War for the Crown

The War for the Crown was a conflict fought between 571-599 over the succession of the Emperor of Visimar. This war would see the Holy Empire of Visimar divided between a pretender and an heir elected by the official council. The nobility that was against the election of Sigmund the Fat would raise their flags in a civil war to have their candidate, Jorg the Slayer on the throne, but as the conflict seen to have no end, more and more supporters for more candidates of the throne would rise to make the political map of Clamund a confusing mess after 574.

## History

### Wulfred's Death (571)

When Wulfred IV, an old man at best, was found slain in a forest in the eastern kingdoms after a skirmish with probing parties of Clansmen from the Union of Maol-Moirel. His body was quickly dressed and paraded around Midhiem before quickly being buried in the Great Halls of The Emperors. Soon after the mourning period had ended, the noble council of Visimar was quick to elect a candidate known to many as Sigmund the Fat, a fat and greedy noble merchant that bought his way into the title. His election was quick to enrage another close candidate, Jorg II, a noble who was close to the late Wulfred and was promised the title as he died on his deathbed. After several attempts to convince the council that he was the rightful successor to the crown of the emperor to no avail. It enraged the already distraught Jorg who was quick to rally supporters around the Empire to raise their towns and castles in rebellion against Sigmund the Fat.

### The First Conflict (571-573)

After the word had gotten out that Jorg is planning to take the crown forcefully, loyalist support had gathered throughout the empire with the very scant few who wished to remain neutral when the conflict eventually broke out. Which it did during the spring of 571 when a group of armed men, accompanied by Palantine Guard who were paid off to fight for Sigmund or legitimized his claim entered Midhiem, entered the Emperor's palace and killed most of the Palatine guard that protected the palace as well as the Emperor. Sigmund was caught trying to jump off his balcony before he was caught by the armed men and brought to Jorg who was quick to kill Sigmund via a dagger in his chest. When the rest of the garrison was aware of this attack on the newly anointed emperor a small battle broke out within the streets of Midheim with many thugs and sellswords joining the fighting.

The fighting lasted until dawn when the party of men managed to break out of the city with a mob of angry citizens chasing them out. The battle left over 500 dead and many hundreds wounded. After Jorg's escape out of the city and the Midheim region as well. He arrived at Worfrau with his regional levies as well as his supporters at the ready for the next stage of his rebellion.

After Jorg's arrival at Worfrau, he gathered his host of levies and knights and marched upon the countryside of Midhiem, pillaging the surrounding towns, forts and farms for any food and valuables. As he raided, a small retaliation force consisting of the capital guard and hastily raised militia came forth to put an end to Jorg's treachery. The unremarkable battle of Midheim heights took place which saw over 800 city levy put to the sword as Jorg's superior mounted knights and levies swept the field from the untrained masses, unfit for open-field combat.

During this crisis and conflict, the council thought fit to elect another emperor to act as a dictator in these troubling times. Roderick was soon elected towards the end of 571 but it was soon discovered that he gained a level of lunacy after being knocked down from his horse in a battle with peasant rebels that were not aligned with Jorg the Slayer. Roderick's reign would come to a screeching halt after he threw himself off of the Emperor's palace, just a month after his election. It is unknown what his motives were when he fell, but rumours speak of assassins from across the sea hired by Jorg entering the palace unknowingly before assassinating Roderick.

By the end of 571, loyalist forces managed to gather a sizeable army to meet Jorg's host head-on. The 1st Battle of Grunberg was soon underway. This day-long battle resulted in the pyrrhic victory of Jorg as he only managed to capture the few battle commanders from the loyalist rear lines before his own lines crumbled from the might of his enemies.

This defeat led to the swift conquering of Midhiem and the surrounding castles and towns which fell quickly into Jorg's hands.

After almost suffering a major loss in the campaign. Jorg and his enemies hid their armies from the field for the rest of winter behind castle walls. The conflict slowed down to small scale skirmishes for the next two years until both loyalists and Jorg supporters signed off to a peace treaty.

### Jorg's Death (573-574)

After the peace treaty expired. Jorg was quick to raise his levies from a somewhat scant harvest to rush into another battle near the town of Grunberg. The 2nd Battle of Grunberg resulted in a Loyalist victory due to the sheer size and state of the army. Because of this defeat, Jorg soon found himself among enemies as he fled through the countryside with only a few trusted guards by his side. Soon after the recapture of Midhiem which saw a brief two-week siege, Jorg would be found dead near a farmers village west of Worfrau. People of the village claimed his death was blamed on Jorg as they found the pretender attempting to rob their storehouses for food and thought he and his bodyguard were a band of deserters from Jorg's host. After the murder of Jorg spread around the Empire, an outcry of loyalists and supporters of Jorg was quick to take claim to the throne, each claimant with their own story to the throne.

### The Succession Crisis (575-599)

As the rumour of Jorg the Slayer's death made its rounds around the empire. Many nobles and people of note raised their hosts and began to fight among each other over the throne. It became a major crisis in the realm as claimants began to plead their claim to foreign kingdoms and the free states from the south, promising land and fortune to anyone who would lend their armies to fight. What this resulted in was a succession crisis as hosts with varying allegiances marched across Visimar in small petty conflicts which saw the deaths of over 20,000 people within the empire.