Second Reinean Revolt

Belligerents| Archduchy of Reine* Crown Estates
* Tritani
* Augustoples
* Maltanna
* Acroples
* Montebaca (defected)
* Caseste
* Prevezi
* Defensible Fellows
* Red-Gold Flag Army (remnants)
* Supplicants

The **Second Reinean Revolt** was an uprising of the Reinean nobility against the rule of the House of Karolus that took place in the year 1800. The flashpoint for nobles' insurrection was Keith I's creation of the Royal Army of Karostain, a standing military force for the Karostain Empire for which all imperial constituents were obliged to provide troops. Until this point, the nobility had enjoyed a degree of autonomy from the emperor due to their status as an "archduchy," rather than a "kingdom," which had introduced legal ambiguity and exempted them from many aspects of imperial fealty. Reinish nobility had successfully blocked efforts to convert their archducal throne into a royal one, purely out of self-interest. So when Keith authorized the Royal Army he proscribed 10,000 troops from Reine, ignoring their usual exemptions from imperial projects, he attracted the universal hatred of the local magnates. Within days, Reinish nobles expelled the Karolian Archduke Justus II from his palace and declared Augusto Oliviero d'Floretio their new lord.

The aging Keith attempted first to negotiate with the rebellious princes, but when his terms were flatly rejected, he mustered his incomplete Royal Army of Karostain and other auxiliary forces in preparation for an assault on Reine. He even declared his intent to join the army personally, a significant measure he had only taken during the great battles of the Ninety Years' War and conquest of Aleurusia.

When this news reached the princes, they put out the call for more men. The Reinish citizenry had never been entirely content with Karolian rule, and were more than happy to enlist in anti-imperial peasant militias. Tens of thousands flocked to holdfasts, garrisons, and fortified towers in the Reinish borderlands. The counts moved their small armies to reinforce the line of defense.

When Keith ultimately invaded Reine, their hastily prepared defenses did not hold for long. The presence of the illustrious monarch inspired his men, with many commenting on his resilience in carrying out his function as supreme commander-in-chief despite obvious debilitating sickness. They crossed the border in late 1800, winning major victories against the rebels at Varus and Torre Dato. These battles forced the rebellious armies to regroup around the fortress at Remus, which was promptly besieged by the imperial army. Discontent brewed among the Reinean lords; one of them, the Count of Montebaca, corresponded secretly with Keith's army and agreed to let them into the fortress in exchange for amnesty. The plan worked, imperial forces flooded into Remus, and "Archduke Oliviero" fled with all haste by sea to the Kingdom of Lesovia. The flag of the House of Karolus was lifted over Remus.

With most of their army captured, the Reinean counts agreed to an unconditional surrender. The Count of Montebaca was made a Marshal of Karostain, and became a high-ranking imperial enforcer within the Archduchy of Reine, carrying out the decrees of Keith I, Tietrich I, Keith II, Maria II, Karol IV, and Georgina. All the others were variously sanctioned, attainted, or executed. Justus II was restored to the archducal throne of Reine, agreeing to marry a local noblewoman (following the death of his wife while in exile) and establish an autonomous cadet branch of the Karolians; it became known as the House of Karolus-Justinian. This was the greatest concession granted to Reine. After the rebellion was crushed, the Archduchy was forced to contribute troops and expenses to the Royal Army of Karostain just like any other component of the empire.

Meanwhile, King Pedro III of Lesovia hosted the rebel lord Augusto Oliviero d' Floretio, who had briefly reigned as the *de facto* Archduke of Reine during the uprising, and long entertained the idea of a military intervention to restore him to his "rightful" throne.

Tensions would continue to simmer in Reine until the Third Reinean Revolt broke out during the reign of Empress Georgina.