Do you want to join but don't know which country to take? Take a look at these vassals, organized by region, which range from major duchies under the Holy Roman Empire, like Bohemia and Bavaria, to small, independent petty kingdoms and counties like Pomerania, Capua, and Osraige.
January 4, 1069 - January 2, 1070This was a quiet year. Nothing of note happened in Normandy, Ireland, Breizh, or Gwynedd, but there are a few points to be made about them. The Byzantine Empire, on the other hand, is embroiled in an insane web of wars and political intrigue, the Scandinavian Bloc is dealing with a major uprising in Northern Sweden, and the Scottish rebels continue to burn their way through the highlands. I did forget to follow the Petty Kingdom of Mumu at Derpestein's request, but rest assured that they will be given focus in future updates.
Anyway.
The Quiet RealmsThe Earl Hood instituted Agnatic-Cognatic Primogeniture in the counties of
Dublin and Laigin, making his younger two sons very upset but creating a predictable line of inheritance that will make the succession much easier on Murchad's death. If the leader of the house has anything to say about it, however, he'll be King of Ireland before he dies. This is a long way off, considering we have yet to take a third county, but who knows what the future holds?
While King Blydden Mathrafal's (Gowi) realm of
Gwynedd saw a year of peace, political analysts will note a very dangerous situation for Dublin. King Blydden has a Casus Belli against Dublin in the form of Gruffydd ap Cynan, a fifteen year old boy of royal blood with a strong, but likely fabricated, claim on Dublin. As shown in the picture below, several of Dublin's neighbors (those in blue) are allied with Gwynedd through marriages to King Blydden's daughters. Should Gwynedd push Gruffydd's claim on Dublin, it is more likely than not that this war is one we would lose.
Gwynedd's allies include the Petty Kingdom of Connachta and the counties of Breifne and Tir Eoghaine.
Meanwhile, in
Breizh, something strange occurred. Konan de Rennes (HollywoodMole) was apparently quietly replaced by his brother, Jaffrez II. This creates a dangerous political situation, as Konan, who is still in Breizh, is next in line for the throne of the petty kingdom. Childless kings are often prone to unexpected accidents. We'll have to see how this plays out, and which de Rennes brother will ultimately rule Brittany.
Now, on to the meaty stuff.
ByzantiumIntroducing ConstantinopleThe largest state we're following,
the Byzantine Empire, is ruled from the [ul=http://i.imgur.com/OfbIcTs.jpg]city of Constantinople[/url] by Basileus Konstantinos X Doukas (Cpt Toellner), who spent 1069 fighting a losing war against the Seljuk Sultunate and marching to put down a traitorous revolt from within his own family. 12,000 Seljuk soldiers, divided into two separate armies, crossed the border and began wreaking havoc in Anatolia, which would have been enough of a problem if Michael Tiratines, Doux of Coloneia, had not decided that the middle of a war was an appropriate time to push the imperial claim of the aging Konstantinos X's son, Doux Alexios. Unfortunately, that's precisely what happened, and a small but significant army has formed in eastern Anatolia with the express purpose of replacing the emperor in Constantinople.
Further complicating matters, the temporary independence of Coloneia has given the unfortunately named Nesr Ebulqasim Nizamedin kure Ehmed Marwanid, the Beylerbey of the Marwanid Satrapy and a vassal to the Seljuk Sultan, the opportunity to declare war on the rebel state. The opportunistic Beylerbey wishes to annex these lands while they lack the defense of the Byzantine Empire, but in an odd twist the Byzantine loyalists on their way to Coloneia to put down the rebellion wound up meeting the Marwanid Satrapy's forces on the field of battle in the rebellious province of Meritene.
Northern RebelSvend II Estrid, King of Denmark, was forced to come to Sweden's aid as Erik the Heathen, brother to Swedish King Stenkil Stenkiling, rallied the pagan vassals of the north to his banner and led them to revolt. Sweden was unable to muster the forces to put down the rebellion, and so Asbjorn Ulfrsen, brother to King Svend II and one of Denmark's premier generals, marched north with a force of some 1,500 soldiers to engage the rebels in battle. He did so successfully, and the rebels are all but defeated. Danish political analysts say that Erik the Heathen will be forced into a surrender within the next year.
The Scottish Crisis ContinuesNot much really happened here, to be fair, but what is happening is important. The final holdfasts and forts in Gowrie fell to Murdoch's army, and the rebel leader immediately turned south, intending to burn everything between Gowrie and Dunbar, a loyalist province where King Malcolm III has been rallying soldiers to his banner. It seems to be only a matter of time before the wars ends and Duke Malsenanct of Moray is placed on the Scottish throne, but King Malcolm III has made it quite clear that he has no intentions to backing down, and so we are prepared to watch a slow, grinding war of attrition from here on out.
