Reforging Burgundy - The Chronicles of Little House de Forez

Here is what the current Realm layout looks like in the world a little after the death of Simoun de Forez:



And then the Dynastic Layout:



I like the dynastic layout a bit better as it shows the de Forez's in bright green so alot easier to see and read on that one. There's been a few really odd inheritances as of late that you can kind of see on the maps. One being that little green chunk bordering the GH, no idea how we inherited that County or even what its name is but it belongs to Burgundy apparently. Also a weird thing happened where a Duke of mine inherited Mesopotamia from a relative in the ERE, so it appears the ERE branch and Burgundian branch of the family are meshing into each other. And well theres been a breakout of incompetent inbreds within the realm as of late.

Also noteworthy is the fact that Iberia has almost been subjugated, the Reconquista is almost a complete success, a Crusade to reinstate Portugal will be taking place soon, and well mopping up of the rest of the little counties will follow after.

Final note on the maps is go back and look at the state of the ERE when the de Forez's took control. It was almost nonexistant due to rebellious vassals and independent states, not too mention the Caliphate cutting huge swaths out of it. But now most of it has been retaken as well. And this time not for the Orthodox faith but rather for Catholicism as us de Forez's are a loyal bunch to our Pope. Makes me wonder what would have happened if my dynasty hadn't seized control of the ERE from the Komnenos family. Would an Empire even be there anymore???

Hope you enjoy the map update, and feel free to comment to your heart's content

ghyslain said:

I just finished reading all your AAR and I've got to say: splendid work! Not too many futile details, always in the action and addictive to read. I'm wondering if someday you'll manage de reunite de two branchs of the family under the emblem of the empire?

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Well with the new King Nicolau things may start going that direction. Honestly the family is starting to look like the Habsburgs, been going through all the Dukes I've raised from the family and they're all intermarrying as there really isn't anyone left of note that isn't a de Forez, and well inbreds are starting to crop up. I need to post a new update soon of the new King's first like ten years which are relatively quiet but its really the calm before the storm as the HRE is none too happy with the rise of Burgundy.

Lamahorse said:

Very good!

You need to united Christendom! Holy Burgundian Empire!

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We will see!!! Lots of hostilities going on between Burgundy and the HRE, guess they've forgotten what happened to the last Kaiser that upset the de Forez's. I think its time to get another Kaiser in Pusignan's dungeon.

And once again thanks for the comments glad you are all enjoying reading it as much as I've enjoyed playing and writing it.

The Holy Virtues of Nicolau II

King Nicolau II de Forez would take the throne towards the end of 1316, in a world that was now at peace. He was an attractive young man and his wife it is said was madly in love with her prince. But even in that love she would prove to be in fertile and unable to bring forth the son that the de Forez's so desperately needed to avoid the looming succession crisis that was slowly being bandied about in the pubs and alehouses throughout the Kingdom. The solution to this "problem" would eventually be solved however, and will be discussed at length a bit further on.

For this day was the coronation, and in attendance was one Count Miquel de Forez of Hebron, of whom would see his own coronation four short days after the festivities of King Nicolau's ascension. As it would happen the young handsome King would no longer see the purpose of his holding of Jerusalem, as expansion in the Holy Lands was pointless as Sweden held land all around, and the new rise of de Forez controlled Eastern Rome was finally asserting itself throughout the Middle East. So on that day the King would order the Title of Duke of Jerusalem be established and anointed Count Miquel with the duchy, as well as signing over all holdings in that Holy City over to him as well. All these moves would culminate in the Coronation of Miquel as King Miquel IV de Forez of Jerusalem.

In celebration of the two newly established de Forez Kings Nicolau would order a Grand Tournament be held in majestic Pusignan, to honor the family and please the masses of the peasantry. Sadly the Tournament would have to be canceled for a month after word was sent out one sole vassal the Duchess Amburga of Galloway would revolt, no longer wishing to keep her allegiance to the distant lords of Burgundy. So the duties of destroying the rebellion in the Scottish Highlands would fall upon the de Forez Dukes of England, as it was utterly pointless for the King to mobilize his levies in France and Burgundy to quell such a small speck of rebellion.

As this revolution was occurring the King would find himself compromising a plot to lower Crown Authority in the Holy Roman Empire. As one night while holding a celebration at Court alongside King Miquel, Nicolau's tongue was loosened from the wine and blatantly told the Imperial Ambassador that his Kaiser should watch out, for Burgundy's only hope at expanding was to curb the Crown's power. The Kaiser's emissary was none too pleased about this, in fact it has been said he turned pale as a ghost, and even threw up at the thought of the de Forez's and Stadens marching against each other in war. Such a war would have disastrous affects throughout the whole of Europe.

After that incident however, it is said King Nicolau would slow down on his drinking and give it up in favor of reading, as he would begin to read the Chronicles of the Great Dauphin Miquel II the greatest of the Burgundian Kings thus far. He would also take to reading the Gospels most fervently and would even dispatch the Bishop of Avignon to Rome to once more encourage the Holy Father to back a grand Crusade in Iberia.

But back to the rebellion for 10 months after it started the Duchess of Galloway would surrender and be taken in Chains to Nicolau's Castle in Kent to be placed in the dungeons so she could think and hopefully repent for her treasonous sins against God and Crown.

With the Commencement of a New Year the King would once more send out his couriers throughout all the realms to invite the Lords and Knights and men seeking fame and fortune to come to the lists to celebrate his and Miquel's joint Coronations. And this time there would be no interruptions, for the lords of Burgundy no longer wished to revolt, as Nicolau's father Simoun had taught those lords what happens when you try the patience of the de Forez Crown.

The lists of winners of Nicolau's Grand Tournament would be as follows:

1st: Count Lop de Forez of Stettin
2nd: Barolomeus van Maillezais (hedge knight)
3rd: Count Centule de Bachaumont of Vendome

With the conclusion of the lists and the first time a de Forez had ever finished so high, the King was most pleased and in fact told Count Lop that should a Crusade for Portugal be declared the Count would be the Commander of the Burgundian Crusade. But alas such happiness would be short lived as King Nicolau's Uncle the Duke of Leon, Martin de Forez would begin a war to usurp the Crown of the Dauphin and would bring in many other relatives to his side in hopes of succeeding. However his fortune would not be so lucky, as God had chosen Nicolau to rule the realm and become a legend that could be compared to Miquel II the Greatest of Dauphins.

A year later Nicolau would be notified of a very ill and treasonous plot being orchestrated by none-other than his most trusted advisor, and de facto Lord of the Privy Council Chancellor Abelard II Duke of Lothian. Upon hearing about this said plot the King sent his guards one dark night to the apartments of the Chancellor's within the grand halls of Pusignan, and seized him from his bed yanking him away from his dreaming wife. They would slap the irons about his wrists and ankles and drag him down into the dark depths of the Castle of which no treasonous lord had ever returned alive.

Four years of peace and prosperity would follow throughout the realm. In fact so many years that people began to feel that King Nicolau II was the most virtuous of Kings ever seen. So grand was the period of peace and prosperity that the peasantry had begun to refer to their King as the Dauphin of Virtue. But little did they know that this Virtuous Dauphin had sinister plots being hatched. For he had no son, and his wife was getting old, and the Realm needed a male child to keep all the lands united. And so on the 24 of January 1324, the Queen Consort of Burgundy would die in her chambers all alone, supposedly of poison if the rumors should be believed.

After the death of Queen Consort Serhilda von Modor the King would begin to entertain betrothal requests from the highest tiers of European Nobility. Sadly he could not find a wife to his liking that was of age. But King of Bohemia would send an emissary to Pusignan with an offer of Betrothal that Nicolau could hardly refuse. For his offer would be his 14 year old daughter the Duchess Berta of Bavaria, and heir to the Kingdom of Burgundy should the King not sire a male child. And so the contract of betrothal was signed and Nicolau causing Nicolau to regret even further that blatant confession to the Kaiser's ambassador at the Coronation Ceremonies of the plot to lower Crown Authority. For, Crown Authority would need to be lowered should him and his young betrothed ever have a child together.

It was also during this time that even the Burgundian Nobility would begin to take up the calls of the peasantry in honor of the King's virtuosity as many would begin to write letters in honor and sound proclamation of the grand rule from Pusignan.

On November 13, 1326, those years of peace and prosperity would soon come to an end as the drums of war would beat ever louder and faster. For, the Bishop of Avignon had finally convinced the Bishop of Rome, the Holy Father of Christendom, to raise the Crusader Flag, and call the Lords of Christianity to unite to reclaim Portugal in the name of the Dukes of Cornwall.

After pledging his levies in this Holy Cause King Nicolau would marry his betrothed as well, and then set out at the head of his armies to once more fight the heathen Muslim Emir.

An arduous march from Pusignan through France over the Pyrenees and through the expansive Burgundian Holdings of Iberia would take the better part of a year, before King Nicolau would finally set foot beneath the walls of Evora, finally reaching the destination of the Crusades and the commencement of the building of the massive siege engines. A month after the siege began word from Africa would arrive that the Shia Caliph had declared a Jihad from the Sultanate of Africa against the Duke of Achaia, in a futile attempt at making a blockade of further de Forez encroachment along the North African Coastline.

On July 1, 1328, King Nicolau's siege of the Waliyah of Evora would be successful as his forces stormed the city sacking it and pillaging the treasures that laid within, ultimately crushing Ahmad's willingness to resist the Crusaders. For the Emir had stood alone during that Crusade no longer having any friendly Muslim lords in Iberia, he knew his time was coming that soon there would no longer be a Muslim lord in Iberia. And so he surrendered to Pope John XIX, who would fervently declare King Nicolau II de Forez the victor and once more the defender of Christianity.

But instead of Burgundy gaining the territory the Pope would instead grant it to the Duke of Cornwall whom still retained the title of King of Portugal, and upon this glorious victory and the reclamation of his lands he would no longer hesitate, and relocate the Capital of Portugal from Cornwall to its rightful place in Lisboa.

With this victory Nicolau would fulfill his lifelong ambition of becoming a Paragon of Virtue, and in honor of his service in the Crusade the Pope would declare Nicolau as "the Holy" reaffirming the virtuosity that the vassals of Nicolau's had so often spoken of. Not only did the Pope solidify this in the minds of all the citizens of the realm but the King's brother-in-law the Prince of Croatia would even write a book enshrining the King's Holiness and Virtues, which would radicalize the vassals of the realm who would ultimately line up singing the praises of their liege, for his greatness was one of which had finally brought forth the light and happiness that had so long been absent in Burgundy since the days of his grandfather the evil King Savarics.

And finally after reuniting with his wife the young Duchess of Bavaria who was awaiting him in the Duchy of Toledo, they would make love for the first time since their wedding day in celebration of his grand and humble victory for the Holy Church. And God the Creator of Heaven and Earth would smile upon the Royal Couple and grant the Realm a child, who would keep the Realm united, for a baby by the name of Miquel de Forez would be born on February 8, 1330.

The Start of the de Forez-Staden Feud

A year would pass after the birth of the heir Miquel de Forez, a child destined to become the fifth of such name to raise himself upon the lofty throne of Burgundy. As the year of the child's birth would pass into a new decade Nicolau would begin to see his mother's realm of Brittany as the next logical point of expansion. One that could be usurped without the threat of war, as all it would take would be a simple innocent plot to rally the nobles of that small kingdom around the Burgundian banner. But it would take a rather innocent accident to end his mother's life, and Queen Gerberge III "the bold" was frail in her old age, and therefore Nicolau truly did not have the heart to see her death visited upon her, but plot he did to keep so he could keep it tucked away in his pocket should the need ever arise.

Instead of killing his mother and stealing her crown before the lord decided it was her time, the Holiest of Dauphin's would instead turn his sights yet again to Iberia, still frustrated that the Pope had given the lands of the last Crusade to some backwater duke of Cornwall (King). So Nicolau would raise the levies once more and set off to seize yet another chunk of land from Emir Ahmad III, for this time the target of the Burgundian Holy War would be the Emirate of Portucale. A province that would give Burgundy the ever desirous ports on the eastern face of the peninsula.

And to war the men of Burgundy and so many other realms of note marched under the banner of their King and Heavenly Creator. As many such wars started by giants against tiny states, this war would be simple, quick and decisive. But not without its share of bloodshed. As a de Forez would fall to Islamic swords, and be laid to rest in Iberia, for the Duke Ausilio III of Gascogne would perish by the hand of Mufti Sinbad of Beja on November 2, 1330.

However it would be the only significant loss of the miniature unnoteworthy war. As a month later on the 14 of December, Ahmad the III would gladly surrender,once again bested by the sheer might of Burgundian arms and armor, once more signing away ever more of his land to the Christian infidels who seemed to be invincible in war.

Without even leaving the theater King Nicolau sent word to his mother that he would enjoy the right to join her forces in her own Holy War to help her increase what would one day be his inheritance. She agreed happy to have the Holy Dauphin, her son, by her side in her war in search of conquest.

In honor of the new year and a new war and hopes of helping Brittany win more lands the King would relent upon what had been a time honored tradition among his ancestors. For previously there is little record of a fellow treasonous de Forez ever being released from the dungeons of Pusignan. Yet, King Nicolau would show once more his piety and worship of Christ, and order his uncle Duke Martin of Leon to finally be released after serving 12 years in his dark and damp cell. Some people would view this as a sign of weakness and seek to take advantage of the King's kindness, and this decision could be seen as the precursor to Wars that would strike Burgundy in the future.

Sadly the King's Mother in her old age no longer felt the need to fight Ahmad III, as she would accept his offer of truce under a White Peace. Nicolau is said to have cursed the heavens the night that news was brought to him, as the Reconquista was almost accomplished by trying to maneuver his mother's troops around to siege some of Ahmad's final strongholds. But alas such glory would once more be put on hold.

For on an early spring day in April of 1331, news would finally reach Pusignan of a plot that Nicolau had backed in the Holy Roman Empire. A plot that could potentially see his son steal the throne of Bohemia out from the clutches of the Germans and place it in the warm loving embrace of the de Forez's Burgundian Empire. On that Spring day word was delivered that the Duchess of Murcia had raised her flags in rebellion and war after the Kaiser had refused her request/threat to lower Imperial Authority.

This would be the breaking point in the long held truce between the Kaisers of the Staden Dynasty and that of the De Forez's. Before this point in time it had been seen that the de Forez's were to be thanked by all Staden Kaisers as it was their army, and their war, that had put an end to the cruel tyrannical rule of the Gerulfings. But generations had passed and such old ancient agreements forgotten. At one time the Popes would have intervened but Catholicism had spread far and wide over the years and the Bishops of Rome fat with money and content to live their lives collecting treasures and rare baubles and buying expensive armor for their mercenary armies should they ever have the need to fight again.

So there was no one to intervene, and for the first time in a long time Central Europe would clash with Western Europe, in a war that would see peace agreements signed and then broken and signed again and broken. For the two families had seen enough of the other's rise, and would now decide to seek the other dynasty's demise. In some cases its said the de Forez's felt and had always felt that Miquel the Great had deserved the Imperial throne over the Staden's, and the Staden's felt the de Forez's had ambitions much more grandiose then merely taking the Holy Roman Empire. For in some circles, albeit very small elite circles, there were rumors that the de Forez Kings of Burgundy had started referring of themselves as Augustus, and their heirs as Caesars, and a fear had crept through Germany that these de Forez's sought a conquest that would unite the West with the East, to where one dynasty and one dynasty alone would hold the purple garb of the ancient Roman Empires.

The Feud: To Lower Imperial Authority

The intervention of Burgundy with regards to the Kaiser's Imperial Authority can be seen as a feud between two great Houses that had ruled over their domains since the time of the Great Dauphin, but there was a more direct reason for Nicolau's willingness to jump into the fight as had been stated in earlier chapters. For his wife ruled Bavaria, and stood to gain the crown of Bohemia and as Imperial Authority stood at that moment in time those domains would not be inherited by the King's child Miquel, for the laws of that Holy Realm dictated that no vassal could send their inheritance to someone outside of the Kaiser's jurisdiction.

So the willingness of the Holy Dauphin it would seem was for more dynastic and selfish reasons. As he had seen his first wife to the grave in favor of this more advantageous marriage to Bohemia. The King only wished to secure more lands for his eldest child, lands that made up a large portion of the Kaiser's levies and taxation, lands that would tear the heart out of the Kaiser's empire, that would should the inheritances go through and Imperial Authority curbed would cut the Empire into a North and a South separated by the lands of Dauphins and could strategically sever the Kaiser's ability to hold Italy as well.

Such ideas of strategy and the affect a de Forez inheritance of Bohemia could spell are notes for another day when Miquel actually comes to power. For now at this moment we should focus on the feud that would officially begin that 3rd day of April in the year of our lord and saviour thirteen hundred and thirty-one.

For the levies had been raised upon the notification from Duchess Hildeburg of Murcia, that the revolt had begun, and that it was high time to teach the Kaiser that his vassals would no longer stand to have their ambitions halted due to the greed for more money and power of those distant German rulers. Unfortunately for Nicolau this war would commence at the same time as the Duke of Kabyllia-Alger was fighting the Muslim Emir of Tunis in North Africa. And therefore the bulk of his African levies would unfortunately be used in a private Ducal Holy War. But this would not change the fact that it was most important for the Dauphin to throw the entire weight of Burgundy into the fray.

It was also in this year as Burgundian Forces laid siege to Liege and prepared to engage Imperial forces in the fields of Bastogne that word from the East would arrive, word informing King Nicolau that a new Christian Kingdom had been forged in the distant lands northeast of Jerusalem. For the Komnenos Dynasty no longer under the protective umbrella of the Eastern Roman Empire had somehow gained enough lands to usurp the Sultanate of Syria, and therefore proclaim Athanasia Komnenos as the new Queen of Syria. It would seem that Iberia was not the only landmass in which Islam was on the run now.

Then the battle of Bastogne would begin on those cold snowy December days, as ten thousand Imperial men would march against the Burgundians miles away from Liege. What the Captain of this Imperial Army didn't expect though was that the Burgundians would receive reinforcements during the battle, as word had been sent to all the other Generals that a large battle at Bastogne was about to commence. By the time all numbers had been tallied the Burgundians more then outnumbered the Imperialists 3 to 1, and to the rear of the Kaiser's men was yet another mass of soldiers effectively cutting off any chance of escape.

For on that frigid 29th day of December all ten thousand Imperial soldiers would perish. Blood thick as a lake would coat the Killing Fields of Bastogne. And among that ten thousand would mix a mere 3200 soldiers of the Dauphin. For it was the battle of Bastogne that would prove to start the tide of ultimate victory in favor of the Murcian Duchess and her joint plot with Miquel. As it would seem that day after the complete annihilation of one of the Kaiser's largest regiments that there would be nothing he could do to out maneuver the giant mass of Burgundy.

Several more months would pass into 1332 and Spring seemed to be warming the lands in the afternoon, as another smaller battle was taking place just a few miles away from the still bloodied and haunted fields of Bastogne. But this battle would be different, for Nicolau himself was there leading his men, shining gloriously as the sun reflected off his gilded armor. He looked every bit as handsome as the stories say, he looked every bit a King that day. But he would unfortunately not be as invincible as a King should be. For it is rumored that his personal levies had run into the personal levies of the Kaiser. And after seeing his foe's banner upon the field as the battle raged on both men King and Kaiser would charge at one another clashing their steel against the other's. If the songs were to be believed the men's battle waged on throughout the afternoon waxing and waning much as the battle did upon that field.

But thats what songs say. For the only thing we know for certain is that King Nicolau the Holy did not leave the field of battle as handsome as he had entered. For after the Imperial forces retreated, and Burgundy began to gather their dead and wounded the King would be seen riding into camp upon his steed, although it should be noted the only reason anyone new for sure it was the King was due to his gilded armor. Truth be known the handsome Holy King's face was completely bloodied so much so that not a speck of his white fare flesh could be seen as he went straight to his personal pavilion to be attended by the medical practitioners and priest.

At this time the soldiers of Burgundy had lost most of their stalwart morale, and wavered. Rumors spread throughout the camps as Generals from Iberia to England to Germany to Italy were notified that their Holiest of Kings had received a grievous wound, and his life could very well be cut short. So the men began to pray, Cathedral bells across England, France, and Burgundy tolled, as townspeople gathered with their Bishops to pray, hoping that this grand virtuous King would not meet the same fate as his evil grandfather Savarics.

During these two months of Nicolau being bedridden the Lords of the Burgundian Empire began to plot and some even took their levies home in preparation for years of succession wars, and one of the King's brother's even was said to be seen in Pusignan watching the baby Miquel like a hawk starving for food. But it would all be for naught, as the prayers of the peasantry and pious incantations of the priesthood, would summon the grand hand of God and heal the Dauphin. For he would finally step out of bed and rip his bandages off his otherwise flawless face that May, and once more lead his troops into battle.

The remainder of that year would see little if not no more actual grand battles. Some pitched small scale skirmishes to be sure, as everyone was raping and plundering like barbarians. But ultimately the Kaiser seeing that the wound he delivered to King Nicolau had not slowed the advancing armies, the Emperor more or less surrendered recalling the bulk of his troops to protect the castles and prepare for a long siege war instead.

And it was while these sieges took place, that the year 1333 would begin and on that day of St. Valentine, the 14th of February, word would reach Nicolau that his mother Queen Gerberge III of Brittany had finally passed away, and that he had now finally been proclaimed King of those Welsh lands. The King would gladly take this crown as it once more a union of the lands in Continental Europe and had strategic importance with regards to his holding in the British Isles, especially since word had it that before this feud with House Staden began that Nicolau had been eyeing the Emerald Island of Ireland.

However without any decisive victory that year, and only having successfully occupied several counties in the Empire the Kaiser rode out to meet the King and Duchess Hildeburg under a banner of peace. He capitulated and agreed to her terms of lowering Imperial Authority on the spring day of April 29, 1333. Thereby making it possible for Nicolau to assume that Bohemia would now be safely inherited by his one and only son Prince Miquel de Forez.

So assuming peace would reign throughout the lands the Holy Dauphin would disband his levies and send them home, feeling the Kaiser would respect him and not realize the futility of taking up arms against the de Forez Dauphin. But this sadly would not be the case, as Kaiser Theitmar III would be so irate at the fact that a foreign king whose ancestors had previously been de Facto vassals of the Empire would ever dare to raise up arms to help some rebel Dukes and Duchesses. What Earthly King could ever so dare to tell a Kaiser how to run his Empire?

And with that the Peace was short-lived for the Kaiser was not finished with Dauphins of Burgundy.

Yeah definitely trying to as I am really really wanting to play a Muslim but I learned my lesson and turned steam updates off, so even if I'm not done it won't hurt because the game won't update. 1.05 killed my von Weimar AAR so definitely don't want that to happen again. And down to about 100 years left anyway so see how much more the de Forez Empire can spread in that 100 years

Yeah I'm not too sure if I'll be done by then as the last ten game years have actually taken about 2 days of playing, so not sure if I'll be done by SoI so off went the updates. Plus that thing people call "real life" has been fairly crazy for me recently so haven't had as much free time to focus on updating and writing and playing. But nevertheless still charging on ahead, need to sit down and type out another update at some point today.

The Feud: The Kaiser's Try at Vengeance

Kaiser Thietmar III Staden was none too happy about the involvement of the de Forez dynasty in Imperial affairs. And with the Burgundians curbing further imperial expansion into Iberia made matters only that much worse. As the Kaiser only had three options to further expand his realm's border. To his East he had the united Crown of Poland-Denmark to worry about, which was none to feasible and their lands not exactly as desirous as those holdings in Iberia. Second he could expand to his Southeast but he would have to fight the united front of Hungary-Russia-Georgia, and even further still sat the tiny Kingdom of Croatia of which had recently been aligned with Burgundy through several generations of marriages binding the small Kingdom to the expansive domains of Western Europe and that of the resurging Eastern Roman Empire. And well to the Kaiser's West as we all know stood the might of Burgundy and the crown jewels of De Forez power.

But coming out of a Crusade, a Holy War for Portucale and the subsequent war to lower Crown Authority, and the large private war for Tunis that the Duke of Alger-Kabyllia had waged on behalf of the Crown the man power of Burgundy was no where near its peak. In fact it was said that the King could barely muster half of his forces, being slightly over 200,000 men, whereas if it had been at its peak King Nicolau could have easily relied upon slightly over 400,000 fighting men to rally around his cause.

So it was seen that if the Kaiser was act against Nicolau and the ever so hungry realm of Burgundy that now was the time. For two short months would pass, as King Nicolau slowly made his progression home disbanding his levies that a messenger would find him before he made it to Pusignan to celebrate in yet another de Forez victory. It seemed that the Thietmar III had decided pounce, and had declared a war to press his claims on the Duchy of Luxembourg and that of the County of Carcassonne.

So King Nicolau the Holy would send out his messengers recalling his levies hoping he could muster the remaining power of his vassals in an attempt to stop the Kaiser from seizing de Forez lands. At the beginning of the war the setting was bleak, it looked as if the Kaiser had planned this attack at the perfect time, knowing full well that Burgundy would be unable to amass its men quick enough to respond, and it should also be noted for posterity that the Kaiser did have a force of 50,000 more men to call upon then King Nicolau.

But nevertheless the Holy Dauphin would pray and pray and pray those first months as his vassals mustered and amassed at their various muster locations throughout the empire. Mauretania's nobility gathered in Tangiers as their fleets assembled to strike at the Iberian Imperial forces, all the while as the soldiers of Burgundian Iberia mustered in Leon. In France and Burgundy and Lotharingia the fighting men slowly wound their way to Pusignan setting up in legions of 20 to 35 thousand men depending on what their duty assignments were. And in England and Scotland the men mustered in London and in York, as the English/Norwegian soldiers mustered in preparation to assault the two Imperial holdings within the British Isles.

It would be the two Imperial holdings in England that would fall first. As their was a nonexistent force of a few thousand Imperialists to hold them and therefore no match to the 50,000 levies the Lords of Albion could muster. Their holdings would fall quickly to assaults as the Burgundian Armada would slowly sail its way to their respective ports to pick up the victorious levies to ship them off to the holdings in the Low Countries to liberate them and lift the sieges that the Kaisers forces had created.

By October 8, 1333, sad tidings from Iberia would make its way to King Nicolau's camp, informing him that his Uncle Duke Miquel de Forez of Navarra had been killed in battle at the hands of Mayor Gotzelo of Velez-Malaga.

As large and grandiose as that battle had been and as saddening it was to see the King's own Uncle die upon a blood soaked field it would be overshadowed by the huge battle led by King Nicolau the Holy, for the Battle of Bar-le-Duc that would be fought the following winter of February 1334, would consist of King Nicolau's forces of 26,464 men up against the slightly superior manpower of the Kaiser's regiment of 27,914 men.

On the eve of Bar-le-Duc its said that King Nicolau rub his scar he had received two years before at the hand of the Kaiser, and would be heard from his tent praying to the Almighty God to give him a chance to return the favor to the cowardly Kaiser. For the first time though in a long time the heart of the Burgundian Army was outnumbered, even such a small difference made the captains of Nicolau weary, and preparing for the worst. As the Kaiser had an extra 1500 men, such an advantage could turn the tide of war completely.

And so the morning would come, and the men would don their armor, the lords and knights looking majestic in their resplendent armor, and then the King himself, wearing no helm to protect his scarred face, but only his crown and gilded armor as he rode atop his war stallion wearing his cape of a majestic purple hue. Supposedly if sources are to be trusted, he wore this color and the gold plated armor to remind the Kaiser and the Imperialists that they're lord may hold the title of Kaiser, but the de Forez's laid claim to that of Augustus, and were the unchallenged rulers of Western Europe and meant to remain so.

And so the battle would finally commence that cold February day as the fields of Bar-le-Duc would turn red as blood would be spilled and bodies would pile as steel met steel, and bone splintered, and blood sprayed. Horses would cry in agony, as young men would cry for their mothers, and the older veterans would groan in the odd realization of the silliness of war as they drew their final breaths.

The Battle seemed to be reaching a stalemate, but Nicolau would prove himself that day in a way that no one had expected. For he waited and set his trap quietly and patiently waiting for the perfect most opportune moment to strike and crush the Imperial forces.

It was at this moment as King Nicolau the Holy brought down the hammer to meet the anvil to shatter his foe that he would come face to face with a kinsman wearing the regalia of the Dukes of Franconia. They would stop in the midst of the battlefield in shock that two men of that mighty family would be fighting cross purposes. Its said that Nicolau would yell the following to Duke Jourdain de Forez of Franconia before taking the man a head shorter.

"You should know better than to raise steel against a family member. You should know that as a de Forez your true liege lord is me. You should know that this day you will submit and meet your God, and on this day you will repent for these sins and transgressions against God's Hand upon Earth!"

With that the Duke of Franconia would be killed. The fight between King and Duke would not last long as the young man was not skilled with the sword and no match for the King who had seen battles all over the whole of Europe. And with that the King's plan had come to fruition the Imperial army was routing the Kaiser nowhere to be seen as the remaining 10,000 men of the HRE fled on foot trying to escape their pursuers knowing that only death laid for them back upon the fields of Bar-le-Duc. When it was all tallied the bodies of both sides that had perished that day upon that bloody field totaled near 26,000 casualties with 17,000 of it coming from the Kaiser's forces.

With the successful conclusion of Bar-le-Duc, the Kaiser had no other option but to surrender. He would put up a few more fights, but could no longer muster the will power after seeing his forces devastated twice within only a few short years. Even crushed by a weakened Burgundy that everyone assumed he could stand up to and defeat. If history shows us anything the Kaiser either was of unsound strategic mind or God himself had returned to smile and bless the face and patriarch of the de Forez family once more.

For on April 28, 1334, the Peace of Luxembourg was signed, thereby forever surrendering his claims on the Duchy of Luxembourg and that of Carcassonne. Reparations were even agreed too, as the Kaiser had to pay King Nicolau 1700 ducats for damages sustained to Burgundian lands and crops throughout the ill advised war.

And again King Nicolau II "the Holy" de Forez "the Holy Dauphin" would once more begin his procession to Pusignan, already planning another way to smite the Kaiser. As even though terms of peace were agreed to, Nicolau had no intention of abiding to those terms and conditions.

The Feud: Minor Hostilities

The defeat of the Kaiser during his attempt to claim Burgundian lands was met with massive celebrations when King Nicolau the Holy returned to Pusignan. The Holy Dauphin had proven that God was more smiling and blessing House de Forez and some would even go on to say that the Creator of Heaven and Earth had granted the Lord of Burgundy the right to further solidify the family's hold in Europe. For just a few days after returning to the ancestral seat of power word would reach the palace that a son had been born to the King of Burgundy therefore, stripping his wife of her lawful inheritance of Bohemia.

King Nicolau would not be happy about this and begin sending his emissaries about the German Courts requesting assistance to kill the young babe of a prince knwon as Erich. And also during that time the Queen Consort Berta Duchess of Bavaria would request the King's assistance in a plot to further curb Imperial Crown Authority from Medium to Low.

And two weeks after the fact with more than enough backers Prince Erich of Bohemia would die of unknown yet rather suspicious causes. Placing Berta back in line to rightfully inherit the crown.

The summer would pass relatively peacefully, tensions along the Burgundian/HRE borders would remain high as Thietmar III was none to pleased with his embarrassing defeat. But the Kaiser would turn his attention to Iberia, and hope to claim the County of Toledo away from Emir Ahmad III of Galicia. Toledo was the one county left in Iberia that bordered the other lands that the HRE had conquered, but had the sad fate of technically being a de Jure county to the duchy of Toledo of which a de Forez held control of. And so with news of the Kaiser's new decision and new war in hopes of preventing more gains by his rival de Forez dynasty.

The Kaiser could well have been victorious, which would have only raised tensions between the two houses further. But Nicolau the Holy Dauphin saw no reason to allow the Kaiser to claim land that was rightfully his, so Burgundy seeing their chance to spite the Kaiser and the Staden Dynasty further declared war against the Galician Emir, pressing their Ducal Claim for Toledo on October 2, 1334.

The war would be far from glorious, as their would be no memorable battle for the bards to reenact nor the troubadors to sing of. There would be no proof of chivalry nor valor in this war. For the masses of Burgundy would assault the Toledo holdings and rampage throughout Galicia forcing Emir Ahmad III to surrender just six months later, handing the County of Toledo over to Burgundy, therefore ending what would be the Kaiser's last Iberian Holy War.

After this victory, a victory in which Nicolau had no part in for he had stayed in Pusignan feeling that his Captains were more than capable of orchestrating a minor war, that word would be received from Holy Jerusalem that King Miquel IV "the Great" de Forez had died on June 24, 1335, therefore passing his crown unto his son and heir Guilhem I.

The remainder of the year would once again slowly tick by the days giving into weeks, weeks into months and soon a new year would dawn, with sad news from the Byzantine Empire. Basileus Anthemios I de Forez it was reported had died in an accident, supposedly succumbing to some disgusting Greek Plot, for the Greek Courts were snake pits, where everyone walked with poison vials and daggers hidden beneath their cloaks. In fact, King Nicolau II found it rather surprising that the de Forez's had held unto the Eastern Roman Empire for this long.

Even more surprising and something the Greeks probably hated more than anything with the death of Basileus Anthemios I his son would be raised to the purple, but this son was Egyptian, and would be known as Emperor Leontios II de Forez of the ERE.

After word from the Eastern Empire King Nicolau would in memory of his dead kinsman take up a Byzantine plot once more. For he would send his emissaries about to test the waters on a plot to kill King Reinhard of Bohemia, which if successful would place his wife the Duchess of Bavaria upon the Bohemian throne. The combined whispers of his Spymaster and Chancellor seemed to do the trick as many leading Bohemians would back the plot much as they had the plot to kill the barely 1 year old babe Prince Erich.

For with this timely Palace Coup and the ascension of Queen Berta of Bohemia that would strike an even more frightful cord in the Imperial halls of power. For Burgundy stood to inherit the most powerful Kingdom within the Holy Roman Empire. And even more frightening was the sad fact that Norway was still under de Forez rule even though they were still technically a vassal. It was now obvious to Kaiser Thietmar III Staden that there would be no turning back from the brink. That War, endless wars would continue and that there would be no way back from the precipice. For he and he alone had brought the Empire to the brink of destruction, and it would seem at this startling moment in time that there was no longer anything the Kaiser's could do to prevent the further decline in the face of the overwhelming power of the Burgundian Dauphins.

The Feud: The Burgundian Offensive - Part I

A year and a half would pass after the successful Burgundian backed Palace Coupe in Bohemia to install the Queen Consort Berta upon the Bohemian throne. During this time hostilities between the Stadens and De Forez's would wane and the status quo reemerge, however the Kaiser sat none too comfortably upon his throne for he had suffered four great embarrassments at the hands of the Burgundian royal family: Crown Authority lowered, failed war for Luxembourg and Carcassonne, Lost the War for Toledo do to quick Burgundian response, and the sad fact that his Spymaster was unable to stop the Burgundian Coupe in Bohemia.

Whispers would flow throughout the Empire, rumors of the current inability of the Staden Kaisers to maintain the viability of the Holy Empire. The German Princes unhappiness regarding this sad fact would result in many of them backing a successor from a different family, although these nomination plots would fall short of a change of dynasties in the present. However, there would be the constant request in Pusignan of the Kaiser's brother requesting Burgundian arms to place him upon the Imperial throne. But as he was a Staden himself the Holy Dauphin would refuse these diplomatic overtures and even turn to threaten the brother with death if they continued.

But back in Pusignan the nobles of Burgundy would whisper about their liege's underhanded tactics with respect to Bohemia. Why had he not just waited and pressed his child and heirs claim on the Kingdom when the moment was right? Why go through all the trouble of an assassination when war could have easily brought forth the same conclusion? These questions with regards to the King's once unblinking fervor for war would lead them to decide that the Holiest of Dauphins had since lost that Bravery that had ignited his fervent soul in his youth.

As the King reigned from upon his throne in Pusignan enjoying the break in constant and total warfare he had been inflicted with over the years word began to creep in from Tunisia, declaring that Duke Esteve I of Alger-Kabyllia had forced the Emir of Tunis into capitulation and had seized yet another North African Duchy in the name of the de Forez dynasty and that of Holy Burgundy.

Yet another long year would pass with little happening save for the peasantry beginning to think that perhaps the Staden-de Forez feud was officially at an end.But truth be told both realms were so brutally exhausted and beat up from their constant clashing that it seemed they were both licking their respective wounds while preparing for renewed aggression. But it would be in March of 1338 when a new man would enter the Court of Pusignan, for King Nicolau had arranged a grand matrilineal marriage between Princess Elena de Forez and Prince Arpad Arpad of Hungary-Rus-Georgia. This marriage seemed to show one thing that with the Holy Roman Empire reeling with de Forez influence in Central Europe, and with Western Europe now pacified and mostly united beneath the banner of the Dauphins, that the de Forez's ambitions would now reach further and into Eastern Europe, to the third most powerful Kingdom in the World at that Time, for the Holy Dauphin dreamed of a day when all the world was ruled by the ancient blood of Count Artua de Forez.

Another long year would pass uneventfully once more, but sadly would see the hopes of the peasantry that the Feud was over quashed. For, riders and emissaries were seen riding to and from the palace in Pusignan, carrying words to lords in far off reaches of the realm to ready their forces, as those Dukes would return emissaries requesting financial assistance for fear that another Imperial war could bankrupt their impoverished duchies. Ambassadors from the de Forez King of Norway would show up as well begging his Burgundian counterpart to leave Norway's lands and fiefs alone as had been the tradition and status quo thus far in the wars involving the de Forez's and Stadens. Word would go to Bohemia to tell the Queen Consort Berta I that she should revolt against the Kaiser to help her husband's planned incursion. But alas to no avail for she claimed her nobility would not stand to support such a cause.

And with all the diplomatic efforts underway and the Dukes of Burgundy and all other de Forez realms united word was sent to the Staden Kaiser to hand over the Duchy of Tyrol or face the might of Burgundy once more.

This was a turning point in history as it should be noted. For up to this point Burgundy had never actively sought to wrest control of land in the HRE via force of arms. It had only too this point seized breakaways or involved itself in third party wars for these means in favor of those ends. The policy of the de Forez monarchy had evolved and now sought to best the Imperial Army all on its own, in its own war, for King Nicolau on January 8, 1339, would begin the first ever offensive war to gain land against the Holy Roman Empire.

There would be many battles, many sieges, back and forth, tit for tat. The war would rage and rage and see the heart of Europe burn. Crops would be ravaged, peasants would be put to the sword and raped. But as far as grand battles as had been seen in the past there would be none. For this was far from an honorable war, it was a war of mere attrition. A war to see who would give up the soonest. For both armies had been equally matched, both armies had been beaten and bloodied beyond repair.

And for three years such travesties would be waged, with no clear winner in sight. For it seemed that both parties would end up giving up, surrendering their causes in a White Mutual Peace. But nevertheless such a thing would not occur. For the Kaiser had had enough. His treasury was depleted from his liberal usage of mercenaries and stood no chance to the vastly superior treasury of the de Forez family. And seeing that the constant tug-of-war with the Dauphins was futile the Kaiser would capitulate on January 21, 1342, thereby surrendering the reigns of the Duchy of Tyrol handing it into the arms of King Nicolau, once more granting the de Forez's a fifth victory in their long lasting feud against House Staden.

This was only the first such offensive War undertaken by King Nicolau II "the Holy" de Forez, for a second thrust in Imperial lands would commence just three years later.

Just a note to the reader I may add the War for Franconia into the newest chapter above ^^^^ as it was a short war and may allow me to portray the end of the Reconquista and another slightly more minor war that the Holy Dauphin partakes in Eastern Europe a bit better. So if I edit the Chapter to detail that War for Franconia which takes place in 1345 (three years after Tyrol) I will let you all know so you can check it out. Or I may just make a small posting about it without tagging it into the above chapter. Just still debating on where to place it at the moment.


Sorry its taking me forever for updates real life between work and a new quarter of school and other such things are taking a toll on me and writing. Haven't even really played the game in over a week, but still a good twenty to thirty years ahead of the current time in the AAR so can still update when I got time and creativity rolling around in the old head.

So to the faithful reader of the Chronicles of the Little House de Forez please forgive me for taken alot of time in the recent weeks.

The End of the Reconquista and the Sacking of Croatia

Shortly after the capitulation of the Kaiser in 1342, King Nicolau's wife Queen Berta I of Bohemia would declare war against her Imperial overlord in an effort to further lower Imperial Crown Authority. Unfortunately for her and her Bohemian court they would refuse to allow Burgundy to help their realms futile war, and so King Nicolau sat in Pusignan anxiously waiting between couriers from Germany as they filed in bearing news and tidings from the war. Much to the King's worry however the war raged for three years, and at that point the Kaiser had effectively turned the tide around and regathered the strength of his shattered vassals and had begun occupying Bohemian lands.

King Nicolau fearful of what may befall his wife should she lose her war would declare a war pressing Baron Baldewin's claim on Franconia on January 19, 1345, in an attempt to engage the Imperial forces that were laying siege to Bohemian territories. However, much to the surprise of everyone in Burgundy and throughout the realm the sight of Burgundian arms once more mustering sent shockwaves of horror throughout the Kaiser's dominions.

For just three months after the declaration of war, Queen Berta of Bohemia would give in to the Kaiser and surrender on the 13 of April 1345, and just two small weeks later the Kaiser himself would sue for peace surrendering the duchy of Franconia over to Baron Baldewin de Forez.

After the quick and painless war, in fact probably the quickest war ever against the Holy Roman Empire to this point in time, Holy King Nicolau II de Forez would return yet once more to his abode in Pusignan to rule over his many realms, and once more entertain the many emissaries from throughout the world that would visit the court in hopes of winning a favor with the most powerful and godly King of Europe.

It was during this time though that a lone plot would be whispered about. For the Duke of Norfolk Bounconte de Forez was attempting to gather allies in an attempt to seize Nicolau's English holdings in Kent and declare himself King of England. So the Holy Dauphin sent word to his martial to order the Duke's arrest and to have him imprisoned in the castle in Kent to await the day that the King felt to travel to England to hear the Duke's case and try him as per the law required.

Towards the end of 1345, an ambassador from the Balkans would travel to Pusignan representing a land and realm that no one had heard of before. For it would seem an obscure family had risen their wealth to such a grand extent that they were able to proclaim themselves Kings. As word from the Ambassador had it on December 7, 1345, his liege Maximos Murzuphlos had created the Despotate of Bulgaria, which also encompassed large tracts of land in North Africa as well.

Following these tidings from the East, King Nicolau would begin to ponder if the Byzantine branch of de Forez's would be able to survive, for it seemed Hungary was all to hungry and much too overpowering for the Eastern Empire, and now a new fledgling King who's desires no one would know, and the ever power hungry Komnenos gaining more and more lands. It would seem that the Eastern branch of the family especially now that they had become Egyptian may be measured in decades rather then more centuries.

So with this in mind and knowing that the East needed more de Forez allies the Holy Dauphin decided turned his eyes to Croatia. That small country that had been under the powerful thumb of the Trpimirovic family for over 420 years. And at the same time knowing he would have plenty of levies to spare the King also turned his ever studious mind to the last Iberian Emirate of Galicia. And on March 29, 1346, would declare a Holy War against the Emirate of Galicia, as well as pressing his relative's Simoun de Forez's claim to the Croatian Crown.

The Holy War for Galicia would end rather quickly as the Emirate had no more allies, no more brethren of the faith to jump to their aid. For they were alone, isolated and free to be molested. And would therefore surrender on December 26, 1346.

Almost a year after the defeat of the Galician Emir, the war to plant Simoun de Forez upon the Croatian throne would end with the Croatian King Ratimir surrendering on August 13, 1347, thereby ending 423 consecutive years of Trpimirovic rule, and bringing in the rule of the de Forez Dynasty to Croatia. A rule that would hopefully be welcomed and honored and sung by the peasantry, for the family of Dauphins were equal to none.

After the wars the levies would return home, and the Holy Dauphin back to his estate in Pusignan to consolidate his new lands, and appoint new vassals and catch up on the administration of his realm that he had left behind almost two years before. But it would be on the fateful and glorious day of October the 12 in the year of our Lord Thirteen Hundred and Forty-eight that word come from the Duke of Portucale, informing the King that he had successfully taken the County of Porto, the last and final Muslim Holding in Iberia.

The King was more than elated at this news and would send his Chaplain directly to Rome to inform the Pope of the Grand and Completed Reconquista. For from that day forward Iberia had been liberated and brought into the loving embrace of the mother church.

The Last Years of the Holy Dauphin

King Nicolau II "the Holy" de Forez would breath his last breath after 43 years of arduous and trying rule. He would fall just shy of five years from matching the Great Dauphin's long reign, but it is said that the Holy Dauphin outshined his ancestor in terms of Piety and Prestige and Virtuosity.
But for the moment we shall focus on those final years for the last ten years of his reign would be active and involve some more grand expansion in the name of the Holy Church. And the feud between Staden and Forez would once more resume. For, the de Forez duke of Toscany had stolen Franconia once more. And not wanting to violate a truce with the Kaiser the Holy King would plot for his demise therefore vanquishing his long-time foe.

The War to retake Franconia would once more be an affair of little note. No battle's that would be sung throughout the ages were waged. Just long months of siege, for no grand battle such as that fateful day upon the fields of Bar-le-Duc would happen this time. And once more the Holy Dauphin would be victorious, for we all know the great lord of Heaven and Earth had blessed Nicolau the day he squirmed from his mother's womb.

After regaining the Duchy of Franconia the King would reign from Pusignan and take great pride in the realm he had rebuilt. He began to take to drinking and becoming mesmerized once more in the beauty of women, for the young ladies of the court were looking ever so tempting especially now that his wife was older and in reigning from her far away court in Bohemia.

For the first time in a very long time this eye for the younger women would lead a de Forez King of Burgundy to sire a bastard. A first considering a bastard had not come into the world for the direct King's line since Duke Artau the first of the de Forez Dauphins almost two and a half centuries ago in those most ancient and far removed times when the dynasty was small and their power meager at best.

This would ultimately lead the Holy Dauphin to turn to alcohol even more, something he had refrained from since that all too embarassing time as a youth when he blabbered a bit too freely about a plot he was involved with trying to lower Imperial Crown Authority. It would happen once more. For it seemed the old King Nicolau was turning to his sins of his youth in solace of his waning life.

Throughout this slow decline the world would see the pages turn on countless other de Forez monarchs and sovereigns, as Markward II King of Norway would leave the world as would King Guilhem I of Jerusalem who would rot in some foreign dungeon. And later the Egyptian Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire Leontios II de Forez "the Fat" would die of a heart attack at the age of 41, allowing his son Sabah de Forez to don the Purple of the ancient Roman Imperators, who would go on to matrilineally marry the Holy Dauphins daughter Mabila on the 21st of December 1356.

Queen Berta I of Bohemia would finally hear news of her husband's transgressions and his blatant use of mistresses in Pusignan and retire to a convent in fury and utter desperation, forgetting that she too had a realm to rule over.

But then when all hope looked lost for the Holy Dauphin, when he seemed to have completely fallen into complete and total infatuation with the life of the rich and all powerful, of being able to take whatever precious lady, being able to scare any upcoming Duke or foreigner so badly they would crawl upon their hands and knees to beg forgiveness, the Pope would come calling.

Pope Silverius III would send word to his faithful servant King Nicolau II informing him that a Crusade to take Egypt had begun, and that the Holy Father would much appreciate the Holiest Dauphin's force of arms. It is said that at that moment when the Papal Legate read the message from the Pope that Nicolau returned to his former virtuous and bloodthirsty self. For he desired Muslim blood and desired to sack more heathen lands in the name of the Mother Church. So on August 18, 1358, he would raise his men and fleets for what would be his second and final Crusade.

You would think that the Crusade against the Caliphate would involve many glorious battles but unfortunately they were lacking once more. For Burgundian forces had swamped the whole of Egypt raiding and pillaging and raping. Burning mosques and tearing down crescent moons in favor of crosses. As the Holy Dauphin would not enjoy seeing such heathen symbols in his new lands.

The only real news of note during the Crusade was that the new emperor and son in law to Nicolau Basileus Sabah de Forez had died maimed and crippled passing the whole of the Empire over to Nicolau's young infantile grandson Bernat de Forez.

And finally on June 29, 1359, the Crusade would be won and all lands rewarded to King Nicolau II "the Holy" de Forez. The duchies would be handed down as follows:

Son Prince Artau de Forez named Duke of Aswan
Kinsman Magnus de Forez named Duke of Damietta
Kinsman Guiges I de Forez named Duke of Cairo
Grandson Audoin de Forez would be named Count of all the Counties constituting the Duchy of Alexandria and would later be raised to Duke of Alexandria by his uncle (Nicolau's son Miquel V)

With the conquest of Egypt complete King Nicolau unable to usurp the Kingdom title as the Shia Caliphate was still in the middle of a war would create the Titular title of Nubia, and would be crowned King of Nubia by Pope Silverius III on June 30th 1359.

After obtaining his newest crown the Holy Dauphin would set sail with his levies back to the ports of Marseille, where he would travel to the Bishopric of Avignon to spend time with the aging old Bishop who had been so pivotal in his rise as the holiest of all European Royalty. It was there that he would seek absolution for his sins, and after receiving the holy sacraments would fall asleep and never awake.

Nicolau's reign will forever be debated on whether his was the grandest of Burgundian Kings or if the title of the Greatest Dauphin still belonged to Miquel II. For they both accomplished so many grand schemes and helped forge such an Empire that even the ancient Caesars would be proud of. For his story was that of a man who came from sin and drinking and embarrassing mistakes, to that of a holy man hell-bent on appeasing God by destroying every heathen he could find, to a man who felt it his duty to help destroy and lay waste to the only obstacle in his family's way in his grand feud with the Staden Dynasty of the HRE, and back again to a man who would take in his fare share of earthly excesses.

He had come full circle and then some in his long 43 years upon his lofty throne, and would pass all his accomplishments onto his son who would now be crowned King Miquel V de Forez King of Western Europe and Albion and Nubia and Mauretania.

The Short Reign of Miquel V

King Miquel V de Forez King of Western Europe, child of Saint Nicolau King of Burgundy, would rise to the throne in hopes of elevating the name of Miquel back to its former glory since there had been so many prior Miquel's that had fallen so horribly short of the Great Dauphin. But his reign would sadly be a short lived breath, a puff in the breeze and all one could say of the Fifth Miquel is that he was a midget in shadows of his ancestral giants.

He lacked the conviction, the grit, the knowledge, the kindness, the terror, that all the previous Burgundian monarchs had held so dear. He was soft, supposedly quick witted, but unable to use those wits to recreate himself into a mighty dauphin. But as we say these sad facts about King Miquel V it should be duly noted as well that he had wasted away in the Court of Pusignan living in Saint Nicolau's shadow. For this new King would be a full 30 years old at his coronation, by no means a young lad, and already patient in his middle age to where the foolishness of youth can sometimes elevate a king into the legends or lead to his demise. Sadly there was also the matter of succession at hand, for this new king was old and had no son.

The succession would carry on without so much as a hiccup for the great men of the realm new Miquel and dared not tread upon the memory of their Saintly King by revolting against his son. But nonetheless ambitions would emerge as they always emerge as Duke Torfinn de Forez of Oxford desired and was plotting to seize the English Crown.

Four years into the King's reign would come dark tidings from the East as the Iron Khan rode in through the steps beginning his rampage through the Golden Horde.

And then as more time passed away with Miquel just laying back enjoying the Court of Pusignan as he had all his years growing up, would receive word that his Mother the Queen of Bohemia Berta I had passed away finally succumbing to severe stress at the age of 53. The king had sought to kill her of course but held the action off as long as he could, and was happy he had, for now he would receive a second coronation, and gain the throne of Bohemia and own much of the De Jure lands of Bavaria as well.

Then on August 4, 1365, Miquel would declare his first war, against House Staden once more fanning the flames of that long standing Staden-Forez battle for European supremacy that had entered a stalemate in the intervening years. This war however, was for Adalbert de Forez's claim on the duchy of Toscana.

While the war was raging no one gaining the upper hand Miquel would still spend most of his time in Pusignan not desiring to go out on the field of battle as his Father before him had. Instead he knew it was his first and foremost duty to bear forth a strong and male heir to carry forth the de Forez name. And on October 23, 1365, Prnce Nicolau de Forez would be born, his birth was brutal though and long, for all his might it seemed the babe was struggling to stay within his mother's womb not wanting to enter the world. For it would be said that the child new what awaited him not so far in the future. For as it would come to pass he would eventually be the first child king in Burgundian history.

Four months later in February of 1366, Kaiser Theitmar IV Staden, would capitulate, surrendering the Duchy of Toscana to Adalbert de Forez.

Following the victory King Miquel would send word to all the corners of the vast realm. To Egypt, and sandy Nubia, to the Scottish Highlands, and frigid Finnmark, to Baltic Pommerania, and off to the alehouses of Bavaria, to the Taifa lands of Iberia and to the vineyards of France and Italy, for it was decreed a celebration, a Tourney should finally be held in honor of the Fifth Dauphin by name of Miquel.

Following the Tournament nothing really would occur during the reign of Miquel, save for the imprisonment of Duke Andreas III of Lorraine for plotting to assassinate some noble. And the matrilineal marriage of Princess Alais and Thomas Staden heir of the Holy Roman Empire.

On February 1, 1369, more celebrations would erupt as the succession was firmly established as a second son Prince Raimon was born. Which is a good thing and great tidings to Burgundy for having one small child with many crowns adorning his youthful head is bad enough. But that same child king not having a brother should some evil thing occur would surely rip the realm asunder.

Finally, on the 28th of May, 1369, just short of ten full years upon the throne, King Miquel V de Forez would die in his sleep forever leaving the world behind without accomplishing anything of note.