England

**England** is a kingdom located in Western Europe. It is the most powerful and influential country in the British region.

England starts the game in 1444 on the back foot, having lost Wales, Cornwall, Dorset and Hull to various powers. However, the English have bided their time and are ready to return their lands back to rightful rule

### **Lore**

Little fortune has fallen upon England, with her woes tracing back to 1066. Having defeated the Norwegian warrior-king Harald Hardrada at Stamford Bridge, King Harold II Godwinson marched rapidly to the south, meeting rival claimant William the Bastard, Duke of Normandy, at Hastings. It was here that the beleaguered English faced the Normans in battle, and also where miraculous victory came. When a false report of Duke William’s death spread panic amongst the Norman ranks, the Duke’s army broke into a full rout without so much as a single English pursuer. In a twist of fate, the retreating Normans trampled the still-alive - albeit unhorsed - William.

Issues arose after Harold’s death in 1093. As the realm was split between the seven petty kingdoms of the Heptarchy, England’s line of succession was secured through support from the advisory council known as the Witenagemot. While Edgar the Atheling, Petty King of Wessex, was selected, Northumbria’s protests sparked a minor uprising. Hoping to take advantage of the chaos, in 1098 Francia pressed Duke Robert of Normandy's claim to the throne of England. With the loss of the Frankish fleet in a storm and the heavy English losses in their capture of Calais, the Treaty of Le Mans was signed in 1101, securing for England the port of Calais.

Edgar the Atheling’s death in 1126 sparked a larger wave of unrest than what followed Harold II’s, as multiple claimants scrambled for Witan approval. Embroiled in an Anarchy, the English failed to retake Devon when Cornwall rebelled, shortly thereafter losing the Northern Marches to Scotland. To add insult to injury, the Godwin march of Wales broke free in the wake of the disastrous Battle of Harlech. With even the rebels too weak to fight further, the continuation of the Wessex dynasty was assured. Seeds were sown for future bloodshed, sadly, when the still-incumbent Wessexes sought to reform the Witan from a Heptarch tool into a constitutional institution in the early 14th Century.

The backlash against the reforms culminated in the Heptarch War; the longest Anarchy in England’s history. Though the fighting was bloody, the war ended inconclusively in 1395 after the Danes invaded and seized York, forcing the Heptarchs to form a united front against the invaders. After several years of war by attrition, the Danes held little more than Hull. The English counterattack ground to a halt, however, when word arrived that the marcher lords still present in Ireland had been toppled by Gaelic uprisings.

The year is 1444, and Harold V of Wessex gazes longingly across the countryside. A king since infancy, Harold has resigned himself to half-hearted sabre-rattling in the hopes that he could someday restore England to her former glory. To his luck, though, this dream may come to fruition sooner than expected, for word of unrest in Francia has been spreading like wildfire amongst the courts of Europe. Should England exploit this, the golden years of Harold II’s reign may be outshone by a brighter future on the horizon. An English future."

### **Missions**

England shares the mission tree with Albion and the United Kingdom. With 52 unique missions, their mission tree is one of the biggest in Ante Bellum. English missions revolve around the unification of the British Isles and colonization.

### **National ideas**

* **Traditions:**
	+ -1 national unrest
	+ +10% infantry combat ability
* **Ambition:**
	+ +1 leaders without upkeep
* **Ideas:**
	+ **A Royal Navy:**
		- +10% heavy ship combat ability
		- +0.25 yearly navy tradition
	+ **The Dartford Ordinance:**
		- +10% production efficiency
	+ **Secretaries of State:**
		- +1 diplomatic relations
	+ **The Navigations Act:**
		- +10% trade efficiency
	+ **Redcoats:**
		- +10% shock damage
	+ **The Sick and Hurt Board:**
		- +10% sailor recovery speed
		- -10% sailor maintenance
	+ **English Bill of Rights:**
		- -5 years of separatism