Isles of Glory: A Dynastic History

The Defense of Scotland, Part 3

Southern and Central Scotland were filled with Fatimid men, and Duke Ottar Crovan's southern strategy backfired. His armies and what mercenaries could be hired headed to sea to find a better place to battle the enemy and to take some time to see the bigger picture. In the end, Ottar decided to try rescuing counties close to the Western Isles: Sutherland and Ross. Rebels rose up in Ross against the Muslim oppressions and so Ottar landed at Sutherland in late 1177.



Pål reached a peace agreement with the Emir of Consenza around the same time, but was still faced with Lecce. Benevento was safe, but Pål's county of Reggio was lost to the Muslims. With the Fatimids distracted by England to the south, Ottar was able to conquer Sutherland without resistance, and proceed to Ross where he put down the rebellion. Only a few months later, Ross joined the Western Isles as well, and for the first time, Ottar saw a positive side of the war. If he could hold onto his newfound counties, even if Man remained lost to him, it would be a gain. Under Scottish control, Sutherland and Ross were unavailable, but now they were his since Scotland was no more. Scotland was once a nation, but now it would be a battleground and a land of many rulers.

Ottar's next step was the invasion of Moray. Declaring war on that Emir as well as Buchnan, Ottar defeated the local regiment of Moray and began the siege. King Simon, seeing the opportunities in the North, joined the siege and claimed the conquered land for himself. Despite this, when unrest was revealed to Ottar regarding England, he give up the plotters to the King, declaring unequivocally that he would not betray the man who had turned the tide of the war. As with Scotland, Ottar felt that England had a chance against the enemy. This time he was right as the English had not lost a single county and had gained at least three (Mar, Moray and Angus).

Moray would become the crucial battleground separating the Christian counties in the North from Muslim counties of the south. Though the Fatimid Empire could have bypassed Ottar at Moray and landed anywhere on the coast of Northern Scotland, they preferred to rush forward into the county. Thus the defense of Scotland came down to the defense of Moray. Desperate yet confident, Ottar and Erik Munso fought off several minor attacks as mercenaries occasionally arrived to reinforce their position.



Yet the most reknowned battle at Moray was yet to come as Erik's army of 2400 (85% being mercenaries), faced an invasion of over 4500 Fatimid troops. Erik kept his forces from fleeing against the might of the enemy, holding onto a position that seemed lost several times, but in the end intimidating the enemy into fleeing. All this was at the cost of a vicious wound inflicted by the enemy in one of the most desperate minutes of the battle. Some of Erik's troops were able to rally despite his absence from command and they made a last counterattack that pushed the Muslims back.

Meanwhile, Ottar relocated his operations to Sutherland, which gave him a much improved ability to send hired mercenaries into battle quickly. Neopolitans were hired in Sutherland in January and arrived in Moray three weeks later, just in time to once again repulse an invasion from the Fatimid Empire.

After all this, in April of 1181, Ottar decided to press his luck and advanced his forces from Moray into Atholl. There they defeated another Muslim army. Chasing down small Fatimid armies, Ottar's mercenaries won battles in Argyll and Buchnan before retreating once more to Moray to stop a siege there. Wishing for peace and the gains already made, Ottar offered it to the Fatimids, but they refused.

Ottar's ducal coffers had been drained from 6600 ducats to 1600 in a matter of years. So, shocked at the rapid expenditures, Ottar declared that no more mercenaries would be hired, and now the forces of the Western Isles and what mercenaries were left would have to make due. With under 2000 troops after all the battles of the past months and years, Ottar desperately hoped he could hold on to Sutherland at least. As he was quickly discovering, the county was far richer and more populous than Sudðreyjar or Iceland.

In Italy, Pål, once child-count of Benevento, had become a strong 21-year-old, prepared to take over the duchy in due time. He finally had peace, as Lecce gave up its war. And his wife was pregnant with their first child.

Whereas in Ireland, the war with Ulster was over. Despite all the victories Ottar had there, the sudden war against the Fatimids allowed Ulster plenty of time. Peace was signed between the powers, making the Irish campaign a singularly unproductive use of mercenaries.

Finally, the overwhelming Fatimid attack came, and Moray would serve as the battlefield yet again. A Fatimid force of 5500 troops soundly defeated the 1800 Sudðreyjar soldiers. Erik Munso had died over a year ago and his inspiration was missing and sorely needed. Additionally, the enemy troops were able to prevent many of Ottar's soldiers from fleeing, leaving the Duke with only a few hundred left.

The Heathens are Splintered...huh?

Last time on Isles of Glory:

The defenses of Moray falter as Duke Ottar declares he'd rather die with a pocketbook than without one, ending the recruitment of mercenaries that had kept the Isles afloat. England stands by in safety to the south as Fatimid forces march North from Moray.

One last trick:

And so Ottar faces another desperate challenge to his realm, having so successfully fought off many before. Even the Pope makes a pronouncement that he will not recognize any peace that doesn't result in the Muslims being kicked out of Scotland. England continues to make poor use of its massive regiments, keeping them in reserve to the south rather than using their advantage in numbers against the weary Fatimid armies who have campaigned so long.

Ottar has one last game to play. Hearing rumors from citizens in Sutherland who had lived under Muslim rule for a short time, Ottar finds out that the Fatimid Empire is under a lot of internal political stress as a result of the counterattacks from the Isles and England. Also, the invading armies are almost exclusively composed of regiments mustered by vassals for the command of the empire and the long war with their armies has caused a lot of grumbling amongst these Emirs. Reacting to this news, Ottar seeks an audience with the commanders of the invading forces. The Fatimid Empire assured its vassals that the war with Scotland would be over quickly, but they forgot to take into account the Western Isles and Duke Ottar's ability to draw one more Kingdom into the war

Wary of the ruler who defeated them so many times at Moray and humiliated their larger armies, they nonetheless grant Ottar his request. In tense negotiations, they agree to end the war against the Isles, unofficially, with the pretext that they are turning to the larger threat of England. All of the emirs know that they cannot survive a war of independence against their liege and so their subterfuge is critical and necessary. Though not as good as peace with the emperor himself, Ottar gladly accepts the plan.

With the war over, unofficially, Ottar recalled his troops and waited tensely to see what would happen with England. Despite the agreement, he still hoped King Simon would march troops north and retake Scotland. Looking back on the brutal war which cost the Western Isles over 5000 ducats, Ottar saw that some unlikely gains were made. In the balance, the Isles lost Man, lost the chance at conquering Ulster, and in exchange gained Sutherland and Ross. While Dublin was a big prize indeed, Sutherland is a productive and mighty county by Sudðreyjar standards. With a more accessible location and proximity to Ross as well as the Western Isles, Ottar declared Sutherland to be his new capital, permanently, turning his wartime residence there into his court and keep.

Ottar, clever as he was in making the deal with Fatimid vassals, was overshadowed by his son Pål, who already had a reputation for cleverness and keen powers of observation and manipulation.



After avoiding another dance with death, Ottar's tale was being told outside England and Ireland, in places like Norway, France and Rome. Across Europe, Ottar became known as "The Defiant" for his refusal to give up regardless of the situation. With his realm secured and a strong son to succeed him, who had faced his own perils against Lecce, Ottar was finally at peace. He would die on November 23rd, 1183, one year after he'd negotiated the end of the war. Ottar the Defiant would be immortalized in history for his role in retaking Sutherland and Ross and stopping the Fatimid juggernaut, if only for a moment.

Pål was married to Aethelhild de Gael, and had lost two sons to illnesses before third son Skofte was born. Looking to develop his lands for prosperity, Pål proposed rebuilding the library in Sudðreyjar that had been sold long ago, and also building a tile factory in Sutherland. Both projects were underway during the Summer of 1184, while England was still at war with the Fatimids. King Simon sent a letter to Pål that summer, asking for the service of Pål's forces.

Pål agreed, sending his forces south to join the mighty armies of the strategically inept English King. Over a year of fighting, England made no aggressive campaigns into Scotland, instead defeating the few regiments of Fatimid forces which had wandered south.

Pål much preferred lending his armies to another man's war to fighting a losing war himself, and so he didn't worry too much about the expense as the war between the two mighty nations dragged on in a deadlock. Like a massive game of chicken, both sides kept to their sides of the England - Scotland borders, never crossing the line to fight an enemy regiment.

[size=+1]End of Part 4: Flame of the West[/size]

War's End

[size=+1]Part 5: Steps to Power[/size]

With Pål's forces off fighting for the English, he had an unexpected visit from Bishop Ivar. Ivar led the Ross regiment fighting for the English, and he returned to the court injured from battle wounds. Though skirmishes were rare and little news travelled from England about the progress of the war, Ivar had some startling news for Pål. Despite the many armies of England who were holding defensive positions, the county of Shrewsbury had fallen and King Simon called on the Isles' Regiments to hit back against the invaders. The Fatimids had left the county headed east and were promptly routed by Simon's armies which were headed south in response. In the meanwhile, Ivar and the other regimental commanders decided to retake Shrewsbury, since it was undefended. After only six months of the siege, Shrewsbury was conquered and became part of the Isles.



Pål was greatly pleased at gaining a county at no real risk and little cost. He immediately set about establishing his administration of the county and listened to Ivar's tales of the war. Ivar had much to tell him about the cowardice of England's commanders, who refused to advance into Muslim-controlled Scotland, preferring to hold ground. Over thirty thousand English troops had been called up, and were facing around ten thousand Fatimids. Despite this, England made further no gains after conquering Angus, Mar and Moray early in the war.

Five years after Ottar negotiated his informal truce with the Fatimids, the war was over officially, with a peace agreement between England and the Muslim empire. At long last, the Jihad against Scotland, England and the Western Isles had ended. For Scotland and her people, disaster had struck and Scotland would never be the same. In Southern Scotland the Muslims ruled under the auspices of their Fatimid and Seljuk overlords. In the north, a new Scottish power was establishing itself, slowly. First Ross and Sutherland joined the Crovan realm, but in March of 1192, the shortest war in Sudðreyjar's memory was fought. An independent Muslim state of Galloway faced Pål's Northern Scottish regiments and lost in four months. Galloway was already at war with Cumberland, and the additional forces from that county helped end the siege quickly.



After seven generations of Crovans: Gudrød, Havard (who was never Duke because Gudrød outlived him), Eirik, Aslak, Eirik II, Ottar and now Pål, the Western Isles had gone from ruling one county to nine: Western Isles, Austisland, Vestisland, Osraige, Benevento, Sutherland, Ross, Galloway and Shrewsbury. The Crovan family now held three ducal titles, Pål was duke of Iceland and Leinster as well as the Isles.

Unfortunately, neither Isle of man or any of the Scottish powers except Galloway have broken away yet.

State of the World: 1192

England's Power


Denmark in Peril


Ryazan gobbles up the Pagan counties


Seljuk Might


What's Left of Byzantium


Blue France is in Africa and France, Navarra is in Spain, both are the same realm color