Rome AARisen - a Byzantine AAR

[Lordling]

One question. Are all the lands in blue, including those labelled "Holy See", direct property of the Emperor?

[General_BT]

Yes, they're a part of the Imperial desmense.

[RGB]

You know what I was wondering? How does the Emperor of the Germans and Hungarians feel about all the domestic violence in Rhomaion? Them being related and all?

-----

As for the Schism - Manuel doesn't need the Pope, he just needs Rome. With Rome in Orthodox hands, a new Roman Patriarch could be appointed and the former pope could soon find himself a heretic claimant.

The big obstacle is not the schism, it's the Germans.

[Mettermrck]

You make the most gorgeous maps in AARdom. Very realistic, brings your story to life.

[Fulcrumvale]

You make the most gorgeous maps in AARdom. Very realistic, brings your story to life.

Agreed 100%.

[Ksim3000]

Nice map my good sir! However, I would be wary of when the Mongolians arrive. That will certainly be a battle for the Imperial Armies...and your sitting right where they will be sure to strike. Still, nice Empire all the same! May it last for a thousand years! Nay, make it five thousand!

[General_BT]

RGB - Oh, the HRE most definitely is not pleased their Arpad cousin is no longer on the throne by coup. There were some definite diplomatic repercussions from that.

Mettermrck and Fulcrumvale - Thank you! I'm glad you like it - I made using some simple things in Photoshop. Took about an hour to make, but it was well worth it

Ksim3000 - Things did get very interesting when the Mongols arrived. Though we're going to have to wait a few months in real life for the tale to get caught up to that point!

Two things of note - one, I made a mistake in the previous post. Manuel's wife is named Yeva, not Basiliea. That's been edited in - it becomes important in a bit. Two, there'll be a teaser posted up either tonight or tomorrow...

[General_BT]

Here's the teaser I promised!

December 23rd 1142


Rome...

Archbishop Guiseppi Rimini was a rather unremarkable man. He was short, even for his time, with a perpetual squint that gave his face a look of someone confused. His shoulders had a slight slump, and his plainly cut dark hair with strands of gray sat on top of an oddly shaped, ungainly head. His hands always had a slight tremble, which he often hid by drumming his fingers
on a table, or his lap. However, all who spoke of him commented on none of these things - they spoke only of his eyes.

Rimini's eyes, at first glance, seemed an unremarkable brown, an indication of his mottled ancestry amongst the peoples of Rome and southern Italy. However, if one studied their depths more carefully, the depth of the man's soul came to the front. They twinkled when he laughed at a good tale, they held power when he delivered a sermon, they were cold as steel when he spoke in the name of the Holy Father. As a nuncio in the Papal Household, the third situation unfortunately happened most often - Rimini was the gatekeeper to His Holiness for all foreign emissaries and ambassadors, and he stood his ground as a bulldog blocked all wolves, with tenacity.

As he sat in his study, parchments from the bishops and priests, commoners and kings of the West lay before him, he could hear carpenters at work building all the modifications to the Lateran for the great Christmas Mass coming in two days. The noise was usually quiet, but as the workers began to rush to finish, the din today was intolerable. Bishop Rimini closed his eyes and focused his mind. In his younger days he might have shouted something uncouth at the workers, now he prayed to God they would finish their work quickly.

He was just about to open a letter from the Duke of Tuscany when he saw a shadow fall above his desk. A messenger-boy, clad in simple yet elegant raiments stood before him. The noise had hid his entry into the study well.

"What is it?" the Archbishop said quietly. He slit open the letter and started reading the first few lines - apparently the bells for the church in the town of Cassino were late from the smithy, and without their guidance the peasants were complaining they had no idea when to leave for the fields and when to return. Rimini quietly muttered to himself while the messenger began speaking that he had no idea what the Duke wanted him, or the Holy Father, to do about the situation. The bell founderer was in Milan, far outside the Pope's temporal jurisdiction, and it was doubtful the Duke of Milan would care if a single...

That thought suddenly died as the words the messenger said finally hit Rimini.

"What?" the Archbishop looked up, his brown eyes now wide with astonishment.

The messenger boy repeated what he had said, thrusting a sealed parchment towards Rimini. The Archbishop took it in his right, his left steadily, unnervingly drumming its fingers on the table.

"What do you mean?" Rimini asked quietly. He knew the poor boy didn't know what the message meant, but it was a question someone at this pointed needed to answer. The poor herald's face twisted in confusion, and he grunted for a second, trying to think of what to say.

"The Emperor in Constantinople sends his greetings in the name of Christ, and wishes to inform His Holiness that he is sending legates to Rome," he finally simply repeated what he said at first, "He wishes to establish closer ties to the Holy Father and make preparations to close some of the unfortunate disagreements, and wants Your Grace to make the proper preparations..."

Rimini waved his hand, and chewed on his lower lip. He gave a sharp nod and dismissed the messenger with another wave of his hands. As the great doors of the Lateran Palace closed behind the man, Rimini's mind wrestled with what he would tell the Holy Father. Pope Innocent II was by far one of the most intelligent men to ever sit as Bishop of Rome, and undoubtedly he would be filled with questions - chief of which would be the same question that Rimini asked the herald only moments before.

Pope Innocent II, widely considered what of the most learned men to hold the title Bishop of Rome

What did it mean?

Since the last Dukid Emperor left the throne, relations between the Eastern Empire and Rome had been nearly nonexistent. Emperor Demetrius had allowed Latin priests to occupy a few chapels within his capital, but otherwise he had said little to Rome and relations had remained "chillingly silent." Dark rumors had followed Emperor Nicolas, and that man's rule was too brief and too chaotic for Rome to form any lasting opinion of him. But this new Emperor, ironically given the shortened version of 'Immanuel,' wanted to begin a 'conversation with Rome.' What kind of conversation? The Emperor was surely not contemplating a full reunion with Rome - that would be far too unpopular, and while Rimini knew little of Eastern politics, he knew this Emperor had a reputation as a diplomatic spider. No - reunion and communion could not be his goal.

Rimini rose from his chair and walked to the map of Known World hanging on the far wall. Innocent had commissioned the best mapmakers in Italy to create this masterpiece, in hopes of gaining a better understanding of the world. Gently, Rimini traced a line from Constantinople, his mind racing. His finger crossed Macedonia, land whence came Alexander, and Epirus, land of Pyhrrus. Then his finger touched Bari, ancient Byzantine stronghold on the peninsula. Bari, now held by the sickly Bohemond de Hauteville, Second of that Name, King of All Sicily...

...and it all clicked at once.

It made sense. It made perfect sense.

"Benito!" Rimini barked, and immediately a tonsured priest stepped from the shadows of an alcove and bowed. "Fetch me every scroll, parchment, and book that we have on the Normans of Sicily, and the Byzantine military!" He turned from the map, and pointed at another priest. "You! Tell the Holy Father I must meet with him! Immediately!"

Things were coming to head, far faster than any Pope had ever imagined. Since the fortunes of the Eastern Empire had changed over forty years before, each successive Pope had known there was a chance this day would come. Preparations had been made, and hopes had been pinned on the Normans, now loyal allies of the Pope due to their newly-minted royal title, would defend Italy if the Romans attempted a return.

Yet all was not well in Naples...

All is not well in Naples...

========== ==========

Salerno

Godfrey de Hauteville looked at the scroll the messenger lay in his hands, and chuckled. Despite not knowing how to read, he knew the contents, and that alone made him laugh. To describe Godfrey de Hauteville as 'portly' was an understatement. The man was fat, grostesquely, immensely so. The later years of his life and the wealth and power of his station as Duke of Campania had added pound after pound to his previously athletic frame, till all that remained of the young man that once was one of the premier knights in Latin Christendom were his fierce blue eyes.

He handed the parchment to the one person in his court that he trusted. Chubby, sticky fingers handed the document to delicate, refined hands, and a soft feminine voice cleared its throat, and began to read.

Godfrey of Salerno in his younger days, when he led the Norman charge that broke the Imperial forces at Anzio in 1131. That victory handed Godfrey's brother Bohemond the Sicilian crown, despite ruling almost none of Sicily

"His Majesty has taken to severe sadness. He drinks on a constant basis, and bemoans the loss of his dearest Brigit," Basiliea, Godfrey's eldest daughter, read. She was named for her mother, a scion of a Greek family that had remained through the Latin occupation of southern Italy. Tall, thin and graceful, she stood as a beautiful flower would stand amongst the mere weeds of other women. She'd inherited her father's blue eyes, her mother's petite nose, and a perfect set of gleaming white teeth, as well as her mother's soothing, lilting voice.

"The bitch's been dead for ten years!" Godfrey chuckled.

"He also taken to declaring titles for his animals," Basiliea continued. "He only recently declared his warhorse a Senator of Rome, and attempted to declare Lord Tancred's falcon Duke of Apulia..."

Godfrey waved his hand and smiled, before waddling over to a nearby tabe and heaving himself into a chair. "Excellent, my brother grows madder and madder by the day, and Tancred's hands grow fuller and fuller!"

Sicily had only been declared a Kingdom by Pope Urban III, under duress, in 1131. Then, Bohemond de Hauteville had been a young, dashing and brilliant captain of men only 39 years old. Yet on the ride back to his palace in Naples, his beloved wife, Brigit, fell from her horse and died. The newly crowned King cracked, and both his mental and physical health rapidly deteriorated. By 1135 there was a regency, headed by the King's youngest brother, Tancred - a regency that Godfrey coveted for himself, if not the outright crown.

Godfrey was the eldest of the brothers, yet their father, Roger Borsa, had passed over Godfrey in favor Bohemond, on account of Bohemond's superior intelligence. It was a slight Godfrey had still not forgotten to this day, and to only add insult to injury, Tancred, youngest of the brothers, had been declared Regent as Godfrey had been away. This double betrayal rankled him, and the Duke of Campania fully enjoyed reports of the King's continued collapse, knowing it was making his brother's life as Duke of Calabria a living hell. Every day Bohemond lived, his position, as well as that of the overburdened Tancred, eroded away.

If Godrey wanted to make his move, now was the time. And he had just the plan, involving a young, and from his past history, altogether arrogant Emperor in Constantinople.

"Basilieia," Godfrey called his daughter over. She knelt by his side, and he couldn't help but smile. Her mother had died long ago, but the 16 year old Basiliea had inherited the finest education that Godfrey could buy. She was not only beautiful, she was cunning, smart, and intelligent beyond her young years. She would soon put that to full use.

"Papa, should I begin packing my things?" she asked with a smile. He'd gone over their plans in detail with her father.

"Yes... remember to include several cloaks. In winter it is sometimes cold in Constantinople..."

Basiliea, daughter of Godfrey of Salerno, a noted and scheming beauty...

[RGB]

If the pictures are anything to go by (my my the Tudors) she won't end up well.

[Lordling]

It's nice to see the perspective of other nations. With the collapse of the Holy Roman Empire, there's no military power left that could conceivably challenge Byzantium. I like Rimini - I hope we see more of him.

[Mettermrck]

I liked the setups, no one takes anything at face value. I'm really excited to see how this unity proposal works out. Now what movie is her picture from? She has that mischievious, arrogant look...meow.

[Deamon]

Go pope! the Empire needs defeat to grow stronger and make a dashing come-back

Question: Are you going to turn this in a WC?

[canonized]

Finally got myself caught up again . So Nik finally bit the dust on the field hmm . Can't say I didn't expect something brutal for him . Nice to see Carthago though , would have made Justinian proud . Was surprised by the suddeness of Manuel's proper scheming on Christophoros but it was an excellent ploy to take a lesser dose himself to defray the blame .

In any case , looking at the teaser ; I'm very interested to see what kind of opportunities are present here

[Fulcrumvale]

Basiliea, daughter of Godfrey of Salerno, a noted and scheming beauty...

The Holy Roman Emperor did this before...and it worked. History repeating itself...

[Ksim3000]

Interesting setup. Rimini I like. As for Godfrey, should be rather interesting. If it wasn't for his attractive daughter, he'd have no influence at all. Unless of course, he applied to be Manuel's "court jester" but then he'd probably die of a heart attack.

[Alfred Packer]

"All is not well in Naples"

You are not kidding!

I like this setup...I can already feel the storm clouds gathering for the next story arc.

[General_BT]

RGB - I tried to find some other picture that would go well for Basileia, but in the end, Anne Boleyn from the Tudors had the right look. The end might not necessarily be the same, but the look fits just right. Sassy and sharp.

Lordling - I wanted to get away from Constantinople for a bit, and considering the focus of the next story arc is Italy, these two places made sense. And yes, you'll see more of Rimini, and maybe (I haven't decided) a cameo of the Pope himself. Look for the Papacy to be a canny opponent of the Romanoi - after all, it has had by this point 200 years experience playing one power off of another to maintain independence from secular authority...

Mettermrck - That's Natalie Dormer, who plays Anne Boleyn in the Showtime series The Tudors, the same place I got Manuel's pic from. As for the unity proposal - is it really a proposal, or is it what Rimini thinks it is, some kind of cover for a Byzantine takeover?

Daemon - The Empire? Defeated? Sacrilege! In a way this becomes a World Conquest... some later Emperors decide to try to do some rebuilding, lets say, but the cold forests of Germany and Russia are left to their own devices. Byzantine boots would get dirty if they went there! Notice I used the word 'try.' Remains to be seen if they succeed.

canonized - Glad to have you back! Look for some definite intrigue going on.

Fulcrumvale - Hey, if you find a successful strategy for dealing with your neighbor, use it till its not effective! If Eastern Emperors keep falling for pretty lasses, send more to disrupt things...

Ksim3000 - I think I'm going to liking writing Rimini. Very learned, very shrewd, very harried man. Considering the Papal position, one has to be. Godfrey will be fun to write as well...

Alfred Packer - The King is depressed, and mad as a hatter?! Of course, all is well! Pay no attention to the royal highness and sidekick, Senator Mr. Edd!

Storm clouds gathering is an understatement...

[General_BT]

The next update should come this weekend - however due to a slew of exams (two 8 hour exams in the space of the next two weeks) the size of the next few updates will be more akin to my teasers. I'll get back to the usual update size once things are over.

*returns to studying, and plotting the next update when he should be studying*

EDIT: As a consolation prize - here's a map of where the action will be taking place:

[RGB]

Nice peninsula. Too many colours. Looks better in purple.

[Mettermrck]

Love the map...