Chaburteen II
| Chaburteen II | |
|---|---|
| King of the Helds | |
 | |
| King of Helderia | |
| Reign | 1217–1255 |
| Coronation | 9 March 1218 |
| Predecessor | Karl I |
| Successor | See list |
| Born | 14 August 1192 Helderia |
| Died | 7 December 1255 (aged 63) |
| Father | Karl I |
Chaburteen II (Gollic: Chârles l'Tiér; Modern Heldic: Karl de Thiertze; Modern Vrebsicourgi: Carlo el Tiròno; 14 August 1192–7 December 1255), also called Chaburteen the Last, Chaburteen the Mad, and Chaburteen the Ironclaw, was King of the Helds from 1217 until his death in 1255. Additionally, he was Count of Epondy jure uxoris from 1211 until 1242. His reign was marked by the Fall of Helderia, a civil war in which his four sons–Karl III, Lüdwig I, Volker I, and Korbinian I–tore the kingdom apart over succession.
Early life and reign
Chaburteen was born in the County of Ambreux in Helderia with unknown parents. Contemporary genealogies list him as being the great-grandson of Napoleon VI. However, no other records mention any additional children of the Gollic monarch besides Napoleon VII. Regardless, the future king was placed into the care of Karl I as an infant, after which he grew in wealth and purchased estates from nobles. Chaburteen narrowly survived the Second Gollic Plague, leaving him crippled. When Karl died childless in 1217, the succession of the Heldic throne became contested. Chaburteen sent his wife to attempt to encourage recognition of himself as the rightful king. After the failed attempts, Chaburteen marched to Figerbuun and cut off all trade, forcing the nobles to elect him King of Helderia.
Chaburteen had to intervene in the east immediately following his election. His brother, Romano Charpentier temporarily seized control of eastern possessions following the news of the coronation of the king. Chaburteen quickly crossed the Champéneux and met Romano at Althause. An agreement was reached by the two siblings, under which Romano would surrender all of his possessions in return for protection. However, Chaburteen breached the agreement and imprisoned his brother.
On Chaburteen's return, the king fabricated the epithet the Peaceful in order to achieve higher local popularity. His decision was met with opposition from a wide range of nobles, who pointed out the hypocrism. Chaburteen held his first royal feast in 1222. A number of influential counts attended, as well as councillors. Chaburteen issued a charter declaring his right to absolute rule, and subsequently killed the guests in the deadliest non-military massacre in Trihhimic history until four centuries later. Immediately after, the king orchestrated plans to seize control over estates.
Following the murder, the king was captured by his wife Orlîân Bon and imprisoned in the Tower of Ambreux. The queen convinced the king to grant their second son, Lüdwig I, a realm upon Chaburteen's death in return for his release. Chaburteen, however, soon changed his opinion, and spent the next decade at war with his wife and, later, Lüdwig. The king would alternately hold tight control over the kingdom and be banished to Searenland.
In attempts to secure recognition as the rightful king, Chaburteen gave out lavish gifts to his infant third son Volker I, including counties in what would become East Helderia. The Lord's Knights sent word of acceptance of the king to Chaburteen, who subsequently circulated copies of the document across the realm after modifying it to indicate that the Knights would defend the king at all times.
Chaburteen's reign continued to remain plagued by issues. The first major rebellion began in 1237. The king's eldest two sons and his wife all fought against Chaburteen, whom they deposed and imprisoned. In 1239, the Lord's Knights stormed the castle and recaptured the king, immediately reinstating him, after which Chaburteen stripped all of his sons of their titles. The second rebellion began in 1242, this time with only his wife against him. Chaburteen imprisoned and executed his wife, stealing her titles in the process. Chaburteen, through alliances with Þorfredr the Insufferable, tightened control over eastern possessions, earning the epithet "the Ironclaw".
The third and final major rebellion resumed in 1245, in which all four of the king's sons revolted in open war against their father. He was 53 at the time of the rebellion. The king attempted to reach peace with his children, each of whom refused their father's claim on the kingdom and his proposed treaties. Korbinian I captured his father and blinded him, before the king was freed by his brother and won a decisive battle at Bouletair on 30 September 1246, when he and Þorfredr both led the armies against all four sons. Each of the heirs were subsequently imprisoned.
Following the war, Romano, with newly refreshed troops, laid siege to Figerbuun and captured several artifacts, including the Coronation Crown. After the successful ambush from Romano's forces against the king's party, South Helderia rose in rebellion against their liege, beginning in the southernmost possessions and spreading to cover much of what would become Horteny, aided by the Searic monarchy. Chaburteen responded by sending his imprisoned son Karl III into the region as a hostage. The attempt was largely unsuccessful, with the heir also blinded. Meanwhile, the king had to deal with discontent from the west, where the Golls were particularly volatile critics of the king.
The security over maintaining relations with Searenland was also an issue. After the backing of Hortania by the Sears, Chaburteen sent Jean de Monscieurs II as an envoy. The king then went on to attempt to fabricate rumours of the evil of Þorfredr. Neither mission was seen to fruition, as the Searic king noticed Chaburteen's schemes and subsequently went to war. The Sears seized control of Hortania, after which the king attempted to form an army. Frictions between Heldic and Gollic forces, however, led to internal conflict within the king's army. Gollic forces subsequently abandoned the king, and Chaburteen was forced to surrender a sum of 5,000 Heldic marks in exchange for peace.
In 1251, the king attempted to secure further northern territories. The nobles initially agreed, but soon backed out of their decision. Shortly after, Chaburteen experienced his first mental breakdown. He "fell to a sudden illness that left both physician and high priest unable to stop the king's madness" and was "lost in a fight with imagined enemies."[1] He exhibited signs of overestimating his power, beginning attacks on Searenland.
Death and aftermath
In 1254, Lüdwig reopened hostilities between the king and his sons, leaving Chaburteen imprisoned in the Tower of Ambreux again. The king lost the overwhelming majority of his power, and he was repeatedly tortured by the guards. When Volker visited in 1255, Chaburteen was dead. Official documents state that the king died early in the morning on 7 December 1255.
According The Heldic Genealogical Royal Codex, the king died of a heart attack related to stress. However, most other historians support that he was likely murdered by the guards.
Cloven de Monscieurs specifically noted in The Searo-Heldo Chronicles that it was his son Karl III who murdered him. A contemporary source, The Mad King's Chronicle, gives the date of the king's death as 2 December, when Karl was in Searenland managing his domains.
Immediately after the king's death, war broke out between his four sons. In 1269, Chaburteen's kingdom was divided in the Treaty of Ambreux, signed in the same prison cell where Chaburteen died: Karl III received Horteny in the south; the second son, Lüdwig I received West Helderia; Volker I received East Helderia; and the youngest, Korbinian I, received Lorangia.
References
- ↑ Leid, Lothär (July 2063). "Was Mental Illness the Cause of the Fall of Helderia?". Heldervinian News Organization: 11. Check date values in:
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