The Anachronism: England, 1066

[unmerged(10971)]

Announcing a new AAR:

Ό Αναχρονισμος*
(The Anachronism)

Being the tale of Diomedes of Thessalia, a 4th century Greek pagan, pulled forward to the court of William the Conqueror. He must learn a new language, new religion, and the ways of a land and time strange to him.

He has skills which will become useful in that land; but in order to prosper he will need to avoid those who, understandably, have difficulty trusting him.

Our tale begins long ago...




My name is Diomedes, son of Diomedes, from Alos, a town in Thessalia which has long ceased to exist. My strange tale, in which I went from Pagan to Christian, from Greek to German, and from an empire to a kingdom, shall be told in these pages, written in the vernacular of a country which I had never heard of until some surprising events.

I shall start in my home country of Greece, in the year 307. My father, two years dead, was a high-ranking soldier in the army of the Augustus Diocletian. But he was disappointed in me; I became a merchant, as I had little military skills, and despite his constant view of me as a lazy coward, I prospered.

It was on a strange day, though, that I awoke in the middle of a field. My beloved village was gone; replaced with a shepherd's pasture. I looked at the shepherd oddly, and said, "Oh, I must have been knocked out, or drunk too much; could you take me to the nearest town?"

"I can, if you tell me your name and where you come from."

"Diomedes, from Thessalia. I do hope I still am in Thessalia?"

"Yes, but you have a very strange accent for a Thessalian. Still, come along, I'll take you to the priest, who can help you."

I nodded; whatever had happened, had occured by no mortal hand. Perhaps a consultation of the gods would help. We soon came to a town called Almyros, a place which I didn't know existed. But I went along, and we came to a building which, apparently, housed the priest.

As I went in, I noticed something odd: Crosses. The symbol of the Christians. Nobody looked oddly at them; everyone seemed to consider them a matter of course. I decided it would be good to play along. I knew a few Christians, and they had, in their attempts to convert me, told me some about their religion.

"Father," I said, "I need some help."

The priest turned around. "I am always willing to help people. What is your difficulty?"

"I do not know where I am, or what is going on. I am from Alos--"

"Alos!" The priest looked in shock. "That town hasn't existed for hundreds of years!"

"It is quite odd. I appeared in a shepherd's pasture not far from here... if what you say is true, then... what year is it?"

"One thousand sixty-six, January to be exact." Now I was shocked. I knew the reckoning of the Christians, and I was seven and a half centuries from my own time! I told him this, and he looked concerned. "I would not recommend staying here. You are better off in a place you don't belong, thus there will be an excuse for you not understanding things. Do you know Latin?"

"Excellently. I trade with--traded with--people from Rome all the time."

"Good. Go to the western regions, I recommend... France, or Gaul as you would know it. I have contacts, however unusual they may be, with a leader from the northern part of that country, named William. He would have much good use for you."
__________
*Chances are 7 out of 10 I got that wrong...

 

[Fiftypence]

Interesting start.

 

[unmerged(10426)]

This indeed looks interesting.

 

[unmerged(29305)]

This indeed looks interesting.

I second that.

 

[unmerged(10971)]

The priest was kind enough to give me coin more suited for the time, "although as long as your coins are true metal they should be accepted; only do not use them too often, for you may alert others to your identity." He gave me a map with all the names of places that I should know, and also gave me a letter of recommendation for Odo, a bishop and Duke William's brother. "I would give you one for William himself, but he cannot read."

"A ruler who cannot read? Ridiculous! What has happened to cause this?"

"Your beloved empire fell long ago. France is its own kingdom, as is Germany and England, and Italy has broken into a patchwork of lands. But even the kingdoms are no more than loose confederations of barbarian tribes. You will have to learn to smile and nod, and you must learn most of all the rules of the feudal state. It works similarly to the patron system, so you should be fine." The priest sighed. "I wish you could stay here. The Roman empire is alive and working here... but I must send you to the Barbarians. Go on."

I went along to the harbor, wearing new clothes and bearing what I would need. Odo would help me learn French, the language of the area; as I was a quick learner as far as languages go, I figured to be fine. Thus, I boarded the boat; we stopped first at Rome, and I stood transfixed. First, I noticed we had not stopped at Ostia, for that was now a ruin. But so was Rome itself, a collection of huts huddled among the hills. I could not bear to watch.

We stopped at some other ports, some of which sounded familiar, but none of which were like their old form. Finally, we came to the northern coast of France, and to a land named Normandy, in March. I was presented to Odo in the town of Bayeux, and handed him the letter. He adressed me in vernacular Latin, which I found, thankfully, very little changed.

"Interesting. You were born in 1034... in Almyros in Thessalia... Now, why should I take a Greek in?"

"I have skills which may suit your brother the Duke quite well. I have skill with administration and trading, and can deal easily with foreigners."

Odo smiled. "You are in luck, that is exactly the sort of person we will need. You have come at a fortuitous time: William is preparing for an invasion of England. We will sail in September, so you do not have long to wait.

- - - - - - - -

William took well to me. I quickly learned French, and he promised to give me land--the sign of a successful man in these times--as soon as England was under his control. As promised, we went to England, a land in turmoil. It was a simple matter which ambition and ambiguity had made complicated.

The old king, named Edward, had died in January without an heir. The nobles of the land chose a nobleman named Harold to be king, but two others wanted the throne: Harald, King of Norway, whose ancestors had ruled the land not long before; and William, who held some distant relation to Edward and claimed the old king had (convienently, in secret) named him heir. Thus, the question would be settled the same way as it had been in my time: Whomever had the best army.

The first contest was between the Saxon and the Norseman. They met, fought, and Harold the Saxon won, killing his opponent. Now it was our turn to challenge him. We landed near a town named Hastings, and found the Saxons not far to the north.

It was a bloody affair. While the Saxons stood behind a wall of shields--much like a Roman legion, if less well-equipped--William's knights (myself among them, although I held back) and archers sought to break it. It took much of the day, and William himself nearly fell. But a break in the wall appeared, William took advantage, and by the end of the day Harold and his brothers lay slain. William needed only to mop up. By Christmas, he was truly King of England, and it was time to complete his promise.

"You have done well enough, and I have seen your talents, though they do not lie in warfare. I have a special place for you: Cornwall, a peninsula crawling alternatively with Saxons and Welshmen. My brother Richard is already there to help you get started. You are hereby named Duke of Cornwall, Count of Exeter and Devon."

I bowed. "Thank you, your majesty. But will not your brother dislike being under a foreigner? I would think he would prefer being duke himself, for familial relations."

"If he gives you trouble, remember you are his lord. If he rebels, I will support you as I would support any of my vassals. Now go, I am depending upon you."

 

[Fiftypence]

Ah, so you're playing as Cornwall. This still looks interesting.

 

[unmerged(30040)]

Hmm.... Interesting premise. Did you make any changes to the game?

 

[unmerged(10971)]

I added in 3 characters:

character = {
	id = { type = 10 id = 50000 }
	name = "Diomedes"
	gender = male
	dynasty = { type = 12 id = 100489 }
	father = { type = 10 id = 50001 }
	mother = { type = 10 id = 50002 }
	country = ENGL
	religion = catholic
	culture = english
	score = { gold = 50 prestige = 20 piety = 0 }
	birthdate = { year = 1034 month = january day = 1 }
	deathdate = { year = 1103 month = january day = 1 }
	dna = "84366648873411"
	attributes = {
		martial = 3
		diplomacy = 5
		intrigue = 5
		stewardship = 9
		health = 9
		fertility = 7
	}
	traits = {
		fortune_builder = yes
		sceptical = yes
		lustful = yes
		indulgent = yes
		selfish = yes
		proud = yes
	}
}

character = {
	id = { type = 10 id = 50001 }
	name = "Diomedes"
	gender = male
	dynasty = { type = 12 id = 100489 }
	country = C489
	religion = pagan
	culture = greek
	birthdate = { year = 238 month = january day = 1 }
	deathdate = { year = 305 month = january day = 1 }
	dna = "08026602123402"
	attributes = {
		martial = 8
		diplomacy = 2
		intrigue = 4
		stewardship = 4
		health = 7
		fertility = 4
	}
	traits = {
		tough_soldier = yes
		valorous = yes
		energetic = yes
		proud = yes
	}
}

character = {
	id = { type = 10 id = 50002 }
	name = "Helena"
	gender = female
	dynasty = { type = 12 id = 1 }
	country = C489
	religion = pagan
	culture = greek
	birthdate = { year = 241 month = january day = 1 }
	deathdate = { year = 299 month = january day = 1 }
	dna = "04060408080400"
	attributes = {
		martial = 2
		diplomacy = 7
		intrigue = 6
		stewardship = 9
		health = 6
		fertility = 6
	}
	traits = {
		lustful = yes
		selfish = yes
		proven_accountant = yes
	}
}

I gave Diomedes English culture so that I won't have a whole bunch of Greeks (and believe me, between his fertility and the "lustful" trait, he's going to have a whole bunch. ) running around England. Besides, it makes sense that someone so far removed not only from his home country but his home time would make an effort to fit in. I'll probably end up changing the dynasty to "of Cornwall" at some point as well, likely soon after Diomedes' death.

 

[unmerged(10971)]

I arrived in the city of Exeter upon the 25th of December, 1066. By an interesting coincedence, that was also the day William was crowned King of England; and it was, as Odo taught me, the feast of the birth of Christ. That I found quite interesting. In my time, that same day was the birth of Mithras.

But, of course, that was hardly my concern upon arriving in my new lands. I was met by Robert, brother of the King of England.

"Good day to you, my lord. Do you have any orders? Questions?"

"Indeed I do. What can you tell me about the demographics of this place?"

Robert nodded to another of the courtiers, who got a map and brought it over to me. As Robert laid it out upon a table, he noted some areas of the map.

"Cornwall is divided into three parts--"

I could not help a small chuckle. "Just like Gaul, eh?"

Only the courtier who had gotten the map seemed to understand the reference; Robert merely looked up in confusion. Uncivilized man.

"As I was saying, three parts. My lands are the western tip, Cornwall proper. Your direct lands are these: Exeter in the southeast, and Devon in the northeast. My lands contain Welshmen, while Devon and Exeter are populated mostly by Saxons. Fortunately, of course, they are all good Christians."

Unlike me. "That sounds very good. Thank you, Robert, you may go back to your brother now."

That got everyone's attention. "I beg your pardon, my lord, but I must return to my lands--"

"They are your lands no longer. Thank you, you may go."

Robert shook his head and rode off. He did exactly as I expected, and returned to his castle in Cornwall. I recieved the news on the 11th of January; a runner was immediately sent to London to tell William what happened.

I also sent another messenger, although with a message less martial and more marital. I had never married in my previous life; I never had any inclination to, since I could easily have women without any marriage. But in this time, I had need of a wife, or else I would be seen strangely. And illegitimate children would usually not be allowed to inherit from their father--although William stood as an exception.

The message was to the Archbishop of Canterbury, who had at his court a young Saxon woman named Æthelhild. One of my courtiers brought my attention to her; I was convinced she would make a good wife. So the message was sent.

Meanwhile, the war began. My army came to Cornwall on January 25th, and engaged Robert's woefully inferior force. His army was nearly surrounded, and what he had left retreated into his castle. The siege took some time; about a month after the siege began, the messenger came back from Canterbury, and with him was Æthelhild.

Quite a woman, I must say. Not the best looking, especially to a Greek, but young and deferential. She made the siege much more interesting, and in late May, she was found with a child. Ah, finally, a son to continue my line once I was gone! I finally felt like I truly fit in this time.

The siege took until November; finally, upon the 22nd of that month, Robert surrendered his castle to me. I was now duke of all Cornwall, and the time had come for me to begin the administration of my land.