John Hartcold, Viscount of Fauconberg

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John Alexander Hartcold Viscount of Fauconberg Reign: 1830-1839 Predecessor: Title Created Successor: John Aurelius Hartcold, 2nd Viscount of Fauconberg Born: 2nd of The First Seed, 1804 Died: 17th of The Grand Harvest, 1839 (aged 35), Róża, Duchy of Rozania Spouse: Alice Bishop (m. 1825; died. 1838) Issue: John Aurelius Hartcold, 2nd Viscount of Fauconberg Antonia Alice Hartcold Leon Luka Hartcold Aurelia Olivia Hartcold House: Hartcold Father: John Frederick Hartcold, 4th Baron of Pyrmont Mother: Cristonia O'Rourke

John Alexander Hartcold, 1st Viscount of Fauconberg (2nd of The First Seed, 1804 - 17th of The Grand Harvest, 1839) was a Sedanian nobleman, diplomat and military commander. The eldest son John Frederick Hartcold, 4th Baron of Pyrmont and his wife of Cristonia O'Rourke, he became the first Viscount of Fauconberg for his and his families service and loyalty to the Principality of Sedan, and was one of the few Sedanian peers who rejoined the Principality during its reformation. One of the Sedanian leaders in Oisin's Rebellion, he was instrumental in the final skirmish during the war leading to the deposition of William I, King of Rozania and the crowning of Oisin O'Breathnach as his successor - although his reign was brief.

Early Life

John was the eldest son of John Frederick Hartcold, 4th Baron of Pyrmont and his wife Cristonia O'Rourke, the daughter of Padraig O'Rourke, 2nd Count of Halstaig. From 1811-1813, both his father and grandfather, Tiberius John Hartcold, 3rd Baron of Pyrmont, had fought for the Sedanian Prince, Louis I, during the Sedan Rebellion, during the aftermath of which his grandfather was executed by the Holy Orenian Empire. Due to their allegiance to the losing side, the House of Hartcold went into exile alongside that of House de Joannes and the House of Castille within the Kingdom of Hanseti-Ruska.

Sometime around 1823, Hartcold's father, then Baron of Pyrmont, abdicated his title in favour of his eldest son, creating John Alexander Baron of Pyrmont for life. Over the next few years, he served Leopold I, Prince of Sedan in a variety of ways to bring prosperity and growth to Sedan, eventually being granted the title of 1st Viscount of Fauconberg in the year 1830.

Marriage

The wedding of John Alexander and Alice (c. 1825). Depicted is the bride and groom standing together after their first kiss.

At the age of 21, John was married to Lady Alice Bishop, niece of Henry Bishop, Baron of Avoria. This marriage, although an arranged one would prove quite peculiar as the two grew fond of and loved each other from the moment they were engaged.

Soon after marrying John, Alice conceived. On the 2nd of The Amber Cold, 1826 she gave birth to the twins, John Aurelius and Antonia Alice. The couple were pleased to have their first children, with John notably doting on his eldest daughter Antonia. John Alexander and Alice conceived a third child. Although joyous at the news that the couple were having their third child, 6 months into the pregnancy Alice was attacked by Vampires within Sedan's own walls, although she survived - the two feared about the health of their unborn child. In 1830, a boy was born being given the name Leon Luka, after his grandfather Luka Bishop.

Following the birth of Leon Luka, John's marriage to Alice became strained, with Alice, taking the new born Hartcold, leaving John and Sedan for five years to look after their twins. Their relationship was only rekindled when Alice returned five years later and appeared at the front gates of Louisville, presenting the now five year old Leon to his father. With the return of Alice and Leon to the Hartcold Household, relations between John and Alice began to ease although not properly what it was before. Alice once more fell pregnant again in 1838 with another girl, Aurelia Olivia Hartcold, whom would be the last child between John Alexander and his wife.

After the birth of Aurelia, Alice's body had become weak and she began to suffer from chronic sleep deprivation, this would lead ultimately towards her demise. Following a Harpy attack against the royal keep of Sedan, the Viscountess of Fauconberg rushed towards her four children huddling alongside Leopold I, Prince of Sedan's three daughters, collapsing onto the floor from exhaustion, cracking her skull on the cobbled floor in the process, eventually dying from blood loss without John by her side.

Oisin's Rebellion

Main article: Oisin's Rebellion

Depiction of the Sedanian forces charging against the loyalist Rozanian force during the First Battle of Louisville (c. 1836)

In 1836 the King of Rozania exiled and disowned his son, Oisin Buckfort, for trying to marry the King's former mistress, in which Oisin thus struck his own father and taking the name Oisin O'Breathnach Róża, raising his banners in rebellion against the man whom he saw no longer as his father but as a tyrant. Oisin's objectives during his rebellion was to ensure the abdication of his father from the throne of the Kingdom of Rozania and his own immediate rise as it's next king. Oisin feared that the citizens of Rozania would reject his claim as their next king, for King William had turned his people against their former prince. By the end of the month, both Oisin and William were preparing for armed conflict: with Oisin signing a mercenary contract with Leopold I, Prince of Sedan bringing him and the the Principality of Sedan into the newly waged conflict.

First Battle of Louisville

Late on the 14th of the Sun's Smile 1836, Prince Leopold of Sedan and Sigismund Kuno de Joannes led a combined force of Goats of Sedan and volunteers from the Principality of Sedan on a chevauchée into Rozanian land, during which they pillaged Roza and put its people to the sword. When John learned of an impending counter-attack by a loyalist force of 1,500 men at arms led by Brawly Scath of Rozania and Elsiimah'Ceru of the Ruslters, he along with the returned rebel force of 1,600 men at arms rushed towards the main keep in preparation for the defence of the town. On the 15th of the Sun's Smile, 1836 the First Battle of Louisville began. John, Prince Leopold, Kuno and Oisin of Rozania commanded the centre whilst Caius Tiberius de Ravensburg was stationed in the gatehouse to ensure no loyalist forces broke through the Sedanian defences.

The Rozanians opened the engagement with a failed assault on the Sedanian portcullis, being pinned down by Sedanian archer fire from the gatehouse. The Sedania forces sallied out of their keep, charging towards the lines of the attackers pushing the combined Rozanian-Rustler force back before once more retreating back hiding behind the walls of the keep in wait of the second Rozanian-Rustler advance. The Sedanians tired of waiting for the next attack by the loyalists, once more sallied out of their keep charging towards the mass of soldiers in green and gold. John, with his fury of his home being attacked, strayed too far forward, himself only being rescued by Lord Marshal Alexandre d'Aryn of Savoy, pushing the attackers back whilst John regained his feet. The Rozanian-Rustler front lines were utterly broken by the Sedanian Push. With the Rozanian forces now in full retreat, John picked up a pair of dwarven bagpipes beginning to play them in celebration of the first rebel victory of the war.

Second Battle of Louisville

John Alexander was present at the Second Battle of Louisville on the 9th of the Amber Cold, 1836. With the first battle of the war being fought just a month prior and being a rebel victory at that, a Rozanian army of 1,000 troops arrived at Louisville, with Morpheus Redfist, in command, in the hope to swiftly end the end the rebellion by seizing the Sedanian stronghold in which Prince Oisin lived in exile. The 1,700 strong Sedanian army with 400 reinforcements from the Savoy, with Prince Leopold of Sedan, in command, rallied outside the main gates of Louisville in preparation to defend their land. Lengthy negotiations ensued, with heralds moving back and forth between the rival commanders.

After several hours of constant back and forth negotiations, Leopold decided to order his attack. The bulk of Morpheus' were surprised by the suddenness of Sedan's attack; the majority of them expecting a peaceful resolution. The entire battle did not last longer than ten minutes due mostly to the fact that as the forces of Sedan and Savoy charged, the Rozanian's began to retreat as they were unprepared. John Alexander charged instantly with his retinue, routing some Rozanians towards the Barony of Blackwald, cutting down Percival Kent during the rout. John and his force rode back towards Louisville carrying loot that they had won - mainly being that of a crate of alcoholic beverages.

Sacking of Róża

Just a day after the rebel victory at the Second Battle of Louisville, John Alexander received a letter from his close friend Briseis, whom was taken as a prisoner of war by King William of Rozania, urging him to end the war and that if one more Rozanian was harmed the heads of Briseis and her daughter Cristonia would be delivered to Sedan on a plate. The letter from Briseis states:

"Dear John Hartcold, Cristonia and I have been taken as prisoners of war between Rozania and Sedan; I have been instructed to alert you to this fact. Should any harm come to one more Rozanian, Cristonia's and my heads shall be delivered to you in Sedan on plates. You are urged to end this bloodshed at once. If you do not have the capacity to do so on your own, you are encouraged to find a way to make such happen. Yours, Briseis."

Despite the pleas of peace from Briseis in her letter, John Alexander brought the letter straight to both Prince Leopold and Prince Oisin, the three of them deciding to quickly call the banners once more to march upon Rozania's capital - Róża. John Alexander marched with Prince Leopold of Sedan and Prince Oisin of Rozania at the head of a 2,000 strong army towards the City of Róża, to rescue Briseis and Cristonia, who were held captive there. The Sedanian force would arrive outside the gates of Roza on the 9th of the Amber Cold, 1836 finding them sealed with King William of Rozania hiding behind the gates in front of a small retinue of men at arms. Negotiations ensued between Oisin and his father, although they were going no where; as such Prince Leopold ordered his force to scale the walls via the defenceless Dah'Rini district's towers entrance.

Within a mere moment, William and his unprepared guard force were surrounded before being put to the sword with William being captured, despite John Alexander and Oisin's best efforts at demanding that innocents be spared, the blood lusting Sedanian's began to slaughter anyone they found as fear began to spread around the city. Whilst the Rozanian citizen were mercilessly murdered in their streets, John Alexander was able to secure the safety of Briseis and Cristonia by bringing them towards the keep alongside Oisin and King William under an armed guard. With William now in custody as a prisoner, he was forced to relinquish his titles and land to his son. A few short minutes later, Oisin was crowned as King of Rozania in front of the Sedanian and Savoy forces. Although the war was over, the people of Rozania never accepted Oisin's reign over them, as a result Oisin fled the city and his people a few months into his reign allowing William and his loyalist forces to retake the city.

Vice Chancellor of Sedan

John Alexander Hartcold, 1st Viscount of Fauconberg (right) and his brother Frederick Louis (left) discussing on how to improve the Principality of Sedan

Even before the outbreak of war between Sedan and Rozania, John Alexander was all but unofficially the Vice-Chancellor of Sedan. In his unofficial position he took the young Caius Tiberius de Ravensburg, his second cousin, as his protégé and was also he was granted permision to meet with Andrik Baruch, the Aulic Envoy of Haense, to discuss a potential alliance between the Principality of Sedan and the Kingdom of Hanseti-Ruska. However, the talks between Haense and Sedan fell through following the abdication of Henry II of Haense and later Andrik Baruch stepping down from his position as Aulic Envoy without handing over the drafted alliance to his successor Jan Kortrevich, Count of Jerovitz.

A year after the failure of Oisin's Rebellion in 1837, John Alexander was officially made Vice Chancellor of the Principality of Sedan, whilst Lukas Castile was made its Chancellor, by appointment of Leopold I, Prince of Sedan. This appointment in effect made John Alexander the third most powerful Sedanian peer of his age, being behind those of Lukas Castile and the Prince of Sedan himself.

Death

The murder of John Alexander Hartcold, 1st Viscount of Fauconberg within the streets of Roza by Duke William Buckfort and his guards (c. 1839)

On the 17th of The Grand Harvest, 1839, John Alexander, appeared in the city of Roza to visit those whom he had rescued during the Sacking of Róża, to see how they were faring under the reign of the now Duke William of Rozania. An argument broke out between John Alexander and Cristonia, resulting in the Viscount of Fauconberg striking the young girl with the back of his hand in front of the Duke of Rozania himself. Seeing one of his own citizens get struck by a foreign diplomat, Buckfort unsheathed his sword ordering Hartcold to leave. John Alexander looked towards Buckfort's unsheathed sword trying to peacefully end the argument by telling William, allegedly saying "Do not be a fool Buckfort".

Unsurprisingly, tensions continued to deteriorate between the Vice Chancellor of Sedan and the Duke of Rozania, leading to Rozania's town bell being rung by Szymon Buckfort calling Rozania's guardforce to come to the aid of their duke. Even being completely surrounded by foreign forces, John Alexander continued to try and end the dispute by warning William that if he was killed he would be putting his own people's lives at risk as both the Principality of Sedan and the Principality of Savoy would seek revenge for his death.

Issue

Name	Birth	Death	Marriage	Notes
John Aurelius Hartcold, 2nd Viscount of Fauconberg	2nd of The Amber Cold, 1826	Alive	Deyanira Ophelia de Sarkozy	Firstborn child of John Alexander Hartcold and Alice Bishop and twin to Antonia Alice Hartcold. Succeeded his father as both Viscount of Fauconberg and Baron of Pyrmont following the murder of his father.
Antonia Alice Hartcold	2nd of The Amber Cold, 1826	Alive	Unmarried	Second born child of John Alexander and Alice Bishop, twin to John Aurelius
Leon Luka Hartcold	1830	Alive	Unmarried	Third born child of John Alexander Hartcold and Alice Bishop
Aurelia Olivia Hartcold	1st First Seed 1838	Alive	Unmarried	Fourth and final child of John Alexander Hartcold and Alice Bishop

Ancestors

Ancestors of John Hartcold, Viscount of Fauconberg

16. Stephen Hartcold               8. Robert James Hartcold, 2nd Baron of Pyrmont                       17. Joanna Vincennes               4. Tiberius John Hartcold, 3rd Baron of Pyrmont                             18. Otto "the Roach" Varoche               9. Antonia Philippa Varoche                       19. Adriana Emiliana Capet               2. John Frederick Hartcold, 4th Baron of Pyrmont                                   20. Frederick Baden               10. Thomas Aldis Baden                       21. Anastasia Capet               5. Henrietta Celeste Baden                             11. Fran Rosemond                       1. John Alexander Hartcold, 1st Viscount of Fauconberg                                         24. Patrick O'Rourke               12. Pious O'Rourke                       25. Vasa Crow               6. Padraig O'Rourke, 2nd Count of Halstaig                             13. Clover O'Rourke                       3. Cristonia Avigael O'Rourke                                   28. Jeese Stahl-Elendil               14. Jonah, Baron of Stahl-Elendil                       29. Astoria Wynsehn               7. Illaena Stahl-Elendil                             15. Avigael