AARs The World Turns II - A Grand Campaign

[Actinguy]

Greetings all! After the success of my last (similarly-named) Grand Campaign AAR, I'm giving it another shot.

For those who weren't around then, here are the rules:

1) I will play as a randomly-chosen (dice) count.

2) I will roleplay as the leader...meaning shy, club-footed, pneumoatic scholarly theologians are probably not going to attempt to take over the world.

3) I will not cheat...no forcing events, no save-reload, nothing even particularly "gamey." This includes marrying women for stats. When marrying my sons, preference will first be given to unloyal vassals, then my liege, then HIS liege (if I'm a count reporting to a Duke reporting to a King), then immediate neighbors, then "special" counties from a story-aspect (friends, rivals, family members, etc), then using the bride-finder to find a bride in my country, and finally...failing all that...using the bride-finder to choose a bride at random (dice). In all of the above cases...if the man is 45 or under, only brides 16-22 will be considered. If older than 45, all ages will be considered.

4) EVERYTHING that happens in this AAR will be based on what happened in the game. (Although not everything that happens in the game will be reported here...do you really care whether the leader's great-grandniece went to the monastary or the court?)

5) Should my dynasty lose control of all of their holdings...making it a "game over"...I will continue the story from the viewpoint of whoever takes over in their place.

6) When a leader has no male heirs, he will change the laws to make sure SOMEONE inherits, even if it's a different dynasty. (This led to several huge events in my last story...including a bastard coming to power.)

7) Posts will generally cover one leader's entire rule...unless a LOT happens (see last game's blind Duke Silvester de Toeny), in which case I will break the story into chapters. Every 50 years, an Update Of The World will be given (with pictures!) Additionally, every 100 years, there will even be a family tree!

8) Last time, I credited Lord Valentine with my layout...but he revealed he'd stolen it from Thrashing Mad, who in turn credited Veldmarshalk. So unless Veld stops in here to correct me, all credit goes to him.

9) I'm playing with CKDV, latest patch, improvement pack, and a couple of graphical mods, including a really sweet face-moddifier thing...all of which I believe come from Gratianus. I am NOT playing with BOPACK...but I would really, really like to if someone could explain to me step-by-step how to make the darned thing work. ;c)

10) Comments will not only be appreciated, but will be printed out and stuck to my refridgerator. Especially pleasant comments MIGHT be framed and hung above my bed.

Well...that about covers everything. Here we go!

 

[Actinguy]

Place Holder for Index of Awesomeness, once said awesomeness takes place.

 

[Actinguy]

Here Be Dragons...and the County of Avranches. See: "Destined for Awesomeness."​

Richard d'Avranches - Brother-in-law of King William de Normandie. This was a headshot from his highschool's production of "Grease."​

Richard's brother-in-law was a bastard, but Richard knew better than to say that to the King of England.

When William de Normandie...the Duke of Normandy at the time...had approached Richard and asked for his help and support in seizing the throne of England, Richard had agreed. On two conditions:

1) When William came to power, he would give Richard a county.

2) In the meantime...Richard could have William's sister, Emma de Conteville.

Twenty-one years later, William de Normandie was King of England, Richard was Count of Avranches, and he and Emma had four children together.

In fact...it is not his actions as Count that make Richard d'Avranches worthy of being the starting point of this historical tome. It is his actions as father which make him of interest.

Before even becoming Count himself, Richard had arranged for his eldest daughter Albereda to Baldwin de Brionne, the Count of Devon...and by the time her father had come to power, Albereda had given Richard three grandchildren, whom he often took hunting.

Richard also took his son Hugh hunting in his favorite spot...the woods of neighboring Evruex...where he taught Hugh how to properly track his prey and handle his weapon. This nearly had a disasterous outcome...but we'll be talking about that later. When his only son came of age, Richard arranged for his son to marry every man's fantasy: Marie de Craon.

A lustful French schoolgirl.

His daughters Maud and Judith were inseperable, often being mistaken for twins, although they were a year apart. They were still young girls when Richard became Count, but they grew up all too quickly, and soon Maud was married to a wealthy courtier in King William's court...a wealthy courtier who was also the brother of the Count of Hereford & Gloucester.

But before he could arrange for Judith's wedding, his wife Emma revealed that...despite her advanced age of 40 years old...she was pregnant again.

Count Richard was thrilled, and immediately began plans to expand their hillside fort into a small castle for the addition to their family...but his plans were still just on paper when he finally got to hold his baby girl, Mabel.

Saddly, this was the last thing Richard got to do. He passed away of natural causes in September of 1071, at the age of 45...with his castle-building dreams unfulfilled.

His son and only heir, Hugh, hoped to fulfill them of course...until he encountered that damn rock.

But...that's a tale for the next chapter.

Count Richard d'Avranches

1025 - 1071

Count of Avranches 1066 - 1071​

FACTS:

*Built Royal Post
*Discovered Small Castle
*Base Economy at death: 2

 

[Actinguy]

Hugh d'Avranches - Richard's only son. Hair unkempt, but mustache perfectly groomed.​

CHAPTER ONE:

Count Hugh d'Avranches inherited his father's title when the boy was just 21 years old. He was a strong lad...strong bodied, but also strong willed. He took what he wanted when he wanted it...which suited his playful French wife just fine...so they had three children just three years into their marriage: Hubert, Gallard, and Giselle.

After seeing his sister Judith marry Stigard of Canterbury...an elderly courtier of the King...Hugh decided he'd like to try his hand at not just "creating" children...but raising them. As his only daughter, Hugh naturally decided to focus on Giselle.

Then she asked him where babies come from.

Go ask your mother.​

So he shipped her off to the monastary, deciding to focus his efforts on his eldest son, Hubert, instead.

But child-rearing wasn't his only concern. As Count of Avranches, Hugh had to report directly to the Duke of Normandy.

Duke Robert Curthose de Normandie was the King's oldest son...just a few years younger than Hugh himself...but he was everything that a leader shouldn't. He had countless flaws in his own personal life, but Hugh's lack of respect for him stemmed from one fact:

Despite the fact that he was first-in-line for the British throne, Duke Robert insisted on acting like a rebel. Refusing his father's orders. It was only a matter of time before the Duke took the rebellion too far...and as his vassal, Hugh was sure he would be dragged into the mess.

To get his mind off the pending doom...and to remember and honor his father...Hugh would occasionally go hunting in those same woodlands in Evreux that his father had loved so much. But Hugh didn't know the lands as well, and would often get lost for a short while before finding his way again.

Which is why, one day shortly after ascending to the role of Count, Hugh was wandering lost through his neighbor's woods well past dark...and encountered a boar. Disoriented in the night, the boar chased after Count Hugh, who ran with all his might...

...until he slipped.

Though the boar ran past him without stopping, the Count's head impacted a large, sharp rock sticking out of the ground.

The blood came fast...and the Count lost conciousness.

Stay tuned for Chapter Two: Electric Boogaloo!

 

[kalenderee]

Subscribed.

I quite liked the commentary on Rick. Shame Hugh didn't live long enough to do much cool. So your mini-empire is now ruled by a toddler?

Also: a rebellious Bob de Normandie? I don't believe I've EVER seen that - or at least, not rebellious enough that he actually rebelled.

Not even when Bill the Bastard got excommunicated, stabbed, and murdered his wife.

 

[Actinguy]

Dead? Dead? Never! Sure, he has a rock sticking out of his head now, but it will take more than that to down the Mighty Count Hugh of Avranches!

A LOT more.

Regarding the Duke's rebellion...the only other time I've played as an English Count, Duke Bobby died so fast that I didn't even notice his existance. Though if memory serves, I think he actually was rebellious in real life. Can't remember the details though.

But all of your questions will be resolved in just a few minutes!

 

[Actinguy]

Count Hugh d'Avranches - Chapter Two

The rock did not kill Count Hugh d'Avranches...at least, not in the traditional sense of the word.

It did, however, break his nose and tear off a sizeable piece of his right ear..it was a very sharp rock...ruining his physical image. And when the Count took to begging every so-called miracle healer he could find (reportedly falling to his knees on several occasions, in tears)...well...it ruined his social image as well. Robert Hastings, the Count of Eu, was the most blatant of the jeerers, but he was hardly the only one.

But Hugh's face wasn't the only surface permanently altered by his hunting trip. The geographical and political maps of the Duchy of Normandy were altered as well.

First, Hugh decided that he never wanted to return to Evreux again...but he did still want to hunt. So he began a forestation program within his own borders, creating hunting lands that he would be familiar with.

But while Hugh was planting seeds, the count of Evreux (William de Vassy) was planning a rebellion. He was just as discontent with Duke Robert Curthose de Normandie as Hugh was...but the fact that he was now forced to tolerate neighboring counts hunting on HIS land without permission...it was too much.

Count William de Vassy declared Evreux to be independent of the English throne less than a year after the hunting incident. King William de Normandie personally led an overwhelming force which swiftly defeated de Vassy's men, and claimed Evreux for himself.

Meanwhile, there was almost simultaneous cause for celebration and mourning in Avranches. While Count Hugh's wife Marie was pregnant with their fourth child...Hugh's baby sister, Mabel, passed away.

The tragedy continued when their son Phillipe was born, only to be ill for the entirety of his short life, passing away three years later.

But all of this time, Hugh continued to focus on raising his eldest son, Hubert, personally. Hubert proved to be an inquisitive child, most of his questions reportedly focusing on God, religion, and the meaning of life.

Do you want to join your sister?​

But despite the fact that Count Hugh d'Avranches could not even handle himself, heavily armed, against a single boar...Hugh proved to be an exception father to Hubert. No matter the question, Hugh always had the right answer...guiding his son to respect God, his superiors, his followers, and...above all else...himself.

By 1080, Hugh had even reconciled his differences with Duke Robert Curthose. Once Curthose began joining Hugh on his new hunting land, the two even became close friends.

But while Hugh had focused his attentions on guiding Hubert...he ignored his other son, Gaillard. With no proper guidance on how to be a man in the middle ages, Gaillard still proved to be a noble gentleman...giving, polite, and romantic...but, unfortunately, most of these romantic gestures were aimed at his sister, Giselle.

But while this love-affair is well recorded in the written records of nearly all of the nearby nobles at the time...Count Hugh appeared to never find out. Perhaps we was distracted with arranging favored son Hubert's wedding to Melisant Gwenn, the daughter of a wealthy trader in Gwent. And while Hubert did not care for his new father-in-law at all, he did love his wife very deeply.

Gaillard's love for his sister, however, went unrequainted when he was forced to marry Sigrid de Warenne, the daughter of Duke Robert Curthose's bishop.

Speaking of his sister, rather than marry her off to a random count's family, Hugh decided to keep her at home...and married her to his marshal Roscelin.

So by 1086, Count Hugh's court was overflowing with capable individuals.

Chancellor & Favorite Son Hubert. Favorite activities include: Bears. Beats. Battlestar Galactica.​

Son & Diocese Bishop Gaillard. The bowlcut/beard look was VERY popular at the time. You'll have to take my word.​

Stewardess and Gaillard's wife Sigrid. Yikes. I'd rather be single.​

Daughter Gisella. What was Gaillard thinking? It's bad enough to hook up with your sister...but your ugly sister?​

Wandering noble and warrior Roscelin. He may seem unimportant right now, but you just wait, my friend!​

In September of 1088, Hugh finally decided that while he may never be an important person of the world...he might have a destiny.

Perhaps...perhaps it was his destiny to finally build the castle his father had planned.

But while Count Hugh was focused on home matters, England was going through another round of changes. First, Hugh's sister Judith (originally married off by Hugh to an elderly courtier) was now the widowed...Duchess of Northumberland.

Meanwhile, Duke Robert Curthose de Normandie...Hugh's liege and first in line for the throne, apparently determined that his father was never going to die. In April of 1089, the Duke declared independence from the British throne. Hugh could apparently see the writing on the wall and refused to commit any of his men to the battle...which the Duke quickly lost. The Duchy of Normandy was dissolved, with Hugh reporting directly to King William now.

Gee...I wish I could...but I'm washing my hair that day.​

The castle was finished in August of 1091, and a training grounds were built shortly thereafter.

With the disolution of Normandy, the only English vassals left along that shore were Count Hugh and Count Robert Hastings of Eu, with whom Hugh had maintained an ongoing rivalry with for most of their lives. So when Hastings declared independence, Hugh saw this as his chance to put Hastings in his place. With his marshal and son-in-law Roscelin, he led 1900 men against Hasting's seige on Arques. Hastings had only 500 of his own me, and the battle was quickly decided in Hugh's favor. Hugh marched on to Eu, evicting Hastings...but rather than get the land for himself, King William took it instead, installing a new count.

One month later, Hugh's men were moblized again...this time in service of the King, who was fighting a serious battle with the Kingdom of Denmark, who were executing regular invasions the English island, which King William was only barely turning back each time.

By November of the same year, Hugh's mother Emma de Conteville (King William's half-sister) passed away at the age of 63...and Pope Olderic died a few weeks later. Bishop Ausilio Polentano of Marmaros was elected to the papacy...where his first act was to excommunicate Phillipe Capet, the King of France.

Meanwhile, Hugh was part of the amazing 1094 Defense Of England, in which just three thousand Englishmen managed to turn back over THIRTEEN thousand soldiers from Denmark.

With the soldiers gone, however, crime became rampant in Avranches.

The pope's excommunication of King Phillipe had an immediate effect on France. The Duke of Aquitaine declared independence, taking half of France for himself, including Limousine...Hugh's French Catholic Schoolgirl wife's homeland.

The war with Denmark fizzled out by January of 1096, while France continued to disintegrate. By June of 1097, at his wife's pleading, Count Hugh declared war on the Duke of Aquitaine (with King William's backing, of course), in an attempt to save his wife's homeland.

Hugh led his men through the destroyed French countryside with ease...but once they crossed the border into Aquitaine, they immediately hit a snag.

Executing Operation Run Away​

Hugh lost so many men in the Battle of Poitiers that he had to return home. Unfortunately, the Duke of Aquitaine followed, seizing so much of the Normandic shore that King William was forced to pay the Duke off.

But this was only the beginning of the bad news.

Shortly after the war ended, Hubert revealed a shocking fact to his father.

Hugh had always taught Hubert to obey God's will...and now Hubert felt it was God's will that he be celibate.

Crap.

All that time spent on Hubert...and now Hubert was never going to have any children. He would have to focus his remaining time on preparing his other son, Gaillard, to be Count.

But...as it turned out...he was too late.

Stay tuned for Chapter Three, In Which Count Hugh Realizes That He Is Screwed!

 

[Actinguy]

Chapter Three - Beginning of the End

Gaillard's suicide could have been the result of many things. His unrequited love for his sister...his hatred of his wife...the fact that he had always been overlooked by his father...or maybe even the weight that fell on his own shoulders to continue the dynasty when his favored brother chose celibacy.

But whatever the cause, Gaillard's outcome had one very clear outcome for Hugh.

It was the beginning of the end for the d'Avranches.

Hugh's oldest son was sworn to celibacy. His second son had just committed suicide. His third son had died as a child. And now his wife was too old to have a fourth.

Hugh had never had any brothers...neither had his father, or the father before him, or the father before HIM. Hugh had, in fact, produced more sons than any d'Avranches male in known history. And yet it was not enough to keep his name alive.

Oh, Hugh considered alternatives of course...

Deedle dee-dee dee-dee...two ladies...​

...but Hugh wasn't prepared to risk the Kingdom that awaited in exchange for the Kingdom here on Earth.

Besides...there were bigger issues at hand.

As France continued to implode on itself, King William de Normandie seizing the opportunity and declared war.

Sadly, this would be his last declaration. King William passed away just one month later, in December of 1098. He was 71 years old...and left the entire Kingdom to his son.

The rebellious Duke Robert Curthouse de Normandie.

You're the King of England, you know. You can afford a haircut now.​

King Robert, inheriting the throne at the age of 44, continued his father's war and enlisted his dear friend Count Hugh's help. Hugh led his men into Vexin, winning it for the King...and even chose to make a financial donation to the King in support of the war.

In November of 1099, the French managed to push through to d'Avranches, but Hugh pushed them back quickly.

May of the following year saw the French trying to seize Eu, but once again, Hugh and his men managed to push the attacks back.

I hope they remembered to bring their white flag...​

By the end of the summer, Hugh had seized Anjou in the King's name as well. King Philipe finally surrendered in August of 1100. King Robert received a few more provinces, a few Duchies gained independence, and the formerly French duchy of Aquitaine officially became the Kingdom of Aquitaine, primarily located in what used to be the South of France.

But in April of 1101, apparently thinking King Robert had enough on his hands, Hugh's sister Judith...the Duchess of Northumberland...declared independence.

She was wrong.

One month later, Judith and her large family of Canterbury had returned home to Avranches.

Hugh soon found a place for several of her sons in his court. Burgred of Canterbury was both brilliant and a pleasant conversationalist, so Hugh appointed him as the new steward. His brother Coenred became the new Marshal, and Egfrith became the Diocese bishop.

In October of the same year, Eu declared independence once again. And, once again, Hugh rallied his men and marched into Eu for the third time since he began his rule. This time, when he succeeded, King Robert permitted him to keep Eu for himself. The county of Avranches had finally expanded.

Two years later, in June of 1103, the Kingdom of France was down to just two or three provinces, and a pathetic army. Hugh...knowing the d'Avranches name would not carry on after his final son passed away...began to dream of a new way for the name to carry on.

In the history books.

Could Count Hugh d'Avranches somehow rise up to become the King of France?

Of course, King Robert would likely be against the plan. Hugh had more than enough of his own men to carry out the battle alone...but having been ridiculed for his appearance after the hunting accident for most of his life, he knew he would have to raise himself in his peers' eyes before he could lay claim to the title King of France.

One of the ways to do that, of course, was to make his son Hubert a knight. So he gave Hubert the county of Eu.

Seeing this, King Robert saw a way to reward his vassal of almost 30 years.

He granted Hubert his previous role:

Duke of Normandy.

Five months later...King Robert was dead at the age of 44.

Count Hugh lasted only three months longer.

Count Hugh d'Avranches passed away on March 20th of 1104. He was 54 years old, and Beatified shortly after his death.

Naturally, he left the County of d'Avranches to his only surviving son.

Hubert d'Avranches...the celibate Duke of Normandy.

The presumed end of the d'Avranches dynasty.

Hugh d'Avranches

1050 – 1104

Count of Avranches 1071 – 1104
Count of Eu 1101 - 1103​

FACTS:

*Ruled for 33 years.

*Severely wounded by hunting accident for almost his entire rule.

*Built forests, a small castle, training grounds, fishing wharfs, roads, and a court of justice in Avranches…plus a royal post in Eu.

*Supported the introduction of musical instruments, business contracts, and promissory notes to Avranches.

*Fought three separate enemies in three different battles in Eu over three decades before finally adding Eu to his land…only to give it to son Hubert, who quickly became his new liege, the Duke of Normandy.

*Sister Judith became Duchess of Northumberland, but claimed independence and lost the title to King William de Normandie.

*Personally saved English holdings in Normandy against countless invaders and rebellious counts. Was also present in the 1094 Defense of England, when 3000 English men protected the King’s castle from a Denmark invasion of 13000 soldiers. Failed invasion of Aquitaine, but succeeding in claiming several parts of the rapidly-disintegrating France for the British throne.

 

[Actinguy]

Status of the World: 1104

The British Isles are well on their way to becoming the United Kingdom...under the Scottish throne (Dun Chaillean). A few minor duchies have broken away, but will likely be destroyed in no time at all.

Circles are the property of the Duchy of Normandy (d'Avranches).

Iberia is practically split in half between the Kingdom of Castille (Jimenez) and various muslim entitities...although Norway (Yngling) does have a few scattered counties. France (Capet) has imploded, leaving the newly founded Kingdom of Aquitaine (d'Aquitaine) in southern France and Germany (Franken) has swooped in through the north.

Incidentally, upon King Heinrich's death, he left Italy to his son Dietmar...but Germany went to his daughter. That's right...Germany has a Queen. Queen Berta von Franken. I'm actually color blind, so I can't tell what's Germany and what's Italy...but it looks to me as though they might be intertangled throughout all of Europe?

Bohemia (Premyslid), Croatia (Trpimirovic), and Sicily (Hauteville) have all risen. Hungary (Arpady) has pushed east, while Byzantium (Choumnos) is mostly in tact in the west, although nearly all of the east has fallen to various muslims. That chunk southwest of Bohemia is just an independent duchy. Trust me when I tell you that both Norway and Sweden (Sverkeratten) are relatively unchanged, while the East still looks like a painting by a muslim Mondrian.

 

[Actinguy]

Hubert d'Avranches - Hugh's only surviving son. Still rocking the bowlcut.​

CHAPTER ONE:

Duke Hubert d’Avranches of Normandy had already risen above his father’s position when Count Hugh died, leaving the county of Avranches to his son. After having been appointed as the Count of Eu by his father, Duke Hubert had quickly won favor with King Robert Curthose de Normandie, and was appointed in the former King’s role of Duke of Normandy.

Though his only liege was his father, Duke Hubert had big plans…until both his father and the King passed away within months of each other. While Hubert naturally gained control of Avranches, the Kingdom passed to King Robert’s eldest son Drogo, a terrible man by nearly every account.

Because the world NEEDS more cruel, intolerant cowards.​

By contrast, not a negative word has ever been written about Duke Hubert…at least, not by any Catholic.

In fact, many in the Catholic faith considered the current Pope…then 61-year-old Odo of Aquilea a heretic. Given both his age and the fact that he was almost constantly ill, the “true believers” looked forward to his death as an opportunity to appoint someone of strong moral fiber to the Papacy.

Writes one bitter Catholic at the time, “I say…almost anyone could be a better Pope. Why, even Duke Hubert d’Avranches of Normandy must be at least five times as pious as Pope Odo.”

Of course, as Duke (rather than Archbishop), Hubert was not eligible for the Papacy. But he WAS eligible for the role of Papal Controller, a dream of which Hubert wrote on several occasions.

Hubert was 36 when his father passed away, and had been married to Melisant Gwynn (one year his junior) for nearly 20 years at that point…but they never had any children. While it is true that Hubert publicly embraced celibacy on his 30th birthday, this still does not explain the lack of children for their previous 15 years of marriage. Given that his brother Gaillard was married for 13 years before committing suicide and also never had any children, it is possible that the d’Avranches brothers were either incapable or unwilling to consummate their marriages. (Of course, it is also possible that the two brothers simply had the extraordinarily bad luck of each marrying infertile women.)

Duke Hubert’s lack of children (and his brother Gaillard’s suicide) meant that, once the Duke passed away, there would be no immediate male heir under the current rule of law. Immediately following his father’s death, Hubert changed the line of succession to officially be “semisalic consanguinity”…in other words, to begin including female relatives’ offspring once he passed away.

Hubert’s next step was to move the Duchy’s capital back home to Avranches, appointing Helena Knytling (his cousin/chancellor Burgred of Canturbury’s wife) as the Countess of Eu.

The heretic Pope Odo passed away in May of 1104, and Bishop Annibale Crispo of Jamtland became the new Pope. While no one accused Pope Annibale of being a heretic…he WAS both legally blind AND schizophrenic.

But when it came time to choose a Papal Controller, Duke Hubert was overlooked.

Just one year into Hubert’s rule, the Duke received reports that the Shiekdom of Tarragona…located far off on the eastern shore of the Iberian Peninsula…had declared war on the Duchy of Normandie for religious reasons. This was baffling to Hubert, given the distance and lack of contact between the two rulers…but he wasn’t going to be pushed around by some Muslims.

I'm sorry...who are you again?​

Of course, marching over land would require moving through the Kingdom of Aquitaine…and Hubert remembered his father’s failed invasion vividly.

So he loaded 4000 of his best men onto rickety ships, and began moving south, planning to sail around the entire Iberian peninsula and then make a surprise landing on the enemy’s shores.

But the enemy apparently received word that Hubert was on his way…because before the boats had pulled away from the shore, they were offered (and accepted) a white peace.

But the non-battle with Tarragona did have one important purpose. Hubert decided to make an official list of his presumptive heirs, in case he was killed on the battlefield. That list survives today, and consists in order of:

1) The unfortunately-named Abelard de Bailleul. According to county records, Abelard was 15 at the time of the list, and a member of the Duchy’s royal army. Abelard was the eldest son of Hubert’s sister Giselle. His father was Roscelin de Bailleul (Hubert’s father’s previous marshal...told you he’d be relevant.)

2) The similarly-named-but-not-quite Adelard de Bailleul. Adelard was Abelard’s younger brother…12 at the time…and also training with the army.

3) Jordan de Boves. Jordan was Giselle’s only son to her second husband Robert de Boves, after first husband Roscelin passed away of natural causes. Jordan was just one year old when the list was created.

4) Coenred of Canterbury, Hubert’s marshal. Coenred was the then-29-year-old son of Hubert’s aunt Judith (and thereby Hubert’s cousin). As you may recall, Judith was the dethroned Duchess of Northumberland.

5) Coenwulf of Canterbury, one of Coenred’s brothers. Coenwulf’s age is unknown today, but it is a matter of record that he was extraordinarily ill at the time.

Shortly after the list was created, Aunt Judith passed away of natural causes at the age of 53.

In November of 1109, those whacky Muslims were at it again. This time, it was the Republic of Cordoba that declared war on Duke Hubert…and, this time, he loaded 4500 men onto ships in response.

By February of 1110, Cordoba’s Muslim neighbor, the Emirate of Mallorca joined the war as well…despite the fact that Hubert and his men were still only enroute.

Incidentally, King Drogo was unable to send any support because in March of 1110, he was at war with the Duchies of Gascony and Toulouse, plus the Kingdoms of Denmark and Aquitaine.

By April of the following year, Duke Hubert and his many finally arrived in Cordoba. But rather than discovering some backwards society living in squalor, awaiting a savior…Hubert was shocked to discover a city 10 times the superior of anything he had ever seen in England. There was a university…a palace…everything Hubert had wanted for his own Duchy.

All of a sudden, in Hubert’s mind, a white peace was no longer on the table.

It took five months, but Hubert finally achieved victory against the Muslims, securing Cordoba for the Duchy of Normandy.

But he had absolutely bankrupted his coffers.

The Duchy of Normandy was now irreparably in debt, by more than one thousand POUNDS of gold.

And their only cash cow…was surrounded by Muslim hordes.