The Rise of Watters

[Sematary]

Good evening. My newest AAR needs a bit of explaining so here goes.

I am a legitimized bastard that is matralinearaly part of a long defunct minor noble house from Saxon England. During the Anglo-Saxon invasions of England one of the many warlords had a general who earned himself a minor title and founded the House of Watters. In 1066, as far as I can tell, they were what would correspond to roughly Baron in CKII near Cambridge. They backed Harold Godwinson and lost everything after Hastings. After that they show up in Wales, Cork, and possibly in Scotland. Parts of the family have since relocated to the USA with the surname surviving to the present. Or that is the history of it.

In my AAR I am hoping to change that. Because of the fact that baronies are unplayable I have edited the Count of Northampton to be a member of the House of Watters. I have edited the traits that are added to the count as follows. Since what little evidence of the family pre1066 involves their martial prowess and loyalty (including but not limited to the Coat of Arms) I have decided to give the trait Brilliant Strategist (Harold will need it). Also for story purposes I have given the traits Gardener and Diligent. The AAR will primarily be narriative and hopefully closer to my old "The Second Rise of the Sixteen Pointed Star" than my newer ones at least in quality.

Rules of the AAR:

1. The current count's traits will heavily influence how I play
2. Save Game editing will only be done for story reasons
3. Intervention by switching who I play will be done only if the AI is shooting itself in the foot and the character wouldn't necessarily do that (ie AI Harold against Normandy) also it will be done only for as short of time as possible to set the AI back on track.
4. In all regards story purposes trump all.
5. If I notice a section of a Great House pulling away from the main branch (ie Saxon Jimenez) a cadet branch will be created.

Now I have tested that everything works fine. I will start playing through and start on the first update.


Table of Contents:

The Battle of Stamford Bridge

The Battle of St. Paul's

The Battle of Woking

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A long list of characters.

Saxon Houses of England:

House of Watters

House of Godwin

House of Hwicce

House of Bamburgh

House of Durham

House of Aelfricson

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House of Watters

Waltheof Watters

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House of Godwin

Godwin's decedents and Harold's decedents.


Tostig and sons.

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House of Hwicce

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House of Bamburgh

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House of Durham

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House of Aelfricson

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The Battle of Stamford Bridge

The Battle of Stamford Bridge stands as one of the most decisive battles at the end of the Early Medieval Period. Waltheof of Northampton went into the battle as the commander of the Saxon forces by merit of his posting as Marshal of England. He was sixteen, and untried in battle. Though he had every reason to fail he ended the threat of continued Norse presence in England in one battle.
-Dr. Steve Haroldson, A Brief History of England Chapter 8: The Invasions


The morning air was crisp but not yet cold, perfect to calm Waltheof. At the moment the only sound he was hearing was the rasp of the whetstone along his blade. The sword's edge was sharper than it ever had been and probably couldn't get any sharper but he continued pulling the stone along the blade over and over again. Soon the predawn mist would enter his tent and make an surreal sight, though no one would be in it to see. In the mist's absence firelight filtered through the room glinting off the metal of his armor. 'This is it, I will be leading men to battle soon. Men will fight and die for England, for Harold, for me.'
"It is time to get ready." Æthelric said as he walked into the tent. Waltheof looked up and smiled "Yes I suppose it is. isn't it? Thank you, my friend. I suppose Bishop Estmond is trying his best to avoid doing so isn't he?"
"Yes I suppose he is." Æthelric replied chuckling. "Just remember he has twenty two years on you, he should know how to hide better than you know how to find him."
"And to think he is one third of what passes for nobility from Northampton. I shall have to go and win this battle in order to save our dignity."

He looked at the vast array of men and banners before him. Slightly over ten thousand men stood ready to follow him into battle and die to save their homes. "During times like these men need few words to push them forward. Some of you are from York and if we fail today your families will be the first to have to remember what Norse rule feels like. Others, like myself, don't have to worry about that, our families are far away. But one and the same we all fight for our homes, for our King, and for England. May we send them to hell where they belong and long may our banners fly over these lands." His eyes swept over the faces looking at him and he hoped he was showing the same grim determination he saw. With his last words he walked to his council to make the final plans as his men started forming up. He was pleased to have Æthelric there with him, as the Marshal for the County of Northampton he was Waltheof's second in command. The other faces were much more foreign to Waltheof, the King, his brother, powerful Earls and Counts. "The plan is rather simple if I do say so myself. I will lead the center over the main ford and Harold, my liege, will lead the left over the ford about a mile up the river. Eadwin will take the right over the bridge down river. If the enemy's center collapses, our center will swing to help the left and then will help the right. If any of our force starts to break retreat over the ford or bridge as that will constrict what they can do."

Waltheof marched in the half light of the dawn watching the tendrils of mist forming and slowly grow above the grass. The lions flanking a tower would be the first banner to engage the enemy. This would be the proudest moment of his life, the men of Northampton leading the entire army of England to fight Harold Sigurdson. Waltheof's tabbard was slightly different from his banner, it was quartered in blue and red for both his house and his title. His shield had the coat of arms of his house. The fact that these thoughts were entering his head as he marched was slightly amusing. The archers and light infantry broke rank and started moving ahead to screen the advance. Then they hit the murder zone. Arrows started falling around them as shouts of "Shields up!" started raising through the ranks. The water was icy cold as the army marched through it, in some places it was knee deep and was slowing them down quite a bit. As the far side got close Waltheof realized something, Harold Sigurdson did not place his shield wall on the far edge of the ford, he had it placed back quite aways. Waltheof called for his men to form up after the bridge and then came the surge, heavy infantry charging the wall with mounted huscarls fanning out behind and starting to move to encircle the Norse forces. His shield hit another as his body was pushed into the Nord. The man never stood a chance as Waltheof's sword came down on his head, the spear the Nord had been holding did not have room to move in these close quarters. Then there was another one and another and another. Waltheof's awareness closed in until the only thing he was aware of was the current opponent and there was no shortage of those.

The tip of his sword hit the ground and he struggled to try to raise it for the next attack, if he couldn't raise it he would be dead but the sword would not budge. Then it dawned on him, there wasn't a next attack yet. Shaking his head he looked around, Harold's center was breaking and routing. Mass carnage was all he saw, dead and dying all around. Then he saw a small group of lightly armored horsemen. "To me. To me." He shouted at them. "Send messengers to Harold and Eadwin to see how they are doing."
"Yes, m'lord. Right away."

"How did we do?" Waltheof asked wearily.
"Their dead and wounded are estimated at almost 5,500 while ours are roughly 4,200. In percent that is almost 8 men dead for every 10 that went into battle while we have closer to half that. It is believed that they are heading roughly in the direction of Durby probably hoping that Tostig can rally some support for them there."
Harold nodded at this report. "Well Waltheof, it seems I made a good judgement when picking you for the Marshal of my forces. Though I received a disturbing report. William has landed and is besieging Westminster as we speak."

[Saithis]

Very interesting stuff, the Watters certainly aren't the first people you'd think of for an AAR! Subscribed.

Waltheof has done well, but now the country's most important city is under threat. I wonder if he can save them from the Normans, but Norman power is so great that I'd probably just be hoping to survive the war.

[Sematary]

Actually Saithis, at the moment the Saxon army outnumbers the Norman forces in England. The Saxons have close to 6,000 while the Normans have 4,900.

[Saithis]

Really? Huh. Usually the Normans outnumber Saxons significantly by this point, at least in my games.

[Sematary]

Normally yeah. Though the two things that are different are the realitively small number of deaths at Stamford Bridge and William isn't committing yet.

[AncalagonBlack]

Ah, a straight fight at Stamford Bridge! No surprised Nords nor time for heroics on said bridge...or barrel floating.

[Sematary]

You never know, on the other ford or the bridge there could have been. I just focused on the center at which point a lot of soldiers died and it collapsed very early in the battle.

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A note to my readers, I have been playing ahead on this trying to go to significant people's deaths so I can foreshadow correctly. I should be ready to update within a day.

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The Battle of St. Paul’s

The Battle of St. Paul’s is considered the ending of the Early Medieval Period and the start of the High Medieval Period in European History. Combined with the Battle of Woking a month later the seeds of a new form of warfare were planted in some of the English nobility. These two battles would prove to have importance way past their time, even more so then the other battles in the Norman Invasion of the 1060s. Even though Waltheof lost one of those battles he still ensured the end of the Norman threat just months after doing the same with the Norse threat. Harold’s reward would start an enmity between them that would last the rest of Harold’s life.
-Dr. Steve Haroldson, A Brief History of England Chapter 8: The Invasions


The blazing fire kept most of the tent warm but if one got too near the edge of the tent they would be reminded that it was early December. Waltheof smirked as he watched the Swiss mercenaries try to shuffle closer to the fire without setting their gaudy clothes on fire. “We are almost to Northampton, as the army draws close I am going to be taking a small detachment so I can spend time with my wife while the rest of the army continues moving toward Westminster.”
“Are you denying your liege his due by closing your door to him?” Came the sole reply to Waltheof’s statement.
“Of course not, my liege. I did not extend the invitation because Northampton is not prepared to hold the King’s Court. A more pressing matter is Northampton is not far from the Norman army. If they should send reinforcements Northampton is one of the castles that may come under siege and they need their larder as full as possible in case the main army is tied up elsewhere.”
“Very well. Now tell me about these mercenaries you insisted we commission.” Harold said, sounding quite bored. The King looked bored, truth be told, lounging in his throne, sword propped against it. He was clearly a man of action, and being on the march was not action in his eyes.
“Yes, the Swiss Guard.” Waltheof began trying not to sound resigned at having to explain again why he thought these men should fight as the center of the Saxon army in the upcoming battle. “Well firstly with them we look to outnumber William by almost two to one. Also while our shield wall is a tactic that can easily stop mounted huscarls I am not sure it can stop the mounted knights William will have, these long spears that the Swiss have should do the trick. I hear they are based off the Greek style.”

The day was bright as Waltheof looked out at the Themes River. His scouting parties should be back soon with the last news before the army marched on Westminster. Once again he brought up the mental picture of the area both from memory of the area it self and from the maps he had been pouring over for the last month. He would use Thorney Island to cut off William’s retreat and hopefully crush his forces against the palace there. The sound of a galloping horse broke him out of his thoughts.
“We have a problem, a very large problem.”
“What do you mean, Æthelric?” Waltheof asked quizzically.
“William’s army has moved south. They are in Surry. However another Norman army, numbering at least 5,500 is gathering at St. Paul’s to intercept us. I don’t think they realize we are on the Themes.”
“Right, ok here is what we do. Gather all the men now. We attack before dawn tomorrow.”

It was clear that Bishop Ebbon of Fecamp only learned of the large Saxon army after it started marching toward his camp. The battle was very short, starting two hours before dawn and ending at dawn. A few Norman noblemen used their personal retinues to mount sporadic resistance to the Saxons but most soldiers were left orderless and leaderless. Of particular note almost all of the Norman archers were cut down by a charge of mounted huscarls. It was only a stroke of luck that Ebbon had placed his command tent so near the ships that had allowed them to disembark and so the nobility was able to flee the battle.

“That wasn’t a battle. That was a massacre.” Waltheof was pacing a ridge near the battle site. “We only had slightly over 8,000 men while the Normans number 6,000. We lose less than a quarter and they lose almost 8 in 10 men. Now we march to Surry. Engage William and end this farce. The Norse gave us more trouble and we all know how much they dislike being on land.”

[Saithis]

Good stuff, the decision to invest in the mercenaries seems to have paid off. Bisop Ebbon never saw it coming and the battle is a painful, crippling blow to the Norman Invasion. William the Bastard will be furious, one wonders if he'll live long enough to regret the decision.

Taunting the Norse doesn't seem entirely wise though. I would expact that Harald Harðráði and Tostig will seek revenge for the embarrassment at Stanford Bridge, and fortune may not always favour the Saxons!

[Sematary]

It has paid off for the moment but Harold will regret it in the future. If Waltheof can follow St. Paul's up with another similar victory at Woking then the entirety of the Norman army will have been destroyed.

By Harald Harðráði, I assume you mean Harald the Holy. Remember he is in a precarious position in Norway. Tostig and his sons will continue to be a thorn in Harold's side. Fortune won't always favor the Saxons but Fortune will keep Waltheof's star rising for the foreseeable future.

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The Battle of Woking

Woking is seen as the high water mark of the Norman Invasion, and Waltheof’s greatest defeat. The Norman army that had laid siege to Westminster formed the core of the Norman force on the Thames in modern Hampton Court Park. Ebbon’s army was split into three with one part joining William’s force while the other two would screen the Saxons on the other side of the river. Despite having all these advantages on the whole Woking was a strategic loss for William, as a large number of his force were Frenchmen and Dutch looking for easy victory, numbers that could not be replaced.
-Dr. Steve Haroldson, A Brief History of England Chapter 8: The Invasions


“My brother just took St. Cuthbert. It is Lindisfarne all over again. You expect us to not retaliate?” Harold’s face was almost purple with rage while Waltheof simply sat and took his King’s rage.
“In Surry there are over 6,000 Normans and the only thing keeping them from taking your palace is our forces. Now if you want we can march north with all haste letting our men trickle away the entire time just to put down 500 Norse marauders and then forcibly take back St. Cuthbert. After that we can force march south again losing men to desertion and exhaustion the entire way. By that time our numeric advantage over the Normans will be long gone and in all probability your palace will have been sacked. OR we can move south now and crush the Bastard here and now then move north and destroy your brother’s army.” Waltheof did his best to keep his voice level and calm while explaining to this oaf of a man why it was folly to attempt to take back St. Cuthbert. He knew why Harold was chosen to be Edward’s successor, England needed a strong ruler and Harold was the strongest.

Waltheof swung at the legs of the horse baring down on him, as the horse fell he dove out of the way popping back up to face the rider, the rider with an arrow in his throat. Looking around quickly he saw the Swiss pikemen in a defensive semi circle with their backs against the river, a small mound of bodies were creating bulkworks for the men. He was suddenly aware of a sword coming at him; he felt the vibration all the way through his arm as he just managed to get his shield up. A quick thrust ended that threat. This was all wrong, what was happening? Stars exploded in his eyes and then the entire world was black.

The plan had been solid. What he hadn’t counted on was the very large amount of Normans sticking with the center. He also hadn’t counted on the fact that when the Saxon center had been forced to retreat that William would take out the right and then left of Waltheof’s forces. If it weren’t for rear guard action lead by Harold the entire army may have been destroyed. Well now no one could say they doubted Harold’s bravery. The march back to London was long and William showed himself a very good strategist on the march, either that or a very bad one. Every night the Saxons expected an attack or an ambush during the day’s march, an attack that never came. Two weeks of worrying for an attack that never came. The Swiss Guard had to be let go after they returned to London, they were too expensive and too many of them had died. Though their pikemen had among the fewest losses and they were in the thickest fighting. He learned on the march back that he had been knocked out by a sword blow that hadn’t managed to cleave his skull in two. He was found by the river’s edge after the battle and brought back to the camp as the retreat was called.