King Rousel III "Le Marteau de Dieu"
King of Tiranar and Lord of the Halsats Rousel Merobaud-Du Palais (a.k.a. Le Marteau de Dieu (The Hammer of God)
The conqueror of Kantrya, subjugator of the Grezland march, and the great victor against the Hurrites. King Rousel III would be the second ruler of the Halsat "La grande époque" or "Great Era" and is considered the last strong Merobaud king to rule Tiranar.
Physical Description
General Physical Condition
A strong and powerful man well accustomed to the martial life he lived. Rousel was an athletic and well-trained man at arms and a fierce and aggressive warrior in the melee.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
The eldest son of King Romel II Notre Roi Béni and his wife, the Stracian princess Urrace, Rousel Merobaud was born in the first year of his father's reign and was given the childhood nickname of "La Couvaison" or "The Brooder" for his temperament in his father's court as well as his dark, black hair. Prince Rousel grew up on his family's land holdings in Maroux which is where the Prince learned and was tutored by one Jean d'Gourvia, a member of his father's inner circle of knights and a man who was known as "le Maréchal" or "The Marshal" for his bravery and command in battle during both the reigns of Rousel and his father. In contrast to his peace-loving father, Rousel was a martial and chivalrous boy who is said to have once bested his own father in a sparring match between the two when Rousel was only fourteen.
During his father's reign, Rousel was a skilled tourney jouster and a melee fighter. During his early twenties, he participated in melees, and jousts and was known to have popularized the "Pas 'armes" or Passage of Arms in which Rousel would stake out a spot such as a bridge or a city gate and challenge any armed man to combat or be disgraced. Not only did these displays increase Rousel's own personal prowess in arms, but they also made his name renowned in the capital as a Prince who would engage with his people and act according to the popular ideas of Royal Chivalry.
In 636 A.E, the mentally suffering King Romel finally died and Rousel was propelled to the crown, being coronated by Patriarch Henri in 637 A.E. Rousel inherited a dispute in the northlands of his kingdom with the various petty Kings of Kantyra who had asked his father to mediate disputes between them over land ownership. Due to King Romel's mental illness, he was not able to attend to these disputes which had now spiraled out of control. Rousel responded by invading the region in 637 A.E and despite continual problems brought on by guerrilla fighters in Kantyra, by 652 A.E, had claimed much of the region for himself, tasking his younger brother Amaury as Lord Overseer of the area.
In 656 A.E, Rousel and his brother Amaury led an allied Ecclesial force that defeated the Hurrite forces in Heskia led by Katrien van Evre who died in the fighting. The crushing of the Hurrite forces by the Prince would stop their spread into Tiranar and establish the kingdom as a bastion of Ecclesial power while Menscha and Jurane were forced to negotiate with the religious sect and grant them rights of tolerance. For his role in preventing the Hurrites from gaining a foothold in Tiranar, Patriarch Henri declared Rousel, "The venerable and righteous defender of the first daughter of the church and the holy Hammer of God", the latter part of this becoming the nickname of the King. Rousel was not finished in the east as he remained in the region for some time, seizing lands belonging to the former Hurrite lords there and expelling them across the Rhor where they took up with their fellow Hurrites and fought the Salians under their King Reiner Hohengoff.
After expelling the last of the Hurrites, Rousel created the March of Grezland which brought the border of the Kingdom of Tiranar formally to the western shore of the Rhor. King Rousel then tasked his brother Amaury with leading a raiding campaign on the Hurrites east of the Rhor which in truth was directed toward the Salians who Rousel hoped would offer him ransoms and payments for the cessation of hostilities. Instead of what he expected, King Reiner led a force of his own that routed Amaury and united the Salian nobles behind their new King. In the spring of 659 A.E, King Rousel led a royal army against the Salians and was met by an equally strong Salic army commanded by Duke Matyas Gryf of Zemoren on behalf of the King of Menscha. The Battle of Loire was fought in western Heskia and saw the Halsat army routed by heavily armored Salic knights and stopped the Halsat advance into Salic lands. King Rousel was forced to make peace and the territories he gained east of the Rhor were returned to the Salians and he was forced to make a vow never to make war on Menscha again.
Recoiling from his defeat, Rousel returned to Caistnac in 662 A.E but soon became ill and died suddenly in his bed at the age of 58. King Rousel died as the final strong ruler of the Merobaud dynasty and the throne was left to his incapable son Romel III who would famously be usurped by the prominent Mayor of the Palace Tancred de Marteau who would install his son Hasculf onto the throne and begin a new royal line. The Merobaud cause was finally lost with the defeat of Rousel's nephew Teralt by Odo de Marteau.
During his father's reign, Rousel was a skilled tourney jouster and a melee fighter. During his early twenties, he participated in melees, and jousts and was known to have popularized the "Pas 'armes" or Passage of Arms in which Rousel would stake out a spot such as a bridge or a city gate and challenge any armed man to combat or be disgraced. Not only did these displays increase Rousel's own personal prowess in arms, but they also made his name renowned in the capital as a Prince who would engage with his people and act according to the popular ideas of Royal Chivalry.
In 636 A.E, the mentally suffering King Romel finally died and Rousel was propelled to the crown, being coronated by Patriarch Henri in 637 A.E. Rousel inherited a dispute in the northlands of his kingdom with the various petty Kings of Kantyra who had asked his father to mediate disputes between them over land ownership. Due to King Romel's mental illness, he was not able to attend to these disputes which had now spiraled out of control. Rousel responded by invading the region in 637 A.E and despite continual problems brought on by guerrilla fighters in Kantyra, by 652 A.E, had claimed much of the region for himself, tasking his younger brother Amaury as Lord Overseer of the area.
In 656 A.E, Rousel and his brother Amaury led an allied Ecclesial force that defeated the Hurrite forces in Heskia led by Katrien van Evre who died in the fighting. The crushing of the Hurrite forces by the Prince would stop their spread into Tiranar and establish the kingdom as a bastion of Ecclesial power while Menscha and Jurane were forced to negotiate with the religious sect and grant them rights of tolerance. For his role in preventing the Hurrites from gaining a foothold in Tiranar, Patriarch Henri declared Rousel, "The venerable and righteous defender of the first daughter of the church and the holy Hammer of God", the latter part of this becoming the nickname of the King. Rousel was not finished in the east as he remained in the region for some time, seizing lands belonging to the former Hurrite lords there and expelling them across the Rhor where they took up with their fellow Hurrites and fought the Salians under their King Reiner Hohengoff.
After expelling the last of the Hurrites, Rousel created the March of Grezland which brought the border of the Kingdom of Tiranar formally to the western shore of the Rhor. King Rousel then tasked his brother Amaury with leading a raiding campaign on the Hurrites east of the Rhor which in truth was directed toward the Salians who Rousel hoped would offer him ransoms and payments for the cessation of hostilities. Instead of what he expected, King Reiner led a force of his own that routed Amaury and united the Salian nobles behind their new King. In the spring of 659 A.E, King Rousel led a royal army against the Salians and was met by an equally strong Salic army commanded by Duke Matyas Gryf of Zemoren on behalf of the King of Menscha. The Battle of Loire was fought in western Heskia and saw the Halsat army routed by heavily armored Salic knights and stopped the Halsat advance into Salic lands. King Rousel was forced to make peace and the territories he gained east of the Rhor were returned to the Salians and he was forced to make a vow never to make war on Menscha again.
Recoiling from his defeat, Rousel returned to Caistnac in 662 A.E but soon became ill and died suddenly in his bed at the age of 58. King Rousel died as the final strong ruler of the Merobaud dynasty and the throne was left to his incapable son Romel III who would famously be usurped by the prominent Mayor of the Palace Tancred de Marteau who would install his son Hasculf onto the throne and begin a new royal line. The Merobaud cause was finally lost with the defeat of Rousel's nephew Teralt by Odo de Marteau.
Education
Tutored by the respected Jean "le Maréchal" d'Gourvia at the Merobaud estate in Maroux
Employment
Tiranar Crown Prince and War Leader
King of Tiranar
King of Tiranar
Accomplishments & Achievements
Famed tourney and melee fighter in his time as Crown Prince
Conquered and vassalized Kantyra
Victorious at the Battle of Casaul against the Hurrites led by Katrien van Evre
Prevented Hurrite influence from growing in Tiranar
Expanded the Kingdom to the western shore of the Rhor river
Conquered and vassalized Kantyra
Victorious at the Battle of Casaul against the Hurrites led by Katrien van Evre
Prevented Hurrite influence from growing in Tiranar
Expanded the Kingdom to the western shore of the Rhor river
Failures & Embarrassments
Defeated in the Battle of Loire by King Franz Hohengoff
Defeated and forced to sign a treaty with the Salic king
His rule ended the succession of strong Merobaud rulers
His neglect of his son caused him to be unfit for rule
Defeated and forced to sign a treaty with the Salic king
His rule ended the succession of strong Merobaud rulers
His neglect of his son caused him to be unfit for rule
Personality Characteristics
Motivation
Maintain the hegemony of Tiranar and protect it from corruptive influences both secular and religious
Virtues & Personality perks
Ambitious
Energetic
Determined
Decisive
Energetic
Determined
Decisive
Vices & Personality flaws
Self-Centered
Hubristic
Stubborn
Dismissive
Arbitrary
Hubristic
Stubborn
Dismissive
Arbitrary
Social
Contacts & Relations
Ward of Jean d'Gourvia during his time as Crown Prince
Rival of the King of Menscha and the Salians, Franz I Hohengoff
Rival of the King of Menscha and the Salians, Franz I Hohengoff
Family Ties
Son of Romel II and Queen Urrace of Iziq
Older brother of Prince Amaury and Princess Aliénor Merobaud
Father of King Romel III
Uncle of Teralt Merobaud
Cousin of Mayor Redald de Marteau
Older brother of Prince Amaury and Princess Aliénor Merobaud
Father of King Romel III
Uncle of Teralt Merobaud
Cousin of Mayor Redald de Marteau
Religious Views
Fervently zealous, Rousel was a pious man and a firm believer in his Ecclesial right to rule over his Kingdom. A man who demanded to be awakened to the sound of Ecclesial hymns, Rousel attended worship in a constructed chapel he built for himself that was built into the royal palace. His conflict with the Hurrites under Katrien van Evre was seen by him as a holy war and a cause from God to prove the faith of him and his subjects.
Social Aptitude
"As far as a bow is from a fired arrow, was our King Rousel from his father the Blessed King Romel"
This was the account given in the private correspondence of Patriarch Henri to members of his entourage during the period of Rousel's invasion of Great Salia prior to the Battle of Loire. Rousel was a man headstrong in the belief of his own righteousness and stubborn as a mule toward anything differing from that vision of his. He could be an emotional and closed-off man and this is what is largely seen as the cause of his neglect of his son Romel who grew up as a vain, decadent, and delusional man throughout his life.
Speech
Terse and heavy-handed, Rousel was a commander of respect and a belligerent man when he felt it was denied to him. He spoke clearly when he wished to but could quickly become enraged if he decided he was not being shown the proper reverence or respect. in correspondence, he was short in words and full of double meanings which not only confused the recipient but also frustrated those beneath him.
Ethnicity
Date of Birth
21st of Cavelt
Date of Death
18th of Marce
Life
605 A.E
663 A.E
58 years old
Circumstances of Birth
Son of Romel II and his wife Queen Urrace in the first year of his reign
Circumstances of Death
Died of a strong fever in his sleep
Birthplace
Maroux, Vaseau
Place of Death
Caistnac, Vaseau
Family
Children
Gender
Male
Eyes
Dark Brown
Hair
Medium, wavy Black Hair and Beard
Skin Tone/Pigmentation
White
Height
5'10
Weight
190 lbs
Quotes & Catchphrases
"By God, if not for that murky field in Salia, I would be Emperor of the world!"
Belief/Deity
The Mundana Ecclesia
Aligned Organization
Other Affiliations
Hasdinian
Arish
Lakic
(Duke Matyas Gryf, leading the Salic army at the Battle of Loire)
(Sir Jean d'Gourvia, otherwise known as "le Maréchal", teacher of Rousel II and captain of the King's Royal Chevaliers)
Comments