Xichiel II
| Xichiel II | |
|---|---|
| Empress of Andamonia | |
| Reign | 21 December 1742 – 15 May 1784 |
| Predecessor | Toxilec III |
| Successor | Rúnacar II |
| Born | 21 September 1716 Cevrazu, Andamonia |
| Died | 15 May 1784 (aged 67) Cevrazu |
| Dynasty | ha'Aucahare |
Xichiel II (21 September 1716 — 15 May 1784) was Empress of Andamonia from 1742 until her death. She was the last Andamonian monarch during the First Dynasty, which was deemed extinct with her death in 1784. The Second Dynasty, a line from Lasasu Isnin, was established with the coronation of Rúnacar II Tlacapilzi in June 1784.
Early life
Childhood
Xichiel was the only daughter of Toxilec III, who was himself an only child. The future of the ha'Aucahare dynasty, which had ruled Andamonia for 760 years at the time of her birth, was uncertain. Although Toxilec expected Xichiel to marry and have children, he also hoped to have more children himself; however, the death of Empress Aztlama in 1724, when Xichiel was just eight, devastated them both. Xichiel's presence in the palace became to Toxilec a painful reminder of his loss and his failure to guarantee the survival of his lineage. The young princess was sent to be tutored in Cevrazu and raised by the late empress' sister, Maliyaia. The separation was to prove ruinous to the relationship between father and daughter. For over a year, Toxilec did not so much as write to his daughter, and when he finally did the letters were "almost barren of emotion: Aztlama's death had left him numb."[1]
While the emperor busied himself with the administration of the country his daughter was to inherit, Xichiel proved unmanageable for, and, at times, outright hostile toward, her aunt and tutors. By the age of ten she was forbidden to leave the palace in Cevrazu; nevertheless, she frequently escaped and was known to insult guards and spit on commoners. Maliyaia, desperate for a resolution, pleaded with the emperor to come visit his daughter, but he would not leave the capital. Toxilec made only one offer to visit, in 1728, when he was to speak with the nobles of Teraxi Yú and Tepec in Cevrazu. Xichiel, however, made clear that she would not see him.
When she was thirteen, Xichiel was finally introduced to a hobby that made her in some way manageable: horse-riding. It had never been regarded as a pursuit for the nobility, and for generations it had been regarded as a peasants' way to travel, in contrast to horse-drawn carriages. However, it had come into fashion in the empire's Heidish provinces and was growing in popularity throughout Andamonia. As an unconventional pursuit, it would thus appeal to the princess' sense of rebellion without creating a scandal for the imperial family.
Xichiel's rage seemed to abate when she was riding, and with time it faded away entirely. Her rebellion against tradition and expectation continued, however, and would last the rest of her life. On her sixteenth birthday she travelled to Zadé Axochizin to stay with her father. Her visit was unplanned, and he emerged from his study with surprise at the announcement that she had arrived. Then, without hesitation, he embraced his daughter.[1]
Adolescence
The father-daughter relationship was gradually repaired over the next few years; although she chose to continue her residence in Cevrazu, each visited the other several times a year thereafter. Toxilec wanted Xichiel to marry before her twentieth birthday, but only said so once directly. He chose not to force his expectations for her personal life on his daughter, in no small part because he did not want to lose their fragile bond. In any case, he had involved himself significantly in the selection of her tutors and insisted that she attend all her classes.
Nevertheless, her lifestyle caused him substantial concern. Outside of classes, Xichiel reportedly spent hours and even days away from the palace, often but not always riding. On one occasion she chartered a boat and spent a day by the sea, 20 miles (32 km) downriver from Cevrazu. At the age of seventeen she physically struck a suitor, the son of a Quemec prince and some months later announced to her father that she found men repulsive. "'Not Man,' she told him, 'nor even all men, but all those men who would have me. They are brainless, spineless and thoughtless and I cannot stand them.'"[1] The declaration distressed Toxilec, but he continued to support his only daughter, holding out hope that she would eventually produce heirs.
His hope endured even when, in August 1734, news broke that Xichiel was romantically entangled with a woman. It was uncommon but not then frowned upon for women in Andamonia to be lesbian or bisexual; although her partner, a young noblewoman from Lapanui named Keba, came under intense scrutiny and eventually broke the relationship off because of the stress. Keba was not Xichiel's first girlfriend: in fact, she was the sixth of whom her guardians knew. Xichiel had been the one to end all of the previous relationships, rapidly growing tired of all her romantic partners, and it was this fact — and not the prospect that she might be a lesbian — that most concerned her father.
Reign
- Wrongful Takings, standing up to Trellin
- Really good administration, inherited and maintained
- She's a good ruler
- Women?
- No indication of future of throne
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Tametasasa, Cesran (2014). Freeze-Thaw: Xichiel II and the Death of a Dynasty. Zadé Axochizin: Zadé Academic Press.