Battle of Tøndor

*Part of the War of Joran Succession*

The year is 613. The Margrave of Tønder, Andrebis, is surveying his domain from his hilltop fortress when a lone rider emerges from the nearby forest. Trotting to the castle’s gate with a white flag, the rider, Lord Albrecht, presents an ultimatum to Margrave Andrebis; surrender the castle, or die. The Margrave laughs at the gall of this, and Albrecht departs. The Margrave orders his soldiers and servants to don their armor. The Battle or Tøndor is about to begin.

### The Background

Following the surrender of Samospeze to Albrecht’s forces in the summer of 613, Albrecht had consolidated his position in Karred and had bottled up the few Johannist cities and castles remaining in the northeast. However, to the west lay that March of Tøndor, a large region controlled by Johannist lords. While the holdouts in Karred were little more than minor annoyances, the large garrisons in the Tøndormark could prove to be fatal to his cause. Thus, in the fall of 613, after the campaigning season ended, Albrecht would take a small company of his most experienced men, about 200 in all, and march north.

At the same time, Andrebis, Margrave of Tøndormark was making preparations for the war. He was in the process of preparing a joint campaign with the Margrave of the Wastmark and the Count of Kredewe for the campaigning season of 614. Directions to muster in the spring were being issued to his lords, and wagonloads of supplies were being gathered at his large castle of Hrad Tøndor. He was aware of a small force of Albrechter soldiers entering his domain, but apparently paid little thought to it.

As he passed into the Tøndormark, Albrecht began to meet in secret with several influential Tøndarrs, the native people of the region. Having been subjugated by the Joran lords for generations beyond memory, the Tøndarrs were keen to understand the motives of the newcomer. This was exactly what Albrecht had planned, and he began to make allies of the clans, promising them freedom from the Joran lords and self-rule within his realm. The Tøndarr clans, chafing under Joran leadership and excited at the prospect of change for the better, rapidly allied themselves with Albrecht, unbeknown to their Joran masters. Then, Albrecht marched to Hrad Tøndor. Positioning a quarter of his soldiers in a small copse of trees near the castle’s gates, he spoke to Margrave Andrebis. Andrebis refuses his terms, however, and made ready for battle. Albrecht’s fifty emerged then from the trees, dismounted, and stood in a defensive formation. Boggling at how heavily he outnumbered his opponent, Andrebis impetuously ordered his 150 soldiers outside the castle and onto the field. The battle began.

### The Battle

Overconfident in their abilities and seeing the pitiful numbers of their opponents, the Johannist knights forwent all pretenses of discipline, and simply charged into the small mass of Albrecht’s men, eager to claim the glory of this victory. However, the Albrechters held, their discipline unwavering. The mounted knights found themselves facing the spears of Albrecht’s footmen and the halberds of his own foot-knights, and were crushed, sometimes literally, by the weapons and skill of the more experienced soldiers. The remaining knights fell back to Andrebis’ position, where he is said to have berated them for their inability to follow his orders. Forming them on the flanks of his ordered ranks of infantry, Andrebis advanced slowly toward the Albrechters, using his superior numbers to begin enveloping them before engaging them in melee. His archers, however, proved ineffective against Albrecht’s soldiers, their arrows harmlessly deflecting off their armor or catching in their shields.

At last, while within a half-dozen meters of his enemy, the Margrave ordered his men to attack. His infantry engaged the soldiers of Albrecht, proving more far effective than his bowmen he held in reserve. Just then, however, a horn blast went up from Albrecht’s soldiers, and was answered by a dozen more surrounding the battlefield and the castle, some from within the castle itself. Hundreds of Tøndarr warriors appeared on the flanks of the battlefield, and charged into the panicking Johannists. Simultaneously, Tøndarrs, led by the rest of Albrecht’s soldiers, also rushed up to the walls of the castle with ladders and ropes, supported by others who had slipped in over the previous days.

The few Joran soldiers within the castle were slaughtered without mercy, and the soldiers with Andrebis, routing toward the castle, found themselves locked out when the portcullis fell in front of them. Hundreds of Tøndarrs now surrounded them, and they were trapped against the stone walls they had used to oppress them. At this point, Albrecht stepped forward again, and began to speak to the Jorans. He had offered them safe passage and freedom in exchange for their surrender, yet Andrebis had chosen to resist. For this, they would all die, he said, unless they would deliver to him the Margrave.

With those words, Andrebis’ men mutinied against him, and he was thrust into the open by the men who had once served him. Albrecht’s men took him into custody, and the Tøndarrs, displaying discipline not often seen in their kind, parted to allow the few remaining Jorans to escape.

### The Aftermath

Following the battle of Hrad Tøndor, Tøndormark was thrown into disarray. The thought of the clans rebelling was unforeseen by the Joran lords, and without their liege, there was chaos throughout the realm. Soon, the rest of it would fall to the Tøndarrs with the aid of Albrecht and his experienced men.

The loss of Tøndormark ruined the plans of the alliance of Kredewe and the Wastmark. Their plan, relying on Tøndarr soldiers to support their invasion across the Orat would be unable to be implemented now, enabling Albrecht to cross the Orat himself in summer the next year.

Following the campaign, Albrecht would bestow the title of Margrave unto Gista of Hedrno, an influential Tøndarr who had proved instrumental in forming the alliance.

Albrecht had been so impressed by the Tøndarrs and their abilities that he would hire over two thousand of them in early 614 to form the basis of his new White Army, a professional and well-equipped army of mercenaries, the first true state-army of Juhnvechteya. They would be equipped in Joran armor and with Juhnvechtese weapons, though their culture would remain much unchanged.

Andrebis would be kept as a hostage for many months, until the summer of 614, when he was ransomed back to his family for a princely sum of 300 pounds of silver, which would go to financing the White Regiment.