Kojata 'the Blessed'
King Kojata Blakfort (a.k.a. the Blessed)
Lived: 1039 - 1099
Ruled: 1080 - 1099
Ruled: 1080 - 1099
Overview
Kojata was an Honest man, like most members of his dynasty, but he was also a Compassionate and Generous ruler, who wanted the best for his people and was willing to pay its price. As a Charismatic Negotiator, he preferred diplomacy over warfare, but unfortunately he couldn't avoid being drawn into conflicts time and time again.Early Reign
Even before his first day as king, Kojata made alliances with foreign rulers and made quite a few friends from among his soon-to-be vassals. When his father died, he took his place and took part in the coronation where all of his vassals swore fealty, ending the unruly period of the Dukes of Avadell. With the Eternal Crown on his head and the King of Scovonia and the Empress of Elluin as his allies, he had a promising start. While these allies were very powerful and could win him the war against Atacodia that his father left to him, they were too far away. In 1081, a horrific event took place. The Sacking of Austium began as Atacodian troops breached the city walls and sacked the city. Their onslaught was only stopped when they reached the castle court, where Kojata called for a meeting with the besieging commander. They agreed to meet and Kojata surrendered to the Atacodian King a few days later. Kojata didn't give up the territories lost by his father however. He began to wait for the right moment to strike. In 1084, the war with Ostatoras ended and it was time to rebuild. Kojata was busy making friend and alliances while he waited for the Atacodian King to die. He sowed seeds of distrust between his heirs and hoped that with the death of the ruling monarch, his kingdom would collapse and erupt in a civil war.The Reclamation
In 1089, his plans came to fruition as the Atacodian King died from old age and his kingdom fell apart. Palager became independent and the new king of Atacodia found himself under attack by his brothers and sisters. He took action and conquered some of the lost territory by force. The lords didn't stand a chance against the armies of Blakfort and were quickly subjugated within a year. Following his conquests, he returned to governing the kingdom. Learning from the mistakes of his father, he didn't want to anger the population by constant warring. Two years passed without any conflict, when the bane of the Blakfort dynasty, Jacob's Curse found him. The trusted elven mage, Strunitor Braidbeard was called upon once again and started working. A few months later, a miraculous discovery allowed Strunitor to completely heal the king from the ailment. The method became a closely guarded secret. This Treasured Knowledge set the precedence for further members of the dynasty, who began to realize the importance of information.Political play
A year later the Duke of Avadell married the Queen of Merendell ensuring that the future rulers of Merendell come from the Blakfort dynasty as well. In the same year, Kojata's youngest son reached adulthood, but started to show effects of possession. With the help of the Primas, he managed to keep it under control however. In 1094, the area to the north east of Norwich was made part of Avadell. The territory was part of Palager previously, but Kojata deemed it important to make the change. In the following year, the Dukes of Palager and Kerev petitioned Kojata to become his vassals in exchange for their protection. He gladly accepted and the kingdom grew.The Holy War
In 1094, a never before seen sermon was held by the Probare. The Dark Elves of South (Dhaerenuiin Impaerin) enslaved several members of the Order who travelled to their land to spread their faith. The Probare urged all followers of the Order to take up arms and invade the land of the Dark Elves. The enslaved priests were to be freed and some of the Dark Elven lands conquered. After a year of planning, in 1095, the Probare declared Holy War in the name of Order and all of the kingdoms that heeded his call began sailing to the land of the Dark Elves. Kojata personally lead the Royal Army of Blakfort, along with the Blak Guard. He did leave most of his mages behind however as they were mostly elves and he feared that they might side with the enemy. Kojata marched his army through the Kingdom of Atacodia and joined King Heinrich VII of Atacodia on his journey to the land of the Dark Elves. They reached the Dark Land a few months later and began capturing smaller settlements around the coast. Kojata was more ambitious however and marched his forces to the city of Yi'riila, one of the most sacred cities of the Dhaerenuii. The Dark Elves, threatened by the large armies gathering on their shore stood by and watched their holy city being captured by Blakfort warriors. After establishing a small garrison in the city, Kojata demolished all temples and sacred sites in the city, but had enough empathy to allow the elves to evacuate the city beforehand. After that was finished, he marched out and started capturing other cities as well. While his army army was smaller than the elves', he relied on his fellow members of the Order to aid him in time of need. In 1098, his faith in his fellow humans failed him, as the Dark Elves descended upon his army with magic and beasts that his fighters have never seen before. The initial shock quickly faded as the battle ensued, but Kojata had no choice but to retreat as his reinforcement did not arrive. After he withdrew to the shores of the Dark Land, he immediately reorganized his army and marched straight back as the humans engaged in a gigantic battle with the elves. The Battle of Yi'riila was the largest battle in history up to that point. Tens of thousands of humans, dwarves, horses, war machines and even centaurs clashed with thousands of elves on the field of battle. The battle lasted for months with skirmishes, nightly raids and open-field battles that took place daily. While the Dark Elves killed way more than the Order, they couldn't stand against the sheer number of combatants and lost the battle. The Dark Elves couldn't recover from this defeat and the Order won the war. The Dark Elves were forced to give up all human slaves who followed the Order as well as the territories taken from them, including their holy city of Yi'riila. The Probare deemed Kojata the most noble of those that fought for the Order and gave him the honour to name the governor for the newly conquered territory. After a few weeks of thinking, Kojata named his niece, Bertha Blakfort as his beneficiary as she was the most noble of his dynasty after himself. Thus, the first Righteous Queen of Yi'riila was crowned in 1099.End of His Reign
Following the ceremonies, Kojata returned to Austium and founded the Lacrian Legion of the Pilgrims of Yi'riila in the Dark Land, or Pilgrimite Legion for short in Orilum. This turned out to be his last deed as his old age took his life a few days later.
Legacy
- Cure of Jacob's Curse
- Treasured Knowledge
- Righteous Kingdom of Yi'riila
- Lacrian Legion of the Pilgrims of Yi'riila in the Dark Land (Pilgrimite Legion)
Major Events
- 1081 - Sacking of Austium
- 1091 - Jacob's Curse Cured
- 1095-1099 - Holy War in the name of the Order
- 1098 - Battle of Yi'riila
Territory Gained
Palager
Kerev
South Brica
Species
Ethnicity
Previously Held Ranks & Titles
Life
1039 AU
1099 AU
Family
Children
Comments