Lelling

 

Year 833-910: Duchess Natalija Lanik

Holy schnapps folks! Natalija's 77 year reign was certainly a change from the three year reign of her father, and I was not prepared

Natalija's reign has so far been the most influential and successful reign of any ruler of the Lanik family. Not only did she survive her mother's failed attempts at killing her, she managed to hold on to power for over 70 years!

And a lot has certainly changed in those years.

 

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REGENCY

In 833, the Lanik family's demesne were in a succession crisis. Two infant female heirs, one 13 months old, the other only 5, and their father's realm split between them. Natalija's council acted swiftly, and declared war on Innsbruck and Steiermark to claim the realms. Within two years, the battle would be won - Natalija was named Countess of Innsbruck and Steiermark, and Katja merely the heir of her titles.

After reclaiming her father's full titles in 835, Natalija (i.e. her regency council) sought to further expand her realm in Bavaria by first winning their independence from Duchess Berta of Austria in 840, then turning their eyes to Tirol a year later.

Image: The situation in 839. Two major events are about to happen in 840 - Duke Baldewin of Alemannia dies, leaving all his titles (marked in yellow) to King Tassilo IV of Bavaria, which almost doubles Bavaria's strength and territories, and Countess Natalija (green) wins her independence from Austria (marked with red border), whose direct territories are now reduced to just Passau.

 

A series of quick events follows in the following year:

• 20.2.841 - after winning their independence, Natalija and her regency council declare The 1st Krainian Claim on Tirol war on Count Adalhard of Tirol.
• 21.7.841 - Wanting to stop Natalija's expansion, the King creates a new duchy - The Duchy of Tyrol, and grants it to Prince-Bishop Stefan of Chur and St. Gallen. This means that the county of Tirol falls under his protection, and Natalija's cassus belli against the Count is invalidated, as she cannot declare war on the vassal of another liege.
• 20.8.841 - Natalija and her regency council declare the 2nd Krainian Claim on Tirol war on Prince-Archbishop Stefan of Tyrol.
• 18.9.842 - Prince-Archbishop Stefan of Tyrol surrenders, and Countess Natalija becomes Countess of Tirol.

(Note: "Tyrol" refers to the Duchy, while "Tirol" refers to the County. This reflects nothing from real life, it is simply two different spellings of the same region)

Image: Duchy of Tirol vs. Countess Natalija's Comital demesne.

Five years later, the Regency for Countess Natalija of Krain ended, and she took full powers of her Comital seat.

 

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ADULT RULE

Image: Natalija's profile at age 16, showing her 6 titles - Counties of Kranj, Kärnten, Steiermark, Innsbruck and Tirol, and the Barony of Görz. Also notable are her father Grgur, grandmother Petra, and sister Katja.

Shortly after coming of age, Natalija was once again transferred from being a direct vassal of Bavaria to a vassal of Austria, and focused the next dozen years on building up the infrastructure in her demesne, as well as expanding the Lanik dynasty. She took on many lovers, including King Ekkehard of Bavaria, Tassilo IV's son, with whom she bore many illegitimate children, until finally marrying Burchard Nibelunging in 858.

In 859, she gave birth to her first legitimate son, securing the titles for her dynasty once again, without them having to fall to her sister Katja.

In 860, she was once again ready for war, and declared the 3rd war of Krainian Independence on her liege, Duke Liutbert of Austria, which she won in 861. Later in the same year, she picked a new target - her grandmother's unfulfilled goal, the Chiefdom of Croatia!

Image: Countess Natalija's Comital demesne vs. the High Chiefdom of Croatia, with the image switching between normal political view and Bavarian vassal view.

In 864, Natalija wins the Krainian War for the High Chiefdom of Croatia, taking the title. Rather than High Chieftess, she styles herself duchess, as is the norm in Bavaria. Together with the duchy, she also seized the county of Senj, which, under the Bavarian crown, was renamed to Zengg. Additionally, the chiefs of Veglia (now Vegl), Usora and Zachlumia became her vassals by law, regardless of whether they liked it or not.

This was Natalija's greatest victory, almost doubling the size of land in her control, as well as gaining a Ducal title. Now she could only ever be the direct vassal of a King, not of another Duke.

In the following years, Natalija passes many laws which legitimize her possession of larger amounts of land, deposing the Croatian chiefs and taking direct control of the land, as well as organizes an efficient conversion effort of the Croatian people, to properly bring them to Christendom. By the end of her reign, all trace of previous pagan religions in the land was erased.

During this time, King Ekkehard's son, King Karlmann, was facing both internal unrest as well as outside pressure, and in order to avoid defeat in a war in the north, he cedes Natalija's territory of the Chiefdom of Usora to High Chief Ulfo of Slavonia in 870. The King himself died 4 years later, replaced by King Karlmann II.

By 883, Natalija personally controlled all of the (remaining) counties in her new duchy, and thoroughly modernized the feudal administration laws of her duchy. In the same year, she also changed the Gavelkind law to Agnatic-Cognatic Primogeniture, making her firstborn son the sole heir of all her titles. She also assembled the Krainian mercenary band and put one of her younger sons, Peter, in charge of it, while granting her youngest son Vid the Barony of Görz.

In 902, Natalija conquers the County & Bishopric of Chur from Prince-Archbishop Michael of Tyrol.

Image: A complete overview of Natalija's demesne through the time of her reign, from 833 to 902.

Image: Natalija's profile at age 76, with all her new titles and many children visible.

25.6.910 - Natalija's husband Burchard Nibelunging dies, and their firstborn son Matej inherits the Barony of Castelnaudary

18.11.910 - Duchess Natalija of Croatia dies of cancer at age 78, and is succeeded by Duke Matej, aged 51.

Natalija ruled from 2.1.833 to 18.11.910. She sought to continue the work of her grandmother Petra, as well as make her own legacy. She reinforced her mother’s hospitals, continued her scientific work, and expanded her family’s assets.

Most notably, Natalija secured the Ducal title of Croatia for her family, and later reformed the succession laws of her realm. A formidable military leader, brilliant scientist and astute ruler, Natalija elevated the standing of House Lanik and raised it to new heights.

Her full title at the time of her death was:

Duchess Natalija of Croatia, Countess of Krain, Kärnten, Steiermark, Innsbruck, Tirol, Vegl, Zengg, Zachlumia and Chur, Lady of Auersperg, Villach, Eppenstein, Castle Innsbruck, Bregenz, Frankopan, Castle Zengg, Mostar and Glurns, Baroness of Görz, Protector of the Bishopric of Chur, Maga and First-Among-Equals of the Hermetic Society.

She ruled for 77 years.

Due to her implementation of the Primogeniture succession laws, her son Matej inherited all her titles.

 

 

Year 829-833: Count Grgur II of Krain

Count Grgur II's reign was not very long, due to his mother being blessed with ambitious daughters. During his reign, he did manage to reunify his mother's holdings by almost immediately declaring war on his brother Vid who inherited the County of Steiermark, and winning the war shortly after.

However, his victory did not last long. His brother was killed shortly after his defeat in Steiermark, and Count Grgur followed soon after. He had two bastard daughters, who were not legitimate heirs at birth. He was killed on 2.1.833 on the orders of his sister Sofija, who was next in line to inherit his titles, but on his deathbed, he named his two daughters as his rightful heirs, putting Sofija back from being a direct successor to an indirect one, denying her of all his titles - at least as long as his daughters are alive.

Below is an overview of the family history since the start of Petra's rule:

The H represents the direct heir. Other heirs are marked by numbers - direct heirs who stand to inherit some of the titles are normal numbers, while indirect heirs who inherit no titles on the ruler's death are marked by parentheses.

The right side shows the titles held by Petra, and later her husband's title, and their heirs, from right to left by order of inheritance.

The gif shows the family history slightly into Natalija's reign, showing that in the end, Sofija did manage to get her hands on a title - her father's. She is 2nd in line to inherit all of her mother's titles, and should her 3- and 2- year old nieces meet an untimely death, she will succeed in doing just that.

Count Grgur died after ruling for only 3 years. He was known only for his romantic escapades which resulted in the birth of his two bastard daughters. At the time of his death, he was known as:

Count Grgur II 'The Seducer' of Krain, Kärnten, Steiermark and Innsbruck, Lord of Auersperg, Villach, Eppenstein and Innsbruck Castle, Baron of Görz.

 

It seems that once again, House Lanik is threatened, although this time by threats from within. Will his infant daughters survive Sofija's murderous rampage?

 

 

Years 788-797: Countess Petra, Regency Period

It is the year 788; 6-year old Countess Petra of Krain holds the titles of the Lanik household, and is co-ruling with the regency council of Krain.

Image: dynastic breakdown of the title holders in Bavaria in 788. Note the larger shield representing the Anniona dynasty of Duke Anniulf of Austria, who was made duke in 779. 

 

Later in the same year, Petra's liege, King Tassilo III of Bavaria dies, and is succeeded by his son, King Theodo III of Bavaria.

Despite general discontent due to having an underage, female ruler with no heir, the vassals of Countess Petra stay in line, as the child Countess ensures that friends of her father, people she could trust, are on the council. Despite her exercising limited power during the Regency, she is a force to be reckoned with, and her armies, which had up to now avoided major conflicts, are greater in number than anyone else's in the realm.

Recognizing this threat, King Theodo III transfers Petra's vassal contract over to Duke Anniulf of Austria in 789. This means that Petra is now a direct vassal of Duke Anniulf rather than the King himself, and can no longer declare wars directly on him, or any of his direct vassals, instead only being able to wage war either with other independent rulers, her peer vassals of Austria, or her liege, the duke of Austria himself.

 

The regency council did not take kindly to this clear clipping of Krain's power, and three years later, in 792, they declared an independence war in Petra's name on Duke Anniulf of Austria. The war lasted for merely 9 months, during which a smallpox epidemic had spread through the land, and Duke Anniulf was forced to surrender. Countess Petra was once again a direct vassal of King Theodo III, who was now increasingly worried.

Rightfully so, for in 793, just 5 days after winning their war for independence, the council declared war on the remaining Huosi sibling, Countess Cecilie of Innsbruck, to claim the county in Petra's name. The war was won in January of the next year, and Countess Petra became Countess of Innsbruck, vassalizing the City of Kufstein and Bisphoric of Stams.

During the war, however, the 11-year old Countess was discouraged from the bloodshed, recognizing the need for her people to be protected from disease, and ordered for the construction of the first ever hospital in Bavaria, building it in Krain, her regional capital.

In 794, she had her regency council replaced, and focused on infrastructure rather than waging wars. She eliminated the smuggler's ring in Steiermark, present since the times of the child-Countess Helene, and continued to build hospitals throughout her realm.

In 795, King Theodo III dies at age 28 due to severe injuries. He is succeeded by his son, the 2-year old King Tassilo IV of Bavaria.

In 797, as Petra reached the age of 16, the regency period ended, and a period of peace and prosperity would follow.

Years 797-829: Countess Petra, adult ruler

 

Petra's concerns were twofold. First, she needed to secure a successor for the dynasty, so she had already arranged to marry prior to coming of age. However, she did not share her father's lust for expansion, and was more concerned with governing her people well.

In order to improve her knowledge of worldly subjects, she dedicated her time to studying, and in January 798, she joined the Hermetic Society, an order of scholars around the world, focused on discovering the secrets of the universe.

Petra also secured a matrilineal marriage to Prince Adelfonso of Asturias, a minor prince with very little chance of actually becoming King, but marrying into House d'Asturias was a politically advantageous move.

Petra did not get involved in her liege's wars, and did not send direct military assistance during wars, instead allowing her liege to levy his allocated portion of her troops, but otherwise not engaging in conflicts.

Instead, she focused her time on building the infrastructure of her four counties, and completed a number of scientific projects.

In 798, she oversaw the building of an observatory in Krain. From 798 to 814, Petra gave birth to 6 children, Sofija, Mojca, Castimir, Grgur, Vid, and Ognjen, the latter being a bastard, disqualified from succession.

In 800, she submitted a theorem paper on the movement of the stars to the Hermetic society, and built a laboratory in her keep at Auersperg.

Petra delegated much of the day-to-day administrative business to her council, being used to their meddling before, although now under strict instructions and a complete veto on any decisions regarding war, and instead focusing on her studies.

In 810, Petra's husband, Prince Adelfonso of Asturias inherited the County of Viscaya from his mother, Countess Munia, and he left for the Court of Viscaya in modern-day Spain.

In 812, King Tassilo IV, like his predecessor, transferred Petra's vassal contract to Austria. Duchess Berta of Austria became Petra's new liege. However, this did not bother Petra as much as it bothered her council during the regency, preferring science to politics.

In 817, Petra invented the product of her life's work - the Radius Astronomicus, a tool used to determine angles for celestial measurements, as well as to measure the skies.

In 820, due to her scientific achievements, Petra was elected as Maga, Head of the Hermetic Society.

In 824, Petra finished her Magnum Opus on Planetary Astrology, maintaining her reputation as one of the best scientists of her time.

However, disaster would soon strike, and Petra's scientific spree would come to an abrupt end later next year.

In 825, Petra's firstborn son and heir, Castimir, died of Measles at age 22. She too contracted the disease, but survived it, however, one of her legs had to be amputated after an infection during her weakened state. Her secondborn son Grgur became the new heir, but this unexpected death caused a shift in Petra's behaviour.

She focused on building an army and pushing her claims on the neighbouring Croatian chiefdom, and in 829, she declared war for the first time since the Regency. She struck an alliance with King Ragno Karling of West Francia by marrying her daughter Mojca to him, and called him into war.

Image: Petra's demesne within Bavaria in green, Croatia in red, contested territory marked with yellow striping. Also note Bavaria's growth to the East.

Click here to see an image that includes West Francia at the actual start of the war

Although Petra was an inspiring military leader, her war did not last long. Having not waited long enough for her leg wound to heal, she contracted an unknown disease in the field and died, only 5 months after declaring her war. Due to the claims on her name being uninheritable, the war ended with her death.

13.8.829 - Countess Petra dies at age 47, and is succeeded by her 2nd son Grgur, aged 21, who inherited most of her titles, while, due to Gavelkind Succession, the County of Steiermark was inherited by his younger brother Vid.

Petra's children:

• Sofija Lanik, 13.10.798 [Heiress presumptive until the birth of Petra's 1st son Castimir in 802]
• Mojca Lanik, 13.4.801
• Castimir Lanik, 13.7.802 [Heir apparent until his death in 825]
• Grgur Lanik, 13.3.808 [Heir after 825, inherits her titles in 829]
• Vid Lanik, 13.8.811 [Heir to the County of Steiermark in 829]
• Ognjen od Krain, 23.2.814 [Bastard child]

Petra's title at time of death:

Countess Petra of Krain, Kärnten, Steiermark and Innsbruck, Lady of Auersperg, Villach, Eppenstein and Innsbruck Castle, Baroness of Görz, Countess Consort of Viscaya, Maga and First-Among-Equals of the Hermetic Society.

 

Note: I decided that for future entries it's going to be more pics, less text  I'm keeping notes of all the dates in a separate doc, so this wont need a full summary of all the minute details. I was already considering cutting some of this, but I thought Petra's life was pretty remarkable, so having written it down I might as well leave it

 

 

For almost 20 years, Count Grgur successfully expanded his family's demesne. In 772, he discovered that his minor vassal, Baron Mihajlo of Görz (in Krain) was plotting against him, and had him arrested. Refusing to allow himself to be arrested, Baron Mihajlo put up a fight, but died before the conclusion of the war in 773. Since he had no legal heirs, his title passed to Count Grgur. That same year he declared war on Count Jesen of Kärnten, who surrendered a year later in 774. To commemorate his victory, Count Grgur had a special longsword crafted, which now lies in the family treasury.

In 779, Grgur's neighbouring peer, Count Huosi of Innsbruck and Steiermark died of the Great Pox, leaving his two titles to his infant daughters Cecilie and Helene. This gave Grgur an opportunity to conquer the divided realms which were now under regency. Seven years later, in 786, Grgur declared war on Steiermark under the claim that the 9-year old Countess Helene of Steiermark was not fit to rule. In 787, the regency council of Steiermark surrendered, and Grgur seized control.

(Image: A timelapse of Grgur's holdings within Bavaria (I sometimes forget to take screenshots as I'm playing so this screenshot just shows the borders of Grgur's realm (which I wrote down the dates for), while the rest of the world remains unchanged)

However, this is where the story of Grgur Lanik ends, as he died on January 1st 788, not even a year after capturing Steiermark.

Grgur had many children, but he never married, leaving his succession a point of question. The only child he had legitimated was his favourite, his second-born child and first-born daughter Petra. As such, even though she had an older brother, she was first in line to inherit his titles.

(Image: the death & succession of Count Grgur of Krain, also showing his (mostly illegitimate) children Peter, Petra, Mara, Grgur, Natalija, Nada, and Jure)

His full title at the time of his death was:

~

Count Grgur of Krain, Kärnten and Steiermark, Lord of Auersperg, Villach and Eppenstein, Baron of Görz, Marshal of the Kingdom of Bavaria.

~

His heir(ess), Countess Petra, is only 6 years old, thus, for 10 years, the fate of her realm will be in the hands of her Regency Council, and as the only legitimate member of House Lanik, the fate of the dynasty rests on her survival and ability to produce an heir. Will she succeed?

 

 

Ok, so let's get started! The setup may be a lot of info to take in - but I've simplified it with some pictures

Note: you can skip the setup and go directly to the story, you don't need to know all the things;

We're gonna see 1) where we are, 2) who we are, and 3) what our goal is!

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1) Where are we?

So this is the political view of the playable world map at the start of the game. At the start of the game, the player can choose who they want to play as - you can choose from a plethora of major historical characters, as well as minor, insignificant characters from regions so small there's not even historical records of who actually ruled there in reality. We'll be zooming in from the world view a bit, to central Europe:

This is Bavaria, a semi-historical Kingdom (historically it was rather a Duchy), and in the year 769, which is the starting year of the game, it's ruled by King Tassilo III of Bavaria, and actual historical person

But we wont be playing this story as King Tassilo. Oh no, that would be far too easy  We'll be looking somewhere more closer to home - inside of Bavaria, King Tassilo has several vassals, and one of them is Count Grgur Lanik of Krain. Krain is a very minor region, but one very familiar to me, as it is the real-life region I'm from  Count Grgur is, as far as I know, not a historical character, and his dynasty of Lanik is not a real one.

In-game, he has no family, he is the only member of his dynasty. He has no vassals or special connections, his only minor vassals being the City of Krainburg (where 1300 years later I would go to high school ), Bishopric of Gurk, and the Barony of Görz (all actual places that still exist today).

 

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2) Who are we?

Let's take a look at the basic setup in Bavaria right now:

So, we'll be playing as Count Grgur Lanik of Krain! The game's only rule is - if you have no more dynastic heirs, you lose!

 

Count Grgur of Krain holds the County of Krain, with its capital Auersperg. The county has three minor vassals - the City of Krainburg, the Bishopric of Gurk, and the Barony of Görz.

Grgur is a count in the Kingdom of Bavaria, and is a direct vassal of King Tassilo III of Bavaria.

His main ambition now is to produce an heir for his dynasty, and to expand his holdings. If he fails to produce an heir, his holdings will revert to his liege, and history will forget his name.

As these are feudal times, he can declare war on any vassal of the same liege, or any independent ruler, as long as he has a cassus belli - a justified reason for war. Thus, he enjoys the protection of the Kingdom of Bavaria from outside forces, but if one of his stronger peers from within the Kingdom decides they'd like his title for themselves, and manages to push a claim on it, he could be in a lot of trouble.

 

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What's the game's goal?

In Crusader Kings 2, there is no set goal. The game ends when you have no more heirs, or you get to year 1453.

But I wanted to add an extra goal for my dynasty, so I have something to strive towards while I'm roleplaying through the ages:

This is the 769 political view and the regional (Duchy-level) view of the areas I want to hold. So, to make the whole thing a bit more interesting, the long-term target is;

• A Lanik must control the duchies of Friuli, Carinthia, Croatia and Dalmatia (Venice would be nice but it's notoriously difficult to cap so count that as a bonus goal )
• They must be independent, and must create a new Kingdom that encompasses those areas.
• Their culture must be Croatian or other South Slavic

So these are just my long-term goals, which I'll be attempting to reach through the generations, but bear in mind that each character has different desires, a different situation, and if it makes sense, may even lead us astray from this goal

Side goals that might be fun to do - putting another branch of the Lanik dynasty onto the throne of another realm, possibly doing something religiously funky, passing the law to achieve full status of women (I always go for that ) or, if all else fails, attempting to stake a claim somewhere elsewhere in the world, relocating the dynasty.

 

So, the game is set up, it's time to dive into the political life of medieval Europe