De Hautevilles- Can Anyone Stop the Norman Invasion?

[hjarg]

Hope you enjoy reading it as much as i have enjoyed taking Jerusalem!

morningSIDEr- it is "only". If we would be talking about early days, like when Duke Robert was still in charge, both wars would have got themselves a separate chapter or two. But now- neither of them were opposition enough to even lie about great battles and epic war! :P But yes, these provinces are important in making more money in the future. As for Caliphate- now this is what i'd call a mess!
Chief Ragusa- you got it right- i was actually planning to write about Bohemond of Antioch in the future! As for Byzantines- i'm beginning to lack serious opposition. So that fight would be a welcome change. But i think Venice is a bit beyond their reach at the moment.

[Kaioo]

The De Hautevilles are on the path to greatness. Jerusalem is free, I see a grand empire being formed soon. The Hauteville Empire perhaps

[hjarg]

Between Wars- Sicily in peacetime

Founding of Asclettion...

The small fishing village of Augusta in the province of Syracuse was located in a perfect place- a small bay. Situated right across island of Malta. Big enough to fit a fleet. Protected from wind and storms by cliffs, deep enough that all ships can enter, small river entering into the bay, meaning there will be enough water. Also, enough flat buildable land. Ancient ruins nearby showed that in ancient times, it already was a city, but so much has been lost that not a single person remembered what the city was.

Asclettin stumbled upon village during one of his hunting trips. He and his companions were tired, thirsty and the village had a lovely little tavern that served fine wine. He then looked around the village, talked to the locals, had a good time and finally decided: here will be a city.

Sicily’s coffers were full and thus, it was no problem for Asclettin to spent a lot in helping the foundation of the city. In a few years, early primitive city walls, town council, a bigger marketplace and port were built. Already, some ships chose it as their safe haven in their journeys, some merchants decided to use the local market. Slowly, the city was coming to life.


The newest City in the realm- few years after founding

...and the Completion of Monreale

The portcullis was finally complete. And with that, the last stone had been put into place. Monreale, the greatest castle in the whole world. Surrounded by bustling city, housing garrison of 1600 soldiers and in times of war, able to field 2500 soldiers. No other castle in the world, especially in Europe. But also the castles of Emperor of Byzantium, Caliph Musa, Seljuk Turks back in Baghdad- all are smaller and weaker. “Eight wonder of the world”, it was called, “Unconquerable”, it was called. Asclettin knew only one thing- the other 3 of his castles in Palermo will soon be like Monreale as well.


And the most powerful castle in the realm- and in the known world

Death of the Queen

Soon after the war, in May 1157, Queen Emilia died at age of 48. There was nothing wrong with her, she just didn’t wake up in the morning, passing to heaven from her sleep. She was married to Asclettin for 32 years, was mother of their 6 children. And she was a sore reminder to Asclettin that his days in life were over. After all, they have been married since they were 16, spent most of their lives together and they were of the same age. The passing of the Queen was what made Asclettin start his final war- there was one last thing he wanted to do before it was his time.


Funeral of the queen

But King cannot stay single for long. The next Queen was Isabeu, from de Poitou family. Not the youngest, not the best, but she was available, and Asclettin didn’t want someone special. He had lost his someone special just now and while Asclettin knew he had to be remarried, he had no plans to get attached to Isabeu.


... and the new queen

He should have heeded the warnings of others though- Isabeu was not the best choice. The new queen was snotty, annoying little wench that didn’t leave the King alone; who didn’t let courtiers mind their own business; who soon started to think it was her right to interfere in the matters of the realm. Plus, the Sicilian court had never been too formal, but in her mind, it was too liberal and she was planning to do something about it.

In just half a year, Isabeu had pissed off almost everyone- so when Asclettin was between to choices- divorce or death, the Council agreed that divorce would be too good to her. So, in just a few days before Christmas, Isabeu died. Natural circumstances, everyone said. The southern climate was unsuitable to her, everyone said. Good riddance, everyone said when they were alone.


The unfortunate death of the new queen. Any rumours of Asclettin's involvement are vicious

Asclettin remarried for the third time. Hedwig von Zähringen, a genius girl, aged 15. Daughter of a German count in Italy. First, there was betrothal, and in July 1558, the two got married. It was much more fortunate marriage then the one with Isabeu- despite huge age differences, the two got along just fine and soon, fell in love.


The newest Queen- and what a happy couple!

Fate of Kabylia

In August 1158, the peace finally arrived in Kabylia. The civil war had ended, the Emir won. But- the next day after peace, Asclettin occupied the title of Emirate. Though ruler of two duchies, Kabylia and Algiers, the Emir did not have the second title- so he became a Sheikh, just like the rest of his vassals. The Emirate of Kabylia that used to be a threat to Christians had turned into small squabbling states and posed to threat to anyone.


One more enemy down and out.

The Great War

It was back in 1104, during the times of Bohemond I, the grandfather of Asclettin, more then 50 years ago, when Holy Roman Empire took the county of Capua, de jure part of Sicily. It had been a thorn on side of Bohemond, Roger and now Asclettin, nearing 50 years, finally decided to do something about it.

After all, he had beaten the Caliphate, one of the most powerful nations in the world, twice. He had liberated the Jerusalem. During his time, Kingdom of Sicily had risen to one of the most powerful nations of the world.

So, in April 1159, the Declaration of War was sent to the most powerful nation in Western Europe, declaring that Sicily will take back what is theirs. The War with Holy Roman Empire had begun.

[hjarg]

Kaioo- i had that though. Perhaps when getting 4 Kingdoms under my rule, it would be time to make an Empire. But that would be rushing though.

And next time- war with HRE!

[Saithis]

That's one ludicrously strong castle.

[hjarg]

The War with Holy Roman Empire

The Sieges of Capua

14 500 men were gathered from all holdings of King Asclettin. At the end of the April 1159, Norman troops entered their ships and landed in Capua in 5th May, destroying the local army of 400 soldiers. Then, it was time for siege.

As the troops approached Teano, the County capital, their amazement grew. What- wooden! Yes, wooden! defences. Minimal garrison! No death traps, no kill zones, no moats. Nothing! Just a wooden fort on top of a hill.

For Asclettin’s troops, who had assaulted the Muslim forts in Holy Land and in Africa, it was practically a day off. The reaction could be compared to modern time- think of marines coming to assault a heavily defended and fortified position, only to find out that their target is a tree-house, defended by 3 boys with BB-guns and a cat.

So, without further ado and without even thinking, the Normans assaulted the fortress. It fell by the end of the day. Then, they moved onwards, to Capua, Aquino, Gaeta. All the fortresses were in same sorry state that could not offer any resistance to Normans who were used to storming proper castles. Last one, Gaeta, fell in 17th May. It only took Normans 12 days to occupy of the province- and that is with one small battle, sieges, assaults and marching times.


The first Siege- rest were even more easier.

The difference in wealth, technology and advancements were just so in favor of Normans that enemy could not resist- plus the fact that 14 000 of Normans just appeared on the province weeks after the war was declared. It showed how well-oiled the Norman war machine was compared to the rest of the Europe.

The War Continues

Overall, the geographical situation of Sicily made the war interesting. They had holdings in 3 different parts of Italy. Of course, down in south. Then, Venice on northeast and finally Genoa and Nice in northwest. Scattered holdings meant that the war will be won or lost depending on the maneuverability of the Sicilian armies- for one thing is certain, Sicily has less troops then Holy Roman Empire, but they also have ability to use their troops more effectively.

Holy Roman Empire was actually in another war, with Hungary. Currently, that war got their full attention, so that Italy was pretty devoid of german troops. There was an army of 500 men besieging Genoa and another army of 5000 men marching to reinforce them. In the beginning of July, Sicilians boarded the ships, sailed up north, hit the 5000 men reinforcing army with a quick invasion, destroyed them and then sailed on to Genoa, crushing the siege. By end of the month, germans were beaten and the Normans sailed back to Palermo and were sent home, for nothing interested seemed to be happening.


With a quick naval invasion, Normans disrupt German march to Genoa and destroy them


The Empire Strikes back

Then, it was all quiet. Germans were still fighting Hungarians and didn’t pay much attention to Sicily. Kind of insulting, if you think about it. It took them over a year to react. It was already September 1160 when the reports of German troops marching towards Italy started to pour in. The War with Hungary was over and Germans were shifting their troops to south, to show Sicily their proper place. Total report was 3 armies, all a little over 10 000 men. Soon, the first army reached Venice and besieged the city. One army was marching towards Capua and the third one was heading to Genoa. Empire had finally reacted and with such a numerous force.


Situation in October. Germans are besieging Venice and are marching towards Genoa and Capua

As soon as the reports started to pour in, Normans mobilized once again. First target- Venice, for the city was already under siege while the other armies were still marching. In 12th November, Normans made a naval landing in Venice and attacked the Germans. Normans had all on their side- numbers, quality, troops. The German defeat was inevitable- and rightly so. 8000 Germans lost their lives that day, with only 2000 Normans dieing. Sicilian troops followed fleeing Germans to Treviso, over the mainland, and slaughtered them.

Meanwhile, 2 other armies had reached their destination. Germans were now sieging Capua and Genoa. As said before, the geographical situation of Sicily meant that the naval transportation was the key to victory and the only possible way to overcome the fact that Empire actually outnumbers Normans. So, the Sicilian army in Treviso was ordered to board the ships and sail back to Palermo.

Capua was the more important of these 2, for if any holding there would be lost, Asclettin ordered his African vassals to flag up to war and sail to Palermo. There, they met with returning Asclettin’s troops, combined into one united army of 17 000 men and sailed to break the siege of Teano.

In February, Normans landed in Capua once again and beat the 10 000 Germans sieging it. In a battle, about 1000 Germans escaped alive, while Normans lost only 2000 soldiers. Germans got their asses kicked and Asclettin didn’t even bother to chase the poor fleeing ones. Instead, they boarded the ships once again and sailed to Genoa.

In Battle of Rapallo, in 1st of April 1161, fighting total 12 000 Germans, Normans were once again victorious. Though they lost more then 4500 men, Germans lost over 10 000 and the remaining ones were fleeing towards Pavia.


German armies defeated by Normans in following order: Venice, Capua, Genoa

3 Germans invasion armies were beaten within a few month and Germans were bled dry- there would not be another attempt for about a year. The victory of Sicily became closer to reality and that would mean that during his rule, Asclettin would have beaten both Shia Caliphate and Holy Roman Empire, biggest threats in both East and West. Only the Byzantine Empire remains untested.

But when pursuing Germans to Pavia- to fully crush them- something unexpected happened...

[hjarg]

Hah, take that, Evil Empire! Next time something unexpected!

Saithis- and the rest 3 in Palermo are quite close to becoming similar. So, world, beware! Sicily is coming!

[Saithis]

Very happy to see an update! And, oh my! That's quite the licking you gave the Empire, but I wonder, will your manpower be able to keep up in the long run?

[Bballman23]

Not sure why you're not getting many comments... But I'm enjoying it! Doing very well vs. the empire, I wonder what unexpected thing could happen. Do they suddenly muster a massive deathstack or something? Hmm.

[hjarg]

Interlude- How to Die Like a King

The journey to Pavia was uneventful. Waking up, breaking camp, marching. Then resting for the evening, making camp, drinking, whoring, eating, gambling away some valuable they looted from Germans after the last battle. Light cavalry keeping pursuit of Germans, some small skirmishes, but nothing special.

It was an eve before battle. Germans were caught up and they knew they had nowhere to run. Exhausted, still shocked from the last battle, where most of their friends, family and enemies had fallen. Less then 2000 left from over 10 000 Germans, they were getting desperate- and they knew Normans were after them. And they were gaining up. Rather then to be slaughtered like pigs, Germans decided that they at least try to put up a fight.

So, in the fields outside Pavia, Germans were preparing for their last stand. There is always hope, they said. Comforting themselves, for deep inside they knew that 10:1 ratio meant that there would not leave them not much hope- except for miracle. But since they were hardened soldiers, not soft monks, they knew that massacres happen to those who expect miracles in the battlefield. Instead, they did their best to prepare- chose a good position, uphill- an easily defendable position. Prepared their weapons and armour, had one last drink (and then one more, just to be certain) and were prepared for afterlife.

Normans did the same, though not as keenly as Germans. They knew that the battle would be won, but they didn’t get too careless. They sharpened their swords, polished their pikes and also had one last drink (and then one more, just to be certain). They knew this would be a tough battle, for Germans were going for the last stand. And some Normans would die. Checking their armor, sharpening their weapons would give them a better chance of survival. We all know that survival is good.

Asclettin retired early that evening. He was not feeling too well and he wanted to be ready for the battle. It had been a long trip, full of battle and sea- from Venice to Capua to Genoa. For a man of 51 years, this has been quite tiring. Since Genoa, he had not felt so well, but refused to give up and rest.

He had talked with his army leaders, including Bohemond, talking about attack tomorrow, making plans how to smoke out Germans with less casualties. He kept his calm, despite spikes of pain. But when the attack plan was made, then he summoned his doctors and retired to his tent. Even a chance to drink wine and have some friendly conversation with other nobles of the realm didn’t appeal to him as much as a good nights rest...

And good nights rest was not what he got. The doctors made him some potions, god knows what was in them. At least not leeches- the doctors were Arabs, not Europeans. But that didn’t help much. Cold sweat, fever, nightmares when he fell to sleep for a second. By the morning, Asclettin was nothing more then a shell of the man he used to be. Much to shock of servants and courtiers when they entered his tent in the morning.



Soon, the whole council and higher nobles that were taking part of this campaign entered the King’s chambers. The shock of seeing their beloved King in such a sad condition was met with total silence. Then whispers. Then cries. Soon, the room was filled with noise.

Slowly and with great pain, Asclettin raised his hand. The room was silent once again. Then he spoke.

“My loyal subjects,” he started. Then he halted to take a breath and continued in pain. “I refuse to be left in this sorry condition. The... the attack today will continue. And i will lead it.”

Disbelief was in the eyes of the listeners. How could he?

Asclettin continued: “You will tie me to my horse! You will tie a pike to my hand! For i will not let me slowly wither away!”

The understanding dawned slowly- and then there was cheering.

Asclettin was properly dressed, donned in his heavy armour and put to a horse. His final words were to Bohemond- “Rule well, my Son! And let the glory of Sicily rise even higher!”

The Sicilian knights, led by Asclettin the Great, started their charge in the morning. Asclettin managed to guide his pike enough to run through one German footman, granting him an honour of being killed by the king. Then, his horse was killed by another Germans. Asclettin fell of.

That enraged the Sicilian troops and they fought with double ferocity. By the end of the day, all Germans were defeated. The corpse of Asclettin was found in the battlefield, his hand still clutched to his sword. One stab wound near the neck was what killed him- some German had found the infirm King and ended his life. But Asclettin’s sword was bloody and there were 2 more dead Germans around him. The King had not died without a fight.




The Germans beaten, King Bohemond II and his troops marched back to Genoa, carrying the body of Asclettin with him, put in salt so he can be buried in Cathedral in Palermo.

[hjarg]

Saithis- well, in the end, manpower seems to be running out. But i sill have mercenaries and every day i fight, the war score raises.
Bballman23- comments are nice, but it's the pleasure of writing that keeps me posting things here. Anyways, glad you like it! And is it unexpected enough?

[InnocentIII]

Enjoying this AAR a great deal. Love the de Hautevilles. If you think manpower will be trouble in the long run, I'd help out the next time the HRE has a true civil war. You'd be better off with the empire broken up, I think, and beating the Kaiser's doomstacks in one good war would help many rebels achieve independence.

[Saithis]

A great death for a great King, very dramatic! I loved it!

[Chief Ragusa]

The death of a king had an epic quality. Movie quality. Bohemond has a great deal to live up to. Asclettin was a great king and you brought that great character to life so movingly in your writings. Will the war aim remain Capua or will there be additional compensation to balance the loss of the great king?

[morningSIDEr]

Great stuff and a fittingly impressive death for a hugely impressive ruler. I do not envy Bohemond having to follow so great a ruler as his father. Although in the field of marriage Bohemond may prove rather more sensible considering Asclettin's troubles with Isabeu!

[Tapscott]

That's the way a true warrior king should die! Good update!

[hjarg]

Life and Death of King Asclettin
an overview


The roots

Asclettin is rightfully referred to as one of the greatest Kings of Sicily. The enemies he fought were more powerful then anything de Hautevilles have ever faced. But- people keep forgetting one thing. Asclettin did not start from zero. His ancestors left him with a realm powerful and strong. It was Duke Robert who came to Italy and conquered the southern part of it, not to mention taking Palermo. It was grandfather of Asclettin, Bohemond I, who took rest of the Sicily and started building the economical greatness of Sicily. Not to mention creating the Kingdom. And it was King Robert, his father, who started conquests of Africa.

By the time Asclettin came to rule, Kingdom of Sicily controlled both Southern Italy and Island of Sicily. Personal demesne of the King consisted of Sicily and Calabria, all provinces built with rich cities and sprawling castle cities, making the ruler of Sicily one of the wealthiest in the world. Robert had already taken Tunis and one province from Tripolitania, and had already done all the hard work in taking the rest of the provinces of the Duchy when he was killed during the siege of Leptis Magna. Thus started the 35-year rule of Asclettin.

As we can see, his ancestors had done all the work needed to make Sicily a world power. Income that is higher then any other ruler in the world has, enough troops as levies- and rich and powerful African Dukes who are able to provide even more. Of course, Asclettin kept improving the conditions of Sicily and Calabria, making the two duchies the most powerful in the world.

The Wars of Aclettin

Wars with Kabylia

The first war started by Asclettin was over one province in Duchy of Tunesia (1129-1132). Ascletti’s goal was to secure the Duchy to Sicily and weaken Kabylia, the biggest threat to Christian kingdoms in Western Mediterranean. The war was a success and the county of Medjerda was in Sicily’s hands. In addition, the King of Castille had used the chance and took the Duchy of Barcelona from weakened Kabylia. As a result, the power of Emir weakened and Kabylia was thrown into serious civil war for decades, eliminating their threat to Christians.

In the end of his years, Asclettin gave the death blow to Kabylia, starting another war in 1153. The civil war that had lasted for 20 years had almost ended and like vultures, Sicilians descended upon weakened Emirate, grabbing 3 provinces from Kabylia. Few years later, Asclettin took the title of Emir from Emir of Kabylia, basically dismantling the realm and making once strong Emirate to several small sheikdoms fighting amongst themselves.

The Shia Caliphate

Shia Caliphate was one of the most powerful nations at that time. They controlled Egypt, Holy Lands, Syria, Ethiopia, several parts of Arabic peninsula, including cities of Mecca and Medina. They had numerous troops, they had tons of gold, they had the superiority. So, when they declared war on Asclettin in 1132, claiming the freshly-conquered Duchy of Tripolitania, the whole world thought Sicily was doomed.

Asclettin thought otherwise. He had Caliph and his 2 sons murdered, leaving Caliphate in the hands of the third son, who was a total idiot. That did not have the effect Asclettin hoped for- collapse of the Caliphate and civil wars, but it weakened the Caliphate. Still, the war lasted for 6 years, with Caliphate sending tens of thousands of troops to Sicily’s soil- all of them were utterly defeated and finally, Caliph was forced to sign the peace.

The war on Caliphate showed Normans (and the world) 2 things: Sicily is strong and Caliph is beatable. So, when Bohemond, son and heir of Asclettin, became of age, the Kingdom of Sicily went on a Crusade against Caliph, with Duchy of Galilee as a target. Using both Templars and Hospitallers, the Caliphate was once again beaten by Sicily. Though the battles were much harder this time and Sicily fought on foreign soil, the Caliphate was unable to offer enough resistance. The war lasted from 1143-1145 and as a result, the Pope called Asclettin Holy.

It was all quiet with the Caliphate until the Idiot Caliph passed away, leaving the title of Caliph to a distant relative. Soon, the realm was in disarray, with several vassals rebelling against their ruler. One of them vassals was Emir of Jerusalem. And Sicilians were quick to take advantage of the situation. In a war in 1156-1157, Asclettin beat the Emir and forced him to give up Holy City. Thus also extending his grasp over the Holy Land- looks like Sicily is here to stay.

To put things shortly, Asclettin managed to beat the Caliphate invasion, then invaded himself, relieving poor Caliphate from 2 Duchies and gained a stronghold for the Holy Land for Christians, including liberating the city of Jerusalem.

Other wars

Besides stronger enemies, Sicily also expanded in a series of smaller wars. First of them was the conquest of Nice in 1139, though Asclettin personally had nothing to do with it. Still, it allowed further Norman expansion to Italy, much to a dismay of the Holy Roman Empire.

Mallorca, an island sheikdom, was next in line. Lasting 1141-1142, Sicily managed to conquer the islands without any resistance and further increased their hold over Western Mediterranean.

Venice was one the richest city-state in Europe. Living from trade, they have prospered. Having a good defensive position, they have managed to avoid any conquests from great powers- until Sicily got their greedy little paws on the claim. Against naval invasion of such scale, Venice was powerless and in 1149, it was under Sicilian hands, with Doge paying taxes to Asclettin.

Holy Roman Empire

Capua, a small county and source of the biggest conflict in Europe- clash between Sicily and Empire. Started in 1159, the war raged for years, causing the death of Asclettin and was still not concluded at his death.

Mostly, it showed the difference between Sicily and the rest of the Europe. Sicilian troops, hardened from battles in more advanced Arabic lands, took the puny fortresses in Capua before Emperor even knew that there was a war going on. Though the Empire had more troops, the Sicilian mobility and generally better quality of troops meant that no matter the armies Empire sent, they were soundly defeated by Sicilian troops.


Map of the known world. The green with red strips is the areas Asclettin added to the kingdom

Administrative matters

Asclettin was a great builder. In addition to being founder of Asclettion, a city in province of Syracuse, he kept improving the castles of Sicily and Calabria. To his death, Asclettin could muster over 14 000 troops from his personal demesne alone. Of course, that achievement came because of his forefathers- they have also done their best to make their personal demesne rich and Asclettin was using income they have created.

But both Sicily and Calabria have reached a point where further economic development was questionable. All the castles had large cities, bringing overall 50 gold per month to Asclettin’s coffers. But there wasn’t any room for expansion- not with current level of knowledge. Then, there is this slight problem with vassals- they bring troops, but not money, no matter how rich they are. So, Asclettin was the first ruler in Sicily who implemented the Doge system- giving Mayors entire counties and even Dukedoms. First was Venice- a city with 2 cities that were put under unified management and given to new Doge. Soon, it showed results- Sicily was getting more money every month. Followed by newly conquered Kabylia and then Mallorca, where new Doges were given both cities and castles, this way maximising their strength and income- and taxes they pay.

The Death and After

News of Asclettin’s death spread fast. The road back to Genoa, where they would board the ships, was filled with grieving people. Every night, the body was held in different church or chapel, with lots of people coming to grieve the King- and hope for a miracle- and as we all know, miracles will happen if people wish for them to happen. A leper cured here, a blind man gaining back his vision there, a cripple throwing away his clutches and starting to walk in a third place. Plus, great number of cured children, even more healed wounds of warriors, some woman of questionable moral integrity finding the right path and so on.

Procession grew every day- until the number of people following the coffin even exceeded the number of returning army. Sometimes, that created incidents- after all, we were talking about the body of a saint (or at least potential saint)- even a clothes he was wearing could be valuable. One rip of fabric from Holy Asclettin’s body and your church would have a powerful relic. If you get as lucky as to gain some parts of a body- perhaps a finger, perhaps a toe, even better if it is a rib or something even better, you’d have pilgrims massing on your church. On a road to Genoa, there were 7 incidents of thieves trying to get to the coffin and 4 armed assaults on guardian team, with hopes of gaining some body parts. All of them failed, but 2 Norman knights died while defending the body of the King.

After the arrival to Genoa, body of the King was displayed in Cattedrale di San Lorenzo, and it stayed there for a week. The crowd was even more numerous, the miracles even more amazing- it was no doubt that Asclettin was chosen by God. King’s cloak was left to the cathedral and it was displayed amongst other big treasures they had, like a piece of cross where Jesus was crucified or a bottle full of Egyptian darkness and big toe of St. Benedictus.

The week passed fast and it was the crowd escorted Asclettin to harbour, where he was put on a fast galley and sailed to Palermo. The reception of the great King there was even more massive there- Normans, Arabs and Italians like came to the harbour to welcome Asclettin and escorted him to the cathedral. No work was done at least for a week and the King was buried with highest possible honours. In years to come, Cathedral and the nearby inns and other houses of ill repute profited greatly from pilgrims all over the realm arriving to the grave of the King and praying.

The Pope had no choice. It was obvious that the people have made up their mind and there would be no way of saying “no” to sanctification of King Asclettin. Especially when Sicily demanded it and their troops were battle-hardened, though and so close to Rome. So, he declared Asclettin a saint. More precisely: Saint Asclettin, Liberator of the Holy Grail and the Guardian Saint of Sicily. To this day, there are stories that if Sicily would fall into trouble, all you have to do is to blow a bagpipe (Asclettin had a weird taste in music) and Asclettin would rise from his grave and shove a pike up the arse of anyone who tries to harm the kingdom.

Bohemond wiped a tear from his face. Then, he entered his galley and sailed back to mainland. Grieving can wait, now it is time for a war.

[hjarg]

I just felt Asclettin deserved one more chapter before being properly buried...

InnocentIII- thank you. I tried to get the Empire to civil war, but they didn't really felt like it. But they were at war with Hungary, so i thought it would be as good time as any to strike. Plus: Capua fell very early, so the warscore is moving on up and up. War will be over before my manpower is depleted.
Saithis- after all Asclettin has done, he deserved it!
Chief Ragusa- heh, if Hollywood would decide to make the movie out of it.. bah, there is no happy ending :P But i think you cannot expand the war- you get what you asked and cannot add wargoals. At least i haven't found a way. Plus, the manpower difference means that it would be nice to finish the war.
morningSIDEr- wait till you see the bride of Bohemond, son of Bohemond! Hey, and Asclettin had a long happy marriage until queen Emilia died and he married a hag.
Tapscott- thanks!

[Kaioo]

Rest well Asclettin, and may the Kingdom of Sicily prosper! The King is dead, Long live the King!

[morningSIDEr]

I just felt Asclettin deserved one more chapter before being properly buried...

Absolutely. I realy like the overview and hope you consider doing this again for future rulers (although it may be rather difficult for them to enjoy so successful a rule as Asclettin of course!). Reading over his accomplishments once again it is clear that he enjoyed a truly remarkable reign.