Monarchy of Caproney
Duke of Caproney is a title within the Duchy of the Caproneys. It was created in 1134 when the Earldoms of Great Caproney (Grattey) and Lesser Caproney (Crovaney) combined under Ercebald The Great of House Camstun. Prior to this, the Caprish Archipelago had many different monarchs among the islands ranging from petty kings to Norse Jarls.
The title was discontinued in 1806 upon the declaration of the Republic of the Caproneys amidst the Napoleonic Wars. The Duchy was returned in 1816 with the crowning of Charlotte of Württemberg.
Caroline I of House Caproney is the current monarch of the Caproneys.
Diarchy
From the seventh through twelfth centuries, the Caproneys were dominated by two royal houses, one based on the island of Grattey (Great Caproney) and another on Crovaney (Lesser Caproney). These states have variously been referred to as the Kingdom of Great Caproney, the Earldom of Great Caproney, the Kingdom of Lesser Caproney, the Jarldom of Crovaney, and the Earldom of Crovaney. Sovereign kingdoms, Earldoms, and Lordships also reigned over the smaller islands during this time.
Dukes of Caproney
House of Camstun
The Caprish Archipelago was united by the House of Camstun, itself a merging of the Grattian House of Gerns and the Crovanian House of Crofan-Aegirs. The House of Camstun reigned for five centuries until 1682 when it went extinct.
| Regnal Name | Reign | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ercebald III | 1134-1187 | Takes advantage of Danish weakness and unified Crovaney and Grattey into a united Duchy of Caproney.
Drafted a standardised law for the islands called the Lex Caprionum (d'Ealdereght, the old laws) based on Saxon Law. |
| Aedelwlf II | 1187-1199 | |
| Audulf | 1199-1224 | The Audulf Census (Audulfseardbuc, or Liber Census Capriæ) documents the first census of the Caprish Islands for tax registration.
Many places are documented in the Audulf Census for the first time. |
| Eldgyssl | 1224-1239 | |
| Gundebald II | 1239-1246 | |
| Nordale | 1246-1255 | |
| Ecghard II | 1255-1259 | |
| Ercebald IV | 1259-1275 | |
| Eadmund III | 1275-1278 | |
| Eadred | 1278-1315 | |
| Herman | 1315-1341 | Duke Herman officiates the joining of Caproney to the Hanseatic League.
Trade increases between the islands and the continent. The legal system is updated in many ways to Lubeck Law, replacing many old Saxon laws. |
| Otto | 1341-1348 | While on a trading mission in London, Otto caught the Black Death and dies outside the Hanse kontor. |
| Herman II | 1348-1375 | Reigns during the Black Death, which hit Caproney in 1349. |
| Conrad | 1375-1393 | During Conrad's reign, Caprish mercenaries and sailors take part in battles for the Hanseatic League. |
| Yghberd I | 1393-1410 | |
| Yghberd II | 1410-1439 | |
| Bruno | 1439-1455 | |
| Rudolf | 1455-1470 | Reigned during the Great Bullion Famine, when a shortage of gold and silver coinage crippled trade.
Caprish currency is debased. |
| Herman III | 1470-1480 | |
| Uicman I | 1480-1532 | In 1530, Uicman I would introduce the Protestant reformation to Caproney. |
| Yghberd III | 1532-1538 | The first fully protestant earl, Yghberd invites Johannes Bugenhagen to reform church services. |
| Uicman II | 1538-1573 | Established the Church of Caproney in 1560, led by the Bishop of Gerns.
The Bible was translated to Caprish during his reign, called the Uicman Bible (d'Uicmansebibel), along Lutheran lines. |
| Uicman III | 1573-1644 | |
| Uicman IV | 1644-1657 | |
| Yghberd IV | 1657-1661 | |
| Gerulf | 1661-1682 |
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House of Teck-Württemberg
In 1682 the house of Camstun, which dated back to the establishment of a unified Caproney in 1134, had gone extinct on the male line, and the title was transferred to the small Duchy of Teck (Eorlric fa Tecc) in County of Württemberg (Uoortemberg) in the southwest of modern Germany, making the Duchy of Caproney an unencircled part of the Holy Roman Empire. The Dukes of Teck seemed to not have much care for the archipelago and never visited. In the Earl's absence, the Folcshus assumed de-facto sole governance of the Caproneys. The House of Teck ended following the overthrow of the Caprish Monarchy during the Napoleonic Wars and the declaration of the Republic of the Caproneys.
| Regnal Name | Reign | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Frederic I | 1682 | Gerulf never had an heir, and the House of Camstun went extinct. Title of Duke passed down to next living heir in Württemberg.
Frederic died within the year without a coronation. Caproney now part of H.R.E. First Catholic monarch since the Reformation. |
| Frederic II | 1682-1716 | Became embroiled in the 1674 Franco-Dutch war, fighting alongside Brunswick-Lüneburg. |
| Carl I | 1716-1742 | |
| Carl II | 1742-1793 | Bankrupted his lands through courtly extravagance, eventually having to take French loans in exchange for Württemberger troops. |
| Ludouyc I | 1793-1795 | |
| Frederic III | 1795-1797 | Acquiesced to the 1796 Treaty of Paris, being forced to pay 4 million guilders (8 million scillyng) |
| Frederic IV | 1797-1806 | The first protestant monarch since Gerulf. In 1800, the French army invaded Württemberg, causing Frederick to flee to Vienna.
In 1806, House of Württemberg is ousted from Caproney during Napoleonic Wars. A Caprish Republic is declared. |
Republican Period
In 1806, Emperor Napoleon of France declared the establishment of the Confederation of the Rhine, which included the Duchy of Teck. On the 21st of November 1806, Napoleon signed the Berlin Decree, which created a blockade between France and its Continental System and Britain. Worried at the possibility of being a target of either Napoleonic France for integration and enforcement of the Continental System or by Britain to prevent such, the Folcshus separated itself from the Duchy of Teck and deposed the Duchy, declaring the Republic of the Caproneys on the 30th of November 1806. The Republic would last until 1816 when the monarchy was reinstated.
House of Württemberg-Ulfdor
Upon the conclusion of the Napoleonic Wars, Caproney was forced to return to having a monarchy, bringing an end to the short-lived Republic. To prevent further entangling of Caproney with what was to become the German Confederation, the youngest daughter of King Frederick I of Württemberg was crowned as Charlotte, Duchess Regnant of Caproney (Charlotte, Eorle fa de Caproney'n) on the 26th of April, 1816. The name Württemberg-Ulfdor comes from the village of Ulfdor where the palace is.
| Regnal Name | Reign | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Charlotte | 1816-1845 | Monarchy restored in 1816. Frederic IV is still alive, but title given to eldest daughter Charlotte.
Duchess Charlotte moves to Ulfdor, first monarch to reside in Caproney since 1682. Dissolved the Folcshus in 1820 following land reform disputes. Begins construction of Ulfdor Castle in a historicist style similar to those in Germany. |
| Ludouyc II | 1845-1885 | More liberal than his mother, he oversaw the drafting and establishment of the Caprish Constitution in 1849.
Made the role of Caprish Monarch entirely symbolic, allowing the democratic Folcshus govern the nation. |
House of Caproney
In an effort to distance the Caprish monarchy further from its German origins, Duke Ercebald II renamed the royal house from Württemberg-Ulfdor to Caproney upon ascending to the throne, establishing a return to native Caprish self rule.
| Regnal Name | Reign | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ercebald V | 1885-1912 | Renames House Württemberg-Ulfdor to Caproney. |
| Uillem I | 1912-1945 | Duke during both world wars, including during British occupation. |
| Uillem II | 1945-1968 | British occupation ended following Uillem II's coronation.
Oversees closer integration between Caproney and Europe through the EFTA. |
| Robert | 1968-1980 | RR and CaprishOil established during his reign |
| Stefan | 1980-2000 | Reigned during a period of prosperity amid oil profits and European integration. |
| Caroline | 2000- | Current monarch of Caproney.
At her ascension to the throne at age 40, she became the youngest monarch in Europe. In the lead up to the 2015 Paris Climate Accord, she had solar panels installed on the roof of Ulfdor Castle. |