OMG, it's reverse-Rosenkrantz & Guildenstern! I love pretty much every detail about this, especially the murdered poisoner and the fact that they take the money and retire to a goat farm. (I do kind of wonder what kind of world leads to someone making the popes-eye-view of the play in the 90s, but in a way that just adds to the fun)
Matilda Regina
- Thread starter wwbgdiaslt
- Start date
Yes, reverse R&G!
Basically the Episcopal Crisis leads to the Treaty of Toulon signed by Evaristus II and later ratified by Victor IV and Telesphorus II which significantly curtails the powers of the papacy in "domestic" issues and all but eliminates the Papal States and Prince Bishoprics across Europe. Think a Papal Magna Carta, in effect. Its the grain of sand from which the secular states emerge (despite the Episcopal Triumvirate holding seats in the English Baronage).
We've hit a little stumbling point - the next installment, which covers both the Iberian War of Partition and the start of the timelines equivalent to the Reconquista, just doesn't feel right in its current form. I'm 50/50 on trying to rewrite it and making it fit - or abandoning it and just explaining the events in a later post (similar to how the House of Flanders loss of and restoration in Flanders was handled previously, instead of in its own post).
I'm good waiting if you want to work on it, but I don't need it if you want to skip it.
The Age of the Four Joscelins, Interlude: The Lady With The Norman Painting
This installment was originally conceived as the first part of the reign of Joscelin II, then an epilogue to the reign of Joscelin of Cornwall - but it stands as an interlude (and a four day belated six month thread anniversary post) whilst I play with the next few installments proper featuring the War of Partition ...
In 1270, King Joscelin the First of England is dead. But we must rewind a decade, to the Summer of 1260 and the months following the death of the Queen Consort, Marie of France ...
Beaumont, Summer, 1260
The Duke of Normandy (17/18) sits under a tree in the gardens of Beaumont, watches his two year old brother, Henry, Earl of Devon, play with a nursemaid. Henry may not even understand that their mother, Marie of France, is dead, but the Duke is fully aware of the implications, that his father might soon remarry - the King already has three sons (the Duke, the Count of Mirabel and La-Ferte-Loupiere, and the Earl of Devon) and a daughter (the Margravine of Moravia) and now a grandson, the infant Wenceslaus of Moravia, later King Wenceslaus of Bohemia, but the expectation of remarriage will be impressed upon him by the Earls and the Barons.
Guillaume, Prince of Anjou (16), Heir to the Kingdom of the Franks and the Duchy of Aquitaine, winds his way down a path from the main house, he is accompanied by the Duchess of Normandy - Constance of Portugal - and they approach the Duke. The Duchess is performing her duties as hostess to the visitor admirably and they have spent several hours bemoaning the tiresome English weather whilst playing cards of an evening and today she has been showing him the gardens, and explaining her plans, thought she frustratedly admits the climate won't allow her to grow oranges, but she will learn to love the berries that she can cultivate and she sings the praises of rhubarb.
The Prince of Anjou has been in England to represent Blanche of France at her sister's funeral. England and France are not on good terms after the Pope blocked Marie of Tintagel's match with Valdemar, King of the Romans, so Queen Blanche's presence would cause a diplomatic shitstorm, but the Prince of Anjou is unobjectionable enough, that he can represent the Franks and remain, spending time with his cousin at Beaumont. But he has other reasons.
Marguerite Dunkeld is lead amongst the other reasons, raven haired and olive skinned. Part French, Part Scots, Part Italian, and the Prince of Anjou has been obsessed for the past few weeks ever since he met her at his aunts funeral.
The Earl of Devon wanders over, his nursemaid follows, tries to intercept, but the Duke sweeps his brother into his arms and carries him over to the Prince and the Duchess. The Duke has brought the Earl into his household, Colchester Castle would be no place for a motherless toddler, there is a nearly sixteen year age gap between them, but the Duke is willing to bear the responsibility of raising him.
The Prince is overjoyed. Constance has had news - the object of Guillaume's affections has agreed to pay the Normandy's a visit, but ... (unsurprisingly) ... she is to be accompanied by her mother, Anastasia, Lady of Santa Stefano Ticino. In modern terminology, the Prince sees that he has been (cockblocked) and spends the next two weeks sulking and writing long and depressing poems in Occitan.
Marguerite is beautiful, wealthy, titled and in the line of succession to two thrones - inheriting from her paternal grandfather the Earldoms of Chester and Huntingdon (and a claim to the Scottish crown), from her paternal grandmother the Lordship of La-Ferte-Gaucher (and a claim to the French throne via the Courtenay's) and will upon her mother's death inherit the Lordship of Santa Stefano Ticino near Milan. France isn't the poorest of monarchies, the revenue and titles don't even enter the equation for the poor Prince or Anjou, who as the Heir Apparent to France and Aquitaine, Gascony and Poitou, Blois, Maine and Bolougne has more money and titles than he can shake a stick at.
The Duke is vaguely familiar with the Lords of La-Ferte-Gaucher, the current Marguerite's paternal grandmother, after whom she is named, was briefly married to his great uncle, Adalbert of Ostervant, and was therefore briefly the Duchess of Normandy. This is a happy coincidence and when the two ladies arrive, there is a near-comedic few hours wherein the Duke and Duchess attempt to guide the Lady of Santa Stefano Ticino away from her daughter so that the Prince and the Countess can talk, there is a portrait of the first Lady Marguerite that the Duke had brought from Colchester, to gift to the Lady of Santa Stefano Ticino, to butter her up and they use viewing this as a method of prizing mother and daughter apart. This does the trick - the Dowager Countess is enthralled by the painting of her dear mother-in-law. Marguerite of La-Ferte-Gaucher passed ten years earlier when her granddaughter was only six, a year before her husband, Robin of Huntingdon and Chester. Davide, their son, most explicitly not the Anglicised David, had died only a couple of years prior to this visit, and she can see Davide in his mother's portrait not just Marguerite, and she offers to purchase the painting at agreeable price, but the Duke and Duchess curry favor and gift the painting to their guest.
This discussion about the Norman painting allows both the Prince of Anjou and the Countess of Huntingdon and Chester to reaffirm their feelings. Though nothing is said in the presence of the Lady Anastasia, despite the gift she would likely not react kindly to the subterfuge and the, even chaperoned by the Earl of Devon's nursemaid, time they had spent alone if she knew if meant THAT. The rest of the visit is spent respectfully - parish visits, the two Heirs Apparent hunt, the women sew and paint and pray - and Anastasia Borri and Marguerite Dunkeld depart on schedule.
A year later, the Duke of Normandy receives news that the Prince of Anjou and the Countess of Huntingdon and Chester are betrothed. Queen Blanche of France and Queen Agatha of Scotland have agreed to the match, terms have been agreed and the service will take place in Aquitaine later that Summer - the consent of the Lady Anastasia is not even relevant given that two ruling monarchs have given assent and they can easily refuse to grant any other matches, or revoke the succession rights in France and Scotland, and maybe even suspend the brides claim to the Lordship of La-Ferte-Gaucher. But, let's be serious - is Anastasia going to refuse, this marriage practically guarantees her daughter is going to be Queen of France and she can freeload at the French Court once her son-in-law becokes King of the Franks. The Duke and Duchess of Normandy cannot attend, but that was expected, Pope Linus' grubby hands are still all over continental affairs in 1261, and England is represented by the Lord of Talou, the Duke's illegitimate cousin, who has been acting as Governor of Normandy since before he was even born - first on behalf of his father, later for him. It's a post that Talou will hold, however briefly, for the Duke's eldest son in 1270 before his replacement. Talou - or Baldwin FitzBaldwin - has, despite his illegitimacy, proven to be an incredible diplomat, having accompanied the Duke to Leon for his cousin, the Lord of Toro's, wedding to Flordelis Hohenstaufen, and to confirm the betrothal of the Duke and Duchess. He's also represented England at the high table of the Solemn Pact for most of the past decade and will act as their representative in the Army of Silence six years later. He will become a vocal participant in the English Baronage in his later life - his removal from post in Normandy and the installation of his replacement, though, will cause a period of Civil War that Normandy hasn't seen since the Robertian War over a century earlier - but that's still to come.
Joanne Whalley as Anastasia Borri, Lady of Santa Stefano Ticino, Dowager Countess of Huntingdon and Chester, in "The House of the Builder" (2022)
In 1270, King Joscelin the First of England is dead. But we must rewind a decade, to the Summer of 1260 and the months following the death of the Queen Consort, Marie of France ...
Beaumont, Summer, 1260
The Duke of Normandy (17/18) sits under a tree in the gardens of Beaumont, watches his two year old brother, Henry, Earl of Devon, play with a nursemaid. Henry may not even understand that their mother, Marie of France, is dead, but the Duke is fully aware of the implications, that his father might soon remarry - the King already has three sons (the Duke, the Count of Mirabel and La-Ferte-Loupiere, and the Earl of Devon) and a daughter (the Margravine of Moravia) and now a grandson, the infant Wenceslaus of Moravia, later King Wenceslaus of Bohemia, but the expectation of remarriage will be impressed upon him by the Earls and the Barons.
Guillaume, Prince of Anjou (16), Heir to the Kingdom of the Franks and the Duchy of Aquitaine, winds his way down a path from the main house, he is accompanied by the Duchess of Normandy - Constance of Portugal - and they approach the Duke. The Duchess is performing her duties as hostess to the visitor admirably and they have spent several hours bemoaning the tiresome English weather whilst playing cards of an evening and today she has been showing him the gardens, and explaining her plans, thought she frustratedly admits the climate won't allow her to grow oranges, but she will learn to love the berries that she can cultivate and she sings the praises of rhubarb.
The Prince of Anjou has been in England to represent Blanche of France at her sister's funeral. England and France are not on good terms after the Pope blocked Marie of Tintagel's match with Valdemar, King of the Romans, so Queen Blanche's presence would cause a diplomatic shitstorm, but the Prince of Anjou is unobjectionable enough, that he can represent the Franks and remain, spending time with his cousin at Beaumont. But he has other reasons.
Marguerite Dunkeld is lead amongst the other reasons, raven haired and olive skinned. Part French, Part Scots, Part Italian, and the Prince of Anjou has been obsessed for the past few weeks ever since he met her at his aunts funeral.
The Earl of Devon wanders over, his nursemaid follows, tries to intercept, but the Duke sweeps his brother into his arms and carries him over to the Prince and the Duchess. The Duke has brought the Earl into his household, Colchester Castle would be no place for a motherless toddler, there is a nearly sixteen year age gap between them, but the Duke is willing to bear the responsibility of raising him.
The Prince is overjoyed. Constance has had news - the object of Guillaume's affections has agreed to pay the Normandy's a visit, but ... (unsurprisingly) ... she is to be accompanied by her mother, Anastasia, Lady of Santa Stefano Ticino. In modern terminology, the Prince sees that he has been (cockblocked) and spends the next two weeks sulking and writing long and depressing poems in Occitan.
Marguerite is beautiful, wealthy, titled and in the line of succession to two thrones - inheriting from her paternal grandfather the Earldoms of Chester and Huntingdon (and a claim to the Scottish crown), from her paternal grandmother the Lordship of La-Ferte-Gaucher (and a claim to the French throne via the Courtenay's) and will upon her mother's death inherit the Lordship of Santa Stefano Ticino near Milan. France isn't the poorest of monarchies, the revenue and titles don't even enter the equation for the poor Prince or Anjou, who as the Heir Apparent to France and Aquitaine, Gascony and Poitou, Blois, Maine and Bolougne has more money and titles than he can shake a stick at.
The Duke is vaguely familiar with the Lords of La-Ferte-Gaucher, the current Marguerite's paternal grandmother, after whom she is named, was briefly married to his great uncle, Adalbert of Ostervant, and was therefore briefly the Duchess of Normandy. This is a happy coincidence and when the two ladies arrive, there is a near-comedic few hours wherein the Duke and Duchess attempt to guide the Lady of Santa Stefano Ticino away from her daughter so that the Prince and the Countess can talk, there is a portrait of the first Lady Marguerite that the Duke had brought from Colchester, to gift to the Lady of Santa Stefano Ticino, to butter her up and they use viewing this as a method of prizing mother and daughter apart. This does the trick - the Dowager Countess is enthralled by the painting of her dear mother-in-law. Marguerite of La-Ferte-Gaucher passed ten years earlier when her granddaughter was only six, a year before her husband, Robin of Huntingdon and Chester. Davide, their son, most explicitly not the Anglicised David, had died only a couple of years prior to this visit, and she can see Davide in his mother's portrait not just Marguerite, and she offers to purchase the painting at agreeable price, but the Duke and Duchess curry favor and gift the painting to their guest.
This discussion about the Norman painting allows both the Prince of Anjou and the Countess of Huntingdon and Chester to reaffirm their feelings. Though nothing is said in the presence of the Lady Anastasia, despite the gift she would likely not react kindly to the subterfuge and the, even chaperoned by the Earl of Devon's nursemaid, time they had spent alone if she knew if meant THAT. The rest of the visit is spent respectfully - parish visits, the two Heirs Apparent hunt, the women sew and paint and pray - and Anastasia Borri and Marguerite Dunkeld depart on schedule.
A year later, the Duke of Normandy receives news that the Prince of Anjou and the Countess of Huntingdon and Chester are betrothed. Queen Blanche of France and Queen Agatha of Scotland have agreed to the match, terms have been agreed and the service will take place in Aquitaine later that Summer - the consent of the Lady Anastasia is not even relevant given that two ruling monarchs have given assent and they can easily refuse to grant any other matches, or revoke the succession rights in France and Scotland, and maybe even suspend the brides claim to the Lordship of La-Ferte-Gaucher. But, let's be serious - is Anastasia going to refuse, this marriage practically guarantees her daughter is going to be Queen of France and she can freeload at the French Court once her son-in-law becokes King of the Franks. The Duke and Duchess of Normandy cannot attend, but that was expected, Pope Linus' grubby hands are still all over continental affairs in 1261, and England is represented by the Lord of Talou, the Duke's illegitimate cousin, who has been acting as Governor of Normandy since before he was even born - first on behalf of his father, later for him. It's a post that Talou will hold, however briefly, for the Duke's eldest son in 1270 before his replacement. Talou - or Baldwin FitzBaldwin - has, despite his illegitimacy, proven to be an incredible diplomat, having accompanied the Duke to Leon for his cousin, the Lord of Toro's, wedding to Flordelis Hohenstaufen, and to confirm the betrothal of the Duke and Duchess. He's also represented England at the high table of the Solemn Pact for most of the past decade and will act as their representative in the Army of Silence six years later. He will become a vocal participant in the English Baronage in his later life - his removal from post in Normandy and the installation of his replacement, though, will cause a period of Civil War that Normandy hasn't seen since the Robertian War over a century earlier - but that's still to come.
Joanne Whalley as Anastasia Borri, Lady of Santa Stefano Ticino, Dowager Countess of Huntingdon and Chester, in "The House of the Builder" (2022)
Last edited:
Okay - I'm having to make the difficult decision to put the TL on temporary hiatus, this hopefully isn't the end, I've not lost interest and I've written several significant parts for later installments already. My mental health has been on a steady decline for a while and this TL has been a welcome distraction, but now I need to park the TL for a while whilst I focus on self-care.
Wellness is important. Take care of you first. Everything else can wait.
This. Taking care of yourself is the most important thing. I hope you start feeling better in yourself soon.