Welcome back, class. Today’s lecture will cover the fourty year long reign of Lancelin I, who oversaw the blooming of the Normannian Empire, forever transforming the realm from somewhat wealthy, to overly wealthy. He was 44 years old when he inherited the throne and wouldn’t leave his mortal coil before he was 84.
The first years of his reign was a lighting campaign in Iberia. First he concluded the war he had inherited from his father, with France. France was humiliated. Then he proceded to wage war on the kingdom of Castille, cutting the kingdom in half in the process.
Mister Butterfly! I do
not want to see such behavior in my class again! Consider this a warning!
Ahem. Right. Then Lancelin I went ahead and solved a problem. The problem of Andalucia. Her vassal queen was a treacherous woman, causing headache for the Emperor. Thankfully, she was also a woman with appetite for other women’s husbands, and this was used as an excuse to imprison her and then revoke her kingdom, now under the care of Lancelin I. Thus a powerful vassal was no longer a problem.
By this time only the duchy of Barcelona, the Empires of Francia and Normannia as well as limp Castille was left independent in Iberia. Soon, Barcelona was part of Normannia too, and then Castille too fell to Lancelin’s armies.
On June 6th, 1340 AD, Lancelin I was crowned by the Pope himself in Palermo as Emperor of Hispania. He was now a Dual Emperor, the most powerful man in Christendom. In celebration, he ordered the founding of the University of Coimbra. And then went to war for the kingdom of Sardegna e Corsica, which was controlling parts of North Africa, as well as Corsica and Sardinia. He won easily.
Lewis! Don’t you dare snore in my classes!
Right, where was I? Ah, yes. Filled with pride and eagerness after all these successes, Lancelin I would meet his first defeat. The Pope called for a crusade for Mesopotamia, the first of many. And this one would not end well. The Emperor sent his entire might to claim Mesopotamia for Christ. And lost the entire force in a series of defeats. Limping back, dealing with his unruly vassals, the crusade was soon lost. But Lancelin kept his vassals in line and licked his wounds.
Not long after, he founded the University of Madrid and then he declared war on the Empire of Francia for the duchy of Aragon – and won handily. In 1352 he was hit by personal tragedy though, as his son and heir Lancelin died of what was probably cancer, at the age of 57. His new heir was now his grandson Hamelin, aged 39.
Not one to rest on his laurels, however personally devastated, Lancelin I then laid his eyes on the Byzantine Empire. He declared war on the Eastern Empire in late 1355, claiming the duchy of Syrte. Half his forces went towards Syrte and the provinces in Egypt, while the main force under his personal command went straight for Constantinople. On March 30th, 1356 – almost on the month 100 years after the Mongol War started, Constantinople fell to Normannian forces, and the war was over.
Mr. Pip, will you please wake up young Butterfly for me?
Ahem. Then, luck struck. A technicality in the peace treaty was discovered merely two months after the peace was made, rendering the whole truce null and void. So the Emperor declared war again, this time for the duchy of Cyrenaica. Again half the force was sent for the war goal, while the Emperor lead his men to siege Constantinople anew. As the City of Cities was about to fall, the Byzantine Emperor gave in to save his capital from another ravaging, and Normannia won again.
This would be the last war of Emperor Lancelin I. He died on August 28th, 1360, after 40 years of rule, aged 83. His grandson Hamelin I succeeded him, aged 47. Lancelin had accomplished much, greatly expanding his realm, attaining another Emperor title. And not the least, he had overseen a blossoming of the economy never before seen. When he ascended the throne, the monthly surplus was around 60 gold coins. When he died, the surplus was over 200 gold coins a month. When he started his reign, he had command over 45k troops. When he died, this had soared to over 95k troops. He left his realm in a much better state than he got it.
Alright, that was all for today. Next lesson will be on Emperor Hamelin I, a much less busy reign. Please read pages 356 to 398. And will someone
please wake up young Butterfly again?
