Lorena of Cascadia

This page contains information about a character that has been or is still played by a member of the LotC community. Please keep this in mind as you proceed reading.

Lorena Christina Princess Imperial An imperial portrait, attributed to Louisa Antonia Pruvia (1740). Holy Orenian Empress Tenure: 1737–Present Predecessor: Adeline of Alstion Duchess of Augustin Reign: 1729–Present Predecessor: Achilius Cascadia (as Duke of Aenus) Born: 13th of Owyn’s Flame, 1714, Helena, Renatus, Empire of Man Spouse: Peter III (m. 1734) House: Cascadia Father: Romulus Horen Mother: Anabel Devereux

Lorena Christina Cascadia, (13th of Owyn’s Flame, 1714 - Present) born “Laurentina Julia," was the only daughter to Duke Romulus Horen of Cascadia and his wife, Anabel I of Curonia. As the sister of two reigning emperors of Holy Oren, Lorena was Princess Imperial throughout her eldest brother’s reign, and held the most definite claim to Oren after her twin brother, John VII, abdicated not shortly after the eldest did; she would inherit John's title as Duchess of Augustin after he'd been proclaimed as missing indefinitely. Lorena would commit herself to the empire through her involvement in the city government, taking the mantle of First Lady of the Exchequer in the year 1735, which allowed her to preside over the ever changing body of the City Council of Helena as a point of continuity.

Her coordinated marriage to the heir pretender of the deposed Empire of Man, Antony Helane, produced a daughter with an uncontested claim to both Holy Oren and Man, which came into usage when Lorena was elevated to Empress-consort upon Antony's ascension as Peter III, Holy Orenian Emperor in the year 1737.

Early years and adolescence

Born minutes before her twin Achilius to Imperial Prince Romulus, Duke of Cascadia, and his wife, the then Queen of Curonia, Anabel Devereux, Lorena was bestowed with the high imperial name of Laurentina Julia on the 13th of Owyn's Flame, emulating the style of past pertinaxi princesses in their flexian naming. The twins' imperial birth was witnessed by all those who graced the walls of the Rubrummagnus on that most beauteous day in the year of 1714.

War of the Two Emperors

The strife of the War of the Two Emperors immediately led to Horen loyalists elevating Laurentina's elder brother, Godfrey, to a new throne as the Emperor of Renatus in order to destroy Joseph Marna's chances to reform the Holy Orenian Empire under House Marna. As a direct result of the war's conflicts, Laurentina took up constant studying at the age of 6 as a means of entertainment, taking interest in the acquisition of culture and language. Both were taught to her by a mix of her mother, Anabel, her sister in law Empress Adeline, and Adeline's mother (the Princess of Alstion) Vivienne's teachings, three ladies who would evolve to become her closest confidantes. She spent most of her time alongside the older trio, with the exception of time spent with twin brother Achilius, which regularly consisted of despot banter that was resolved only at the behest of their mother. Regardless, the two showed a unique bond, described only as one developed from the womb itself.

Laurentina acclaimed the orenian title of Princess Imperial upon Renatus' victory in the war, when it would adopt its defeated enemy's name as the 8th iteration of the Holy Orenian Empire. On the 11th of Owyn's Flame, 1720, she along with Achilius were baptized by Frederick Guillen, the Bishop of Pembroke, to symbolize their unwavering faith in the righteousness of GOD, and his salvaging of the Horenic dynasty. Laurentina later witnessed her eldest brother Godfrey's abdication unto Achilius, whose name was then changed to John as Holy Orenian Emperor in the year 1723.

The Imperial twins: Achilius and Laurentina (circa 1718), by Julietta Varoche

Brother's Abdication

Laurentina had only turned 10 after the war was over, and was finally free to travel without fear of capture. Her mother, who'd recently become the minister of foreign affairs, assigned to her a task to record the exploits of all foreign courts on behalf of the empire. Laurentina, adept in each vassals' culture and language due to her studies, readily agreed. Her first (and last) travel was in the year 1724, and was to the Duchy of Westmarch, where she would remain for but a saint’s week. From Westmarch, she was informed of John's decision to abdicate from the imperial throne, additionally disowning himself from the House of Cascadia and granting himself the title of Duke of Aenus. She witnessed the sudden death of the ladies of her youth, Adeline and Vivienne, as well as that of her father, Romulus.

No longer a princess, she was forced to become matriarch of the house of Cascadia at the tender age of 11, abandoning her tour of the empire, while being advised by the Duke of Westmarch away from any brash movements, causing her to wallow irremediably. Her childhood was undeniably in a state of despair, causing her to adopt a dulled, cold-blooded demeanor for the majority of her teenage years.

Upon her return to the city of Helena, Laurentina was christened with the name “Lorena Christina” in order to assume the new Johannian regality, and was to remain in the Imperial Palace, stripped of all her titlings and royalty. She was destined to life as a simple noblewoman of the court.

Duchess of Augustin

Lorena was discouraged from imperial affairs with the exception of days spent with her cousin Vespira, as well as the niece of the newly crowned Emperor Alexander II, Julia Alstion. She remained in the palace until she neared 15 years old, when she'd receive a letter from her bastard brother, Marcus de Rubrum, who beckoned her to a private council concerning the disappearance of Lorena's legitimate brothers and the status of their respective fiefs. The product of this meeting was that Lorena was aptly promoted to become Duchess of Aenus, succeeding the absent John in his fief. It was additionally proclaimed that the title would then be known as 'Augustin', after Lorena's grandfather and the Emperor of Man, Augustus I.

It was decided by Marcus that Lorena would embark on a visit to the lands of Aeldin, from where she would allow a council of Horen ancestors to assess her title's right of existence. Here, she'd be introduced to her grandmother, the aged former empress of Man, Helen Horen. Helen presented Lorena with the bearings of a red sash knitted by Princess Ophelia Horen, Helen's sister-in-law. Lorena, seeking gentility, chose to then adorn the sash of Ophelia as a symbol of her titular ascension. She'd return to the court of Emperor Alexander II as a Duchess, turning now to the comforts of the aforementioned Julia Alstion, who herself was a titular Duchess.

Under the Lord Protectorate ; 1731-1737

Government

In the year 1731, a Lord Protector was chosen as the leader to Holy Oren from among it's vassals when it was discovered that Alexander II was not in fact of Horenic origins, but instead a bastard of the dastardly Empress-Mother Cesarina. Lorena had for a time been close friends with said Lord Protector's wife, Mariya Barbanov, due to the Barbanovi woman frequenting the Imperial Court as the wife of a large vassal. Through Mariya's close connections, Lorena met the likes of the Secretary of Interior, Peter de Vitus (P.Vitus), and the Secretary of the Treasury, Peter de Sarkozy (P.Sarkozy), who she'd offer various pieces of advice in matters of scripture and documentation, things she'd heavily studied in her solitary youth. P.Vitus, especially, provided her a platform for movement that she'd use to later balance both their offered positions.

It was during the city of Helena's shift from it's high imperial alternative to a more Carrion-resonant architectural style that P.Vitus first offered her to become the Head Steward of Helena, which would later evolve into the title of First Lady of the Exchequer when the city, and thus the city government, was finalized. In the position, she'd preside mainly over property, taxation, and urban design, as well as the financial sectors of the city government, which directly entailed to what P.Sarkozy offered her as his second-in-command, otherwise known as Deputy Secretary of the Treasury, though she would largely drift away from the department of the treasury upon P.Sarkozy's resignation in 1737.

As First Lady, she presided over every city council assembly within the new elective government of the city of Helena, being the single constant in the ever changing political atmosphere of the board of Ward Liverymen. This entrusted her with the task of managing the city's lawmaking body beside the elected Lord Mayor. When P.Vitus had leisurely stepped away from the forefront of affairs concerning the interior, Lorena was obligated to assume a majority of his responsibilities, being temporarily placed as the head of the interior until the crown selected a successor to the position of Secretary.

Contest for marriage

The consummation of Antony and Lorena, where Lorena (in black) is depicted as cowering from her new marriage.

Immediately following the Lord Protector's rise, Lorena was summoned by her distant cousin, Titus Tiber, the Prince of Beaufort. He'd omit to her an idea concerning the marriage of her to Charles, the Prince of Alstion; he was the same man who'd contested the Lord Protector as a claimant to the imperial throne. Titus stated it was for the purpose of uniting the lines of Horen. Lorena, hesitant yet much obliged, agreed.

It was not a year later that Marcus de Rubrum reappeared, urging Lorena to marry her cousin; he was the firstborn son of the deposed emperor Antonius of Man, bearing the name Antony Sigismundic. This idea had been drafted by the Lord Protector to consecrate his regime; he implored the two greatest claimants in Oren to produce a daughter of behemoth claim who his son could in turn marry, and detested the idea that one of the claims would go to his rival for the throne. Lorena, having created an acquaintance in Charles, was appalled at Marcus' petition. Charles asked her to run from Oren to the renatian-infested Morsgrad, where he stated they'd be wed secretly. However, Lorena had by then built for herself a people to guide in the Department of the Interior, so she was forced to accept Marcus' proposal in order to remain within Oren.

Duchess Lorena and Antony Sigismundic Helane were married on a summer's day in 1734, within the cathedral of St. Adrian in the city of Ves, where Antony had for a time been protected by the friendship of the King of Kaedrin. Being cousins, Lorena insisted they keep their distance after the wedding, and was even quoted by attendants as stating that she'd "never been placed in such an awkward position in her life."

Holy Orenian Empress

Art commissioned the same day of Peter's coronation, depicting Lorena's black hair. Made by Diane Tiber.

After inhibiting dreary symptoms of a fatal disease, Lord Protector Adrian immediately scripted his will in the Instrument of Coronation, a letter deeming Lorena's husband, Antony Sigismundic, the true and rightful heir to the throne of Oren. Upon Adrian's death nearing the end of 1737, Antony was coronated in a glorious baptism and coronation ceremony, thereby taking a new regal name as Peter III, Holy Orenian Emperor. By default as Peter's wife, Lorena was suddenly risen as Holy Orenian Empress-consort beside him, much to her surprise.

Titles, styles, honours and arms

• 1714-1721 Her Imperial Highness, the Princess Laurentina of Cascadia

• 1715-1717 Her Imperial Highness, the Princess Laurentina of Cascadia, Princess of Curonia

• 1721-1724 Her Imperial Highness, the Princess Imperial

• 1729–Present Her Grace, Lorena, Duchess of Augustin

• 1737–Present Her Imperial Majesty, the Holy Orenian Empress

Full Title as Holy Orenian Empress

Her Imperial and Royal Majesty, Lorena Christina of Augustin, Holy Orenian Empress consort, Queen consort of Curonia, Renatus, and Salvus

Issue

Lorena and Peter III have as of yet produced two children, Crown Princess Anne Augusta, and Princess Lorena Antonia, named for her mother and father both.

Name	Birth	Death	Marriage	Notes
Anne Augusta Helane	12th of Owyn's Flame, 1735	Alive	Joseph Clement, Duke of Adria	Firstborn child of Peter and Lorena. Princess Imperial and Heiress to the Holy Orenian Empire.
Lorena Antonia Helane	13th of Godfrey's Triumph, 1740	Alive	Unwed	Second born child of Peter and Lorena.

Ancestors of Lorena of Cascadia

16. Aurelius I, Emperor of Man               8. Prince Antonius Horen                       17. Theodosia, Empress-consort               4. Augustus I, Emperor of Man                             18. Arpad, Duke of Krajia               9. Maria, Duchess of Krajia                       19. Unknown Raev Woman               2. Romulus, Duke of Cascadia                                   20. ??               10. Unknown Horen                       21. ??               5. Helen, Empress-consort                             22. ??               11. Unknown Horen                       23. ??               1. Lorena Christina                                         24. Karl, Duke of Curon               12. Alfred, Prince of Curon                       25. Esther of Rostig, Duchess-consort               6. Wilhelm I, King of Curonia                             26. Wilbur Owyn Grifford               13. Linette, Princess-consort of Curon                       27. Ethel Avery Grifford               3. Anabel, Queen of Curonia                                   28. ??               14. Austinus Falkenrath, Duke of Istria                       29. ??               7. Evelyn, Queen-consort                             30. ??               15. Evelina, Duchess-consort                       31. ??             Template:Ahnentafel bottom