Bastions
Prologue One: The Saxons
Part 10
keæv ist se grád ŝev áustru, ien kunstántenágrád ŝev fældæs.
Kiev is the city of the East, a Constantinople of the plains.
No sooner than the ink had dried on the treaty allying Poland and Prussia, then Norway invaded the two Baltic States looking to build its own Empire. At the time Norway ruled Sweden and Denmark, making it one of the most powerful states in Europe. But the Union was fragile. Sweden and Denmark were still independent and their allegiance would not withstand a long war or a crushing defeat. Norway first turned its attention to Prussia: led by the Prince of Norway, the Norse attacked Memelgrád hoping to quickly take over Prussia. But on the sea walls, the Prince was slain by Prince Ælle. Meanwhile, the King of Norway led his host into Poland, trying to reach out to the Polish capital deep inland. But he was unsuccessful; he too died in battle, his dreams of a Pan-Baltic Empire cut to pieces on the blades of Polish knights. Back in Memelgrád, King Eadbert was hailed as the sole victor of the war. He was hailed as the defeater of Sweden and Norway, and was going to continue his father’s work expanding the Empire. From the war, Prussia was able to take Åland and the western tip of Finland, but the King was not done. There was one more target he had in his eyes.
During the war, Sweden managed to make one gain: Gotland. The island had been independent for almost a century, a tiny republic kept free by its massive forts. King Eadbert wanted the isle so he could project his power to Scandinavia by having a fortress only miles off their shores. Prince Ælle was able to do this for his father, taking the isle and enforcing Prussian rule. But this time, when the Prince returned, the people cheered his name as victor and that is when Queen Imela stepped in. The Queen, anxious to see her son take the throne, was determined to drive a stake between the King and his heir. So, in the depths of night, she planted the seed of distrust. She spoke of how the people cheered only for Ælle, and how the nobles only respected a warrior. King Eadbert was not naturally a trusting man, so he was soon worried that his heir was trying to undermine his authority. For Imela, the stage was set and the actors were moving to their places.
What Imela had not expected was an attempt on King Eadbert’s life in 1134 by radical Catholics. The King went on a rampage, forcing the conversions of thousands of faithful Catholics. Revolts spread like wildfire, and where the revolts went Ælle was behind them, trying to prove his innocents to his father. A movement within the Saxon nobility and laymen proclaimed Prussia “New Umbria” and wished to purge it of Greek and Russian influences (Orthodoxy). A brief confrontation in the center of Mariengrád ended it all, with the Red Witch of Umbria being burned at the stake as a heretic and as a warning to other Catholics. The religious division in Prussia ran deep at the time. Orthodoxy was the religion of the new nobility, Prussian cultured men and women who made up the back bone of the Prussian court. Catholicism was favored by older nobles, Saxons who made up the frills and wealth of the Prussian state. But controlling the coin purse meant nothing if the other intended to rob you of it.
In 1135 Orthodoxy suffered a major loss: the cities Kiev and Chernigov were sacked and annexed by the Cuman Horde. The Turkish hordes came from the East, bringing untold destruction in their wake. The Seljuks were a threat to the Roman Empire and the Cumans a major issue for Russia and Prussia. Eadbert ordered Ælle to retake the two cities for Prussia, and as usual his heir obeyed, taking the two cities and permanently making them a part of Prussia. Taking the two cities was also important for connecting Galich to the rest of the Kingdom. But as usual, the cheers of the people made Eadbert more and more wary. It was now that Imela suggested her son Gunvald be made heir. She pointed out that as a small child he was not capable of scheming and would make a loyal servant. Though Eadbert rejected this notion, he remained fearful of Ælle so sent his eldest son on a new quest: capturing a port on the Black Sea.
Initially Ælle’s campaign was a successful one, but the Cumans brought more and more troops to fight in Russia from the steppe. Ælle pleaded with his father for reinforcements, but Eadbert was convinced his son was raising an army to overthrow him. The King saw that the troops were loyal to Ælle, not to the crown. Whether or not it was true is unknown, but Eadbert only agreed to send the needed troops if he assumed control over the armies. Ælle was not happy with the arrangement, but went along with it for the time being. Their goal was a small region on the Black Sea, soon to be the home of a grand port: Mocárgrád. It would be from this port that Prussia would begin one of its greatest rivalries: the rivalry with the Roman Empire. By the end of 1135 the southern regions were secured, but Prussia’s eye was shifting elsewhere.