Flee! Flee! Mark 3.0

[G.Bone]

Actually they're various African civilizations encountered by the Gadjericans in their many travels.

The colony IOTL South Africa is just a couple of small forts.

Below is a European Map...

Couple of points;
-> The Kingdom of Lombard-Slovakia-Slovenia's borders to the North & East aren't exactly *there* so it's a vague approximation
-> Nekor, Morocco, and Cordoba are allied.

 

[G.Bone]

820 AD – 840 AD

(Islam)
(The East)
- The succession of the Emirs continue with the second Abd ar-Rahman replacing Al-Hakam I. Fortification begins in Barcelona to prohibit any efforts by the French/Romans in getting their city back. Although this is viewed by the second Abd ar-Rahman as a drain on his treasury (due to being engaged in the mess that is Portugal to the East), it is held up by the new denizens of Barcelona as a must have for the season, due to the matter of France’s failure of unity in the south, as well as the Balearics.
- Settlement in East Burgundy continues.
(The West)
- The Abbasids begin to move into Sicily and Crete. The former is regarded more of a success due to on going conflicts within the peninsula.
- The Hind becomes a part of Persia due to its geography.

(Northern Europe)
(France)
- Bitter infighting between Louis the Hearty and Lothair (Lothar’s new “spelling”) proves to be the undoing of the French Kingdom as Vikings begin sacking Antwerp, Utrecht, and then going up the Rhine, where they are stopped only by an emergency pact between the two brothers. As a result, Paris is somewhat renovated to become a fortress town.
- French rule in Brittany is consolidated. A deal is worked out that if Louis the Hearty should die, then Lothair would replace him, and vice versa. The matter of their sons remains open ended though.
- Louis the Hearty invades the Republic of Germany, seeing their weakness against the Vikings. It is recorded that there is much victory in this campaign although there is an increasing presence of Czech soldiers coming to the aid of the Germans. Louis the Hearty becomes embroiled in the matters of legitimacy over the dying Republic.
- Lothair appeals to his cousin on the matter of a formal crowning of himself as a Holy Roman Emperor.
(Italy)
- Pippin of Italy decides that attacking Lombardy is suicidal. As a result of the long wars, Lombardy is given jurisdiction over Northern Italy and a peace treaty is signed, giving Italy more breathing room. Of course Pippin gets involved with the matter of Sicily, where the Saracens are becoming more of a nuisance and more of a threat. Pippin of Italy decides to invade that area, which is easier than attacking a very large army holed up in the mountains.
- The fledgling Kingdom of Sicily falls to Italian troops. At this point, Italy becomes more of an infantry nation than a cavalry nation. Some minor revising is made out to have Attila become a minor Roman lord somewhere in Croatia coming to the aid of a failing regime of sorts. By now, a good chunk of the Italians believe that Attila was Roman to begin with, although exactly where remains a mystery.
- Pippin of Italy manages to assume the temporal duties from the Papacy through the measure of security given to the said religion, even though Northern Italy is lost. A small reformation is made within the Church’s government with the Holy Synod organized along Senatorial lines.
- Pippin of Italy refuses to allow Lothair access to the Papacy and declares himself as the Holy Roman Emperor, due to the direct lineage to their common ancestor.
(Rome/Italy)
- The difficulties in holding that crown end with the election of Pope Eugene Equitus declaring some sovereignty unto the Papacy itself as well as the missing focus on the Saracens holding Sicily. The conflict is then exploited by Lothair I, whom supports the Papacy through the hiring of the Lombard Realm to annoy Italy to no end, and thereby giving a chance to the said monarch to come, kick his relative off the throne, and become the Emperor of the Romans.
- Some noise is made by Louis the German, who manages to acquire his own kingdom as well as the position of “Substitute King”. The Papacy manages to acquire some temporal duties through the establishment of the Papal States, although the King/Emperor does have access to the Rome as his defacto capital. Lothair I will spend much of his reign trying to consolidate his dominance over two different states.
- The matter of the Lombard Realm is solved through the marriage of Lothair’s minor relatives to the perceived “King” who is the actual Doge, but it’s never quite cleared up.
- The Holy Inquisition becomes the defacto Papal Army.
- The Moors are chased out of East Burgundy.
(Germany)
- The Republic of Germany crumbles under constant Viking and French attacks. In order to avert total French rule, the Republic is placed in Czech hands, where the original deal is honored with the retaining of the German Senate. Most unfortunately, some of the senators refute the giving of sovereignty to the Czechs, and defect to the French, namely Louis the Hearty, whom supports their claim of independence. Over the years, the Republic of Germany will cease to exist as the said realm is divided between the Vikings, French, and Czechs.
- The Danes take over coastal Germany, establishing many fortresses and naval yards that harass any efforts by the French or the Czechs, who are quite happy that they are on land, not sea.
- Louis the Hearty becomes Louis the German, due to the amount of support he gets from that said realm, even though Germany no longer exists, and is regarded as a ‘frontier tongue’ than an actual language.
- Lothair creates the title “Prince of the Germans” for his brother.
- Ansgar, a French cleric, manages to pioneer some strand of Roman Catholicism in Germany.
(The UK)
- The United Kingdom continues on with their efforts on getting rid of the Vikings. Egbert of Wessex manages to score a major victory against them, although at this point, the very title of “the United Kingdoms” is a sham, due to the various different actions of English lords wanting different things.
- Hibernia gets raided by the Scots. Hibernia then raids and annexes Eastern Scotland. Ulster becomes a main focal point of military build up against Viking/Scottish raids. At this time, the noted flag of Hibernia comes about, which is strikingly the same as the Saint Andrew’s flag, although a significant chunk of the Hibernians claim it is Saint Genevieve’s Cross rather than the other saint.
- Vikings take over the Scottish coasts.
(The Lombards)
- Saint Mark’s Basilica is built in Venice, which has now taken over the entire valley that it was founded for. Translations are made to help align the Slovakian tongue with the Slovenian one.
- The King of the Lombard Realm dies. The Doge of Venice then pushes forth for a Council of Kings, as the Bishops have, with himself as the main head of state for Lombardy. This is allowed after some debate even though Venice has become the heart of the growing Empire.
- An alliance is made with the Kingdom of France with the Doge of Venice acting as the King of the Lombard Realm.
- Ravenna becomes a Lombard fort.
(Portugal)
- The Kingdom of Asturias gets military support from Hibernia.
- The Duchy of Portugal declares war upon the Emirate of Cordoba due to perceived efforts in annexing their southern territories. Many people are killed and Portugal is left in a mess, thereby setting back any other attempts to regain their previous glory. The Duchy of Portugal becomes a feudal state at this time with an overt emphasis on the Church to provide their ‘golden freedoms’.
(Elsewhere)
- Great Moravia is established through the efforts of Mojmir the First. He is then replaced by Rastislav. In this space, an invitation is sent and accepted by the Lombard Realm to dispatch a couple of missionaries to help organize the idea of what to worship.
- The Danes attempt to cash in the chaos that is the UK.
- A strange strand of both Nordic folk beliefs and Christianity is introduced to Southern England.
- The Kingdom of the Poles falls apart.

Eastern Europe
- The Bulgarian Orthodox Church becomes stronger within those areas that still worship icons due to another round of anti-icon movements in the Eastern Roman Empire. Various strands begin to rise up in the Croatian areas near Bulgaria. The Serbs become ardent missionaries of this faith, earning the nickname “the Sword Brethren”.
- Efforts are made in the Bulgarian Empire to become established with various governmental officials to do select things. This doesn’t really go farther than “Prince of X” and “Count of Y”, but it is a start.
- Greek words begin to appear in Bulgarian chants to God.
- The Maygars become allied with the Khazars although conflicts between them force another movement westward.

Vandals
- The northern settlements of Gadjericia are abandoned.
- Onerica is abandoned.
- Settlement in what will be known as South Africa begins

 

[G.Bone]

820 AD – 840 AD

(Islam)
(The East)
- South Portugal is annexed in the decisive Battle of Lisbon, where the unity of Portugal is shattered through a four month long siege of the said city. Portugal crumbles and what little authority that the Duke does have is given over to the Emirate, which allows Portugal to exist, albeit without their southern territories.
- The Emirate of Cordoba wisely decides to stay out of any other conflict at this time, stealing away the literature that the Portuguese had in their former Southern Territories and eventually working on their own navy.
- The Kingdom of Morocco attempts to find the elusive “African Kingdom of Ships”.
- Actual efforts in persuading the Berbers to convert to Islam are undertaken at this time.
The West
- The House of Wisdom flourishes with a new focus on mathematics, astrology, and Greek science, as “stolen” from the Byzantines.
- Samaarkand is rebuilt under Persian influences.
- Some Slavic Islamic holy men travel with the Maygars as they go off to the west.
- The Tahirid dynasty, located somewhere in the far eastern marches of Persia is created.
- Fractures within the Abbasid Caliphate begin to emerge, although to most, it seems fine.

(Northern Europe)
(France)
- Lothair arrives back in France to help ward off the Vikings.
- Lothair dies in France and is replaced by Louis the German.
- Louis the German attempts to whack off the Vikings through a huge bribe. The Vikings take this….and then continue on their raids in France, thereby destabilizing the realm once more until the French get smart and institute a permanent militia.
- Eastern Burgundy is written off to the Emirate of Cordoba as another bribe so that they won’t attack.
- A series of battles engaging with the overrun Duchy of Normandy (by the Vikings) proves that French Kings should not march into a hostile situation with troops that have seen the might of the Vikings before. Charles the Bald, one of the other brothers of Louis the Pious and formerly the Prince of Brittany, takes over the throne.
(Italy)
- Lothair manages to spend much of his reign formalizing his control over the resurrected Holy Roman Empire. Sadly, he is never quite as strong as he was when he first annexed Italy from his relative. The constant threat that the Emirate has to the transportation routes from Italy to France hamstrings any efforts in regaining Carthage to Roman Catholic Rule. In lieu of this, Lothair strikes a deal with the Lombard Realm on allowing several roads between Italy and France to be made, all the while considered “safe” since there are no Saracens nearby.
- Louis, the son of Lothair, is left to rule Italy when Vikings overrun the Duchy of Normandy, and essentially hold Paris hostage for money. Lothair would eventually die in France with Louis left as King of Italy.
- Sergius II anoints Louis as the Holy Roman Emperor as a sign of the two entities being equal in power. An effort is made to reinforce the Roman Catholic Church’s hold in Croatia. A war is waged upon the Macedonians for money.
- Pope Leo IV strengthens the walls of Rome against the possibility of Saracen invasion.
- Louis becomes “influenced” by the Papacy. A certain type of graffiti is introduced showing a vague symbol depicting the French and the Papacy doing a dance in which one goes over the other, in a very crude way. For those that openly disagree with the Papacy or its French ruler, the Holy Inquisition deports them to the Lombard Realm or kills them in various creative ways.
(Germany)
- Germany becomes overrun by the Danes.
- Utrecht becomes a Viking city
- The Czechs create a federated system in order to whack off the Danes.
- The descent of the German language and culture slowly merges into the rise of the Czechs, who borrow much of the ideals of the republic into their own nation state.
(The UK)
- The UK dissolves all but in name.
- Kenneth the First unites much of unoccupied Scotland (both by Hibernia and the Vikings) with help from his southeastern neighbors.
- Rhodri the Great becomes the “Tribune of Wales”, driving off the Vikings, and eventually advocating something of a more unified democratic system amongst equals, implemented at a future date, of course.
- Northumbria is formally annexed by the Danes, who take a very strong stance against resistance, even going so far as to mutilate a native king whom slew a mighty Viking warrior. After much debate on who actually rules the slice of England, Ivar the Boneless announces that he is, the King-Centurion, mangling a couple of terms that no one dares to argue with.
(The Lombards)
- Both the Slovaks and the Slovenians adopt the title ‘Doge’ into their government although deviated due to the language barrier.
- The Lombard tongue becomes regarded more as a Slavic tongue than anything else.
- Efforts are made to unify the three languages on paper; of the current years, most have been using Latin as the “language of the educated”.

Eastern Europe
- The anti-icon movement is put to rest, finally, after so many Greeks and other icon lovers are seen shoring up Bulgaria and common sense sort of whacks the Eastern Romans to the stupidity of their previous actions.
- Macedonians flee further inland where they are welcome by the Serbs, who have taken up by the Greek influence within the Bulgarian Empire on various meaningless noble titles, departments, ministries, and so on down the list of civilizations. To this effect, the Macedonians become more inland traders; with a ‘cult’ growing within the Bulgarian Orthodox Church on what is needed to survive in the long run.
- Attempts are made to have the Bulgarian language written down. What is present is a hodgepodge of Greek letters, Roman single letter symbols (as borrowed from Italy), Serbian alterations on Bulgarian prefixes, and so on down the list. The attempts are regarded as ‘nonsense’ by various scholars within the region (who are perhaps busy with the Eastern Romans than anything else). But, the effort continues.

Vandals
- The term ‘New Onerica’ comes about describing what will be known in our timeline as “Johannesburg”. It doesn’t quite hold in the long run.
- The Gadjericans discover Patagonia.

 

[G.Bone]

840 AD – 860 AD

(Islam)
(The East)
- The Emirate of Cordoba experiences a riot within their own lands on not doing enough to expand. Within this time, Portuguese missionaries begin to traverse the lands that the Emirate owns, spreading dissent, and further mischief. This results in the infamous “Martyr” Movement where many clerics are killed and some measure of orthodoxy is introduced to the Emirate. Sadly, the executions are not effective.
- A strange combination of both Portuguese and Islamic beliefs is launched in the SE corner of Portugal.
(The West)
- Draconian laws are introduced to the Caliphate in hopes of marking those that are not Islam. All of these laws are targeted at Christians and Jews. Riots within Egypt soon arise.
- The Eastern Egyptian Orthodox Church formally disbands in lieu of the Coptic Church.
- The “Golden” Age of the Abbasids is recognized under the rule of Al-Mutawakkil, mostly from the tendencies of building various buildings of religious note, such as the Great Mosque at Samarra, the temporary capital of the Caliphate at this date due to various civil conflicts.
- Raids against the Kingdom of Italy ends with the formal conquest of Sicily (This does not account for the whole island, which will be conquered at the end of the century!)

(Northern Europe)
(France)
- Charles the Bald leads a campaign to formally annex Brittany in the French Kingdom.
- The problem of the Norman Bandits (i.e. from the Duchy of Normandy) arises.
- Any previous French holdings in what used to be Germany are decreased in strength due to the problem of the Vikings.
- Efforts are made to negotiate a peace with the Kingdom of the Czechs.
- Charles the Bald resists further attempts to kick him off the throne by other relatives.
(Italy)
- On going wars with the Saracens prove that the Papacy still has power in summoning reinforcements from the various marine based cities. Louis II attempts to funky around with the election of the next two Popes under his reign but this comes to naught seeing what the Papacy can do for him.
- Pope Nicholas is elected and strives for a continuance of the Pope’s power in other lands, namely a launching of a “Crusade” in which the various Croatian states are re-converted to Roman Catholicism. There is also the movement with the Lombard Church on simply talking about Christ in other lands that the said realm has access to. These efforts do bear some success in that the Lombards agree to spread the Word of God through a shared “ministry” of sorts.
- Several bishops are appointed to France as well as those that go underground to see just how the Muslims in Spain are doing.
- Reports are made on how Carthage seems to be tilting away from Muslim authority and unto its own.
- Louis II formally announces that the Burgundy Road is opened for travel.
- Preparations are made to “liberate” Sicily, even though there are still holdings within that island that are firmly Roman.
(Czech)
- The first mention of “Bohemia” is made in the annuals of some Czech scribe.
- The war with the Danes slacks off for some reason.
- Lombard words begin to appear in Czech letters, even though there is a parallel growth/dependence on guttural Latin vocabulary growing within the realm.
(The UK)
- Ethelwulf of Wessex crowns himself as the “(Actual) King of England”. The capital of England is shifted from London to Winchester to avoid further Viking Raids.
- The UK is formally pronounced dead by the Hibernians.
- The Icelandic colony is reconnected to their motherland.
- The Kingdom of Asturias signs an agreement with Hibernia for further support, if necessary.
(Vikings)
- The Duchy of Normandy is overrun by Vikings. For those that do survive, a general retreat is made in the interior, thereby creating a common movement that doesn’t really last long unto the years. The ongoing struggles will hinder further efforts by the Vikings in forcing France to pay huge bribes to leave.
- Due to saturation by the said people, Russia comes about, and the first mention of Novgorod is made somewhere in Swedish stone carvings.
(Elsewhere)
- Ravenna becomes a main trading city between Italy and Lombardy.
- Cathedrals are the new big thing in Venice with many adjusted for the local culture.
- Portugal attempts to invade the Kingdom of the Asturias.
- The Portuguese colonies in France slowly develop their own language.
- The Basques fragment for some odd reason.

Eastern Europe
- Boris the First becomes King of Bulgaria and formally converts to Christianity through the adoption of a “non-Slavic” name (don’t ask). In this conversion, representatives from the Kingdom of Italy are invited just to annoy Byzantium. Although this is more of a head scratching moment amongst other ones, a representative is sent. After this event is done, efforts are made by Rome to open negotiations on the matter of Croatia, which was the reason for the invitation in the first place.
- Michael III attempts to plug in some noted scholars by the name of Cyril and Methodius to stop the Khazars from spreading the Jewish faith around. They fail and then they are given a long rest.

 

[G.Bone]

The map of the current situation of 860 AD. (Gadjerica not included)

 

[Tynnin]

Love the map - there be dragons here.

 

[G.Bone]

860 AD – 880 AD

(Islam)
(The East)
- In a matter of mercy, the Emirate of Cordoba gives the title of “Count” to whomever owns the office of Mayor of Barcelona. Although many view this as an act of weakness towards the diminishing Christian (native) populace of that city, it does score some brownie points along the way.
- The “brotherhood of the west” between the three kingdoms falls apart for the obvious reasons.
(The West)
- The importance of Carthage is loosened in lieu of Tripoli. The main complaint against the old city is that the Romans have a tendency to raid it so many times that it’s stupid just to continue the lie that it is important. Ironically, many of the various tribes inhabiting the territory around the said cities go on to found their own small kingdoms in the area as well as Sicily, which is being pounded to the ground by so many warriors.
- Sicily falls and is given over to the Aghlabid Dynasty (of Northern Africa & the said cities)
- Dependency on the Turks to provide security for the Caliph (and much detriment) at the temporary capital of Samarra proves to be too much, and the capital is moved back to Baghdad once more.

(Northern Europe)
(France)
- Charles the Bald attempts to monkey around with the matter regarding Cornwall. The first illustration of Hibernian naval power comes into play, thereby illustrating that Charles the Bald is inept at invading other countries. France falls into the usual round of chaos with Louis the Ill Spoken (OTL the Stammerer) becoming King of France with much support from the Lombard Realm.
- Louis the Younger, son of Charles the Bald, is given the German March as compensation for him not claiming the title of King.
(Italy)
- Continued battles against the Muslim threat prove to be a very fine headache for Louis II.
- The Duchy of Croatia is recognized in those areas that are pro-Roman Catholic. By this time, a certain cleric by the name of Methodius (brother of Cyril) has gone about the lands, helping to create the Glagolitic alphabet for those people. This is recognized by the Pope as something to be encouraged and it is done so, even though the cleric is from Byzantium.
- Muslim raids are stopped from getting to Rome.
- A Charter is recognized between Italy and the Lombard Realm on providing free passage to this curious cleric on helping to refine their language as well.
- Raids upon the Balearics commence.
- Attempts at seizing Carthage are nipped due to the matter of Sicily.
- A treaty is signed with Emperor Basil of Byzantium to help with the Muslims in Sicily. The only real success that is gained lies in the seizure of Calabria recognized as “Byzantine” territory all but in name.
- A Schism is made between conflicts between the rival Christian sects commence.
(Lombard Realm)
- Cyril is invited to help reform the Lombard script. Not surprisingly, many of the Slavic dialects and gutter Latin words are wedded to provide something of a common tongue for the average man on the street to pronounce. Most unfortunately, Great Moravia gets to him first, and thus the Doge of Venice is left to his own devices. Thus it is that the Council of Bishops address the matter on their own, convening many within the three seperate kingdoms that the realm rules (North Italy isn't considered a seperate kingdom but rather a "Natural Territory of the Lombard State"). These efforts will drag on for some years, seieng that the Lombards have nothing else to do except to just continue on with their merry lives in the mountains.
(Vikings)
- Harald the Fair Haired begins a very long war within Norway to unify all the petty kingdoms into one. He eventually achieves in 872 CE, although continued raids from his enemies situated in Scotland, Danish controlled England, occupied Iceland, and other areas continue on until the end of the decade.
- Norwegian dissidents attack Iceland. There is a great battle that proves Iceland isn’t exactly the best place to wage an attack. Finally, some smart Hibernian diplomat manages to bribe the Vikings through allowing them to settle as hired soldiers of the Colonial Army, with the firm promise that they will not continue further raids in Hibernia.
- Wars in Scotland commence due to the exodus from Norway.
- Vikings from Denmark invade East Anglia, thereby giving them more land in England. A desperate treaty signed with Wales provides enough support to the fledgling Alfred of England/Wessex to help find a peace for the said realm, even though Northumbria is essentially given over to the Vikings as their lands.
- York is established (although with “creative spelling”) as the capital of Northumbria.
- Rurik becomes the ruler of Novgorod, followed by his son Oleg.
- The Swedish Vikings in the lands southeast of their homeland are referred to as the “Rus”, thereby giving foundation to “Russia”.
- The Baltic tribes get raided by the Swedes.
- Normandy, is engulfed in chaos.
- The Danes withdraw their support from their vassal state of Cornwall due to increased raids from Wales and Hibernia.
(Elsewhere)
- A coup within Lisbon provides a handy measure in how Portugal can be re-united, albeit with a heavy religious tone that doesn’t allow tolerance from any other sectors. The first Archbishop of Lisbon is elected at this time.
- The Kingdom of the Asturias attempts to invade both the Basque lands and Portugal. It fails but it doesn’t loose anything either.

Eastern Europe
- Cyril manages to arrive in Bulgaria and help efforts in that area. There is the remarked notice of this well traversed cleric that Greek has heavily influenced the Bulgarian tongue to the point that most of the liturgy of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church (which has declined in organization but increased in numbers) is Greek with some deviations. The Bulgarian written language is then altered so that it reflects this change with continued reforms enacted by Boris the First, due to Cyril having to attend some other matter within the 870’s.
- Further ties within Italy through their various agents (the Serbians & the Macedonians) help enable King Boris to “civilize” his realm as the Greeks had been urging some decades before. Byzantium is pissed at this, thereby adding to the other issues of the “Schism”. King Boris, just to annoy the heck out of the Byzantines, crowns himself Emperor.
- The Serbs help to found a series of castles that states their superiority to those that do not. Further attempts are made to help bring Bulgarian Orthodoxy to the Croatians not within the Roman supported Duchy.
- Great Moravia invites Cyril to help reform their language
- First mention of a traveling Muslim “Kingdom” of sorts somewhere in the vague east.
- Persian attempts at holding something beyond their natural geographical borders are abandoned.

 

[G.Bone]

880 AD – 900 AD

(Islam)
(The East)
- Struggles with the now theological Portuguese Kingdoms provide endless entertainment for the Emirate.
- Raids in West Burgundy commence at this time.
(The West)
- The Abbasids continue on although engaged within minor rebellions for a good twenty years.
- Records of this era seem to disappear for some reason.

(Northern Europe)
(France)
- Known as the “Era of Three Kings”, France stumbles through the family and descendants of Charles the Great, thereby proving ample opportunity to the Vikings to continue pillaging, and occasionally getting money to go away.
- A noticeable trademark of the “Era” is the continued presence of Lombard forces utilized by various pretenders (two of the three kings within this era) to the French throne in order to acquire legitimacy. A strong resistance is launched within France on allowing the Lombard Realm to influence their nation, since they speak mostly a Latin-Germanic-Slavic tongue and are utterly alien to the native French culture.
- The Landless Normans disappear, absorbed by the surrounding peoples of the bordering regions.
- The German March is re-absorbed into the French Kingdom due to the death of Louis the Younger.
(Italy)
- Italy is tied once more into the fate of France due to the death of Louis II and the various mechanics that let in Charles the Fat (one of the miscellaneous rulers in the said “Era of the Three Kings”) as the King of Italy/Holy Roman Emperor. Although Charles the Fat does allow the Papacy some shred of independence towards it’s own rule, his plans of formally taking charge never quite manifest themselves due to the constant threat of Vikings/rebellion within France. Thus it is that the Papacy reasserts itself as the “sovereign temporal authority of Italy”, giving the post of emperor to it’s allies, too numerous to account here due to the constant change of Popes that seem to have a tendency to die four or five years into their reign.
- Italy resorts, as can be expected, into a feudal nation, with the exception of the North, which has been properly maintained/ruled by the Lombard realm.
- At this point the title of Holy Roman Emperor falls into disuse.
(Lombard Realm)
- The post of Doge of Venice becomes elected.
- The Codex of the Lombard Tongue is announced, which is little more than a first draft of a series. Not surprisingly, both the Slovenians and the Slovaks have become incomprehensible to the Czechs.
- Ravenna becomes a major bastion of Lombard culture in the “south” (from their eyes).
- The Lombard Realm (the one in the mountains) becomes a mercantile nation with each sub-unit electing a representative to the Council of the Doge, whom then elect the Doge every four years (the exact term limit is never quite established).
- Cyril is invited after being expelled in Great Moravia for various conflicts within that said nation. There is some commentary written by this cleric that Venice has become an ‘island of tranquility in the chaos that is Europe’.
(Vikings)
- Donald II of Scotland manages to instigate the “Great Wars” that help drive out the Vikings in the said realm. A good number of them migrate to Iceland.
- Grom the Old consolidates his rule in Denmark, attempting to bring it to par with the other Christian states near him.
- Normandy becomes a Viking Kingdom although their rulers never quite last long due to infighting within the state.
- A great wave of pesky Vikings arrive in Iceland, annoying the heck out of the native Hibernian inhabitants, and eventually start a series of wars that engage the Hibernians to no end.
(Elsewhere)
- Old Church Slavonic is created in Great Moravia.
- Alfred the Great manages to consolidate his rule in England through the reconstruction of abandoned infrastructure from the United Kingdoms.

Eastern Europe
- Various attempts by the new Emperor of Byzantium fails to dislodge the growing threat of the Bulgarian Empire, even though there is a notable record of hiring these curious peoples called the Maygars (whom worship something not quite Islamic but not quite pagan) to attack.
- Simeon I of Bulgaria attempts to merge both the Greek influences within the Bulgarian Orthodox Church with the various drafts leftover by Cyril and Methodius into one formal written language. The product is a curious beast with many scholars within Greece trying to honestly understand what the heck the Bulgarians were thinking in creating their written tongue. But – the good thing about it is that they can recognize some symbols within the horrible ghastly gibberish – which was the main point anyway. (I.e. it’s for others as well as the Slavs.) Other dialects without the Greek letters are adopted by the Serbs and Macedonians.
- Arpad decides to settle his people in the outer reaches of Northern Croatia and Eastern Slovenia, which is lightly populated anyway. Along the way they engage the various members of Great Moravia, who are pissed that someone has taken their land, and attempt to crush the Maygars. They fail and are eliminated instead. Several documents left in their destruction do chronicle that there is some mention by the Maygars of a certain “Prophet” that sounds a bit like Jesus, acts a wee bit like Jesus, but has some alterations that isn’t quite as similar to what they have heard of Him.
- The Czech Kingdom becomes Bohemia.

 

[G.Bone]

900 AD – 920 AD

(Islam)
(The East)
- The third Abd-ar-Rahman becomes the Emir of Cordoba. Tired of being just an emir, he votes himself as the Caliph, thereby cutting all ties to the other caliphates running about.
- The Kingdom of Morocco, under Said ibn Husayn, declares himself the Caliph through some matters of legitimacy that aren’t too clear for many, but goes on a conquering spree. Not surprisingly, the new Caliph decides to call his new realm the Fatimid Caliphate. Another matter of vague uncertainty is if the new entity is actually from Morocco or from some other place entirely, such as the environs around Carthage, or perhaps that space between there and Morocco. Whatever the case might be, the Fatimid Caliphate is the first to declare itself free from the Abbasids, who are preoccupied with something else (that is also unclear), and thereby provoking the other Emirate to become a Caliphate as well.
- The Kingdom of Nekor is invaded by the Fatimid Caliphate. Many of the survivors flee to the Caliphate of Cordoba, where their kingdom is informally given over to the third Abd-ar-Rahman.
- After a very long struggle, the Kingdoms of Portugal unite, and invade the Caliphate of Cordoba. They are defeated once more. A tax is placed upon them for not ever attacking their foes to the west for ten years.
(The West)
- The Abbasids continue on a downward spiral due to mismanagement.
- Egypt begins to show discomfort against the Abbasids. There are many riots, deaths, and overt attempts by the Fatimids to infiltrate this tempting target.
- The Emirate of Sicily falls apart and thus, an attempt by the Kingdom of Italy commences that looses a whole lot of land to the Romans but is regained anyway. This will prelude a growing sensation amongst the commons of the (new Islamic) Sicilians that they can elect their own leaders and have one thing that would unite them against any perceived threats.

(Northern Europe)
(France)
- The dissolution of France into a feudal state becomes apparent with the ascension of Charles the Simple, who is regarded more as a puppet for the various landowners that have gained their stripes through the manipulation/abuse of the Vikings. There is also the certain threat that Robert of Anjou has against the current King, who is regarded as more of a troubleshooter that does know how to play ball, as the phrase goes. It also helps that Robert of Anjou does have considerable resources from the various Portuguese colonies within Aquitaine that have fueled not too subtle victories against the Vikings as well as other factions (i.e. they act as mercenaries).
- The Burgundian Road closes at this time.
(Italy)
- Pope John X is elected through a push by a large Italian noble family. At this point, the Holy Synod acts more of a Senate of the Nobility than an actual Theological Entity. Not surprisingly, this is the same for the position of King, who is engaged in trying to get Sicily back.
- Otto of Ravenna, a noted mercenary captain, manages to get in the good graces of Pope John X, through the seizure of various Croatian lands for the Papacy. Pope John X is said to have invited several officials from the Lombard Realm on the matter of possibly creating a united entity that would create a commonwealth that would drive the Muslims out of Carthage and Sicily.
- Pope John X is censured by the current King of Italy who hears this, and dispatches a large army to kick him out.
- Otto of Ravenna manages to “save the Pope” through diverting the troops.
- Much war commences and in the ashes, Otto of Ravenna becomes King of Italy, even though there are no negotiations with the Lombard Doge up in the Mountains – just simply Ravenna.
- King Otto the Lombard meets up with Pope John X on what he can do for the Papacy.
(Lombard Realm)
- Known as the “Italian Affair”, the Doge of Venice is saddled with a sudden upstart who has managed to be “bought out” by the “corrupt See of Rome”. The Council of Kings is called forth to address this matter, the first for many years, since the other rulers are about in their own lands. After a fortnight of argument, the Lombard Realm issues a decree in which Otto of Ravenna is allowed to become the King of Italy but must obey the law that Ravenna is Lombard territory, now, and forevermore. Furthermore, if the two realms should unite, Venice is forever out of Rome’s reach, and that the Pope will be treated as a normal priest rather than the Vicar of God upon the Earth, seeing that the track record of the Papacy is rutted with potholes of misery and despair.
- The first combined Army of Slovenia, Slovakia, and the Lombard “Duchy” is dispatched to make this statement known to the Papacy.
- Known as the “Italian Affair Mark Two”, the Papacy decides to argue with the statement of the Lombard Council of Kings, stating that the Pope is infallible in all things, and that the Lombard Realm must be heretical to state that the Pope is just a simple priest. A pseudo-cold war begins.
(Vikings)
- Vikings raid the Asturias.
- Vikings are hired by the Kingdoms of Portugal to combat the Caliphate of Cordoba.
- King Harald of Norway conquers the Orkneys and the Shetlands.
- Scotland manages to drive the last Viking out of their homelands.
- Hibernia sends a very large army to drive the Vikings out of Iceland.
- The Prince of Novgorod raids Constantinople and gets bribed in never coming back again, even though there is a clause somewhere that trade can commence.
(Elsewhere)
- Bohemia elects their first King.
- The Maygars crush Great Moravia and create their own kingdom on the ashes of that state. Duke Zoltan manages to create the first mosque (some might say) in Europe, even though there is some scratching of the head that mosques don’t usually include carved horses in the eaves.
- King Edward the Elder manages to institute Parliament in order to address the matter of a future United Kingdoms, even though Wales and Hibernia aren’t interested.
- The British Royal Mint is established.
- The Maygars pick up the Moravian written language, even though much of their words seem curiously ...Persian.

Eastern Europe
- Cyril and Methodius become saints even though it is never quite clear when, where, or even who made them saints to begin with. Monuments are created within Bulgaria (as well as Serbia) in their honor.
- Simeon crowns himself “Emperor of the Bulgarians and the Romans”, just to annoy the heck out of Byzantium, which is powerless to really kick them in the shins.
- Negotiations are launched with the Fatimids on an anti-Byzantine alliance that does pan out, although passage to their lands is postponed so that they can invade Egypt.
- The first Bible (or half of it to be exact) is written in Bulgarian.
- The Serbs begin their raids in Roman Catholic Croatia.

 

[G.Bone]

920 AD – 940 AD

(Islam)
(The East)
- The War with Portugal drag on. A revival is sparked in Southern Portugal that has many mosques burned and Christian missionaries distributed in the lands preaching about “fire and brimstone”.
- The office of Emir is given over to whoever administers Barcelona, just to combat the growing population of Christians in the area. At this time, Barcelona becomes a refuge from various Christians not wanting to get involved in the horrid mess that is Italy and France.
- Various ‘border’ states are created with the Caliph’s support although a good chunk of them are not Islamic.
- Muslim preachers begin to appear in the Basque States.
(The West).
- A delegation is sent to help encourage what remains of the Volga Bulgarians (somewhere in the vague north) to continue their devotion to Islam.
- The Abbasids continue to fall apart due to mismanagement, loosing Egypt to the rising power/influences of the Western Caliphates.
- The Fatimid Caliphate fails to “liberate” Egypt, which becomes its own power.

(Northern Europe)
(France)
- Charles the Simple is done in by Rudolph of Burgundy, who makes the title of King his. Further adventures against the Normans continue with delegations opened with Bohemia on a united push against them.
- Rudolph manages to inflict a great victory upon the Normans to the point that they are forced to pay recognition and a bribe to allow themselves to be “free”. The Duchy of Normandy then resorts to civil war, which King Rudolph freely interferes.
(Italy)
- Due to the pseudo-cold war commencing in the Kingdom of Italy, Pope John X experiences a sudden mortal blow that resorts the Papacy to various matriarchs of key Italian families, thereby making the power of Rome something of a joke. Lombard troops are used within this sixty year long period (nicknamed the “Rule of the Harlots” by various graffiti artists whom draw the Pope as a beast of burden to various women) as mercenaries and an unofficial tithe is paid by the same families as something of a bribe.
- The March of Ravenna is created, binding Northern Italy to the Lombard Realm.
- The first “King of Rome” is created but then falls apart.
- Christian raids on the Emirate of Sicily commence.
(Lombard Realm)
- The Council of Emperors/Kings becomes the Council of Dukes, due to the growing tendency of the two other realms becoming Dukes and not Kings, in emulation of Venice. By this time, much of what will be Switzerland is pretty much civilized with various fortresses and cathedrals spotting the landscape. Roads are created and the arts (namely painting, music, learning what the elders discovered, etc.) flourishes.
- The first Lombard coins are issued at this time.
- An unofficial ‘annexation’ is made upon Lombard Croatia.
- The Adriatic Sea becomes the Lombard Lake.
(Vikings)
- Henry the One Legged, a noted Norman mercenary manages to carve out his own small kingdom in what will be Brandenburg, wrestling it from the Czechs under “Danish” support, even though he throws it off once the land becomes his.
- The Althing is founded in Iceland.
- Eric the Bloodaxe will become the second King of Norway and argue with Denmark on Norway’s importance over Danish England. Raids against Scotland commence at this time.
- Christianity spreads in Danish England.
(Elsewhere)
- Bohemia is reduced in territory due to raids by the Danes/Poles/Maygars.
- Support is ‘requested’ from the Lombard Realm who dispatches a couple of missionaries in order to avert some trivial matter that isn’t really explained.
- King Boleslaus pays tribute to the Lombard Realm due to the saturation of the Lombard Church in the area as well as the fact that his predecessor, Wencelaus, had converted to the said body, with various supporters openly stating that he is a saint.
- The not quite Christian Church in Maygar lands attempts to spread their faith around in their northern neighbor’s land. The Poles soon rise as something of an annoyance/threat.
(Britain)
- Hwyel the Good manages to establish the first “Coast Guard” for Wales as well as the development of law within his realm.
- King Edmund the Old manages to open an embassy with France.
- Utrecht is “freed” by English ships; a deal is recognized between France on the matter of who rules what (i.e. Normandy, Brittany)
- Constantine II of Scotland is married to a Hibernian Princess and plans an attack on Norway.

Eastern Europe
- Simeon of Bulgaria is recognized as Tsar by the weak Byzantine Empire.
- Tsar Peter replaces his father and a re-organization commences in Bulgaria with various titles, ministries, and other signs of “civilization” implemented in his reign. Among these changes is the full recognition of the Serbian Sword Brethren as something of a Border Guard with their own land but not totally separate from the Empire.
- The Bulgarian Orthodox Church becomes patronized by the Tsar whom recognizes the importance of not screwing around as the Byzantine Emperors have. A Council is established to do this duty (with the Tsar as the final say).
- Tsar Peter pays off the Maygars not to attack him, but retracts it, and the Maygar- Bulgarian War commences.
- Tsar Peter recognizes an emissary from the Fatimid Caliphate

Vandals
- The Gajdericans allow a mosque to be built in Tynnineria.
- The first “Council of Sea Kings” is held in order to bind the various states of the people together.
- Trade commences with the Muslims along the Desert Coast.

 

[G.Bone]

940-960

(Northern Europe)
(France)
- King Rudolph I of Burgundy manages to annex the Duchy of Normandy.
- Through various rebellions, King Rudolph I manages to tire himself out, and thus dies, leaving the Count of Paris to move the son of Charles the Simple on to the throne, who is crowned Louis IV of France. Most people within France recognize Louis IV of France as a puppet king and far too saturated in the Hibernian culture (due to his long exile) to be actually “French”.
- Louis IV signs an agreement with Hibernia.
- Burgundy is hobbled by Hugh the Great, who does not want his hold on the throne to be disrupted.
- Hugh the Black, now Duke of Burgundy (that is, the area not occupied by the Muslims) manages to foster relations with other parties that will help his position to thrive in the future. This does mean the covert relations with the Italian families as well as mercenaries from the Northern Italian March. The Burgundy Road is re-created although on sea rather than on land.
- Louis IV manages to curtail Hugh the Black through various troops to prevent a deal with the Caliphate of Cordoba. Hugh the Black puts up a long struggle against the French throne, arguing that the French lords do have some measure of independence as illustrated by the King’s supporter. This sparks various ideas within France on the matter of who really is in control – the King or the Lords.
- Richard of Normandy is made a Count in the French Kingdom.
- Louis IV manages to open further relations with the Lombard Realm and Bohemia.
- The last holdout of Portuguese culture within Aquitaine dies out.
- Attempts by Louis IV manage to score great victories upon the Caliphate on the coast of Burgundy.
- Struggles emerge between Louis IV and his patron on the matter of who holds the power, him or the King.
- Louis IV dies due to pressures in cementing his rule in France.
- Lothair of France, Louis IV’s son, becomes King.

(Britain)
- A conference is held in Winchester on the matter of restoring the United Kingdoms. Most unfortunately, this conference doesn’t exactly have success written all over it. The representative of Scotland does not come. The representative from Wales defers to the opinion of his counterpart from Hibernia who pushes for an equal status for this future United Kingdoms with their own alterations within the government. It is said that King Edmund’s heart aches with sorrow that the conference doesn’t exactly restore the might of the former entity – just a loose alliance that both Hibernia and Wales agree on the matter of trade and taxes.
- The revival of abbeys as an educational institution is revived although there is great emphasis on military academies due to the matter of Northumbria.
- King Edmund manages to lead a great charge against Northumbria, subjecting it all but in name. Further attempts at consolidating his rule within the state prove to be cumbersome due to the interference with Norway as well as those Danish lords that generally refuse to acknowledge either authority (both Denmark and England) as the man in charge.
- Hibernia manages to send troops to the Kingdom of the Asturias in light of the growing fanaticism of Portugal as well as the threat of Muslim troops in the Basque Territories. There is much struggle within the Kingdom of the Asturias on the fact that they need to be free on their own instead of depending on Hibernia for aid.
- Hibernia signs a separate agreement with the Kingdom of France.
- King Malcolm of Scotland travels to Hibernia on the matter of their separate United Kingdoms, this time to keep England at bay if it ever gets to that point.
- Various dealings with France on the matter of a possible friendly regime proves to be quite an advantage for Hibernia who supports Hugh the Great, Count of Paris, in his rumblings against the current king.
- King Edgar of England replaces his father and moves the capital of England back to London. During his reign, the institution of Parliament is re-created, given that there is little hope of uniting the UK within the other realms. This Parliament is staffed with Lords and military commanders rather than the commons.
- The first British Navy is created that manages to score great victories over the Norwegians and Danes whom continually harass the growing power that England now has.
- King Edgar of England manages to consolidate British rule in Utrecht as well as it's surrounding areas.

 

[G.Bone]

940 AD – 960 AD

(Islam)
(The East)
- Continued harassment by the Portuguese Church force another Siege of Lisbon.
- Muslim preachers step up their attempts to convert the Basques to Islam.
(The West)
- The city of Algiers is founded by a local Zirid ruler who is theoretically under the control of the Fatimids.
- The Fatimids manage to take over Egypt.

(Northern Europe)
(Italy)
- The “Rule of Harlots” continues to the point that Italy is now a mess of various states rather than a single unified entity.
- Pope John XII manages to get on the throne and establishes some venue of authority within the mess that is Italy through the massive hiring of Lombard mercenaries from the north as well as King Mihajlo Kresimir II of Croatia, who is appointed as a Patron of Rome. How a Croatian King is given this title, no one knows but the introduction of the Slavs into Italian politics does bode a very ill wind for Italy, with various riots breaking out in Italy on why the Pope would do this.
- Byzantine Calabria is strengthened under a Duke, whom imports various troops from Greece, who bring along several traditions of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.
- Pope John XII manages to annoy the heck out of his patrons whom conspire to just let the Italians hear word of various deeds that he has done in private.
(Lombard Realm)
- The continued “Peace of a Thousand Days” continues, with those warriors that do seek the occasional fit of glory and action migrating to France, where they become mercenaries for hire. By the time Lothair gains the throne at the expense of his father, many companies from the Lombard Realm have created a strong movement within France that is decidedly anti-Lombard.
- Lombard missionaries manage to appear in Poland and Bohemia, creating a string of fortified churches.
- Lombard missionaries manage to gain a large popularity in Poland for some strange reason.
- Lombard missionaries learn to avoid the Maygars.
- Due to “heretical beliefs as propagated by the Maygar heathens”, the Lombard Realm invades them. The war drags on a very long time to the point that it is very apparent that the Lombard Realm is mostly an infantry nation rather cavalry, which is used as a support service rather than the main focus.
- Slovakia is invaded for the first time by a leading Maygar general who is nicknamed the “Storm of the East”. Many flee to Lombardi where a massive campaign is waged, pushing them out of Slovakia, and finally at the battle of Leek Field {OTL Lechfield}, a good number of the Maygar military leadership is killed.
- The Doge of Venice is elevated to Arch-Doge by the various Slovakians, who are thankful that their country is restored. What is not recorded is that half of the Slovakian peoples decide that it is safer in the mountains than in flat lands and thus the Lombard language becomes even more corrupted into something of a Slavic tongue than Slavic with a vanishing German/Latin base.
(The title of Arch-Doge is later reformatted to “Archduke”, administering both Slovakia and Lombardi. The post of Doge is still preserved and is passed on to another).
- Bohemia, nervous that the Lombard Realm is getting too big, attempts to mess around with the Slovakians, stating that they are no longer Slavic. Disagreement soon spreads and Bohemia is bulldozed, but not lumped into the Lombard Realm.
(Vikings)
- Another War commences between the Russians and the Byzantines lead by Igor of Novgorod. The Byzantines are not the only one suffering from the annoying presence of these warriors; the city of Barda (OTL Azerbaijan) and the Khazar Realm also become targets, even though the raid by Igor was in defense of their new Jewish brethren in the south.
- Eric Bloodaxe, King of Norway gets into a feud with Egill Skallagrímsson, a noted court poet from Iceland at the behest of his wife.
- The Hibernian Wars commences with no real victory won on either side. The only event that is recorded is the growing identity of Icelandic culture at this time being separate from the other Viking States.
- Haakon the Good manages to outwit his brother through his exploits abroad and gains the throne of King. Eric Bloodaxe flees to Northumbria where he is invited by King Edmund to “annoy the heck out of the Scots”. It is not too clear on if the latter is true but it is recorded that Eric Bloodaxe was betrayed by a minor lord named Osulf, who manages to gain the title of “Earl” even though it has become more of an English title than anything else.
- Norwegian raids continue in Scotland although it’s never clear where they come from.
- King Harald Bluetooth (not to be confused with the late King of Norway) attempts to raid Normandy but gets distracted by the riches of the Asturias, the Basques, and the Portuguese abbey-castles situated in Aquitaine.
- Eric VI of Sweden issues his strong disagreement with King Harald Bluetooth once he takes over Denmark over various raids within proclaimed “Swedish” lands.

 

[G.Bone]

960-980

(Northern Europe)
(France)
- Lothair of France has a very strong dispute with the County of Flanders, recently created from the ashes of the German March. The main issue is, again, sovereignty and whether or not the King has control over those whom support him. The war is a long and nasty one with various Norman troops employed to put down the attempt by the Count of Flanders to show that he is, indeed, graced by God to rule his own little sandbox and not the King, who is dependent on mercenaries to do his nasty jobs.
King Rudolph I of Burgundy manages to annex the Duchy of Normandy.
- Hugh Capet, son of Hugh the Great, becomes Duke of the Franks within this period.
- A strong “commoner’s movement” is launched along the Lombard border on what does it mean to be French. Many mercenaries and those that service them are attacked with a whole cycle of violence started. Lothair of France quickly addresses this issue through support of the Lombards, who is regarded as the Giant Next Door. A very large dissident movement is launched soon after, with the King regarded more as a puppet of his foreign masters than anything else.
- A long dispute arises between a land magnate and the Duchy of Normandy, which takes it upon itself to show just how powerful they really are.
- The “Right of Lords” is printed at this time to show just how rightful the land magnates are in exerting their own power. Not surprisingly, a passionate reply is written by Hugh Capet, establishing the fact that France must unite against foreign elements that desire France to be something of an Italy and not Rome.
- Otto-Henry, brother of Hugh Capet, engineers himself to be the Duke of Burgundy.
- Islamic raiders are soon chased out of the waters near Burgundy.

(Britain)
- King Edgar of England institutes the post of Archbishop of Canterbury. Further reforms are launched to help the Church of England out of its decaying state due to years of neglect. Dustan of Glastonbury is appointed to this post. Under his rule, the system of abbeys as both military academies and educational institutions for the public are integrated. Also included in this neat looking package is the olive branch to the Danes, who have been pagan for quite a while, and seem to be generally interested in what their new overlords offer.
- The Hibernian Kingdom is announced in opposition to England. There is a slight struggle between them and Wales on who is actually the head cheese on the anti-English side.
- There is a slight riot within the Kingdom of the Asturias against the Hibernian garrison. This soon launches into another Continental War with various treaties cut with the nearby Portuguese Kingdoms on the matter of who rules what.
- English rule is consolidated within Utrecht and the following areas through the establishment of castles. A dispute arises between the Normans and the English on who exactly rules the Channel. The French get involved and thus an unofficial conflict emerges.
- King Edward the Martyr replaces his father and is swiftly killed on the behest of one of his family members. King Ethelred the Unready replaces his brother at the age of 10. It is from here that the land magnates soon exert their power through the Regency and Parliament soon after, taking a cue from France on what exactly is the rights of those whom support the monarchy and so on down the list.
- Scotland falls into a series of succession wars on who becomes the King. Viking influences begin to creep back in, namely from Norway and Northumbria.

 

[G.Bone]

960-980

(Central Europe)

(East Europe)
(Poland)
- Mieszko converts to the Lombard Church just to annoy the heck out of his Maygar neighbors, who have managed to ‘adapt’ their church to reflect the current state of affairs in their realm.
(Maygars)
- Lombard missionaries force Geza of Hungary to convert to the Lombard Church
- It is rumored that Geza is not truly as faithful as he claims he is, due to various signs that the pagan gods are still around, albeit under “new saints” that he himself declares, even though there is a strong disappointment from the Lombard Realm, which rules although not overtly.

(Far Northern Europe)
(Russian Vikings)
- The Khazar Realm is continually by constant raids by the Vikings based in Kiev.
- Askord & Dir is killed by Oleg of Novgorod whom moves his capital there.
- Sviatoslav (of Kiev, grandson of Oleg) leads a raid against the Bulgars, weakening them fatally, which precedes a raid on Constantinople.
- Various wars break out between the successors of Sviatoslav, who is then succeeded by Vladimir.
(Vikings up North)
- A strong revival is launched of the Norwegian “older beliefs” under the ruler of Haakon Sigurdsson, who is then raided by Harald Bluetooth.
- Harald Bluetooth converts to a variant of Lombard Beliefs, due to their infiltration of Bohemia.
- Eric VI of Sweden instigates a trade with the growing power of Poland.

 

[G.Bone]

960 AD – 980 AD

(Islam)
(The East)
- Various infighting places Al-Mansur Ibn Abi Aamir as the defacto ruler of Moorish Spain.
- Portugal lets up from fighting the Moors although their Church becomes more and more fanatical about the purity of Portugal. Lisbon becomes heavily fortified as a result.
- A watered down version of Islam takes a very small hold in the Basque Territories.
- Infighting within the Kingdom of the Asturias and Portugal end up with a Muslim army crashing into their realm and annexing a good swath of their lands. Continued warfare between the two kingdoms factionalizes both Muslims and Christians.
- Rebellions break out in the fringes of the Fatimid Caliphate as well as the Kingdom of Nekor.
(The West)
- The Abbasid Caliphate slowly falls apart all but in name. Further migrations are recorded to the various African areas as well as the Far East.

(Northern Europe)
(Italy)
- Various popes are messed around with due to the large Byzantine influence in Southern Italy. One is even recorded to have been killed by the son of a Byzantine Empress, which pushes the Italian populace to unite (however shortly it may last) against foreign influences.
- Benedict VII is elected Pope through this mass drive for a native Italian ‘Prince of Rome’. Benedict VII manages to reinstate the concept of the Papal Bull, promising to the people that his reign will be fair and free. To this effect, it is said that Pope Benedict VII petitions the King of Croatia on previous documents about the mythical King of Horses, who is rumored to have spurred the noted “Equitus the Great” to the Roman Throne.
- Various trade agreements are signed with the Kingdom of Croatia.
- A growing influence with the Roman Catholic Church grows in Croatia, mostly to outpace the Lombard Church, which has cemented control of the North.
- The Senate is revived although on the local level.
- Stjepan Držislav is recognized as a “Patron of Rome”.
- There is a strong debate on whether or not the Byzantines should be allowed to spread this unknown heresy that puts the saints on the level of the Son’s Apostles. A local version of the Inquisition is revived.
- The Papal Guards are created constituted by Lombard mercenaries who have converted to Roman Catholicism, although a good number of them see no difference between the two faiths (in part due to their origins being from Northern Italy)
(Lombard Realm)
- The Lombard Church quickly ascends to the height that the Roman Catholic Church once held, albeit reinforced by a strong military, a fortified homeland, and the noted success over the Maygars.
- Reformations within the Lombard Church help to unify its dogma so that other ideas (such as St. XXX of YY, based on XXX god) can be merged into it. However, this open handed policy does come with the tendency to have a particular army situated around it to prevent executions. This becomes a trademark of what little remains of the Slovakian culture north of the Lombard Mountains. There is also the matter of Bohemia, which has launched another round of “I want to be free from foreign domination” that has become really annoying due to the French having it as well.
- Poland converts to the Lombard Church and there is much celebration. Roads are made throughout Bohemia to help this movement continue.
- The March of Ravenna is reformatted to the Exarchate of Ravenna, in honor of the disappearing Greek influences, again, just to annoy the Romans below them.
- Further expansion in Ravenna creates the first Lombard Navy although specifically designed for trading rather than over military action.
- Further shenanigans on the matter of who is ruling Bohemia end up with a full military occupation of the said land.
- Rumor spreads of a growing state to the Northeast where the Vikings have been slowly merging with the people around them, thereby becoming thoughly pagan, and annoying to the Poles, who have gotten “Missionary Fever” in order to compensate for further military actions.
- A meeting is held by the Doge of Venice, the Archduke of Lombard & Slovakia, and the Duke of Slovenia on the matter of what to do with the French. Within the meeting, the first disagreement comes about on what has the Realm become, with the Slovenians slowly loosing their native culture. The disagreement does continue, mostly based on the concept of ‘democratic’ rule and ‘monarchial’ rule.

 

[G.Bone]

980-1000

(Northern Europe)

(France)

- Lothair I suddenly becomes aware of what Hugh Capet is doing behind his back while he is attending to other matters.
- Hugh Capet becomes popular amongst the people for his “pro-France” ideals.
- Lothair decides to move against Hugh Capet but scores a very low opinion by giving some leeway to the Lombard Realm on the matters of how to shut down this perceived threat.
- During his campaign to wipe Hugh Capet off, Lothair is assassinated by unknown hands. Hugh Capet quickly moves in and appoints himself as King of France through the skillful pointing out of how many people are openly regarding him as this title.
- Hugh Capet becomes King of France with his brother Otto-Henry becoming Duke of Burgundy.
- Relations are restored with Italy; however there is the issue on who has sovereignty over the various churches scattered throughout the land in the Portuguese fashion, which is mainly to assume the responsibilities of the state (with the exception of the military) throughout the land with the clergy appointed through the permission of the state rather than Rome. The squabble lasts well into the years with Rome bullied to the point that the “truth” is revealed of its weak stance.
- Conflicts emerge between the Lombard Realm with the not so gentle declaration that the Lombard “army” situated in Eastern France should leave. Since the Lombard Realm is engaged in its own affairs, they do leave, although not as fast as some would like.

(Britain)
- Parliament grows along the federal lines due to the raids from the Vikings, whom reverse the saturation of the North to orient to Norway, but it doesn’t really matter. The change is noteworthy due to the unseen shift towards the perceived “Roman Glories” that England once had. This does mean that the “Lords” whom rule the various districts and sub-units of the said Kingdom come up with wacky observations that “Tribune” must have been higher than a Captain, “Centurion” must have been a Cavalry Lord, and so on down the line. There are also issues relating to Wales and Hibernia…
- Southern Wales breaks apart from Northern Wales. Government becomes a little more factionalized due to the growing might of Hibernia which has virtually annexed the Kingdom of the Asturias into their growing trade empire. The very notion of Parliament is thrown out the window due to the connotation that it is an “English” idea and most certainly Wales will not become the whipping boy of the kingdom next door. However, given that Hibernia is not exactly pure Celtic, does raise some issues on whether or not democracy is the way to go. The two kingdoms then break down into four more entities: Gwynedd (N. Wales), Powys (W. Wales), Deheubarth (SW Wales), and the Border Marches (everything else).
- Hibernia consolidates its rule in the Kingdom of the Asturias.
- At this time, the position of High King is created in Hibernia, with titles of Prince usually reserved for either military commanders and/or land magnates.

 

[G.Bone]

Countries & Languages of 1000 CE

I. Kingdom of France
(French)
-Acquitaine (light Portuguese)
- Flanders (light Germanic)
- Normandy (Danish/Norweigan/Celtic Norman)
- Breton (Brittany)
- Burgundy (Latin)
- Eastern Marches (Slavic influenced)
II. Kingdom of England
- English
- Utrecht "English" (Viking influenced)
- Northumbrian English (Viking influenced)
III. Wales
- Welsh
- Danish-Welsh "slang" (in the South)
- Hibernian-Welsh (in the West)
IV. Hibernian
- "South" Hibernian (everything below Ulster)
- "Northern" Hibernian (Gaelic- Ulster)
- Dal Riata (Scottish influenced Hibernian)
- Asturias (Hibernian/Portuguese/Basque)
V. Scotland
- Viking "Scottish" (occupied lands)
- Scottish
VI. Slavic
"Northern" Slavic
i. Lombard Realm
- German/Slavic/Latin
ii. Slovakian (merging with Lombardic)
iii. Slovenian
iv. Polish
v. Czech/Bohemian
- influenced by German
"Southern" Slavic
i. Bulgarian (Greek influenced)
-Considered dialects of Bulgarian
(Serbian)
(Macedonian)
ii. Croatian
- influenced with Latin
VII. Italian
(Italy)
VIII. Portuguese
(Portugal)
IX. Viking
- Norwegian (Norway)
- Swedish (Sweden)
- Russian (Russia)
- Danish (Denmark)
X. Basque
(Basque Territories)
XI. Arabic
- Caliphate of Cordoba
- Fatimid Caliphate
- Abbasid Caliphate
XII. Gadjerican
- offshoot of Portuguese (a Germanic tongue based from the Vandals) that is it's unique language tree due to saturation in Africa

 

[G.Bone]

980 AD- 1000 AD

(Islam)
(The East)
- The Byzantines invade and drive the Abbasid Caliphate out of Aleppo.
- Persia becomes independent but divided into various realms.
(The West)
- Al-Mansur Ibn Abi Aamir continues his dominance over the Caliph of Cordoba who is too young to do anything against his new popular general. Further reforms are launched within the Caliphate to resemble something of a military oligarchy. Due to the interference with the Hibernians, much of Northern Portugal is open to raids by Muslim Spain. In an idiotic move, a Prince of the Asturias formally asks the General to aid him in driving out the Hibernians in exchange for submitting to the Caliphate. This is accepted and the Asturias is promptly annexed. Consolidation over this and the Basque Territories will take some time. The first Hibernian – Muslim battles also commence at this time.
- Portugal is reformed once more again, but this time as a theological state with the Archbishop of Lisbon spewing out anti-Islamic speeches. Lisbon is again besieged. Some start to flee the homeland in hopes of the legendary “Rick Brotherhood” {The Gadjericians}. Portugal is conquered by the end of the century.
- Secret Societies are revived in Lisbon

(Northern Europe)
(Italy)
- Known as the “Great Juggling”, various popes are kicked and then elected with the Exarchate of Ravenna getting involved through mercenaries and other military means. Ironically, the “Great Juggling” does help cement the rule of the Popes, who have gotten a little better at extending their terms in office (even though it is for life). One key factor that does help with the “Juggling” is the incorporation of Croatia within the whole misbegotten mess that is electing a Pope, adding support to the Pope through the Holy Synod (now a Senate all but in name), and balancing both the temporal/theological duties of his office.
- Under the reign of Pope Equitus Aetus, the first antipope elected by the renegade south is hanged, thereby showing that the Papal Guard does have superiority over those that consist of the Italian aristocracy.
- The Byzantines attempt to fuel a new orthodoxy against the Roman Catholic Church. The Holy Inquisition is revived once more.
- Missionaries are distributed to both France and Muslim Spain.
- Negotiations are launched between the Pope and the new King of France. Seeing that the Lombard Realm is within a civil war, the King of France accepts the aid from the Papacy… and then finds out that the Italians have sort of found their own feet instead of a large gap in which France can meddle around with.
(Lombard Realm)
- Known as the “Long Disputes”, the Archduke is accused by the King Tribune of Slovenia (the title of which does not matter; it is remarked that for monarchists the Slovenians chose every other name but King) of being as democratic as The Unknown Tribune (Attila; but in the legends of the Slovenians, as borrowed from the Lombard Realm which is then borrowed from the Italians, then garbled up so that the actual roots of which is lost). This accusation then has the Archduke point out that the Slovenians wouldn’t know freedom if it hit them. Thus begins the first Lombardi Civil War.
- The Lombard Mercenary companies within France are left alone for a while.
- The Exarchate of Ravenna is regarded more as a part of Italy than anything else as the battles continue within the Lombard Realm.
- Much of the Lombard Realm becomes a mass fortification against the threat of a Slovenian invasion.
- The Lombard Realm becomes increasingly feudal with the phrase “first amongst equals” applied to the Doge of Venice, who in theory, is the “Archduke” of a various collection of other doges, and then reports to the Archduke of Slovakia-Lombardi.
- Bohemia quietly steps away from the Lombard Realm through the interesting facts of these heathen folk located somewhere near Poland and the possibility of being free once more. Although the Bohemian King doesn’t exactly have money to pay off the various mercenaries scattered throughout his land, he does put forth the notion that if the people within the castles should accomplish this deed of propagating the Son’s Words, he would be in debt with them, and so on down the line. Not many take this offer up – but when word comes up that Denmark is slowly descending into chaos – some do increase their interest to the East.
(Poland/Hungary)
- Poland expands to the North, with their version of the Lombard Church “reclaimed” for Poland. Again, a very strong push is made to have it seem more “Christian” than the Hungarians.
- Stephen I of Hungary decides to go “faith shopping” in the various sects that are running about in Europe at this time after a very long and bitter fight to gain the throne of Hungary from his relatives. Not many envoys from the various sects come at the behest of his invitation, partly because of the location. Finally, Stephen manages to “discover” a supposed envoy from the “True Church” that would serve his ideals. This does end up with the reforms given to the Hungarian Church that combines both the ideals of freedom from the Lombard Realm, the ancestral beliefs of The Ancestors, and a possibility of it being attached to something old. In other words, the Hungarian Church becomes attached to the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, even though a good chunk of the traditions are not even Eastern Orthodox in the slightest. The Conversion does annoy the heck out of his northern neighbors (the Poles) whom make a similar announcement, and thus, a rivalry is born.

(Vikings)
- Christianity spreads through Norway, Sweden, and Denmark, even though the common traits of killing each over for various tracts of land continue.
- Prince Vladimir of Kiev converts to Eastern Orthodoxy in exchange for gold, a wife, and lands that are currently held by the Bulgarians.
- Iceland enters “Hibernian guardianship”.

(Eastern Europe)
- Basil II (The Bulgar Slayer) becomes Emperor of the Eastern Romans and invades Bulgaria after addressing the Arabs and other matters.

 

[G.Bone]

980-1000

(Northern Europe)

(France)
- Robert II becomes King of France
- Attempts at creating a separate Church of France fails due to the saturation of the Roman Catholic Church in Burgundy.
- The County of Flanders is advised not to open relations with Utrecht.

(The Lombard Realm)
- The “Long Disputes” continue to the point that the Archduke finally resorts to military conquest of Slovakia. The conquest is bloody, with the Hungarians getting involved, as well as the Croatians, thereby making the lands even more undesirable.
- Lombard interests in Eastern France are abandoned.
- Arguments arise between the Doge of Venice and the Archduke on the matters of power.
- A large pro-Lombard faction arises in Bohemia on getting more power from the King of Bohemia just in case of a takeover by their southern brothers. The King of Bohemia creates his own system of minor nobility to help counter their movement. Settlement is launched along the northern frontiers.
- Roman Catholic rites slowly creep into Southern Lombardi through the Exarchate.
- The Burgundy Road is re-opened.
- A great victory is recorded to have all but disintegrated Slovenia as a nation state although details are sketchy due to the increasing conflicts between the Slovaks and the Lombardi of the Homelands.

(Hungary/Poland)
- Recognition is made by the King of Denmark of Stephen’s triumph. There is also another document made by the Pope, which comes three years after the coronation.
- Boleslaw becomes King of Poland, with a sizable claim on Bohemia, due to his mother being a minor lord there during the Drive to the East.
- Poland meddles around in Kievan affairs of state, annexing a large swath of land, thereby increasing the Polish Kingdom.
- The Kingdom of Poland encounters the Old Prussians and commence war upon them.

(Britain)
- The power of Parliament grows as Ethelred the Unready takes the throne. As the nickname states, King Ethelred isn’t a very good ruler, proving to be quite inept and warding off continued raids by the Vikings in Norway, the growing continental presence in Utrecht, the matter of Wales, the matter of Scotland, and so on down the list. Thus it is that the culture of England shifts towards a military focus rather than what a/the King can command. The lands surrounding Danish England become known for their militias. The lands in the South become known for their naval culture. Finally, the lands to the East actually structure their army towards the Roman Legions. In this shift, castles become the norm, with the conception of Parliament passed on to the individual regions. In opposition to this shift, King Ethelred attempts to build his own army, which is defeated in the Battle of Maldon due to a trivial thing called ‘honor’.
- The Danes invade England once more, with Ethelred the Unready’s family fleeing to Normandy. During the raids, the Parliament of the Counties announces that if the King should return from his exile, he would have to face restrictions upon his power as well as some iota of what to do about a successful administration of the Kingdom.
- Hibernia increases it’s presence in Powys as well as Scotland.
- Hibernia attempts to come in the aid of England through the distribution of arms.
- The Border Marches are annexed by men of Western England in the name of “civilization” in order to appease their new rulers.
- Canute the Great, the second son of the King of Denmark, invades. Edmund the Ironside manages to get himself on the throne of England. Alas, his reign is short lived, due to the bickering between factions, the fragmented Parliament, and Canute himself, who forces Edmund II to halve his realm as well as forking over his half if he should die (vice versa). Most unfortunately, Edmund is the first to die.
- In an odd turn of events, Canute the Great manages to allow the fragmented parts of the former Parliament to prosper under the creation of the Earldoms. There is a great space within those that would have rebelled against his rule. Military organization along military lines is continued, seeing that there is nothing else to do. Canute even reconstitutes the creation of Parliament, albeit under the new name “All Thing”, with several key captains in his army serving as regents due to the matter of his brother dying, with the chance of two realms under his belt.
- The headquarters of the English Navy is moved to Utrecht due to a disagreement over embracing this new “All Thing”.
- The English Church is revived under Canute’s reign.
- Norwegian Scotland strikes a peace treaty with Malcolm II of Scotland due to the civil disputes in their homeland and Danish England.
- Hibernia begins to slowly edge into Cornwall.
- Increased presence in Utrecht by the English shape the culture of the land to become more “democratic”, with the shadow of what occurred in previous colonial expansions preserved as a warning to what might occur.
- Hibernia is allowed to open several enclaves in the former Portuguese colonies in France.

 

[G.Bone]

1000 AD- 1020 AD

(Islam)
(The East)
- The post of Hajib, equal to the title of Vizier, is created in the Caliphate of Cordoba
- Constant battles between the invading Hibernians, the quarrelsome Basques, the annoying Portuguese, and the rebellious Asturians prove to be the undoing of Al-Mansur Ibn Abi Aamir, who is wounded in the infamous Battle of Four Armies. The wound is fatal and he dies within two years of the new millennium. His death does mark the decline of the Caliphate into various feudal states that shatter any hopes of the Caliphate lasting as a united entity. Portugal manages to reassert itself against the Muslims and declares its independence. Not surprisingly, many Muslims flee the area due to inter-religious violence.
- The Fatimid Caliphate consolidates its rule over Northern Africa although their ruler, Al-Hakim, is noted to have a “bizarre” tendency to proclaim contradicting edicts within a short time span.
- The Kingdom of Nekor falls.
- Records are made of a moving group of Portuguese migrants going south. These migrants are soon attacked by Muslim pirates who are quite annoyed that the Portuguese have gotten that far. There is a mention somewhere of a “Brotherhood” established under Muslim administration that controls the seas between “Civilization” and the “African Confederated States” {The Gadjericans}. Although this Brotherhood is not as large as the other entities buzzing around, they do have curious notions that seem….not characteristic of Islamic rule.
- The Kingdom of Morocco falls.

(The West)
- The Abbasids fall further into shadow.
- The Ghaznavid Empire is founded, marking the shift of the former Islamic colonies to the East to full fledged nation states. Various other empires soon follow.
- Contact is made with an “African Kingdom of the Eastern Coast” in the growing Muslim states located in East Africa. Many of the various Muslim officials are not too sure how to deal with these Africans whom tend to speak a language that consists of all vowel sounds, use wooden tokens instead of actual gold coins, and have these massive ships that – as they say – ‘crossed the Great Sea to the East where Jungle swallows and death comes in the Air’.

Europe
(Italy)
- Trade/Economic/Military relations with Croatia booms due to aid showed during the “Rule of the Harlots”. Roman Catholicism becomes big, again, although several parts of its dogma are adapted for the Croatian culture instead of being imposed upon. As a result of this shift, Croatian culture is carried back to Italy, and the legends of the Three Good Emperors (Attila, Equitus, and Flavius Aetius) are added on to become stalwartly Roman Tribunes who foresaw the virtues of Christianity.
- Efforts in converting the Croatians to Roman Catholicism are increased with the building of various cathedrals scattered throughout the Adriatic coastline. In recognition of what Rome is doing for them, the King of Croatia gives various key strategic islands within the Adriatic Sea to Rome as a gift. The Roman Navy is resurrected as a result of this ‘gift’.
- Increased antagonism against the Byzantine ‘colony’ in Southern Italy is met with subtle advances in matching the beliefs of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church with Roman Catholicism dogma. These efforts are tolerated to a limit.
- Missionaries are launched within the Emirate of Sicily in order to destabilize the hold that the Muslims have in the area.
- Missionaries are launched in Burgundy to increase the Roman Catholic Church’s hold in that area.
- The Burgundy Road is opened by the Exarch of Ravenna whom converts (albeit secretly) to Roman Catholicism.

(Vikings)
- Vladimir the Great (of Kiev) converts to Eastern Orthodoxy.
- Poland screws around with Kiev.
- Canute the Great manages to annex Norway into his growing Kingdom, which also includes Denmark.
- Yaroslav the Wise manages to strike a deal with Sweden.
- Anund Jacob of Sweden gains the reputation of attempting to found a counter movement against Canute’s Empire.

(Eastern Europe)
- Bulgaria is invaded by the Byzantines. The struggle is a long and hard one with many Emperors loosing their heads due to the lack of stability within their homelands. As a result of this, the Bulgarian Orthodox Church becomes a bastion of stability, with many using it as a shield against various disputes. Many cathedrals are built that are often mistaken for fortresses. The Serbians become a power unto themselves with their own little kingdom carved out in the chaos. Raids are launched in Greece just to show that Bulgaria isn’t lying down.