The Sunne in Splendour: A War of the Roses Timeline
- Thread starter pandizzy
- Start date
ISTR a recent Arab monarch (Farouk? Saud?) giving a valuable jewel to a messenger who had informed him that three of his concubines had just given birth that day.
Well, I will say that one of these names is the name I picked out for this baby.
June 1476.
June 1476. Nancy, Kingdom of Lotharingia.
Charles de Bourgogne, Count of Charolais could feel his heart beating in his throat as he walked down the dark and narrow corridor. He was nervous, twisting his fingers together and chewing on his lower lip anxiously.
He raised his gaze slightly, observing the long and lean form of his father. The King had a hand on Charles' shoulder, directing him forward as the guards posted along the walls bowed for them both. His Grace was not looking at him, his expression hard and serious, and Charles turned his gaze away.
Before he and his mother were summoned to Nancy along with his younger siblings, Charles had not seen his lord father in two years. The once-Duke of Burgundy had left their ancestral lands to conquer Lorraine and create his kingdom, and Charles had spent happy months with his mother leading the court. Of course, however, this had to come to an end.
In truth, he was rather afraid of his father. The King didn't let his true feelings over his eldest son be shown and Charles had always known that he was not what his father had hoped. His Grace wanted a son who would be just as militarily inclined as he was and Charles, who had never been able to lift a single sword, could never hope to measure.
And perhaps that would have been alright, if Filip had not been born. Whereas Charles enjoyed reading poetry and dancing, Filip loved to ride horses and fence about with their tutor-in-arms. Filip was three years younger than he was, six whereas he was nine, but already, his little brother was a better son to Charles the Bold than he was.
They stopped before a wooden door. Charles relaxed his fingers and he looked at his father, trying to read his face. His entire life, all he wanted was to make the King happy, to finally have him look at him as he looked at Filip. With love and affection.
His father looked at him. His eyes were empty.
"Look," he said. Someone offered him a wooden stool and he helped Charles stand up on it, hands on his waist. There was a tiny opening at the door, right on his eyelevel and he leaned forward to see what was inside. "Look at the enemies of our family."
Charles didn't know what he expected, but it certainly was not this. Two older girls with dirty and mangled hair, wearing simple brown dresses as a nun seated on another wooden stool read from a Book of Hours to them.
They seemed skinny, sick with pale green skin and dark circles under their eyes. When Charles tried to avert his eyes, his father made him look again.
"Yolande and Marguerite de Lorraine," said the King. "Last survivors of the old ducal house."
Charles felt tears burst into his eyes and he closed them, not wanting to see.
"They are just girls," he murmured. He thought of his sisters Bella and Maria, as well baby Bonne, who was napping at the nursery at that exact moment.
"They are our enemies," his father insisted, "And do you know what we do with our enemies?"
He felt tears sliding down his face, slipping inside his mouth. Charles already knew what his answer should be.
"We kill them," he murmured.
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Damn, Charles, chill. Couldn't Philip just marry Marguerite while Yolande is sent to a convent?
Marguerite is 13 and Filip is 6. Too large of a difference, I'm afraid.
Oh my brain slipped there. I of course meant that Marguerite should marry Charles jr. That would be a 4 year age gap. A bit large but not impossible
Well, the English won't certainly like it and Charles the Bold can't really offend the English at the moment.
Awww poor Charles, especially the poor de Lorraine girls, maybe the Queen can convince the Der Charles to have mercy on them by sending them to a convent
Why? Edward jr. as far as I remember is betrothed to Blanche, last remaining Lancastrian heiress so for English de Lorraine girls are nobodies.
It happened in history. Certainly, that isn't a moral act, but sometimes it happened.
I think Charlie Jr. is bethrothed to one of Edward’s daughters
Ah Ok, that makes sense and doesn't paint Charles as complete monster, if he can't secure loyalty of old dynasty's supporters by marriage, his best option to prevent bloodshed is to kill them, though that is harsh choice.