pendragon of Hyperborea; who was also his father’s Uncle, sharing great-grandparent.
Due to this his formative years were very hard, he was not encouraged to perform in any exerting activities and would be placed in groups of children who were years younger than himself so as not to show the drastic size different and brain development.
Roland suffered ill-health throughout his life; any cold or fever that he caught was taken gravely serious.
At 16, he was married in a small ceremony, where Roland was encouraged to say “I do” to 19 year old, Beatrice of Brunswick, a niece through marriage of Charles V of Holy Roman Empire. Beatrice was of a fertile family.
This marriage succeeded in producing three healthy children.
With the support of his grandfather, his father-in-law, Henry III, Duke of Brunswick and Emperor Charles V, he succeeded his father, with many of his half siblings being sent to Hyberborea to be kept under observation and to keep them from revolting.
His death at the age of 46, came after a severe sweating sickness. His reign of four years, had no significant events and many historians class, his reign as an early start to the reign of his son, Owain, who had been acting as regent, ever since turning 18.
Historian and Clergy David ab Owain summarised this as follows: "Of no man is it more true to say that in his beginning was his end; from the day of his birth, they were waiting for his death".
[27] Owain the II grew up in a palace, with his sisters under the the careful tutoring of both his grandfathers. He was a dutiful King who attended the Senned, learned about the realm and worked very hard that neither him or his sisters become puppets of their mother or their other grandfather Henry of Brunswick. Like his Grandfather the King, he was very interested in archetecture. His realm became very wealthy through no effort of his own and very much due to his very distant cousin merchant/warrior Raund UiNeil (A descendant of Uther the III) established the Toltec trade.
Quickly Chocolytl and Tlilxóchitl (Vanilla), became the rage in the courts of Europe, and since the trade flowed through the Brythonic hands, the taxes made the crown very wealthy. However, this new craze exposed some troubling trends in Hyperborea that could be ignored literally for centuries. Like the fact that the majority of the people including many of the landowners were Odinists and many of the newer settlers were more often than not marrying in and going native, either as Odinists or simply joining Skrealing Kingdoms that were starting to form around Cahokia or in the Haudenosaunee lands, or even the distant Posange (OTL Anasazi). Indeed many unauthorised settlements had been set up by refugees from the Crusades in Northern Europe.
Having these distant cousins suddenly in the courts of Europe, introducing Chocoltyl and the Mayan ball game (which would quickly became and remains Europe's pastime) troubled some, among them Pope Hilarious the IX, who denounced "Heathen" customs and even declared a "Crusade" against Chocolytl. This went nowhere, and weakened the Papacy. He also demanded Oswain reign in his subjects and convert them.
Owain was put in a precarious diplomatic situation, either alienate his Hyborian subjects or the Pope. As result he delayed, sent his younger sister as a royal envoy to the Hyperborea with an order that they convert (knowing it would be ignored). He even married a Haudenosauee Princess, named Jikonsase, renamed Moira, who died within six months, and then Moira Ui Neil, sister of Raund (nicknamed the Chocotlyl King), now Duke of Coabana (Cuba) and did his best to do nothing.
Fortunately, the Pope died and was replaced by a more moderate Leo the VII. Owain and the second Moira had children and as a bonus, genuinely fell in love, leaving this long term problem for his son, Cassivellanus.
[28] Cassivellaunus, as Prince of Kernow, had remained silent about his father's diplomatic policies when it came to religion. On becoming Emperor, however, he immediately denounced the heathens in Hyperborea, and began to work towards converting them.
He went to Hyperborea within the first 5 years of his reign, and spent 10 years of his 25 year reign there.
He reformed Celtic Catholicism to convert the pagans in Hyperborea, and, like his predecessor, Arthur V, began to make pagan deities into angels of God, with the permission of the Pope.
His religious policies are now considered among the best policies used historically to convert heathens, now being ranked #1 as of 2020.
He married Princess Catarina of Portugal, and had issue. This was accompanied with a 'treaty of eternal peace' between the two nations. This was done due to the nearby kingdom of Castile had begun to threaten Portugal.
The kings of Portugal had been known to be near geniuses , a trait inherited by the children of the Emperor and Empress.
A war started between Portugal and Castile, in which the emperor personally fought, commanding troops to harass northern Castile.
The war ended with Portugal gaining lands from Southern Castile, and the Empire, while not receiving any lands, took the lion's share of the money paid to the two nations.
His reign coincided with the so-called 'last crusade', which occurred when the last king of Jerusalem through Conrad II died childless and the crusader states began infighting among themselves, each claiming to be the rightful 'king of Jerusalem.
Before the Pope could control the situation, however, the Caliphates in the holy land invaded with support from their eastern allies.
The Emperor, and his heir, Morgause, both fought in the Crusade, crushing the Caliphates in war, and adopting many of the horse-archers that had begun to be used by the Caliphates, and introducing the arabic numerals to the Empire.
The emperor died before the new king of Jerusalem could be announced, though his name was among the top candidates. He was succeeded by his daughter, Morgause.
[29] Born in 1228 to Emperor Cassivellanus II and his wife, Princess Catarina of Portugal, Morgause was from birth expected to inherit her father's throne, seeing as the empress consort, whom the emperor loved dearly, became sterile after giving birth to her at the age of 15.
Trained in the art of war and government, Morgause accompanied her father during the Last Crusade, and, following his death from a gangrenous cut on the hand, she became empress at the age of 22. Following his passing she stayed only a few months in the Levant firstly a Jerusalem, where she was elected as Queen of Jerusalem (technically her father had been elected, but died before the results could be announced) but passed the title to her second cousin once removed, Emrys Pendragon (who became Ambrosius I, interestingly also the first ruler of Jerusalem to have a direct descent from the House of David, through his mother, Alexandra, who was the member of a branch of the Exilarchs who converted to christianity in the 900s), who became a vassal of the empress (some did criticize the empress' decision, as while a territory difficult to defend, ruling over Jerusalem had some prestige to it. Morgause herself once told a confidant she believed that the prickly nobility of Jerusalem would only obey if they had a king on their soil, and not a imperial governor) . Following that, she visited Acre, where she would receive a warming welcome (as she had leaded the rescue of the state from the Five Year's Siege during the war.
Returning to the Home Isles, Morgause's rule was a peaceful one, which saw little occurences outside of the stopping of the active pursuit of converting the pagans in Hyperborea due to her own distaste for missionary work (Morgause, following a near death experience in her teenage years, developed the belief that faith was a matter that was deeply personal and should not involve others, and that people should find God on their own and not with outside help), although by that time paganism had already been dealth a severe blow (only about a third of the empire's Hyperborean population held to their pagan gods, most living on the countryside); and the creating of the "Tapestry of Time", a meters-long tapestry depicting the history of the world from the beggining, and, as by Morgause's own orders, shall continue to be woven until history reaches its end.
Married at age 16 to her 8th cousin thrice removed, Prince Aramir of Gallicia (the Galician monarchs had been of the House of Pendragon for nearly a century due to a female monarch in the 1170s), Morgause had by him five children, four of whom lived to adulthood, and died at the age of 27 giving birth to their youngest. She was succeeded by her uncle, Brutus.
[30] Prince Brutus Pendragon was appointed Lord Governor General of Holland by his father, Owain II, in 1223 on his 18th birthday, replacing the previous Lord Governor General that was a second cousin. Brutus was the second oldest son of Owain, just a few years young than his brother Cassivellanus, who became Emperor just two years later. Cassivellanus saw no reason to replace his younger brother in that position. Brutus began his long campaign to transfer the position of Duke of Holland and Elector from the Emperor to himself, always doing so in diplomatic and quiet ways with his brother. By the time his neice became Empress, Brutus was the premier governing member of the Imperial Family besides the Empress herself and he began to expand his previous covert campaign into an overt one, by wooing the nobility of Holland to his side. He still, though, kept it diplomatic and peaceful, always presenting this as a campaign to convince the Empress.
On the Empress' death in November of1256 , her oldest heir, ___________, was only ten years old and a regency would have been set up under Prince Consort Aramir. Brutus insisted that Aramir was not fit, even though he was the heir's father, as he was more Gallician than Brythian, speaking Brythian with a heavy Hispanic accent, as the Pendragons of Gallicia had adopted the language and culture of Hispanic Gallicia generations earlier. (Hispanic is TTL's Spanish, a Latin language impacted by the Visigoths and native Hispanic population.) Enough of the nobility of Brythia proper sided with Brutus on this over Aramir to give him the edge.
Brutus quickly set himself up as Regent and then only a few days later declared that all of the Empress's children were actually not the children of Prince Aramir, insinuating the Prince was Homosexual, and the children had actually been sired by various servants of the Imperial household. He thus declared them not legal heirs, himself as Emperor, and had Prince Aramir arrested on trumped up charges of inciting rebellion. The Prince and his children were imprisoned in luxury quarters in the former capital, the High Castle of Camelot.
Brutus had his eldest son, Owain, made Prince and Duke of Kernow, and his younger sons appointed Lord Governor Generals of Holland, where Constantine actually took power, and of Aquitaine and Gallicia, where it was in name only, as _________ and ____________ were unable to take power from the forces loyal to Prince Aramir.
Civil War swept through the Empire as various Lord Governor Generals, petty Kings, Princes, and Dukes took different sides. Fortunately for Prince Aramir, his jailers took his side and snuck him and his children out of Camelot and then out of Brythia proper to Gallicia, which of course had declared for Aramir and Aramir.
Only after reigning for 17 months,Brutus died in battle at Dicter (OTL Angers) one of the High Castles of the Duchy of Aquitaine, on April 23, 1258.
[23] Named for his father's uncle and regent, he was born in 1074, Uther was the eldest son and named Duke and Prince of Kernow, at a ceremony in Castell Penfro in Dyfed and formed a claimant to the French throne, in his mother's honour. however Emperor Arthur V, would not allow in to step foot out of the British Isles, stating he lost one son to the French and wont lose another.
For the next fifty years, while his father was Emperor, as his father's future successor, Uther was trained in way of state and unifying the British Isles; he would spend a few days a month spectating over the Sennad and Parliament, learning the way of politics, the characteristics of individual candidates who would soon be working under him.
In 1100, following arrangements brought about by the successful Crusade, 26 year old Uther married 18 year old, Agnes of Bohemia, a daughter of Emperor Conrad II of the Holy Roman Empire. Agnes had previously been betrothed to Count Louis of Luxembourg, whom sadly died during the Crusade, while Uther, had taken mistresses and fathered illigitimate children, he never looked to settle down. The marriage also benefited Uther by Agnes giving birth to at least ten children. The marriage took place, a hour before Uther was crowned Electorate of Holland.
In 1111, Uther would cast his vote, following the death of Conrad II, some historians suggest that his name was mentioned as a successor, but no records close to the Electorate, has been found to prove this, the vote he casted was for his brother in law, who became Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor.
His succession in 1125, was smooth and supported by the Brythonic public, his consolidating powers meant the Empire his father re-conqured were kept under control by loyal lords, who marrying his daughters to successful lords or their sons. He was considered by many to be a harsh but effective ruler.
Agnes of Bohemia death on January 18, 1122 at the age of 35 in childbirth, lead to 47 year old, Uther to marry Nest ferch Rhys, a Brythonic lady, who would produce more children. Uther's death aged 58, of a heart attack, on May 11th 1132, came as a great shock to the nation, he was succeeded by his son, Conrad Owain.
[24] Prince Conrad Owain was the first child born to the Emperor Uther and Empress Agnes in 1102. When he was installed formally as the Duke and Prince of Kernow in 1120, he used his middle name as his princely name to focus on his Brythian heritage rather than his Germanic/Bohemian one. But to his friends and family he was known as Conrad, from his namesake who was his paternal grandfather's good friend and his own maternal grandfather, Conrad II Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.
During his father's reign while he was the Duke and Prince of Kernow, he traveled the Empire from Acre to Greenland (OTL Iceland,) which had been made part of the Holy Brythian Empire during his grandfather's reign along with Iceland (OTL Greenland) and Hyperborea (OTL North America) during the reconquest. He also spent time in Prague in the court of his uncle, Charles IV, the Holy Roman Emperor.
Emperor Owain's imperial reign was a peaceful one as the consolidation of the expanded Empire continued. One reform Owain got approved by the Parliament and Senned was to organize the nobility and the appropriate names. The hierarchy went Emperor then directly under the Emperor were Princes and Kings, then under them were Dukes and Counts, beneath them were Earls and Viscounts, and then beneath them were the lesser nobility known as Lords. The term 'baron' was an appropriate term for all nobility beneath the Emperor, Princes, and Kings. Another reform was that each kingdom or principality was to have it's own sub-Parliament and sub-Senned. In kingdoms under the Emperor where the Emperor was himself the King, an appointed Lord Governor General by the Emperor would govern in his name. Lord Governor Generals did this in Acre, Aquitaine, Holland, Greenland (OTL Iceland), and Hyperborea (OTL Canada and America.) The role of being an elector for Holland was kept in the Emperor's portfolio and not delegated to the Lord Governor General for Holland.
Owain married a grandniece of his maternal grandfather, Conrad II, thus the cousin of his mother and uncle, his own second cousin, Caroline of Marburg. They married in 1126 and had issue, many surviving to adulthood. Owain had many younger siblings and appointed them as sub-Kings or Lord Governor Generals when possible. He made his oldest younger brother, Prince Roland Coel Pendragon as the Lord Governor General of Hyperborea (OTL Canada and America) in 1133 and Prince Roland journeyed to Heastland (OTL New York) where he organized the Hyperborean state, nobility, and its Senned and Parliament.
The Emperor died of a heart attack in 1165 at the age of 63.
[25] Owain I's eldest son and child (being born almost exactly nine months after his marriage), Emrys IV's reign was a relatively long one, lasting for nearly 3 decades, and a peaceful one (quite unlike the chaos that seemed to be consuming Europe and the Middle East at the time), as having been raised by his father in a manner not that dissimilar from previous heirs, he visited the empire and was present at many sessions of the Senned and in the halls of government to gain experience of ruling.
In general, only two things make Emrys IV stand apart from his predecessors: his building projects and his personal life.
During his reign (well, and for a while of his time as Prince of Kernow), the emperor invested a great deal of time and resources (the latter not as worrying as it could sound, seeing the great fortune of the empire at the time) on building projects, but while Emrys invested in some more minor ones, like the reforming of roads and of city walls, three of them became famous for their sheer scale:
- Firstly came the Walls of Acre (built between 1151 and 1166), a set of three 30 feet walls surrounding the Kingdom of Acre from shore to shore (the outermost, Maria, being at the kingdom's most defensible borders; the middle one, Rosa, being around the mid-point between the two others, and the last, Sina, surrounding Acre the city), built, ironically, to defend the territory from the neighboring Crusader states, who had become increasingly belligerent, as well as the declining but strong Abbasid Caliphate to the East (the names of the walls were, interestingly, also the names of three of Emrys' concubines). They were meant to basically make the small kingdom (not much larger than simply Acre and her hinterlands) into a fortress
- Secondly came the "Great Floodwall" (built between 1169 and 1188) on the Electorate of Holland. During that time devastating storms and floods came to the region and, after it hurt the imperial finances (as the destruction damaged the territory's capacity as a trading hub at least through land), Emrys decided to do something about it, ordering the building of a "great floodwall" (although technically it should be a "seawall") on the western shores to break the strength of the surgest of the sea. He also tried his hand in making some of it on water, as to incentive the reclaiming of land between it and the continent
- Thirdly, came the building of the Rhyfeddod Gwyn, which would take the entirety of his reign to be built. As the Brythonic Empire was, at its heart, a naval power encompassing three continents, Emrys believed that a new capital was in order, as Camelot, while of great historical importance, was a bit too cumbersome for the center of imperial power and, instead, he looked at the Isle of Vannin (OTL Man) to to the job, projecting an entirely new capital around a bay on the isle, this city being colloquially called simply "The City". On top of the cliffs to the south of the bay, he built Rhyfeddod Gwyn, a gigantic palace complex (with over 2000 rooms) made of a mix of marble, granite and white-washed stone mixing a variety of architectural styles
Besides his buildings, Emrys' personal life was just as astounding (and probably insane), as without commenting on his interest for alchemy (discovering phosphorus during the process) and architecture, his love life was a tale for ages.
Married at 15 to his first cousin Moira, the eldest daughter of Roland Pendragon of Hyperborea, the two of them quite liked each other, but, outside of a single heir, did not have interest in producing children (the most common reasoning why was Moira's deep fear of childbirth, having lost her mother, two of her stepmother, three sisters and many friends in birthing bed). Instead, Moira had many paramours (although she used of herbal potions to not bear children) while Emrys grew an harem of lovers (whom he made his concubines after ascending to the throne) that he developed over the years (most of them being women), and with them had a grand total of 71 known children, most of whom lived to adulthood.
A monarch who quite liked his reign, Emrys IV died at the age of 63 in 1192 (only three days older than his father when he died), being succeded by his only child, Prince Roland of Kernow.
[26] The nickname was uttered the second he was born in 1147, by a midwife; weighing only 2 pounds, 3 ounces, modern doctors believe that his mother, Moira, had knowingly malnourished herself while pregnant so that the birth would be easy.
He was named after his mother’s father, Roland Pendragon of Hyperborea; who was also his father’s Uncle, sharing great-grandparent.
Due to this his formative years were very hard, he was not encouraged to perform in any exerting activities and would be placed in groups of children who were years younger than himself so as not to show the drastic size different and brain development.
Roland suffered ill-health throughout his life; any cold or fever that he caught was taken gravely serious.
At 16, he was married in a small ceremony, where Roland was encouraged to say “I do” to 19 year old, Beatrice of Brunswick, a niece through marriage of Charles V of Holy Roman Empire. Beatrice was of a fertile family.
This marriage succeeded in producing three healthy children.
With the support of his grandfather, his father-in-law, Henry III, Duke of Brunswick and Emperor Charles V, he succeeded his father, with many of his half siblings being sent to Hyberborea to be kept under observation and to keep them from revolting.
His death at the age of 46, came after a severe sweating sickness. His reign of four years, had no significant events and many historians class, his reign as an early start to the reign of his son, Owain, who had been acting as regent, ever since turning 18.
Historian and Clergy David ab Owain summarised this as follows: "Of no man is it more true to say that in his beginning was his end; from the day of his birth, they were waiting for his death".
[27] Owain the II grew up in a palace, with his sisters under the the careful tutoring of both his grandfathers. He was a dutiful King who attended the Senned, learned about the realm and worked very hard that neither him or his sisters become puppets of their mother or their other grandfather Henry of Brunswick. Like his Grandfather the King, he was very interested in archetecture. His realm became very wealthy through no effort of his own and very much due to his very distant cousin merchant/warrior Raund UiNeil (A descendant of Uther the III) established the Toltec trade.
Quickly Chocolytl and Tlilxóchitl (Vanilla), became the rage in the courts of Europe, and since the trade flowed through the Brythonic hands, the taxes made the crown very wealthy. However, this new craze exposed some troubling trends in Hyperborea that could be ignored literally for centuries. Like the fact that the majority of the people including many of the landowners were Odinists and many of the newer settlers were more often than not marrying in and going native, either as Odinists or simply joining Skrealing Kingdoms that were starting to form around Cahokia or in the Haudenosaunee lands, or even the distant Posange (OTL Anasazi). Indeed many unauthorised settlements had been set up by refugees from the Crusades in Northern Europe.
Having these distant cousins suddenly in the courts of Europe, introducing Chocoltyl and the Mayan ball game (which would quickly became and remains Europe's pastime) troubled some, among them Pope Hilarious the IX, who denounced "Heathen" customs and even declared a "Crusade" against Chocolytl. This went nowhere, and weakened the Papacy. He also demanded Oswain reign in his subjects and convert them.
Owain was put in a precarious diplomatic situation, either alienate his Hyborian subjects or the Pope. As result he delayed, sent his younger sister as a royal envoy to the Hyperborea with an order that they convert (knowing it would be ignored). He even married a Haudenosauee Princess, named Jikonsase, renamed Moira, who died within six months, and then Moira Ui Neil, sister of Raund (nicknamed the Chocotlyl King), now Duke of Coabana (Cuba) and did his best to do nothing.
Fortunately, the Pope died and was replaced by a more moderate Leo the VII. Owain and the second Moira had children and as a bonus, genuinely fell in love, leaving this long term problem for his son, Cassivellanus.
[28] Cassivellaunus, as Prince of Kernow, had remained silent about his father's diplomatic policies when it came to religion. On becoming Emperor, however, he immediately denounced the heathens in Hyperborea, and began to work towards converting them.
He went to Hyperborea within the first 5 years of his reign, and spent 10 years of his 25 year reign there.
He reformed Celtic Catholicism to convert the pagans in Hyperborea, and, like his predecessor, Arthur V, began to make pagan deities into angels of God, with the permission of the Pope.
His religious policies are now considered among the best policies used historically to convert heathens, now being ranked #1 as of 2020.
He married Princess Catarina of Portugal, and had issue. This was accompanied with a 'treaty of eternal peace' between the two nations. This was done due to the nearby kingdom of Castile had begun to threaten Portugal.
The kings of Portugal had been known to be near geniuses , a trait inherited by the children of the Emperor and Empress.
A war started between Portugal and Castile, in which the emperor personally fought, commanding troops to harass northern Castile.
The war ended with Portugal gaining lands from Southern Castile, and the Empire, while not receiving any lands, took the lion's share of the money paid to the two nations.
His reign coincided with the so-called 'last crusade', which occurred when the last king of Jerusalem through Conrad II died childless and the crusader states began infighting among themselves, each claiming to be the rightful 'king of Jerusalem.
Before the Pope could control the situation, however, the Caliphates in the holy land invaded with support from their eastern allies.
The Emperor, and his heir, Morgause, both fought in the Crusade, crushing the Caliphates in war, and adopting many of the horse-archers that had begun to be used by the Caliphates, and introducing the arabic numerals to the Empire.
The emperor died before the new king of Jerusalem could be announced, though his name was among the top candidates. He was succeeded by his daughter, Morgause.
[29] Born in 1228 to Emperor Cassivellanus II and his wife, Princess Catarina of Portugal, Morgause was from birth expected to inherit her father's throne, seeing as the empress consort, whom the emperor loved dearly, became sterile after giving birth to her at the age of 15.
Trained in the art of war and government, Morgause accompanied her father during the Last Crusade, and, following his death from a gangrenous cut on the hand, she became empress at the age of 22. Following his passing she stayed only a few months in the Levant firstly a Jerusalem, where she was elected as Queen of Jerusalem (technically her father had been elected, but died before the results could be announced) but passed the title to her second cousin once removed, Emrys Pendragon (who became Ambrosius I, interestingly also the first ruler of Jerusalem to have a direct descent from the House of David, through his mother, Alexandra, who was the member of a branch of the Exilarchs who converted to christianity in the 900s), who became a vassal of the empress (some did criticize the empress' decision, as while a territory difficult to defend, ruling over Jerusalem had some prestige to it. Morgause herself once told a confidant she believed that the prickly nobility of Jerusalem would only obey if they had a king on their soil, and not a imperial governor) . Following that, she visited Acre, where she would receive a warming welcome (as she had leaded the rescue of the state from the Five Year's Siege during the war.
Returning to the Home Isles, Morgause's rule was a peaceful one, which saw little occurences outside of the stopping of the active pursuit of converting the pagans in Hyperborea due to her own distaste for missionary work (Morgause, following a near death experience in her teenage years, developed the belief that faith was a matter that was deeply personal and should not involve others, and that people should find God on their own and not with outside help), although by that time paganism had already been dealth a severe blow (only about a third of the empire's Hyperborean population held to their pagan gods, most living on the countryside); and the creating of the "Tapestry of Time", a meters-long tapestry depicting the history of the world from the beggining, and, as by Morgause's own orders, shall continue to be woven until history reaches its end.
Married at age 16 to her 8th cousin thrice removed, Prince Aramir of Gallicia (the Galician monarchs had been of the House of Pendragon for nearly a century due to a female monarch in the 1170s), Morgause had by him five children, four of whom lived to adulthood, and died at the age of 27 giving birth to their youngest. She was succeeded by her uncle, Brutus.
[30] Prince Brutus Pendragon was appointed Lord Governor General of Holland by his father, Owain II, in 1223 on his 18th birthday, replacing the previous Lord Governor General that was a second cousin. Brutus was the second oldest son of Owain, just a few years young than his brother Cassivellanus, who became Emperor just two years later. Cassivellanus saw no reason to replace his younger brother in that position. Brutus began his long campaign to transfer the position of Duke of Holland and Elector from the Emperor to himself, always doing so in diplomatic and quiet ways with his brother. By the time his neice became Empress, Brutus was the premier governing member of the Imperial Family besides the Empress herself and he began to expand his previous covert campaign into an overt one, by wooing the nobility of Holland to his side. He still, though, kept it diplomatic and peaceful, always presenting this as a campaign to convince the Empress.
On the Empress' death in November of1256 , her oldest heir, ___________, was only ten years old and a regency would have been set up under Prince Consort Aramir. Brutus insisted that Aramir was not fit, even though he was the heir's father, as he was more Gallician than Brythian, speaking Brythian with a heavy Hispanic accent, as the Pendragons of Gallicia had adopted the language and culture of Hispanic Gallicia generations earlier. (Hispanic is TTL's Spanish, a Latin language impacted by the Visigoths and native Hispanic population.) Enough of the nobility of Brythia proper sided with Brutus on this over Aramir to give him the edge.
Brutus quickly set himself up as Regent and then only a few days later declared that all of the Empress's children were actually not the children of Prince Aramir, insinuating the Prince was Homosexual, and the children had actually been sired by various servants of the Imperial household. He thus declared them not legal heirs, himself as Emperor, and had Prince Aramir arrested on trumped up charges of inciting rebellion. The Prince and his children were imprisoned in luxury quarters in the former capital, the High Castle of Camelot.
Brutus had his eldest son, Owain, made Prince and Duke of Kernow, and his younger sons appointed Lord Governor Generals of Holland, where Constantine actually took power, and of Aquitaine and Gallicia, where it was in name only, as _________ and ____________ were unable to take power from the forces loyal to Prince Aramir.
Civil War swept through the Empire as various Lord Governor Generals, petty Kings, Princes, and Dukes took different sides. Fortunately for Prince Aramir, his jailers took his side and snuck him and his children out of Camelot and then out of Brythia proper to Gallicia, which of course had declared for Aramir and Aramir.
Only after reigning for 17 months,Brutus died in battle at Dicter (OTL Angers) one of the High Castles of the Duchy of Aquitaine, on April 23, 1258.
[31] Prince Aramir was never meant to be Emperor, as his elder twin brother, Cassivellanus was supposed to be Emperor, and became so after the death of his mother, though only in name. Cassivellanus, however, died due to smallpox shortly before the battle of Dicter, forcing Aramir to become Emperor, with his father as regent.
He spoke Brythian with a slight accent, like his father, as he had spent a large part of his formative years in his uncle, Brutus, the Prince of Gallicia's court.
The Prince of Kernow, Owain was taken hostage after the battle of Thande, which occurred on May 19, 1258. Aramis' first act as emperor (or rather, his father's first act as Regent) was to backdate Cassivellanus' reign to 1256, and Brutus IV was declared an usurper.
The Civil War continued, as Owain's younger brother, Constantine declared his elder brother as illegitimate, and himself as "true emperor". This split the supporters of Brutus into two factions, further helping Aramir's cause.
By 1262, enough of the Brythian nobility had come around to the Emperor that a semblance of peace had been achieved, atleast in the isles. Regent Aramis became Prince of Gallicia in the same year, making Emperor Aramir the Duke of _______ (heir apparent of Gallicia, I have no idea on what place it would be so please let me know 🙏).
In 1265, the 19 year old Emperor officially gained control over the matters of state, and promptly beheaded Owain, and declared war on Constantine, ordering him and his brothers to submit to the "might of the empire". Constantine, of course, refused, which triggered the 'reconquest of Holland'.
The Emperor began by allying himself with the Holy Roman Emperor and King of Norway, marrying himself to the 17 year old niece of the Emperor, and marrying his only sister, Morgause to the Crown Prince of Norway.
Claimant Emperor Constantine was killed in battle during the reconquest, but his younger brothers, ______ and ______ fled to the east, eventually finding refuge in their cousin, Ambrosius II of Jerusalem's court.
Ambrosius was an ambitious man, and valued his descent from from David. He declared that he was king of Jerusalem "not because his kinswoman had granted it to his father, but because he was the true successor of David." This was an unwise move, however, as the now dead Empress Morgause had been popular with the masses of Jerusalem, and this caused massive consternation in the kingdom of Jerusalem, with the king's younger half brother, Cassivellanus declared that Aramis was the true emperor, and, denouncing his brother, brought the civil war to the holy land.
While the Brythian holdings in the west recovered, the situation in the holy land began to deteoriate, until Pope Honorious IX had to intervene, where he excommunicated both Ambrosius and Cassivellanus, and invited ______ (eldest surviving son of Brutus IV) to the throne. This caused the Pope to get denounced by the supporters of Aramir, and he died due to severe stress. His political rival, Arthur FitzPendragon (bastard son of Brutus of Gallicia) came to the papal throne as Pope Hilarious V, he lifted the excommunication of Cassivellanus, and invited Aramis to the Jerusalemite throne, this caused him to get denounced by Brutus' supporters, following which he excommunicated the supporters of Brutus and Ambrosius. Aramis agreed to become king, and tried to stabilize the situation, although he did not fully succeed. The sons of Brutus fled, eventually ending up in Eastern France. Cassivellanus was made Governor of Jerusalem and Acre in the king's stead.
Aramis had had a close friend since his childhood, a man whose name is thought to have been Ian Turtledove. Ian was a man of learning, and held a special regard for history, and had many writings on the "what could have beens" of history, a genre he formally introduced as "Alternate History". Ian died in 1266 at the age of 21, and was heavily mourned by the Emperor. His original works were kept in the Emperor's personal library, and an order of historian was foundedby the emperor in 1269, where members met and discussed history. The head of this order was called an 'Ian', this title was posthumously awarded to Ian Turtledove and was taken upon by Emperor Aramir. This order was later validated by Pope Hilarious V in 1271.
He died in 1272, after reigning for 14 years, shortly before the birth of his third son. He is thought to have been poisoned by ________ although this has not been proven. He was succeeded by __________, leaving the regency to his elerly father, the Prince of Gallicia.
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