Britain is steeped in crisis.
After Macsen Wledig (known in Latium as Magnus Maximus) come to rule the Western Empire, he sent Gratian Municepts with two legions to garrison Britain. They chased away invaders who had preyed upon Brittany for some years. While they were busy thus, eastern Emperor Theodosius defeated Macsen Wledig and beheaded him in July of 388. Many of Macsen Wledig's troops, as well as his sons, settled in Brittany; an event later known as the First Migration. As soon as Gratian Municeps heard, he seized power in Britain by killing the regent, King Dionotus.
For more than five years, the Britons suffered the tyranny of Gratian, but he was finally slain in 395. They appealed to Rome for help against barbarian raids, which came in the form of reorganized British defenses. Military authority was transferred from Roman commanders to local British chieftains by Count Stilicho, in an effort to curb the tide. One of these chieftains was Coel Hen, who was appointed Dux of Eburacum.
In 405, Britian was stripped of its garrison to protect Italy against barbarian invasions. Raids by Saxons, Picts, and Irish began almost straight away. Sometime in the realm of 410, after the abandonment of Britain by Honorius in 410 in which Britain was told, "Look to your own defenses," Coel Hen traded his title of a dux for that of a king. In the chaos that followed, he unified the various Cymric tribes of the North under his rule.
It is this reality into which Morfan ap Emyr is born of the Brigantes in the land of Cumbria, in the year 413. His father is a knight sworn to one of Coel Hen's land-owning warriors. He is raised by his God-fearing father and mother as a British Christian, a brand of Christianity native to the isles. They value chastity, energy, generosity, modesty, and temperance. They answer to no one religious head, each local king or nobleman appointing bishops and abbots in his own domain.
Year 415: In a bid to put an ent to the internecine warfare and barbarian raids in Cumbria, Coel Hen supports Constantin, son of Macsen Wledig, as High King and marries his daughter to Constantin. Another of his daughters marries Cunedda of the Votadini. High King Constantin ennobles the best men of each tribe as knights in return for military service, and brings peace to Britain for a while.
420: Coel Hen dies, his sons and sons-in-law dividing his kingdom. Most of the northern kings, both north and south of the Wall, can trace their lineage back to Coel Hen. His son, Ceneu, becomes King of the Brigantes.
423: Constantin sires his first son, Constans, whom he entrusts to a monastery in Winchester.
433: Constantin's next son is born and named Aurelius Ambrosius for his distant relative, St. Ambrose.
434: Morfan saw his 21st summer and was knighted.
435: Morfan married Eluned, a woman of the Brigantes.
436: Constantin sires his last son, Uther. Guithelinus, Archbishop of London, fosters both Ambrosius and Uther.
437: King Ceneu dies and is followed by his son, Mor, as the King of the Brigantes.
438: Geraint ap Morfan, Morfan's son and heir, is born in Malahaut.
439: High King constantin calls for warriors against the Irish invading at the mouth of the River Severn. King Mor of the Brigantes sends only a small fraction of his warriors, claiming the rest were needed for local defense against the pirates. Morfan sees garrison duty; nothing significant occurs on his watch.
440: King Constantin is murdered by his own guard, an Atrebates knight. The Irish invade Cambenet, but are beaten back by the Brigantes. Pirates harass the eastern coast. Morfan sees more quiet garrison duty during this year.
441: The Supreme Collegium receives a summons to gather next year to elect a new High King. The King of the Brigantes decides to take advantage of the chaos and the lack of a higher authority to expand his kingdom northwards. However, his army is ambushed and defeated by a coalition of northern Cymric tribes under the Votadini war-leader Cunneda, just north of Hadrian's Wall. Morfan sees garrsion duty with little to no combat.
442: The Supreme Collegium meets. The King of the Brigantes puts his own name forward as the next High King, claiming that Constantin's three sons are unsuitable. Either too out of touch (Constans, with his monkish inclinations) or too young (Aurelius and Uther). Dux Vortigern outmaneuvers him, however, through the Supreme Collegium's voting process and maanges to secure the votes to elect Constans as High King, no doubt intending to rule through his bookish nephew. Morfan is privileged to attend the coronation of King Constans as a bodyguard to his lord.
Pirates attack the mouth of the Humber this year, invading the Parisi lands. The King of Brigantes is willing to bring his troops to chase the pirates away, but this offer comes with a price: the Parisi must now accept being a vassal kingdom of the Brigantes.
Two tribes of Picts migrate to Logres, invited by High King Constans to settle there. They march through Cumbria with an honor guard sent by Vortigern to escort them, but they do not bother the locals.
443: Young High King Constans is murdered by his Pictish bodyguards. No one in Cumbria sheds a tear. Dux Vortigern has the murderers swiftly executed and is elected as the new King of Logres by the nobility, due to Constans' younger brothers having disappeared. A common rumor among the Brigantes is that they were murdered by Vortigern. King Vortigern summons the Supreme Collegium to gather next year, no doubt intending to have them elect him as the High King, too.
The Picts are furious over the slaughter of their kinsmen. The King of Brigantes has no intention of bending his knee to his rival Vortigern, and instead sends emissaries to the Picts, suggesting a joint invasion of Logres. They agree and together defeat the northern British, opening the way to the south for the Pict raiders. Morfan participates in the Battle of Cheviot Hills, in which the Brigantes and Picts under King Mor fight a caolition of northern tribes under Cunedda. He survives this his first battle, mostly by fighting cautiously.
444: The Picts and the Brigantes invade Logres with a great army. The Picts penetrate deeply into Logres in small raiding parties, striking suddenly and spreading terror, whilst the King of the Brigantes concentrates on subduing the Coritani to add lands to his kingdom. The Corditani huddle in their strongholds, fearful of the might of the Brigantes. The King of the Brigantes sends emissaries for their surrender. Morfan participates in raids against the Coritani, gaining small amounts of loot and glory.
445: The Picts continue their invasion. The Coritani stay huddled in their strongholds, quivering like sheep. Even their High King, Vortigern, hides in the south, afraid to meet the Picts and the Brigantes in the field. The Brigantes continue to harass the Coritani, besieging and taking their strongholds one by one. Morfan participates in the siege of the Coritani strongholds as a member of his lord's complement.
446: King Vortigern realizes he needs assistance against the furious Picts, and in good Roman fashion, hires new barbarians to fight the old barbarians. The Saxon kings Hengest and Horsa come from the Continent with their bands of warriors to join Vortigern's army. Thus reinforced, the British army marches north against the Picts and Brigantes. Battle was met near Lincoln, and it is a great victory for the British. But Vortigern does not follow this victory up by moving further north, where Morfan's liege held his lands. Morfan participates in the Battle of Lincoln, fighting well and managing to suvive the battle. Morfan's burning hatred for the Saxons is well attested by his peers, surviving in the saying, "Milwyr cyflog ymyrgar! Gadewch ni i ymladd ein brwydrau ein hunain!" (A/N I apologize to all the Welshmen on this forum for my Google Translate.)
447: Vortigern sends Hengest who had been reinforced by more Saxons from the Continent against the Pictish coast and the Brigantes. The warriors of Cumbria fight against these new enemies. In the north, the Northern Cymri manage to get the upper hand against the Picts and leave the Brigantes without their allies. Morfan defends against the Saxon raids, gaining some small glory.
After the successful summer campaign, Vortigern gives rewards. For the Saxons, the reward is the Isle of Thanet as foederati. More Saxons come. Some Brigantes say they see the handwriting on the wall and when the King's eyes are not pesent, speak of perhaps following Vortigern in this. After all, he is now High King.
Also this year, a prelate from the pope, the saintly Germanus, comes to Britain to condemn and combat British Christianity. He doesn't come as far north as Cumbria, however.
448: King Vortigern spares his own army, using the Saxons to defeat the Brigantes and drive the Picts back to the north. Some of the Brigantes nobles turn against their King after these defeats and submit themselves to Vortigern. Alarmed by this desertion, the King of the Brigantes rides south and surrenders to Vortigern himself, swearing loyalty in hopes of salvaging the situation.
High King Vortigern is glad to accept the King of the Brigantes swearing his oath in front of the entire court. As a reminder of just who the High King is, Vortigern says Brigantia will be divided, as some Brigantes have been unhappy with their King. Vortigern divides the kingdom into the Kingdoms of Bedegraine, Roestoc, Maris, and Malahaut, thus rewarding the Brigantes noblemen who deserted to him. The last kingdom still belongs to the King of the Brigantes. The newly made kingdoms all become loyalists of Vortigern except for Malahaut, whose King accepts the ruling of the High King with as much grace as he can muster. The Parisi regain their independence.
More Saxons come to Britain, including many families, and Hengest's daughter: Rowena. She becomes a favorite at Vortigern's court. Persistent rumors about the King favoring his new subjects, the Saxons, come north to the court. An example that proves this is Vortigern settling a group of Saxons, led by Beorhtric, Hengest's cousin, on the marshlands of Sorestan which had been depopulated by pirate raids and the recent invasion.
449: News from the Continent is persistent in saying that new foes, the Huns, are defeating the German tribes right and left. These savages are said to be half demon, half horse.
The Cumbrians are ordered to provide warriors to help fight against the Picts north of the Wall. Malahaut carries especially large burden. Despite the peace, the Coritani stage revenge-raids across the Humber with their Sorestan Saxon allies. They don't differentiate between Malahaut and other Brigantes, nor between Brigantes and Parisi. Morfan sees garrison duty, fighting against the Coritani raiders and gaining some small glory.
450: Vortigern, impressed with the battle prowess of the Saxons and even more with the talents of Rowena, marries her this year in a lavish celebration. Hengest receives half of the Cantii Civitas as her bride price and renames it to Kent. When the leader of the Cantii objects to the robbery of half his people's lands, he is executed for High Treason. Now whispers truly start: Vortigern prefers the company of the savage Saxons over the civilized Britons, his own kind. Who is next to lose their head for speaking against this tyrant?
Morfan helps the Saxons fight the Picts under Vortigern's orders this year. He had always been one of those who complained about the Saxons, and his complaints become more vocal during this time. He is recorded as saying to his peers, "Dewch i weld sut mae Vortigern yn meddwl mai ei eiddo preifat yw'r wlad hon, i'w rhannu'n barsel i'w hurfilwyr tramor. Ac mae unrhyw un sy'n gofyn a yw hyn yn iawn neu'n gyfiawn yn cael ei ddienyddio heb brawf! A ydym i fod yn gaethweision i'r teyrn hwn?" (A/N: Once again, I dread to think how off this translation probably is. Bear with me, I'm trying to be immersive here.)
By now, Morfan has grown into a reliable knight, having won enough small glories over his career to have a moderate presence in his liege's court.
Though the King of Malahaut himself does not necessarily think of him by name when he requires swords,
his lord has come to view Morfan as a reliable spear on the battlefield and a loyal counselor at court.
451: The Huns, led by their king, Attila, invade Gaul for pillage and plunder, scouring the land of its wealth and slaughtering as they go. The commander in Gaul, Aetius, asks for all from all who would send it, and Vortigern sends a large contingent. He sends those who had spoken out against him, although curiously, he picks out also the Prince of the Parisi tribe to lead the Cumbrians. The allied army meets the Huns at Chalons, where the Huns are defeated and driven from Gaul. The Prince of Parisi dies in the fighting, leaving his father heirless. Cerdic is born to Vortigern and Rowena this year.
Fortunately, Morfan's renown is scant enough that he manages to avoid being sent to fight the monstrously mighty Huns. Instead he remains on the front lines in the north, fighting the Picts beside the Saxons he hates under Vortigern's orders. He fights well this year, gaining measurable glory.
452: The Saxons continue pushing the Picts back north, with Malahaut grumbling that they end up doing all the fighting while Vortigern showers the Saxons with favors. The Parisi are in a state of mourning as their beloved Prince had died in Chalons. The King officially declares a period of mourning.
Pilgrims returning from Rome report that Attila and his Huns invaded Italy, reaching the walls of Rome itself, but were unable to storm or besiege it. Some say the Huns were stopped because they lacked siege engines, others that they failed because of the piety of the pope.
Morfan fights at the Battle of Stirling, where Cumbrians under the King of the Brigantes fight Picts under local chieftains. Saxons were supposed to come and help, but they arrived too late.
453: Under Vortigern's orders, the Saxons continue pushing the Picts. He commands the Kings of Bedegraine, Roestoc, and Maris to send warriors to help his sons, Vortimer and Katigern, fight the Irish in Cambria, while Malahaut and Parisi are told to send troops to help the Saxons against the Picts. Despite this, the Coritani and their Sorestan Saxon allies continue raiding across the Humber. Morfan helps the Saxons fight the Picts, much to his chagrin.
454: The situation in Cambria worsens with the Battle of Aberstwyth being lost against the Irish. Saxons and many Cumbrians are still busy in the north with the Pcits, the skirmishing continuing. Morfan is among this number. The king of the Parisi, never really gotten over his son's death, dies without an heir. High King Vortigern claims the land for himself.
455: News arrives that Rome, the center of the civilized world, has been sacked! The tribe of Germans called the Vandals have done the impossible and brought Rome low. The Western Empire is finished.
Vortigern makes peace with the Picts to free up his Saxons. He moves Cornovii warriors to Dumnonia, and Votadini under Cunedda to Cambria, where they expel the Irish. Vortigern is persuaded to settle Saxons under Hengest's son Octa, establishing Nohaut in northern Malahaut. Such is the homeland of Lady Eluned, wife of Morfan. Then, another Saxon enclave under Horsa's son, Eosa, in former Parisi lands, founding Deira. Many of the Parisi flee to Malahaut. Some forsake their homeland and flee to Brittany. Those who do not are made subjects of the Saxons. Shiploads of continental Saxons flock to the new theods. As a result of the new arrivals, the King of Malahaut starts keeping a contingent of a hundred knights on call at all times.
Morfan attends court when word of these new Saxons arrives with the High King's writ giving them the northern land to be called Nohaut. From the King's reaction, Morfan knows it is not good. He calls a council and when it is formed, announces the High King's command. Some declare for war, others for submission. The cooler heads prevail this time.
456: Protesting the policies of King Vortigern, the eastern Britons decide to rebel late in the year. "A pox on the rebellion! With the Saxons so close, who needs to go anywhere else to fight?" say some in Cumbria. Others hope this Vortimer wins, while others decried this rebellion against the High King. Some Cumbrians, who have a beef with Vortigern and his Saxon allies, travel south the join the rebellion. Though Morfan considers it, his liege is raided by the Coritani this year and he stays behind to defend the holdings.
457: As soon as the weather permits it, the eastern Britons continue their rebellion. King Vortigern summons his army, including the Saxons, and marches against them. The loyal Kings send some of their warriors to help, while the King of Malahaut cites bandits as an excuse to not be able to attend. He keeps his warriors home, waiting to see if the rebels will win or not before committing himself. A great battle ensues in Kent, in which the rebels are crushed. Vortigern gives the great lands of the Cantii tribe to his loyal Saxons. Many Britons pack up and depart the land, moving to Brittany to escape the rule of Vortigern. Morfan is garrisoned during this time, according to the King's command to remain at rest.
458: Many dissident Britons depart the island, moving with their families and possessions to Brittany. Morfan, loyal to his lord, remains and stays on garrison duty this year. Vortigern starts breaking the tribal lands in Logres into smalle counties. Since Brigantia had already been broken up into smaller kingdoms, he doesn't bother with Cumbria. Vortimer's emissaries come in secret and start whispering about a new rebellion behind closed doors.
Strange man-eating beasts appear for the first time in the Cumbrian marshes, and a Saxon visitor mentions off-hand that they are trolls. "We used to have plenty back home." Needless to say, the locals are not amused.
459: In the higher mountains, rumors of a wyrm reach the King of Malahaut's ears. He sends knights to investigate. In Maris, a great hunt is organized that kills most of the trolls.
Bedegraine and Rosetoc, tired of being raided by the Coritani, complain to Vortigern about it. He promises to talk with the Coritani leaders to put a stop to the raiding. The concerns of the Maris emissaries about the trolls are also listened to. However, Malahaut emissaries complaining about Saxon raids receive a cold shoulder from the High King.
Morfan's estate is raided by the Coritani this year, and he gains scant renown in his fight to drive them away with his kinsmen. This includes his eldes son, Geraint ap Morfan, who has his 21st birthday and enters the service of his father's liege as a knight.
460: The King of Malahaut asks for volunteers to hunt the wyrm and they flock from all over Cumbria, as everyone wants to be a part of this legendary event. Prince Einion of Malahaut leads the hunt as is the first to land a blow on the beast. Young Geraint also takes part, facing down the dangerous beast with little heed to his own safety. Where his father is content to serve his liege quietly, Geraint sees an opportunity to make his family known across the realm by slaying this beast. Ultimately the wyrm is not killed by the hunters, but people assume it must have been mortally wounded, for it was not seen for many more years...
Morfan is garrisoned during this time and arranges for his son a marriage with Branwen, a strong-willed lady of Malahaut of the Brigantes.
Geraint ap Morfan established himself early as a man of great valor and a fiery heart.
While it is unclear whether the story of the wyrm is true or merely a literary device to display his courage,
this valorous behavior appear in many of his sons' sons for generations to come.
461: With a message from Vortimer to the King of Malahaut, a great rebellion is started. As agreed upon last year, the northern Cymri meet the Malahaut forces and together march and defeat the Saxons of Nohaut in a fierce battle. The Saxons flee to Deira and their strongholds. The kings of Bedegraine, Roestoc, and Maris are surprised by this uprising and send messages of loyalty to Vortigern, even as some of their subjects join in the fighting against the Saxons. Morfan and Geraint both fight at the Battle of Newcastle, where British under the King of Malahaut fight Saxons under Octa, the Saxon man who claimed lordship over Lady Eluned's home. Both survive the battle and win glory for themselves.
462: Building on least year's successful battle, the King of Malahaut and his northern Cymri allies march against the Saxons of Deira who had been reinforced by the Coritani and their cousins, the Sorestan Saxons, as well as the Kings of Bedegraine, Roestoc, and Maris with their armies. The ensuing battle is lost by Malahaut and the northern Cymri. Morfan and Geraint fight under their liege and the King of Malahaut at the Battle of Deira Forest. Morfan's contributions are minimal, but noted. His son outshines him, to Morfan's great pride.
463: Ostensibly to bring peace to all sides, Vortigern and Hengest call a council of all combatants to meet at the Giant's Dance (A/N: Stonehenge) for a feast of peace. Seeking reconciliation, almost all British knights attend. The Saxons prove their worth with great treachery, though, and the majority of nobles in Britain (some three hundred) are slain in the "Night of Long Knives", along with the Kings of Bedegraine, Roestoc, Maris, and Malahaut, who had gathered to discuss the piece. Morfan is murdered in this treachery, but he dies gloriously fighting through great injury to protect his King to the last. Geraint blames Vortigern and swears vengeance.
In the subsequent confusion, a large part of the armies of each King were dispersed or slain. King Vortigern gave many southern lands to the Saxons, further entrenching them in Britain. It is on the heels of this evil event that Ciaran ap Gerant is born to Gertain and his wife, Branwen. Ciaran is, quite likely, the reason his father survives the night, for Ciaran is told to stay with his wife.
464: Vortigern retreats to Gomeret. He starts building the impregnable tower of Ganarew. The southern Saxons plunder where they will in the aftermath of the Night of Long Knives.
The Saxons in Cumbria revolt! They demand that Eburacum, capital of Malahaut and local center of culture since the days when Rome's authority was at its height in Britain, should be surrendered to them on the High King's orders. The new King of Malahaut, Einion, the son of the late King Mor, refuses, so the Saxons attack Malahaut in its weakened state. The other Cumbrian kingdoms send help, knowing they are next otherwise.
Geraint fights the Saxons near Catterick, where the British under King Einion face down the Saxons led by Octa. Here the 26 year-old knight dies gloriously in battle, slaying nearly dozen Saxons one after the other on his way to make an attempt on Octa's life before his countless wounds finally overcome him. For this he is called "Arth Ifanc yn Catterick" by King Einion, which is to say, the Young Bear at Catterick.
Whilst the Cumbrians marched to engage the Saxons there, the dastardly Saxons sent another force up the Ouse, which assaulted and took Eburacum by surprise. The news comes to the Britons at the worst possible moment, causing the Cumbrians to rout from the field.
After the battle, stories come back that the Saxons have also taken London and other important cities in the south, ravaging the neighboring countryside and causing many Britons to flee to Brittany. Branwen was among these, taking her young son Ciaran with her. There she grieved her husband for two years, and instilled in Ciaran the same hatred for Saxons his fathers had possessed.
469: After five years in hiding, Branwen is among those many exiles resettled to Logres by Aurelius Ambrosius, who came from Brittany to rebuke Vortigern and his Saxons with force of arms. She would remarry to Gwalchmai ap Ilar, a knight loyal to Aurelius Ambrosius from her homeland of Cumbria.
Over the next 15 years, Aurelius Ambrosius - and later his brother, Uther, who took the name "Pen Draig" - would war against Vortigern and his Saxon host, driving the Saxons to the fringes and reclaiming Britain for the Britons. In the year 484, King Heraut of Malahaut made this declaration while the Kings of Britain held a collective court regarding matters:
"We, King Heraut of Malahaut, the Centurion King, being of good feelings towards King Uther for risking life, limb, and his throne in defense of our beloved Cumbria, and with the recent defeat of the Saxons lessening the chances of any major conflicts in the near future, give our blessing for those brave knights who wish to go south and assist King Uther and his subjects against the depredations of the Saxons who still threaten his lands."
Among these would be none other than Ciaran ap Geraint, whose legend would slowly grow...
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