House Corell

### Sigil

An ornate axe displayed on a cyan and white field, parted per saltire. Sophisticated brown-colored patterns adorn the edges.

### Vassals

House Barwood, House Foxbourne, other non-noble merchant families

### Branches

None

House Corell has its roots in the early days of the Kingdom of Granthel, but did not join the ranks of Granthelian high nobility until a few centuries later. This makes them a relatively young noble house, and some of the older houses that populate Granthelia's Highborn Gardens look down on them because of this.

Despite such a disadvantage, House Corell has managed to set up a successful trade empire focusing on import of foreign goods that cannot be easily produced or otherwise procured on the continent of Granthel itself.

## History

The formation of House Corell took place in the Bright Dawn of 3E 792, when an exemplary guard of House Prastirt was knighted for his service. He was allowed to take a crest, and chose an axe as the sigil for his new House because he believed it to embody strength, vigilance and loyalty. From that point onwards, the Corells served as stewards and commanders to the Prastirts. Over time, more and more Corells found a passion in trade, and thus served their superiors in this way.

Following a disagreement between the Prastirts and Richmond Corell, Patriarch of the House in 3E 876, the Corells broke away from House Prastirt and went to create their own trade empire. They accomplished this by seeking out the help of several rich commoner merchant families. Of course, the Commonport-based merchants graciously accepted, jumping at the opportunity to increase their influence. To keep the commoner merchants in check, Richmond offered the hand of his second-born son in marriage to the daughter of the most prominent merchant family. This practice has since become a tradition in the Corell family and is still practiced to this day, with one merchant family marrying into nobility each generation.

In recent times, the Corells have only expanded their trade empire, in no small part due to the numerous trading companies and merchant families who serve under them. However, they have experienced several setbacks as of late, mostly due to the war with Alenthyl and the trade embargo imposed on Granthel by the Holy Empire of Alenthyl. Another significant blow to the family occurred in 3E 1190, during the massacre in the Highborn Gardens. Nearly all of the household guard sacrificed their lives to protect their Lords, partly succeeding in doing so. Only Tobias Corell and Arron Corell were severely injured, the former barely surviving after being mauled and the latter being heavily scarred, losing the ability to walk after getting his right leg crushed by falling debris.

## Significance

The Corell name is quite prominent in both the trade circuit as well as in the Highborn Gardens. Even in distant lands the name carries some weight due to either trade or the actions of family members, most notably in the Kingdom of Novania. Imports are the main focus of the House, providing both critical items to the entire city of Granthelia and acquiring luxuries for the other noble houses of the city. The family owns no trading companies of their own, but control numerous merchant families that do. Instead, they oversee the activities of the trading companies as a whole, and operate a trade fleet the trading companies use to ship their goods.

Most members of House Corell go on to study economics and trade at Cromwell University, though some have opted to join the military instead to honor the roots of the family.

## Relationships

Due to their mercantile nature, House Corell is on neutral or fair terms with most other noble houses in Granthel. They do have a small number of allies and enemies though, mostly due to either past events on deals gone wrong. The most notable houses who are on hostile terms with the Corells are Houses Prastirt and Ayre. However, things have calmed down significantly since the death of Reynard. There's even word in the Gardens that the new Patriarch plans to extend the olive branch to both houses to end the animosity.

The Prastirts have feuded with the Corells since the moment they went their separate ways. Most of the time, the two houses are simply bitter about their shared past, but the mutual dislike has escalated to a house feud on multiple occasions, often when one of the parties provokes the other through stealing a lucrative trade deal or standing in the way of progress. The feud with House Ayre is a more recent development, but is again the result of a deal gone wrong.

Naturally, House Corell also has some staunch allies. The Cromwells have been their greatest ally for some time, though the marriage with House Hargrave has also significantly improved relations. Even outside the mighty walls of Granthelia, the family has ties to Houses of other empires. Most notably House Vangrave of Elterlein, though the two houses have kept their distance from one another ever since the death of Siegfried Vangrave during the Year of the Wolf.

## Notable Members

* **Arron Corell**, current Patriarch of the house. Having been trained to become the next Patriarch of House Corell since he was a child, Arron had no problems taking over the reins from his father. Married to Mollie Hargrave.
	+ His children, Dameon, Florian and Florence. Currently being educated in the traditions and inner workings of Granthelian culture and nobility.
* **Reynard Corell**, former Patriarch of the house. Had a reputation amongst merchants for the ruthless and cold nature he adopted after the death of his wife. Died peacefully in 3E 1193.
	+ His wife, **Eleanor Eastbow-Corell**. Perished on a voyage to the Dryrock, which Ellion Corell was blamed for, as he had orchestrated the visit.

* **Ellion Corell**, firstborn son of Reynard. Fouder of Driftwood in the Kingdom of Novania, and the first Count of Eastgrove to exist. Died in a pirate raid in the Kingdom of Novania of 3E 1176.

* **Susanne Corell-Cromwell**, daughter of Reynard.  Married to Gareth Cromwell and teaches economics at Cromwell University.

* **Madelyn Corell-Vangrave**, fourth child of Reynard. Married off to cement the alliance between house Corell and house Vangrave of Elterlein. Former Mayor of New Masselburg and third Countess of Eastgrove in the Kingdom of Novania. Her current location is unknown to the Corells, who have not taken kindly to her disappearance.

* **Simeon Corell**, brother of Reynard. Operated the trade fleet before being found dead on board one of the vessels under mysterious circumstances.
	+ His firstborn son, **Ryland Corell**. Served as a commander in the Granthelian military for some time, before resigning to guard valuable shipments for the family. Was exiled for a time, but returned to Granthel when the family requested his assistance once more in return for rescinding the banishment.
	+ His second-born son, **Tobias Corell**. A trader at heart, Tobias took over the duties of his father when he passed away.

* **Beatrice Viola Corell**, sister of Reynard. An outcast for most of her life because she secretly married a commoner, Beatrice was mostly left to her own devices. Served as the Kingdom of Novania’s first Royal Treasurer under King Geoffrey Sarethi I.