Jude, Duke of Bavaria

Duke of Bavaria, Second Chancellor

The same ambition enabling Jude’s rise as the first duke of Germania to be christend ‘Second Chancellor’, led to his untimely beheading on his wife's orders. But not before his influence and prowess united large swaths of countryside & elevating his family’s stature

Power Above Station

Born to a lower house in the Bavarian countryside, Jude’s father, Francis, discreetly repaired clothing, shoes, and surcoats, to supplement his land’s income and keep up appearances with wealthier neighbors and lords. A series of untimely deaths led to his ineritance of the titled of Duke. Embarrassed by his family’s shortcomings, Jude would strive to reposition his legacy in the twisted and confusing marsh of Germanic politics.

Before the Empire

Long untamed even under nominal Roman rule, by the sixteen hundreds the discordant lands of Germania had splintered into mostly Counts and Barons vying for the favor of overlords only slightly higher titled than themselves. Mainly decedents of tribal chieftains, little documentation or oral history survived to settle disputes, leading to frequent violence and infighting, even among closely related families.

Consolidation Under Chancellery

In the early fourteenth century, the title of Chancellor manifested as nominal leader of the disparate petty kingdoms, but ultimately serving only as a figurehead. Upon Jude’s ascension to Duke after his father’s illness, he aggressively, and successfully, united larger and larger neighboring lands with a mix of skill, ruthlessness, and manipulation. As a reward for his service, the greater nobles created the title ‘Second Chancellor’, conspicuously similar to its parent title, except without the familial heritage to ensure its legacy.

Marriage and Downfall

Simultaneously as he gathered power and notoriety in his home lands, Jude also courted Louise I by endearing himself to her father Charlemagne (although their relationship would sour before the latter's death). Sensing an opportunity to incorporate holdings, Louise accepted Jude’s proposal, and once wed, officially annexed his lands in Bavaria into the greater Carolingian Empire. What was unclear, and would eventually lead to ruin, was the fate of lands Jude only nominally controlled as Second Chancellor

Dispute

The central question still unclear, even centuries after the events, was whether Louise promised titles and grants to the other Bavarian Germanic nobles whose lands Jude curated as Second Chancellor, or, as the crown later claimed, Jude acted of his own volition, officially parcelling without the Queen’s permission. Though the couple shared three children across six total pregnancies, it has been speculated perhaps Louise’s desires abated after the Bavarians were firmly under the empire’s control. Once threatened however, Jude’s escapades with his rival Baron’s suddenly became troublesome. Either way, a royal tribunal was held, and not long after Jude was found guilty of defrauding the crown.
His title would be destroyed after his death. However, during the rule of Louise II, ducal rule of Bavaria was reinstated, first administratively, then later with all noble privileges.

Relationships

Jude, Duke of Bavaria

spouse

Towards Louise I

0

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Louise I

spouse

Towards Jude, Duke of Bavaria

0

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Date of Birth

10 August 1537

Life

1537 AUC 1580 AUC

Circumstances of Death

Executed by Louise I, his wife

Spouses

Louise I (spouse)

Siblings

Other Affiliations

• Germania

Reign as Duke of Bavaria

1552 AUC - 1580 AUC

Coronation

12 August 1552

Predecessor

Francis of Bavaria

Successor

None, title dissolved

Spouse

Louise I

Issue of Note

Pepina II, Louise II, Charlotte ‘Raven Hair’

House

Unknown

“I knew not that I was betraying my kingdom, only that my kingdom had already, long ago, betrayed me”

Last words of Jude, Duke of Bavaria