Sons of Sligo - An Irish AAR

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The Sons of Sligo
1066 - County of Sligo
CK 1.05 - Improvement Pack

In my first AAR I have decided to attempt an Irish AAR, with the goals of unifying and maintaining the independence of Eire. To make my struggle to unify Ireland a little more interesting, I have elected to start in 1066 under the au Rauirc Dynasty, holding the County of Sligo, which I believe to be the weakest and poorest Dynasty in Ireland. I am playing with version 1.05 of CK, and the Improvement Pack mod.

The Irish Situation

Ireland's political borders - 1066

As seen above, Ireland in 1066 is broken into thirteen provinces, ruled by eight bickering dynasties, the strongest of which is the Ua Mordha family of Leinster, who also controls the Norweigan-settled Isle of Man, which is not pictured above. In 1066, Irish technology and infrastructure are practically non-existant. The only military technologies beyond the Dark Ages which are known in Ireland are the Hill Fort and the Longspear ; both of which are known throughout the entire island. As far as infrastructural technology goes, Ireland is firmly entrenched in the Dark Age, with the exception of Mide ; which possesses the secrets of Basilican and Brickwork structures, though nothing else. In liberal thought, developed customs and theological advancement, Ireland is completely barren.

Irish Province economic data - 1066

The thirteen provinces of Ireland and their economic outputs ; plus that of the Isle of Man can be seen above. My decision to play as the count of Sligo is starting to look bad.

Irish Dynastic economic data - 1066

And now it's looking even worse. I chose the au Rauircs believing them to be the weakest in Ireland, but I wasn't aware that their nearest competitor was exactly double their strength. This AAR may end quickly and suddenly, at any time. Be warned.

The au Ruairc Situation

Family Tree of the au Ruairc Dynasty - 1066

There are, as of 1066, two living au Ruaircs. One is Āedh au Rauirc, Count of Silgo and youngest son of Ārt au Rauirc. The only other living relative is Ualgarg au Rauirc, nephew of Āedh by his oldest brother. Both, however, are unmarried and quite young. A Dynasty is just waiting to be spawned from their manly Irish loins. Will it rise above all else and stand mighty over the emerald hills of Ireland, or will it lie dead and forgotten in the gutters like so many Irish drunkards? Only time will tell.

 

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The Sons of Sligo

And thus makes a weak beginning for the au Rauirc Dynasty. The weakest clan of the weakest province in a weak island, twice as weak as their next-weakest rival, and located in a land of consant clan warfare ; where the weak are quickly blotted from the map, for being weak ; so that the strong may remain long enough to be slaughtered by those who are even stronger. The unwanted attention of any one of their neighbouring clans could spell death for the weak au Ruaircs, who are weak ; while just over the Irish channel lays the unstoppable and overpowering Kingdom of the Normans, eager to expand further into the land of the Celts, who they see as weak.

Āedh au Rauirc
1040-

In 1066, the Patriarch of the ua Ruairc Dynasty and the Count of Sligo was Āedh au Rauirc. An exceptionally brave and fearless warrior, but like most of his Irish kinsmen, he knew little about the subtleties of diplomacy, intrigues or the investment of coin. The Irish Lords rose to power by the strength of their arms, the speed of their steel. The administration of their gains was left to the weak ; to the womenfolk and the war-invalids.

The Court of Sligo

Ualgarg, a proud and fierce warrior ; the nephew of Āedh. Like his uncle, his true strength was to be seen on the battlefield, his other skills to remain forever outshined by the notches on the hilt of his sword. He immediately gained the responsiblity of being Marshal of the Sligo Host.

DubEssa O'Donaghaile, although somewhat free in the giving of gifts, and loathe to enforce even the neccessary taxes, showed an aptitude for the management of the Dynasties finances, and thus was given the role of the au Ruairc steward. Despite her first adjustments to the county budget, which upset the ruling class and weakened the au Ruairc position even further, she won the trust of the au Ruairc men with the argument that her actions would strengthen them in the long run.

Maire MacCostello, a lustful young Colleen quickly earned the ire of the clergy for her lack of enthusiasm for Christ, though any parish priest who wished to accuse heresy apon her soon found himself overwhelmed by a knowledge of verse and theology that rivalled their own. She quickly became the lover of Āedh au Rauirc, and after noticing the ease with which she orchestrated and kept secret their nocturnal meetings, he granted her the position of Spymistress, overseeing the countless court intrigues to be faced.

Domestic Management

The first question was one of law. All of Ireland held to Traditional Customs, with an ecclesiastic balance between Church and State. Inheritence was of a semi-salic conganuinity ; it went to the strongest son of a dead ruler, but could pass through a daughter to go to one of the grandsons if there was nobody else to inherit. Āedh au Rauirc saw no reason to upset his realm by changing such laws.

DubEssa O'Donaghaile, however, did. Her first action as steward was to strengthen the power of the Third Estate ; the peasants and yeomanry of Sligo. Reduced oppression on the masses, she argued, would bring higher productivity and better tax returns. When this caused an uproar amongst the Clergy and Nobility, her answer was to offer additional donations to the church, and place an indefinate moratorium on Crown Duty. Āedh said nothing, despite hearing dozens of complaints, until he learned that not only had she granted the peasantry sweeping powers to manage their own lives, she had also reduced the census tax ; cutting the revenues of Sligo down to a fraction of it's original income. At this, Āedh confronted her with the intention of having her immediately replaced, but after a tense and complicated argument on economic management, which left him confused and frustrated, he allowed her to remain Steward.

To the swordsmiths and armourers of Sligo, it soon became apparant that their traditional Gaelic design ; which had not been improved apon in living memory, was no longer sufficient for the warriors of Clan au Ruairc. Marshal Ulagarg made it clear that he would be more favourable towards quartermasters who equipped their men with swords based on the Gladius ; the favoured weapon of the fearsome Roman Legions who once plagued Britannia, although it would be years before such a design could be mastered fully.

DubEssa's meddling did not stop with the budget of the realm ; she also ordered investigations into the drawing of metal from the earth, convinced that the poor quality of farmland in Sligo was a clear indication that it was brimming with iron. Although her knowledge of science was poor, she did realise that if Sligo hoped to stand against her stonger neighbours, minerals for weapons and armour would be a vital part of the county economy.

MacCostello, meanwhile, had taken Āedh's ear with the idea of strengthening traditional Sligo culture in the townsfolk and peasantry. After all, she purred, why should Irish sons care to fight their Irish cousins and die bloody and young in the wars of the au Ruairc? To set the sons of Sligo apart from their neighbours ; to encourage and strengthen the customs of the common Sligo peasant, and to crush the sense of kinship between the Celtic tribes ; these were acts that would have the ignorant and dirty masses fight and die with willingness.

The Scramble for Alliances

The factions of Ireland knew that none could stand alone ; to none was this more obvious than to the weakest of the Irish Lords. A mad rush of emissarries were sent out to broker alliances with nearby clans ; with the au Ruairc's seeking military alliances before even marriages to continue their dynasty. However, all requests from the Clan au Ruairc were declined, as no other Clan wished to take as an ally the weakest in the land of Eire. One by one, Āedh's overtures were declined as the more powerful lords brokered alliances between each other. Mide and Munster entered into alliance, while Leinster ; the most powerful the factions, managed to create an alliance with the Duchy of Connacht and the King of Scotland himself, boosting their position from a powerful Duchy to an unassailable hegemon in the island. Even the smaller and more warlike Clans of the Ulstermen rejected Āedh's calls for peace and co-operation, and it seemed that the Irish Lords saw Sligo as nothing more than spoils waiting to be gobbled up by a hungry neighbour, until finally an emisarry from Tir Eoghain called apon Āedh au Rauirc to fight with them.

Although they had rejected the idea of an alliance just days earlier, Tir Eoghain was in a precarious position, with both Tir Connail and Ulaid holding territorial claims apon them. Ulaid had entered into a war apon Tir Eoghain, and now they realised the value of an ally. It was a dangerous proposition to take ; for together Tir Eoghain and Sligo were more powerful than the Ulaid Host, but should Tir Connail enter the war, they would be outnumbered. Nevertheless, Āedh decided that to fight alongside the Clan O'Neill was his only chance to foster a friendship that might stave off the greedy, groping hands of his neighbouring clans. He accepted, and raised his pitifully small host to join the war on Ulaid ; not for land, not for gold, but simply for the co-operation of a clan of Ulstermen that might fight alongside him, and might just as well stab him in the back.

 

[nette001]

A good start, and nice motivation of your in-game decisions. I'll be looking for more.

 

[Jestor]

Splendid start!

I'm hoping this AAR lasts.

 

[zerothehero]

Excellent Start. Keep up the good work. Nice layout. Ireland was my first choice when starting CK....I will be following this one. Subscribed..

 

[Lordban]

Ahhh, Ireland, also my first choice when starting to play CK - poor Irish
And you haven't exactly chosen the easiest of counties to play; it may make your rise all the more satisfying

 

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*Subscribes*

 

[Veldmaarschalk]

Ah, Sligo which is indeed probably the hardest county to unite Ireland with.

Good luck with this one

 

[zerothehero]

Ah, Sligo which is indeed probably the hardest county to unite Ireland with.

Good luck with this one

Defintely. I use Tir Connail, go straight for Tir Boghain claim duchy of Ulster and then start pickig of the counts.

Long time no post. Sligo too hard.....?