Conseil du Royaume

[OverKnight]

Reeves brings in a large sheath of papers and dumps it on Hugues's desk, adding to an already impressive pile of paper. The Duc looks on impassively, his eyes empty, staring into the middle distance.

Suddenly he stands.

Gentleman, you seem to be under the impression that I am some sort of demi-god when it comes to Seneschaling! That I piss florins and fart spearmen! That I could fight two wars and somehow weasal us out of excommunication at the same time, and hell why not throw a Crusade on top!

I am not that good! I am average, hell I'm ignorant! What I am trying to do in my own mundane way is to fight one war succesfully while not getting all of us damned and implement the Edicts most of you voted for only a few seasons ago!

Gah, it's like herding cats!

The Duc returns to his desk and begins to drink.

[Ramses II CP]

A note is slipped to Prince Louis, who has been brooding quietly between sending his page scrambling off with fresh orders. After reading the missive (OOC: Yep, he can read!) Louis' eyes visibly widen, and he sits up abruptly in his chair. Chortling quietly he stands and declares,

Congratulations to my dear sister Constance on her, err, sudden marriage to one-

Louis pauses to consider the note and deliberately stumbles over the name,

Burrrbues Slelvios?

I am sure he is a fine young chap Mon Roi! Just the type to take my sweet, lovely, delightful sister in hand. I mean to go and pray for him... ahh, for them this very instant!

Louis' amusement as he departs is obviously of immense proportions, beyond even what this unexpected announcement would seem to warrant. The Prince actually giggles like a girl as he reaches the door, tucking in his chin to try to contain a greater eruption. Almost like he knows something, like this event will serve his purposes in some unimaginable way...

[Cultured Drizzt fan]

The next issue is the Milanese. I too have heard reports of at least one army, small this is true, near our Mediterranean coast. They are certainly no direct military threat as they are small but they can stop trade, affecting the states income, and if they do have aggressive intent they are more than capable of besieging one of our cities and potentially starving it out before aid arrives.

Should we strike at such an army though, even if they are in our own territory…would we…AGAIN…be verbally assaulted by the Papacy for striking at our Catholic neighbours?

Personally, I would see a small force sent to destroy these incursions where-ever they occur but perhaps just a significantly superior force needs to chaperone these forces away from our provinces?

Of course, it would also be more advantageous to attack these formations as the Milanese are rich and could pay ransom for their wandering men but I still am perplexed by the Popes responses to us of late.

Ad the baron of Marseilles I would like nothing more to see the Italians sent running back to there homes, and for us to follow through and take the wealth of Italy. However, sadly we do not have the resources in place to start and finish such a campaign, and if current trends hold we will not have it for a long time yet. This war worth the Germans bleeds us dry, and we can not afford to turn our eye elsewhere, for without our constant harassment they might be able to gather together and push our forces back. It is for a similar reason we must be wary of any crusades we seek to call, for if we move forces from the east front I believe we will soon find our gains thus far gone. But I believe I may be off topic.... I was talking of the Milanese not the Germans. If they continue to loiter around our land I assure you they shall find myself marching against them soon enough, whether we have proper forces in place or not!

[OverKnight]

Hugues stands, a bit refreshed.

I thank the Nobles of the Realm for their efforts, but the building of watchtowers is no longer needed.

(OOC: Don't build watchtowers if you take the save. I'll do it.)

Thank you.

[Ignoramus]

On hearing the Dauphin speak, Gaspard rises to his feet and speaks solemnly.

"I do not know who this fellow is, but I hereby challenge him to a duel. Let us see what this fellow is made of."

Noticing the alarmed faces, Gaspard hurriedly continues.

"Not to the death, bon messieurs, do not worry. I only wish to cross sword and lance with the newest member of the royal family."

Gaspard resumes his seat.

[Braden]

Ad the baron of Marseilles I would like nothing more to see the Italians sent running back to there homes, and for us to follow through and take the wealth of Italy. However, sadly we do not have the resources in place to start and finish such a campaign, and if current trends hold we will not have it for a long time yet. This war worth the Germans bleeds us dry, and we can not afford to turn our eye elsewhere, for without our constant harassment they might be able to gather together and push our forces back. It is for a similar reason we must be wary of any crusades we seek to call, for if we move forces from the east front I believe we will soon find our gains thus far gone. But I believe I may be off topic.... I was talking of the Milanese not the Germans. If they continue to loiter around our land I assure you they shall find myself marching against them soon enough, whether we have proper forces in place or not!

My lord. Rest assured, I was only speaking of harrying or attacking those formations actually within our lands to ensure proper flow of trade. We are not in a fit state to assault them directly.

...that is an interesting developement with my Sister...

[_Tristan_]

Philippe smiles to the assembled nobles.

Ah, Constance... Ever the one for surprises it seems... I had heard from one of her maid that some young Italian lad had caught her eye, but knowing my daughter I was surprised to hear her talk of marriage...

Nevertheless the man is of good standing, part of the Venetian ruling family and with a claim to the Doge seat, even if tenuous. And if he's willing to deal with Constance, I wish all the good to him...

To the newly weds !! (Philippe raises a goblet brought by a servant for a toast)

To celebrate such a joyful occasion, I think it is high time I made amends... A good ruler should recognize when or where he's in the wrong, and that I have been these past few years...

I wish to apologize to Duc Alain for the harshness in words and deeds I may have displayed against him and his House.

He surely didn't make things easy on him but I can allow for his surliness and anger with the unfair treatment I've been giving him.

I set him as Senechal a difficult mission, a mission at which he didn't balk or quail in fear at but tried to accomplish to the best of his abilities. He succeeded in what few could have accomplished : taking land on the British Isle under the nose of Guillaume, a thorn in the British lion side, a thorn which may serve us well to kick the English out of France.

And this was accomplished while he also had to manage the day-to-day life of the Royaume as Senechal, a balancing feat few ould have been capable of.

I hope Alain will accept my apologies and should he do so, I offer him as a reconcilation gift the good city of Bruges, as a token of my faith in him to be a good servant of the Royaume.

Should he accept the gift, all I would require of him is to release the men garrisoning Bruges and send them back to Paris to bolster the defences of our Capital City.

[OverKnight]

Hugues bows to the King.

A gracious offer your Majesty.

Hugues looks expectantly at Alain.

I am sure the Duc will accept.

A tinge of doubt can be heard in his voice.

[Braden]

*Prince Henri dutifully reads the Sceneshals reports*

My lords, it is a great pity that the Pope chooses this moment to Excommunicate the English is it not. We have lost one good holding in Iberia and 1,700 florins but Gods will is done and to this end the calls of this council to strike at England must be considered in more detail and seriously. Should we not strike at a neighbour who has fallen so far...what would the Pope feel towards us? I sincerely hope that we take this opportunity to unify France fully and completely. Whilst I do not believe an assault on Englands isles is prudent we could again look to Valencia as another avenue of battle with the English once, and only once, the remaining provinces of France are in our rightful hands.

The Germans worry me still of course but I believe that the Kings army near Frankfurt and the garrison at Dijon will be sufficient to stifle incursions from both the Upper and Lower Rhine areas, especially if the Kings Army withdraws to a point between Frankfurt and Metz.

My sister Constance, I wish her all happiness...for truly to have a daughter so rapidly after marriage must indicate happiness...I will miss her deeply though but her husband seems to have the makings of a significant governor and in the near future I hope that we will have need of such people when we take back what is ours.

[OverKnight]

Hugues nods a bit sheepishly.

I am not a seer. I made the best deal I could with the knowledge I had at the time.

I expect there to be much discussion in the Conseil about war with England and a possible Crusade.

However, the Germans have not rolled over. They still hide behind the Pope's robes and regain their strength. If we strip our Realm of forces to pursue a Crusade, we open up ourselves to German invasion. While I am working toward developing the finances of the Kingdom, I do not believe we are strong enough, yet, to support two wars at once.

[deguerra]

Prince Henri, forgive me for speaking so bluntly, but your desire for war worries me. I understand that you youths need to get some blood smeared on you to cover up the wetness behind your ears, but I for one strongly discourage any sort of armed conflict against yet another foe when we have not even managed to come to a settlement in the last rash war.

In any case, it is my belief that our rightful lands in France can be reclaimed with a minimum of bloodshed, most preferably through negotiation. Now that they have managed to incur the wrath of his holiness, who seems to change his mind more swiftly than a child of three, they will all the more be looking for a friend. I do not speak for an alliance with Albion, but surely even they must recognise their position is hardly strong (OOC: If only Raoul knew about the Total War AI).

Finally, let me congratulate Constance on her marriage, even though the nationality of the groom is only outmatched in curiosity by his age.

[AussieGiant]

Alain stands slowly and bows to the King.

Your Majesty, I accept your sincere apology 'ere in zis shamber and give you mine in return. I apologies for my past tone and anger toward ze King.

I appreciate ze words you 'ave spoken 'ere which go a long way towards creating a better understand of what occurred all zose years ago.

Zank you my King.

I will move my seat to Bruges and send you ze requested troops to Paris as soon as I 'ave ze city garrisoned.

Some what stiffly Alain continues.

I also congratulate Princess Constance on 'er marriage and wish 'er good 'ealth and 'appiness in ze future.

There is a stiffled laugh by members of his retinue at the last statement. Medoc turns and grumbles his displeasure, quietening the situation immediately.

[Braden]

My lord Châtillon,

You would have us negotiate with a King who has been judged Heretic? I speak of war with only the English…as a Frenchman this is not a “desire” but a necessity. The English have shown themselves to NOT be willing to negotiate at a level that we can match again.

They accepted our offer of TWO provinces AND significant coin for Caen. Surely they only accepted such a generous offer after they heard they were to be Excommunicated? Gathering provinces and coin to defend themselves…if I had been English, it is as I would have done.

I am also certain that all our hard efforts, from our hard working Seneschal, would be adversely affected if the Papacy discover we are talking in favourable terms with the English.

We have been handed an opportunity by Gods representative on Earth to reclaim our historic lands and, as a Catholic and Frenchman I cannot ignore such an opportunity.

The Germans are NOT finished, I concur, but the danger to our East is outweighed by the benefits shown us to the West…you must also note that such a campaign in the West would not have my direct involvement. I pledge to hold the Germans back with my blood and my blade so that others can free our people from the English heretic.

[Ituralde]

I congratulate the Princess on her marriage and welcome Barbus Selvo as new member of the Royal Family! I also congratulate Seneshal Hugues for his succesful negotiation witht he English. Had we known then what we know now things might have gone a different path, but at least now that the English have shown their true colors we have a well developed Castle in our midst to wage war against them!

And waging war against them is our duty as Christians. We can not stand back while the subjects of William are damned for the deeds of their ruler. I suggest we gather our forces as fast as possible and slay the traitor personally. Only in killing King William can we save the souls of the English!

[_Tristan_]

Philippe nods at Alain.

I also accept your apologies, Duc Alain.

Then turning to the rest of the assembled Lords

Mes Seigneurs,

France must truly be favoured by God, to find such a godsend in our path.

The excommunication of Guillaume grants us enough cause to ask Pope Gregory to call a Crusade on London to get rid of my cousin and his willingness to see France as his kingdom.

Should the Pope accede to our own demand I'll be the first to take the cross and take my newly assemble army across the Channel to bring him Guillaume to the justice of God.

Long have we suffered the insults of having to tolerate their encroaching presence upon our lands.

It is my prerogative to declare war on the enemies of France and let me assure you that should the Pope hear our plea, I'll declare war on the Bastard and his minions.

Pour la France ! Pour Dieu !

[Ituralde]

Pour la France! Pour Dieu!

[Cultured Drizzt fan]

Yvon face scrunches up

what a change of pace......

But can not be displeased! May the English regret going against the Holy See!

[Braden]

I applaud you my King, my father! Please though, we must see to our own lands before we crusade across the channel.

I trust that any crusade would encompass the lands that are rightfully ours? It would be a great pity to bring Guillaume in chains to the Pope only to find that we can no longer reclaim our own lands.

[_Tristan_]

Indeed any English holding whether on the Isle or on the continent will be fair game.

As to our own lands, if Ducs Hugues and their men stand watch over our eastern border, and the Order watches our northern one, I'm sure we can deal a heavy blow to the English Louis, Alain and I.

But we must act quickly or the Pope's favour may swing back on us...

[OverKnight]

As Alain and the King reconcile, Hugues lets out a sigh of relief. However, as the shouts for war and Crusade fill the Conseil, the Seneschal's expression slowly grows grim again. He moves to speak, but shakes his head, leans back in his chair and takes a long swig of wine.

[Braden]

Indeed any English holding whether on the Isle or on the continent will be fair game.

As to our own lands, if Ducs Hugues and their men stand watch over our eastern border, and the Order watches our northern one, I'm sure we can deal a heavy blow to the English Louis, Alain and I.

But we must act quickly or the Pope's favour may swing back on us...

My King, we are in equal accord. It is unfortunate that we must strike fast but I hold with your concerns so a hasty strike is needed.

[econ21]

My King, my Prince,

I humbly petition that members of the Order be permitted to ride with you in any crusade the Pope authorises against the English. We are an order dedicated to the cause of chivalry - it would be a great honour to us if you would grant us this chance to ride in such a noble endeavour. I realise that the Eastern frontier must be defended, but Baron Thomas has taken up command of Frankfurt and I am sure that arrangements can be made to provide him with sufficient men to hold it.

[OOC: Whichever generals are in the stack capturing the crusade target get really nice chivalry-oriented boosts to their traits. In KotR we arranged things so as to maximise the number of generals who wanted to join a crusade could get those traits. Please can we do that this time?]

[TinCow]

Finally, it is good to see that this body is at last coming to its senses. Now you must excuse me, I have Englishmen to kill.

Christophe rises and leaves the chamber.

[Ituralde]

Mon Roi!

As you can see many of the Order wish to join should a Crusade against the English be called. As a chivalrous Order I see it as our duty to defend the Christian faith and it would be a pleasure to personally support you in bringing your disgraced cousin to heel. In fact I believe that when the Pope calls every Noble should be given the chance to take up arms on this Holy Mission. So I would ask every Noble of France who is willing to partake in this stand up now and make himself known.

I can only speak for the Order and their burning desire to purge these heretics!

Simon raises a cautionary finger.

But we can not slacken in the defense against the Germans. Too bad they won't accept an amiable peace treaty. Which is why it's even more important that we all make our intentions clear and coordinate ourselves within these chambers. Who will fight and who will defend? Who will save the damned souls and who will protect our subjects? Who will slay the English and who will crush the Germans?!

[OverKnight]

The Seneschal belches loudly and begins working on a second wineskin, a wry look on his face.

[Ramses II CP]

Louis, having sped from the chamber with de Perrone when he heard the announcement of the excommunication, returns now with his own announcement,

Ahh, at long last! Mon Roi my men and I have ridden to the walls of Bordeaux and we await only your official word to begin the siege! Valencia could be retaken within days, so I am assured by my vassal de Xaintrailles. Simply say the word war and the reclamation of France will be launched instantly!

I told you all God favored our cause! And despite being played false by the Seneschal I and House Aquitaine are still ready! Give us our head and we'll wipe these bastards out of France in no time!

Louis is so excited he takes no notice of the page pushing a copy of the latest notes at him.

[_Tristan_]

Louis, Louis... Tsk, Tsk... Why do you always have to act so rashly ? Your actions these past season have been made in violation of Edict 2.8, which still stands until war is declared. We're not yet sure the Pope will call for a crusade on England and already you're at their walls...

In what kind of light do you think it casts us in the eyes of the Pope ? I'm tempted to ask the Senechal to enforce the Edict, just to teach you manners...

[Ramses II CP]

My King! Surely we cannot bandy words of a truce with an apostate! The Pope has signed off, has asked all good Catholic peoples to turn their backs on William and his crew of criminals! We have only to stretch out our hands and all of France will fall back into them.

The light in Louis' eyes is undimmed as he goes on speaking,

It is bad enough that we've sent them money and lands, let us not delay in taking them back! War is inevitable, all here know it. We need only your permission!

Mon pere I beg you, most humbly, give me the word and let the reclamation begin... Let I and my men, and I assure you there are no more devoted servants to the throne in all this land, let us launch this war for you. If His Holiness takes umbrage, and I cannot imagine he will, you may blame my infamous lack of caution and I will bear the laughter of all Europe if only I can teach the English the lesson they so desperately need!

A note of caution finally enters Louis' voice,

Before God I meant no offense to the throne or your word, I only acted as I expected must be done eventually anyway. I was the most staunch supporter of this edict, in a way I even proposed it to you, but it's time has passed. Declare the war and let this truce be ended, please!

[GeneralHankerchief]

Raynaud de Xaintrailles:

*The Baron rises, the emotion palpable in his voice.*

My... my lords...

*He takes a moment, collects himself, and then begins again.*

My Lords,

This unexpected chain of events has...

...has...

*Shaking violently, Raynaud sits down, trying to gather himself before he rises again.*

[Braden]

Father, I cannot imagine the Pope will look unkindly upon us for doing just exactly as he has asked ALL Catholic nations to do? Namely teach the English what it means to go against God's word.

I humbly also beg you to speak the words so many of us wish to hear.