Lumis
| The Kingdom of Lumis De Küningsraach Lumis | |||
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| Motto: Am Interetze vän Allen | |||
| Anthem: Küningsläid | |||
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| Map versions | |||
| Capital | Witzenbourg | ||
| Largest city | Witzenbourg, Tousons | ||
| Official language(s) | Common tongue, Lumisian, Corcois | ||
| Official religion(s) | |||
| Demonym | Lumisian | ||
| - Adjective | Lumisian | ||
| Government | Constitutional Monarchy | ||
| - King | King Wilhelm I | ||
| - Legislature | |||
| Establishment | 1229 AN | ||
| Area | |||
| Population | 1,958,195 | ||
| Currency | Zaikir (Ƶ) | ||
| Calendar | |||
| Time zone(s) | |||
| Mains electricity | |||
| Driving side | left | ||
| Track gauge | |||
| National website | |||
| National forum | |||
| National animal | Haven Hawk | ||
| National food | Schnitzel | ||
| National drink | Mead | ||
| National tree | White Oak | ||
| Abbreviation | LUM | ||
I have only been to the illustrious Kingdom once, but it was one of the most enlightening experiences I've ever had in my life. The people there live in the most pastoral way, with the most technological device in any home being the cursory light bulb, powered by a link to the fusion reactors in the cavern ceiling that also power the monumental light show of the sky.—Edward Coldstone, Cira: A Legacy (1675 AN)
The Kingdom of Lumis (Lumisian: Küningsraach Lumis) is a nation and independent territory subject to the sovereignty of the Ciric Confederacy. Located in a massive underground cavern, the kingdom exists almost entirely within the governorate of Wrighthaven, though it technically occupies none of the same land. Lumis is commonly thought of in confederate consciousness as an idyllic land under the ground of the confederacy that calls to mind the fairy tales of stoic knights and tranquil villages, with the entire kingdom rejecting the technology of the confederacy except in two instances; the first being a system of artificial lighting and fog generation at the cavern's ceiling to give the kingdom the appearance of a surface country, and the second being an elevator at the capital of Witzenbourg, called the Himmelswagon (Sky Chariot) by locals, which is the only way in or out of the kingdom.
Geography
Physical Geography
The Kingdom of Lumis is located entirely underground, in an area that was once a mining colony in the early 1200s, though the caverns that Lumis expanded into eventually underwent heavy terraforming to force the land to succumb to the desires of the miners. The caverns were transformed into five distinct layers, each with their own biomes specifically imposed upon them to fit the desires of the settlers.
The first layer, closest to the surface, is the layer of Brunsheim. The area encompasses a traditional mediterranean climate with lakes and two major rivers, the Otros and the Sämeck, breaking around the hill upon which the city of Witzenbourg lies, which is just one of the many rolling hills of the layer. The gentle rolling hills are only broken by a series of three lakes in one of the lower valleys, and the range of small mountains that bounds the layer, crawling around the cavern wall, called the Addelbeck Mountains. The southern and lower regions of the layer are dominated by the Hazelbark forest, which contains no actual hazel, but is mainly made up of various decidious trees along with some pines.
The second layer of Lumis is called Ärd, and is accessible through switchback path that descends through a cave in a mountain of the Addelbeck range. Ärd is far more mountainous than Brunsheim, with the centre of the region comprising a much taller and rockier alpine type mountain range called the Frostspëtzen. These snow-capped mountains are criss-crossed by the beaten paths and rocky trails of the kingdom, and are surrounded on all sides by an expansive tundra with evergreen forests and frozen rivers. Nestled among those high mountains lies the layer's largest city, Osterfeld, capital of the County of Zossen.
The third layer is the smallest, and it is called Cours. Cours, being the centre of the Corc region of the kingdom, is very similar to Brunsheim. It possesses the same mediterranean climate and geography, though the hills of Cours range from more prominent than those of Brunsheim in the north, to near nonexistant in the southern part of the region. Cours also only possesses one lake, though it is much larger than the lakes of Brunsheim; this lake, Lac Grandeur, is also the location of the layer's largest city, Tousons, capital of both the Duchy of Aquitaine as well as the entire region of Corc.
The fourth layer is the largest one, called Beauport, and it consists mainly of the Verdant Jungle, which is a hilly rainforest that grows many different types of plants and animals, including some genetically engineered for artificial biodiversity by the confederates on the surface. The jungle is sparsely inhabited by humans, with most tending to live in cities surrounding the Mer de Verre (Sea of Glass), including the layer's largest town of Port Blanc, capital of the Duchy of Côte Blanc. The sea had already existed prior to the terraforming of the layer, as it had been an underground lake connected to the frozen rivers that run through Sypyr on the surface.
The fifth layer is the last one inhabited, and was barely terraformed because of its proximity to some of the lower depths that contain large pockets of magma; the best that could be done for this layer, Elodia, home to the Archbarony of the same name, was to transform part of it into a desert as opposed to leaving it as a volcanic wasteland that it had been prior and still is partially, in the areas in the northwest that surround the shield volcano called the Montagne Rouge. The city of Morósse, capital of Elodia, lies near the entrance to the layer, and is pretty much the only connection through which the cities in the desert can have access to agricultural materials.
Political Geography
Before one can understand the system of political and administrative divisions employed by Lumis, one must understand the terminology used by the kingdom, which is drawn from old feudal systems of governance, and translated into the languages of Lumisian and Corcois.
| Name | Consists of | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Kingdom | Grand Duchies and Archbaronies | The Kingdom consists of the whole of Lumis, and is presided over by a King or Queen; the Kingdom consists of the Grand Duchies of Rotswald and Corc, as well as the Archbarony of Elodia Lumisian: Küningsraach Corcois: Royaume |
| Grand Duchy | Duchies and Counties | The two Grand Duchies of the Kingdom, Rotswald and Corc, are presided over by a Grand Duke or Duchess, and consist of lesser Duchies and Counties Lumisian: Grosherzogtom Corcois: Grand-Duché |
| Archbarony | Viceroyalties and Baronies | The one Archbarony in Lumis, the Archbarony of Elodia, exists as a territory subservient directly to the King or Queen though it is the size of a Duchy or County, and consists of two or three viceroyalties and baronies Lumisian: Erbaronie Corcois: Archibaronnie |
| Duchy | Viceroyalties and Baronies | A Duchy is a division beneath a Grand Duchy which is ruled over by a Duke or Duchess and consists of viceroyalties and baronies; though they are the same size as Counties, Duchies are considered more prestigious than Counties Lumisian: Herzogtom Corcois: Duché |
| County | Viceroyalties and Baronies | A County is a division beneath a Grand Duchy which is ruled over by a Count or Countess and consists of viceroyalties and baronies; though they are the same size as Duchies, Counties are considered less prestigious than Duchies Lumisian: Landgraviate Corcois: Comté |
| Viceroyalty | Cities and Towns | A viceroyalty is a division beneath a Duchy or County which is ruled over by a viceroy or vicereine, and tends to consist of a number of villages and towns between four and six; though they are the same size as baronies, viceroyalties are considered more prestigious than baronies Lumisian: Visereuesraach Corcois: Vice-Royauté |
| Barony | Cities and Towns | A barony is a division beneath a Duchy or County which is ruled over by a baron or baroness, and tends to consist of a number of villages and towns between three and five; though they are the same size as viceroyalties, baronies are considered more prestigious than viceroyalties Lumisian: Baronie Corcois: Baronnie |
| Cities and towns | N/A | Cities, towns, and villages make up viceroyalties and baronies directly and are ruled by a lord or lady. |
The political divisions will be listed, along with which layer they exist upon at their Duchy and County divisions, along with the noble house that currently holds the position of leadership for that division (the noble families of Duchies and Counties tend to also be the family of each of the viceroyalties and baronies that constitute them).
- Kingdom of Lumis (House of Holsetz-Charmant)
- Grand Duchy of Corc (House of Chartreuse)
- Duchy of Aquitaine (House of Lyon) (Cours)
- Viceroyalty of Emôn
- Barony of Sayneirre
- County of Vincenne (House of La Croix) (Cours)
- Viceroyalty of Grand-Montagne
- Viceroyalty of Menton
- County of Évreux (House of Laval) (Cours)
- Barony of Au-Sud-du-Jaune
- Barony of Aurillac
- County of Le Mur (House of Var) (Cours)
- Viceroyalty of Sous-le-Ciel
- Barony of Le Bel
- Barony of Beauchamp
- County of Libourne (House of Aveyron) (Cours)
- Barony of Montbéliard
- Barony of Vaults
- Duchy of Côte Blanc (House of Chartreuse) (Beauport)
- Viceroyalty of Valette
- Viceroyalty of Le Port
- Barony of Orange
- Duchy of Somme (House of Loire) (Beauport)
- Barony of Bergerac
- Barony of Rousseau
- Barony of Vercourt
- County of Essonne (House of Valerie) (Beauport)
- Viceroyalty of Muret
- Barony of Nord
- Barony of Orly
- Duchy of Aquitaine (House of Lyon) (Cours)
- Grand Duchy of Rotswald (House of Rautsbourg)
- Duchy of Gilead (House of Rautsbourg) (Brunsheim)
- Viceroyalty of Klütz
- Viceroyalty of Lehrte
- Viceroyalty of Broogsden
- County of Merzig (House of Konräd) (Brunsheim)
- Viceroyalty of Ufhaus
- Barony of Hauptsbend
- County of Zimmensdorf (House of Uster) (Brunsheim)
- Barony of Haan
- Barony of Stuhl
- Barony of Greiz
- County of Rendsmark (House of Stauf) (Brunsheim)
- Barony of Nolzstein
- Barony of Wiltz
- Duchy of Herten (House of Welf) (Ärd)
- Barony of Trieben
- Barony of Neislock
- County of Werne (House of Heinrich) (Ärd)
- Viceroyalty of Dahn
- Barony of Burgenraf
- Barony of Tolbeck
- County of Zossen (House of Dahlen) (Ärd)
- Viceroyalty of Baiersdorf
- Barony of Käischinger
- Barony of Aulendorf
- County of Düren (House of Eisfeld) (Ärd)
- Viceroyalty of Arkendorm
- Barony of Schopfheim
- County of Falsraam (House of Emmingsbach) (Ärd)
- Barony of Norklocken
- Barony of Rahden
- Barony of Stein
- County of Hörstel (House of Krempe) (Ärd)
- Viceroyalty of Sehnde
- Barony of Oberkraun
- Duchy of Gilead (House of Rautsbourg) (Brunsheim)
- Archbarony of Elodia (House of Bourçonne) (Elodia)
- Viceroyalty of Sous-le-Monde
- Barony of Béthune
- Barony of Elise
- Grand Duchy of Corc (House of Chartreuse)
History
Mining Colony
Before Lumis existed, Wrighthaven, which was its own country at the time, established a mining colony searching for materials to produce more steel, which was built near the city of Haven, on the southwestern part of Sypyr, called Arma. This colony was overseen by a chief deputy, which is also a system that preceded the governing system of Bryconia, which was also founded by the Arma colony; the chief deputy at the time of the colony striking into the massive cavern that formed the basis of the Kingdom was Percival Langue, who was also the brother-in-law of Joanna Langue who founded Bryconia.
This colony eventually shifted most of its operations underground into the large cavern it had discovered, with Percival championing the abandonment of Arma and the construction of a village underground where the tunnel led to, which Percival envisioned as becoming a well-to-do city in Wrighthaven, and named it Witzenbourg in his native language, which was the spoken tongue of the Lumendaffe. Arma quickly fell into disuse as its main use became its location above the simple lift which would eventually come to be known as the Himmelswagon but was known in its early days as "Lift Number 05".
Following this migration is when much of the terraforming of the layers of the cavern was undertaken, with the caverns being expanded out to encompass as much room as the colonists desired, and the colonists importing soil and plant seeds from the surface to allow the carving and reshaping of the landscape to however the colonists desired. Brunsheim was created in this way, with several enormous drills breaking up the top rocks of the cavern floor into soil for planting, and with a number of extremely bright lights being installed in the ceiling to flood the cavern with light. These measures eventually morphed over the couple hundred years they were undertaken, from 1082 when the migration first began to 1209, with the general landscape of the layers being gradually shifted to not just be more livable, but to recreate surface lands of more northerly latitude, and thus was integrated a day and night system for the lights in the ceiling and coloured fog generators to give the appearance of the sky. More plants and varieties of rocks and soil were brought in, not just for living and comfort but for sheer variety and accuracy to the surface.
Increasingly, colonists began to think of themselves separately from the confederacy that they came from, and more as a singular entity. Percival was instrumental in the spread of this way of thinking, incorporating the growing feeling and identity of independence with an old folk religion followed by some Lumendaffe people, devoted to a pantheon of gods. These thoughts circulated, and, as more and more villages sprang up around Witzenbourg, adding yet more sustainability to the colony with crops and large-scale agriculture, a kind of cultural renaissance struck the colony, and more and more people, especially the administrators who had already begun to form the basis of an elite aristocracy, began to be obsessed with the idea of ancient history, especially feudal systems which had expanded and subsequently regressed throughout the known world. Presaging the independence of Lumis, administrators began organising themselves into insular families, or familial houses.
Secession and Early Organisation
While there wasn't explicit animosity between the colonists and the Wrighthavanian government, the colonists' desire for independence had developed into a burning nationalism that pervaded the burgeoning aristocracy and the lower classes alike. In 1209 AN, Percival III who was chief deputy of the colony at the time called the administrators to a meeting in the administrative building in Witzenbourg. Over a period of three weeks, the administrators debated and voted upon and finally drafted a declaration of formal independence from Wrighthaven, which would come to be known as the Declaration of Witzenbourg. The declaration was published to the Wrighthavanian government, who put up a feeble political resistance, but had at that point extracted sufficient raw materials from the colony and had resigned itself to allowing the colony independence. The administrators imposed an entrance tax upon people entering via the newly christened Himmelswagon, and set about the new task of dividing the polity into administrative districts.
Originally, the colony was formed as the Republic of Lumis, which it was so named for François Lumis, a colonist who had been elected as the colony's first and only president. François, a good friend of Percival III, who had chosen not to campaign for the position of president due to his own feelings that he had already partaken of too much power, attempted to divide the republic into states based on the layers of the cavern. These states quickly decentralised themselves into substates, which followed the overall massive decentralisation of the republic as a whole, with the new constitution of the republic granting most powers to the states. François quickly became a symbolic figure of Lumisian "unity", until he was approached by Charles Chartreuse, who was the son of a former administrator of the colony. Charles proceeded to run a campaign to transition the republic into a kingdom, and devolve the power system feudally instead of allowing for power abuse by unchecked and unregulated power dissemination under a republic. Public opinion in favour of a kingdom of Lumis soared, and in 1227 François was named Prince Regent in preparation for the transition, and Charles Chartreuse was crowned Charles I of the House of Chartreuse in 1229, beginning the Chartreuse dynasty of the early Kingdom of Lumis. The kingdom was quickly reorganised into two Grand Duchies, those of Rotswald and Corc, which remain to this day.
Early Monarchs
Much of the history of Lumis before the insurgency of the Käisers of the House of Franz Joseph is the history of the individual Counties and Duchies, the rulers of which most often held more power within their domains than the ruler of the Kingdom due to the feaudal devolution of power. At the coronation of Charles I, who later earned the nickname "the Valourous", Charles I was also granted the countship of Witzenbourg, which was at the time a piece of territory surrounding the eponymous city of Witzenbourg. Charles, who had developed a taste for the cultural influences that would also eventually result in much of the culture of Alexandria, chose to move the capital of Lumis from Witzenbourg, which was populated by the Lumendaffe, to the city of Tousons, which was the capital of Corc and was primarily influenced by he same culture that was popular with Charles.
Tousons lay within the jurisdiction of the Duchy of Aquitaine, which was at the time ruled by Duke Philip I of the House of Tripoli. Charles summoned Philip I to the royal Palace of Witzenbourg and demanded Philip allow Charles to quarter the Kingdom's seat of power in Tousons, and to give Charles the dukeship of Aquitaine. Philip flatly refused and retreated to the city, with him and Charles mustering their respective armies and war broke out between Witzenbourg and Aquitaine. King Charles roundly defeated Philip at the battles of Beige and Amors, allowing him to take Tousons and executed Philip and demoted the entire House of Tripoli, declaring himself Duke of Aquitaine.
After fifteen years of rule, Charles I abdicated the throne and named his son, Charles II, King of Lumis, as well as Count of Witzenbourg and Duke of Aquitaine. Charles I remains only one of three monarchs of Lumis to abdicate, and his alleged reason for abdicating rather than ruling until his death three years later was to assure that his succession passed exactly as how he wanted it to instead of being open to the machinations of various local lords. The reign of King Charles II, who was called "the Pious", was largely categorised by his heavy personal integration with the church of Tyrus, god of justice and civilisation in the Lumendaffe folk religion, Amarvinism. Charles sponsored the construction of the Saint Capet Salonic Monastery at the edges of Lac Grandeur, a monastery dedicated to the worship of Salon, the Amarvinist god of healing as well as death, and also fostered the Tyrusian Knightly Order of the Silver Rose.
The reign of Charles II closed with his death, giving way to the reign of his daughter that he had with the Countess of Vincenne. Queen Adelaide I, the Cunning, as she was known, was the last noteworthy monarch of the Chartreuse dynasty. Adelaide was responsible for the conquest of the Verdant Jungle and the establishment of Port Blanc as a major city for the Kingdom, indirectly empowering the Duchy of Côte Blanc. Adelaide also successfully repelled a rebellious attack from Duchess Marie III of Somme, though the expenses and battle-weariness resulting from this minor war ultimately resulted in her son, Louis I, being deposed.
Louis I, the Short, reigned for only two years before being deposed by Karl I of the House of Trieffen. Louis had barely had the opportunity to begin the recovery efforts planned to assist the Kingdom in recovering from the war fought against the rebellious Somme.
Trieffen Revolution
When Louis I was crowned, several of the aristocrats of the upper layers, mostly the layer of Ärd, were unsettled by the underrepresentation of Rotswald in the prime aristocracy of the Kingdom, with much of the interest taken by the monarchs of the Chartreuse family in infrastructure and public projects benefitting cities of Corc, rather than Rotswald, including the aforementioned Saint Capet Salonic Monastery, which cost a very notable sum. These sentiments against the aristocracy of Corc grew in Rotswald until Karl I of the House of Trieffen, Duke of Herten, made an alliance with the counts of Werne and Zossen, and launched a rebellion against the weakened King Louis I. Louis's army was soundly defeated quickly, and the alliance army took Tousons. The alliance decided on Karl becoming King, as he had led the army personally and facilitated the victory nearly single-handedly.
King Karl I was oddly merciful to the House of Chartreuse, allowing them to remain the ruling family of the Grand Duchy of Corc, leaving Louis to govern Corc as Grand Duke. Allegedly, Karl's reasoning for this allowance and tolerance was that he was less interested in personally governing Corc, and was more interested in turning the resources of the Kingdom to all of the areas of the Kingdom as a whole, rather than the hyperfocusing that the Chartreuses had performed with Corc. In somewhat of an ironic turn of events, the authority of the Kingdom under the House of Trieffen mainly focused on building up the Grand Duchy of Rotswald, leaving Corc to the House of Chartreuse.
Karl I's reign was somewhat short, ending only nine years since his coronation with his death at the hands of pneumonia. His daughter took over after him, and she, Queen Imalda I, was famed for her lack of mercy as well as her brutality in her policies. Imalda was a soldier, having been educated at a young age by a personal tutor paid for by her father, Karl. Imalda served in her father's army when he rebelled against the weakened Chartreuse King, and continued her military style into her reign of Lumis. Imalda was highly religious as well, and quickly took the Abbot Nicoloso Anello of the Saint Alric Monastery of Cerûne, the Amarvinist god of war and victory. Abbot Anello, who retained a minor political prestige as the son of a holder of the title of "knight", though Anello himself held no noble title, proved to be a very savvy politician as well as general, and his advice became instrumental to the political reign of Imalda, as she herself had had little education in politics. With Anello's guidance, Imalda I went on to defeat both in combat as well as in politics the so-called "robber kings", who were bandit families that had managed to seize control of the neighbouring Counties of Évreux, Le Mur, and Libourne, and also to extend monarchical authority over the vassals, with regular accounting of the tributes due to the crown.
Queen Imalda's daughter, Imalda II, was not nearly so brutal or warlike as Imalda I, though she did retain Abbot Anello for his advice. During her reign, she continued her mother's policies of tribute collection and central authority, though there are documented cases of her balking when vassals put up resistance to her collecting due tribute. The legacy of Imalda II is most strong with her later reign, when she dismissed Abbot Anello as she converted away from the worship of Cerûne and to the worship of Salon, and attempted to make the worship of Salon the religion of the entire Kingdom, though this failed due to popular resistance as well as her unwillingness to coerce court treasurers into financing the decision. It did, however, instate the monarch with a level of moral authority greater than her predecessors as well as creating a stroner connection between the crown and the church of Salon, which was the second largest church in Lumis dedicated to only a single deity.
All of this religious reform left Imalda II's son, Karl II, with a burgeoning religious power in the Kingdom that contributed moral authority to the monarch so long as he stay true to the church of Salon. Karl II was not a worshipper of Salon, however, and summoned Abbot Anello's cousin, Father Angelo, a cleric of the goddess Terraduc, goddess of agriculture and farming, to serve as his royal advisor. Angelo did not have the political know-how of his cousin, however, and soon Karl II was forced to abandon all of his public worship of Terraduc and dismiss Angelo as his advisor by growing religious pressure. Karl II chose to marry Marie, Countess of Vincenne, in order to grant him more personal control over the city of Encens, which was the religious centre of the church of Salon. The city came under attack from Count Philip of Le Mur, who had a personal vendetta against Marie of Vincenne whom he blamed for his son's death due to poison. In so retaliating, Marie ended up setting fire to the city of Épour, burning much of the city to the ground and killing several hundred people, intimidating Count Philip to surrender. Karl II was horrified by the display and immediately divorced Marie, and left the crown in the hands of his brother, Joseph, as Prince Regent for one year while he sought penance in Elodia. Marie, meanwhile, married Anne Chartreuse, Duchess of Côte Blanc, leaving Karl II with a powerful political alliance of Vincenne, Côte Blanc, and the church of Salon as his enemy, though Karl passed much of this problem on to his son, Karl III, when Karl II died of stroke after thirty-two years of rule.
The reign of Karl III was important primarily for its role in allowing the rise of the future House of Charmant, through the gradual weakening of the central monarchy. Karl III was embroiled in a war for the greater part of his reign as Anne Chartreuse declared herself Duchess of an independent Côte Blanc, which was strongly allied with the County of Vincenne as well as the church of Salon, an enemy that Karl II had cultivated. Karl III eventually attempted to create an alliance with Arianne the Fair, Countess of Libourne and sister of Anne of Côte Blanc, which resulted in a military coalition capable of storming Anne of Côte Blanc's palace in Port Blanc, removing Anne from power and having Arianne instate herself as Duchess of Côte Blanc, as well as Countess of Libourne. The friendship between Karl III and Arianne of Libourne broke down, however, when Elodia was taken over by the Bourçonne family and declared itself independent of Lumis and became involved in a power struggle as to who would become the first Prince of Elodia. Arianne of Libourne supported Francis II, who was also her brother-in-law, and Karl III supported Philippe the Stoic, Francis II's brother, and a former knight of the viceroyalty of Valette and political rival to the Chartreuse family that Arianne was a part of. Karl III ended up sending a group of spies to assure Philippe's victory. The spies were discovered, however, and resulted in Philippe losing the struggle and Francis II becoming the first Prince of Elodia. Karl III's espionage also heavily damaged his already tenuous alliance with Arianne of Libourne, who fortified the borders of Libourne and Côte Blanc with the rest of the Kingdom. Karl III then oversaw a return of dwindling royal power as more and more aristocrats took the side of Arianne of Libourne. Karl III eventually died of heart attack, leaving his son, Karl IV, with little more than the city of Witzenbourg to rule over. Karl IV was only King for two years before he was deposed by a coalition of nobles who called for monarchical elections.
Charmant Dynasty
After two years of weak and ineffectual ruling by the young King Karl IV, the nobility of Lumis who were primarily aligned with Arianne of Libourne forced the King to sit in council in order to decide upon a new monarch to reinitiate the process of centraliasation and decentralisation that had begun to assert itself in the political climate of Lumis. The council, held in the city of Beige in the viceroyalty of Grand-Montagne (and subsequently named the Council of Beige), consisted of most of the noble houses of Corc and Elodia, and a few nobles of Rotswald. The nobility of the upper layers had in part chosen to not attend in protest of the council, which they believed to be unfair and a tool of Corc to reassert control over the Kingdom. Nonetheless, the council continued, and King Karl IV presided over the discussions, though he had no voice in the vote. The council lasted for two months, and was moved to the city of Morelle in the barony of Au-Sud-du-Jaune after two weeks, allegedly due to the lack of facilities at Beige for the growing crowd of nobles, but was in reality because the vicereine of Grand-Montagne did not support the council and was suspected to have been manipulating the meeting in order to keep Karl IV in power. After two months of debate (during which Baron Guillaume of Orange, who called the council, died), the council elected sir Louis of Bergerac, of the house of Charmant, as King, and he became Louis II of Lumis.
Louis II's reign was highly praised after his death, though he only reigned for five years. He was portrayed by the church of Tyrus as a charicature of holiness and good judgment, though some of the actions he took were questionable. He began his relatively short reign by assembling the nobility who had backed him and forcibly demanding tribute from the nobility who had not attended the Council of Beige, mostly including the nobility of Rotswald. Most nobles acquiesced, with a minor war breaking out against the County of Hörstel, though eventually Louis II asserted himself as a highly centralised King. Louis II subsequently demanded the return of Elodia to the Kingdom and the surrender of Prince Francis III. Francis refused, and Louis II used his connections with the church of Tyrus to launch a holy war against Elodia, citing the disobedience of the region and also a desire to expand the Kingdom of the inhospitable wastes that existed in the bottommost layer of Lumis. The ensuing war was fought between the Kingdom, the soldiers of which were either loyal to the King or to the church that he had allied with, and the Principality of Elodia, and was named the First War of the Fifth (after Elodia being the fifth layer of Lumis). King Louis II led the troops to victory against Francis III, defeating Elodia and continuing into the unforgiving wasteland beyond, successfully establishing the baronies of Béthune and Elise before Louis passed.
Though King Louis II had no children, his sister was crowned Queen, becoming Queen Adelaide II of Lumis. Adelaide II led a relatively peaceful Kingdom for thirty-three years, presiding over the signing of the Peace of Nicene, which allowed for peace between the Counties of Zimmensdorf and Essonne which had been feuding for the past eighty-seven years. Queen Adelaide also became a huge patron of the arts; as a servant of Emord, the Amarvinist god of learning and art, Queen Adelaide spent royal money on building universities in Witzenbourg, Tousons, and Osterfeld, as well as libraries and galleries throughout the Kingdom. She also spent money on making sure that all of the citizens of Lumis had access to formal education, though the standard cultural taboos of technology remained. Unfortunately for her, Queen Adelaide led the country into a war while trying to mediate between the Duchy of Gilead and the Counties of Merzig and Rendsmark, and ended up placing the Kingdom in a three-way war between the sides. Queen Adelaide was a self-admittedly poor general, and became the second monarch to abdicate, allowing her nephew, Charles III to ascend to the throne, as he had had formal military education.
Charles III's military mindset was very effective in allowing him to pull the Kingdom through to a victory in the war, convincing the County of Rendsmark to assist the Kingdom and then crushing Merzig and Gilead, retaking the capital of Witzenbourg. Charles III proved unable to separate himself from his war-driven attitude, however, and continued his military campaign by turning on Rendsmark, citing their original rebelliousness and capturing Count Frederick of Rendsmark, executing him and instating his cousin Philippe on the throne of Rendsmark, marking the first time that a Corcois had assumed the throne of a Rotswaldic Duchy or County. Charles III then turned his attention to the Duchy of Somme, which had expanded farther into the Verdant Jungle than it had previously, and Charles III warned the Duke of Somme to stop expansion. The Duke refused, explaining that the Verdant Jungle had not been tamed by the Kingdom and required a guiding influence so that it could be converted into useful land for the Kingdom. Charles III declared war against the Duke anyway, and mobilised forces in Côte Blanc against Somme. Charles successfully seized the land of the Verdant Jungle that had been claimed by Somme, though his warmongering had put the Kingdom into debt. Charles rapidly sold the land he had acquired for the Kingdom in the jungle, though he did end up leaving a poor Kingdom for his son, Francis I.
Francis I continued his father's buildup of the Lumisian monarchy, asserting more dominance over the vassals and threatening to remove feudal divisions entirely if the nobility did not step into line. Francis I's strict policies on tribute and treason in the aristocracy led to the King being a greater authority in all reaches of the Kingdom, rather than the local lords and barons holding more local power. The upset in the feudal order displeased the nobility of Rotswald, and Grand Duke Konräd of Rotswald allied himself with the Counts of Vincenne, Évreux, and Le Mur to declare war against King Francis I. Despite Francis I's boastful and bold nature, Francis I was not prepared for a coalition of over half of his Kingdom assaulting his power. He put up a strong resistance, even offering the crown to whoever could kill Konräd of Rotswald, but in the end the Rotswaldics overran Tousons. Francis I was put to death by the rebellious Rotswaldics, though they also ended up killing Grand Duke Konräd because he threatened the remaining nobility if they did not allow him to take the throne. Instead, the aristocracy placed Louis III, Francis I's son, to be crowned King as a puppet. Despite Louis III's long reign of twenty-three years, it was highly uneventful due to his being controled by the Rotswaldic nobility, who could not agree to any one course of action. After Louis III's death, the Rotswaldics agreed to choose a new King rather than continue to puppet the monarch, and King Karl V of the House of Holsetz was chosen.
House of Holsetz
Käiser Insurgency
Holsetz-Charmant Compromise
Government
Nobility
Feudalist Divisions
Diplomacy
Demographics
Lumisians
Corcois
Cirics
Economy
Military
Culture
The Lumisian culture is defined by tradition, a truth immortalised by the simple saying proliferated throughout both the peasantry and the knightly halls of high culture: "tradition is sacred in Lumis". The principle values present in all areas of Lumisian society, the two most important and the two most tightly bound to tradition and the rustic nature of Lumis are the concepts of nobility and superstition, the former of which is instituted in the laws of the state and the latter being a tradition most often recognised in small and isolated rural villages. Small villages like these tend to have a single person designated as the village's connection to the fabric of otherworldliness, being an advisor in spiritual and "magical" matters. These people, known by different names throughout the country - being called wizards, witches, sorcerers, wisemen, and magi - are rarely seen in the larger cities, where they are often replaced by government sanctions with their more scientifically-minded counterparts, most commonly referred to as alchemists, of which there are usually between ten and twenty per city, with two or three making up the retinue of the local noble. These "mages" have baffled scientists who have journeyed to the kingdom from the surface through their ability to work inexplicable, though minor, effects, such as producing a salve capable of healing broken bones withing a few days, an act undertaken commonly by mages in the kingdom. Intriguingly, it has been found that mages of the most rural villages are far and away the most likely to be able to work "magics". Common theory amongst confederate scientists is that the kingdom possesses mutant or abnormal plantlife that is capable of creating seemingly impossible effects when applied in certain fashions.
Alcohol is considered sacred to Lumisians, with drinks of the substance each being relegated to a particular feeling or emotion; ale is associated with strength, beer with courage, mead with inspiration, and wine, the most sacred of all, with happiness and serenity. A very clear, almost ceremonial dilineation exists amongst alcoholic beverages, with a clear code being prescribed for the handling and discussion of the subject; for example, when one is speaking of ale, beer, or mead ("lesser spirits"), one must speak in Lumisian, which is considered the language of lesser spirits, while High Corcois is considered the language of wine, though many famous wine-making estates and vineyards are named in Low Corcois. Wine in particular is deeply integrated into the culture of Lumis, being associated both with happiness as well as with nobility. It is traditional for the noble house ruling a feudal subdivision (barony, county, duchy, etc.) to keep a sommelier as part of their court, and the noble house of a County, Duchy, or larger piece of land will always have a particular vineyard in their domain licensed to make wine for the noble family, always using a particular wine recipe that is associated with and named after the family. The position of a noble vintner is highly sought after, as it is one of the most prestigious (and lucrative, as the vintner gains much renown) positions that a working citizen can attain. Occasionally a noble will allow their vintner to sell wine made with the noble's recipe to the citizenry of their territory (though it is seen as a huge disgrace for a noble vintner to sell wine to those outside the noble's territory, just as it is a disgrace for the vintner to use grapes from any vineyard other than their own), which has allowed Vin du Lyon, the wine made for the House of Lyon of the Duchy of Aquitaine, to become the third most popular wine in the kingdom, after the non-noble recipes of Luciere and Ciel Clair, the latter of which is made with a recipe kept secret by the Fabricio family, who are designated the royal vintners for the House of Holsetz-Charmant and the whole royal family, and who operate out of the third largest castle in the kingdom, the Château de la Montagne Eneigée.
Wine is also used in ceremonial rituals, often using wine made from grapes blessed by a priest of Terraduc, the Amarvinist god of agriculture, though the wine is sometimes blessed after it has already been made by a priest of Thûne, Amarvinist god of joy and celebrations. Ceremonial wine is made with a secret recipe known as Vin de l'Esprit (Wine of the Spirit) that is known only to the monks of Terraduc, who keep monasterial vineyards, who are responsible for making Vin de l'Esprit for the kingdom. Vin de l'Esprit is seen as having healing and wellness properties, and is used in ritualistic activities wherein someone is in need of or is being wished good health, the most common of which being a ceremony in which a person whose family member is sick will share a meal and drink Vin de l'Esprit with them, the action believing to be pleasing to Salon, Amarvinist goddess of health. Vin de l'Esprit is also ceremonially drank at a wedding, especially a noble wedding, and the drinking of other kinds of wine, especially Luciere and Ciel Clair, as well as champagne, is an accepted way of recognising a notable accomplishment.
