NationStates Jolt Archive

(OOC: Since I feel my nation is large enough to begin RPing seriously, I'm going to start with a history, which will basically provide background for further actions I do. It is loosely based on Swedish/Danish history. I'll update as I can find the time to write proper additions to the story).

Historia om Tranquillitiska Riket

October, Är 1520

"Biskop, de kommer." Bishop, they are coming.

"Hur känner ni?" How do you know?

"Våra vän i Danmark talat mig." Our friend in Denmark told me.

The bishop signed and turned to look out the small window from the back of his church. The Church of Mary (Krykan av Maria) was the largest Catholic cathedral in southern Sweden, and had long stood for the power of Catholicism in Sweden.

The relative peace and control that the Catholic Church in Sweden had enjoyed for the many years that their Viking ancestors had accepted the word of God was now in turmoil. The recent outbreak of rebellion in the Holy Roman Empire had touched the Church all over Europe. Martin Luther was threatening the very stability of the Church, at least according to Catholics continent-wide.

Such blasphemy had reached Swedish shores, the bishop thought to himself. Many people, influential people, had been spreading the word of Luther with great success amongst the people. Hopefully, the coming events may change the Swedes and set them in a straight, Catholic line.

"How long until they get here, Brother?" the bishop asked his visitor.

"Should only be a matter of days, Bishop Erik," the Brother replied, speaking in a very solemn tone. "King Kristian has sent one of his best generals out for the battle. He shall not lose."

"What of our young riksföreståndare? Will he not put up a fight for his territory?" the Bishop asked next.

The Brother contemplated for a moment. "I am sure he will, but he will be little more than a fly in the way. The Danes should take Stockholm with little difficulty."

Bishop Erik looked down, feeling mixed emotions. He felt different loyalties to both his Chruch and his country, but he knew that in the end, the Church must win out.

"I see the pain that this news must cause you," the young Brother said, noticing the body language of Erik. "Yet should the Danes win, there will be little that is different than the years prior to this one. The Dane will still be King of the Union, yet we will still have a regent, this one we will make sure is sympathetic to Catholics. It is for the best, Biskop."

Erik sighed. "Yes, you are right, young one," he replied, placing his hand on the shoulder of the young monk. "Thank you, Daniel, for your kind words. Yet I am afraid that Kristian is at the end of his patience with Sten Sture and the Swedes. I fear for Stockholm, and I fear for Sweden."

"That is a legitimate concern, Biskop," Brother Daniel replied. "Everything shall be all right for our Church. Besides, we have too many difficulties to worry about political manners now. There is still the problem of the Luther heresy and the impact it is having."

Erik nodded. "That Gustav Vasa is proving to be quite a problem for us. We will have to watch him carefully. We will have to ask our French friends for assistance on how to deal with this problem."

"Wise idea, Biskop," Daniel replied. "Please, we should now get some rest. The next few days should prove tumultuous."

Nikea, please excuse me.

<taggy Slaggy>

(OOC: Please forgive the large gaps in between, I hadn't had time to do all the research stuff. I changed the date on the first RP since I found out that the Danish invasion took place earlier than I had thought.)

27 October, Är 1520

Erik stood on the southern shore. The cold subarctic wind was biting at his face, and he pulled his coat tighter around him, shivering underneath it. The blowing snow impeded his vision, yet he could still see the silhouette of a ship approaching the shore. Erik was relieved; his help had finally arrived.

When he saw the ship completely, it stopped. A small rowboat was lowered, and it soon began to approach the shore. Erik stood completely still, waiting for the arrival of this Frenchman. He was a powerful man in the Church, Erik knew, yet his aide Daniel had set up the arrangements for this man to come to Sweden, and he knew little about the man personally except for his influential position in the Church, a man who had the ear of both the King of France and the Pope in Rome.

The boat reached the shore, and the large ship in the distance drew up their anchor and began to set sail back to French waters. A tall, burly man was the first out of the boat, his blue uniform indicated he was a member of the French military. He tied the boat down, and barked an order in French to another man in the boat. This man, similarly dressed, but smaller and younger, helped a middle aged man out of the boat.

He was dressed in all red, and the large gold cross around his neck was visible even from where Erik was standing. He appeared to be of middle age, and his hair was showing shades of gray, yet the brown still showed, while his trimmed beard was completely brown. The trio headed towards Erik, and the Bishop moved towards them, to close the gap.

"Avete, Cardinalus!" Erik said in Latin, the universal language of the church. The Cardinal smiled and moved away from his accompaniment towards Erik.

"Avete, Papa Erik," the Cardinal replied. "It is good to see you again." He switched to French.

Erik cocked his head to one side, and his face showed puzzlement. "Ah, it appears that you do not remember me. I am Cardinal Montpelier, yet I was known as Father Montpelier when you first met me."

"Father Montpelier!" Erik exclaimed, realizing that he knew the man across from him. "It has been almost 15 years since I saw you last in Paris." Erik responded also in French, as he had learned it from his time in France.

"Yes, it has been quite a long time," Montpelier replied, embracing the larger Erik. "I remember when you were a young recruit, so eager and innocent in your desire to serve Our Lord. It appears now, though, that you have realized the unfortunate world of church politics."

Erik lowered his head. "Yes, Cardinal. My country is so much different that it was only 5 years ago. There is bloody war brewing, and the Catholic Church is in conflict with the heretic Luther."

The two men began walking towards the prepared wagon which would take the two to the Church of Mary, just outside Stockholm, while the soldier escorts carried the Cardinal's belongings. "You must not judge Martin Luther too harshly, Bishop. He is quite right on some of the points, such as this crazy idea of indulgences."

"You are probably right about that, Cardinal, yet I feel that he is trying to bring change in the wrong way," Erik said, helping Montpelier into the carriage. The soldiers headed to the front, where Daniel sat waiting to leave.

"Young Magnusson, I know that you did not bring me here to debate about Luther," Montpelier said. "Why did you ask for the assistance of the Church in France?"

"I did not know to who else to turn to, Cardinal," Erik began. "Surely you have heard of the problems in Sweden. The regent, Sten Sture, is making rumblings about seperating from the Union. The Church in Denmark has told us that King Kristian has sent troops to stop the resistance, and Sture is moving out to meet him at Åsunden Lake. I am sure that they have already fought the battle by now, and I am told that Sture would have no chance. Only peasants stand in the way."

"That seems like a military problem, not a problem for the Church," Montpelier said.

"Well, there is a young man, Gustav Vasa, who is likely to be regent should something happen to Sture," Erik continued. "He is a committed Protestant, and will likely impose Protestantism on Sweden, something which Kristian has said he does not disagree with. I fear that our Church will be outlawed."

"That is a problem," Montpelier said. "I am assuming you want my guidance on this situation?"

"Yes, Cardinal," Erik replied. "I believe that the French are the only ones who can help us at this stage."

Montpelier turned to look out the window at the bleak, snow covered plains. "Yes, we have been very active in Church matters. But we should not talk about this just moments after my arrival. We will discuss the matter when we arrive in Stockholm."

"Yes, Cardinal, I did not wish to trouble you right away."

The two men were silent as the carriage rode northeast.

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<Possible Tag, if I can figure this RP out>

(OOC: Not really an RP, more of just a story I'm building up so that in future, when I do RP, I can refer to this. Just a short one this time as I wanted to get one up tonight but really need to get to sleep soon. More detailed posts to follow sometime tomorrow or Monday.)

Söder av Stockholm, 9 November, Är 1520

The carriage bearing the three church leaders and the two French soldiers arrived near Stockholm, after much delay due to weather and alternate routes due to fear of battle, to what appeared to be a festive atmosphere. There was no sign of the war that had so loomed only 2 weeks prior to the arrival of Cardinal Montpelier.

I wonder what has happened here, Erik thought to himself. There were no soldiers that could be seen, and there was little sign of a siege or any battle around the city.

In the distance, a man dressed in a tattered overcoat was stumbling down the path towards the carriage. Daniel saw this and sped up the horses towards the man.

"You have to turn around!" the young man said, a man whom Erik recognized as Mikael, a man of similar position to Daniel. "There is trouble up ahead."

"What is it?" Cardinal Montpelier asked, as the two soldiers helped the man into the carriage. Erik offered him the rest of his bread, which the man gratefully took and began to eat like a ravenous wolf.

"The Danes," Mikael said. "The Danes came. They laid siege to the castle. Sture died at Åsunden Lake. The Danish general, Krumpen, promised Sture's widow Christina to give up the castle in exchange for amnesty for us. Kristian came, there was a big festival in the castle."

"What about you?" Erik asked. "What happened to you?"

"On the fourth day," Mikael continued, "Kristian closed the gates of the castle, and had all of the bishops and noblemen in the castle arrested for treason. I was lucky enough to not be in the castle at the time, but I hid all day in an empty cellar, waiting for the Danish soldiers to pass. Today all of those arrested are being put on trial, and they brought in Archbishop Trolle as prosecutor. They will all be executed."

Erik's eyes grew wide. "Executed?"

Mikael nodded. "Yes. It is wise if you turn around and stay away from Stockholm. It will be full of blood in a matter of days."

"You must come with us," Montpelier said to the man. "We cannot let you go back to meet the executioner's blade." Erik told Daniel to turn the carriage around and head south, back towards the coast where he met Cardinal Montpelier. We can no longer rely on the Danes, he thought. But where will we get our help from now?

OOC: My point. Telegram me when you decide to start this RP. I will continue to read this interesting story in the meantime.