Emma of Jerovitz

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Emma of Jerovitz The Queen consort of Hanseti-Ruska Emma c. 1840 Queen-Consort of Hanseti-Ruska Tenure: 1838-1873 Predecessor: Annika of Reza Successor: Amadea of Susa Born: 18th of the Deep Cold, 1818, Viscounty of Krusev, Kingdom of Haense Death: n/a Spouse: Sigismund III (m. 1836) House: Kortrevich Father: Rickard, "The Builder", Viscount of Krusev Mother: Erika Lorena Vanir

Emma Karenina (Common: Emma ), regally Emma of Jerovitz, is Queen-Consort of Hanseti-Ruska through her marriage to Sigismund III of Haense in 1836.

Early life (1818-1838)

Emma Karenina Kortrevich was born to Viscount Rickard and his wife, Lady Erika in the year 1818. Her birth was in equal part a time for celebration and mourning. The Viscount fell into a deep coma towards the end of his wife’s pregnancy, leaving the notoriously fierce woman to fend for herself. Emma was born from premature labour, stress-induced, once the news of his ill health was broken.

Being the youngest of five, a significant age gap of twelve separated her from her next youngest sibling. Consequently, Emma spent most of her childhood coddled, dubbed the ‘Lily of Jerovitz’ by her elder sister. Her mother sheltered her within the grounds of their keep on the fringes of the Kingdom, and thus Emma grew up with little idea of what lay beyond Jerovitz’s walls. Her playmates were restricted to the family’s loyal cook and her siblings; if they chose to entertain her games. The nature of this reclusive upbringing led to the development of the girl’s sensitive nature, and would ultimately shape her empathetic style of rule.

Her father passed in 1820, and so the weight of the title of Viscount to support their family landed on the shoulders of her eldest brother, Jan Otto. Her sights turned to him as a fatherly figure. Lady Erika had a soft spot for her youngest and sought to preserve her shelteredness, fearful that the girl would grow distant from her. Their close-knit family meant Emma hardly felt alone - and often was delegated the job of looking after her nieces and nephews. The young Kortrevich was personally tutored by Lady Erika Kortrevich in lessons revolving around the art and literature her mother loved. Under the watchful eye of her brother, Emma’s education befitted a Haeseni noble - enjoying luxuries of music and painting, and often crafted homely presents in the form of scrapbooks and embroidery. This tradition she would continue throughout her life. She took a particular interest in romantic stories. Fairytales and the like were an escape from Jerovitz, and thus she became strongly convinced of the existence of true love.

Notorious for her adventurous spirit, Emma spent much time dragging her sisters on expeditions through Jerovitz’s grounds. Allegedly, her collection of creatures (frogs, crabs, and squirrels, namely) grew with each outing. Her favoured crab, Herman, remained with her throughout most of her life. Emma suffered from a limp through her childhood years, sustained from a bad fall on one of these ill-fated adventures. The teasing she received only cemented her quieter disposition.

The girl found sanctuary working in herbal gardens and the Haeseni clinic, persevering in her devotion to make good. This endeavour also allowed her to avoid the loud hubbub of Karosgrad she still was growing accustomed to, so different from the quiet woodland surrounding Jerovitz. It was in the medicinal sphere of work that she first formed a friendship with the Princess Royal, Petra Emma, sister of the future King, who would later become her Deputy Surgeon General. Princess Petra, plus Lady Eleanora Baruch, would make up two of her closest friends in these formative years, lasting well into her reign.

Favoured by Queen Annika, and due to her friendship with the Princess Royal and her siblings, Emma met the future King at an early age. Friends for years, a courtship blossomed at the behest of their families. In the year 1832, while travelling alone to a Sutican wedding, the young Emma was accosted by bandits within the city’s walls, stripped of all valuable possessions and threatened to be ransomed - the Haeseni army rode to her aid alongside Prince Sigismund. This event fortified their friendship and early bashful match.

Surgeon General (1833-1844)

Emma was granted the title of Surgeon General at fifteen in 1833[1], the youngest in the history of Haense, and immediately set about breathing new life into the hospital of St Amyas. She made medical training more accessible for all classes, developing a teaching curriculum[2] and providing structure to the clinic’s workings, despite the fact that many of her students were older than herself. Being assertive remained a challenge for the girl throughout her tenure, although with age, so too did her confidence grow. Multiple waves of medics graduated under her inspection, and these apprentices went on to succeed her as Deputy and Surgeon General themselves.

She took great pride in her position: being a medic first and foremost Emma donned physician’s armour instead of the traditional Queen’s in conflict. However, in 1844, Emma made the decision to step down to Firress Adrianna Darkwood in the midst of her Queenship, finding the workload overwhelming. She remained a passionate medic throughout her life. Reportedly on her wedding day, she attended to a patient who had been attacked, still wearing her dress - being the nearest physician available, Emma had run from the royal reception.

In the later established Almaris Medical Community, the Physician’s Oath she had penned and made each of her Haeseni graduates recite remained in use.

Marriage

Emma of Jerovitz was married to Sigismund Karl in the Basilica of Saint Henrik in 1836, officiated by the High Pontiff Everard VI. Theirs was a rarer wedding in circumstance as Sigismund would not become coronated King until 1838, after his father’s abdication[3], the pair had two years to prepare for responsibility and enjoy their freedom beforehand. Their pairing was no surprise - the two had been courting for some years prior[4]. The match was widely accepted as both loving and well-placed, with Emma being the sister of Count Jan Kortrevich.

The Karenina Accord

The Karenina Accord was a movement calling for equality of gender within Hanseti-Ruska, occurring occurred in the years 1856-1861, which resulted in the official Karenina Law being passed unanimously in Duma. With it, absolute primogeniture was introduced to the Kingdom, and both men and women were declared equal under Haeseni law. It was named so after Queen Emma Karenina, who acted as a figurehead for the movement, and advocated for women’s equality.

In 1856, a lively debate sparked at one of Emma’s Council meetings, triggered by the failed Rosemoor Bill petition and the quest for equality within the Kingdom. The women’s discussion soon formed into a plan to campaign for equal succession: absolute primogeniture, so that the firstborn would inherit titles, no matter the gender. Queen Emma was elected leader and figurehead of the Accord at that same meeting, and the movement titled ‘Karenina’ in a declaration published by the Queen[13. Months of campaigning followed, facing opposition from both men and women alike, as many remained rooted in older conservative customs. Their largest rally swept Karosgrad’s square in 1857, organised by the Queen, as women crowded the steps of the Nikirala Prikaz. Each supported sported a pink rose pinned to their breast, or their hair, as a symbol of the movement. Emma lit a large pyre in the centre of the square so that it burned pink smoke, her favoured colour, and the associated colour symbolising equality. With the flames at her back, she stood before the crowd and made her public speech.

Swaying people’s hearts was one thing, but consolidating change through law became the movement’s goal. In Duma, Lord Konstanz Barclay brought the topic to be discussed among Haeseni peers. There, the Queen and her ladies made their case. That election year had been significant, as for the first time in the history of Duma, all the elected officials were women - they had campaigned for election to support the Karenina movement.

Meeting stubbornness in Duma, and unwillingness to change, Queen Emma realised a loud public approach was limited, so spent the subsequent months inviting Haeseni peers to her offices to engage in extensive talks, and attempted to convince them to lend their supportive vote: eventually, she succeeded in garnering the support from each. All the women’s hard work culminated in the Duma of 1861, where the Karenina Law was drafted as a bill by the Lord Palatine, Duke Eirik Baruch and Lady Erika Barclay[14]. It was passed unanimously and was a cause of great celebration thereafter. Later, a statue of Lady Haense was constructed to commemorate the victory[15].

Emma continued her advocacy for women’s equality: her children were all given Duchy titles, disregarding gender; in her reign, Grand Lady was promoted to an Aulic position; and she witnessed a surge of matriarchs being born, including her niece - the Duchess Isabel of Valwyck, who later achieved Lady Palatine.

Titles, Styles, and Honors

Titles and Styles

• 1818-1838: Her Ladyship, Emma Karenina Kortrevich
• 1833-1844: Her Ladyship, Surgeon General of Hanseti-Ruska
• 1838-1873: Her Majesty, Queen Emma of Hanseti-Ruska
• 1873-Present: Her Majesty, Queen Emma of Hanseti-Ruska, The Queen-Mother

Style as Queen Consort

Her Royal Majesty, Emma of Jerovitz, Queen of Hanseti-Ruska

Issue

Name	Birth	Death	Marriage
Edvard Arjen, Grand Prince of Kusoraev	1841	1841	Unwed	Firstborn son of Sigismund III and Emma. Died at birth.
Klara Elizaveta, Duchess of Baranya	1843	Alive	Jakob Dimitrey Morovar	Firstborn daughter of Sigismund III and Emma.
Karl III	1850	Alive	Amadea of Susa	Secondborn son of Sigismund III. Twin to Prince Sergei.
Sergei Aleksandr, Duke of Rothswald	1850	Alive	Aloisa Liesl Barclay	Thirdborn son of Sigismund III. Twin to Grand Prince Karl.
Josef Frederik, Duke of Schattenburg	1853	1869	Dorothea Isabel Ruthern	Fourthborn son of Sigismund III and Emma. Died due to coma.
Maya Ceciliya	1852	Alive	Dmitry var Ruthern	Secondborn daughter of Sigismund III and Emma.