Jacob 'the Cursed'
King Jacob Blakfort (a.k.a. the Cursed)
Lived: 896 - 964
Ruled: 938 - 964
He didn't stop at his old territories. He invaded and successfully captured the cities of Rosrewich and Gladenna and their territories.
While the Blakfort forces were besieging Kingshill, the last remaining rebel stronghold, another group of chaos believers tried to gain independence. Jacob learned from his past mistakes and rejected their ultimatum. Exploiting the fact that the royal army was busy at a siege, the rebels took control of a few cities. Kingshill soon fell and the forces of Jacob were able to counter the rebellious counts. Using clever tactics, Jacob managed to corner the rebel army and managed to kill their leader. The rebel forces fled and the counts surrendered in 947.
Even though Jacob was more cunning after his pilgrimage, he could not foresee that the duchess of Avadell allied himself with a Scovonian Kingdom. The Scovonian troops arrived unexpectedly and drove him back. Their army was more than twice the size of Blakfort's and the inital success quickly turned into a failure. In 952, Jacob signed a white peace with the duchess of Avadell to avoid further bloodshed. Following a few years of peace and rebuilding, he pressed his claim on Striflucas once again. This time, he made sure that the duchess had no allies to save her. Shortly after, the Brican Duchy declared war on the Krovian Kingdom, which was severely weakened at this time. As an honourable ally, Jacob answered their call to war, but couldn't send aid until his own war was over. Fortunately he didn't need to as both wars ended in a victory in 961. During the siege of Striflucas, Jacob found the crown of a long forgotten ruler in the tombs beneath the city. He found the crown to be perfect for himself and decreed that crown to be the official crown of Blakfort from there on.
To make matters worse, Jacob's daughter, who was also present at the siege of Striflucas, started showing symptoms as well and died in a few weeks. This broke his resolve and worsened his own illness. He made his way back to Austium as soon as he could without receiving any help from the healers of Lagburg.
Upon his return in 963, he broke the truce with the duchess of Avadell and declared a war of subjugation on her. He knew that he won't live to see the end of the war, but wanted to grant this parting gift to his heir. While an inherited war might not be considered a gift, this war was easy to win, but hard to start. While his reputation was tarnished for braking the truce, his heir would be free of that burden.
A few days later, his wife also started showing symptoms of the affliction and it quickly took her life as well. Jacob was only barely holding onto his life at this point as the illness ravaged his body. He refused to be killed by a disease however and decided to end his own life in 964. Before that, he instructed the members of his court to burn his body. The disease was named Jacob's Curse by scholars of the time.
Ruled: 938 - 964
Overview
Jacob differed from his father quite a bit. While he was an Honest and Generous man, his Gluttony was famed throughout the kingdom. Despite his name, he was a Tough, Unyielding Soldier while his father ruled and became a Gallant and Intelligent ruler.Early reign
He inherited the war against the Krovian Kingdom and was determined to win it. After the Oathmen swore fealty, he immediately left Austium to lead his troops personally on the battlefield. While he was a ruthless commander on the field of battle, his heart was broken when he received a message from his wife that their son died to a mysterious disease. Despite their best efforts, the healers and mages of the kingdom were unable to cure his affliction. He later turned out to be his only son. To make matters worse, the Kaolite population of Avadell and Thurukya gave an ultimatum to the newly crowned ruler. Jacob's judgement was clouded by grief as he accepted their demands. The newly conquered territories declared their independence. A few weeks later the son and heir of the Krovian king was found while escaping their besieged capital and the Krovians were forced to surrender. In 940, a duke within the Atacodian Kingdom decided to attack the weakened Blakfort Kingdom and invaded with an army full of elven mercenaries. The Blakfort army was no match for the invaders. After many failed attempts at stopping the invasion, Jacob was forced to surrender in 941, after most of his commanders, along with his brother were slain at the battle of Conlus. This defeat earned him the derogatory nickname of 'The Disgrace'.The Restoration
He was deeply ashamed of his rule thus far and sought the wisdom of the gods. Following his grandfather's footsteps he decided to make the pilgrimage to the Grand Cathedral of Lagburg in 942. On his journey, he met the queen of another kingdom, which was following the Order for centuries at that point. The queen granted him insight into the inner workings of the Great Mechanism and thus, the world. This turned out to be the most important event during his pilgrimage. Upon his return, Jacob was a different man. With renewed determination, he started working on restoring his honour and reputation. A year later, he declared a holy war on the Kaolite counts that declared their independence a few years earlier. This was later called the Restoration War. In the next 3 years, he managed to take back all of his lost territory one by one.He didn't stop at his old territories. He invaded and successfully captured the cities of Rosrewich and Gladenna and their territories.
While the Blakfort forces were besieging Kingshill, the last remaining rebel stronghold, another group of chaos believers tried to gain independence. Jacob learned from his past mistakes and rejected their ultimatum. Exploiting the fact that the royal army was busy at a siege, the rebels took control of a few cities. Kingshill soon fell and the forces of Jacob were able to counter the rebellious counts. Using clever tactics, Jacob managed to corner the rebel army and managed to kill their leader. The rebel forces fled and the counts surrendered in 947.
House of Warriors
Following the Restoration War, Jacob decided to add to the traditions of the Blakfort house and made it into a House of Warriors. All future Blakfort rulers were to receive military training as well as extensive combat training. During 947, his uncle and duke of Avadell died and his titles passed on to his niece, who was a Brican ruler. This meant that Avadell was no longer a vassal duchy of Blakfort. Jacob found this unacceptable, and started working on a plan to regain his lost territory once again. The problem was that Avadell was not lawfully part of his kingdom, so he needed to find a proper reason to attack it. In 949, the Probare visited Blakfort and Jacob convinced him that Striflucas was actually a part of Lacager. With the Probare at his side, Jacob demanded the city, which was rejected as expected. This gave Jacob a reason to attack his old territories.Even though Jacob was more cunning after his pilgrimage, he could not foresee that the duchess of Avadell allied himself with a Scovonian Kingdom. The Scovonian troops arrived unexpectedly and drove him back. Their army was more than twice the size of Blakfort's and the inital success quickly turned into a failure. In 952, Jacob signed a white peace with the duchess of Avadell to avoid further bloodshed. Following a few years of peace and rebuilding, he pressed his claim on Striflucas once again. This time, he made sure that the duchess had no allies to save her. Shortly after, the Brican Duchy declared war on the Krovian Kingdom, which was severely weakened at this time. As an honourable ally, Jacob answered their call to war, but couldn't send aid until his own war was over. Fortunately he didn't need to as both wars ended in a victory in 961. During the siege of Striflucas, Jacob found the crown of a long forgotten ruler in the tombs beneath the city. He found the crown to be perfect for himself and decreed that crown to be the official crown of Blakfort from there on.
The Sickness
A year into the war, Jacob suddenly fell very ill after the siege of Striflucas. His healers and mages couldn't understand the affliction and no amount of magic seemed to heal the disease. The best they could do was to lessen his symptoms. After the siege was over, he left the city and the symptoms of his disease started to disappear. While he was never completely cured of the illness, he became well enough to continue.Jacob's Curse
During the second siege of Striflucas, the same disease appeared. This time, the symptoms were less severe, but they remained after leaving the city. The illness wasn't contagious, so Jacob decided to travel to Lagburg, which was home to fabled healers and priests. Unfortunately, the symptoms seemed to worsen on his way to the city and when he reached the Grand Cathedral, he was basically infirm.To make matters worse, Jacob's daughter, who was also present at the siege of Striflucas, started showing symptoms as well and died in a few weeks. This broke his resolve and worsened his own illness. He made his way back to Austium as soon as he could without receiving any help from the healers of Lagburg.
Upon his return in 963, he broke the truce with the duchess of Avadell and declared a war of subjugation on her. He knew that he won't live to see the end of the war, but wanted to grant this parting gift to his heir. While an inherited war might not be considered a gift, this war was easy to win, but hard to start. While his reputation was tarnished for braking the truce, his heir would be free of that burden.
A few days later, his wife also started showing symptoms of the affliction and it quickly took her life as well. Jacob was only barely holding onto his life at this point as the illness ravaged his body. He refused to be killed by a disease however and decided to end his own life in 964. Before that, he instructed the members of his court to burn his body. The disease was named Jacob's Curse by scholars of the time.
Relationships
Legacy
- House of Warriors
- Jacob's Curse
Major Events
- 941 - Battle of Conlus
- 943-946 - The Restoration War
Territory Gained
Territory Lost
Avadell
Thurukya
Species
Ethnicity
Previously Held Ranks & Titles
Life
896 AU
964 AU
Family
Spouses
Sanja Kral
(Wife)
Pribena Usti
(Wife)
Siblings
Comments