Royal Court of Ireland

[Elias Tarfarius]

Disembarking from the ship is a well armed man carrying a plain lead box the size of a large purse. He rents a horse from a farmer and rides off into the night toward Tir Eoghain, seat of the O'Neills. Will anyone notice and try to stop him? If so, he is ordered to destroy the contents of the box. Fortunately, he makes it without incident to the castle and hands the message to the porter. With that, he turns back towards the port... mission accomplished!

UNTO Eoghan O'Neill, King of Tir Eoghain and rightful High King of the Gaels of Ireland and of the Foreigners and the Welsh, the Augustus of the Western Isles
FROM Tobias Mantel, servant of Her Grace, Elisabeth, Regent of Bavaria, Herzogin von Ober-Bayern-München

Noble Sir and True King,

By the time of the arrival of this letter, you will well have heard of the coming of a embassy from Bavaria to do various deals with the King and to inquire as to the state of your mother. What is left out is that we are coming with a strong armed force of men, over 1,000 strong. We come to set your Majesty upon your rightful throne, the one usurped by the O'Briens from your wonderful father who now lies in ill health and from yourself. We have come to adjust this crime for the sake that you are the near kinsman of our master and mistress, the dear Duchess-Regent Elisabeth von Wittelsbach (of the Rhine branch), the wife of the former Duke Albrecht III, and their noble son, Ulrich I. Katrina, your mother, is the dear sister-in-law and aunt and blood cannot in justice stand to see crimes done against its blood. We have also heard tells of the injustice of the O'Brein king, called Terrance by the English (which is far more pronouncible than his name in your native tongue), how he has slain many, kin and other alike, and stolen land, broke oaths, whored with various women and the like. Such a one is never fit to reign. I entreat thee to prepare to rise up for we are but a thousand (with bombards and cannon though). We shall have need of many thousand hardy footmen and great swordmen which your lands seem to be as known for as are the Swiss. It shall be the passing of two months, or more, before we land in Ulster and we shall not start the business all at once. Just be ready and begin your preparations now. Enclosed below is a letter from her Grace, the Duchess-Regent.

Dear Cousin,

It will be the joy of many, including the Holy Father, to see you seated on your rightful throne as your grandfather and so many before him had. Therefore I have sent to you two men with which you cannot fail in this mission, Herr Tobias Mantel and Herr Heinrich von Danuben. With them are a thousand men, half of which are some of my best knights and other half being squires, crossbowmen (the best from Genoa), and experts in powder weapons of which they are plenty with them. All you must do it rally a few more thousand and the day is as good as won. Surely the English king won't object to you, nay, he shall welcome you as a relief and a brother-prince unlike the current usurpers. Tell your father and mother now that there is hope and that they shall see their son a King of Ireland before the call of Heaven takes them. We have not forgotten our kin, even at so broad a distance, still it is bridged by blood. Prepare for war and follow the advice of my men; we then cannot fail! Godspeed, dear cousin and King.

Elisabeth, Regent

To us the Victory,
TM, a friend

 

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Dublin, Province of Meath, English Lordship of Ireland

- A Good Laugh at Someone Else's Expense, Part IV. -

As Antaine was being dragged off to a dank dungeon, he shouted back to the Englishmen.

"Listen here you wig-wearing bastards, I passed the Irish Prince on the way here and he allowed me to escape with my life knowing that I was to come here. That was their declaration of war. Do not wait for a sheet of paper that will never come. Defend yourselves!"

It was at that time that he realized the enormity of what he had done. He helped the O'Briens come to power, He betrayed their trust and attempted to get the Scots to invade. He failed, so he turned to the English who saw him for a drunken idiot.. Perhaps that wasn't so far from the truth.

As Antaine sat in his cell, he realized the beauty of what was transpiring around him. Ireland would be united oncemore... But then a thought entered his head. What if Scotland and England were to work together to pacify the Irish in this coming war? The Scots that he had always admired, the descendants of King Edward Bruce of Ireland... would become the enemies of his people. No matter the outcome, his fate was clear...

To be continued...

 

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Armagh, Province of Ulster, Kingdom of Ireland

- Revenge of The O'Neill -

Eoghan O'Neill​

After receiving the wonderful news from Germany that he had been praying for since his youth, Eoghan assembled a large army of loyal Ulstermen who hated the fact that an O'Brien held his court in their province. An army intent on removal of the King from the throne.

"For four hundred and fifty years, the O'Brien clan has pilfered what was ancient, traditional, and rightful property of the Descendants of Naill of the Nine Hostages, the greatest of Irish Kings. It was in recent history where Tara, greatest of Irish cities was lost to the English. Now, The O'Brien asks for the Men of Ulster to stand with his son against the foreign enemy. We refuse. They shall stand alone. Together the Men of Ulster shall instead march with foreign German lads who serve in the armies of my mother's kin, and together we will remove the old thief Toirdhealbhagh and his kinsmen, and send them back to Munster."

Several in the crowd began cheering. One drunken fool shouted slurs against Brian Boru himself, and another suggested desecrating his tomb, which was located in Armagh.

"In my blood is over 1,000 years of Irish royalty. I spit on the O'Briens who think that ten years of a petty usurper will ever change that. No, we will not destroy a fine church out of our spite for a dead man. Our frustrations will be taken out on his next of kin."

They then awaited the arrival of their foreign comrades.

To be continued...

 

[Elias Tarfarius]

Another secret communication made its way to Tir Eoghain...

UNTO Eoghan O'Neill, King of Tir Eoghain and rightful High King of the Gaels of Ireland and of the Foreigners and the Welsh, the Augustus of the Western Isles
FROM Tobias Mantel, servant of Her Grace, Elisabeth, Regent of Bavaria, Herzogin von Ober-Bayern-München

Noble Sir and True King,

As I had suspected, the acquisitioning of vessels delays our party hear in the Low Countries. We currently are headed for Gelre to solve this problem and thus will arrive in Ireland shortly thereafter. I hope all things are well with you and your house and that you have raised a goodly force for the retaking of your rightful crown. Let me know your numbers so that I may know if we must raise more men from the mercenaries of this country, whom we shall have to disguise as sailors to escape the suspicion of the "king's" men. Respond with all speed.

To us the Victory,
TM, a friend

 

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Armagh, Province of Ulster, Kingdom of Ireland

- Flight of The O'Neill -

Eoghan O'Neill​

Eoghan was astonished to learn from a courier that the King had left Belfast with haste, headed for Meath.

"Under normal circumstances I would gladly seize his capital, however I believe his motive is rather dastardly. Perhaps he is seeking to be crowned at Tara to make himself more legitimate..."

He pondered his situation and then made a decisive move.

"Send a diplomatic party to wait for our German friends, include several men who could guide them to Tara when they arrive. Send our best diplomats to London to seek an audience with the English King, and by god, grab every Ulster man or boy above the age of 12, give them a sharp object and have them accompany us to free our people once and for all from usurpers and foreign tyrants."

And with that, his will was done. Men waited in port for the Bavarians to arrive, others were sent to London to attempt a back-door treaty with Edmund, and just about everyone else was sent to either capture Belfast or on the move heading for Tara.

To be continued...[/QUOTE]

 

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En route to Tara Province of Meath, English Lordship of Ireland

- Battle to the Death, Prelude -

Eoghan O'Neill, King of Tir Eoghain​

Eoghan had all but lost his father, who was both mentally and physically a sickly man. However, As Eoghan rode towards Tara he felt a deep, personal connection to past kings of the O'Neill branch, and most importantly, he felt the obligation to bring the blood of his grandfather Hugh O'Neill -- through himself -- to be crowned at Tara, as his ancestors had done beginning over 1,000 years earlier, but which Hugh was unable to do. As he rode he brought with him a sword with a dulled blade that had been used by his one of his forefathers as he liberated Scotland from the English on the side of Robert the Bruce. He intended for the use of the sword to be symbolic, but not ceremonial. Ireland, too, would be liberated by that sword, he thought. He would slide the sword through the gullet of The O'Brien. That wish drove him to ride with all of his energy, at times even passing the most dexter of warriors.

Antaine O'Morda, King of Loigsi​

The King of half of Ossory and uncrowned ruler of Leinster sat in a Dublin prison contemplating his actions. He had betrayed his country several times, all for his own purposes. As he sat, he felt his doom was inevitable. The King would capture Dublin and he would be executed as a traitor. He felt as if he himself had just awoken from a dream -- a dream in which he had lost control of himself and had gone mad. He had betrayed his country, and for what? Much like another Leinster ruler, Diarmait MacMurchada, whose mother-in-law was ironically an O'Morda. He thought as he sat in his cell... about how Diarmait's daughter was offered as a wife to a Norman, about how she was his kin, and how that marriage left Leinster as a dowery, ultimately sealing Ireland's fate...

"My God!", he exclaimed. "Am I no better than Diarmait? If I am guilty of the crimes that he had committed, then it is fitting that I shall spend the rest of my life, however short it may be, in an English prison..."

Toirdhealbhagh Bog O'Brien, High King of Ireland​

Toirdhealbhagh had just passed sixty years of age. As his forces headed for Meath, he was in no hurry. He had no idea that the O'Neills intended to strike, and if he did, he wouldn't care. Dozens of chieftains proclaimed their loyalty to him, but they were nowhere to be found. As he rode southward, he was accompanied by the men of Thomond, which he ruled directly, and Desmond, which he passed off as a consolation to his cousins after murdering one of them for his throne. Only Munstermen stood between him and the English garrison within the Pale, but he was confident that more would come, and even if they did not, his army was sufficient. Little did he know that an equally threatning force stood at his back: The army of Ulster, with Bavarian reinforcements departing from the Continent as he rode. Confident, at a campfire on a cold Sunday's dawn, while most men were praying, he was thinking of what to say once he reached the top of the Hill of Tara and was crowned on the Stone of Destiny. Toirdhealbhagh was an example of of good timing that sadly had gone to his head. The fact was that he had little combat experience and whatever diplomatic clout he had disappeared when removed Norman landowners throughout Ireland and distributed much of it to his false ally the King of Loigsi. In essence, he was living on borrowed time, with his son shielding him from the wrath of an angry son who had been scorned. Luckily, the English, pompous as always, did not know what they were facing...

To be continued...

 

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Tara Province of Meath, Kingdom of Ireland

- Battle to the Death, O'Briens arrive. -

Toirdhealbhagh Bog O'Brien, High King of Ireland​

Toirdhealbhagh, his son and marshal Conchobar, and the men of Thomond were the first to reach Tara. By the time they had arrived, the area was deserted. He had a decision to make -- Would he have himself crowned at Tara immidiately, or would he wait for the men of Desmond to arrive? He decided to wait. This would prove to be a major decision, but he had no idea that he was being followed.

To be continued...

 

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Dublin, Province of Meath, Kingdom of Ireland

- A Good Laugh at Someone Else's Expense, Part V. -

Antaine sat in a dark dungeon built by people he perceived to be Germanic savages and plotted his escape. As the days went by, he became highly delusional. He imagined he was sleeping, in the cell... when Prince George of England is thrown in after returning only to find his castle stolen by Irishmen... Antaine began to laugh, unfortunately his enjoyment lasted only a few seconds as he awoke to the smell of urine and filth. He may not have been accustomed to the greatest luxuries of the time as the French and Greeks had been, but he was a Noble regardless. This was a major inconvenience for him, and his goal was ultimately escape and to return to Leinster.

After a week of relentless boredom, Part of his dream came true. The O'Neills reached Dublin before the O'Briens did, so he was free to go. He opted to stay in Dublin, however, because he was afraid that he may run into an O'Brien army en-route to County Laois. Unfortunately he was unable to locate any of his belongings which had apparently been pilfered by his English captors during their escape, so he decided to join the O'Neill faction army in order to provide him with lodging and food, at least.

Fin.

 

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Tara Province of Meath, Kingdom of Ireland

- Battle to the Death, O'Neills arrive. -

Eoghan O'Neill, High King of Ireland​

Toirdhealbhagh was confident when he saw Eoghan's army. The Army of Munstermen was much larger than the small group of Ulstermen who stood with Eoghan, and the Connaught army was on the way to aid Toirdhealbhagh as well. Fortunately, for Eoghan, his armies succeeded in capturing Belfast and Dublin, effectively encircling Tara. A standoff ensued, as neither side wanted to be the first to shoot. Toirdhealbhagh didn't want to begin the battle until the Connaught men arrived, and Eoghan didn't want to begin the battle until the Bavarians arrived. Hours went by, and it was clear that violence loomed overhead, but no one dared to start the conflict themselves.

The army of Munster formed a line parallel to the Ulstermen under Eoghan. He expected to force the Ulstermen to retreat into the army of Connaught and get hacked to pieces. He sent a single man on cavalry to offer peace to Eoghan if he would accept Toirdhealbhagh's kingship and permit his coronation at Tara.

Eoghan smirked and told the man of his massive army that was coming and the impending doom of the Munstermen and offered him survival if he joined his forces. Surprisingly, the man agreed and joined the Ulster forces.

After two hours had passed, Toirdhealbhagh assumed that his messenger was killed. He was livid.

"Men of Desmond, Thomond and Ormond, With this victory we shall move on to Dublin and rid ourselves of the foreigners completely. With this victory, the Men of Munster will send a statement to all of Europe that Ireland is unconquerable, and that the sons of Brian are the soul of Ireland. It has become clear that our enemy is a coward and refuses to attack, so let us do it for them. To arms, and let us advance!"

The Munstermen charged into the unexpecting Ulstermen with great haste and simply began overwhelming them. As expected, they began to flee. An Ulster messenger was sent to Dublin to ask support of the garrison whom secured it. Help came several hours later, and the O'Neill forces were able to wage a successful counteroffensive, effectively evening the odds. It seemed as if the battle had gone on forever for the tired Munster troops, desperate for the Connaught men to arrive and turn the odds back toward their favor. Instead, as a group of Ulstermen including the Prince of Clannaboy, Cousin of Eoghan O'Neill were encircled and nearing doom, an army appeared from the south. The battle paused momentarily as men from both sides stared off to see whether the men were of Bavaria or of Connaught. Instead, the Green Harp of Leinster waved proudly in the wind. Both sides were confident that the Leinstermen would join their cause, but The O'Brien side was in for a rude awakening. Antaine O'Morda himself led the charge into their line and was injured in the process. As he clasped his chest he ordered his men not to obey any commands from the O'Neills. He collapsed on his horse, which frightened it and it fled the battle, leaving the Leinstermen without a commander. Confused, they began attacking the Ulstermen as well, and the battle turned into all out chaos. Toirdhealbhagh overruled his son and removed him as commander, ordering a general retreat of Munster forces. He decided to stay would be far too costly and could ruin him politically. The Munstermen fled west toward Connaught and left the men of Leinster and the men of Ulster to fight over Tara.

As the moon began to rise, the two remaining sides were able to establish a ceasefire. Eoghan decided he did not want to be crowned atop a pile of bodies, so he would put off his coronation for awhile.

At the end of the battle, the Ulstermen controlled two provinces, the Munstermen controlled two provinces, and Leinster stood on her own, but seemed to favor Ulster.



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Battle at Tara. March, 1455
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O'Brien Commanders:
Donnchadh O'Brien (Commander of the men of Thomond)
Diarmait O'Brien (Commander of the men of Desmond)

O'Neill Commanders:
Eoghan O'Neill (Commander of the men of Tir Eoghain and Tir Connail)
Antaine O'Morda (Commander of the men of Laois and Kilkenny)

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Forces Engaged, Casualties:
Leinster: 7,540 / 2,240
Connaught: 0 / 0
Munster: 15,336 / 8,135
Ulster: 8,684 / 5,291
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To be continued...

 

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Galway Province of Connaught, Kingdom of Ireland

- Battle to the Death, The Resupply. -


The Munstermen had been stood up by Tadg O'Connor, the King of Connaught. Toirdhealbhagh decided to take his frustrations out on him. The remaining 7,200 men in his army traveled west until they reached the city of Galway, largest in Connaught. They then awoke all eligible men, armed them, and ordered them to join their ranks or else they would be killed on the spot. Tadg O'Connor was awoken to learn he had been virtually imprisoned in his home, surrounded by angry Munstermen and coerced Connaughtmen. He was ordered to come out and lead his men to battle or die a coward's death. He opted to join. After he had departed, his castle was looted by the Munstermen by order of Toirdhealbhagh himself.

He had been surprised once by his adversaries, but he would not be bested again. He now possessed an army as large as his original force, but his rivals had lost half of their armies on the battlefield, and as far as he was concerned, they could still be fighting amongst themselves at Tara, and he would be more than willing to let them kill eachother as he rode leisurely throughout Connaught recruiting fresh men for his army of reconquest.

To be continued...

 

[Elias Tarfarius]

The Enterprise of Ireland - First Impressions, Part I

After a series of delay involving foul North Sea weather and bad feelings with the Gelre captains and sailor who had been forced by their Duke to carry these band of dangerous foriegners to a strange land across the sea. Ireland indeed seemed strange to the Lowlanders, even to those who had seen its treeless hill and stony shores before. The Bavarians were shocked by the apparent desolate look of the land, think it would be a more pleasant isle of groves and warming sunshine instead of the endless grey mass before them. Upon coming near Belfast, the captains were order to raise the standards of the Duke of Bayern-Munchen in order to signal the coming of the long awaited embassy from Bavaria. Tobias Mantel and his party had no idea they had just missed one of the greatest battle in all Irish history and that "Terrance," trying to repair his forces at the capital, now knew what the Bavarians were up to. Oblivious, Herr Mantel, flanked by five of his knights and some of the High King' s guard, march up from the harbor to the "palace" of the High King for the beginning of his game.

 

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Peadar Cardinal O'Gríofa Bishop of Glanarought, Cardinal Archbishop of Belfast entered the court and immediately went up to the King, King Eoghan O'Neill, with the intention of soliciting a favour of the King.

"Noble King, it has come to my knowledge that the French King is befouling his very own country, France is becoming devoid of her obvious decadence and debauchery, I feel it my solemn task to illuminate her problems to the French King, an enterprise Ireland would benefit greatly from, in one way or another. So with your approval I shall traverse the channel and approach the French King, and simultaneously serve Ireland. Fear not, I, Peadar, shall do my utmost to accomplish my apparent mission."

The Archbishop made what looked like a curtsey and awaited the answer.

 

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Belfast Province of Ulster, Kingdom of Ireland

- Arrival of the Germans -

Eoghan O'Neill, High King of Ireland​

Upon learning that the Bavarians had arrived on the Northern shores of Ireland, the Ulstermen withdraw northward and abandoned Tara temporarily. When the Bavarians reached the city, Eoghan was already sitting on Toirdhealbhagh's throne, which was said to have been "still warm". The Bavarian leader was given a hero's welcome and brought to the King at once.

"Herr Mantel, I am most grateful that you have come, and I am certainly in the debt of my late uncle's wife, or whomever in Bavaria sent you here. I have not forgotten that my mother is a member of Haus Wittelsbach, and as such, once we are able to defeat the men of Munster, I will gladly endorse the Wittelsbach-Bayern claims to their rightful counties in the Low Countries. Whenever your men are ready, I suggest we return to Tara, as that is the obvious location for a decisive battle. Kings of Ireland have been crowned there for millennia."

He then turned his attention to the Cardinal.

"Although you were appointed during the illegitimate reign of the O'Brien, I will grant your request and permit you to travel to France, Your Eminence."

He thought to himself. (Perhaps a man as portly as he would be best served in the chaste life of the clergy. No whore or concubine would dare even consider meeting with his flesh.)

 

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Belfast Province of Ulster, Kingdom of Ireland

- "Oh, and by the way..." -

Eoghan O'Neill, High King of Ireland​

"By the way, Your Eminence, It would be appreciated if you go to Italy when you're done in France. Couriers have plead for me to request this of you as they are tired from sending Papal letters."


The King laughed. He tried to make humor to mask the fear in all around him that he had been attempting to ignore. The O'Briens were weakened, but they were far from vanquished.

 

[Bagricula]

A second bull arrives bearing the heavy red seal of the Holy See, summoning all the bishops of Christendom to an ecumenical council in Monte Cassino. In both Greek and Latin it reads thus:

"Pastores Grecum, Espicati Ecclesiae, et Socii Servi Dei,

"And the LORD called yet again, Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me." Today my brothers, your Church calls you yet again to fulfill your vows and sit in a congress blessed by the wisdom of the Holy Ghost. Tarry no longer on worldly matters. Although, the cares of your homeland press against the confines of your mind and batter your spirit, remember the words of Our Lord, "But Jesus told him, 'Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.'" Without the salvation of Christ, all the world is condemned to the death of eternal separation from the Most High.

Failure a second time will result in just and proper penalties according to the forms and will be considered in the revisions of the Collegium Cardinales.

On the following topics, you are commanded to meditate during the journey to Monte Cassino where the Church now gathers to sit in council:

Primus - What steps must be taken now that victory has been won against the infidel Africans to bring the Word of God to the nascent Christian communities of Africa?

Secundus - What is the state of the Church in the many nations of Christendom?

Tertius - How may the Church of the West and the Church of the East be reunited in holy and sisterly communion as the true bride of Christ?

Quartus - What role should the Eastern Roman Empire, now de facto impotent, play in the new Kingdom of God? What should be done with the vacant Imperial mantle?

Quintus - What reforms necessitated by the new age we live in must be undertaken to renew the Church's mission of faith?

Sextus - What reforms must be made in the instruction of priests, in the discipline of the religious, in the education of the faithful?

Septimius - What should be done regarding the martial disputes of temporal powers? What can be done to prevent such disputes from arising?

After these seven questions have been addressed, the conclave will open to new business and general motions from the assembly. The Holy Father will conclude the conclave by confirming those worthy resolutions into the Canon of the Church.

Ad Maiorem Gloriam Dei, may this solemn bull be made the law on Earth as it is in Heaven, written in the Abbey of Monte Cassino a

Sanctissimus, Pope Nicholas V, Vicar of Christ, Papa Universalis, Summus Pontifex, Pontifex Maximus, Servus Servorum Dei, Patriarch of the West, Primate of Italy, Metropolitan of the Roman Province, and Bishop of Rome"