Taxman's Conspiracy

The Taxman's Conspiracy of 1546-1547 was what appeared to be a guerilla insurrection by Savoyards disenfranchised with the Horen Crown, including citizens of Drusco and the criminal group known as the Jackals, against John I. Instigated partially by ethnic tensions which had been brewing over the past twenty years since the death of the last Savoyard king, Guy de Bar, numerous other factors coalesced to inspire anti-Imperial sentiment within the Savoyard realms. The emperor's ongoing dispute with Rhys Roke over the legal status of his marriage combined with Savoy's refusal to pay any form of taxes to the Imperial crown engendered the conspiracy, which aimed to sabotage and terrorize the House of Horen, ultimately in an attempt to remove them from power. It occurred simultaneously to the Eighteen Years' War, forcing the Emperor to deescalate that conflict and reallocate necessary resources when the rebellious Savoyards withdrew both their military and economic support for the war. During a session of the Imperial Diet in 1547, a respected Savoyard knight, Ser Emery of Felsen, was executed by the Emperor's command after a fight erupted between Elias de Savoie's retinue and the Felsen Guard. This further fueled the conflict, Ser Emery viewed as a martyr whose execution was uncalled for. Ultimately, John was slain anyway while campaigning in the south, averting the conspiracy as peace with the insurrectionists was made by his son, John II, who managed to therefore preserve the Empire.

Historians widely believe that the Taxman's Conspiracy is what drew the Eighteen Years' War to a stalemate, preventing the Empire from ever achieving total victory over the dwarves.