Gerard Dunheuvelin: Saint-Slayer and Rebel Leader

Gerard Dunheuvelin was the second son of Earl Ulrich Dunheuvelin and Aoife (pronounced Ee-fa; née Trevithick). He is believed to have played on the common's insecurities in the decades following the Raskvaerii Invasion of Kredashmi, and was the lead instigator of the seditious rumours that led to the Dunheuvelin Uprising and the Battle of Alahnis. Gerard is infamous within the Raskvaerii Empire for calling the Last Dunheuvelin out of hiding, and for Martyring Saint-König Miron.

Early Life and Childhood

Gerard Dunheuvelin was born in Draakhohen Castle, during the last few years of clan rule over the Fuurveld. His parents' marriage appears to have been a love match rather than a political arrangement. Gerard's mother, Aoife, had accompanied her parents to Kredashmi when her father, Cadfan Trevithick, was appointed the Varsii ambassador to Kredshmi.
His Kredasene grandfather, Elroy Dunheuvelin, held the eminent position of Master of the König's dragons. By the time of Gerard's birth, Elroy had already decreed that his fifteen-month older brother, Otto, would become a dragon rider. It was assumed that Gerard would also be allocated a similar position within the König's Dragons. This changed after the Invasion of Kredashmi. Gerard's uncles, Frederic and Elroy, were both killed: Frederic died while fighting with his dragon, but Elroy is assumed to have died in a skirmish with Rasvkaerii soldiers. After these tragedies, Gerard's grandfather dismissed Ulrich Dunheuvelin from his position with the König's Dragons. Otto was similarly stripped of Elroy's blessing to become a rider. With their father now poised to become clan leader after the death of their grandfather, Otto and Gerard were demoted to the station of 'the heir and the spare'.
Both of their grandfathers died in the Final Battle for the Invasion of Kredashmi. Their mother gave birth to a third son on the eve of the battle, who was named Cadfiell in honour of both men. She would later die from complications due to the birth. Ulrich Dunheuvelin, who was captured during the battle, was later granted the restyled title of Earl of the Vuurfeld. Historians believe that the tumultous political, social and religious upheavals following the Invasion meant that he was not a present father, and that the job of raising his young sons fell largely to their maternal grandmother, Jowcasta Trevithick.

Marriage and Betrayal

When Gerard was seventeen years old, he was informed of Königin Josefeien Therese's decision to have him married to Elske Mollenhorst. Elske had been the only child of an eminent advisor of the last Kredasene König, Henryk Rhaelen. She had been raised in the new Kredasene court, and the marriage had been arranged to honour Ulrich Dunheuvelin's loyalty to the new regime. As Otto had already refused the match himself, Gerard was forced into accepting the marriage.
Gerard and Elske had one son, Lazarev Dunheuvelin. After the mysterious death of Otto Dunheuvelin, Elske and her infant son were invited to attend Königin Josefeien Therese at court while the remaining Dunheuvelin men were ordered to meet with König Miron on the coast to discuss a process of reconciliation between the family and the Crown, following the death of Otto. It was only after a ship had left port and had sailed for some time before the first term of their reconcillation was announced. The child, Lazarev, and his mother had never made it to court. They had been forcibly escorted to a ship and removed to the Raskvaerii Imperial Court in Latharin.

Perhaps this is what it takes to ensure the obedience and loyalty of your sons, Dunheuvelin. Perhaps the only way to rid the Raven's shadow and treason from their hearts is to have your grandson removed to my father's court, to be raised away from these dangerous influences of their father and uncles, and their heathan beliefs.

— König Miron to Ulrich Dunheuvelin

It is said that Gerard watched the ship disappear behind the horrizon. Some contemporary eyewitness accounts say that his expression remained impassive or cold; others say, when he finally spurred his horse around and rode away, the fury was clearly etched across his face. He did not wait for the König to dismiss him, and was further punished for insubordination.
To do...

• Rumours and seditious speech

• The Witch of Boerhaaven

• The Battle of Alahnis

Gerard Dunheuvelin by Caitlin Phillips