Gwynedd (fictional)

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In the fictional universe of the Deryni novels of Katherine Kurtz, the Kingdom of Gwynedd is one of the Eleven Kingdoms and the central setting for many of the events that take place in the books. It bears the same name as the modern Welsh county of Gwynedd, and both are named after the medieval Welsh kingdom of Gwynedd.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Contents

[edit] Geography

"Now, these are the Names of the Eleven Kingdoms, sung rightly well of old: Howicce, and Llannedd, and fierce Connait; mountainous Meara, the Land Beyond the River; and Kheldour, the windswept; and pastoral Eastmarch; Tolan, and Torenth, and myth-ridden Mooryn; and lost Caeriesse, which sank beneath the sea; and far-reaching Gwynedd, seat of the Haldane Kings." -–Lay of the Lord Llewellyn, Troubadour to the High King of Mooryn.

Gwynedd is located near the center of the area known as the Eleven Kingdoms. It is bordered to the north by the Kheldish Riding, by Torenth to the east, by the Southern Sea to the south, and by Meara, The Connait, and the United Kingdoms of Howicce and Llannedd to the southwest and west. The exact borders of the kingdom have fluctuated greatly over its four centuries of history, expanding and contracting as the result of wars, conquest, treaties, and marriages. Nonetheless, Gwynedd has steadily increased in size over the years, eventually becoming one of the largest realms in the Eleven Kingdoms. The capital city of Rhemuth is located on the eastern bank of the River Eirian, which flows through the west-central plains of the kingdom. The geography of Gwynedd contains a wide variety of climates and terrains, including plains, farmlands, forests, hills, and mountains. The summers are usually moderately warm, while snow is common throughout most of the kingdom in the winter.

[edit] Government

The Kingdom of Gwynedd is a feudal monarchy, similar in structure to the kingdoms of medieval Europe. The head of state is a hereditary monarch which descends through the senior male line of the royal family. (The throne may only pass to a woman if the direct male line becomes extinct, at which point the senior female descendant inherits the crown.) Much of Gwynedd is divided into several duchies, each of which is further divided into a numerous earldoms, baronies, and counties. The titles of the nobility are also based on hereditary inheritance, but the monarch reserves the authority to change the standard rights of inheritance under certain circumstances (such as attainting the family of a convicted traitor). Additionally, the monarch has the power to create new nobles and new titles when necessary. The monarch has nearly-absolute authority in all secular matters throughout the realm, and each noble wields significant power within their own lands. While the nobles have the authority and responsibility to deal with matters such as taxation, law enforcement, and civil disputes, there are also many commoners who hold lower-ranking official positions such as clerks, guards, tax collectors, and legal advocates.

The governing body of the realm is the Royal Council, alternately known as the Privy Council or High Council. The Council advises the monarch (or the designated Regent) on various matters of state, assisting the monarch in establishing new laws and carrying out the monarch's decisions. The monarch may appoint anybody to the Council, but positions are usually reserved for senior nobles, churchmen, and the monarch's closest advisors. The monarch (or Regent) always sits upon the Council, and positions are customarily reserved for the Archbishop of Valoret, the Archbishop of Rhemuth, and the legally-designated Regents of Gwynedd.

In military matters, each member of the peerage maintains their own levies to protect and defend their lands. Most nobles retain a military rank (ranging from a simple knight to a general), but the monarch retains supreme authority over all garrisons and soldiers in the kingdom. In addition, a standing royal army under the direct command of the crown is garrisoned around the capital city of Rhemuth. The senior military officer of the kingdom is the Earl Marshall, whose authority in military matters is superseded only by the monarch.

[edit] Current line of succession

  • Reigning Monarch: King Kelson Cinhil Rhys Anthony Haldane
    • Heir Apparent: Prince Javan Uthyr Richard Urien Haldane (son of King Kelson)
    • Heir Presumptive: Prince Nigel Cluim Gwydion Rhys Haldane (second son of King Donal Blaine Haldane)
      • Prince Albin Nigel Brion Hakim Haldane (grandson of Prince Nigel)
      • Prince Rory Werril Bertald Bearand Haldane (second son of Prince Nigel)
      • Prince Bearand Bertald Ewan de Traherne Haldane (son of Prince Rory)
      • Prince Payne Malcolm Saer Augarin Haldane (third son of Prince Nigel)

[edit] Royal Council of Gwynedd

[edit] Senior nobles of Gwynedd

[edit] Religion

The Holy Church of Gwynedd is Christian faith similar to the Roman Catholic Church, including the celebration of Mass, usually in Latin, and the common use of confession and penance. Religion is an integral part of Gwyneddan society, and senior members of the clergy often wield a great deal of temporal influence in addition to their ecclesiastical power. The Church is led by an elected Primate of All Gwynedd, who also serves as the Archbishop of Valoret. The organizational structure of the Church is further divided into a collection of sees, each of which is run by a titled bishop. There are currently twelve titled sees in Gwynedd, though the exact number and size of various sees have changed regularly throughout the history of the kingdom. Additionally, there are a number of itinerant bishops, senior clergymen who do not have a set area or land to oversee.

The Church pre-dates the founding of the Kingdom of Gwynedd, and the large role of the Church in Gwyneddan culture often results in the church's involvement in secular affairs. The Holy Church of Gwynedd was once under the control of the Patriarchate of Bremagne, but Gwynedd's ecclesiastical independence was secured in 647 by King Augarin Haldane, the first King of Gwynedd. In 820, the late King Bearand Haldane was formally canonized as a saint, and military support for the Haldane Restoration of 904 was provided by Michaeline knights, a militant religious order. A royal Haldane prince, Jashan Haldane, was even elected Archbishop of Valoret and Primate of All Gwynedd in 1044.

For the first three centuries of Gwyneddan history, there is little indication that the Church had an established policy regarding Deryni clerics. During the Festillic Interregnum (822-904), there was certainly very little distinction made between Deryni clergy and their human brethren, as several Deryni rose to the Primacy of the Church. However, following the Haldane Restoration of 904, an anti-Deryni backlash washed through all aspects of Gwyneddan society, including the Church. When Bishop Alister Cullen, the Deryni Bishop of Grecotha, was elected Archbishop of Valoret in 917, the human lords of state overthrew him. For the next two centuries, the Church forbade Deryni from joining the clergy, claiming that all Deryni were inherently evil and corrupt. In fact, it was the Church that maintained the ruthless social persecution of Deryni in Gwynedd for nearly two hundred years, long after the scars of the Interregnum were erased and many of the legal restrictions on Deryni were relaxed or ignored.

The Deryni issue eventually came to a head in 1121, shortly after the coronation of King Kelson Haldane the previous year. After discovering that King Kelson was himself Deryni, Archbishop Edmund II Loris, a fervent Deryni opponent, led an armed rebellion against the king, seeking to remove him from the throne. However, despite his position as Primate of All Gwynedd, approximately half of the bishops of Gwynedd refused to support his rebellion, resulting in an ecclesiastical schism. Kelson succeeded in defeating Loris, and the Archbishop and several of his key supporters were suspended from their offices. Their replacements were not only loyal to the king, but also more tolerant of re-evaluating the Church's position on Deryni. As a result, the reformed Church began to reverse the policies of the previous two centuries, halting the social persecution of Deryni and clearing the way for Deryni to legally become members of the clergy.

[edit] Archbishops of Gwynedd

[edit] Titled Bishops of Gwynedd

  • See of Ballymar: Bishop Hugh de Berry
  • See of Cardosa: Bishop Siward
  • See of Cashien: Bishop James MacKenzie
  • See of Coroth: Bishop Ralf Tolliver
  • See of Culdi: Bishop Bevan de Torigny
  • See of Dhassa: Bishop Denis Arilan
  • See of Grecotha: Bishop Wolfram de Blanet
  • See of Marbury: Bishop Ifor of Marley
  • See of Meara: Bishop John Fitz-Padriac
  • See of Stavenham: Bishop Conlan

[edit] Itinerant Bishops of Gwynedd

  • Bishop Amaury of Rhelledd
  • Bishop Jodoc d'Armagne
  • Bishop Edward of Cloome
  • Bishop Corbet Matheisen
  • (eight not named)

[edit] History

[edit] Early history

The lands of modern-day Gwynedd were first conquered by the armies of Autokratór Basileios I of Byzantyun in 249. The Byzantyun forces withdrew in 408, and the local chieftains divided up the land into the states of Haldane, Carthane, Lendour, Molling, and Rhemuth. The rulers of these lands warred back and forth for the next two centuries, until Count Augarin II of Haldane succeeded in conquering the neighboring lands of Carthane in 645. Augarin declared himself ruler of both lands as High King of Haldane, and formally changed the name of kingdom to Gwynedd in 647. Although initially a small realm, Augarin's descendants successfully expanded the borders of Gwynedd over the next two centuries through both conquest and treaty. Gwynedd was plagued by a series of barbarian raids during the 8th century, but King Bearand Haldane pushed the invaders back, winning a final decisive victory in 755 that prevented the barbarians from threatening Gwynedd's borders ever again.

[edit] The Festillic Interregnum

On June 21, 822, Prince Festil Furstán, a younger son of the royal family of Torenth, launched a surprise assault and succeeded in overthrowing the legitimate Haldane king. King Ifor Haldane was slain in the coup, as was almost every member of the royal family. (The only survivor was the king's youngest son, Prince Aidan Haldane, who was smuggled out of the palace before he could be killed.) Supported by the Torenthi armies of his father, King Kálmán II of Torenth, Festil conquered Gwynedd and proclaimed himself King Festil I. Festil replaced many of the human nobles who had been loyal to the Haldanes with his own Deryni supporters from Torenth, establishing a new peerage who supported his claim to the throne. Festil and his descendants ruled Gwynedd for the next eight decades, during which time Gwynedd was a vassal state to the Kings of Torenth.

[edit] The Haldane Restoration

Festil's great-great-grandson, King Imre I, came to the throne of Gwynedd in 900. Imre's arrogance and cruelty to his human subjects resulted in a great deal of antagonism toward the king, much of which had been slowly building since the last Haldane king had been deposed. Ironically, it was a Deryni noble, Earl Camber MacRorie of Culdi, who eventually rose up to challenge Imre. After discovering the existence of a Haldane heir in 903, Camber gathered the support of the militant Michaeline order and launched a lightning attack on the royal palace. On December 2, 904, Imre was deposed, and Cinhil Haldane, the great-grandson of King Ifor Haldane, assumed the throne.

Although Imre was killed, his sister, Princess Ariella, escaped and fled to Torenth. She mounted the first Festillic invasion the following year, leading a Torenthi army into Gwynedd in an attempt to regain the throne. Ariella was slain during the defeat of her army, but her infant son remained alive in Torenth. Over the next two centuries, Ariella's descendants, known as the Festillic Pretenders, regularly invaded Gwynedd to press their claim for the throne.

[edit] Anti-Deryni Backlash

After the Haldane Restoration, many of the descendants of those human families who had lost their titles during the Festillic Interregnum reclaimed their lands. However, the decades of anger and resentment toward the Deryni Festillic kings had evolved into a general hatred of all Deryni. Despite the fact that several Deryni had played central roles in the Restoration, anti-Deryni sentiment continued to grow throughout the kingdom. Shortly after the death of King Cinhil I in 917, the human Regents of young King Alroy forcibly removed the newly-elected Deryni Archbishop of Valoret, Alister Cullen, igniting a wave of Deryni persecution. In 918, the Statutes of Ramos were passed, which forbade Deryni from holding titles, owning land, or joining the priesthood. Additionally, the Church began teaching that Deryni were inherently evil and corrupt, actively sanctioning the violent and bloody suppression of those they considered to be sub-human. Although many of the secular laws against Deryni would eventually become relaxed or ignored over time, the Church continued its persecution of the Deryni for the next two hundred years.

The early years of the Haldane Restoration also saw a significant expansion of the kingdom's borders. The lands of Kheldour, Eastmarch, and Cassan were all brought under the control of Gwynedd during this time, nearly doubling the size of the realm. All of these lands were secured through a series of treaties, requiring no conquest or warfare.

[edit] Festillic invasions

Due in part to the close familial ties between the Festillic Pretenders and the royal family of Torenth, Torenthi monarchs were often willing to support invasions of Gwynedd with money, supplies, mercenaries, or even Torenthi soldiers. Additionally, the stark differences in the treatment of Deryni within each society caused further antagonism and distrust between the kingdoms. While Deryni were openly persecuted and feared throughout Gwynedd, most of the royal family and peerage of Torenth were openly Deryni, leading many Gwyneddans to fear their eastern neighbors.

In 983, Imre II Furstán-Festil, the grandson of Princess Ariella, launched the second Festillic invasion, sweeping into Gwynedd at the head of army provided by King Malachy II of Torenth. The invaders killed King Nygel Haldane and conquered most of Eastmarch, but their advance was halted by the onset of winter. When the war resumed the following year, King Jasher Haldane soundly defeated the invaders at the Battle of Grecotha, driving them back into the lands of Eastmarch. The war finally ended in 985, when the Gwyneddan army defeated the last of invaders at the Battle of Rengarth, a battle that claimed the lives of both King Jasher and Imre II.

The third Festillic invasion occurred in 1025, during which time Gwynedd was beset by the armies of King Kyprian II of Torenth, Prince Jolyon of Meara, and the newest Festillic Pretender, Marek II Furstán-Festil. The Gwyneddan forces were led by Prince Cinhil II Haldane, who quickly defeated the Mearan invaders and then turned his efforts toward the Torenthi armies. The decisive battle of the war occurred when the armies of Gwynedd and Torenth met at the Battle of Killingford on June 15. Three bloody days of carnage ensued, claiming the lives of thousands of soldiers on both sides. When the battle finally ended on June 17, the Gwyneddan forces emerged triumphant, though the final toll of the victory was very high. The Festillic Pretender and his eldest son were slain, and his youngest son was captured and executed a week later, but the royal family of Gwynedd also suffered losses. King Urien Haldane died at the Battle of Killingford, and his heir, Prince Cinhil II, died a week later, which left the crown to the sixteen-year-old Prince Malcolm Haldane.

[edit] Mearan conflict

Hoping to solidify a more secure peace with Meara, Prince Malcolm Haldane married the heiress to Meara shortly before his coronation to produce a joint heir to the two lands. However, Mearan separatists refused to acknowledge Princess Roisian as the rightful heir, choosing to support her younger sister in an attempt to maintain Meara's independence. After several failed attempts to resolve the matter diplomatically, Malcolm was finally forced to mount a military campaign in Meara to suppress the rebels and assert his wife's rights. He defeated the Mearan separatists in 1027, but was forced to return to Mearan in 1044 to put down another attempt at Mearan independence.

Although Gwynedd retained nominal control of the land, Mearan separatists made several more attempts to split from Gwynedd over the next several decades. Malcolm's son, King Donal Blaine Haldane, campaigned into Meara in both 1076 and 1089, achieving military victories both times but failing to capture the Mearan Pretenders who led the rebellions. A series of border conflicts with Torenth plagued Gwynedd's eastern border during this time, but they never escalated beyond raids and skirmishes.

[edit] Recent history

Ongoing conflicts with both Meara and Torenth continued to plague Gwynedd into the twelfth century, often separated by periods of uneasy peace. In 1105, Duke Hogan Gwernach of Marluk became the first Festillic Pretender in eight decades to mount a challenge for the throne of Gwynedd, but he was ultimately defeated by King Brion Haldane. The following year, Brion marched his army into Meara to put down the rebellion of the Mearan Pretender, Judhael II. Within his own kingdom, Brion was openly lenient toward Deryni, often ignoring the more oppressive laws that repressed the rights of Deryni. While Brion's guarded support of Deryni was perhaps more public than his predecessors, it continued a general trend of increasing tolerance toward Deryni that had been evolving in Gwyneddan society for several decades. Although Deryni were still feared and scorned by most of the general population, very few people still partook of the violent and brutal persecutions that had been commonplace two hundred years earlier. The number of Deryni in Gwynedd had decreased dramatically since the Haldane Restoration, providing a reduced public presence for the general population to rally against, so many Gwyneddan might live their entire lives without ever meeting a Deryni. Additionally, the eighty-year gap since the previous Festillic invasion eliminated many fears of another Festillic coup.

Brion's son and heir, Kelson Haldane, would also be forced to deal with these issues. On the very day of his coronation in 1120, Kelson was challenged by another Festillic Pretender, Duchess Charissa of Tolán. Kelson defeated Charissa, but was forced the following year to meet the invasion of King Wencit of Torenth, who had inherited the Festillic claim upon Charissa's death. Kelson also succeeded in defeating Wencit, a victory that earned him the title of Overlord of Torenth, as Torenth then became a vassal state to Gwynedd. In 1123, a new Mearan Pretender rose up and attempted to secure independence from Gwynedd. Kelson led the armies of Gwynedd into Meara in 1124 and suppressed the rebellion after defeating the Mearan army and forcing the Pretender to surrender.

Domestically, Kelson's own Deryni heritage forced many long-standing laws and customs to be re-evaluated. Determined to put an end to the persecution and oppression of Deryni in Gwynedd, Kelson strove to restore Deryni equality be overturning those laws that restricted Deryni rights. Often working in conjunction with the reformed Holy Church, Kelson's patient efforts to support tolerance and education eventually bore fruit, as Deryni slowly began to gain acceptance in Gwyneddan society.

In addition to stabilizing Gwynedd's most-pressing internal dilemma, Kelson also succeeded in securing more peaceful relations with Gwynedd's two most-recurring external foes. In 1128, Kelson arranged several political marriages that joined his own family with the last of Mearan Pretender's family, ensuring a significant Haldane presence in Meara. He further appeased the remaining Mearan separatists by granting Meara viceregal status under the rule of his cousin, Prince Rory Haldane. That same year, he formally renounced his rights as Overlord of Torenth and acknowledged the independence of King Liam-Lajos. Having trained Liam-Lajos at the royal court of Rhemuth for four years, Kelson chose to place his faith in the bonds of friendship that he had formed with the Torenthi king. Although old wounds and grudges in both Meara and Torenth were not forgotten by many, the foundations of a lasting peace with both lands had been laid.

In November of 1128, the peace between Gwynedd and Torenth was further strengthened by the announcement of a pair of engagements between the royal houses of the two kingdoms. King Liam-Lajos II agreeed to marry Princess Eirian Haldane, the daughter of Prince Nigel Haldane, and the king's sister, Princess Stanisha, was betrothed to Prince Nigel's third son, Prince Payne Haldane, with both marriages to be performed when the royal brides came of age. The dual joinings of the two royal families was much celebrated in both kingdoms, a sign that the people of the two lands welcomed a peaceful future. However, the announcement was not greeted with universal joy and happiness. The following year, Count Teymuraz Furstán, the outlawed and traitorous uncle of King Liam-Lajos, claimed the thrones of both kingdoms for his newborn sons. It is unclear whether Teymuraz' claim is an attempt to revive the Festillic claim to the throne of Gwynedd, or whether it is simply a part of his general aspirations for greater power. Regardless, his claims lack any significant legal authority and they generated no widespread support in either kingdom.

[edit] Kings of Gwynedd

The House of Haldane
645 – 673 Augarin Alexander Haldane
673 – 698 Aidan Alexander Haldane
698 – 719 Llarik Broccan Haldane
719 – 736 Ryons Gospatric Haldane
736 – 794 Bearand Llarik Donal Haldane
794 – 822 Ifor Augarin Niall Haldane
The Festillic Coup (June 21, 822)
Haldane Heirs The House of Furstán-Festil
822 – 903 Aidan Augarin Ifor Haldane (Daniel Draper) 822 – 839 Festil I Ferencz Furstán
839 – 851 Festil II Avgust Fyodor Furstán-Festil
851 – 885 Festil III Istvan Furstán-Festil
885 – 900 Blaine Godomar Radislaus Furstán-Festil

900 – 904

Imre I Istvan Ingwar Furstán-Festil
903 – 904 Cinhil Donal Ifor Haldane (Nicholas Draper)
The Haldane Restoration (December 2, 904)
The House of Haldane The Festillic Pretenders

904 – 917

Cinhil I Donal Ifor Haldane

 904 – 905 Ariella I Festila Nimura Furstána-Festila

905 – 975

Marek I Imre Usbert Furstán-Festil
917 – 921 Alroy Bearand Brion Haldane
921 – 922 Javan Jashan Urien Haldane
922 – 928 Rhys Michael Alister Haldane
928 – 948 Owain Javan Cinhil Haldane
948 – 980 Uthyr Michael Richard Haldane
975 – 985 Imre II Nimur Tamás Furstán-Festil
980 – 983 Nygel Rhys Owain Haldane
983 – 985 Jasher Owain Cinhil Haldane
985 – 994 Cluim Michael Reginaud Haldane

985 – 1024

Imre III Festil Nimur Furstán-Festil
994 – 1025 Urien Owain Rhys Michael Haldane
1024 – 1025 Marek II Malachy Moyslav Furstán-Festil
1025 Cinhil II Aymeric Nygel Haldane 1025 Marek III Furstán-Festil
1025 – 1074 Malcolm Congal Aidan Julian Haldane 1025 Ariella II Athénodóra Amaranda Furstána-Festila
1025 – 1038 Imriella Elizabeth Furstána-Festila
1038 – 1050 AriElinora Imrietta Furstána-Festila-Mór
1050 – 1061 Chriselle Carola Carmina Furstána-Festila-Mór

1061 – 1105

Hogan Zimri Marek Gwernach Furstán-Festil mac Tadhg
1074 – 1095 Donal Blaine Aidan Cinhil Haldane
1095 – 1120 Brion Donal Cinhil Urien Haldane
1105 – 1120 Charissa Aymarine Festiliana Furstána-Festila-mac-Tadhg
1120 - 1130+ Kelson Cinhil Rhys Anthony Haldane
1120 – 1121 Wenzel II "Wencit" Zsubit Kyprian Nimur Furstán

[edit] Sources

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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