Third Siege of Roumur Castle

The Third Siege of Roumur Castle was the last action of the Struggles of House Munte, in which House de la Munte was defeated and replaced as guardians of Roumur by House de Caringois.
== Background ==
Roumur was still reeling from the vicious Second Siege of Roumur Castle three years earlier, which had badly sapped the manpower of its defending House.
House de Caringois was a large, powerful House from the east - it and its branch families owned land as far away as Argenin, and now the head of the house Cont Richaud de Caringois set his sights on the rich iron-mining town that would ensure his armies stayed in supply of iron and steel.
== The Siege ==
The walls of Roumur were still broken and cracked from the attacks of House Erlinghard. There was one large breach near the main eastern gate, and when House de Caringois arrived Cont Richaud ordered his troops into a dual attack - the men oh Houses de Remerre and Ferenchard would attack the breach, while the de Caringois and Pomierre troops mounted an escalade on the low southern wall.
The fighting was fierce, but eventually the badly-outnumbered defenders were forced to retreat to the inner keep, which had remained intact. 
Cont Geoffrois II de la Munte, the defending officer, was offered a parley that evening, and agreed to attend with his senior commanders. He and his retinue were poisoned and stabbed by the attackers during the parley, leaving the defenders of the castle leaderless.
Of the de la Munte children, the eldest son Frere took command at the age of sixteen. His brothers Demechard and Santoin, twins at age fourteen, were told to take the secret route out of the castle - a tunnel that led deep into the southern Lericonne Mountains. 
The next morning the attackers mounted an escalade on the inner keep. The defenders fought bravely and punched well above their weight due to the strategic advantage, but eventually they were overrun and the entire garrison, including Frere, were slaughtered.
== Aftermath ==
Demechard and Santoin escaped through the tunnel and into the Lericonne Mountains, but quickly burned through their food supply. Santoin was gored by a bull while trying to catch a calf to slaughter and eat, a wound that festered and became infected. He died soon afterwards.
Demechard made it to Clernois and apprenticed himself to a baker. He inherited the business and nowadays, the descendants of House de la Munte can be found in the same bakery. Though the first few generations of de la Munte post-Roumur tried to maintain their heritage and lineage, they found it difficult to remind themselves of their nobility in a world where revealing it would have meant attacks from assassins of House de Caringois or other aggressive local families.
House de Caringois held Roumur until the 270's as part of the country of Lericonnia, when it was yielded to the branch family House Relecont due to lines of succession.
Category:Lacrive
Category:Events