The Atheling Chronicle - A King without a Crown

RGB said:

Now that is some important set of visions; little Tim isn't quite as important as the Dark Ages of England.

Nice touch with the swans; I guess England has no swan-eating prohibitions?

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Yeah, I figured Wulfnoth wouldn't be quite a moved by a starving peasant boy as Scrooge was. The spirits needed something bigger to get his attention

Iain Wilson said:

Fantastic update - the third spirit was everything it should have been

As for the swans, in the UK only royalty are allowed to eat swans.

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Glad to hear it - I had some fun with that update!

Enewald said:

Enough warfare makes the future generations stronger.

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Or dead

Alfredian said:

Brilliant update. Well worth waiting for.

Only if it is overseas (or north of Hadrian's wall). War at home stops people from doing the important things (like looking after the royal swans).

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I think that's the generally held theory - war is best kept abroad, with the foreigners. Preferably in France

enf91 said:

This sounds like something that would have made me ragequit. Wait a minute...

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I know the feeling In any case, Wulfnoth doesn't have that option...

1208

From John of Acre’s Tripartite History


In the Year of Our Lord 1208, 27 years after the passing of King Theodorus, a great gathering was held at Eastertide in the City of Damascus, in the Kingdom of Syria. It was, by the accounts of all there present, the grandest and most elaborate occasion in living memory. In attendance were near all the clergy and nobility of the three English Kingdoms, and, for the first time in many years, each of the surviving sons of the old king.


King David, having seen 36 summers, was senior to his brothers in age, but less so in authority. He lacked either the charisma or force of will that John had used to command the respect of both the earls and his fellow monarchs. Desiring to rule absolutely, he had by this time spent many years in opposition to his own earls, who resented the King’s proud and arbitrary manner. That the majority of his actions were in favour of promoting the welfare of heathens or befriending the schismatic Greeks and Russians did little to endear him further to others.


Certainly, the elevation of David’s only son Wulfnoth to the Throne of St Edward had been a great achievement for the court in Baghdad, but in truth, the absence of Wulfnoth from his father’s kingdom was a great loss. In matters of statecraft, Wulfnoth was as bold and rash as his father was both insular and indecisive.


While the fortunes of the eldest Theodorling waned, those of King Romanus waxed mightily. Ever regarded as more handsome and valiant than the inward-looking David, King Romanus was well-known as a great romantic. Like all his kin, he cast anguish into the minds of his councillors with ill-advised adventures - as a youth he had quested for the grail in Constantinople; and fought great battles against the Arabs alongside his brother Theodorus. But what made David appear aloof and arrogant merely granted to Romanus the guise of a knight-errant or pious philosopher. As a result, a great many of the earls and dukes who, nominally, held their domains as vassals of King David, preferred instead to petition the more generous and gregarious Romanus for aid. Upon this particular occasion, the King was in good health, with the wound in his leg that had previously caused some lameness, appearing to trouble him little.

Also in attendance, for the first of his public appearances, was King Romanus’ eldest son, of the same name. The younger Romanus, at this time fifteen years of age, had rarely been seen before, since he had suffered from a debilitating illness of the lungs from a young age. At this time, however, he showed no sign of the affliction which had been ascribed to him, save for a slight weakness of the legs when he walked. It was at this gathering of family and vassals, that the younger Romanus was knighted by his father, and hailed formally as Casere, a title from the Romans which the Greeks still use for the sons of their emperors, in much the same way that the English call their princes athelings.

The event was also remarkable for many other reasons. For the first time, and Easter service was conducted with both Greek and Latin rites in the Cathedral of St Baldred in Damascus. The Greek bishop of Antioch, whose city had recently fallen to King Romanus’ arms, conducted the mass jointly with the Catholic bishop of Beirut. This was partly in honour of an ambassador of the Greek Emperor, who was present for the festivities, but it was also an important occasion of reconciliation between the feuding Greek and English princes who had so recently threatened to tear the realm asunder by their squabbling.


Furthermore, Prince Basil, who was still acting as castellan of Jerusalem, was formally reacquainted with his brethren, after many years in which his name had been anathema in both Damascus and Baghdad. King John’s proclamation of the prince’s legitimacy was confirmed, and in a display of fraternal piety, the three brothers embraced publicly, to great acclaim.

Alas, this grand spectacle of music, feasting and joy was not to be repeated. For soon the three brothers would be reduced in number once more - an event that would bring no small upheaval to the land of Abraham and Moses. The Old Order was passing away, and a new era for the English in Jerusalem was dawning.

Finally, guys - a reminder for all of you to vote in the AARland Choice Awards by tomorrow (voting closes midnight April 30th). If you haven't taken part before, it's a great chance to recognise the hard work of your favourite authAARs.

If you do want to nominate this humble work, please enter it into the 'CK History Book' category.

RGB said:

The church is a great instrument of conciliation

Especially if there are three contenders.

May I also express total excitement at "Wulfnoth".

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Well, sometimes

Hopefully Wulfnoth will live up to all our expectations...


I got carried away - so here's another update!

From the personal correspondence of Theophilus, Bishop of Beirut

Most Gracious Lord, Romanus, King of the English in Syria:

The Following is Declared to be a True and Accurate Account of the Events Following the Death of His Holiness, Pope Alexander and leading to the Election of His Holiness Pope Lucius, the Third of that Name.

In the month of January, 1208, I received a missive bearing the seal of the Holy See, having been composed by the Cardinal-Chamberlain in Metz. It informed me that the Holy Father Alexander had been called to Heaven, and that a congregation of the College of Cardinals was to be convened in Rome, to begin on the first day of February. As an elector-cardinal myself, I was required to travel to the Holy City forthwith, and made no delay in doing so.

Our journey passed largely without incident, and we arrived in St Peter’s City on the twenty-ninth day of January. Amid the decaying ruins of the Romans we found few townspeople but dozens of guardsmen bearing the Papal livery. Indeed, we were met at the Gate of St Paul by a contingent of men-at-arms, whose captain was insistent that we accompany him without delay to the Lateran Palace, where we were to meet the Cardinal-Chamberlain in person. Having little other choice, I acquiesced, and allowed our party to be escorted as though we were common prisoners, rather than foreign emissaries.

The Cardinal Henry received us in the great Hall of St Peter, seated upon the Papal throne and wearing the sacred Ring of the Fishermen. If it were not that his head bore a galero rather than the Pallium, one might easily have assumed he had already been anointed as his father’s successor! My audience, though brief, served to confirm both that his Eminence sought the Holy See for himself and that, once he had received it, his first priority would be to bring low the English people, wherever they might be found. It was clear that, owing to a previous encounter between the Cardinal-Chamberlain and His Majesty King Wulfnoth, the two bore each other great enmity. It was at this point that I determined that the pontificate of such a man would be a disaster both to the Holy Church and to all the English.

Each of the twenty-four cardinals were quartered within the palace, and a number of guards were placed at the doors to our chambers. Although I was permitted to move about the grounds of my own free will, it was clear that my escort would not allow me to leave the Lateran until the election of a new Pope had been accomplished - a decision that was quite without precedent. Nevertheless, I immediately began making enquiries as to the disposition of my fellow cardinal-electors.

My initial inquisitions lead me to despair, for it seemed that the Chamberlain’s confidence was well-placed. Very few of the bishops I interviewed were willing to express a poor opinion of the late Pope’s offspring, and in the presence of his guards, even those who were ambivalent concerning his election were unable to speak their thoughts freely. In addition, the twenty-five year reign of Pope Alexander had allowed him to shower favours and privileges upon the more venal cardinals, who hoped for a continuation of the same base policies under his son.

The majority of the college was composed of men from within the Imperial territories, and everywhere I visited in the palace, I saw agents of the German Emperor. Whatever the personal opinions of the German and Italian cardinals, it was clear that they would follow the instructions of their secular master who was, in point of fact, cousin to the Cardinal-Chamberlain.

Twelve cardinals, including myself, hailed from other territories beyond the sway of the Bavarian’s silver. The Genoese representative, Archbishop Otto Ghigline, is a confidant of the Burgundian court, and was therefore the natural leader of the opposition to Cardinal Henry’s election to the See. However, this fact was no secret to the Emperor’s friends who therefore conspired to keep His Grace under near-imprisonment in his chambers.

Of the six French cardinals, most were inclined to support the Emperor, for no greater reason than the weakness of their Norman king, who, at seventeen years of age, is fighting desperately for the retention of his crown. The court of St Denis could not afford to add the two most powerful positions in Christendom to King Richard’s list of enemies. Only the elderly Archbishop of Rheims, who had been annointed by Pope Alexander’s predecessor showed a degree of independence, though he shared the usual Frenchman’s lack of interests in English woes.

I received a similar lack of sympathy from the Norman Archbishop of Alexandria. Though not as single-mindedly antagonistic as his predecessor towards our people, His Grace Robert d’Avignon showed no pity towards his fellow men in Oversea (or Outremer as the French refer to those lands beyond the shores of Europe). Instead he advised me only that I should pray to the Lord and bend my knee to the new Pope, whoever he might be, ‘that the sins of the English might be forgiven.’ Nonetheless, I took heart from his lack of endorsement of any candidate, and from the fact that he acknowledges no secular ruler as his master.

Finally, I also attended the three Visigothic prelates - one each from the Kingdoms of Leon, Castille and Aragon. Uncommitted to any one course of action, and each of a different mind, the Spanish cardinals were thoroughly engrossed in their own priorities, and none had many words of support for me, save that they had greatly resented previous Popes’ unjustifed ascination, as they saw it, with the plight of Christians in the east. Were any candidate to be sympathetic to the plight of the Iberians facing the Moorish hordes, they would surely support him with all their might.

This was the situation in which I found myself and the other members of the college on the first day of the congregation, when it was officially called to order by the Chamberlain. For the reasons I enumerated previously, I entered into these proceedings with a heavy heart, but there was yet a slim hope available to us - that a new Holy Father must be selected by two-thirds of all the cardinals present. With the Chamberlain unable to vote for his own elevation (though he would surely dearly love to) - I was only required to muster seven other votes in addition to my own to prevent his immediate elevation.

Alfredian said:

Surely you mean his nephew. I can't believe a medieval pope would get up to naughty business forbidden by a vow of chastity!

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Actually, it is his son

A few chapters ago (during 'the song of Wulfnoth), I explained that Alexander III was apparently married before he took holy orders - to the Emperor's niece, no less. Then he was given a bishopric and elected Pope. His son was, as his closest relative, made papal controller in-game. Given that Pope Alexander was also resident in Metz, I took it to indicate that this was one of the most corrupt Papacies to date! The game really throws you some curve balls sometimes!

From the personal correspondence of Theophilus, Bishop of Beirut


In the event, my mere presence at the congregation, and my delicate inquiries to my brother-cardinals had stirred sufficient doubts in their mind. When the Chamberlain convened the congregation to vote on the 3rd day of February, the feast of St Blaise of Armenia, events did not proceed as he had planned. Cardinal Henry administered the Holy Sacraments to each of us in turn, and bade us pray for God’s wisdom in making our nominations. This having been accomplished, the Chamberlain opened the floor to what he assumed would be unanimous cries for his elevation. Instead, the first to speak was the Archibishop of Rheims, who began a long and rambling sermon denouncing the practice of issuing indulgences which had become so common during the reign of the last Pontiff. Throughout this speech, which must have occupied at least two hours, Cardinal Henry did not attempt to hide his disdain. He yawned ostentatiously, and made not effort to listen to the speaker. When the Frenchman was followed by the Genoese Otto Cardinal Ghigline, however, the boredom gave way to hostility - and it was well-reciprocated. For long into the day, Monseigneur Ghigline spoke bravely and passionately against both the Emperor and the departed Holy Father, likening the former to Pontius Pilate and the latter to the Pharissees who caused Our Lord to be crucified. At each new insult and accusation, the Cardinal-Chamberlain grew more impatient, yet the Genoese never grew weary, always drawing more strength from the Holy Spirit to continue denouncing the evils of the false Papacy.

Finally, as the shadows grew longer within the Chapel of St Peter, the Cardinal’s speech was silenced by an extraordinary intervention. At a signal from the Chamberlain, the Emperor’s Swiss Guards, who had until now merely stood sentry at the doors of the church, now entered the sacred space bearing arms and with hostile intent. Cardinal Henry announced to the Congregation that the day’s proceedings had been usurped by persons of malicious intent, and that such behaviour would not be allowed to continue. Though he succeeded in silencing his enemies by this poorly-disguised threat of violence, the Cardinal still did not receive the elevation he so desperately desired. A sycophantic German prelate dutifully provided the first nomination in favour of the Chamberlain, but the hour was so late that there was no time to complete the voting before the sun set and the session was ajourned until the next day.

The following morning the cardinals were unceremoniously hustled into the chamber, each escorted by several of the brutish teutonic housecarls. Yet even in spite of this blatant intimidation, there was still resistance to the nefarious scheme of the impious Chamberlain. So the two elder Cardinals again made attempts to denounce the crimes against the Church which had been perpetrated in previous years. But on this occasion, while the Bishop of Genoa was partway through his accusations, the Enemy of God finally revealed his true intentions. Though it had long been rumoured that Henry was of unsound mind, the events of this day truly proved the truth to all present.

The Camerlengo rose to his feet, scarlet with fury and, disregarding the Italian, who was still attempting to speak out against instances of simony. In a tone that was unbecoming for a man of his station, Cardinal Henry proceeded to harangue the congregation, though they had committed no graver sin than exercising their sacred duty in electing the Holy Father. His voice swung rapidlty from fierce whisper to hoarse bellow, and his words turned from fierece exhortation to pathetic plea. Mesmerised, the entierity of the group (including the Bishop of Genoa who had by now yielded the floor) beheld what were surely the disjointed thoughts of a madman. At times, we were promised great wealth; at others, we were singled out for executrion, but for many hours the message was the same - that a vote against his candidacy to the Holy See would not be tolerated.

The culmination of this torturous tirade came at sundown. When the meagre light afforded by the chapel’s high windows was all but gone, servants cam into the hall to light further lamps. Perceiving that the Chamberlain intended to speak well beyond the pre-arranged limit afforded by the onset of darkness, each of us was filled with a mighty dread, for his grip on reality was growing more feeble with each passing hour. One of the Spanish Cardinals, monseigneur Alberto, broke free of the spell cast by the Camerlengo’s fury, and was moved to protest at the prospect of further hours under his tyranny. The objection, however, barely registered with Cardinal Henry, so fully engaged was he in his own battle with his inner demons, but it did cause the chief steward to hesitate in his duties.

Sensing that his orders were being questioned, the demented Chamberlain directed his wrath fully onto his hapless servant. Attempting perhaps, to light the lamps himself, Henry seized the torch from the steward’s hand. But in his haste, he made to brush aside the confused servant, and instead struck him full in the face with with the firebrand. The screams of the man were terrible - like those of a martyr upon the cross - but not one of us could move to help as he writhed upon the floor.

For several minutes we were frozen in shock and fear - but then, as Satan’s grip upon us loosened, chaos broke out in the chapel. The Swiss and German guards hurried this way and that, attempting to restore order, but in the confusion, each of my brothers took the opportunity to escape the lion’s den and return to our chambers.

After such a scene, the Camerlengo’s candidacy was all but over. A few cardinals had, unbelievably been either sufficiently cowed or bribed beforehand to continue their support for Henry, but, crucially, the Emperor’s agents made it clear to each of us in private, that their master no longer wished to be associated with his cousin. The voting then continued in the usual manner, for several more days, though without the Camerlengo’s presidency, since he remained confined to his chambers under the care of the Imperial ‘doctors.’

After much prayer, and even more brokering in private, the pallium was awarded to an unremarkable German, who had first been ordained as a brother of the Cistercian order. An austere and humble man, he had won the position by promising reform of the college of Cardinals and Papal administration. The Emperor was no doubt pleased that the position remained with one of his countrymen, while his opponents were satisfied that the new Holy Father included a number of non-Germans in his court. I myself was honoured to accept the position of Chamberlain to the Holy See, which had been recently vacated (Cardinal Henry having committed himself to a monastery in Bavaria following the election).

I therefore lay down this epistle to your most gracious majesty so that you may have an accurate and truthful account of the remarkable events that transpired here in Rome, in the Year of Our Lord 1208; and that I might also account for my extended absence from my diocese as I assist His Holiness Pope Lucius in his new duties.