¤ Noble families and Government of Bretonnia


    Charles Blois, Charles III de la Tête d'Or, King of Bretonnia, age:27
    Pulcrezzia Colonna, daughter of the Duke of Remas in Tilea, 2nd Wife of Charles III, Queen of Bretonnia, age:16


 
oisillon

Government members

The State Council :


Noble Factions at court


    The King's court at the great Oisillon Palace is a huge and diverse mix of nobles and favour-seekers assembled from across the kingdom and beyond. To try and help make some sense of the complex situation and summarise the information above, here is a brief list of the factions to be found at the court in order of size and influence;

THE ROYAL FACTION:
The King's own clients and extended relatives; a very large faction who openly interfere and get dragged into the machinations of other groups, with little group dynamic of their own and several leaders with conflicting interests. Few if any would, however, desert the King's patronage. They include the King's brothers, Guillaume and Tancred; his uncle Blaize (though he is rarely at court); the King's favourite, Louis Villeroi; and the Viscomte de Brossard, Governor of Guisoreux, as well as numerous other officials and nobles dotted around the land.

THE CARDINAL'S FACTION:
The King's Prime Minister, his friends and his dependants; many are attracted to the Cardinal by his current level of influence, and were this to be diminished so would his faction decline in numbers. The Cardinal is generally opposed to the De Semblancy, and anyone else who gets too big for their boots can expect him to oppose them.

THE DE SEMBLANCY FAMILY:
François de Semblancy, Duc de Lyonnais and Marshal of Bretonnia, together with his own clients and relatives, including his wife, Annette, sister to King Charles; and Nicholas Fouquet, Comte de Sarlat and Secretary of State at Despatches. They are bitterly opposed to the Cardinal, 'noblesse de robe' and the Capucinet family; in general they are arch-conservatives who distrust any new measure that could compromise their position.

THE GRANVELLE FAMILY:
Led at court by Pierre Granvelle, Minister of Finance and son of Bernard Granvelle, Comte de Perrac (who is based in l’Anguille); supported by his brothers and clients, most of whom are comparatively new into the aristocracy and politics. They have a good working relationship with the Cardinal and the King, but encounter varying levels of hostility from other, more established nobles, in particular the De Semblancy. The Granvelle are open rivals with the Loiseau family, and the de Cabourg family and the Knights of the Holy Blood detest them.

THE AMBOISE FAMILY:
Dynamically led at court by Hubert de la Motte, Marquis de Frejus, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and the King's cousin; also many nobles from Gascogne. The official head of the family is Jules Blois, Duc de Gascogne and uncle to Charles III; he is not active in politics and remains in Bordeleaux with his wife Blanche. The Amboise faction get on fairly well with all the other factions and have many allies in the Blois family thanks to Hubert's royal blood.

THE CAPUCINET FAMILY:
As the family head, the Duc of Navarre, is reluctant to leave his own lands, the faction at court is led by his brother Alphonse Capucinet, who is accompanied by a number of fellow Navarrese aristocrats; they bring an unsavoury reputation and an ancestral feud with the De Semblancy to the Oisillon Palace. Other factions are still trying to determine exactly what the Capucinet want at court and if the Duc of Navarre's wishes are compatible with their own.

The Religious Faction

Not really a faction in itself; comprises all the great clerics in the land, who are obliged by tradition to sit together when the King is present. At varying times all seven Cardinals (of the cults of Shallya, Myrmidia, Verena, Taal, Morr, Manann and Ulric) and the kingdom's Archeveques and Eveques (archbishops and bishops) attend. Nearly all who regularly come to court are affiliated with one of the other factions, whose interests they support. Most of the Cardinals are involved with one of the courtly factions, and many have blood ties with the nobility.
Below are listed the seven Cardinals, where they are based and the factions they support:

Minor Factions

THE KNIGHTS OF THE HOLY BLOOD:
Small but vociferous group of old-fashioned knights and impoverished aristocrats, mostly from Armorique led by Leoncoeur, the King's champion. Advocate war and very conservative ideals, especially on religion.

THE ARTOIS FAMILY:
Old military family from eastern Flandres who refuse to bow down to the advances of Cardinal Dumourieux. Led by Paul d'Artois, who is slowly winning the allegiance of other Flandres nobles opposed to the Cardinal. Quietly allied with the De Semblancy faction.

THE DE CABOURG FAMILY:
Represent the staunch, proud and independent section of Armorique's old-style aristocracy. Descended from the Norse settlers of northern Armorique with some links to the Ulrican faith and led by the soldier Guillaume de Cabourg. Most of the time Alf-André de Negrepelisse associates with them. Support the De Semblancy by default, but are reluctant to enter into any firm alliance. Hate the Granvelle and the Loiseau families.

THE LOISEAU FAMILY:
A landed family from Armorique who have taken on the Granvelle and the noblesse de robe at their own game. Seen as traitors by some nobles. Led by Henri Loiseau, Duc de l'Anguille, whose clients include Xavier Gevaudan, the Governor of l'Anguille, and admiral Marouanec. He is in direct competition with the Granvelle family and has closest relations with the Blois family. Generally more concerned with advancing his own power than forging alliances.

Others

    There are many other individuals and groups at court who are not linked with any of the major factions. These include nobles who simply have no ties to the great families, foreigners (including ambassadors) and some individuals who are asked by the King to attend the court; military officers, lawyers, clerks, doctors, wizards, academics and others can all be found at various time.

¤ In Search of Bretonnia 21-11-2005