Chapter 1
No one really knows how the woman who called herself Morgan le Fay came to power.Contemporary literary sources claim it was via witchcraft and sorcery, and while those are surely myths, it's the only explanation given. By all accounts, Morgan was a beautiful and smart woman, but one with character flaws aplenty. The witchcraft allegations were certainly based on her fairly obvious interest in the occult matters, and hardly helped her already pretty poor reputation among her vassals. What is known is that she was the duchess of Mercia, and ruled a substantial part of England.
[SUB]Morgan le Fay and her lands in fall of 1066.[/SUB]
It is said that Morgan was trying to fabricate a claim on the English crown, but couldn't get enough supporters in time. Apparently, her well-known dishonest and cruel nature made convincing people to help her a problem...
Her vassals largely hated her, and her council, while reasonably competent, was no exception. With England invaded by both William the Bastard and Harald Hardrade, doom was approaching. The unmarried duchess seeked a strong ally, and found one by marrying prince Knud Svensen Ylving, a man with no redeeming qualities but the fact he was made the heir to the kingdom of Denmark shortly after the wedding.
[SUB]Cruelty abounds in the marriage.[/SUB]
Even though she hoped to fabricate a claim on the English crown, Morgan wasn't completely disloyal. Seeing Harold's armies moving to attack the Norsemen in York, she summoned her levies and ordered them to attempt to turn the tide of battle if possible.
[SUB]A mighty force of almost 1000 men![/SUB]
While the plot to gain a claim on the crown was going along a bit before grinding to a halt, so was the war effort. At the battle of York, Harold, for all intents and purposes, lost England.
[SUB]Damn that fool, now we'll have to deal with Willy-Nilly.[/SUB]
Morgan disbanded her levies, and for the rest of war she only attempted to harass Harald's force that kept conquering her lands - she kept sending one of her two major vassals, the brave earl Eadric of Shrewsbury and his small levy to hamper Harald's progress.
[SUB]The fact that she was Eadric's heir and that him dying in a battle would be quite useful certainly had nothing do with it.[/SUB]
On 13th of April 1068 A.D., Harold surrendered to William. This cost Morgan the counties of Warwick and Leicester.
[SUB]She still tried to fabricate a claim on the crown, but William was, unfortunately, loved by most of his subjects.[/SUB]
Ever a schemer, Morgan started plotting to revoke the county of Shrewsbury from earl Eadric, who somehow miraculously survived numerous annihilations of his raiding parties during the war unscathed.
[SUB]Need one supporter... which is far far harder than it seems.[/SUB]
There was a lot of scheming and posturing in trying to get support for this scheme. Honorary titles and gifts were granted, even positions on council, but it wasn't enough. Frustrated, Morgan took to bookkeeping and sex. Leading to twins.
[SUB]The son got the looks, the daughter the brains.[/SUB]
Finally, early in 1069 A.D., the scheme came to fruition.
[SUB]The fruit being a civil war.[/SUB]
Eadric was brave, but not a smart commander. At the battle of Halton, Morgan's husband Knud crushed the earl's army, and it was just a matter of time before the county was revoked.
[SUB]We had just enough men who survived to siege his castle.[/SUB]
King William knew that Morgan was still his most powerful vassal, and did everything he could to appease her. He invited her to numerous feasts, which she always attended with a smile on her face and a dagger clenched behind her back.
[SUB]He also made her the royal fowlkeeper.[/SUB]
Finally, after a year of sieging, earl Eadric was forced to capitulate.
[SUB]Still two counties in the de jure Hereford to go.[/SUB]
The next scheme on Morgan's list was to revoke the prince-bishopric of Worchester. Another scheme that took eons to get going. And you probably know what that means.
[SUB]More children, of course.[/SUB]
Morgan was invited into a scheme by the count of Northampton to kill a bishop in Normandy. She didn't really care for either of the sides, but accepted, if only to practice her craft.
[SUB]Her
witchcraft. Otherwise, how could she have killed him thrice?[/SUB]
She also held a feast in celebration of the deed, which made her more popular with her vassals.
[SUB]Still not enough to be really liked, though.[/SUB]
With plots moving like snails, Morgan turned to bookkeeping again.
[SUB]Becoming a competent steward, at least.[/SUB]
Morgan realized that revoking just the prince-bishopric would leave her with a church she had no legal right to, and thus orchestrated the murder of a local baron, as the prince-bishop was his heir. Alas, he fathered a son just in time to prevent the inheritance.
Eventually, the old prince-bishop gave up the ghost. And the new one wasn't popular enough to stave off the inevitable.
[SUB]Inevitable civil war, of course.[/SUB]
During the war, Morgan gave birth to her second son, complicating the inheritance immensely.
[SUB]Wait, am I not warring for a bishopric? Mwahahaha![/SUB]
