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Part III: The Stiletto War

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Anne Morena's The Bretons



The Stiletto War is the name of a series of attempted murders between the Breton and French Courts. The chief actors were Duke Daniel Kerne, the Counts of Blois, and Bishop Urbano Alermano. Fearing being on the defensive in what he saw as a shadow war with France, Daniel decided to strike back. On March 23, 1123, Count Aldéric was targeted for having the greatest influence on the Pope. Whilst distracted by Marshal Tournament, he was stabbed in the back with a stiletto and the war was kicked off. The assassin was caught and after a brief exposure to torture, the source of the order was revealed – the Duke of Brittany.

Eustache de Blois, son of Aldéric, had assassins immediatly put in place across Brittany. On the day of his coronation as Count, March 21, a counter attack was carried out. Daniel’s fourth son Máelcoluim ran for his life as he was assaulted by a man wielding the dagger that killed Aldéric. He eventually made it to safety. The assassin avoided capture and the murder tinged weapon has since been lost.

Six days later, the Bishop of Penthievre, Urbano Alermano, was nearly killed when overseeing a holy ceremony. The assassin was apprehended and revealed to be an agent of Eustache. Why the Bishop was targeted is unknown. Urbano was outraged and had agents sent to teach the Count of Blois a lesson – quite out of character for Bishops. There they would bide their time, learning the ways of the Court.

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Bishop Urbano Alermano


The result would be dire for the de Blois Dynasty. On January 1, 1125, the first-born infant son of the Count of Blois was thrown off the battlements of the city in the dead of night. A note was attached to his foot-

To attack a Priest of God is a terrible sin. Let this be known as His wrath upon transgressors.​
Retaliation against Urbano came within two days. This time, triumphantly bearing the banner of the Count of Blois, a group of assassins burst into the Court of Urbano, attempting to kill at random. At least one courtier was stabbed to death before he could escape.

The War was now driven entirely by vengeance. In February the same year, assassins killed the second infant son of the Count of Blois. The infants lifeless body was found in Loire after several days of searching.

The Count of Blois, likely distressed into total apathy, threw one more half-hearted attempt at Urbano. Again, the armed assassins burst into the Court of Penthievre, with the intent to target the Bishop. The hapless agents were met with a small army of Breton Knights and were quickly put to death.

So the Stiletto War ended, at least in the eyes of history. Urbano had proved a deadly opponent in the world of intrigue – he was deeply feared by many. However, there are two more interesting events that are often overlooked.

The first of which is the death of the young King Bernard Capet in 1128. He fell mysteriously ill amidst the birthday celebrations of his three year old heir, Amédée Capet. Before the sun rose the next day, Bernard had died. If such act were a poisoning, on behalf of Duke Daniel, then it was a masterful move on his part. With a three year old now on the French Throne, the Kingdom was thrown back into chaos. Regardless of what is to blame for the young King’s death, Brittany’s security was certain for another decade.

The second is that Daniel lost heart in the art of assassination. Having seen the terrible fates befall the sons of the Count of Blois, Daniel feared for his own. On January 19, 1131, the Duke of Orleans – a steadfast supporter of the 6 year old King Amédée, could have been “accidentally” shot dead on the hunt he had planned that day. Instead, Daniel decided against it.

Thus, the truly final act of the Stiletto War passed. Brittany as a whole came out with no losses amongst the nobility whilst France’s greedy eyes were forced inward. In August of 1132, the French Kingdom suffered another blow, as Duke Jordan d’Aquitaine was willed the crown of Wales by the Welsh King Iago. Though the English and French crowns would refuse to recognize this, Jordan was able to use the opportunity to establish Aquitaine as a full-fledged Kingdom. The nation of Galles-Aquitaine was born.

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The Coat of Arms attributed to Galles-Aquitaine

At just 49, Daniel would die in his sleep March 26, 1138. The tremendous promise of his abilities were thwarted by his excommunication and the Stiletto War which defined his reign. Brittany’s influence abroad was shattered by the actions of Charles Kerne and the annexation of Somerset by England. Despite, the Duchy saw an influx of wealth and prosperity it had never experienced since Charlemagne.

Daniel’s thirty year old son and Count of Cornouaille, Brandon ‘the Dotty’, would be crowned Duke on March 31. Having only just arisen from the depths of madness and lacking any marshal abilities whatsoever, Brandon’s reign would be built on ground as shaky as his sanity.


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Brittany looks completely locked in by increasingly hostile states - unless the Dukes manage to play their rivals off against each other...
 
So, the assassinations die down, that is good. The computer can be deadly annoying with assassins.
 
CountArach: I'm glad :)

Estonianzulu
: The Counts of Blois were quite vengeful over Alderichs death. They seemed to want to take out their anger on the Bishop of Penthievre. I have no idea why.

RGB:
The Crusade has been doing a fine job so far. With the latest beta patch there's a new bug that bars Christians from advancing through Muslim territory, while Muslims are just having a rollicking time in Christian territory (the opposite was supposed to be possible.) France and Aquitaine are basically stuck at war with landlocked Sheiks as a result.

Enewald: France and Aquitaine haven't fought a war yet :confused: Unless I made something unclear.

Note: CK has taken a nosedive in terms of plausibility. Besides having a gigantic family that is giving me headaches to both manage and keep track of, Christians are unable to move through Muslim territory in the latest Beta Patch, making the Crusade perpetual. This has adverse and boring effects on Western European politics. I'll keep plugging away at Brandon's reign but I may end up ignoring 95% of the now massive Kerne dynasty and the mess that is Western Europe. There are still some interesting things to come though! Mostly involving Jermen's son, Devi. That's a ways off yet.
 
Chapter IV: Brandon the Spotty

Part I: My Knight is Fight!


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Duke Brandon the Dotty


Duke Brandon would be tested immediatly upon his ascension. The Count of Rennes, Guillame de Rennes, son of Louis, declared the Duke unfit to rule. Out of loyalty, the Count had dug his feet in during Daniel’s excommunication. Now, he refused to submit to a Duke that had only just been “cured” of his insanity. Of the Counts of Brittany, Guillame was most able to usurp the throne. The man was an able warrior, though not quite as good as his father. He had loosened conscription standards, granting him a 7,000 strong army.

With such a vast force, he was nearly on equal terms with Ducal authority. Just days after Brandon’s coronation, Guillame assembled his forces for war.

With some decisiveness, Duke Brandon traveled with the Cornouaille regiment as they traversed Brittany to join forces with the other Loyalist armies. He had already met up with Count Devi de Porhoët and the two were soon to meet up with Brandon’s brother Alan, commander of the Nantes detachment.

Amongst just one of many cold nights of the campaign, the Duke and Devi met for council...

***​

“I’m not going to have to fight amidst the rabble am I?” Duke Brandon asked. “Twirling a sword around like some kind of fool?”

Unsure of just how to react to such a question from his Duke, Count Devi de Porhoët carefully worded his reply-

“If you use the art of strategy correctly, I don’t believe so.”

The Duke lifted his chin in contemplation of Devi’s sincerity-

“Well then, tell me about this...strategy.”

Taking a deep breath, Count Devi unrevealed a crude map of some obscure Breton manor. Then he drew several small blocks of wood from his pocket.


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“These are our armies, let’s say. Cavalry, rearguard, archers...”

The Duke eyed the precision placement of the wooden pieces quizzically.

“These are our skirmish troops, I shall move them to the front of the line – harassment and demoralization is key.”

The ignorant look of the Duke lifted as he interjected-

“Ha! No need for such rubbish! Why not just attack in full force?”

“Well you see-“

Duke Brandon interrupted with even greater arrogance-

“There is no need for this. Such pointless games is what lost Alan Fergant the Battle of Juniyah!”

“But, you don’t-“ Devi stumbled.

“That’s enough! So you may be the son of the great Jermen Porhoët, it matters not! Don’t think you know better than the Duke of the Bretons!” Brandon stood, his confident mind having already moved on-

“Haha!” the Duke bellowed, “Guillame is going to pay dearly for such treachery. Like a little demon he is! I shall quash him beneath my boot!”

As the mumbling Duke left Devi’s tent, the Count whispered to himself in despair-

“This is going to be a disaster.”​
 
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Brash and arrogant, not always good features for a military commander.
 
Aha, the old rush up and smack 'em!

Works surprisingly often, actually. But not a good sign if that's the first and oly idea a commander has...
 
Part II: My Duke is Flight! – The Battle of Guer


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Alan Kerne, Brother of Duke Brandon


Outside the town of Guer in Rennes, Duke Brandon’s forces met up with those of his brothers Alan and Énna. A safe distance from what was technically an enemy city, the now unified Breton army made camp. They did not realize that Guillame de Rennes had already arrived and was waiting nearby. By morning, he had his troops arrayed between the city and the village of Le Busson in the northwest. The astonished Loyalist Army was now pressed into a pitched battle. Hoping to stay on the offensive, it was decided by the Loyalist leaders that an attack would be made against the village of Le Busson, hopefully drawing troops away from the Rebel center.

***​

Duke Brandon led his detachment of Knights from the front, though he didn’t quite like it. As he turned to look at the 1,500 souls, the Duke was confident that Guillame would be crushed. Though he knew Le Busson would be manned by only a small Rebel force – he had planned on it. Terror gripped him at the hard fought combat that would soon explode elsewhere. Better to jump on this ship than one bound for rougher seas.

“Your hands are shaking, brother,” Alan said.

“Just a bit cold is all.” the Duke replied, a terrible liar.

“This shouldn’t be difficult, we just have to be careful, as always,” Alan said.

“Yes, yes. Now, why is Énna going north?” Brandon asked.

“He’ll take the town of Le Guiny before coming south against the backside of Le Busson.” Alan replied plainly.

“Huh, why bother with such nonsense?”

“It is sound strategy.“ Alan replied.

“Bah! The devil has your ear, I see! Énna may continue north but I will now be making decisions.”

The small Breton army was soon upon the village and from outside it, the Loyalist forces could see the Rebels within.

“Now, I shall not consider such foolishness as flout- ...flanking or whatever terms you warriors use. We shall charge the Rebels immediatly!” Brandon said confidently.

Before Alan could object, the Duke had egged his horse onward with a fury and the Knights were bound to follow suit. Now trembling himself at what could await them with such brash actions, Alan drew his sword and joined the charge.

***​

The houses of the village were tightly packed, weakening the power of the cavalry. As the Loyalists bore down the windy streets of the town, they soon came upon Rebel resistance. Though there were few of them, the Rebel infantry were able to weave around the clumsy horses, making the attack costly. Just as it seemed as though the town would be overrun, Rebel reinforcements arrived. Wielding pikes and various anti-cavalry implements, the Loyalists were pushed back. In the confusion, Brandon lost his weapon. He descended into a panic and quickly fled at full gallop, cursing the devil as he went. The Loyalists were shaken badly by the brazen retreat of their leader and it was only when Alan took the reigns of command that the regiment rallied

A similarly incompetent Énna would never arrive from Le Guiny – he too fled in the face of the Rebel forces and his detachment ended up butchered. In all, the skirmish at Le Busson was a failure. The Rebel lines were not weakened at all and it was in fact the Loyalists who had suffered the most. Alan had managed to keep at least 300 of his troops alive, withdrawing to the Loyalist camp. Convinced that his enemy was heavily weakened, Guillame brought the battle back to them with a full assault.

Devi showed his relative skill in the field by managing to hold his ground against the now more numerous Rebels. As the battle dragged on to mid-day, it seemed as if the Loyalists might lose the battle. Just as he considered sounding the retreat, a new force arrived on the field. A surprise to both armies, Count Carles de Coursulles arrived with over 3,400 Loyalists. The tables were so radically turned that Guillame’s army immediatly began to fray at the edges. This was not simply due to the shock of several thousand new troops entering the melee. Carles de Coursulles was amongst the finest commanders in Europe and had every conceivable option available to Guillame either cut off or eliminated. The pined Rebels were eventually wiped out by nightfall and suffered almost 4,700 casualties to the Loyalists’ 3,400.

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Count Carles de Coursulles


Guillame was ultimately thwarted by the defeat at Guer and his title was soon surrendered to the Ducal domain. Any extra honor that may have been bestowed on Brandon was lost due to his cowardice on the field. The hero of the battle, Count Carles, was so sickened by what he had heard of Brandon’s retreat that he abandoned his Loyalist policy. Instead, he adopted a subversive approach to Ducal authority. Luckily for Brandon, the old Count would not take to the field during his few remaining years.​

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I love, love, love the map.

Brandon isn't a very inspiring Duke. Heh.
 
A great capture of the character of a young, brash, arrogant, boorish, and currently incompetent Duke. I like it :)
 
stnylan: All in all, a quite terrible Duke. Though he is a fun character :)

Deamon:
Thank you. I got most of my tricks from this series: http://youtube.com/watch?v=KO4XZfaSAoA. These tutorials are pretty good in general to learn Photoshop, it certainly helped me.

kadvael56: Yes indeed, it was pretty exciting to win the battle in the end, when I thought I was done for.

RGB: Thanks. He tends to flee constantly :(

Enewald: He was rich as all hell ;)
 
Part III: Foreign Ventures: Jerusalem

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Anne Morena's The Bretons



Brandon was forever haunted by his own cowardice, something he fretted over desperately. The Pope offered him a chance to prove himself in January of 1144. Once more, the Church was pushing for a Crusade for Jerusalem. Even with the potential glory in his sights, he fell into despair. He would not eat for days on end, would rarely rise from his bed, and talked to almost no one. Brandon was literally dragged aboard a ship bound for the Holy Land.

The Bretons had assembled their largest army yet, at over 11,000 strong. They intended to succeed where they had failed before. In addition, hordes of Breton, Norman, and French zealots would routinely pledge their allegiance to the Crusader Army. Three-thousand more would be added to the army before long. Perhaps it was the salt air of the ocean or something else, but Brandon was soon invigorated with religious zeal never before seen within him.

It is said, when the Bretons reached the shores of Acre, that Brandon was the first off the boat – sword drawn, hollering like a madman. There was little resistance to be had in the province, save for the city of Acre itself. Three-thousand Saracens held up in the city until they finally surrendered in September of 1145. After the Crusader army thoroughly ravaged and pillaged the city, the nephew of Turki Yaseen, Jawhar Yaseen, surrendered himself and his army in an elaborate ceremony. Brandon knew the significance of it and relished every moment. Already, the Duke was redeeming himself. Énna Kerne was given control of Acre before Brandon set out with 8,500 men for the final prize – Jerusalem.

Sheik Abdul-Salaam Murat of Acre was not only a powerful Sheik, he claimed to be the better of the now legendary Turki Yaseen. With 5,000 men, he awaited the Crusaders – confident he could defeat them. With the glorious city of Jerusalem in view, the two armies met for battle. Initially, the Saracens were badly rattled – but as the battle wore on, Brandon’s nerve collapsed. What happened exactly? It is unknown. The chaos and confusion of battle is no place for any mentally unstable man. Before his entire army, the Duke fled, again. His brothers Alan and Count Fulup would win the battle in his absence. Over two-thousand Crusaders and countless Saracens perished in the lands around Jerusalem.

On December 4, the Crusaders triumphantly entered the city. Brandon was with them-


...I saw the leader of the Crusaders. He was not as full of awe and joy as the others. The rugged man bore a look of despondency and his head was bowed. I was as impressed by the Crusader King’s confidence as I was the wit of a goat.

- Imam al-Azir, December 5, 1145

Brandon soon went home, absorbed in his own shame once more. He handed the city over to his brother Jili and Fulup was tasked with carrying on the Crusade. Not all was lost for Brandon, however. The Pope was so impressed by the long awaited conquest of Jerusalem, that he offered to aid the Duke in any way he desired. Though he would not make use of the Papal power, the Duke of Brittany would hold the reigns for some time.

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The Duchy of Jerusalem in white, under Duke Énna Kerne. Attempts to annex the Northern Sheikdoms were met with failure.