Karolis of Liotain

King Karolis (1674-1752), also known as Karolis Dobis-Kanas, was king of Liotain between 1700 and 1752. He is currently the longest-reigning Liotainian monarch, and consistently regarded as one of the nation's best rulers.

## Early Life

Karolis was born in 1674 as the second son of King Kazimieras II (1644-1695) and Queen Laima (1652-1714) of Liotain. His elder brother Kazimieras III (Jaunesnysis) became king in 1695 after the death of Kazimieras II.

The two brothers had a tense relationship; Kazimieras often belittled and mocked both Karolis and their younger sister Vilmante. Karolis, by contrast, had an excellent relationship with Vilmante, and they remained firm friends for life.

As a child, Karolis spent most of his time reading; his tutors found him to be exceptionally bright, particularly when it came to the matter of economics. He shunned most physical activity aside from fencing, and was an indifferent equestrian, only riding in order to accompany his horse-mad sister.

Although Kazimieras constantly mocked his younger siblings, he gave Karolis and Vilmante the thankless job of administering the nation's finance and diplomacy, while he himself played soldier. The duo attempted some reforms, but Kazimieras never gave them a free hand, constantly requiring money for his own mis-spending. The Anitkabir War also ran down the Liotainian cash reserves, and the gathering confrontation with Firocco over the treaty port of Svyturys restricted lending options.

In 1700, in one of the final acts of the war with Anitkabir, Kazimieras Jaunesnysis was shot and wounded by a musket-ball. He contracted sepsis from the wound and eventually died, although not before sending a declaration of war to Firocco. As Kazimieras had no legal heirs, the crown passed - though not securely - to Karolis after his death.

## Reign

Karolis faced immediate palace intrigue. Both his father and brother had been unpopular rulers, and Kazimieras refused to designate Karolis as his successor, which meant that several potential alternatives jockeyed for the crown. Karolis immediately approached the strongest of his potential rivals, Raimondas Petrona (1662-1712), in order to secure his support. Petrona initially refused, but Karolis managed to gently talk him around by offering to marry his daughter Antanina (1683-1753).

With Petrona's support eventually confirmed, Karolis and Vilmante dealt more ruthlessly with next-strongest potential claimant, Tomas Balthis. Balthis had received suspicious letters from the Firoccan ambassador, which Karolis shared with the Parliament. Although Balthis had not responded to these letters, they destroyed Balthis's credibility.

### War with Firocco

With the country already struggling financially after years of mismanagement by Kazimieras II and III, the war with Firocco started very poorly. The Liotainian Army was owed nearly a year of back pay, and the Navy had failed to modernize; both suffered early defeats by the Firoccans, with the Navy receiving the worst beating. The Firoccans expected Karolis to negotiate for terms, but - unexpectedly - he refused to do so, instead believing that Liotain could win the war.

Even in the midst of a war, Karolis threw his energy into a currency reform, long-overdue land reforms, and an economic restructuring. This modernization generated enough cash - barely - to pay for the Army's back-pay, and for the rebuilding of the Navy. Vilmante became the chief administrator of the Royal Liotainian Navy, while Karolis managed the Army and a host of other jobs.

Karolis's belief in victory eventually bore fruit in 1707, when the army and navy secured strategic victories. Both Firocco and Liotain were by then on very shaky financial ground; Karolis had been forced to borrow heavily from Celtica and Antargentina in order to finish the war. However, the successful conclusion of the war, and Karolis's economic reforms early in the conflict, had strongly positive results once peace was declared.

### Democratic Reforms

Throughout his reign, Karolis gently encouraged the development of a system of constitutional monarchy within Liotain.

## Personality

From his earliest years, Karolis had a reputation for saying very little, even when addressed directly; he often only spoke after allowing a lengthy, sometimes uncomfortable silence. He only spoke freely in the company of very close family and friends. Even on those occasions, he spoke quietly, rarely raising his voice.

## Issue

In February 1701, Karolis married Antanina Petrona (1683-1753). The couple shared a long and successful marriage. Notably, Karolis took no mistresses, as his elder brother and father had done. Karolis and Antanina had two sons, Raimondas (1702-1777) and Steponas (1704-1723).

## Trivia

As early as 1690, Karolis developed an extremely formidable reputation as a fencer. An inside joke among his bodyguards was that they were merely there to give the king time to draw his sword.