The Tragedy of the Canaanites

[Impera]

The Tragedy of Canaanites
Book I: Early Phoenician History from The Exodus to the Founding of Qart Attiq

The Bronze age collapse of the 12th and 11th century BCE left much of the ancient known world, in the west at least, in ruins. Babylonia was on the cusp of collapse, Egypt suffered a dynastic shift, the proud Hittites were erased from the annals of history, and the people of Canaan were laid to waste. Their properous centers of trading were turned to ash, and they were scattered to the wind. Under the leadership of the mythic Queen Elissa, the Canaanites departed from their revered homeland, in search of a better home away from the turmoil that had engulfed their world.



The Caananites traveled the breadth of the medditeranean looking for a new home. Though some would leave and establish small villages in northern Africa and Iberia, the majority of the host moved onward. Eventually Elissa stood at the Pillars of Herakles, the edge of the known world, and gave a speech which history has sadly not remembered. The results, on the other hand, were not forgotten. The mighty queen managed to convince her people to continue, onward, for destiny.



After traveling up the coast of Gaul, the Wandering Tribes found a land, rich in tin. This caused a commotion amongst the lower class citizens in the host, who wished to found their city in what we today know as Cornwall. However, at the behest of the Seers, who saw nothing ruin in that land, the tribes continued their thankless journey. As fate would have it, the jounrney was not to last much longer...



...for on the nearby island of Hibernia, known to the scattered natives as Eire, The Canaanites atlast settled down, and founded the great trading city of Attiq. The journey had been long and harsh, but under the leadership of the aged Elissa, a new promised land had been found.



Queen Elissa set to work immeditely on securing the new settlement, To this end, she would build the historic walls of Attiq, which stand to this day. However, while it brought security to the Canaanites, irish folk legend holds that the invaders built their great battlements on the backs of irish slaves who were worked to death. These slaves had been taken, so the story goes, from friendly tribes who had welcomed the Canaanites, soon to be known as Phoenicians, to their new home. These tribes were promptly betrayed in the dead of night, enslaved, and worked to death. Thought once thought merely an exaggerated tale, recent archaelogical finds reveal that the base of the walls is lined with skeletons from a variety of irishfolk of every age and gender. Whatever the case, the Phoenicians had asserted themselves in the area and were there to stay. For the time being.



The city itself was built on in close proximity to herds of horses, which would become a major export from Attiq alongside welsh tin. It also facillitated the conquest of uncooperative tribes, and introduced chariot warfare to the British Isles.



Meanwhile, to the north, the first of many expeditions were held to see if any viable trade goods existed. Though these first voyages turned up empty handed, they did discover a channel which, while uncrossable, may lead to more distant lands. This would be crucial for the Phoenicians later on, when they discovered and mastered travel along the north atlantic currents.



Little of major note happened between the first voyages and the founding of Nun Hadasht (literally, "Fish City" in Phoenician). This period was not completely without excitement, however, as the Great Cothon was built to increase trade and production for the sleepy trading hub. It would suceed in attracting visitors, though perhaps not the ones intended. The first set of newcomers to the islands since the Phoenicians would be jewish refugees from the Eyptian conquest of their homeland. This refugees, as put one contemporary author, "...brought religious disunity, corrupted our youth, stole our profits, usurped our wealth, and bred at an alarming rate. On many ocassions they have caused violence in the city, and many citizens now fear for their safety, as do the local hamlets and villages. A pox on the people of Judea!"

Though quite the exaggeration, his fears were not completely misplaced, but for different reasons, as the flight of the jews to the island brought it under the eye of the recent conquerors of Gaul, The Roman Empire...

Amidst all this, the city of Nun Hadasht was founded on iceland, and its timing would prove crucial.



The large influx of Roman traders, along with the rapidly growing jewish population, caused immense unrest on the islands. The Jews, seeking to gain greater power and wealth, appealed to the roman govenor of Gaul to finance a coup. In exchange for control of Hibernia, the jews would accept the status of Roman Client State. The govenor agreed, and in the dead of night the large jewish population of the city led a coup, killing most of the ruling class and military forces as they slept. The heirs of Elissa, however, would survive, and fled to the colony on Nun Hadasht. With the safe travel provided by the ports of northern ireland gone, and lowering temperatures as the classical age gave way to late antiquity, This would be the last voyage between the two lands for a long time.



This usurpation is known in Phoenician history as The Great Betrayal, and it nearly doomed the heirs of Canaan to oblivion. Though they still endured great tragedy and tribulation, they survived however slimly, and made a proper home in Nun Hadasht. Continuing the tradition of exploration and migration, the Phoencians would discover greenland. Here they would found the city of Qart Attiq, in honor of their lost home. With a safe route from iceland to the shores of greenland, soon a discovery of monumental proportians would be made, the discovery of a whole new world...



The Phoenician world at the end of the Attiqan Era

 

[Impera]

The Tragedy of the Canaanites
Book II: Phoenician History from the Discovery of Amuri Ka to The First Return

The transfer of the Elissan Dynasty to the City of Nun Hadasht marked a fundamental shift in the way the Phoenician City States were governed. Previously, Attiq had merely been the first among many cities, certainly the most powerful but not overtly dominant. This was due to the climate on Eyr (Eire) being conductive to a number of relatively powerful cities. On Nunay (Iceland) , on the other hand, the cold environment meant that Nun Hadasht was able to monopolize power. The colonization of Qart Attiq as an outpost of the city only cemented this, as the only route to the prosperous lands of Amuri Ka was controlled from the city. As a result, all the following expeditions which explored the valuable coasts of the new lands were funded and controlled by Nun Hadasht.



These expeditions would prove eventful on an incredible scale, as for the first time in history the old world met the new following Phoenician envoys arriving among the newly risen Mayan City States. Limited trade resulted, but continuous contact could not be sustained due to the distances involved.



Depiction of the Ancient king of Chichen Itza, and the return from the Southern Lands



Little would happen following this event, but a few decades later, a ship would wash ashore the rocky eastern coast of Nunay. None of the crew survived, though letters were discovered and deciphered, which told of the collapse of the once mighty Persian Empire. It seemed, back in their ancestral homeland, that barbarians ran amok and caused devastation not seen since the Exodus.



This news was of little concern to the Phoenicians, however, as the first settlers prepared to travel from Nunay and establish the first colonies in Amuri Kan



On the fertile banks of the Qa Bek river, deep within the Bay of Hanno, the city of Qart Sur was founded, named after the greatest city of Old Canaan. It symbolized the birth a new home in a new world, while still honoring the one lost millennia ago.



Almost immediately, the government of distant Nun Hadasht funded the construction of great stone walls to protect the city, using Inuit slave labor from Nunay and Arsay.



Meanwhile, back on the home island, a route back to Eyr had been discovered. Excited talks began about the possibility of reconquering the island and restoring Phoenician rule once more.



The first raiding parties were sent shortly in order to scout the cities defenses. They discovered that the Phoenicians formed an oppressed majority ruled by an iron fisted Jewish theocracy. They learned that, previously, the Roman Empire had sustained their harsh rule in exchange for cheap tin and iron, as well as the fine horses of the island. However, the Roman Empire had recently collapsed due to barbarian invaders and internal strife, putting the Judean overlords of Attiq in a dangerous position.



Before departing, the raiding host freed a number of Phoenician slaves, as well as a small group of enslaved greek monks. These monks were followers of a man named Jesus Christ, who they claimed to be the son of a single, all powerful god. Though sounding suspiciously similar to the Jewish faith, the missionaries managed to convince the captain of the raiding party, Saint Hasdrubal, that there god was distinctly different from that of the jews, and was both loving and forgiving. Hasdrubal converted to the faith, and helped get them an audience with King Hamilcar IX of Nun Hadasht. Hamilcar found their faith intriguing, and decided to grant them plots of land near the distant Qart Sur, in order to boost the towns population and avoid the potential for religious strife back at home. Graciously, they accepted and within a manner of years the colony of Qart Canaan had become majority christian.



With increased contact would come a greater wealth of trade. This in turn would lead to the Pentarch of Rome establishing a bishop to oversee the faith in the distant city. After getting permission from the King, it was done and Amuri Ka had become connected to the christian network which had replaced the unity of the Roman Empire. When the Pentarch delclared his independence from the church in the east, centered on Athens, the colonists in Qart Sur joined him and converted to the newly founded Catholic Faith. The Pentarch was now the Pope and had followers in many places.



As travel between the old and new worlds became easier, in part due to the medieval warm period, so did the first true plans to reconquer Eyr come to fruition. Led by the brilliant general Hannibal the Elder, the First Return had began.



(ignore my friend in the corner lol)

 

[Lokki242]

Subbed. I think your friend just adds to that last photo.

I love the idea of this, it's so unique. Also, you may consider me a filthy cheater, but you should consider adding "core" to your core territories in WB to better represent your nation and make your life easier. Unless you prefer the challenge, I guess!

 

[Impera]

One step ahead of ya, I did that after I was forcefully relocated to Nun Hadasht. I think in some of the pictures you can see my hovering over a tile and it says "core area". I hint it this when I mention how the usurpation has lead to "greater centralization of the city states"

Hopefully the jews wont install a theocracy on punic ireland again

Edit: just to add on, my core consists of southern greenland, iceland, and ireland. I also removed my core on most of syria save for the tiles were Tyre and Antioch would be.

 

[Lokki242]

One step ahead of ya, I did that after I was forcefully relocated to Nun Hadasht. I think in some of the pictures you can see my hovering over a tile and it says "core area". I hint it this when I mention how the usurpation has lead to "greater centralization of the city states"

Hopefully the jews wont install a theocracy on punic ireland again

Edit: just to add on, my core consists of southern greenland, iceland, and ireland. I also removed my core on most of syria save for the tiles were Tyre and Antioch would be.

You're a person who's style of story-telling is after my own heart

 

[Gruekiller]

Oh, this is really interesting. Always love a good exodus story.

 

[Impera]

The Tragedy of the Canaanites
Book III: Phoenician History from the First Siege of Attiq to the Great Reconquest

The walls of Attiq were some of the strongest in the world, originally intended to protect against the strong tribes of Eyr, the walls would prove an encumbrance during the First Return. Rather than being able to storm the city directly, the army would have to endure a siege.



With increased Phoenician pressure in the region, they were connected more fully with the ancient world once more. Contact with the distant Hellenic Empire, once a roman client state, revealed the full devastation of the past few centuries. The known world was fractured once more into uncountable petty states, on only the Greeks survived and prospered in this dark age. The Light of Rome had faded. This renewed contact would also reveal to the Phoenicians how little they had advanced in comparison to their neighbors over the millennia.



At the same time in Eyr, reinforcements arrived as the siege began to reach its conclusion. Soon the fate of the island and the sons of New Canaan would be tested once more.



Though odds favored the Phoenicians, the Jews managed to bribe a number of the few remaining tribes in the area to harass them at a crucial moment. The First Returned looked bleak.



(author's note: I hate the RNG gods)

The seers predicted defeat, and in a pyrrhic victory the Jewish Forces managed to retain control of the mighty city, for the time being.



Then entered the mighty King Bodeshmun III, Lord of the North, whose voice could herald Long Winters. He would lead a mighty host in the Second Return, and vanquish the wicked Jews from the shores of Eyr. In his honour the island was renamed Bodeshmunay. With his conquest, all the cities of the Phoenician People were united under the rule of Nun Hadasht, and the Phoenician Empire was formed.



His victory would become known far and wide, and in exchange for the finest Attiqan horses, the Greeks would create a number of monuments depicting his deeds, introducing the their style of artwork to the Phoenicians.



As Bodeshmun entered his old age, he created the Phoenician Calendar, with year 0 being the last year of his reign. This would act as a symbol of Phoenician Rebirth in years to come. On the last day of year 0, December 31st 627 A.D., the mighty king died in his sleep after an unparalled 78 years on the throne. At the start of year One, his son Hannibal IV Elisshar dissolved the Regnal Council and declared himself Emperor of Phoenicia. His actions would spark a revolt which raged for Twelve Years, until he atlast restored order.



Map of the Empire in the 12th Year after the Death of Bodeshmun the Restorer, the year of Christ 640.

 

[Impera]

Before I continue the story, I would like to ask you lovely people (the best people, only the best read my stories, believe me. Beautiful fantastic people. Yugely great) about granting myself a number of ancient and classical era techs using worldbuilder. On one hand, I would enjoy the challenge of having to catch up in tech; meanwhile on the other hand, I worry that we may be to far behind as a result of the temporary loss of Eyr to ever catch up, especially with our soon to be neighbor england about to spawn. The brits are notorious tech maniacs in DoC after all.

Should we decide to balance things out using WB, I think it should be limited to half of the techs that greece has which we do not.

Thoughts?

 

[Gruekiller]

I'd say to do whichever you think will make the story last longer. That's always a safe bet!

 

[Impera]

well that's kind of the problem, I can't decide which one would achieve that

 

[Lokki242]

For me, the rule is narrative>gameplay. So if it makes more historic sense to tech up, I would.

If I was in your place I would definitely give myself those techs.

 

[Impera]

hmm, good point.

As fun as waiting a few hundred turns to catch up (it is marathon after all) would be, I think for the sake of the narrative, and for general realism purposes, Im going to give the Phoenicians a boost so that they are out of the early iron age. It's not going to be massive of course, but at least equal to the norse, probably

 

[Impera]

The Tragedy of the Canaanites
Book IV: Phoenician History from First Empire to the Rise of Anglia

The same year as his consolidation over the city states of Greater Phoenecia, Hannibal IV set his sights on the wealth of the southern seas. To this end he enlisted a small fleet to set sail and discover what lay in the ancient world that the phoenicians had abandoned millennia ago.



After some initial difficulties, the fleet set sail, and in winter of 652 discovered the petty barbarian kingdoms of Gaul. Though barely recognizable when compared to the apex of Rome, they retained a number of its administrative apparatuses.



Meanwhile, in distant Amuri Ka, wandering tribes who called themselves the Mexica began to invade the colonies. They claimed to hail from a land known as Aztlan, and fought with a savagery comparable to the germans of the old world. However, with the copper mines of Attiq and the Iron mines of Qart Sur at the Empire's disposal, a small force was put together in the colonies that would be able to properly quell these incursions.



In 672, nearing the end of Hannibal IV's reign, entrance into the arena of antiquity was at last achieved. Remarkably, one of the small cottages which had sprung up during Elissa's flight had devoloped into the heart of a petty Iberian kingdom. Though dictinctly romanized, they were undoubtably Punic, and made for "interesting conversation", as one explorer put it.



Shortly after this, the discovery of a new civilization was made: The Arabian Caliphate. Having recently expanded into north africa, the Emir of Tunis granted the Phoenicians an audience. Surprisingly, they were able to understand each other, to some extent. This no doubt has to do with the semetic roots both the Arabic and Phoenician languages share.



Meanwhile, in 680, the explorers had a short detour in Rome, where they visited the holy City of Catholicism and were granted audience with the Pope, Leo IV, who was delighted to learn of the prospering colonists of Amuri Ka who stayed ever faithful to the one true Catholic faith.



In 692 the expedition reached Athens, capital of the Macedonian Kingdom, the bulwark of Christendom in europe against the arabs. Here they received the King, Alexander VI, who discussed philosophy and seamanship with the adventurers.

Meanwhile, back at home, Emperor Hannibal IV died after 52 years of unquestioned rule, at the age of 78. He was suceeded by his grandson, Abdeshmun I, who continued his policies of trade and exploration.



In the year 700, or 72 if you're going by the phoenician system, the Expedition finally reached the end of it's journey in Byzantion, The Great Bastion of Europe and Holiest City of Christendom, whose walls held within them the greatest church in all of christianity. The awe inspired in the men by this church, St. Sophia, no doubt would be in part responsible for Nunay becoming a bastion of the Greek heresy later on. For the time being however, the fleet gave the greeks the copious amount of art and treasures they had brought with them, in exchange for some of the accumlated knowledge of the ancient world, which was becoming more and more rare. Advanced Metal Casting, Roman Legalism, the Magnetic Compass, The Hellenic idea of Gold and Silver coinage (as opposed to the traditional Phoenician currency at the time, Murex shells, which had been brought over with the Murex shellfish during the Exodus), and Roman knowledge of Construction and Architecture. This mission would prove crucial for the Phoenicians in years to come, and earned Abdeshmun the title "The Wise". Abdeshmun himself would only live for 3 more years, after which his daughter Muttunbaal took that throne.





Some decades later, towards the end of Muttunbaal's uneventful reign, the greeks send out an expedition of their own to the lands of the North. They recorded the land as Ultima Thule, and would establish a small monastery on Nunay.



During the reign of Muttunbaal's son, Hannibal V, arab emissaries would arive in the Imperial Court, requesting knowledge of the Phoenician solar calender and magnetic compass, in exchange for a number of holy relics, mantras, and translated Persian texts on Imperial Governance and the Divine Right of Kings



In 764, the aging Hannibal V attempted to gain a number of christian relics from the muslims, to no avail.
He would die on the return voyage, and pass the throne to his 14 year old grandson, Bodeshmun IV


In 776, Bodeshmun would move the Imperial Court to Attiq once more, and set about reforming the government. He disolved the Council of Elders and established Sucession by Primogeniture, as well as declaring Catholicism the Offical Religion of the realm. This would spark a civil war with his brothers, who each held the governance of a number of core cities in the Empire. The civil war would end after he defeated his brother Hasdrubal, King of Amuri Ka, in single combat. This occured in 792. As a result of the Civil War, the last of the remaining Jews living in Attiq were killed or exiled, The Greek Heresy become deeply rooted in Nunay, centered on the "holy city" of Nun Hadasht, and Catholicism replaced Phoenician Paganism in it's only remaining untainted bastion, Qart Attiq. This religious shift would have a profound effect on the world going forward.









In 796 Bodeshmun IV, Herald of the Lord's Sacred Will, died peacefully in his sleep. In his will he decreed that no more were the Sons of Canaan the pagan and profane Phoenicians, but were instead New Men of a New City, the City of God, Qart-Hadasht. Hence forth Canaan's heirs were Qart-Hadashti: Cathaginians, and their Empire was now the Carthaginian Empire. He declared his Eldest son ,Hiram IX, the new Emperor.



His reign would be peaceful, and towards the end of it the Anglo-Saxon invaders of Britannia would set up a new kingdom in the south, Angleland, also known as England. Trade and polite relations were established, for the time being. However, Hiram's son, Hannibal VI, had a thirst for blood, and would set his eyes on the island in years to come.



The Carthaginian world in the Ninty-Sixth year after the death of Bodeshmun the Great, the year of our lord 824

 

[Impera]

The Tragedy of the Canaanites
Book V: Carthaginian History from the Rise of Anglia to the Two-Score War

Eight years after the founding of the first Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Britannia, based around the Greco-Roman trading post of Londinium, the English began to settle further westward and northward, with the city of Plymouth founded in 832 on the ruins of a Phoenician city which was destroyed during the Usurpation.



The death of Hiram IX and ascendance of Hannibal VI ocurred in the year 839. Hannibal began made preparations to go to war with the Anglo-Saxons, when news reached him, in 840, of the fall of Amuri Ka following the disastrous Battle of the Tyrian Fields. For the first time since the Reign of Bodeshmun the Restorer the Carthaginians were divided. Hannibal delayed his plans of conquest for the time being and set about changing his focus to the lost colonies.





Unrest as a result of the conquest, however, delayed matters for decades, and the Assassination of Hannibal in 844 led to a series of weak-willed and "thin-blooded" heirs rising to the throne for the next few decades. These were Aderbaal I, Baalshillek I, Aderbaal II, Aderbaal III, and Danel Saxonsson the Usurper. The last of these traitors were deposed in the year 906, when Abdosir I Elisshar restored the Lineage of Elissa to the Violet Throne. With the state more stable, the first true expedition to reconquer Qart Sur and Amuri Ka occurred in 908.



An eight year siege ensued, followed by a crushing defeat caused by an ambush during which the Mexica burned down a quarter of the city to stop their foe. Like Hannibal VI, Abdosir was assassinated and his young son of the same name assumed the throne under the decadent guidance of his mother, Aetheld Plantagenet, a Franco-Saxon.



In the year 948, the weak puppet Emperor died of cholera, after which his Elderly mother refused to surrender her control over the Violet Throne. The nobility revolted during the Twenty Year's Strife, during which the throne lay vacant. A compromise was reached in 968 when the twenty-one year old bastard of the Abdosir II named simply Barca, with the blessing of the clergy and support of the nobility of Nunay and Arsay, marched on Attiq with an army, deposing the petty noble who had declared himself "Protector of the Violet Throne". He then crowned himself Emperor Bodeshmun V, Blessed by God, Master of the Carthaginians and Will of the Violet Throne by his own right. In exchange for their support, he granted the nobility extensive rights, as well as abolishing the age old mercenary system with that of a levied army. The Carthaginian Empire, once very much top down, began to resemble many of the other contemporary European monarchies of the era. His birth place in Qart Attiq, near the walls of the city, became a holy site.



Bodeshmun raised troops following a decade of peace, so that the nobility and peasantry could recover from the scars of the turmoil, and set out to reconquer Amuri Ka. The troops arrived in 981, and began a nineteen year siege of Qart Sur. Following the death of the Chief Speaker Ahuizotl, victory was had over the Mexica, and an oppressed Carthaginian populace was liberated. When news got back to the aged emperor in December of the thousandth year of our lord, he is said to have exclaimed "The Empire is restored, and I am complete, my time as God's regent has ended" before dying on the spot. Though likely apocryphal, the Emperor did die in December of 1000, and was succeeded by his daughter, Arishat I.



Arishat, like Hannibal VI before her, desired the conquest of the Anglo-Saxons. By this point they had spread across the island and had established a personal union over the Scottish Crown and the Ducal Diadem of Northumbria. Dusting off the plans of Hannibal VI, followed by a thorough tour of the Britannic Isle, she formulated a plan to conquer a fair chunk of the island and made all the needed preparations over the course of the first thirty-six years of her reign. In 1036, with all the preparations in place, she set sail for Cornwall under the pretense of reconquering "rightful Carthaginian territory". At the same time Arishat sent letters to the Althing of Scotland and Thing of Northumbria, informing them of her invasion while also inviting them to rebel against the Anglo-Saxon yoke, becoming independent should they succeed. This was the start of the grueling but victorious Two Score War.



(ignore my friend in the bottom again)

 

[Lokki242]

Uh-oh...

 

[Impera]

Extra: List of Phoenician Emperors by the time of the Two Score War

0: Queen Elissa Elisshar (Ruled for 112 years) {Mythic}
Mythic Founder of Attiq and Leader of the Exodus. Often considered to be "Empress Zero"
Known as "The Legendary" or "The Divine"

I: King and Emperor (posthumous) Bodeshmun III Elisshar (599 to 627)
Reconquered Attiq from the Jews and Created the Phoenician Calendar. Granted the title Emperor after his death. Known as "The Restorer"

II: Emperor Hannibal IV Elisshar (628 to 692)
Abolished the Regnal Council (Council of Cities) and Declared himself Emperor. Won the Twelve Year's war and secured the rights of the Heirs of Elissa. Sent out the Expedition to the old Homeland. Known as "The Navigator"

III: Emperor Abdeshmun I Elisshar (692 to 703)
Completed his father's expedition and adopted many technological innovations made by the Greeks and Romans. Known as "The Wise"

IV: Empress Muttunbaal Elisshar (703 to 724)
Granted trade rights to a growing middle class amongst some of the city states, received envoys from a Macedonian expedition. Known as "The Lazy"

V: Emperor Hannibal V Elisshar (724 to 764)
Recovered a number of sacred relics and texts from the Arabs, went on a diplomatic expedition to Mecca and attempted to bring back a translation of the Qur'an. Known as "the Theologian"

VI: Emperor Bodeshmun IV Elisshar (764 to 796)
Moved the Imperial Court from Nun Hadasht to Attiq, centralized power to the House of Elissa, converted to Christianity and won the War of the Three Heretics. Exiled and Killed the few remaining Jews in Bodeshmunay (Eyr/Eire/Ireland) and reformed the Phoenician Empire into the Carthaginian Empire. Known as "The Holy", "The Victorious", and as "The Herald of the Lord's Sacred Will"

VII: Emperor Hiram IX Elisshar (796 to 839)
Established relations with the rising Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of Britannia and created the Violet Throne. Known as "The Peaceful"

VIII: Emperor Hannibal VI Elisshar (839 to 844)
Created a rough plan to conquer England. Lost the colonies in Amuri Ka to the Mexica people and was assassinated for his weakness. Known as "The Cursed"

IX: Emperor Aderbaal I Elisshar{Illegitimate} (844 to 856)
Bastard of Hannibal VI, Usurped the throne with the help of the nobility. Did little of note until his usurpation at the hands of Baalshillek I. Known as "The Idle"

X: Emperor Baalshillek I Nunika (856 to 860)
Noble from a cadet branch of the House of Elissa. Overthrew the weak but rightful King and delayed the effort to reclaim Amuri Ka. Overthrown by the Aderbaal II, son of the former king. Known as "The Fat."

XI: Emperor Aderbaal II Elisshar{Illegitimate} (856 to 879)
Ruled with the support of the clergy and nobility until his natural death. Did nothing to reclaim Amuri Ka. Known as "The Bastard".

XII: Emperor Aderbaal III Elisshar{Illegitimate} (880 to 894)
Ruled without the support his father enjoyed. Overthrown by the English mercenary leader Danel Saxonsson. Known as "The Spineless".

XIII: "Emperor" Danel Saxonsson (894 to 906)
Cowardly Usurper and filthy barbarian. Cared only for coin and lust. Was beaten in single combat by the rightful heir to the throne, Abdosir I Elisshar. Known as "The Usurper".

XIV: Emperor Abdosir I Elisshar (906 to 916)
Legitimate heir to the throne, descended from the line of Hannibal VI's youngest child and half-brother of the bastard Aderbaal I. Sent the first failed expedition to reclaim Amuri Ka. Married into Anglo-Frankish nobility. Known as "The Foolish"

XV: Emperor Abdosir II Elisshar (916 to 948)
Assumed the throne while still in his minority, was a puppet of his Plantagenet mother until his death in 948 from Cholera. Known as "The Puppet"

XVI: Empress-Regent Aetheld Plantagenet (948 to 968)
Claimed the Violet Throne for herself following the death of her son. Ruled with abject wickedness and cruelty. Purged the House of Elissa of nearly all it's kin. Was overthrown by the "Legitimate Bastard" Bodeshmun V. Known as "The Damned"

XVII: Emperor Bodeshmun V Elisshar (968 to 1000)
Born simply as Barca Abdosson. Issued the Decree of Qart Attiq which made a Bastard legitimate if and only if no other heir could be found. Reclaimed Amuri Ka and restored the rights of the nobility. Abolished the troublesome mercenary system with armies levied from the peasantry. Crowned himself Emperor Bodeshmun V, Blessed by God, Master of the Carthaginians and Will of the Violet Throne by his own right. Known as "The Righteous" and "The Legitimate Bastard"

XVIII: Empress Arishat I Elisshar (1000 to 1052)
Toured the Isle of Britannia and embarked on a well planned and righteous war to liberate rightful Phoenician territory, the Kingdom of Scotland, and the Duchy of Northumbria. Would successfully liberate liberate Qart Matinu (Plymouth). Died peacefully during the Two Score War. Known as "The Liberator"

 

[Gruekiller]

Stellar stuff so far!

 

[Impera]

The Tragedy of the Canaanites
Book VI: The Two Score War

Levied troops landed in 1036, and after spending three years cutting off Plymouth from the rest of England, defeating a two English relief forces, and taking a the last of the castles resisting them in the region, the siege of Plymouth began. It's important to note that both Northumbria and Scotland heeded the letters of the Empress Arishat, and revolted at this time. Desperate to keep his kingdom united, the English king ,Harold Harefoot, marched the bulk of his troops north to quell the revolt. Though he managed to take Northumbria in 1038, he met difficulties in Scotland, and was ambushed in 1040 a year into the Siege of Plymouth. Captured and killed by the Scottish forces, the Anglo-Saxons proclaimed Edward the confessor their new king, after a brief interregnum, in 1042



Only two months into his reign Edward learned of the Fall of Plymouth, and with it all of Cornwall, to the Carthaginians. Arishat demanded he relinquish the Throne of England and bestow it upon her, and offer which he refused.



Though Carthaginian forces managed to take Wales, they were prevented from marching on London due to large numbers of troops coming back from the campaign against a capitulated Scotland. This phase of the war, from 1042 to 1078, was a period of slow and painful march east by the Carthaginian forces. Edward died in 1066, as did Arishat in 1052. Harold Godwinson and Bodeshmun VI Elisshar become the new leaders of their respective realms, and in the Battle of the Thames in 1076, Bodeshmun would successfully ambush an English force lead by Godwinson which was attempted to break the siege of London. The English king was killed, and there would be no heir. The throne was offered the the aging William of Normandy, but pleasant relations between Bodeshmun and the King of France forced him to decline the offer. In 1078 London fell to Bodeshmun's forces, and he added King of England to his many titles.

In Scotland, a bastard Godwinson had with a Scottish noble woman would be crowned Alfred I, King of Scotland and Duke of Northumbria, and made peace with the Carthaginians. The Carthaginians were to keep control of Cornwall, Wales, and Southern England (now just England), in exchange for middle England being annexed by Northumbria, Bodeshmun renouncing all claims to the Throne of Scotland, and war reparations being paid to the Carthaginians. Returning home in victory, Bodeshmun VI, known as "The Conqueror", died peacefully in 1096.





Map of the Carthaginian Empire in the year 1096, following the death of Bodeshmun VI

 

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Tragedy of the Canaanites
Book VII: The Conquest of Britannia

A small succession crisis followed the death of Bodeshmun VI, and would last for two years, during which time the Violet Throne was vacant. The controversy stemmed from the Carthaginian method of succession, which generally had the former monarch appoint one of their children Chosen Heir, typically the youngest, who would succeed them in the event of death, Bodeshmun, who believed neither of his two legitimate sons to be eligible for the Violet Throne, chose his illegitimate, Norman son, Carolus, to succeed him. As per the Decree of Qart Attiq, bastards and illegitimate children were able to assume the Throne, but only in the absence of a legitimate heir. This caveat, combined with the Pseudo-Elective role played by the Council of the Purple-Born in confirming the ascension of the Chosen Heir, led to a three way deadlock among the two legitimate sons and Carolus. The crisis was resolved when Carolus, following the death of his uncle William of Normandy, inherited a retinue of Norman knights, which quietly entered Attiq and slew his competitors. With all legitimate heirs dead, William was now legally able to assume throne, beginning the Norman Branch of the House of Elisshar, which would rule the Empire until 1204. Three months after his coronation, word reached the Emperor of new from the south; Rome at fallen to his relative, Robert Guiscard, and a Norman-Puppet papacy had been established. A series of gifts would be exchanged between the two rulers, culminating in the (supposed) Lance of Longinus falling into Carthaginian hands.



Carolus would have a mostly peaceful, though intrigue-filled, reign focused on expanding trade and his own influence in the Imperial Court. In 1117, word would reach him about the pyrrhic Battle of the Red Stalks in Amuri Ka, which nearly lead to a revived Mexica Kingdom in the region. The brilliant general Aruka would save the battle, and with it the colonies, at a crucial point. Carolus was pleased, and rewarded the hero immensely.



Shortly before his death in 1132, Carolus would formalize a major trade agreement with the French king, kickstarting the fur trade and leading to a small boom in the Carthaginian Economy.



The Violet Throne would pass without issue to Carolus' son, William. An ambitious man, William sought to use his dynastic ties as a Norman to claim the Throne of Scotland. Careful preparations were made, and in 1147, everything was ready for the Thirty Years War (also known as the War of Scottish Succession) to begin, following the death of the Scottish king Robert Godwinson died without an heir and division among the Clans.



His claim to the throne pressed, William marched into Northumbria at the head of his Norman Cavalry, and gained a stunning victory at the Battle of Liverpool against the elite of the Scottish Army. In desperation, the Clans elected Robert the Brutal to act as King (without actually holding the throne) until the crisis could be resolved.



All of Northumbria was seized, however the Duke of Northumbria hid behind his castle walls in Newcastle (supposedly the old castle fell into a swamp), and resisted the Carthaginians for nine years, until at last the siege was over and the city was in the hands of William.



The finest of his soldiers would become part of an elite retinue known as "The Thunderers", forming the first Carthaginian Knights. They would be sent as a vanguard into Scotland after crossing into Ayrshire, and would advance to the gates of Edinburgh in 1159.



All forces would be gathered from around the Isle for the siege of the city, leaving only a skeleton force to safeguard the Kingdom of England. In order to reduce the unrest, William would rely on the age old tactic of "kill all the traitors", and to accomplish this he would manufacture famine all across England, leading to a virtual genocide of the Anglo-Saxons. The Britons and Celts, however, would be spared, and became devoutly loyal to the Carthaginians.



The city of Edinburgh was nearly stormed the same year that the Great Famine began, however poor timing meant that the Famine forced William to call off his attack before it could seize the city.



The city was fell in 1177, putting an end to Anglo-Saxon rule on Britannia. William, however, would die during the battle inside the city, and would be succeeded by his youngest son, Bohemond.



The last resistance to Carthaginian rule would die out by 1180, and Bohemond ruled over a stronger Carthage than every before, with it's population nearly doubled. However, like his father, he wish to curbed the power of the Anglo-Saxons, and the Great Famine continued unabated.





Map of the Empire in 1180, following the Conquest of Britannia by William the Ambitious