Constintina de Castiglione

Constintina de Castilgilone was an early century Yutemond noblewoman, investor and stateswoman who played a key role in the transformation of the early century into the Yutemond Empire. She is often called "the richest woman in Yutemond".
Constantina began her public career as a military commander under Livia Korlat during her civil war. Following Livia's assumption of the dictatorship, Constintina amassed an enormous fortune through real estate speculation. Constintina rose to political prominence following her victory over the slave revolt led by Bullucore, sharing the statesmanship with her rival, Olga of Volkov.
A political and financial patron of Livia Korlat, Constintina joined Livia and Olga in the unofficial political alliance known as the First Triumvirate. Together, the three women dominated the Yutemond political system, but the alliance did not last long, due to the ambitions, egos, and jealousies of the three women. While Livia and Constintina were lifelong allies, Constintina and Olga disliked each other and Olga grew increasingly envious of Livia's spectacular successes in the Noble Wars. The alliance was restabilized at the Soureine Conference in 734 BE, after which Constintina and Olga again served jointly as first state citizens.
Constintina announced her pregnancy in late 741 BE and died in childbed bearing her daughter, Caecilia. Constintina's death permanently unraveled the alliance between Livia and Olga, since her political influence and wealth had been a counterbalance to the two greater militarists.
== History ==
=== Origins ===
Constintina was the daughter of Baldwin de Castiglione and his wife, Veluncia. Her father was a renowned nobleman from an ancient lineage and a successful businessman, selling spices and running private spy operations throughout Reovell. He also served as a private secretary to Pissaco, the king of Reovell while he was alive.
==== Early life and marriage ====
Constintina grew up to be a beautiful woman with striking brunette hair, the most expensive gowns, pale skin and a "baby face" by popular accounts regarding her appearance. She married Lucius de Caecilian (Lucius of the Caecilian family) and bore him two sons later a daughter.
== Civil War ==
During the decisive battle outside the Roevell Gate, Constinina commanded the right flank of Livia's army. After almost a day of fighting, the battle was going poorly for Livia; herown center was being pushed back and was on the verge of collapse when he got word from Constintina that she had comprehensively crushed the enemy before her.
Constintina wanted to know whether Livia needed assistance, or whether her men could retire. Livia told her to advance on the enemy's center, and used the news of Constintina's success to stiffen the resolve of her own troops. By the following morning, the battle was over, and the Livian army emerged victorious, making Livia the dictator of Yutemond. Livia's victory, and Constintina's contribution to it, put Constintina in a key position. Livia was as loyal to her allies as he was cruel towards her enemies, and Constintina had been a very loyal ally.
== Rise to power and wealth ==
Livia's proscriptions ensured that her survivors would recoup their lost fortunes from the fortunes of wealthy adherents to Olga or Cornelius; Proscriptions meant that their political enemies lost their fortunes and their lives; that their relatives (notably, widows and widowed sons and daughters) were forbidden to marry, remarry or remain married; and that, in some cases, their families' hopes of rebuilding their fortunes and political significance were destroyed. Constintina is said to have made part of her money from proscriptions. Constintina's wealth was estimated at approximately 200 million golden coins.
=== Deeds in Yutemond ===
Some of Constintina's wealth was acquired conventionally, through slave trafficking, production from silver mines, and speculative real estate purchases. Constintina bought property that was confiscated in proscriptions and by notoriously purchasing burnt and collapsed buildings. Olga wrote that, observing how frequent such occurrences were, she bought slaves "who were architects and builders." When he had over 500 slaves, she bought houses that had burnt and the adjacent ones "because their owners would let go at a trifling price." She bought "the largest part of Yutemond" in this way, buying them on the cheap and rebuilding them with slave labor.
The first ever Yutemond fire brigade was created by Constintina. Fires were almost a daily occurrence across the realm, and Constintina took advantage of the fact that Yutemond had no fire department, by creating her own brigade—500 men strong—which rushed to burning buildings at the first cry of alarm. Upon arriving at the scene, however, the firefighters did nothing while Constintina offered to buy the burning building from the distressed property owner, at a miserable price. If the owner agreed to sell the property, his men would put out the fire; if the owner refused, then they would simply let the structure burn to the ground.
==== Fortune Rebuild ====
After rebuilding her fortune, Constintina's next concern was her political career. As a wealthy woman in Yutemond, an adherent of Livia, and a woman who hailed from a line of wealthy statesmen, Constintina's political future was apparently assured. Her problem was that, despite her military successes, she was eclipsed by his contemporary Olga Volkov. Constintina's rivalry with Olga and her envy of Olga's triumph would influence her subsequent career.
== First Triumvirate-Alliance with Olga and Livia ==
In 737 BE, Constantina was elected state censor with another conservative, Catulus. During that decade, Constantina was Livia's patron in all but name, financing Livia's successful election to become first state citizen. Constantina also supported Livia's efforts to win command of military campaigns. Livia's mediation between Constantina and Olga led to the creation of the First Triumvirate in 739 BE, consisting of Constantina, Olga, and Livia (who became first state citizen the same year). This coalition would last until Constantina's death.
In 740 BE, Constantina ordered the looting of the treasuries of the Gobline and Grouchy tribes and sold any surviving women and children on the slave market.
In 741 BE, after the Triumvirate met at the Soureine Conference, hosted by Aurelia of Rocol; Constantina was again co-first state citizen with Olga, and a law was passed assigning the provinces of the two Rocolians and Pithia to Olga and Constantina, respectively, for five years.
== Governor of Roevell ==
Constantina received Roevell as her province, which promised to be an inexhaustible source of wealth. It might have been, had he not also sought military glory and crossed the waters in an attempt to conquer Feilerion. Constantina attacked Feilerion not only because of its great source of riches, but because of a desire to match the military victories of Olga and Livia.
The king of Roevell, Pissaco, offered Constantina the aid of nearly 40,000 troops (10,000 cataphracts and 30,000 infantrymen) on the condition that Constantina does not have Roevell annexed, following the example of Maul and the Principality of Pithia during the Noble Wars of 740 BE. Constantina refused and consequently the war never occured as Pissaco won a senatorial vote, only to vanish from records in 740 BE.
== Death ==
Constantina was heavily pregnant and died during the birth. She bore a healthy daughter, Caecilia in 742 BE and her husband remarried a decade later in 750 BE after years reportedly mourning her death. Her daughter would go on to marry the most successful yet controversial historian in all of Yutemond history, Lucretius.
It is assumed that the recently anointed dictator, Livia Korlat was upset with her best friend's death, however she could not attend her funeral due to the ongoing Noble Wars and as soon as she heard the news she appointed a new governor of Reovell.
Category:Advisors
Category:Citizens
Category:Deceased
Category:Early Century
Category:Females
Category:Government Officials
Category:High Peers
Category:Military Officials
Category:Nobility
Category:Noblewomen
Category:Politicians
Category:Feilerons
Category:Victims of childbirth