Submission 6


 * Submission 6: The Hundred Years War
 * by Anthony Mayer
 * 5 November 2001


 * "There will be a new ark,
 * Riding on that fire"


 * - The Prophet (CJ Bolland), samples from The Last Temptation of Christ

The Hundred Years War (Outline)

The Hundred Years War is the popular name given to the series of conflicts roughly between 215 and 320 SE [987-1092 CE] centred around the Rhone valley, Mediterranean coast of Francia, northern Italy and the Balearic Islands. Later characterised as a great struggle between the two civilisations of Submission and Christianity, it was in fact a protracted period of small wars between the members of the Fraxinetum League, both jointly and separately, against the King of Burgundy, the King of Aquitaine, the Emperor, and Submissive adventurers ranging from mercenaries to the Christian powers all the way to the Deputy of Kamarg.

The main cause of these wars was the growing wealth of the free cities of the Fraxinetum League, and their growing rivalry with each other. Their neighbouring powers, the Empire and the surviving Frankish Kingdoms, both sought to exploit that rivalry to gain control over the lucrative trade of the cities. In employing Submissive mercenaries, the floodgates were opened for Submissive interference in what would otherwise have been a purely Christian affair. The House of Submission was going through a demographic expansion due to agricultural development, and routes into both the wealth of the Mediterranean and the fertile lands of the south provided the impetus for further conquest and expansion.

The incredible victory of Sigmund Sigmundson over Peppin V, King of Burgundy, and the capture of Lyons are narrated elsewhere. This proved to be the turning point in the early phase of the war. Encouraged by the capture of the immensely valuable Rhone valley many Submissives flocked to Sigmund's standard, determined to fight not as mercenaries of the Christian towns, but for themselves. Thus opened another round of struggle and infighting, with Submissive adventurers playing off different cities against each other, and the cities in turn manipulating the weakly established Mediterranean Submissive states. This period saw the Submissive adventurers gaining a foothold in the competitive Mediterranean trade through their formidable seamanship, adapted for Mediterranean conditions, as well as exploiting the natural fertility of the area in exporting olives, fruit, salt from the Gulf of Lions and other luxuries northwards. This era saw the rise and fall of many colourful personalities on all sides, pacts and betrayals, and would often feature Christian armies fighting other Christians on behalf of Submissive lords, or Submissive mercenaries attacking Submissive holdings as allies of the Christians.

In the East, the war took on a highly religious character as the cities of the now defunct Fraxinetum League saw themselves facing an existential threat, and they turned to the Empire for support. The establishment of the great Submissive fortress of Dead Water in the Kamarg (which remains to this day a classic example of a medieval walled city) gave the new Deputation permanent access to the Mediterranean. From this base, raids could be made at will throughout the western zones. The Emperor was forced to move quickly, and the Imperial army was ill prepared for the coming battles. Surely enough the Imperial forces were defeated at the Battle of Pavia, followed by the sack of Rome in 251 SE [1023 CE]. The desecration of the Vatican district and the crucifixion of Patriarch Innocent IV proved too much, even for many of the most fanatical Submissives. The shock of this outrage reverberated around the Christian world, and the Grand Domestic Manuel called for a holy war against Submission, the so-called Crusades.

Crusader forces flocked from all Christendom to reclaim Rome -- imperial forces fought alongside Egyptian Arabs and Syrians in the name of God and Christ, to oust the northern Europeans from the holy lands. Over the next fifty years no less than 5 crusades were launched against the Submissives of northern Italy, sometimes lead by opportunistic nobility, sometimes royalty seeking glory and to stabilise internal political situations, but always with a genuine piety (if not always Christian behaviour). By 298 SE [1070 CE] the Submissives had been driven from Italy, and in 310 [1082 CE] the last Deputy of the Kamarg had been defeated and killed, and the fortress of Dead Water fell to the Christian army of As Sahn ibn Malik.

The picture was somewhat more complicated by the Christians of western Francia. Aquitaine fought against some Submissive powers, and allied with others, and the various districts of Languedoc (especially the strategically important Carcarsonne gap) changed hands many times.

The activities of the 'Cathars' also muddies the picture -- they were a mysterious sect of Christians with eastern influences, which was quite common given the exchange of ideas throughout the Mediterranean. Uncommonly they had a strong dualist tradition. Operating in the lawless Pyrenees, where more Orthodox Christians could not root them out, they became famous for their mountain stronghold of Montsegur and their technique of murdering political opponents. The Cathar 'dardasiers' were hated and feared by fellow Christians, but often admired by their Submissive allies and enemies alike. Their leader, the so called Old Man of the Mountain, formed an alliance with the dedicated submissive Roger Tranceval, but following the Imperial takeover of Barcelona, they could not gather enough Submissive aid to stave off defeat -- eventually the impregnable Montsegur fell to Basque mercenaries promised absolution in an 'Albigensian Crusade'. Needless to say, the Crusaders never reached as far north as Albi, where the dedicated Submissive Tranceval dynasty held the Christians at bay.

In Iberia the Hundred Years War brought a large number of Anglo-Saxon Submissives to fight alongside their Norse cousins. While the Frankish Submissives would travel overland to southern Francia and Italy, for the Anglo-Saxons the seaward route was often easier, especially after the construction of Dead Water. Adventurer longships revictualling on their way to the Med were often invited to stay in Iberia and fight the unfaithful there -- many Anglo-Saxons accepted. The borders in Iberia remained fluid, and fighting was much less vicious than in Italy. By 300 SE [1072 CE] the independent Visigothic Kingdom had collapsed, but distractions elsewhere forced Emperor Isaac III to make King Helderic Exarch, and no more ground was taken for Submission. In Iberia the ethnic composition and culture remained firmly Northern European, as the Christian Visigoths faced Submissives of primarily Norse and Anglo-Saxon descent and culture. The contrary was true in Italy -- the Crusades brought a huge influx of Christian Arabs and Berbers, who brought with them their own north African and Middle Eastern Christian culture. This can still be seen today in the architecture, cuisine, culture and of Italy, which retains much of its Moorish past.

Though the Crusades deprived Submission of the Mediterranean, it did much to influence Submissive life. The Hundred Years War had been a messy and confused attack by the northerners on a deeply cultured people and religion, and many realised the superiority of Mediterranean Christian civilisation, at that time reaching its apogee of commercial success. The conquering Submissives adopted many local practices from the Italians and Crusaders, such as light linen clothes, the drinking of coffee, frequent bathing, the cultivation of olives and dates, the drinking of wine rather than beer. As the Northern European House of Submission gradually grew richer on the back of agricultural recovery, the wealthier classes aspired to the lifestyle of Provence. As they retreated from the sea, it became apparent that another route must be found to secure the luxuries that war could no longer provide....

Art & Architecture

During the middle ages the House of Submission changed from being a society based around wooden buildings to one of stone structures. The political leadership, spurred on by the requirements of the Hundred Years War, saw stone fortresses as essential to defence and as means of expressing one's power across a wide domain. This need to build in stone saw increased taxation and consequent resentment against the feudal lords -- but has left us with a vivid physical emblem of the era.

Around the same time the Great Halls of Submission were founded, replacing the smaller Romanesque Houses of Submission. The first Great Hall of Submission was the Great Hall of Jorvik, whose construction was started by Judge Snorri the Stonecutter in 231 SE [1003 CE]. It took over 300 years to complete and remains the spiritual centre of the northern capital. It was followed by many other similar constructions throughout the medieval world. The Great Halls were obviously inspired to some extent by the existing Houses and Churches, and possibly also by Christian Cathedrals, though in contrast to the domes of Christian buildings, the Great Halls had immense spires and steeples. Supported with flying buttresses, the perpendicular style evoked the immensity of the holy, and the power of the Allfather. Inside, the Halls were designed to appear light and airy, despite the massive construction, in order to accommodate mass prayer for a large community, and to provide a location for the most sacred ceremonies of Submission.

The floor plan of Great Hall was always based upon the same principles, a large square prayer area, with 4 wings leading off housing choirs, staff, chambers for the local Thing members and Judges. The cross was equilateral, and aligned so that the faithful prayed facing north, as required. The proscription on artistic expression in religious practice meant that decoration was provided by purely abstract patterns both in painting and stained glass.

The buildings remain awesome spectacles to this day -- how much more of a visible presence of the might of God would they have appeared to medieval man?

Shipbuilding

The Hundred Years War forced change in the development of Submissive shipping. The lateen sail had been in use on Mediterranean galleys since the Arabian Awakening of the second century BSE, where it had been transferred from the lighter sewn boats used in the Arabian Sea to the Roman galley. With the arrival of longships based from Dead Water, the Norse adventurers tried to adapt the triangular sail for their own use. The experiment was not very successful -- the light, fast fighting ships had become far too specialised for quick river raiding and could not compete in naval combat with the heavier galleys. In general they stuck to the coastlines, and used oars when sailing against the wind. However, the larger, fatter Norse cargo type vessel, with less oars was eminently suited to using the lateen, which became widely adopted in the Mediterranean. After the fall of the Deputation of the Kamarg, these sails were seen in Northern European waters.

Another advance that would not be seen for some time had its roots in the medieval period. It concerned finding the correct direction in which to pray – in the foggy lowlands of southern Francia and northern Italy, adventurers often found they could not locate north, which was a major problem for the pious. Learned Scholars had translated classical works, and discovered the property of the lodestone, that could teach an iron needle to seek north -- obviously a gift from God to help the faithful, and a great deal of effort was made to understand and acquire the mechanism of the magnetic needle.