Chronological History Part Five, The Fall of Caldonacia to Unification
1224-1226 The Northern Isle rebelled against the rule of its new King, and began a civil war for its independence. After two years of fighting they eventually threw their unwelcome rulers from the Isle.
1236 The help of the Elves finally paid off in this year. Ticetia made its first export of grain, they were now fully self sufficient.
1242-1255 The second great plague began, this time in The Carrodian Empire. Again it was incurable, and it wiped out many healthy people in the Empire. From there it spread northwards into Caldonacia, where it also wreaked havoc on the population. By the time it arrived in Ticetia, they had partially prepared and were able to contain the disease better than their neighbours, although they were still badly hit. The effects of this plague were worse than the one before it, as even more people were killed.
1261 The lost tomb of Charles Derren was discovered in this year, in the Caldonacian Mountains. Before the tomb was found, Derren was a pre-disaster folk tale character, although his reputation as a powerful wizard seemed to have survived. The tale recounted how he searched for the secret of immortal life, but found it in a way he did not expect. He arose as a vampire, so the tale tells, and in his homeland he terrorised the community. The folk tale also tells of how he was killed by a brave band of adventurers, who dealt with all his deceptions and his magic, before finally dealing with him. His tomb was reputed to have been sealed, still containing huge treasures. But legend tells of how ill luck would befall the one who found the tomb and removed any of the treasure. The spirit of the evil wizard was supposedly released when the tomb was opened; the lowest levels took digging to reach, but had survived the Great Disaster and the long years since.
1272 Gold was found by men in the eastern stretch of the mountains between Ticetia and The Carrodian Empire. A gold rush started, but was quickly stopped by the intervention of Ticetias council and the Emperor. They both decreed that the gold was not to be mined until the rights had been established, and the miners stuck to this pretty well.
1275 The discussions over mining rights came to the brink of all out war between the Empire and Ticetia. The Empire accused Ticetia of secretly mining gold during the talks when they had agreed to wait. These claims were exaggerated, and later proved to be largely groundless, but relations between the north and the south deteriorated. Neither side could really afford to go to war again; their numbers were still low following the recent plague. In a last attempt to cool things off, Caldonacia managed to talk with both sides and kept the threat of immediate hostilities low.
1277 King Garahan of Caldonacia was forced to act against the tomb of Charles Derren, the wizard had been attacking an area of his southern Kingdom. A group of adventurers were hired to go and deal with the problem, but they did not return.
1278 A second band of adventurers was sent to Derren’s tomb, partly to rescue the first party that had been sent, and partly to deal with the problem. They succeeded in handling the vampire problem, but did not rescue any of the first party who had been sent in a few months before.
1280 Ticetia and the Empire were no closer to solving their arguments over gold, but their gold mines were penetrated by a group of mining dwarves. They encountered the guards that both sides had put in place. They got on well with both sides. Strangely they were accepted as mediators by both human parties, even though they had a claim to the gold themselves.
1282 The mining agreement between Ticetia, The Carrodian Empire, and the dwarves was signed in this year. It created territorial ownership of different parts of the mines, and allowed each party to mine from their own territory.
1285 The dwarfish miners announced that they had discovered what was believed to be the northernmost part of the might dwarf realm from before the Great Disaster. The digging they had been doing around the gold mines had uncovered a damaged entrance tunnel to an underground dwelling. When they went inside they were amazed to find that it was the mighty dwarf realm of Kimid-Izila. This section did not stretch very far, and it was filled with the remains of thousand-year-dead dwarves they will have died as the disaster struck. This stretch of tunnels did not reach as far as the fabled throne room, due to the collapsed stonework. The dwarves were unwilling to investigate further, this was a tomb of their forefathers, but they were keen to find the fabled throne room, where they may find the throne and trappings of the mightiest dwarf kings ever; of particular interest were the fabled crowns.
1296-1320 Caldonacia and the Empire suffered raids along their east coast during this time. The marauders had come overseas by ship. At first there were only a few, but soon, as news of the wealth of the realms spread, the raids became more and more frequent. The main objective was theft, but violence seemed to have played a large role. The raids seemed to cease overnight.
1307-1320 In Ticetia, a bid for power was made by one of the large merchants. Hugo Kennedy plotted to take control by using the nation’s political structures against itself. He recruited the eldest sons of four of the eleven Royal Council members to his cause, offering them glory and wealth. He bought his way directly into two other seats, capitalising on the debts of two of the council members (debts he was largely responsible for encouraging). This took time, as he took over the debts from their original debtors and it took several years of effort to make the councillors financial situation as tough as possible. In 1320, he arranged for an “unfortunate accident”, where four of the councillors were killed when the building they were holding a social gathering in mysteriously caught fire, and burned to the ground. The four heirs Hugo controlled assumed the places of their parents on the council. He now had six votes on the council and enough influence to hold the strings of power.
1311 The dwarves found another northern section of the Kimid-Izila this year. It had become an abode of goblins, and the dwarves took great pleasure in removing them from their ancestral home. They also found here a sealed-off entrance into The Underdark, but this showed little sign of recent use, and it had been sealed off from the other side. The tunnels beyond had clearly been abandoned for over a hundred years, and digging would be required to find where they once led. The dwarves were not willing to undertake that task at this time.
1321 Ticetias council decided it was time to appoint a single King to the land, someone who was fair and just, who could respond faster to the needs of his people than the council ever could, and who could act as a figurehead and guide to their depressed nation. There were fifteen or so possible nobles or members of the gentry who could fulfil this new role they were creating, and the council summoned them all to be interviewed. After careful deliberation, they decided that Hugo Kennedy was the most capable applicant and appointed him. King Hugo was crowned late in the year, with a crown was made especially for him.
1324 The King of Caldonacia was mysteriously kidnapped in this year, and was held hostage for two months before being freed. The group which held him were working for the King of Ticetia, although this was not discovered at the time. The purpose of holding Caldonacias King is unclear, but they used the time to asses Caldonacia’s military might, and to measure how important the King was to the population at large. King Hugo discovered much before allowing the King of Caldonacia to be ‘rescued’. The identities of the kidnappers were never discovered, and they were never brought to justice.
1325 Hugo Kennedy gained the mandate he needed this year. It was proposed before the council that the King of Ticetia be given the right to rule over the people in fullness of his position of monarch, ruling as he saw fit and to act as protector of his people. The council were not to be dissolved, though; they had an important role to play in governance, and were to act as the Kings advisors, although not with the freedom granted to debate that was enjoyed in the Empire. The motion was carried by the council with a majority of six to five. By the end of this year, five of the councillors had been found guilty of crimes of treason, three more had disappeared in mysterious circumstances, and the remaining three had most of their power as advisers removed. Ticetia began preparation for its assault on the Kingdom of Caldonacia.
1329 Ticetia began its invasion of Caldonacia, attacking and overwhelming their unprepared strongholds. King Hugo had managed to keep his armies movements quiet for three years, even feigning friendship with his neighbours, until late 1328, when his plans of attack were finalised. Caldonacia heard of Hugo’s plans far too late to be able to form an effective defence. The raids from overseas had left his country in poor shape, and the morale of the peasants had still not picked up.
1330 Ticetian forces finally forced it way though to the capital of Caldonacia, Carlow, and stormed the city; even the help sent by the Empire could not aid the falling country. King Pelarus of Caldonacia was captured and killed in cold blood by Hugo’s guards. Hugo’s men stayed on the streets while all the fit and able young Caldonacians were drafted into Ticetias army to fight against the Empire.
1331 The Carrodian Emperor, Junus, died peacefully in this year. He was succeeded by his son Thomas, who became Emperor Thomas II. Junus had been under no illusions about the military abilities of the Ticetians Kings; he had made sure his son was well trained in warfare and the tactics of the time.
1333 Ticetia moved its army south this year, confronting the Empire with greater numbers of troops. The Carrodian Empire had more warning of the imminent assault than Caldonacia had, and so their defences were better prepared. The war promised to be very long indeed.
1337 In four years of fighting Ticetia had made slow progress through the Empire’s lands. They had won a series of small battles during the beginning of this year, and threatened the Empires capital. Unfortunately for Ticetia, Hugo Kennedy fell ill and left the leadership of his army in the hands of his eldest son, William, who vowed never to end the assault until Hugo’s dream had been achieved.
1339 As the war still raged, King Hugo died of his illnesses, most of which were down to old age. He never saw his ambition of power come to pass, and William did not have the leadership ability to succeed. The war turned against his forces, they were bogged down, fighting many miles from home, and his supply lines to his front ranks in the northern Empire became a major target for the Empire’s forces. There were just not enough men to keep the campaign going. Unfortunately most of the front line was made up from Caldonacian conscripts with no will to fight and die for their oppressive rulers. William foolishly pushed these men forward, as he was happier seeing Caldonacians die than Ticetians. He did not take into account their fighting abilities, though. As the Empire captured many of the forces of Ticetia, they soon discovered the Caldonacians willingness to fight against their former commanders, and so they were put to good use.
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