[Bellum Crucis] HISTORIAE REGNUM FRANCORUM (Updated Chapter VII)

[Flinn]

awesome work, I love the mix of original stuff from the age and the screens are just perfectly shot IMO, bravo

also, BC looks to be a gorgeous mod, I wish I had time to play it

[Alwyn]

A dramatic battle and the sad death of a queen, I'm enjoying your story. I think short updates can be a good way for new readers to get into an AAR.

[Lord_Imrahil]

Finally on other AAR from Roman Heritage. He si probably the best current AAR author for medieval.

[Alwyn]

I hope that your new play-through is going well - it's not unusual to re-start a campaign and continue an AAR using the new campaign, I've done that more than once.

[Roman Heritage]

Hello all, guys. I'm sorry for my really long absence from this work, and overall the forum, and let me honestly apologize to you - personal matters prevented me from updating this, and checking the forums. I hope you'll take this small bit of a chapter as a nice retaliation - and I promise you I'll try to update once again as soon as I can, mayhaps with a double chapter. Hope you enjoy it...and that you didn't forget my Historiae!

Chapter Six - Of the construction of Notre Dame de Paris, and the birth of Philip Dieudonnè


The marriage of King Louis and Adela of Blois-Champagne marked the beginning of a new era for the Royaume. With the restoration of the Crown's hold over the lands of Albon, Lyonese and Auvergne came the acquisition of those trade alleys to and from Italia Septemtrionalis and Provincia, which through such lands passed, and as a result important and proficuous market fairs such as that of the Champagne and Lyonese, to which merchants for the whole of Europe convey, grew again in prestige and size; and, thanks to such a rebirth of trade, great was the revenue which began flowing into the Crown's coffers.
Being a pious man, Louis, Seventh of his Name, despised war and violence among Christians; but, as a King he had to convey that tough shameful and ruinous, war is often a necessity, expecially to those who head the State; for, if war was truly to be always deemed unjust, Christ would have told Peter to throw away his sword, not to sheathe it back. Therefore, as compensation for the sins he and his soldiers had and would inevitably commit in the defense of the Realm and the Crown, and mayhaps to soften his own spiritual torments, Louis began musing with the idea of constructing a new Temple to God, a majestic Cathedral which he would entitle to the Virgin Mary, Notre Dame - a Temple which would later become known as the Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris, one of the greatest wonders of our ages.
To administrate fundings, provided mainly by the Crown and the gold collected through the merchantile tithe, the King's trust fell onto Maurice de Sully, Bishop of Paris; and the duty to survey construction works propers was entrusted to Jean de Chelles and Pierre de Montreuil, two men of humble descent but nonetheless great knowledge of the disciplines which revolve around the noble arts of construction; for He who presides over everything often gives small folk the gift of crafting and imaginating, as it is through creation which men honours God the most.




Of the church which Louis dreamed of, a dream which came true through the hands of stonemasons and crafters, much can be said, but as was written by Gautier de Chatillon, Louis' ambassador at the Curia Romana, "...even the language of the Greeks, whom yet under Justinianus have built the Sophia in Konstantinopoulis, lacks a proper term to encompasse all that splendour and beauty which Notre Dame promises to be".


Nor did Louis' put aside State affairs aside to satisfy his inner struggles, as it is a King's duty to do its best to honour his duties to the Country, and those who serve him, whatever the outcome, and whatever the sacrifices needed. After four years of wait, under suggestion of his pious brother Cardinal Henry, Louis finally agreed onto having Adela, his beloved wife, be anointed as Queen of Francia in the cathedral of Rheims, for four years had passed since Costance's death; and by the hands of Cardinal Henry himself did Adela receive the Sacrè Chresme and the Crown, fully embracing her role as a wife and a Queen in the eyes of God an men.



And perhaps this proved to be what Our Lord, in His infinite Wisdom, waited to fulfill the King's prayers, as less than nine months after her crowning Queen Adela gave birth to a son, Philip called Dieu Donnè, God Given, for much had Louis wished to see an offspring generated from his loins; and this prince would later on grow to wear the Crown and bring forward his father's ambitions, and further France's glory, as Philip, Second of his Name, Flower of Chivalry.
Great feastings were undertaken throughout the Kingdom, and joustings and tourneys held in the city of Paris; and joyfully the Royaume cheered, for nothing it knew of the storm which would soon darken its skies, and bring war at its very doors.

[Alwyn]

It's good to see your AAR continuing, the historical art-work blends well with the text. The cathedrals built in this period of history are impressive indeed. I look forward to seeing how Philip will earn the title of Flower of Chivalry.

[Rabbit55821]

This is pretty good! I like the short and sweet chapters. I read an AAR once that used the same style (albeit, with less screenshots. Not complaining! ), and it was pretty good. Anyways, good luck!

[Roman Heritage]

Chapter Seven - Of the quarrels, exile and assassination of the Archbishop of Canterbury by Henry of England, and his war against Francia


Many a times, in the History of States and Empires, groundbreaking changes such as the outbreak of conflicts have their roots deepened in seemingly private events, which, due to what philosophers and Epicureists claim to be the casual nature of History as is known by men, but which to men of faith is revealed and taught as God's will, come to effect the fates of mankind. Such was the nature of the struggle which would make the lands of Francia and Angleterre bleed for many a decades, as such struggle had its roots in the conflict between Henry, Plantagenet King of England, those councillors who surrouded him and those who held high offices in his Kingdom.
A decade had passed since Henry, King of England, had bestowed the rank of Chancellor onto Thomas Becket, former secretary of Thibault, Archbishop of the diocese of Canterbury, the Holiest of places which is to be found beyond the Channel; and happened that during these years, a close relationship was established between the King, a man of sharp and cunning mind, and Thomas, whom was a man of great charme and skills in the field of administration. So close grew their relationship, that when the reverred Thibault died out of old age, Henry lost no time in having his friend and Chancellor be appointed as Archbishop; and this he did because of his wish to submit the English Church to the Crown, hoping having a supporter of his appointed in Canterbury would help him achieve so; contrary to his will, this was the establishment of the basis of a long controversy between the two former friends, a controversy which would end in bitterness, tragedy, and ultimately, in the murder of a man of Church among the most righteous England had ever seen.
Though displeased by the fact he had to oppose his former friend, Thomas acted in such a way as to defend and strenghten the Church's independence and privileges in the lands of England; and as a consequence, after bitter disputes with the King, the Archbishop was sent into exile to Francia, where he found shelter and aid in the Court of Paris. At King Louis' request, and to avoid the English Church fall under the yoke of secular power, the pontiff, Adrian, Fourth of His Name, entered negotiations with the the Plantagenet, and convinced him to have Becket re-eastablished to his seat after six years had passed. High hopes were placed in the renewal of the collaboration between Henry ad his former Chancellor, but Thomas soon fell once again out of the King's favour, and was as a result murdered in his own seat of Canterbury by four knights, who had overheard Henry's lamentations about the quarrelsome man of cloth, and acted out of fealty, and a sincere wish to please their liege.



Soon, chaos ensued on both sides of the Channel, for great shock was brought to both common folks and nobles by this murderous act. Enraged by this sacrilege, Adrian IV openly threatened Henry of England with excommunication, to which many of the King's subject, and particularly the Welsh, whom had only recently been subdued by the King's half-brother, Godefroi d'Anjou, rose up in rebellion. Determined to punish the English monarch, and spoil him of his continental holdings, Louis had his vassals muster their forces and, with the Pope's approval, declared Henry's feudal rights over Normandy forfeited; shortly thereafter, a chevaucheè was led by his brother Pierre Capet, Comte de Paris and Amiens, Boutelleir de Senlis, to ravage Henry's domains in Normandy, where great loot was ripe for taking.
Though violences had rapidly began to escalate, and rumours of war to spread throughout Francia, many thought war could be stopped, and a halt be brought to further bloodshed; but God's will proved different, for a host of Norman lords offered battle nearby the village of Beauvais, in a confrontation which they lost to Pierre of Paris; and after such battle occurred, and words reached Henry of the loss of his rights over Normandie, it became clear that there could be naught but war between the Crowns of England and France.
As he was under threat of excommunication if he led any host outside of his island domains, and with rebellions sparking in the North of the Country, Henry resolved to send to Normandy his half brother Godefroi, Duke of Aquitaine and Count of Anjou, with a retinue of four hundred knights and a couple thousand mercenaries, mustered among those clans of Ireland whom could claim Norman blood running through their veins; to thease effectives, Godefroi added those Norman seigneurs who answered his call at arms, bringing his army to a total of eight times a thousand men.
Louis' response was not delayed by any means; as soon as news of Godefroi's crossing of the Channel reached him, the King summoned the heriban, the feudal levy, of Northern France; and his call was answered by the levies and militias of Paris and the Comte de Champagne Henry, to whom owed alledgiance no less than a thousand knights. From Paris, where the troops had conveyed, Louis led his host northwards, where Godefroi had seized the strongholds of Amiens and Lilla, and ravaged many villages; and as the Comte d'Anjou's main goal had been that of pillaging and devastating the countryside in retaliation for the slight of Beauvais, he found the Englishmen to be retreating to their holdings, carrying great loot with them. The two forces finally reached sight of each other nearby the town of Boulogne-sur-Mer, as Godefroi decided to halt his retreat and face his enemy on a field of his choice; and so both armies began preparing for battle, spending a night of watch and prayers.
On the following morning, which happened to be the fifth anniversary of King Louis' son Philip Dieu Donnè, both leaders deployed their forces in lines facing each other. The French vanguard, made up of a couple thousand crossbow serjeants raised among the merchants and bourgeoises of Rheims and Paris, did their best to cover their foot comrades' advance by emptying their quivers over the approaching enemies. On the left flank, Henry, Count of Blois, led his valiant knights in a thundering charge against the militias of Normandy and Devon; and by virtue of the heavier weight of his horses, and the momentum of the charge, he broke through their ranks, giving the chance to the French foot to close ground and avoid much of the arrows shoot by the English bowmen.



Fierce was the fight which developed, and many Frenchmen fell in front of the charge of Godefroi's gaelic mercenaries, which in their own tongue refer to themselves as galloglaich, or gallowglasses; clad in steel and boiled leather, and carrying a variety of axes, double-handed swords and cubs designed to break through any enemy's armour and bones. Great was the impetus of such men, and undeniable their courage, for among those who live on the Emerald Isles the Gauls' fighting spirit still burns fierce; but, as once had Vercingetoricus' soldiers been forced to break in front of the legions of Rome, so did their impetus wane, and their lines shatter. The King himself led his picked guards, among which rode Conrad, Duke of Montferrat, through their ranks, and many of them fell to his sword; and as they turned their backs and fled, the whole right flank of the English host collapsed. The Comte of Anjou, whom had almost succeeded in breaking the French center, was forced to whitdraw; and tough he brought death to many Frenchmen, he was wouded by Conrad, and forced to escape from the field while many noblemen fell as prisoners, along with a great number of commoners and sellswords.
At least three thousand bodies were said to cover the ground, less than a fraction of which had fought for the Rex Franchorum; and an additional one thousand and two hundred ended up as captives, and brought the Crown's coffers great wealth through their ransoms. Soon, a fragile truce was established through Pope Adrian's meddlings; and tough no major hostile acts would take place for the following two years, the Lion of England still stood on his side of the Channel, licking his own wounds, lustfully staring at the lands of Francia.

[Caillagh de Bodemloze]

A very dramatic fight, Roman Heritage!

I really like the style you're using for this - describing whatever happens as being "God's will" (even when you're describing things done by people) seems to me to be very appropriate for the era you're writing about.

(It's good to have you back with us, by the way. )

[demagogos nicator]

I am a bit late to notice but great update

[Alwyn]

I agree with Caillagh and demagogos nicator! I wonder of the fragile truce will hold.