Emperor Jon I (1366-1400)
Emperor Jon I was the greatest Emperor Norgesveldet would get during the Middle Ages, also marking the last true Medieval ruler before the Renaissance took hold of Europe.
Family
Emperor Jon I was married to two women during his time, one Polish noblewoman named Adeljada, and one Franconian Princess named Fredegunde. Together they had six children, of which the eldest would inherit the throne:
Eirik
Ragnhild
Gyda
Sämund,
Eldrid
Gudbrand
His reign
Emperor Jon I’s reign started with a bang, when the duchy of Viken, long lost ancestral home of the Yngling dynasty, became independent from her captors decades prior. Jon I immediately declared a war of subjugation and within months Viken was again fully Scandinavian.
His reign was still not entirely secure however, and when a faction of powerful nobles demanded lowering of the crown authority, he accepted their demands. In 1370 AD the Waldensian faith through Emperor Jon I scored a huge victory. The Emperor of the Byzantine Empire was at this point in time a cousin of Emperor Jon I, after centuries of intermarrying. Jon I used his power of persuasion, which was impressive in itself, as well as his role as house head, to convince his cousin to convert to Waldensianism together with the entire Imperial Byzantine family. This of course also meant that the Byzantine Empire, aside from slowly converting to the One True Faith, also became unstable and unable to intervene in the north.
From 1372 AD, Emperor Jon I began to assert control over his realm more directly. His vassal king Vigleik of White Rus, having schemed against his liege, was attempted imprisioned. He fled and declared war on Jon I, but was unable to withstand the might of Jon I’s forces.
Another rival at this time was the king of of Poland, Gudbrand, who claimed he had a better claim to the Scandinavian Empire than Jon I. It is evidence that Jon I at this time tried to murder the rival king, at the very least the death of Gudbrand in 1373 AD was very convenient for the Emperor.
The next few years, the authority of the Emperor was enforced more and more as the realm learned to dread him. If he had a legal reason to imprison a subject, it was almost assured the subject would be imprisoned and then ransomed for a hefty sum. Sometimes, the subject would also endure torture, and Jon I was known to relish to punish his enemies. Soon, no one would dare to oppose him.
Even outside the Scandinavian Empire, people dreaded him. He was at one point the second in line to the Byzantine throne, although this would soon change as the Emperor of the Romans got more children. At this one point in time, a murder plot against the heir of the Byzantine Empire was unveiled, and although no one could prove it, Jon I was a chief suspect.
In 1383 AD, the threat of Poland and her king was finally ended. The heir to Gudbrand was a vocal opponent of the Emperor and was rumored to entertain Imperial ambitions like his father. But through deceit and skullduggery, Jon I managed to get a hook on the king and in one fell swoop stripped him of all Polish titles, leaving him with one mere county to his name, in the Baltics. With this, Jon I suddenly was immensely much more powerful, controlling so much personal land he had to hand out half of it to loyal subjects to manage it all. His wealth soared.
The year after this scoop, the Empire of Hispania, the Hairwigs, declared war for the county of Lisboa. Jon I refused to give in even against this powerful adversary. Alone he would stand little chance, but he had many allies to draw from and within two years the Hairwigs had to sign a humiliating peace treaty, paying through their nose in reparations.
The same year, in 1386 AD, Jon I went to war against the kingdom of Bohemia, claiming his vassal’s rightful lands of the duchies of Bohemia and Lusitz, as well as the counties of Brene, Wittenberg, Jütrbog and Praha. Within a year, this war too was won. He then usurped the kingdom of Bohemia as well after the peace treaty was signed.
In 1387 AD, Jon I went to war against the previous Scandinavian vassal of the kingdom of Vladimir, claiming the duchy of Opolye. Again, the war was almost a mere formality. He then created the kingdom of Novgorod for himself.
In 1392 AD, he went to war against the kingdom of Lotharingia for the lands lost during the previous Emperors, and four years later he and his allies had won again. Three years after this, in 1399 AD, Emperor Jon I started two new wars, one against the petty queen Rosa of the Sheperds of the Romans – a curious entity bordering his Russian lands – and one against the kingdom of Vladimir, where he demanded full subjugation. The former war would end the same year, while the war against Vladimir would end mere weeks after Jon I left this world.
On January 14th, 1400 AD – mere days into the new century, Emperor Jon I would not wake from his sleep. He died of old age, the most accomplished, revered as well as feared ruler Norgesveldet had ever had. He would be succeeded by his son and brother-in-law Eirik IV, aged 45.
Aftermath
Emperor Jon I’s reign was a major and distinct change of pace from the decades prior. While his father had done much to reverse the decline of Norgesveldet, Jon I would mark the definite point where the Empire of Scandinavia was back. Feared and obeyed like no one before or after him, he is regarded as the most important and impressive of the medieval monarchs Norgesveldet fostered.
His accomplishments did not only include expansion of the realm not seen for generations, but also the transformation of the religious setup of the Byzantine Empire. Upon his death he had transformed his empire from net negative income upon his ascension to almost a surplus of approximately 24 gold per month, and the military power had increased from barely 10k troops on ascension to over 20k at the time of his death.
Emperor Jon I’s reign also marked the transformation of Europe from the late middle ages to the early renaissance. Culture and technology flourished at the end of his reign, with important discoveries either happening or being on the break of happening. The year 1400 AD marked the death of a monarch, but also is widely considered the year that divides the middle ages from the ensuing renaissance. Emperor Jon I is by some regarded as the last medieval ruler of Norgesveldet, by some as the first renaissance ruler. He is said to have been the blueprint Machiavelli used for his famous book on rulers.
His son and brother-in-law Emperor Eirik IV – that relation being quite representative of the spread of Ynglings everywhere, with most of the major Christian realms having Yngling blood in their veins at this point – would have large shoes to fill. But that, is another story.
FIN
