House de Burgos

**Lord of the Dynasty:** *Ramon de Burgos*

**Moto:** *"The idea of faith is something written in our hearts"*

**Starting Holding:** *Duchy Of Barcelona*

## **The Beginning of the house of Burgos:**

The Burgos family originated in the Iberian town of Burgos. They were farmers who did not find much profit in the lands of Burgos and they were very poor. They received an offer from the lands of Barcelona to work there in exchange for higher pay and a better living style. The lands of Barcelona were rumored to be very dangerous due to recent Muslim raids in the lands near. The family checked what little they had in the bank and realized they had very little to loose so they decided with much hesitation to save up every last piece of gold they owned and move to the lands of Barcelona. They found Barcelona by complete accident because of an error in the map they had bought. There was a gang of thieves rumored to be Muslims who were robbing catholic travelers out of money nearly caught the family. They took off with riding the horses they had leaving some important valuables behind to get away from the thieves. The family eventually found Barcelona and they returned to a more normal lifestyle near the great city of Barcelona. Their education was very limited and many in the house could not read or write. They were once visited by a catholic priest from the lands of Italia and he gave them hope in their future though it would be a while for success to find them. In the year 1003 the head of the family Miguel de Burgos fought in the Battle of Albesa and died which hurt the family financially because he was one of the hardest working men they had.

### **The Beginning of Success**

Many years later, the Duke of Barcelona decided to tour the farms of Barcelona to find hard working people for a massive project he had planned in Barcelona. He traveled to many houses not finding anyone who was qualified until he stumbled upon the great family of Burgos. The head of the house at the time was a man called Ramon de Burgos who was feeding the cattle at the time of the arrival of the duke. The duke found great interest in him and after a long interview he granted him permission to help in the new project that was still unknown to Ramon. Ramon left his family hoping to help them in the future with his new job that pays in much more gold. He eventually found out about the special project which turned out to be a project to help fortify Barcelona in the event that the Muslims attempt to take the city. Ramon was meant to be an ordinary worker, but the main architect died in an accident and no one took his place. Ramon being a bit drunk from a party the previous night decided to take the job claiming he was "The Best Architect Iberia has ever seen". Ramon had no experience in architecture, but excelled to his surprise. When the project was finished the Duke was impressed and granted him wealth that his family had never seen in their life and a position in government.

### **Rising the Ranks**

One evening the Duke of Barcelona decided to fight a duel with the monarch of castile over an item in the Castilian court. The item is not known and was lost due to history but it is suspected to be a weapon used in the famous battles lead by Charlemagne. The duke lost the battle due to his low experience in fighting in duels. He soon died after receiving a deadly blow to the stomach and his doctor was unable to prevent infections from occurring. His time of death is unknown due to a fire in Barcelona which damaged many historical papers including the notes about the Dukes death. The Duke was abstinent for most of his life so at the time of his death had no designated heir and there was a massive power gap. Many Catholics feared that this power gap may be used by the Muslims to the south and they had to act fast, but there was many who claimed the throne. The crisis almost led to a civil war which many historians say that Muslim kings to the south had plans to invade Barcelona if the civil war occurred. Ramon was a more neutral candidate as he had no real political affiliations and was a good compromise for the people. He was unexpectedly the new leader of a Duchy he had no intentions of ruling and had no experience ruling a large territory like the Duchy of Barcelona.

### **The Unexpected Leader**

Many in government did not respect Ramon due to inexperience with leading any sort of government. Many did not respect him for the fact that he had no *Legitimate* claim to the throne and many did not follow orders due to these reasons. Muslims to the south made many false claims about Ramon in hopes of causing more unrest in Barcelona. Ramon had to act fast before a potential rebellion occurred and he instituted many popular reforms in hopes of gaining more support in the government. He improved the infrastructure of Barcelona and lowered taxes on the poor. He gave tax breaks to any who joined the Barcelonan army and encouraged business hoping to improve the Barcelonan economy. These policies proved to be effective as major resistance groups disbanded due to dwindling support. Resistance movements remained, but at low capacity and with very little resources to launch a rebellion.

### **Spearhead Of The Reconquista**

Ramon is no military general so he traveled to major cities such as Lunden or Paris in hopes of finding military generals to help him devise a plan for the Reconquista. He left the major cities with no progress so he decided to travel to the Papal States in hopes of achieving the popes blessing and resources for the future wars. He met with the Pope in the year 1064 and the conversation was not documented well, but from what records that do remain Ramon was able to achieve some military support from the Pope. Ramon got around 4 military generals and 1000 levies to begin his journey in the Iberian peninsula. Ramon and his military advisers constructed a plan on the militaristic goals of Barcelona on the future of the Reconquista. Ramon understood his position in the Iberian peninsula and needed to expand before he would attack the bigger Muslim Caliphates to the south. The military operation was labeled the "***Spearhead of the Reconquista***". There was three phases of the military operation and the end of the operation would not cease until for a great while after Ramon's death.

#### **Phase 1 of the Spearhead of the Reconquista.**

Phase 1 of the operation called for Barcelona to unite all catholic states in Iberia to gain the power to fight against the Muslims. The plan estimated that an army of 10,000 levies and many men-at-arms would be required for the task. Some nations that have proven to be a major task to conquer are nations such as Castile or Galicia. The plan would be very hard to justify to other catholic nations as many want the Muslims to be forced out of Iberia before any catholic infighting occurs. The plan called for fake claims to be made on some leaders to gain support from the catholic community for the invasion to depose the leader and conquer the land. The plan also called for diplomatic promises of development to smaller nations who joined Barcelona. The nations who do not fall under these two categories were to be outright conquered in the name of the Reconquista.

#### **Phase 2 of the Spearhead of the Reconquista.**

Phase 2 of the operation called for consolidation of the catholic regions in Iberia before the Reconquista would continue. The consolidation efforts would attempt to destroy any resistance movements and put down any rebellion's that occur. The cultures would be converted to the Catalan culture and prepare the military for the next phase of the operation. The next phase of the operation called for 15,000-20,000 levies and many men-at-arms for the most important phase of the military operation. The Barcelonan economy was going to be prepared for wartime and any cities that bordered hostile nations were to be fortified extensively. Alliances will be attempted to be made to secure the Iberian peninsula. These alliances will be easier to be made due to the promises of fighting the Muslims instead of any more catholic states.

#### **Phase 3 of the Spearhead of the Reconquista.**

    Phase 3 of the operation is considered the most important part of the operation. Phase 3 called for the wars in the name of Jesus to commence and mass territorial gains. These territorial gains were harder to consolidate due to opposing religions and opposing cultures. The plan calls for no mercy for those who do not convert to Catholicism and demands a "Convert or face the gateways of hell" strategy. Rebellions are almost guaranteed, but will be put down with ease. Those who decide to convert will allowed back in society as accepted people who believe in the one and true God. The areas of strategic interests include the following areas. *Madrid, Gibraltar, Toledo, Valencia, Seville.* These areas of strategic interests are prioritized to be conquered for several reasons in the Reconquista. The plan estimates that this phase may not end until the year 1455. Other estimates estimate the third phase may not end until the year 1502. Optimistic estimates believe the third phase will end in the year 1356.

## **History of the 1st Session**

The following will inform you of the events of the House de Burgos and Barcelona from the Start date in the year 1066 to the end of the first session.

### **The War of Laridah**

The true adventure of Ramon de Burgos started in the year 1066 where he began to institute some policies of war, but the Barcelonan army has still not been tested. On November 12th in the year 1066 Ramon instituted the Cross decree which gave Ramon power and his future Dukes the power to declare any war on any nation in the Iberian peninsula. Wars outside the Iberian peninsula would still have to gain support from others in government. The following day Ramon declared war on the nation of Laridah a Muslim nation. This is the first time the new Barcelonan army has been put to the test. The Barcelonan army moved on the castle of Laridah were they successfully sieged the city. The army of Laridah decided that their only chance to win was to abandon their positions as no battle was clearly winnable and attempt to siege Barcelona in an attempt to hold the nation hostage. The plan did not work and the Barcelonan army came to Barcelona after the siege and won the Battle of Barcelona. The Laridah army fell back to their last major city and hold a last stand. The Barcelonan army engaged which resulted in the Battle of Tarragona. The war lasted for a year ending in 27th of September 1067. The war showed that the military could engage in military operations and the Spearhead of the Reconquista had a chance to succeed, but success always brings downfall...

### **The Humiliation of Saraquastah**

With the victory at Laridah still fresh in mind Ramon decided to prepare for an invasion of Saraquastah which is another Muslim nation. Ramon felt confident about his military. Ramon invaded in 11th of may in 1076 and began marching on the first major city. The Saraquastah army spotted the army due to a lucky incident and ambushed the army which began the Battle of Monzon which was a decisive Muslim victory which ended the war at Saraquastah. Ramon wanted to revenge the defeat at Monzon, but he would never see the death of Saraquastah as it took many years for Barcelona to truly avenge the defeat at Monzon. Ramon attempted to invade Saraquastah multiple times, but did not successfully capture any major cities due to the major support the Saraquastah army was receiving from Toledo who was a major Muslim nation in Iberia. The first truly successful invasion of Saraquastah occurred when Ramon declared war on the 1st of May 1090. Ramon and his advisors learnt from the humiliation at Monzon and attempted to retake the city to somewhat avenge the previous loss. The Barcelonan army sieged down Monzon with very little resistance. The Saraquastah army was busy and caught of guard at the time of the invasion. They knew they were not prepared to fight the now larger Barcelonan army so they decided to siege the nearest Barcelonan town of Urgell. The Barcelonan army engaged them after the siege at Monzon ended which began the Battle of Monzon which was a decisive victory for the Barcelonans. Barcelona took control of Monzon after the war, but did not cool the rivalry between the two nations.

### **The Opportunity to the North**

Sensing weakness in the aragonese government Ramon understood he needed to expand his territories near Saraquastah if he wanted more military victories against them. Documents show that the Barcelonan army could have been twice as big as the aragonese army. "The kingdom of Aragon is truly in decline and we must exploit it at all costs" (Duke Ramon de Burgos 3/3/1095). Ramon had an assassination on certain leaders of Aragon to further cause confusion and distrust among the government, Ramon declared war on the 23rd of march 1095 and began marching on the Barony of Soarable. The city fell with little resistance and fell with little Barcelonan fatalities. Both armies prepared for the next battle which would decide the outcome of the war. The aragonese decided to wait and hold defensible positions rather than go on the offensive. It took the Barcelonan army around a year to scout the lands and obtain a good plan for the future battle. The Barcelonan army began to march to the aragonese capital until it suddenly engaged the aragonese army which surprised both sides. The Battle of Huesca commenced and was a major defeat for Aragon. The victory at Huesca concluded the military operations for the time being and the Barcelonan army did not launch any invasions and attempted to consolidate gains made.

### **The National Tragedy**

Ramon was loved by the people and was a smart man. He had issues like many people did, but these issues seemed to worsen his health. Many of his courtiers reported his drinking issue which doctors reported the decline of his health as a result. He reportedly drank himself to death on November 10th 1096. He never got to see the destruction of Saraquastah and never to got to participate for the Crusade for Jerusalem which was occurring at the time of his death. Many of his close friends described his desire to be with his army fighting the heathens where Christ once stood. Duke Ramon had an heir who was only loved due to his father reputation, but as it wore off he needed several military victories to gain support from the people otherwise a potential rebellion may occur. Duke Ramon II had very high expectations, but he would not be able to fulfil them which troubled his position as Duke of Barcelona.