The Wars of Rule (1253 - 1284) was a turbulent period of conflict within the Empire of Anbennar that occurred only 20 years after the fledgling state's founding. It primarily concerned the ruling structure of the empire, and whether the emperor should be a mage emperor, neutral to the political whims of Anbennar's many ruling dynasties, or whether the emperor should be one of noble, yet magical, blood - but ultimately one that is more invested in rule than magic.
History[]
Prelude[]
After the death of Delian Whitecloak, the mage responsible for founding Anbennar in 1221, and the short-lived rule of Garion the Wise (of Silgarion fame), the empire fell under the rule of Mathos I. While he was not a bad emperor and remained impartial to the squabblings of his subjects and neighbours, Mathos did not have the reputation of Delian and Garion to legitimize his rule - and was seen as a common magister who manipulated his way onto the dove throne. His inactivity amongst his subjects led to the moniker of "the Idle", as Mathos only concerned himself with the bare minimum of rule, being far more interested in the study of magic. For Mathos, as long as the realm was at peace and not starving, that was enough. For the nobles of the realm, it was not.
Eventually the nobles, primarily from those of larger states such as Dameria, Wex and Arbaran protested the rule of Mathos and refused to provide tax or levy to the Emperor, demanding Mathos to be more active in imperial politics in fear that the promising empire would become stagnant in Cannorian affairs.
The following years were a time of half promises and general apathy on the situation from Mathos, who left much of the ruling to other members of his court and even smaller nobility who had more to gain by allying with the emperor. This lasted until 1253 when the protesting nobles finally raised an army and stormed the tower of Aranthíl (which at the time was the residence of the emperors of Anbennar) to force him to abdicate but in the end led to Mathos being slain.
The Magisterium then elected another magister named Delian with promises of more involvement (and perhaps hoping bearing the same name as the empire's founder would be a boon) but Delian also failed to impress the nobility and was poisoned, becoming posthumously as Delian Greentongue. In response to this, the nobles elected an anti-emperor amongst themselves, with Marion Silmuna, the Grand Duke of Dameria, rising to the role.
Start of the War and Aldarion Elventhrone[]
The war started proper when the elf Aldarian Elventhrone was elected, who was a powerful battlemage and hero during the War of the Sorcerer King. Aldarian managed to oust Marion and his Damerian forces from the Isle of Damesear, and secured the loyalty of the metropolitan Anbenncóst. Aldarian led several victories during his rule, most famously single-handedly destroying the stationed imperial navy at Neckcliffe, who had been nominal vassals of Dameria. It was said that Neckcliffer lords did not even know of a war until it was too late.
Aldarian quickly moved to blockade the Eastern Dameshead, where Marion had fled to, and focused his efforts in securing the loyalty of the west. By 1256 Anbennar was in a state of civil war, with nobles rallying to both factions. Larger realms such as Dameria, Wex, Arannen and Esmaria all fought against Aldarian, while smaller nobles rallied to the Emperor. Some nobles, who by de jure were bound to follow their overlord even used this to break free and become an independent imperial state, such as the Duchy of Verne, which seceded from Dameria in 1257.
While Aldarian was unstoppable in the battlefield, he fell to subterfuge and was assassinated by in 1259.
Conflict under Gracos I[]
The Magisterium then elected Gracos I, a human apprentice of Aldarion, and also the uncle of the Duke of Tretun. With his noble connections Gracos turned the war between nobles and mages to nobles and nobles, and by 1262 the country was again at civil war. This period was mired with prolonged conflict of all sizes, peaces, half-peaces and conflicts again, but for much of this period both factions were at a stalemate. However, in 1275 Gracos was defeated in battle and executed, leading to the unlikely election of Bilfiz the Short.
Imperial Intrigues[]
The gnome Bilfiz the Short was elected Emperor and eventually came to an uneasy peace with the nobles in 1277. Compromises on both sides were made: Damerian holdings in the mainland were largely restored except those that seceded like Verne, who were to stay free and serve the emperor directly as subjects. On the Isle of Damesear Dameria was forced to surrender Damenath and surrounds to the Magisterium, and Anbenncóst became a free city. In return, taxes were reduced and the Imperial Parliament was officially founded, allowing the estates of the realm to gather and advise the Emperor on worldly affairs.
While publically the realm was at peace, in reality the war continued in the north under the Marquis of Arbaran Varil Silcalas, who, alongside his many followers which stretched from Damescrown to Esmaria continued their defiance of the emperor. In the Anbennarian heartlands the conflict moved to shadows, and Anbenncóst, the new capital by nature of the location of the Imperial Parliament, became centre of these intrigues.
Unfortunately for Bilfiz, he died of old age in 1284, and was succeeded by the elf Erelas, who was a leader of pro-peace parties within the Magisterium.
Aftermath[]
The Wars of Rule only ended with a sign of humility from Erelas the Humble, the newly elected Mage Emperor of Anbennar, who instead abdicated and made peace with the pro-noble factions. Together they signed the Treaty of Aranthíl and established the Concordat of Rule, splitting the sovereign roles of Anbennar into two: with a Noble Emperor (whom still had to show magical potential) being elected by a newly formed electorate (which included the Magisterium, who had been solely in control of succession before) and a Grand Magister to serve as the Emperor's lead advisor. This allowed an Emperor that understood magic but had his priorities in diplomacy and ruling the people, and a Grand Magister that could focus on magical pursuits in service of the Empire but also had impact on the political scale. With this, the current Noble Emperor, Varil Silcalas, became the one emperor of Anbennar, and Erelas the Humble became the first Grand Magister.
Concordat of Rule[]
As per the Concordat of Rule:
- The role of Emperor must be of noble and magical blood, and focuses on affairs befitting rule
- The role of Grand Magister is elected within The Magisterium, and focuses on affairs of magic and advises the Emperor on all things
- The Imperial Parliament was officially established as a way to govern the empire as a whole
- The Electoral College is established to ensure fair election of the Emperor
- Istralore: representing the interests of the nobles of East Dameshead and beyond
- Pearlsedge: representing the interests of the nobles of Western Dameshead
- Beepeck: representing the interests of the halfling peoples (the largest minority in the Empire)
- Silverforge: representing the interests of the dwarven peoples (the second largest minority)
- Moonhaven: representing the interests of the elven peoples (the most influential minority)
- Damescrown: representing the interests of the merchants, as well as the nobles of the Damescrown region
- Magisterium: representing the interests of magic-users
Emperors during the Wars of Rule[]
| Mage Emperors | Noble Emperors |
|---|---|
| Mathos the Idle (1240 - 1253) | |
| Delian Greentongue (1253 - 1254) | |
| Aldarion Elventhrone (1254 - 1259) | Marion I Silmuna (1255 - 1277) |
| Gracos I (1259 - 1275) | |
| Bilfiz the Short (1275 - 1284) | Varil Dovecastle (1279 - 1288) |
| Erelas the Humble (1284 - 1284) |