Henry Blackthorne

Henry circa 559AE

Allister Blackthorne (grandfather)

Balin Blackthorne (uncle)

Edgar Blackthorne (brother)

Edwin Blackthorne (brother)

Lord **Henry Blackthorne** was the reigning patriarch of House Blackthorne from 558AE until his death in 556AE. Ascending to rule at the grand age of 7 years old, he was by a distance the youngest ever Lord of Stormrise Isle. He succeeded his grandfather, the Golden Griffin Allister Blackthorne; the intended heir, Henry's own father Edward, died in 551AE. As Henry was deemed too young to wield any kind of substantial decision-making power over the governance of the family's holdings, rule over House Blackthorne was conducted by an assembled regency council which included Henry's mother as well as his uncle, Edward's brother Sir Balin Blackthorne.

Henry had two younger brothers, twins, Edgar Blackthorne and Edwin Blackthorne. Both would go on to succeeded him as Lord following his death. Having never reached true adulthood throughout his reign, he was considered a pitiable figure by many, though his co-operation with his councillors kept a steady legacy in place for when Edgar succeeded him.

## Appearance & Character

Henry had a plain face with gingery hair, cropped into a short bowl-cut throughout his childhood. He had large protrubent grey eyes that made him look younger than he was. He grew to be an unimposing young man, short thin and narrow-shouldered, though not unhandsome. By the time of his death he had grown his hair out and had attempted to grow a whispy pale beard in an effort to look older.

The Boy Griffin was shy and sensitive in his youth. Growing up he became eternally guided by fear of embarrassment, resentment, and thwarted masculinity; he loathed being infantalized in any context, which eventually caused his death. He had a close working relationship with his uncle Balin and thought of the man as his surrogate father; kept apart from his histrionic mother Astoria, he did not know her well.

## History

While he did not lack for capable advisors, Henry was not loved by his fellow Senators and the populace he ruled over. A shy boy, he had a stammer and a speech impediment that earned him mockery from his House's enemy King Argiliac of Brecilidia. The Hrow Monarch on one occasion mocked the child to the point of tears in front of the entire Everglow Senate, calling the boy "*The First Lord Who Can Not Pronounce his Own Name*" and styling the child thereafter as "Lowd Henwy." As Henry grew older and overcame the problems of his early childhood, he struggled to shake his reputation as a soft chilld and was often mocked.

As soon as he reached adulthood, Henry began to assert dominance by making retaliatary moves against the increasingly aggressive High Elven opposition. He convinced his uncle Balin to let him lead an assault on Hrow territory in the Deadlands, which had been claimed from the Storm Kings centuries ago; he believed that this would be a huge symbolic victory that would quieten those who mocked him. Unfortunately this was in the middle of a particularly bad winter and the young Lord, never a robust man, caught a flu. He died, shivering, in his tent. He was only 17 years old.

## Legacy

Though not liked by many, Balin in particular spoke highly of Henry, believing his nephew would have made a good Lord if he'd lived for long enough--certainly a better lord than either of his brothers turned out to be. Henry's plan of reclaiming Nchurdamz would be taken up by his brother Edwin years later.

Henry had not secured a sure marital match, though many candidates had been considered, and therefore when he died his younger brother Edgar succeeded him.