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EtzelHoveri

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Dec 16, 2010
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Table of Contents


William de Warenne, Count of Surrey (1034-)

Introduction - From minor son to Count (1034-1066)
Chapter 1 - Leofricson Rebellion (1066-1069)
Chapter 2 - More Rebellions Plauge England (1069-1071)
Chapter 3 - At Last an Heir (1072-1076)
Chapter 4 - The de Warenne family grows (1076-1079)



AAR Notes- This is my first crack at a CK AAR so I hope it goes well. I've only written one other AAR and that was Hungary's Rise to Power which was an EU3 AAR. This AAR will follow William de Warenne and his descendants from the Battle of Hastings onwards. It will tell the tale of the de Warenne attempts to build a name for themselves across all of Europe. Thank you and I hope you enjoy the story.
 
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Introduction - From minor son to Count (1034-1066)


William de Warenne was the younger son of Rudolf de Warenne who had been a minor noble in the lands of Normandy. Born in the year of our Lord 1034 this was a peaceful time in Normandy and in just one year though the lands turned into a very chaotic place with William the Bastard taking his father's place as the Duke of Normandy. Only seven years old Duke William had a lot of trouble finding his place in life as many of the different nobles fought against one another for control over the young Duke. Of these nobles only a few were truly loyal to the Duke, among these loyalists was William's father Rudolf. Even though he had no control over matters in the land he distilled in William a sense of honor and belief to honor his liege no matter who this might be.

At the age of five William was sent to an abbey to learn the ways of the monks. Being the younger son of Rudolf's he would not inherit any of his father's land and the only real place for him would be the church where he could make a name for himself. During his time studying theology though the only real thing that imparted on him though was the many great battles in the bible. His love and interest for the honor of battle grew and grew over the years until he finally decided to return home at the age of 17. He immediately went about forming a small force of soldiers from the people his own age in his city. This went on for three years until at last they were actually needed. Fearing Duke William's rising influence and power King Henry I of France attempted to invade Normandy and put Duke William in his place.

The King took his army and prepared to do battle against Duke William on the west side of the Seine River while another force of French nobles led by Odo the King's brother attempted to plunder the lands along the east side of the river as the Duke was preoccupied with the King's men and wouldn't be able to defend this land. These French nobles were wrong though as an allied force of Norman nobles led by Robert, Count of Eu, Roger of Mortemer and William de Warenne took their men and attempted to hold these men off. Odo's men were spread out all across Normandy as they tried to rape and pillage and so were easy pickings for the Norman soldiers. The engagement lasted many hours and in the end the French forces left with many losses which forced King Henry to flee back to Paris. Following this battle Roger of Mortemer's lands were confiscated by Duke William and given to William de Warenne for his efforts in the battle.

With lands of his own now William's power grew among the other nobles until he was considered to be among the highest of Duke William's advisors. In the year 1062 William's father Rudolf passed away leaving the minor lands that he had to his eldest son Rodolf which no longer bothered William as his power had grown so much in the past few years.

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January of 1066 saw the death of the King of Edward the Confessor without an heir. This outcome would turn the lands of England inside out as three men took up their places as possible successors. Duke William of Normandy, Harold Godwinson, and Harald Hardrada all made their claims for the throne though in the end Harold would be crowned the King of England. This news greatly upset his Duke and so a council was held by the Duke to determine their course of action. Among those present was William de Warenne who advocated for the invasion of England. Duke William had hoped to achieve the crown without bloodshed but he agreed and saw that there was no other way.

First, in September Hardrada made his attempt to take the lands of England with a force of 15,000 men but he had failed so horribly that not only did he die but only roughly 2,000 of his men survived the battle against King Harold II. Though he was greatly weakened from the battle and so Duke William ordered the invasion of England. On the 28th of September Duke William's army arrived in England at Pevensey, Sussex. Erecting a wooden castle at Hastings Duke William began making minor raids across southern England until the 14th of October when King Harold arrived with his army.

The Battle of Hastings was a complete failure for Duke William in regards to tactics as he had planned on ordering a great volley of arrows to weaken the English forces, then once they were weakened to send in the infantry to break them before the cavalry went in and mopped up the rest of the Englishmen. The barrage of arrows did not weaken the English forces and so when the Normans attacked they were beaten quite badly. The first to break was the left flank where the Duke himself was at. Seeing his liege in need of assistance William de Warenne led the reserve cavalry over to him and together the two Williams were able to kill many of the Englishmen who had charged down the hill. Among these were Gyrth and Leofwine Godwinson the two brothers of Harold who William de Warenne killed personally, earning him great renown for his prowess in combat.

Though the left had been saved it still looked as if the Norman's would lose until an arrow took King Harold in the eye killing him instantly. With all of the Godwinson's dead the English army fled and Duke William believed he would now be crowned King of England.

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The Death of King Harold


To his great surprise instead Edgar the Atheling was crowned King. Furious by this Duke William decided to march across England and bring the lands under his control. He left William de Warenne in charge of the lands in the south while he dealt with the Englishmen. Finally, on the 25th of December of 1066 Duke William was crowned King of England after a successful campaign against Edgar the Uncrowned. For his services William de Warenne was made Count of Surrey and closest advisor to King William.
 
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Oh and please feel free to give you opinion on anything. I would like to get everybody's opinion on this or anything you would like me to do or not to do. Even suggestions on my next course of actions. I've already played until 1076 so I plan on not playing and just writing until I get to where I left off. I just wanted to make sure I had an heir this time before starting.(First two times through never had a son)
 
A nice retelling of the buildup to the strat of the game in 1066. Keep it up.
 
Chapter 1: Leofricson Rebellion (1066-1069)


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King William's Coronation​

1067


Following his new King's coronation the newly appointed Count of Surrey, William de Warenne, who had proved his loyalty in the Battle of Hastings left London where he took up his position in his new county. Upon his arrival he took stock of his lands and the people in his employment. Though there were nobody of any great interest in his mind and he was forced to do things himself. After a month of work William finally decided it would be a good time to get married and start a family. He needed a son to take up his position should anything happen to him so that the same thing did not happen to his lands as they did for the throne of England. After searching for a wife for almost two months he finally married Alberanda de Leyburne who was Chancellor to the Count of Dorset.

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William's first wife


Alberanda quickly proved her usefulness as she began to teach his craftsmen the way of making a shortbow that will improve the effectiveness of his archers. These bows were well made and would prove effective should the Scots of the north or the welsh choose to try and test King Williams might. So as time went on William was happy with his new life and from time to time he would return to London where he would spend time with his King. Among there most common discussions was the three landholders of the north; Edwin Leofricson, Duke of Lancaster, his son Estmond who was the Count of Derby and Edwin's brother Morcar Leofricson who was the Duke of Northumberland. These three were the last of the Saxon nobles and the three men who seemed to refuse anything that King William suggested. Though they had done nothing wrong William nearly begged his King to remove these men from their positions and place good Norman men in their place. They would only betray him he kept telling his King but the King refused to listen to this advice. Then on the 23rd of August William's lack of faith in these men proved true as all three men claimed the northern lands for themselves and decreed open rebellion against King William.

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Edwin Leofricson, Duke of Lancaster, leader of the northern rebellion

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Morcar Leofricson, Duke of Northumberland, largest landowner of the rebels

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Estmond Leofricson, Count of Derby, best fighter of rebellion

In an attempt to prove his loyalty to his new King, William vowed to go north to Lancaster and bring both Edwin and Estmond to their knees. So on the 1st of September William returned from London to Surrey where he took his army of 614 men and began his march north. This army though small was mostly made up of peasants and infantrymen. Only roughly 120 of these men were either knights or archers which he was certain would determine the outcome of these great rebellion.

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The soldiers of Surrey


The march north went quickly enough but it was not until the 11th of October that he and his men arrived in Derby which to his great surprise had no army to protect the city. Estmond and his men had left the city to the garrison and had gone to York in an attempt to protect that region from the vast army that King William was marching up the eastern lands. With so few men William knew that any frontal attack on the city would result in nothing except for the death of his men, so instead he split his forces into four groups. Each of these were told to let nobody in or out. Should anybody try to do either they would be shot with the newly crafted shortbows.

For two straight months this was going on. Nobody went in or out of the city and so the traders made no money, the farms could not get to their crops, and the people slowly began to get angrier and angrier. At the same time Estmond had proven that he was not as strong as King William as his entire army was routed in the Battle of York. Fleeing back to his home Estmond was allowed to enter the city. Upon his arrival the people clamored for him to do something to save them or else they would surrender to William and his men. Setting up a meeting between himself and William de Warenne the two ride out by themselves. Leaving behind his men William convinces Estmond who had recently been injured in the Battle of York to surrender Derby to him and he would be allowed to live. Without much of an option Estmond agrees and leaves north to Lancaster where he would serve his father.

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William de Warenne becomes Count of Derby

With winter truly setting in William decides to stand his army down and they rest in his new lands of Derby.

1068

As the snow begins to melt in the north William orders his force of 614 men north to Lancaster. Arriving on the 25th of March, William was completely shocked to see that once again the land had no army protecting it. It appears that the Saxon people no longer support their Saxon nobles for they were unsuccessful in building a force over the winter to protect their city. This time the city was far larger and the small castle here was far to sturdy to attack. The only way he could think of this time to gain control of the lands was to use trickery.

And so from March to July he allowed people to leave and then would attack them killing all that would leave. Eventually city guards would leave with these people and they would still attack but those they killed they would steal their uniforms. This went on for months. Finally in the beginning of July they started to send out huge numbers of city guards to keep the people safe and William would not attack. Instead he only watched as the guards and people went about their business. Believing that William no longer had enough men to attack such large parties the Duke grew happy and kept up this routine.

William though still had a large number of soldiers and many serviceable city guard tabards. On the 21st of July he attacked the party of civilians and city guardsmen that left the city killing every single man who left the city. With these people dead he took stock of how many there were and dressed his knights in the city tabards while his infantry put on civilian attire. His men now dressed like the enemy returned to Lancaster which the Duke thought nothing of and upon entering the city they captured both the gate to the small castle and the southern gate to the city. With the castle gate held by William's knights it was easily held and William and his army made quick work of the last of the defenders of the city. With the city liberated William allowed the Duke and his son to live and sent them north to Morcar who was proving unsuccessful in his war against King William.

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William now claims the position of Count of Lancaster as well

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William de Warenne, Counts of Surrey, Derby, and Lancaster

With this recent victory William now controlled more land then any other noble besides the King himself. Though he still considered Surrey his home and began the march back south. He had done what he told the King he would do and he had done it on his own. This was a great accomplishment and though the trip back to Surrey was long William nearly smiled the entire trip back. Upon his arrival he was greeted with great cheers and his smiling wife. When he had left the year before with so few people nobody thought he would return but he had proven them wrong and even returned with over five hundred of the people he had left with.

He was also just in time for the planting season where he suggested to his people a way to increase their crops productivity. In his new lands of Lancaster they rotated the crops that they planted in one field one year and in another the next so the soil had a chance to regain it's nutrients. This had proven very effective in the north and he hoped it would prove effective in his lands in the south. Though only time would really tell.

With the planting finished in Surrey, William and Alberanda took a trip back up to Lancaster so he could show his wife the new lands they had. She was very impressed with the land but she didn't think it was a good idea to hold lands so far from home. William ignored her suggestion though of surrendering the land to the King. He was certain that if he did that then King William would only give it to his second son Richard the Count of Chester. Though he was a bright kid once he became an adult he would certainly fight his brother Robert for the right to be King which would cover the land of England and Normandy in blood again. Somehow Richard learned of this and vowed to see William ruined for trying to stand between him and greatness.

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Richard de Normandie, Count of Chester, William's Rival

1069

Returning to Surrey William and Alberanda continued to try to have a child but all their trying proved fruitless. William still had no heir and sadly he had even more land that he would not be able to give to a son. For months all the two did was try to have a child and govern their lands. With so much land to be manage as she was acting as William's chancellor Alberanda's mood grew worse and worse. Then add on top of that the constant pressure of trying to produce an heir she found it more and more difficult to sleep and concentrate.

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On the 18th of September only two years and one month later the rebellion had come to an end. On this day Estmond surrendered Northumberland to King William. Both his father and his uncle had died in the recent battle over Westmorland which had fallen on the 7th of September. Saddened by their loss Estmond surrendered the moment King William and his army arrived on the horizon to Northumberland. And so with this victory all of the English lands were back under the King and they were as it should be, under Norman hands.
 
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Great start to the AAR! You gained two new lands, that's very impressive in such a short time. Wonderful updates as usual!
 
I was really suprised as well that I recieved two lands. When I clicked to declare war on them it said I can muster 546 men and they can muster something like 4500 men. I was like well I'm going to die but what the hell. I get there and King William is fighting everybody with a force of 3500 men and ends up destroying their army. Then it was quick work taking both Derby and Lancaster. I was so excited when it happened I wanted to start this AAR right then but I couldn't until I knew that I had an heir since I played through once and didn't have a single male child and the de Warenne line ended right then.

Now on a side note I was wondering if you could give me some constructive critisism. Is there anything that you didn't like or anything I should add?

(I'm sorry if any of these words are misspelled but I've been drinking and I can't tell or can't figure out how to spell them.)
 
A nice concept for a story, and well-played in getting those extra counties. It's pretty amusing to see a 35-year old man rivals with an 11-year old boy!

I like the writing style - a nice mix of narrative and gameplay. As a gameplay tip, I think your wife was a little too old, which is probably why she's having trouble conceiving. Doesn't King William have a nice eligible daughter coming of age soon?
 
Yeah he did but I was married to long to Alberanda. By the time Alberanda was gone then she was already married. Though I do end up finding a nice 16 year old in a few years who is the sister to the Emperor of the Byzantines. Edgar Atheling married Anna Dukas right?
 
Edgar Atheling married Anna Dukas right?

Are you talking about real life, or my AAR? Very confusing.

Having stretched knowledge of my own AAR to its limit :p I can confirm that in the Chronicle Edgar marries Maria Komnenos, daughter of the Emperor Alexios.
 
Chapter 2: More Rebellions Plague England (1069-1071)


1069


So William de Warenne was now the Count of Derby, Lancaster and Surrey. In just a matter of three years he had went from respected noble to the richest landowner in all of England second only to the King himself. The only real problem that William had found of his lands was that Derby and Lancaster were so far from Surrey and so he spent a large portion of the year traveling back and forth. It also made it more difficult to advise the King as he was no longer only a few miles from him all year round.

Leaving his wife and chancellor, Alberanda, behind in Surrey William took another trip up to Derby towards the end of September. Though the land was now in Norman hands William feared that there would be those who still wished to return to the Saxon leadership. And it was Williams job to ensure that they no longer wished that. And just like the time before with the Leofricsons, William was right. Three days before he arrived a few of the locals tried to take Derby by force and were put down. A large number of them were able to escape, however the did capture close to ten of the locals who were still relatively healthy. These men he killed himself and then had their corpses hung outside the city on the trees where he and his men had made their camp during the siege of the city.

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William de Warenne brings justice to the people of Derby.


Though he did not wish to kill these men he knew that there was no other choice. The only thing in this world that people respected was force. If he had to kill some of his own people to get them to respect his force then so be it. For the time being though he would have to stay here in Derby to make sure that there was no immediate retribution for his actions. Which there was none of course.

It was in the later part of November that a messenger arrived from Lancaster. Since the Leofricson rebellion had ended the merchants of Lancaster had begun sending a out their fleets to increase trade once a year. This however turned against them as one of the crews which had spent some time in Byzantium picked up a virus. This infected the entire crew and when they returned home it soon spread like a wildfire across Lancaster. Worried for his people the only thing that William could do was to reduce travel in and out of his lands until this disease, this smallpox subsided.

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The people of Lancaster become deathly ill.



1070

As winter passed the people of Lancaster were still ill and the land of Derby was still in turmoil. Instead of another foolish attack those who still opposed the Norman rule began to attack caravans that moved in and out of the city. Just as he had done against the Duke of Lancaster and so it was easy to figure out a scheme to counter this tactic. One of the caravans that were leaving to trade in London was in fact not full supplies but rather with soldiers. Among these men was William de Warenne who his advisors told not to go with them. He of course ignored them and road on one of the wagons dressed as a peasant.

As they traveled further and further from the city William began worrying that his little scheme had been figured out and that they would not attack. Suddenly though a large number of men appeared on foot and horse riding hard towards the caravan. Give the feint of fleeing William had the caravan try to rush back towards Derby which caused the lead wagon to run into a tree and become grounded. At this time both himself and the driver jumped from the wagon which was the sign for the men inside to jump out and attack. In moments the entire field was sprayed with arrows as the majority of the soldiers that William had stationed in Derby were trained with the bow.

After only four quick volleys a large number of the men were killed while only around two or three were able to get away unharmed. Those that were still alive if either wounded or who had just been knocked unconscious from a fallen horse were hung on the spot and left there.

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William gains another victory against the traitors of Derby.

With two victories in only half a year the land began to return to normal. No longer did the people have to fear being attacked or bothered by these foolish men. In time they would be a problem again William was certain but for the time being Derby was prospering. Lancaster on the other hand was falling into ruin. With so many people sick, dying or dead from this outbreak the land was not being taken care of as it should be. Trade was down as people feared to travel within these lands and nobody had the energy to try and farm. Two lands only a few miles apart were like night and day.

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Without much purpose left in his northern lands William decided it was now time to return to Surrey. He had been away from his home and his wife for so long he began to miss her and hopefully this time they would be in luck and be blessed with a child this coming year.

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The lands of William de Warenne at the end of 1070.



1071

As another year passed William was still not given a child by god. For five years now his wife had given him no child and for five years he grew angrier and angrier at her. Though she was his chancellor her man job was to produce him an heir. If she could not do that for him then he would be forced to take matters into his own hand. Everything wasn't bad though. Before the snows had begun to melt a messenger had arrived from Ralph de Gael, Count of Norfolk, who was known for both being just and his dislike for King William.

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Ralph de Gael, Count of Norfolk

It appeared that the Count wished to bring their two houses closer together through an alliance. At first William was unsure if he wished to do such a thing as it would look bad upon him to spend time with a man who disagrees with their King so often. Then again if he could sway the man onto his side then he would be another great ally in the years to come. And so on the 11th of February he signed the document.

In an attempt to bring Count de Gael on his side the two started spending more time with one another. They were often found hunting on either his lands in Derby or fishing off the coast of Norfolk. In a very short time they became to greatly respect one another, though they would not truly consider one another friends they did consider each other equals.

Even though William had tried his hardest to get Ralph to join his cause he just couldn't side with the King. Then in August his viewpoint vastly change when on the 16th the Duke of Oxford revolted against the King. He would normally have not cared except that his little brother Coenwulf was living there. Coenwulf had spoken against the Duke and so the Duke had struck the boy in anger. This strike killed the boy which put the Count of Norfolk into a frenzy.

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Young Coenwulf de Gael, younger brother to Ralph de Gael, Count of Norfolk


Preparing his army Ralph marched out of Norfolk on the 22nd of September and by the third of November he had crushed the Duke's army and captured Oxford. It was not until the 28th of November that the Duke was finally found and surrendered to King William.
 
Chapter 3: At Last an Heir (1072-1076)

1072


In the matter of only six years as King, William of Normandy had to bring down four of his nobles who believed that he should not be their King. Though he had put down all four of these men it was all thanks to the efforts of Count William de Warenne of Surrey. This man had done more for his throne then any other but he could not reward the man any further then he already had without losing power. Though William was happy where he was, the only thing he really wished was for a son to take up his position when it was his time to go.

Along with those problems he still had to deal with the people in Derby who wished to revolt, as well as the smallpox which was plaguing the people of Lancaster. As he was trying to come up with a solution for this he received a petition from one of his priests. It appears that they believe that his Spy Master, Aethelric Barton, was using black magic.

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Aethelric Barton, Spy Master of Surrey


Worried about what this could mean for the people of Surrey, William sent people to investigate to see what they could learn about these accusations. For close to three days his people went through Aethelric's things and observed him from afar and they found nothing to make them believe that he was truly a man who followed black magic. It appeared the priests disliked him for no other reason then the fact that he was a Saxon and not a Norman, which was understandable but no reason to waste talent. And so he was permitted to live and return to his duties.

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Aethelic permitted to live.


1073

As the new year came to an end and still the Lady Alberanda still had not had a child. This was beginning to greatly bother the aging William. They had tried everything they could think of to have a child and still not was born. What was he to do? To his great luck Aethelric came to him on the first of the new year with a suggestion. To have his wife killed. Though it was sad thing, but it was for the good of the county. He needed an heir or else the lands would go to the King who would then give them to his son Richard.

Even though he still loved his wife greatly he had no other real choice and told Aethelric to go through with the plan. For two days nothing happened but then when he returned home after a long ride out in the countryside, William found Alberanda in his room dead. She was hanging from one of the pillars with a note on the table apologizing for not producing him and heir.

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Aethelic has Alberanda killed with nobody suspecting a thing.

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Alberanda de Leyburne is dead after six years of marriage to Count William.


Cutting his wife down William had her buried and then mourned her loss for days. Though he knew it was for the best it still hurt him greatly that his wife was dead. He still loved her and would miss her for years to come.

During this time of mourning some men in Surrey took this opportunity to begin a guild of thieves. The Count was distracted by the loss of his wife and they knew they could probably get far in the short time it took for the Count to recover from his wife's death.

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Some people take advantage of the Count's weakness.


As time passed and Count William still had not returned to his duties, Aethelric paid another visit to his Lord. This time they spent a few hours together doing nothing but talking. Nothing of any great importance, just talking. Finally, Aethelric convinced his Lord that he should leave the room and spend time with other people. Agreeing to what his Spy Master said, William started going hunting with Lanfranc of Pavia, Archbishop of Gloucester. Every third day these two would ride out and hunt and talk. This turned out to be exactly what the Count needed and started to return to his duties. The Count and Archbishop even became very close friends during their hunts to the point where they agreed to go on at least one hunt a year together.

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Archbishop Lanfranc of Gloucester, highest ranking church official in all of England.

Feeling alive again William went about looking for a new bride for himself. At first he considered looking for a local bride but that had proved useless last time and so this time he searched abroad. There were many eligible women across the nations but he needed a bride who was young, of a good family and of talent. In the end he chose Anna Dukas the eldest daughter of Michael Dukas, Emperor of the Byzantine Empire.

Her father though many considered a useless Lord was considered the most well known man in all of Europe second only to the Pope himself. Though he was marrying into the Byzantine royal line, he was not putting himself or any future heirs in line for the throne. The next heir to the Byzantine throne would be a man who served as a Prince within their lands and may not even be another Dukas.

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William marries Anna Dukas.

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Anna Dukas, Daughter of Emperor Michael, William's second wife

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Michael Dukas, Emperor of Byzantium

Greatly pleased with his new wife it was going to take her some time to travel from Constantinople to his lands in Surrey. During this time he spent it with either Archbishop Lanfranc or with his King William. As the King and William spent more time with one another they quickly grew closer. Some of the nobles believed that William was looking to become the Duke of Lancaster which is why he was always in London with the King.

Finally, in May the new Countess of Surrey arrived. With her arrival on the docks of London she was greeted by not only William de Warenne but the King, Archbishop Lanfranc, and Count Ralph who all came to greet the Count's new wife. For three days the King held a banquet to honor the lady in hopes of building relations with the Emperor Michael. It was not until the beginning of June that the Count was finally able to escort his bride to his lands in Surrey. He wished to show her the rest of his lands, but until the smallpox was no longer in Lancaster she would be kept in Surrey.

As winter began to set in the Lady Anna began to grow in size. At first the Count only thought she was putting on weight. It was then apparent that she was in fact pregnant. After less then a year of marriage Anna Dukas was already pregnant with the Count's first child.

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1074

As winter was coming to an end and the Lady Anna continued to grow in size more good news arrived in Surrey. After five years the lands of Lancaster no longer had anybody plagued by smallpox. Though he still decided it wouldn't be for a short while before returning to those lands, just in case the disease resurfaced.

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Though the northern lands were now safe to travel to again William would not allow the Lady Anna to accompany him on his trip. He worried for her in her condition and instead had her stay in Surrey while he was away. He promised he would only be gone for a two months and would be back for the birth of their child.

With her husband away Anna grew bored just waiting for his return and so she instead decided to spend her time in Gloucester with the Count's friend Lanfranc. During her time here she returned to her studies of theology just as she had done in Constantinople. During these studies she grew to respect the Archbishop and decided that she should change her beliefs from that of Greek Orthodox to Roman Catholic.

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Her time was coming near and so at the beginning of May Anna returned to Surrey. She arrived the day before William who was greatly pleased to talk of the improvements that have been going on in Lancaster. He had brought the shortbow that was being crafted in Surrey north to be used by the army there. Overall the city was greatly prospering and he was considering moving them there to make that their permanent home. The only thing that really stopped him was the King. He needed to be near his King to advise him should he need him. This decision would be put aside though as on the 26th the Lady Anna gave birth to his eldest child. A daughter. They decided to name her Marie.

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Marie de Warenne, eldest of William de Warenne's children


With his first child William could not believe that he was a father. This was something he had always wanted. Though he had a newborn he needed to spend time in Lancaster and so he along with his wife and child took the trip north to Lancaster where they would spend quite some time.


1075

Most of his days in Lancaster William spent them working with the army. Should the Scots or the Welsh try anything it was these men who would be one of the first lines of defense. During their time here Anna who had slimed down again following giving birth to Marie was now growing plump again. In the matter of two years since her marriage to William she had given birth to a daughter and was pregnant again. As bad as it sounded one of the best things that William had ever done was having his late wife Alberanda killed.

With Lancaster in order William wished to return to Surrey for the birth of his child. It was his home and that is where he believed his children should be born. However, Marie he thought should stay in Lancaster and be raised by Thoric Butler a nobleman of Lancaster and his Marshal.

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Thoric Butler, Marshal of Surrey, Guardian of Marie de Warenne

The man may have been a Saxon but he was a good man and would keep Marie safe and teach her well. Anna and William would miss their daughter who was just beginning to walk but they needed to be in Surrey.


1076

With the new year over Anna gave birth to her second child on the 7th of January. This child was named Sigeric and was now heir to the Counts of Surrey, Lancaster and Derby. Though he was newly born he was now in a position to be one of the most influential people in all of England should his father pass away.

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Sigeric de Warenne, heir to the House of Warenne
 
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Sigeric is the second Saxon son of a Norman father that we have seen so far. Should make life at court a bit more diverse in a few years time.
 
A Saxon half-Greek heir to a Norman county, eh? Interesting turn of events, to be sure!
 
Yes it is. However I'm a bit confused how a Norman and a Greek produce a Saxon.

It's because, I suspect, Surrey is Saxon-cultured. IIRC, the culture of your children is determined as follows: 50% father's culture, 40% mother's culture, 10% Home province culture
 
Yes it is. However I'm a bit confused how a Norman and a Greek produce a Saxon.

My first answer was that they do it the same was as everyone else does, but AllmyJames' answer is more helpful.

Still this is a game mechanic that provides some useful twists and turns as invaders adapt themselves to the local culture. It is also the reason I always try and make sure my capital is in a province with the a culture I am happy for my court to have (e.g. Greek in my AAR).
 
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My first answer was that they do it the same was as everyone else does

You mean through honest prayer and the blessing of an angel, right? :p
 
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