Rhys II, Duke of Vidaus
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Rhys Mikhail var Ruthern (1828-Present), was the seventh Duke of Vidaus and the first born son of Duke Ailred var Ruthern and Fenika of Ghaestenwald. Rhys served as the Lord Speaker of Hanseti-Ruska for a record twenty-nine years during the reign of Sigismund III of Haense.
Contents
Early Life
Rhys Mikhail var Ruthern was born on the 17th of the Grand Harvest, 1828, in Vidaus as the secondborn child and firstborn son. Rhys was a spoiled child and extremely discourteous as noted through his well documented rude and emotionally-fueled outbursts. One such occasion arose when he was introduced to the other peerage of Hanseti-Ruska at the debutante of Eleanora Baruch and pulled Emma Kortrevich’s, the future Queen of Hanseti-Ruska’s, hair because she was supposedly ignoring him. Another instance was when the boy, aged four, made the Princess Royal, Petra Emma, cry in the Nikirala Palace from his crass words and actions. He was also remarked upon to be extremely superstitious, which stemmed from his enthusiasm for learning anything related to Canonism and the Creator, even from a young age which has persisted throughout his whole life.
An uncouth pattern was forming for the young Lord Ruthern until his mother, Fenika, died unexpectedly giving birth to his two younger twin brothers, Grigoryi and Boris. Rhys was distraught by the loss of his mother which led him to become reserved and holed up in Vidaus for a number of weeks until he re-entered noble society much more muted and experiencing episodes of despondency. It was recorded that he held a specific resentment for his brothers, Grigoryi and Boris, after this point for his perceived belief that they had caused Fenika’s death and they were cursed for it, going as far as to brand them publicly as murderers in his youth.
Some years later into his teens, Rhys grew a close bond with the Royal elephant keeper and Baruch servant, Sanja Kutznetsov and began an intimate relationship with the Vasoyevi immigrant despite being betrothed to Lady Marie Ludovar a couple of years prior. This continued for some years with the bond between the two becoming evident to the Haeseni populace as the sixteen year old heir was not very subtle in his attraction to the commoner, even making his betrothed cry multiple times at a number of public events in Karosgrad. Though Rhys and Sanja’s affair was officially ended a year later, there were rumours that Sanja’s first child, Zoran, was in fact Rhys’ bastard son which the future Duke refuted both publicly and privately.
Education
Rhys received almost the entirety of his education in the Capital city of Karosgrad. With his father serving as Lord Marshal of Hanseti-Ruska from before he was born to well past his childhood, Rhys grew up primarily in the capital and the Nikirala Palace by Palace courtiers and tutors. It was here that Rhys made a number of friendships with high-ranking nobles, namely the Princess Anastasya Isabel and Eirik Baruch, heir to the Duchy of Valwyck. Not an especially studious pupil, Rhys progressed slowly in areas he had no interest in such as court etiquette and lessons on manners, with the Princess Royal Petra Emma even tutoring him above and beyond until he had a sufficient grasp on titles and protocol. This led him to have a better grasp on the ranks of nobility and develop an idea on what the ideal Haeseni noble should behave like and revere, leading on into his later life.
Unlike his father, Rhys was not naturally gifted in matters of battle strategy or as a swordsmen. Whilst able to hold his own in a fight and developed at the same pace as others his age in matters of martial prowess, he was unable to live up to his father's wants for him and thus disappointed Ailred for not deciding to follow in his footsteps. Whilst he still enlisted in the Brotherhood of Saint Karl when he was able, Rhys made no great strides or attempted to become an officer and instead focussed on more literary and spiritual works. There was however one area in which Rhys thrived and practiced repeatedly, growing a great love for it; jousting.
Reign
Rhys became Duke at the age of twenty three following the abdication of his father, Duke Ailred, in ‘The Ruthern Abdication of 404 E.S.’[1] in 1851. Rhys was already married and held a position on the Aulic Council, like his past two forebears being Ailred and his grandfather Maric, which helped immensely in keeping the Ruthern name relevant in Hanseti-Ruska and to consolidate his position as Duke. Rhys entrusted a lot of the day-to-day runnings of his lands to his wife when he was otherwise busy in the capital city of Karosgrad with the Royal Duma and his dealings with other nobles.
From his early years, Rhys had a great passion for the sport of jousting which persisted into his reign as Duke. Rhys spent a large sum of money on horses of superior stock as well as to have a chunk of his land flattened and a great tourney grounds constructed on it with a tent for each noble house of Hanseti-Ruska so that all may take part in his tournaments. On top of this, Rhys also took part in any tournament he could that was run outside of his own and was proclaimed 'The Champion of Reinmar' for winning the jousting tournament during the ceremony 'Oathing of a New Chief[2], a title he was incredibly proud of. Rhys also notable held a tourney[3] soon after this alongside his sister, Sofiya, and wife, Marie, to celebrate the victory of the Tripartite forces during the Siege of Southbridge as well as to commemorate his father who had lead and died at the siege.
Rhys also sunk a lot of money into the investigation of the superstitions, omens and prophecies of the Haeseni people, believing the vast majority of them himself. His sources ranged all the way back to old beliefs of the streltsy of a bygone age, the current traditions and practices of the Haeseni today as well as some lesser known ones contained in little read tomes he'd paid to have extracted from different stretches of the world. After having read the work 'Haeseni Superstitions and Omens'[4] by cultural historian Grigoryi Ostrovsky, Rhys hired the late writer's son, Andrey, to complete the volumes on the topic as well as have him record the prophecies of Rhys' own grandfather, Franz Morovar, who in his old age believed himself an Oracle, one who could see the future.
Career
With Rhys' father having been predominantly placed in the city of Karosgrad due to his position as Lord Marshal of Hanseti-Ruska during Rhys' childhood, Rhys spent the majority of his time amongst the other nobility in the King's court and thus became a page for King Sigismund III at the age of eight. Rhys was able to develop a somewhat amiable relationship with the King as the sovereign allowed Rhys to sit in on meetings of the Aulic Council which interested the young noble and see the work his own father and uncles, Lord Speaker Ruslan, Duke of Valwyck and Aulic Envoy Jan, Count of Jerovitz. It was here that Rhys began to appreciate the responsibilities of the Lord Speaker, feeling it was in-line with his own beliefs on noble blood and nobility, and thus had his father arrange for Rhys to become the ward of Ruslan Baruch.
Lord Speaker of Hanseti-Ruska
TBA
Marriages
Rhys var Ruthern married Marie Ludovar in the Church of Blessed Dmitry in 1848 after having known one another since their childhoods. Though remarked on as being close friends, nothing of a non-platonic nature was ever noted between the two until their marriage that had been arranged between Rhys’ father and Marie’s father, Baron Robert Ludovar. Rhys and Marie held a large tournament in Vidaus consisting of a melee, jousting and an archery contest with an extremely large monetary prize in celebration of their union. Rhys never remarried after Marie's death.
Titles, Styles and Honors
- 1842-1844: The Right Honorable, Rhys var Ruthern, Count of Metterden
- 1844-1851: His Excellency, Rhys var Ruthern, Lord Speaker of Hanseti-Ruska, Count of Metterden
- 1851-1873: His Excellency, Rhys var Ruthern, Lord Speaker of Hanseti-Ruska, Duke of Vidaus
- 1873-1874: His Grace, Rhys var Ruthern, Duke of Vidaus
- 1874-Present: His Lordship, Rhys var Ruthern
Full title as Duke of Vidaus
The titles of Rhys are: His Grace, Rhys II Mikhail of House Ruthern, Duke of Vidaus, Count of Metterden, Viscount of Greyspine, Baron of Rostig, Protector of the South, Lord of Druzstra
Issue
| Name | Birth | Death | Marriage | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Viktoriya Franziska vas Ruthern | 1849 | Alive | Ser Conrad Barclay | Firstborn daughter of Rhys. |
| Dorothea Isabel vas Ruthern | 1850 | Alive | Prince Josef Frederik, Duke of Schattenburg | Secondborn daughter of Rhys. |
| Mikhail Tuvya var Ruthern | 1850 | Alive | Margrait Baruch | Firstborn son of Rhys, successor to the Duchy of Vidaus. |
| Dmitry Konstantin var Ruthern | 1854 | Alive | Princess Maya Ceciliya, Duchess of Kreden | Secondborn son of Rhys. |
