Alvallar Lord's Revolt

The Alvallar Lord's Revolt, also refered to as the Vallarsian Civil War, Vallarsian War of Liberty, or commonly just "The Dons' War" ("Los Dons Guerra" in Vallaran) among the people of Alvallar, was a major uprising that occured in the Crown of Alvallar, an imperial nation in south Moureve, between the Month of Forests, PP 1381, to the Month of Seas, PP 1383. It was fought between sections of the nobility against Emperor Wiegrich, at that time Emperor of Alvallar. Despite being a relatively short civil war, with open fighting only lasting for around 18 months, its effects are still felt by every citizen of Alvallar regardless of status, even two generations later.
For most of its recorded history (Post-Platinum), the peninsula making up the south-western region of Moureve known as "Alvallar" (from the Bardiyan 'Al-Valyar', meaning either 'the valley' or 'the valiant/valourous') was disunited. Independent Bardiyan-run principalities and kingdoms known collectively as "Zathira" (Again from Bardiyan, a portmanteau of the words "الحيازات الصغيرة", Alhiazat alsaghira, literally "Small Holdings") controlled the west and south of the peninsula, with many nobles having made the perilous trip across the ocean to Moureve to seek fortune in Alvallar. Meanwhile, in the east and north, equally small nations that formed from the descendants of the Vaigutic nobles as well as the native Euskaln. The rulers of these eastern and northernly nations all shared the goal of bringing the peninsula back under their control, but for many years in-fighting between the rulers of the east and north ensured that this goal was an impossibility. This was also due to the traditional succession law employed the nations, which mandated partitioning a ruler's land among all of their children equally as an inheritance, making it difficult for any one noble family to hold power together within a nation due to their domains becoming fractured over time.
By PP 1295, after a hard life of conquest, Ferdinand the Great, founder of House Ximeno (Hee-Men-O) united Northern and Eastern Alvallar under his personal rule, but died before he could win enough support to officially change the law of the land and designate a single heir. Thus, Fernando's conquests were spilt among his six children, with each getting one of Fernando's kingdoms. One of these children, Santxo II "The Robust" of Mena, (San-Ch-Oh) launched several aggressive military campaigns against his siblings almost the moment they all were bestowed their new monarchal titles, and was able to successfully unify the northern Alvallar kingdoms under his personal rule like his father by PP 1303. He began drafting up plans along with his loyalists to formally unite his territory into an Empire where one child would inherit everything upon succession to finally stop the instability, but before he could do this he was assassinated. However, as Santxo was still young, only around his early 30s when he was killed, he had only one heir that could inherit. As such, in a stroke of luck or perhaps divine intervention, there was no partition as his son, Santxo III, legally inherited everything at the age of 4, in PP 1304. Santxo III is better known by the title he established for himself- Emperor of Alvallar.
Emperor Santxo I- known by many nicknames like "The Father of Alvallar" and "The Magnificient"- and his reign of over 60 years (he spent around 30 years exculsively as king of "United Alvallar" before formally establishing the imperial Crown of Alvallar aka just the Empire of Alvallar) was a golden age approaching that of the Platinum People's greatness. Santxo's exceptional charisma, diplomatic skills, intelligence, tolerance, wisdom, sense of justice and kindness made him a world-wide legend, held up by humans, dwarves, elves and more as the best humanity had to offer. He was respected by both the lords of his own realm and the Zathira, showing exceptional tolerance and refusing to not deal with the Bardiyans the same way he would with any one else. He was such an accomplished intellectual and scholar that he could speak every language within his kingdom fluenty, and educated each one of his children personally. He attempted to bestow upon them the same ways of thinking that held Alvallar together under his watch. He also expanded his empire substantially, taking over many Zathira and relegating them to the west of Alvallar (though he granted certain protections for the Bardiyan and Bardiyan-desended populace of the Zathira, being praised by them for his evenhandedness). He also expanded his realms holdings outwith the Alvallar peninsula, moving the border up close to Calieux. His greatest feat was staving off the revolutionary wave of the time that affected dozens of other countries in Moureve alone.
However, getting a heir to follow up the masterful Emperor Santxo I proved to be no small feat. Keeping them alive was no small feat either, as proven when Santxo's first son, Fernandito, was killed in battle with forces from the Zathira of Safah. This lead to Santxo JR taking priority in the succession, as the law instituted by Emperor Santxo was that the oldest member of House Ximeno would inherit everything. When Emperor Santxo I died in PP 1369 he was crowned Emperor Santxo II. "The Successor" Santxo II ruled only for 6 years until PP 1375 when he was assassinated just like his grandfather King Ferdinand. According to the law, that meant that Wiegrich, Emperor Santxo's third son, would take over everything, much to the chagrin of many nobles who instead wanted Santxo II's son (Santxo's Grandson), Paro, to become Emperor. And so, factions began to form against Wiegrich.
Wiegrich, now Emperor Wiegrich, was generally percieved as being odd among the sons of Santxo I. Santxo's only wife had been Yda, a noble-woman from Utirbarg, and Wiegrich was the only one of the children from their marridge that manifested Suwidii heritage. His hair was ginger and did not grow long, wildly different compared to the dark and flowing long hair that Santxo's other children had. Wiegrich's name was also odd, and was apparently what it was due to a request from Yda, who wanted to memorise her recently deceased father via naming the child after him. (Also, this was likely also following a folk legend from Utirbarg, that a child named after a dead relative would receive a part of their spirit- essentially a form of reincarnation via synthesis.) He grew no facial hair, also unusual to see within Santxo's children. He was also the child who most noticably took on Santxo I's military prowess.
For 7 years before the conflict, Wiegrich I reigned over the Empire. Not being as diplomatically inclined as his father or older brother, he said what he really thought about his vassals even when it was inadvisable to do so. He envisioned himself as a 'War-Time King' who would consolidate and marshal the country through great conquests. This resonated with some vassals, and caused disdain with others. Despite his middling diplomatic prowess, he ensured to keep Alvallar's foreign alliances intact (such as the ones with Syldr'El and Kerhagen) in order to receive additonal manpower when his prospective expansionary wars began. All the while, the resentment against Wiegrich was growing among his vassals, with the anti-Wiegrich faction led by the court Spymaster, Duke Rodrigo III. Rodrigo's House Cavia had been ardent supporters of the Ximeno family since the days of Santxo II, but had begun to feel sidelined after Wiegrich took power and seemed to shift his focus towards foreign relations and his military ambitions.
The resentment of the anti-Wiegrich faction (known now as The Dons) finally came to a head in PP 1381, where Wiegrich declared a war to take the Zathira of Razin. The nobles that made up the faction decided that the time to make their demands was now, and so quickly complied all of their individual demands into a single document, "Las Demandes de Los Dons" (The Demands of the Dons), which Rodrigo III delivered to Wiegrich personally. The demands were varied, but generally lower taxes and increased autonomy were goals shared by all of the Dons. The Dons all swore military action would be taken against Wiegrich and any vassals who still allied with him if the demands were not met. According to legend, when Rodrigo III delivered the document to Wiegrich in the imperial throne-room, Wiegrich laughed out loud for five minutes straight and then replied; "If that is all you wish say to me, traitor Duke, then ensure that the door hits you on the way out." Thus, war began.
There are a number of factors that led to the failure of the Dons' efforts, but three stand out among the rest. The first failing of the Dons was the lack of support from Paro. A significant faction of the Dons wanted to use the civil war as an excuse to place Paro onto the throne, to legitimise the conflict as the deposition of an illegitimate ruler as well as to gain personal power from having the new king indebted to them. However, for some reason, Paro did not authorise the Dons to press his claim on the throne, seemingly content to stay put ruling over the southern Duchy of Balansi (which had been given to him by his father Santxo II). This lack of support from the most worthy claimant to the throne heavily reduced the public perception of the Dons and caused low morale to spread through the leadership of the revolt. The second failing of the Dons was a lack of alliances/foreign support. Outside of a few cities just beyond Alvallar, the Dons had nearly no foreign allies that they could request troops or aid from. Wiegrich meanwhile preserved the Crown's powerful foreign alliances with Kerhagen and Syldr'El. The third was the ideological division of the Dons, which hampered their efforts as these lords seemingly united in purpose fractured into increasingly smaller interest groups desiring different things. In at least one instance, in Kemina Province, this led to open battle between two of the Dons.
After the Revolt was quashed in the conclusive siege of Pampon, House Cavia's seat, the period known to all Vallarsians as 'La Tirania', or The Tyranny. Each member of House Cavia unfortunate enough to be in Pampon when it fell was publicly executed by Wiegrich himself, and Pampon Keep was slighted to the point of being useless as a fortification. All the surviving Dons were arrested in their castles or killed while attempting to flee to Calieux or the Zathiras. The highest ranking members of the faction, such as Rodrigo III, were executed without trial, and the rest of them were given a choice; either be executed, renounce all ancestral claim to their land and live the rest of their days in exile (along with their whole house), or retain their land at the price of sending one or more of their children to Porlasantxo to live as hostages as well as swearing anew their oaths of fealty to the Crown. What Wiegrich failed to tell those Dons that chose a principled execution was that he would banish the families of those who submitted to the chopping block. Those who chose exile were forced to vow, in front of a Kasamid Vowkeeper (putting their eternal soul in jeopardy), that they or their descendents would never seek to take lands within the borders of Alvallar for the next 200 years. These extremely harsh punishments earned Wiegrich his nickname- 'Regladur', or Hard Ruler.

The Conflict

Outcome

Rodrigo III Cavia and other prominent Dons leaders arrested.

Aftermath

Political Landscape of Alvallar radically altered due to mass executions/banishments of rebel nobles and their families. House Cavia utterly destroyed by Wiegrich. Beginning of the 'Tirania' (Tyranny) period of contemporary Vallarsian history, as Wiegrich ruled for another 20 years as an Autocrat before his death.

Historical Significance

Legacy

Wiegrich's nickname, "Regladur", translated to mean "Harsh Ruler", comes from his ruthless use of his power to crush this Revolt, as well as his tyrannical actions afterwards.

Conflict Type

Civil War

Start Date

3rd Lutesday (17th), Month of Forests, PP 1381 (17/6/1381)

Ending Date

Last Mindsday (32th), Month of Temples, PP 1383 (32/5/1383)

Conflict Result

Wiegrich Loyalists Victory, Dons defeat

Belligerents

The Crown Forces (aka the Loyalists aka Wiegrich's forces)

The Rebel Forces (aka the Dons aka Rodrigo's Forces)

Strength

Casualties

Objectives

Stated objective: Protect the authority and power of Wiegrich Ximeno, Emperor of Alvallar, and prevent his deposition. Actual objectives of those who supported Wiegrich vary.

Varied across the rebel lords. Some simply wanted taxes lowered as well as the level of Imperial control in their holdings, while more radical lords wanted to see Wiegrich deposed all together and for him to be replaced by Emperor Santxo's grandson, Paro, who they claimed would be more conducive to their interests and a better ruler.