The Kingdom of Blaland - A Norse Africa AAR

[Alienspacebats]

BORING Christianity.

Bah!

Maybe if you have Heresy or something Diffenant That Think my interest a bit

 

[TheAnguishedOne]

A 5 year old king... yeah, that regency would be painful.

 

[QueenoftheIsles]

This is turning out to be so cool, I love where it is going! Definitely subbing!

I've been thinking of doing my very first AAR soon, and I think this has finally inspired me to go through with it.

I wait with bated breath for the next update!

 

[Andrzej I]

Eagerly looking forward to further installments of this. It's rather well written Here's hoping young Bo can handle the burden laid upon his shoulders. Do we know who the Regent is?

 

[sansastark]

Bo II the Great Hæsteinning
Lived: 1050-1081
King of Blaland: 1056-1081
King of Egypt: 1059-1081
Duke of Modena: 1056-1081

Bo should never have been king, yet found himself crowned at the tender age of 5. His father, Jarl Steinn of Sicily, was a former enemy of the crown who was imprisoned in 1020. Anticipating the nobles of Blaland scheming against the king, Einarr made himself his official guardian. He also made up part of the regency council, headed by Boethios the court eunuch. Einarr much liked the man, as he was known to be extremely impartial and work just for the good of the kingdom.

Following the conquest of Aswan by Duchess Gerðr of Alexandria, which restricted the Latifids to the Sinai, Einarr and Boethios masterminded the assassination of Bo af Guerande. His supporters had pressed his claim to the throne in the past, and Einarr was not about to let it happen again. The war against the Muammarids was still going on however, and so Einarr led his men to Egypt. Almost predictably the Cathars in Amalfi revolted again. Their armies were now led by Livio, Catarina’s new favourite. In February 1058 the Cathars famously took control of the city, as Einarr’s armies were busy in Egypt. The Cathars saw this as a sign from God that they were on the right path, much to the chagrin of the pope. At the same time, in the East Zartosht the Liberator of Persia became Shah of Armenia after a successful Jihad against the Greeks. With the war over, the Sunni Caliph Aram declared his support for the Muammarids.

15th century depiction of the Cathars taking Amalfi​

With the Latifids joining in early 1059, the war started by Linda was becoming suddenly very difficult. Einarr used the territory to his advantage and in December he successfully conquered Sarqihya and negotiated peace. After so much war against the Muslims and bringing Christian rule back to the area, on Christmas Day 1059 Bo was crowned King of Egypt by Pope Mark II, as well as a gift of gold for fighting the infidel. Aged only 9 the boy king now had another kingdom under his belt. Becoming king actually helped Bo break out of his shell. The loss of his parents at an incredibly young age and then the manipulation he suffered as a young Jarl left him incredibly shy. The loss of his new “mother” Linda so soon after almost broke the boy. Einarr and Boethios carefully helped Bo become more outgoing and before long he overcame his stutter and became surprisingly confident. Feasts held in Tunis soon became his favourite time, with great food and great company making him the happiest he’d ever been.

The world would not slow down for the young Bo, though. On the 15th of July 1060 Mark II declared the 1st Crusade for East Francia. Formally presented as an “armed pilgrimage” Mark travelled across Europe to spread the word, with many bishops following suit. In later life Bo would say that he wished he could have joined, but his age and the tense political situation in Blaland meant Einarr and Boethios refused. In the end, only minor dukes and counts joined the pilgrimage and with very few men. Einarr’s men defeated the Cathars in September 1060, however, and the Cathars relocated to Francia. Catarina had a following in the south, as well as in Burgundy and Andalusia. After seeing the devastation in Amalfi and the efforts of the pious Lord Mayor Folki to rebuild his city, Bo became very charitable.

On the 20th of January 1063, Pope Mark II died aged 69. All of Christendom mourned his death, as he was one of the greatest popes – and definitely the greatest in living memory. His death was also a knock for the crusaders, who lost their figurehead and inspiration. In April the Greeks suffered huge rebellions. Einarr saw an opportunity and declared war on some of the rebelling territories in Italy. It was at this time that Einarr fondly wrote in his diary of Bo’s first kiss with a peasant girl, which he embarrassingly interrupted.

As the war effort began Einarr realised he could not handle both leading armies and protecting Bo, who was growing up into a young teenager. In response, he and Boethios appointed new members of the regency council. Jarl Bersi II of Cyrenaica, Georg of Kabylia, Count Nikelas of Malta and Bishop Eilif of Cefalu all became leading figures. The men were mostly militaristic figures, dreaming of conquest. Einarr’s appointments were well intentioned but many of the new council also dreamed of self-glory, and so the reshuffling would become one of Einarr’s greatest mistakes. Nevertheless in 1064 Lecce was conquered, with Barion following shortly after. The Basileus fumed but could do little to rectify the situation until the rebellion was put down. Faste af Tulmaytath was made Jarl of Apulia. The county of Apulia still remained in Greek hands, and Bo’s forces were forced to retreat after losses.

Italy in 1064​

Meanwhile in Iberia history was repeating itself as another Norseman forged out his own kingdom. Helsten Styr conquered a realm in the south east, crowning himself King of Valencia. Shortly after, Boethios died and the regency council was without a leader. Einarr seemed the obvious choice, but Jarl Georg of Kabylia skilfully took control of the council. The two men had always clashed, and Georg made use of the fact he had his own lands and retainers to prevent Einarr challenging him without full blown civil war. As Pope Martin II called off the crusade, Jarl Georg backstabbed the king. Over the year he ruled as regent he scrapped many laws granting authority to the monarchy. Einarr and Bo were furious but were not prepared to make a move until Bo was of age. Thankfully, that was not far away and on 2nd December 1066 Bo officially came of age. Georg stepped down as regent but remained part of Bo’s council; a wise decision from the young king.

Bo held a feast in Tunis to celebrate his coming of age and charmed many women including Duchess Aleta of Apulia and Cecilia Hvíti, daughter of the Count of Lemdiyya. It was also during the feast that to celebrate Einarr’s 55th birthday he was granted the duchy of Sicily for his services to the crown. Einarr was overjoyed, and even moreso when Bo revealed the brand new statues of Einarr and Linda to be displayed in Tunis. Bo let his lust get the better of him and in June 1067 he married Cecilia Hvíti after a whirlwind romance. His advisors had urged him to choose a bride who brought a better alliance, but Bo was smitten. He also appointed Cecilia’s father, Þorðr, as his new chancellor. After a tournament, won by Refr Hæsteinning, Bo and Þorðr set up new laws to replace those scrapped by Georg. They also formalised a lot of laws in Egypt, as its distinction as a new kingdom now meant the Egyptian vassals were to be administrated differently. The most powerful Egyptian vassal was undoubtedly Ulfr of Alexandria, who was also granted the Jarldom of Aswan in 1068.

With Queen Cecilia pregnant, Bo’s half-sister Princess Edla realised her chances of ruling were pretty much over. Although close to her brother during their youth, she was no longer fond of him. In July 1069 she hired an assassin to kill Bo. Luckily he failed but Edla fled to the Kingdom of Denmark in the north. She was eventually captured and imprisoned, but Bo felt betrayed. Joy was soon brought into his life, however, as Cecilia gave birth to a healthy son in August. The prince was named Einarr in honour of the closest man to a father Bo had ever had. Mere days after Einarr’s birth, the last pagan community in Beni Yanni was pushed out into the desert. Many considered it to be a sign that Einarr’s reign would be blessed, but Bo still had much more to achieve beforehand.

​

In 1070 Bo invaded the last Muslim-controlled lands in Egypt. The Romani and the Latifids put up little to no resistance, and on the 8th of August all of Egypt was firmly under Blaland’s control. The Sinai, now an important buffer zone between not only the Muslims but also the Greeks should they invade, was granted to Cecilia’s relative Buðli Hvíti. With the chaos that had ravaged the Sinai over the past decade, many of the peasants ended up turning to Catharism.

The world was rocked in October 1071 when the king of Italy conquered Rome, and forced the pope to flee to his lands in Lotharingia. The Francian Emperor forced the king to surrender Rome to the papacy in 1072, but a new papacy had already been set up in Hainaut. The papacy had shifted its focus from solely Rome a lot since the inheritance of Lotharingia, but this was the final nail in the coffin. The papacy would never be solely ruled from Rome ever again, and the pope made his permanent residence in Hainaut from now on. Meanwhile Catharism became popular in both Medina and Lecce.

The Papacy in Lotharingia. Other points of interest: Leinster in England and Frisia, kingdoms of Wales, Lancaster and Wessex​

Ever since Blaland had begun taking control of Italian territory, the common folk had mainly kept their languages and the nobles theirs. It is important to note that many in Northern Italy especially spoke Frankish languages, after years of Frankish occupation. In the 1070s evidence of a new language begins to appear. That language was, of course, Norman. Influenced by Norse and Latin the new language helped the different communities across the peninsula converse more easily. Although still minor at the time, eventually Norman would grow and grow as the centuries passed by.

Tunis reached an estimated 100,000 population in 1077. Already one of the world’s richest cities it was quickly becoming a centre for art and culture, too. Francia, however, was facing many troubles. Emperor Jaufré was unpopular, and in 1079 Queen Isabeau Karling of Italy wrestled her independence. The peasantry of Francia suffered greatly during the rebellion, as the countryside was ravaged. Bo suffered great personal loss too, as in 1079 Einarr Arnisson died age 67. He was devastated to lose his last parent, but this time around he had his own family to take care of. Unfortunately the loss of Einarr was too much for Bo to handle, and he began to suffer incredible stress without his trusted guidance. Bo did make friends with a warrior from the East at the time, but he departed in 1080.

Funeral of Einarr​

With the Shia Caliph Mula trying to organise a Jihad for Andalusia, in 1081 Bo invaded the rebel Doux of Neapolis and the Italian provinces still loyal to the Basileus. In October the king lost his right hand in battle. Infection rapidly took hold and in December Bo died, aged only 31. Boethios posthumously granted him the title of “the Great” and began to spread stories and legends about Bo, of the young boy who became a strong king. Rumours that Einarr and Linda were his real parents began to spread, but could never officially be linked to the eunuch. After a tenuous regency period, Bo took Blaland to new heights with the complete conquest of Egypt and more influence in Italy. Bo’s early death unfortunately meant Einarr would have to make it through a regency himself.

 

[sansastark]

It's been nearly a month but I'm finally back! Hope you all enjoy Bo's reign.

BORING Christianity.

Bah!

Maybe if you have Heresy or something Diffenant That Think my interest a bit

Christianity in CK2 can be just as interesting as anything else! It all depends on the stories that end up happening.

A 5 year old king... yeah, that regency would be painful.

It certainly was!

This is turning out to be so cool, I love where it is going! Definitely subbing!

I've been thinking of doing my very first AAR soon, and I think this has finally inspired me to go through with it.

I wait with bated breath for the next update!

Thank you so much! Definitely do an AAR, it's a lot of fun. Very thankful that my AAR inspired you

Eagerly looking forward to further installments of this. It's rather well written Here's hoping young Bo can handle the burden laid upon his shoulders. Do we know who the Regent is?

Thank you! As you can see from the update the regents were a touchy subject!

 

[TheAnguishedOne]

Another crown! Excellent news. Now you just need to become an Empire.

Bo II did a fantastic job strengthening Blaland. Hopefully Einarr will accomplish the same.