A Royal Crowning

[Bacharth]

From the Desk of King Vincent I Bearegard d’Rennes, King of Crimea, Protector of Distopya, Former King of Normandy

[quote]Dear Prime Minister Zelle,

Congratulations on your organization of Aquitaine. I have noticed that your territory includes the former capital of the Kingdom of Normandy, the city of Nantes. I have talked it over with the other members of the Royal House of Beauregard, and they have agreed with my decision to name you the protector of Gaul: Normandy, Brittany, Loire, and Poitou-Charentes. Why I am writing this letter to you is that I feel the Monarchy of Burgundy is unstable, and the fact that a German controls Normandy again is saddening. My people have just been freed of the Nordlanders, and they are controlled again. I would like to do this in Nantes, the current home of the House Beauregard.

Best wishes,
[img]http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/9099/vincentbeauregardsignat.png[/img]
King Vincent I[/quote]

[Sarah Tintagyl]

Therese looked up from the letter with wide eyes as she ran her hand through her hair and tried to contemplate the honor that she had just been offered. Taking a deep breath she leaned back in her hair and opened up the drapes and stared out from the chateau to the wine fields on the horizon. "I guess I should send invitations to the family." She chuckled. "Protector of Gaul, last thing I would have ran through my head." She picked up her pen and began to write.

[quote]

[i]Your Highness,

I cannot tell you how surprised I am to find your letter, in all honesty, I was never raised to become anything more than a middle-class academic that got lucky from her family's luck in politics. So the offer to be crowned Protector of Gaul is almost something I cannot accept. However, also if you have seen, the Normans have already crowned a King of Normandy and so I'm not quite sure that anything done will add up. Even if this would be termed as futile, I would like to extend the invitation to Crimea to come and talk about furthering our relations as two states. I have already sent letters to Italy and North Germany and hopefully Aquitaine's voice will continue eastward. I look forward to your arrival and will nonetheless meet you in Nantes, it will be a lovely homecoming experience.[/i]

Sincerely,

[i]Therese Zelle[/i]
[b]Prime Minister of Aquitaine[/b]
[/quote]

"Jean!"

Therese's aide immediately ran into room and bowed. "Lady Prime Minister?"

"I'll need you to prepare the car for Nantes, we'll be hosting the Former King of Normandy."

[Bacharth]

[b]Königshof[/b]
Vincente, ready my plane, we leave for Nantes within the hour.

[b]Nantes, Aquitaine[/b]
The King's green jet touched down in the airport his regime built in Nantes. He was accompanied by the two house representatives from Crimea, John Rabid and Pauly Vengeance.

"It's been a while since I've been here," Vince said.

"It has been a while for us too," Pauly said.

"Yes, but, complications have been removed."

[Sarah Tintagyl]

"Your Majesty?" The voice of Therese Zelle would carry over the airport runway as the Prime Minister's motorcade and entourage approached the former Norman King and his group of advisors. Along with Therese, Adelaide Josselyne, her Paladin, and her aide Jean Minot walked up to greet the King, Therese stopped near him, bowed first and then offered his hand with a large smile across her face. "Majesty, it is a pleasure to see you in Nantes and let me be the first to tell you, welcome home."

Turning and beckoning Vincent to accompany her, they began to walk towards the limousine. "Again, as I don't believe I could demonstrate in my letter, I am extremely honored to have been chosen for such a tremendous honor and responsibility Milord, you truly do the House of Zelle far too much honor. Though I am sure my ancestors will be turning over in their graves knowing that such a prominent position in France is being given to a woman. However, I must bring something to your attention, it was in the papers not too long ago. The King of Burgundy has been crowned King of Normandy as well by the people and therefore making the title somewhat meaningless?" She phrased it as a question, because to be honest, Therese did not fully understand the workings of monarchical power and titles and such. "Though I'm sure you would know this more than me, personally it seems like a usurption of your power and name. But again, I'm not quite sure." By this time they had reached the limousine. "But those are such nasty things to talk about, perhaps you would like to show a country girl from Aquitaine the true workings of the city of Nantes Your Highness." She laughed as the limousine drove off into the city.

[Bacharth]

Vincent, accompanied by his fellow house members, walked up to the Prime Minister. They bowed, and he bowed as well. A Prime Minister was just as powerful as a Queen, if not more. She [i]was[/i] democratically elected, which makes her better for the people than any hereditary ruling would be.

[i]"...welcome home."[/i]

"It is great to be here again, Prime Minister. I trust your people have been quite good to you thus far."

He followed her to the limousine, with his two silent counterparts following closely behind him.

[i]"...prominent position in France is being given to a woman."[/i]

"I'm sure that my ancestors will be too, considering they have had a male in the position of power for a long time."

He then listened to the statement about Burgundy, and a grimace crossed his face. He wore the angered face of a man who discovered his wife was cheating on him. "There are a few reasons that I don't believe he was crowned by the people. First of all, such an event would garner a large crowd, and such a small event means something was afoot. Secondly, the recent dying out of the House of Napoleon is frightening. It seems that since Normandy left power in France, the royal houses have been dwindling. The House Beauregard and the House Zelle seem to be the only ones left. I feared this would happen, so I moved most of our personnel to Crimea, while a few headquarters remain here in Nantes, one in Caen, and the other in Rennes.

As for the fact that the King of Normandy is now ruled by another house, there is a way to get around that. The House Beauregard is now focused more on Eastern Europe, although we want to keep a presence here in France. So I am offering you a royal status as the Duchess of Basse-Normandie, which is the portion you currently control. My successor, who briefly was the Chiamaran leader, also controlled Brittany, which is another historic region of Greater Normandy. If circumstances change, I also would like to name you as my successor to the throne of Normandy, meaning if you ever do have control over those areas, you would be their royal leader."

[i]"...usurption of your power and name. But again, I'm not quite sure."[/i]

"Nonsense, here's the way I see it. Currently, I was the last Beauregard ruler of Normandy. Currently, there is no royal ruler of Basse-Normandy, which is one of the homelands of my family. I am simply naming you my successor, since I have no children of my own."

[i]"...true workings of the city of Nantes Your Highness."[/i]

Vincent laughed. "Well, I can tell you that my regime rebuilt this airport to be a little more modern, as our capital needed something a little more modern than the old one runway airport that [i]was[/i] here." As they made their way through the city, Vincent would regail things from his childhood and his rulership in Normandy.

[Sarah Tintagyl]

[i]"It is great to be here again, Prime Minister. I trust your people have been quite good to you thus far."[/i]

"Oh of course Vincent." Therese took a gamble of calling the King by his first name, but he seemed relax and she didn't want to be the priss that kept up formalities when it wasn't needed. "They elected me after all, actually Pays de Loire, was one of the stronger areas to my campaign as Prime Minister so I have always been grateful to the people of Nantes."

--

[i]"There are a few reasons that I don't believe he was crowned by the people. First of all, such an event would garner a large crowd, and such a small event means something was afoot. Secondly, the recent dying out of the House of Napoleon is frightening. It seems that since Normandy left power in France, the royal houses have been dwindling. The House Beauregard and the House Zelle seem to be the only ones left. I feared this would happen, so I moved most of our personnel to Crimea, while a few headquarters remain here in Nantes, one in Caen, and the other in Rennes.

As for the fact that the King of Normandy is now ruled by another house, there is a way to get around that. The House Beauregard is now focused more on Eastern Europe, although we want to keep a presence here in France. So I am offering you a royal status as the Duchess of Basse-Normandie, which is the portion you currently control. My successor, who briefly was the Chiamaran leader, also controlled Brittany, which is another historic region of Greater Normandy. If circumstances change, I also would like to name you as my successor to the throne of Normandy, meaning if you ever do have control over those areas, you would be their royal leader."[/i]

Therese nodded, she actually had become more and more perturbed with every passing day, Louis XX had died in a car crash and yet there was no further investigation of his death beyond packing up the body, though she was able to brush that easily enough. However, when both the father and son of the House of Bonaparte were found drowned, no, something was amiss in Burgundy, they were a boil on the face of all German people giving a horrible name to their neighbors to the east and Therese planned to move before it was too late or when the Burgundians had broke the last of Aquitaine's patience.

"Personally Vincent, I believe they're trying to proclaim Hohenzollern's authenticity to the French throne, unfortunately he also lays claim to the throne of Prussia. I invited the North German Kanzler to talk with me at my Chateau, isolate them, they are ruining the good name of the German people, it is men like Hohenzollern that contribute to the distrust between French and Germans, when he creates a society that is desperate for rebellion, desperate for revolution. I am keeping two very close eyes on the Burgundians." She laughed when he made her family seem royal though. "House Zelle? I love the sound of that, my grandfather is probably smiling down from heaven, he wanted a lot of good things for his family and you are giving me too much honor Vincent." And she was utterly shocked when he brought up the title of Duchess of Basse-Normandie, her eyes widened as she played with her hair for a moment. "Duchess? Your Highness, you are too kind, too honorable." In just a few words, she had been elevated to a royal status, truly amazing. "I cannot express my thanks in enough words."

With that the Limousine continued through the city until they arrived wherever Vincent steered the driver to. It was in his hands, not Therese's.

Edited April 5, 2010 by Sarah Tintagyl

[Bacharth]

[i]"I cannot express my thanks in enough words."

[/i]"It is a hard thing to express gratitude for. When I was handed the sword myself, I almost passed out from the excitement. Heh, that was a while ago though, I was much younger then - Driver, can you take this right?"

They were headed to the old palace. In John's suitcase was the sword, a golden-silver short sword that was handed to Vincent by his grandfather, Claude Beauregard d'Armor.

The pulled into the palace turnabout around 7 or 8. They all stepped out of the limo and into the Palace.

"So, when is the audience supposed to show up? Hopefully this will be a bigger event than the illegitimate crowning of the King of Normandy."

[Karl Martin]

[quote name=%26%2339%3BSarah Tintagyl' date='02 April 2010 - 03:38 PM' timestamp='1270244300' post='2245696']
unfortunately he also lays claim to the throne of Prussia.
[/quote]

OOC: Karl Martin IS the King of Prussia.

[Sarah Tintagyl]

Therese walked into the palace of the old Norman kings in Nantes, the ancestral home of House Beauregard-D'Armor and couldn't help but feel a bit humbled by the majesty of the castle. The Normans were of a different breed, they were warriors, feared on the battlefield and having come across the seas from Scandinavia had a reputation of the Vikings as well, the generations in France had changed them, had taken them off their long ships, had made them trade their helmets for hats of velvet with plumes and yet the feeling of the castle brought back the fierceness of these ancient warriors and Therese was supposed to become one of them? Perhaps Adelaide would have been more accepting of the role, though the Prime Minister doubted herself and then shook the thought from her head. She would have to learn the path of the warrior eventually, if Aquitaine was to be kept safe from the world around her.

"Actually Vincent, the ceremony took a great deal of people by surprise and to really get the entire ceremony out to the people, we would have to wait at least a week. I had no idea that this was to be a large ceremony. However, I can let my Minister of Public Affairs know that this is too be a public affair and if we put the word, 'free admittance' I'm sure all of Nantes will turn out in droves." She smiled and then stretched yawning. "However, unless there is a pressing matter we have still to discuss, I might retire for the evening and become better acquainted with the castle. I have to say, your ancestral home is beautiful Vincent, definitely embodying the Norman heritage." Clasping her hands behind her, Therese rocked back and forth on her toes. "So anything of a pressing matter Vincent and I will be making those calls for the celebrations to begin next week. We can just stay in Nantes until that time, you can show me more of the city, from the perspective of a Norman Royal." She chuckled and looked up at him.

[Bacharth]

"Well, unless we want to discuss closer diplomatic relations between our nations, we can explore the city a little more, I wish to see how it has changed in the years I've been gone."

Yes, the castle was just as he left it, a tribute to the calming of the fierce Norman warriors. Nothing in the castle made any mention to the cultural assimilation of the Normans to the French and Burgundians.

[Sarah Tintagyl]

[i]Cathédrale Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul de Nantes[/i]

The morning of Therese's coronation as Duchess of the Beauregard holdings in France, essentially coming down to the title as Duchess of Normandy, she awoke with a great feeling of anxiety. Vincent had given her a room in his castle in Nantes along with an entourage of dressers and ladies of waiting to get the Prime Minister prepared for such a monumental occasion. Her robes had been prepared, a satin green gown that would bring out her eyes, her hair placed into a Norman style braid, eyes bathed in rose water, while her cheeks were rouged to a fine pink. All of this was nice, though she did not feel as much as a Prime Minister as she did one of the old French Royals from the glory days of the ancient monarchy and she shook her head. As an elected official, this was probably the last thing she should be doing, but the population that had been ruled under Beauregard had a strong affinity to their past monarchy. For Therese to be accepted within this enclave was a great honor and she was not about to disappoint.

"You look stunning Lady Therese." Said one of the maids as they stared into the mirror together. "This will not be a day that the people of Nantes soon forget."

"One can only hope." She said quietly, pulling at her braided hair. "I think this is the most dressed up I've ever been in my life."

Their conversation was immediately interrupted by the door to Therese's quarters opened as one of Vincent's chamberlains stepped in. "My apologies for disturbing your Ladyship, but the carriage to take you to the Cathedral is waiting outside, His Lordship has already departed and there is a great crowd that has gathered within and outside of the church."

"Well then, I believe we best be off. It would be a travesty to keep the crowd waiting for my arrival."

Therese bowed and lifted up her dress as she walked down through the ancient castle to the gates where the carriage awaited her. She climbed in, along with one of the Knights of Aquitaine as a guard and the horseman broke his reins on the horse and they were off towards the Cathedral. The weather was exceptionally beautiful that morning as the sun seemed to amplify the sounds of the church bells in the air, chiming loudly for the entire city of Nantes to hear. Trees were in full blossom and colorful flowers grew along the side of the road as the carriage finally stopped in front of the great doors of the cathedral. A velvet carpet had been rolled out where Therese would begin her march down the center isle of the great stone church, Gothic architecture that sprawled up towards the heavens. On either side of the path that Therese was to take were citizens of Nantes, young and old, women and men that wore smiles on their faces. They were after all, still in Aquitaine and she was their Prime Minister and now along with that, she was their Protector, their Duchess, for now and forever.

The organ thundered from inside the church as Therese bowed her head and solemnly walked forward to where Vincent stood in front of the altar, prepared to accept her duty as Duchess of Normandy.

[Bacharth]

In the morning, Vincent woke himself up and dragged himself to his dresser. With a few groggy coughs, he looked at himself in the mirror, wondering where the young, vibrant revolutionary in him went. He was now a King, and naming a successor. He combed his dulling golden blond hair to the back and pulled on a pair of black pants. He reached inside his dresser and pulled out a pressed white shirt. Over that, he pulled on a black overcoat with green trim and the symbol of the House of Beauregard. He left his bedroom to the waiting room, where one of his chamberlains put his crown on his head. Jon and Pauly accompanied him to the altar.

"My Norman friends. Unfortunately today I come to you not as [i]your[/i] King, however I have the distinct honor of being in the presence of your future Duchess, Prime Minister Theresa Zelle.

"When the House Beauregard left the ruling of Normandy, there was no longer a royal ruler who was the patron of this land. Although in the modern ages, royalty is more of a symbol than an actuality, but the symbol is important. It is tradition, ancestry, a symbol of a way of life that has existed for hundreds of years. Back in those times, a constitution was a laughable subject. But now, The people have prevailed! Here, today, even moreso.

Theresa Zelle was not of royal birth, being born to the simpler farm life rather than the life of royalty. She is a strong, powerful woman who can lead this nation to great things. She has the backing of her people, and today, she gains the blessing of the last Gaulic royalty in France, with the passing of most of the royalty in Burgundy. Before we continue, I would like to ask for a moment of silence for their passing."

After the moment, the ceremony continued.

"Theresa Zelle, please approach the altar."

When she approached, turned to Pauly.

"Pauly, the sword of Harlem Beauregard, please."

Pauly retrieved the sword and presented it to Vincent.

"Theresa Zelle, please kneel."

After she kneeled, he touched the sword on each of her shoulders.

"I dub thee Lady Zelle of Aquitaine, rise Lady Zelle."

When she rose, he then turned to the Priest.

"It is tradition for a Protestant priest to bless the sword before handing it off to the successor." After the sword was blessed, he turned back to Theresa.

"Lady Zelle, today in the common age, I dub you the successor to the House Beauregard, and the Duchess of Normandy."

OOC: I don't know how that works, so if I'm wrong, sue me.

Edited April 6, 2010 by Vince Sixx

[Sarah Tintagyl]

As Vincent finally finished his speech to the young Prime Minister, now the Duchess of Normandy, she rose and turned to the crowd of people behind her. Each one of them looking in anticipation and excitement for what was to come. She took a deep breath and bowed her head. "People of Nantes, I thank each one of you once again for your never ending support to my administration in Bordeaux, but for your acceptance for my person to reign over you as Duchess. Our country at the moment is in its first years of what may prove to be a long cold war between the people of northern and southern France, between the peoples of east and west. However, no matter what occurs, I will promise the people of Nantes and all of Normandy this. Your culture, the Norman culture will be preserved, so long as the banner of Aquitaine flies, there will be a Norman people and I truly believe that even long after I am dead and gone that this culture will never truly die. The people of France have a lot to learn from a people of your strength, of your wisdom, of your fortitude and I ask that some how you give me that strength, that wisdom, that fortitude so that I in turn can make our people of Normandy great as they have always been. So that I can make Aquitaine a nation known throughout the world as a shining example of Republican thought, of freedom, and of peace."

"As Duchess of Normandy, as your Protector, it will be my dying wish that Normandy is preserved for ages to come. That, you have my honor under God."

She bowed her head again as the crowd erupted into applause and cheers. Smiling, Therese turned back to Vincent and let him take her hand. "Your Highness, again, I am in your eternal debt for such an honor. Perhaps we should return to the castle, for a proper celebration and then perhaps work our politics?"

Edited April 7, 2010 by Sarah Tintagyl

[Bacharth]

"Yes, let's let these people return to their lives, I'm sure they have children or jobs to attend to," he smiled. He remembered as a young man putting together a band and performing regular concerts in front of the Cathedral. It was a fun life.

----

Back at the Castle, Vincent had already seen the news from Burgundy. "So, we already have royal ties now, should we have economic, or even military ties?" Vincent knew that Burgundy was making more enemies than friends. Their paranoia about the nations around them are unwarranted, and almost like a confused pothead. Vincent has seen way too many paranoid friends lash out to make a first strike, and Vincent would die by the sword before he saw any French city in ruins, besides Paris of course, the city has been destroyed so many times he couldn't count.