House of Troadinos
| House of Troadinos House Troadinos-Herakleides-Foínikas | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Parent house | House of Chalkidinos |
| Country |  Mesogeia |
| Founded | 1160 (as Count of Ilion) 1316 (as Duke of Troad) 1576 (as emperor and reigning dynasty) |
| Founder | Demetrius of Troad, Count of Ilion, the illigitimate son of Alexius II Chalkidionos |
| Current head | Elena II Troadina |
| Titles | |
| Style(s) | "His/Her Imperial Majesty" "His/Her Imperial Highness" |
| Estate(s) | List
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| Cadet branches |
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House of Troadinos also known as the House Troadinos-Herakleides-Foínikas is the current reigning imperial house of Mesogeia, having ruled over the country since 1576. The family claims descent from an illegitimate line of the House of Chalkidinos which reigned as the imperial dynasty of Mesogeia from the early 11th century until the late 13th century. The dynastic name refers to the region of Troad in the province of Troiana were their ancestral estates lay prior to their assumption of the imperial mantle as the reigning dynasty of the Mesogeian empire.
The House of Troadinos originated in the 1160s, in the person of Demetrius, Count of Ilion, who was believed to be the illigitimate son of Emperor Alexius II Chalkidinos, who was created Count of Ilion, with his descendants serving as Protokomes ton Basilikon Hippon ("First Count of the Emperor's Horse), a most honored position for a number of centruries. A scion of the original count, Count John (who was himself a dynast ofthe House of Attalidis, the reigning dynasty of the Kingdom of Troiana) was raised to the rank of Duke of Troad in 1316 by Emperor Manuel III Megabagiaridas.
Eventually however a grandson of Johh, named Alexius, the then Duke of Troad married the daughter of Emperor Manuel IV Megabagiaridas thus uniting the House of Troad to the imperial dynasty. Centuries later the house wold emerge as the most powerful noble family in Mesogeia assuming the throne in 1576.
The dynasty has ruled Mesogeia for over four centuries, steering the country through immense political, economic and social changes and upheavels. The reigning monarch of the Mesogeian Empire, Elena II Troadina is a direct decendant in the male line of the first Count of Ilion, who is believed to have founded the House of Troad.
History
Rise to power
The house of Troad originated in the 1160s in the person of Demetrius, 1st Count of Ilion who was believed to be the illegitimate son of the Emperor Alexius II.
Eventually Demetrius' decendant Count John would be raised to the status of a duke in 1316. This rise in status was followed up by his grandson Alexius, Duke of Troad's matrimonial union to Grand Princess Maria, the daughter of Emperor Manuel IV Megabagiaridas. Alexius was further granted the important office of Protovestiaros, or the Lord Master of the Imperial Chamber and Head of the Imperial Household having direct access to the Emperor at all times.
The Dukes of Troad eventually became the second most poweful family within the empire, following the extermination of the House of Bithynia in the 1500s occupying a place of great honor right up into the collapse of the Megabagiaridas dynasty and their own accession to the imperial throne.
During the Mesogeian Wars of Religion (1551-1585 AD), the Mesogeian empire became embroiled in a civil war which pitted Apostolic adherents against Aletheic church followers who both tried to sway the imperial government to its cause. The war raged for thirty years and nearly threatened to tear the country apart.
The House of Troadinos being one of the most notable Aletheic noble families in the country they naturally sided with the Aletheic cause against the Apostolic coalition of nobles.
Manuel, the Duke of Troad (later Manuel VI), was joined in marriage to the sister of Emperor Heraclius VI in 1559 as an attempt to reunite the two warring halves of the nation; althought the wedding celebrations quickly erupted into bloody violence which left many Aletheic nobles dead, mutilated or in hiding.
Between the period of 1563 and 1572, the House of Troadinos, and their allies the Houses of Opsikion, Magonidis-Lysimachidis, Foínikas, Lagidais, Daras-Doukas, Traxianaos-Euthydemidis-Voreistanidis, etc), consolidated their authority in the south western portions of the country while the Imperial government in the south east dealt with Apostolic coalition. Civil war erupted once more in 1572 when the last male of the House of the Megabagiaridas dynasty died leaving Emperor Alexander XXII without a clear successor, except for the House of Troadinos in the person of Manuel, Duke of Troad.
The powerful Apostolic coalition noble and royal families (the houses of Antigonidis, Seleukidis, Ariarathidis, Mithridatidis-Paralios, Hydarnisides, Phokas, Skleros) in the south east refused to recognize Manuel as Emperor and war raged on even after the assasination of Alexander XXII and accession of Manuel VI in 1576 even after he had converted to the Apostolic faith.
The religious wars continued for a further nine years until the armies of Manuel VI was ultimately victorious in 1585, at which point the war-weary emperor issued the edict of Religious Freedom and sat about rebuilding and cosolidating the realm.
Early rule of the Troadinos
Long reign of Constantine XV
Century of Palace Coups
Modernization of the empire; reigns of Heraclius VIII, Theodora III, Michael XIV
Twenthieth Century
Reign of Elena II and the modern era
Branches
There are five extant branches of the imperial dynasty in addition to the main branch these are:
- House of Troadinos-Herakleides (senior ruling male line since 1712; restored to the throne in 1845). The Grand Princely families of the Dukes of Aspadana and Chousa are nominal sub branches of the main Troadinos-Herakleides line.
- House of Troadinos-Farsagadae (est 1760s) (extant); Duke of Farsagadae
- House of Troadinos-Aegai (est. 1760s) (extant); Duke of Aegai
- House of Troadinos-Exarchos (est 1760s) (extant); Duke of Sistan
- House of Troadinos Agbatana (est 1760s; current head is the Empress' half-brother who married their heiress) (extant); Prince of Arran, Count of Agbatana
In addition there are extinct lines that include:
- House of Opsikion (est 1544; extinct in the male line 2001); former Prince of Opsikion
- House of Troadinos-Calcedon (est 1660s; extinct in the male line in the early 1800s)