Sigfrida val Oberstein

Sigfrida val Oberstein, officially Sigfrida Rheinhard Ludwig val Oberstein. Was the 17th and final Archoness of Viodoxa City, Archduchess of Adytum, former Princess of the Ascuas Autarky and a Citizen, Noblewoman, and former Prime Minister of the Autokratoria of Sirradra, who was known for her skills in Engineering, Gardening, and her wild accent. For much of her life she resided in her private villa at Viodoxa City's Ethreon District. She boasted a very prideful attitude and liked to see herself as being quite intelligent, supported with lots of ambition. However when she first rejoined society she did not seem keen on being in any major leadership role later on in life, tending to stay small scale in her pursuits. However due to her competence and habit of overworking she climbed up the ladder regardless of her initial intentions. When she wasn't doodling new designs and ideas in her notebooks she was usually out enjoying nature and cultural sites. She was often seen wearing a regal and loose fitted dress of black and red with flowers in her hair, colors which harken back to the Ascuas Autarky, and will usually be carrying copies of books her Grandfather wrote.
== Early Life ==
Sigfrida was born in the wild mountain frontier of Cymru where she was mostly raised and educated by her father Taylor val Oberstein and her mother Cassa val Oberstein. Thanks to her father being of Noble birth she was able to receive a full and proper education that was expected of Viodoxan Nobility, and through her Grandfather's teaching she was able to learn the Household's general building and design techniques. At the age of 10 her mother, Cassa, would pass away due to illness. Because of this, her father had her stay with her Grandfather at the family estate of Delphinium for a short period of time.
By the time she was 15 she had become a fully professional engineer with a knack for designing machines, in particular designing flying machines. At around the same time her Grandfather established the Ascuas Autarky and proclaimed himself Autark before having Sigfrida named as one of the new Nation's Princesses. After a short reign her Grandfather would eventually pass away from old age and Ascuas would soon cease to exist a few months later after the next Autark, her Aunt-in-Law Lyra val Oberstein was assassinated at the family estate, which was later burnt to the ground. When such news reached Sigfrida and her father, they were grief stricken and made attempts to recover what they could of family heirlooms. Once Sigfrida had reached the age of adulthood her father Taylor went off to become a wandering nomad, leaving Sigfrida to handle things on her own. She would then leave behind her frontier homestead and travel to Cymru proper and reintegrate into society.
== Arrival to Ryoujing ==
After the family estate of Delphinium had been looted, Sigfrida, along with most of her family rallied to the city of Ryoujing where the val Oberstein's were taken in with open arms. There Sigfrida would meet her two aunts Leah and Aisha, as well as her soon to be Uncle-in-law Richard McSpiegel who had proposed to Aisha soon after. In her months of living within Ryoujing Sigfrida was quite comforted by the familiar architecture and family friends and quickly established herself as the official Head of House val Oberstein, assuming the role from her Father Taylor the previous legal Head. Once she had accomplished this she would later travel to the continent of Haven for a short time and see her Uncle Augustin, successfully getting him to recognize her as the new Head and recognizing her claim on Delphinium.
On her return to Cymru she would reclaim Delphinium and oversee Aisha and Richard's Wedding at Ryoujing as the Family Head and give her full blessings as well as providing some gifts to the newly wedded couple. At said wedding the val Oberstein's planned out a new family estate, aptly naming it Wisteria, after another noble purple flower much like Delphinium. This plan however wasn't meant to be and would never take off as Sigfrida was not much of an Architect like her Grandfather and she did not wish to contribute anything of value to the IAU which still existed at the time. Much of her hatred from the destruction of Delphinium was placed on the IAU and her Great Great Great Grandfather Loic for allowing it to happen.
== Collapse of the IAU and Migration to Viodoxa City ==
When the IAU had collapsed Sigfrida was filled with ecstatic enthusiasm, her heart and mind was suddenly lit like a blazing furnace and an unstoppable will overcame her, it was as though she was now destined for great deeds and accomplishments. With her new found spirit she decided on her next course of action, despite Ryoujing having been a kind place to her and her family she knew it wasn't fit to be their home, and so Sigfrida decided she would embark towards Viodoxa City. A choice which would quickly prove to be a monumental moment in her life.
The very day Sigfrida arrived to the historic capital of Cymru she found stagnation, a city left to ruin and rot, riddled with crime, debauchery, and poverty. On that same day Sigfrida immediately got to work and raided her Grandfather's office at the national library for all of its blueprints and urban plans, plans which she intended to implement. Having money left over from the val Oberstein vault Sigfrida personally used her own funds to start work on the largest renovation project in all of Cymru history, from north to south, east to west she would go about renovating Viodoxa City in its entirety. To further along her goal she brought in her renowned architect and Uncle-in-law Richard McSpiegel as well as the city's oldest architect Ryanfa into the project with her overseeing and managing everything. 
In the span of two months she had orchestrated a herculean effort and had completed it without issue, upon the work being completed many of Viodoxa's older inhabitants started coming back into social circles. Many of whom were personally inspired by the young Sigfrida's achievement and charisma. Yet the young noblewoman was still not satisfied and immediately set about doing the next major project which had been first conjured by her Grandfather in his blueprints, a provincial aqueduct. Over the course of two weeks she had used her skills in engineering and drew out the plans, executed its entire construction, and expanded it to reach other parts of Adytum. In her honor and growing pompousness she named it after herself, naming it 'Sigfrida Aqueduct'. An architectural work which now provided the fresh water supply to Viodoxa and Valentum respectively, which greatly boosted the province of Adytum's hygiene and prosperity.
As the young Sigfrida continued to work across the city and province as a whole she had taken de facto control of the city under the blessing of Archon Havi Asagrim, the city's ruler at the time. From then on management of the city lay solely to her and was entirely at her discretion which she greatly appreciated, giving her regards to Havi whenever the opportunity arose. Her next few projects were that of a private villa within the city for herself and future family, an amphitheater, and a market for the city and its people which would bring more economic prosperity to the region.
== Marriage and Ascension ==
Soon enough Sigfrida would slow down on her efforts of work to start focusing more on her future, more specifically the family side of things. As Head of the Family it was growing more and more important that she find a husband and begin expanding the Household once again, this along with her natural desire to be a Mother lead her on the path towards looking for a partner. With her lineage she knew she would need someone appropriate to her social status and level and she was fully aware she could get it, deciding to look for a husband within the Empire of Simulami to establish connections there. Sigfrida would personally approach the Imperare Zeno and request that a nobleman be presented to her with the understanding of a joint-house marriage, the Imperare agreed and brought forth a few candidates before settling on Luke Ludwig who was at the time Heir to House Ludwig. Despite Luke being a bit older than she was and being of a family strict on their religious rules, Sigfrida gained a liking very quickly towards Luke. Agreeing to take him as her husband.
Sigfrida, who was a follower of Astronoma, made a concession to House Ludwig in that she would be baptized in the Soleviel Faith before the wedding commenced and that the ceremony would be a Soleviel one to be more acceptable in their eyes. Much of the Ludwig House also believed she would outright convert as well which she discretely never did nor agreed upon and so continued to practice Astronoma. Upon the day of the ceremony Sigfrida would be showered in gifts from her family, new family, and now husband Luke Ludwig val Oberstein before she was taken on a tour through Castle Ludwig by her family. There Luke and Sigfrida would choose a room together and decorate at a later time. Once Sigfrida had made it back to Cymru she went back to work as normal, now feeling content and satisfied knowing her future was secure. In that same week though the now married noblewoman quickly grew paranoid and hateful towards other women who she thought could possibly seduce her husband and subsequently had her personal retinue remove all prostitutes from Viodoxa City. Afterwards her worries ceased and she was eased back into satisfaction once again, this was something she never told Luke about.
Havi Asagrim, who had seen and been impressed by the efforts of Sigfrida's labor and hard work, informed her that she would be his heir before fully retiring himself at his hilltop house. In such a short amount of time Sigfrida had become the Archoness of Viodoxa after only five short months of living and working in the city. Her coronation was small and privately held within her estate, to honor her new role as Archoness she adorned a new red sun headdress. As Viodoxa's new ruler she continued to expand and work on the city, manage new citizens, and oversee the national market with her at the forefront. The new standard greeting among the populace in Viodoxa quickly became 'Aver Archoness'. 
== Promotion to Architecture Minister ==
Knowing of her history and taking note of her deeds within Adytum, the High Government of Sirradra approached Sigfrida and asked if she would be interested in taking the role of Minister of Architecture. A role which was currently occupied by her Cousin Liu Heinrich val Oberstein. Sigfrida accepted and took on the mantle of reviving the entire Ministry, replacing her Cousin who had failed to meet expectations, she also made it a goal to not just revive the Ministry but also ensure it becomes the most approved in the Empire. Her first step as Minister was to initiate a national infrastructure project which would span all of Cymru, a continent which had been neglected regarding it's roads and transportation. She also began the effort to rebuild the Imperial Palace of Sirradra from the ground up, a grand project which had been left half finished and destitute since the times of the IAU.
After promoting the job and searching for an Architect within her Ministry to begin the renovation and rebuild process for over a month, she was finally able to find an Architect who would take on the responsibility, that being Alkethar of Kemon. While Alkethar got to work renovating and building a new palace, Sigfrida began collecting all the material that would be needed, another herculean task which took her three weeks. Around the same time she would start her infrastructure project with Adytum as her starting point, upgrading and relaying roads across the entire province in around the same time frame. 
At the same time the projects were underway Sigfrida reorganized the Ministry to function properly and efficiently, which saw new requests coming in and making sure her Architects would be filed into jobs and earning money for their efforts. By the time the Palace was fully built Sigfrida was able to fully upgrade and relay roads within the provinces of Adytum and Tsaeloma. Having only been in her position for a couple months she had achieved her goal of reviving the Ministry with her at the forefront of it, and she had even completed her second goal, as the Architecture Ministry would see the highest approval rating among all the other administrative branches while under her leadership.
The Infrastructure project she had orchestrated would be completed much later on in her political career, long after she had ceased her duties and role as the Minister of Architecture. Her work and overall legacy cemented her within Sirradran history as the greatest Minister of Architecture the Autokratoria would see.
== Prime Minister of Sirradra and Archduchess of Adytum ==
Following her exceptional success as the Minister of Architecture and Archoness of Viodoxa City, the government was eager to place her as one of the potential candidates to become the next Prime Minister of the nation during the reign of Nicodemus. This came about due to the Autokrator Kogan, retiring and passing the position of Autokrator to his long time friend, Faustus Nicodemus, who was the current Prime Minister at the time. The two main contenders for the position of Prime Minister came down to Sigfrida and the Rector of Tsaeloma, Andros Martillus Justinianus. At first the new Autokrator had their suspicions on Sigfrida's loyalty and overall dedication to the nation, making her seem like a very risky pick. This stemmed from Sigfrida's view and general attitude towards Sirradra as a whole, since she didn't see herself as Sirradran and only saw herself as Viodoxan.
It was this view point which drew much contention and suspicion towards her, as, despite her competence and steadfast workmanship she was seen as a provincialist, culturally conservative, and thus deemed very unruly. In addition the Prime Minister of Sirradra was expected to take an oath of loyalty to Sirradra, something Sigfrida detested fully and saw as an affront to her beliefs. However after a long discussion between herself and the Autokrator Faustus Nicodemus, a talk in which both expressed their concerns and worries, they would both reach an acceptable consensus and agreement which would allow Sigfrida to take the role as the new Prime Minister of Sirradra.
During Nicodemus' coronation ceremony, she was officially named the next Prime Minister to the public and took her oath, although it was one that had been slightly altered so as to not offend her. Despite her general distaste for greater politics, she had now become one of the most influential people in Cymru.
=== Assassination Attempt ===
During her first week as the Prime Minister, Sigfrida had taken a trip to the province of Silvay to see her son Carolus and survey his new growing Barony of Vannes-Lorinand. As she walked the nearby outskirts of the Barony to examine the countryside and forests an explosive projectile was fired in her direction from within the forest, passing just barely overhead and missing her by a few meters before exploding in front of her, creating a small crater. Sigfrida would seek shelter within the Barony castle to get away from the forest for her own safety, meanwhile her son and attendants proceeded to scout the area in search of the assassin. Despite the ferocity of the attack and a week long investigation, no culprit was ever found or implicated in the attack and it remained unsolved. 
Despite the foreseen and unexpected attempt on her life, Sigfrida was only invigorated more by the incident. Silently vowing to carry out her duties for the sake of the Autokratoria with greater zeal and dedication than previous. Much to the chagrin of her family, who became increasingly more worried for her safety. However as the Matriarch of House Ludwig and Head of House val Oberstein, there wasn't much they could do to change her mind. 
=== Becoming Archduchess ===
Shortly after taking the role of Prime Minister, Sigfrida was already planning out her continued expansion of authority and responsibility, most notably her goal of becoming the Archduchess of Adytum. A Noble title which had been held by Nisinua Feniks Fleminius for quite some time. Sigfrida saw Feniks Fleminius as extremely incompetent, unambitious, unmotivated, and directionless. A view which had become common place among the populace of Adytum by that time.
With the populace mostly on her side, she began lobbying time and time again; dating back to her first month in the city to the various Autokrator's to have Feniks deposed as the Archduke and replaced. It was during the reign of Nicodemus, and her time as the Prime Minister when she would get this accomplished. After a period of disgruntlement the Nobility of the province, Sigfrida being at the forefront, laid out some mandatory goals for Feniks to accomplish in two months time. If he failed to meet the basic goals the Autokrator would back her plan to have him removed.
Failing to meet the set goals, Feniks would eventually be deposed and stripped of the Archduke title by Autokrator Nicodemus after the two months had concluded. Nicodemus would grant the title of Archduchess to Sigfrida over her cousin Richard, much to the disappointment of her relative who increasingly became disillusioned with Sigfrida's continuing increase in influence. 
Upon gaining the title, Archduchess Sigfrida would immediately expand and reform the local law books and consolidated power within the province of Adytum. In a short time frame, all provincial decisions had to be sent and approved, then legislated and overseen by Sigfrida directly. In essence the Archoness title no longer applied to a singular city, but de facto applied to an entire province.
During her reign as Archduchess, Adytum would see an increase in public works, cultural works, infrastructure, and further wildlife restoration far out into the frontier of the province. The overall wealth of Adytum's population would also see a slight increase, as well as general living standards. Sigfrida imposed harsh standards and laws surrounding cleanliness and hygiene of not just the populace but also the various cities of the province. Her reign would see the full and long-awaited return of a provincial lord of Adytum, who was not only active but also dedicated in improving it.
=== Legacy as Prime Minister ===
During most of her time as Prime Minister, Sigfrida could most easily be described as a lover of civilization. Thus, much of her administrative focus was on the betterment and efficiency of the State itself along with all of its provinces. Spending much of her time working on the interior affairs as opposed to the exterior ones. Though on occasion she did establish emissaries within foreign countries, creating stable and good relations for Sirradra in places most Sirradrans had little success in. A small portion of her success stemming from her innate Royal Tortugan and Viodoxan bloodline.
She made efforts to keeping the Ministries and provincial Lords busy, as well as checking on their occasional progress. She would also push for greater cultural works and expansion, encouraging monument construction and building monuments herself when and where ever she could. Sigfrida would also express the importance of Cyrmian history and promoted it on numerous occasions. Coinciding with this she encouraged marriage and starting families among her fellow Nobles. To further help in the creation of walls for various cities across Sirradra, she would acquire the needed material and sell it to the provinces in need at discounted prices. It was also during her time as Prime Minister when the Imperial Palace would finish its construction, an accomplishment which would see a period of celebration hosted directly by the Autokrator.
To thank the efforts of Alkethar, the architect behind the project, she named him Count of Tarano and allowed him to keep the title of Marquis. She would also establish a new Autokratorial decoration, the Medal of the Corinthian Order, awarded to only the greatest and most dedicated architects of the continent. To which Alkethar would be its first recipient.
The National Infrastructure Project would continue to be worked on, directly overseen by Sigfrida, who at the time opted for only wearing the clothes of a common laborer while she managed the construction efforts. This earned her a lot of respect in the eyes of the common working class. Who often didn't see High Noblewomen show such dedication to their work. Such dedication she had put forth, that the highways became functional to most of the nation and was beginning to be utilized by the people for travel in just a few months time.
Locally in Adytum Sigfrida also became a strong patron of art and literature, supporting and collecting it as much as she could for her private villa; which by then had accumulated various artifacts, luxurious furniture, books, exotic pets, and a variety of plant life in the gardens. At the same time she had more fountains built in Viodoxa and expanded on the 'Sigfrida Aqueduct' once more.
Sigfrida would serve a lengthy term as Prime Minister and became one of its longest running in history. Despite being a staunch conservative Noblewoman, she detested war and did her best to keep Sirradra out of conflict during her time in office. Something she had to do and advocate for numerous times.
=== Change in Government ===
During the later years of her time in office, much of the provincial Lords and Ministers banded together against the Autokrator to force reform and bring more republican ideals to the government of the Autokratoria. Establishing a Senate as well as another executive office position along with it, the Prime Senator.
Sigfrida, being a staunch conservative Noblewoman who believed in absolute rule and authority, extremely detested this movement and became wary of those that had been involved in its conception. Shortly thereafter Nicodemus would abdicate the throne and pass it on to Yide Bakura, who was seen as a much stronger candidate to lead the nation going forward. However the damage to what little trust Sigfrida had in the nation of Sirradra and its people was already done.
Now feeling disillusioned, Sigfrida would spend her last few years in office slowly backing away from politics and administration, concerning herself only with the matters of her own province as its Archduchess. Eventually the rest of the High Government would take notice and ask for her to retire from the office of Prime Minister, a request she happily accepted. Thus bringing her time as Prime Minister to an end.
== Eventual Retirement ==
By the time Sigfrida had managed to step away from higher politics she was in her late forties with grandchildren on the way. She along with her husband, Luke, were able to secure various strategic political marriages for their children throughout the years and the results were already coming to fruition. By the time Sigfrida had reached fifty years of age she was looking to retire fully and lounge the rest of her life away at her villa. She was also deeply concerned about her manic habits of overworking herself into poor health, a family trait several val Oberstein's dealt with. A trait which had sent her Grandfather to an early grave.
Wanting to prioritize her own health and family, she had little reservation to her eventual retirement. After a lengthy and productive reign she abdicated her title of Archduchess to a relative of the late Autokrator Kogan, after which she would also lay down her Archonal headdress and retire from being Viodoxa's Archoness.
The rest of Sigfrida's life is not well documented nor fully well known. Seeing as once she had retired, she spent the remainder of her years at her private villa or in various family estates. Ironically after stepping down as Archoness, the province refused to pass the position to anybody else, and so Sigfrida Rheinhard Ludwig val Oberstein would be the last person to hold the title.
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Category:Cymru
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Category:Traveler's Era