Birth of an Empire

Founding

Antony Viscus unites the varied kingdoms of Abia to form the Arcanaan Empire and takes the name Anselm.

Newly-ascended Arcanan king Antony Viscus manipulated the church into leaving matters of state solely in the hands of Arcana's rightful ruler. It's speculated that he earned the Supreme Pontiff's favor (who was, at the time, a militant faithful that came from the Ostia Aterni) by promising a holy war in exchange for the church blessing Antony with even greater authority.   In a swift, almost easy grab for power, Viscus convinced his allies in the Argentorate to support him as "imperator" of a new, unified Abia. He then plotted a course to unite each of the kingdoms, one-by-one, whether through diplomacy or warfare.   In return for swearing fealty to Arcana, Viscus would turn the focus of his new empire to the Arcanites’ ancestral homeland and give all Abians a common enemy: Nasir. He promised his soon-to-be vassals an equal share of spoils for the participation in what, he deemed, was to be a holy war.   The kings of Kor Kýmatos (Crestos), Melís (Meloir), Katapolis (Ebrius), and Telo Trada (Tavarin) were intrigued by the proposal, even though it meant abdication. At a summit of the kingdoms, each sovereign debated for weeks on how Viscus' new empire would function and what powers and priviledges they would retain if they swore fealty to Arcana. By this time in Abian history, the bloodlines of the families had long been mixed and connected to one another. Dynasties bled together and each monarch was a cousin to another. It was only a matter of time before one of the core families attempted to install themselves as as a "high king". The true question was: Who should it be?   Antony Viscus seemed the logical choice.   Eventually, the kings of Psaion (Ascor), Viae (Nexus), and the five previously mentioned elected Viscus as the first Imperator of the Arcanaan Empire, ascending him beyond kingship. Viscus claimed the regnal name Anselm the Worthy, known from then on as Imperator Anselm I.   But not every Abian king bent the knee at the summit. Lorn Regia (Lornaris), Emerita (Practus), and Achonia (Actara) refused vassalization. The queen of Solva (Castere) never attended the summit as she was old and too frail to travel. She sent her daughter and heiress-apparent in her stead, but the princess of Solva abstained, claiming she was uncertain she had the queen's blessing to decide one way or the other. She conveyed to the new imperator that she must wait until she ascends to her mother's throne before giving him an answer.   Those that relinquished their crowns as kings, retained all lands and vassals beneath them. Anselm made them his Dukes, reorganizing the kingdoms as dukedoms. They would retain control over their individual militaries during peacetime but would yield a percentage of that fighting strength in levies to the Empire's new Royal Army. In addition, they would pay an annual tax rate to Arcana based on population size (not counting slaves).   Those that did not, save for the princess of Solva, were warned that they had one year to bend the knee... or Anselm would take and melt their crowns, dip the tip of his sword into their gold, and personally end their lines.