Óige: 'youth'

The Invader King. Born only one year later than Widwulf (the king he would go on to dispose), Óige exemplified the Marčovȉk spirit of being an aggressive warrior. He was content to live a nomadic lifestyle, and even after seizing the throne and being crowned king at Porthynys, he did not settle. Instead, Óige embarked on a tour of his new country, setting sail along the River Test and intending to travel north to meet with his clansmen. However, the forty-eight-year old was taken ill at Fēowerij, dying shortly afterwards. Widwulf was hurriedly fetched back from exile in the far south-west of the country and restored to his throne, a position which Óige’s son Snaid immediately began vying for himself.

Óige died in the county of Pticák, the homeland of the deposed Widwulf’s mother, Queen Aowulf. Although that lady had died many decades earlier, Widwulf still commanded considerable support in that land, and it was suspected that his maternal cousins had something to do with Óige’s sudden death. In a final macabre act, Óige’s tongue was found to be missing when he was being prepared for burial. It was rumoured that he had been poisoned, which may have resulted in a blackened or discoloured tongue, hence the disappearance of any evidence.
 
Óige was twice married, the second time while still married to the first (Marčovȉkian customs being somewhat more eccentric than Caerlean ones). Áillegard was a fellow Marčovȉkian who had accompanied him over the seas, whereas Fȳrwin was a woman Óige captured in East Kwiat early on during the struggles. Both wives accompanied Óige on his voyages, although he only had children by Fȳrwin. Fȳrwin gave birth to two sons, Armwode and Snaid, and six daughters whom Óige married off to various northern Marčovȉkians.
 
Snaid: ‘knot’
 
The younger of Óige’s two sons, Snaid was recognised from an early age as being the most capable at leading men – warlike yet sensible, positive traits to a Marčovȉkian. His brother Armwode was happy to remain as little more than a pirate, his methods of attack so violent it worried even Snaid and Óige. Fortunately, Armwode was killed by his own men in the year 205, with no-one much mourning his loss.
 
Following Óige’s unexpected death in 212, Snaid was caught on the back-foot. At the time, he was commanding his own soldiers along the eastern shores of Krílovoće, intent on crushing the last pockets of resistance. By the time news reached him of his father’s death, Widwulf had been restored, and Snaid narrowly avoided capture by vengeful adherents to the House of Wolves. He fled seawards hastily, unable to do little more than begin a troublesome harrying of the south-eastern coastline.
 
Over the last two years of Widwulf’s reign, these raids grew in size and strength, and when Widwulf’s son, Bladwulf, succeeded to the throne in 214, Snaid finally struck. Bladwulf was murdered a month after being crowned king, and the resurgent Marčovȉkians swiftly re-seized power.
 
Snaid was quick to subdue any attempts at revenge, ordering the deaths of Bladwulf’s three full brothers; his two half-brothers, Auwode and Omwulf, were taken into Snaid’s custody, along with their mother, the former queen Gwelcraw. For a time, the fate of the two Wulflings hung in the balance, with many of Snaid’s companions advising him to kill them. A year after his coronation, however, Snaid confounded everyone by announcing he planned to marry Gwelcraw, the widow of Widwulf. Some say that she seduced him in order to save her sons; others claim it was mere politics on Snaid’s part, gaining two royal stepsons and a wife who had considerable experience in Caerlean royal circles.
 
Like his father, Snaid was already married when this second wedding took place. His first marriage was declared null and void, although he kept his wife, Aoheorte of Pravasese, as his mistress. Gwelcraw was thirty-seven at the time of her second marriage, but she still produced a son and a daughter for the new king.
 
Snaid’s reign was relatively calm, with the king more focused on strengthening his hold on the realm rather than any further expansion. Unsurprisingly, Marčovȉkians were favoured over native Caerleans, and many marriages were encouraged as a way of integrating the invaders into the noble families. Marčovȉkians had no real religion of their own, so they were happy to re-appropriate the deities and customs of Caerlean, seeing it as a way of forming even closer ties with their new subjects. When Snaid died after nineteen years of rule, many people (especially the young) did not remember a pre-Marčovȉk age.
 
Armwode: ‘Armed tree’
 
Eldest son of Snaid from his first marriage, Armwode was nine years old when his mother was set aside in place of the former queen, Gwelcraw of Oštrogóra. His mother was lowered to the position of mistress to the king, and it was this indignity that fostered Armwode’s hatred of his step-mother and the children from her previous marriage – Omwulf Wulfling and the future king, Auwode Wulfling.
 
When Snaid died, Armwode immediately declared himself the new king, and in case anyone was in any doubt of his intention, he marched into the capital at the head of a thousand-strong army – hence the ‘Swift’ appellation. His coronation took place at the same time as his father’s funeral, with many lords choosing to miss the laying to rest of King Snaid and instead pledge their allegiance to Armwode.
 
As soon as she heard the news of his crowning, Dowager Queen Gwelcraw sent her two sons, Auwode and Omwulf, to Solmorje; they were at the time thirty-seven and thirty-four respectively. Gwelcraw was aware that her sons could be seen as potential rivals for the throne – being direct descendants of the old royal house – and she was determined to keep them safe. She went as far as to offer her own life as security against her sons’ promised loyalty to Armwode.
 
Even as he publicly accepted her guarantee, Armwode privately dispatched soldiers to track down and murder his step-brothers. When they could not be found, he imprisoned Gwelcraw and let it be known that she was desperately ill. This strategy partly worked, with the youngest, Omwulf, hastening back to the capital, where he was captured, his eyes put out, and then he was left to die in an underground dungeon. Armwode allegedly forced Gwelcraw to watch the brutal blinding before locking her up once again.
 
Seeing Gwelcraw so crushed went a good way to calming Armwode’s murderous tendencies, and the final three years of his reign passed without incident. The king toyed with the idea of marrying a daughter of the Lord of West Viude; however, this never came to anything. Armwode died of internal injuries after falling from his horse, when his steed was spooked by a wolfhound bounding between its legs. This was said to be the revenge of Omwulf Wulfling, that unfortunate offspring of wolves.
 
Cruasnaid: ‘hard knot’
 
Half-brother to Armwode, Cruasnaid’s first act as king was to liberate his mother, Gwelcraw, and denounce the murder of Omwulf. The criticism came as rather hollow-sounding, thanks to Cruasnaid’s silence when the murder occurred; however, this self-preservation was perhaps not surprising. While he may have hated his stepmother, Armwode’s feelings towards his half-siblings, Cruasnaid and Lady Fȳrwin, were ambivalent, and they were never persecuted in Armwode’s lifetime.
 
Cruasnaid’s reign was short and unpopular. Although only twenty at the time of his coronation, the king was already a licentious drunk, one who became vicious when in his cups. His numerous drinking sprees would involve bear-baiting, cock-fighting and the molestation of any women unlucky enough to fall into his clutches. It was at one such orgy that the king died, after drinking too much and being struck by a violent spasm. His blood-caked aspect (caused as a result of some internal eruption) was said to haunt Porthynys Castle for nearly a hundred years after his death.