King of Switzerland (Merveilles des Morte)

King of Switzerland (Titular)
Incumbent
Vacant since N/A
Details
Heir presumptive	Vacant

The King of Switzerland is a honorary, titular position within the Holy Roman Empire, created in 1479 by Emperor Henry VII. The title's creation corresponded with the emperor's edict of the same year, which sought to divide the nation into five named polities classified as "kingdoms", with one of these divisions being the Swiss Confederacy, which was notable for possessing a non-monarchical form of government. Despite being named for Switzerland, to fill the lack of monarch for that region, the King of Switzerland was not envisioned to have any powers of government or state within the region of the same name. The Emperor determined that the title would be granted to whoever could complete a series of twelve challenges, based on the legends of King Arthur and the Trials of Heracles, beginning a period of competition across the empire. The competition soon grew into a multigenerational saga as knights and adventurers from around the world competed for the honor.

When it became clear that the competition would not be won as quickly as expected, a system was created which allowed for points to be passed on to subsequent descendants. As such the history of the competition is often divided into "generations", which different contestants being present in each.

Overview

Challenges

• The Murders of Konstanz (June 1479) - A man in Konstanz named Ulrich von Richenthal reports that on 20 May someone broke into a home and killed a woman named Charlotte and her daughter Sophia. The mother was found in a yard behind the house, with multiple broken bones and her throat so deeply cut that her head fell off when the body when moved. The daughter was found strangled to death and stuffed upside down into a chimney. The murders occurred in a fourth-floor room that was locked from the inside; on the floor were found a bloody straight razor, several bloody tufts of gray hair, and two bags of gold coins.
• Quest for the Shoes (June 1479) - The emperor seeks to uncover the lost relic that is the lost shoes of Saint Germanaus of Granfelden.
• Hunt for the Beerwolf (July 1479) - Find and hunt the "Beerwolf" that Jan Franz of Lotharingia has reported of.
• The Red Birthday (March 1481) - During the birthday party of Herman III of Hesse an explosion underneath the floorboards murders Herman and most of his family, supposedly caused by his chamberlain Alexander Suslin. The Emperor seeks to hunt down Alexander Suslin and find out the truth behind the great tragedy in Hesse.
• The Great Game (May 1481) - There is word that there is a football club in the small town of Uster, Switzerland that is seemingly unbeatable. The Emperor wishes to know their secret, and will reward anyone who can manage to defeat them in a game of football.
• Into Thin Air (August 1482) - Whoever can successfully climb the Matterhorn mountain in the heart of the Alps, prove they had reached the summit, and safely return, will be granted one point.
• The Treasure of Tirol (November 1482) - In Tirol a giant jar has been produced filled to the brim with Guldengroschen silver coins. The jar is a cylinder measuring 1.4 cubita in height and 18/10ths of a cubitum in width, weighing about 142,983 Roman ounces. The jar itself is made of fairly thick glass that appears to be about a quarter of a digitus thick. The jar is held in a room in Tirol where it is guarded by several soldiers, and during daytime hours they allow any person entry to see the jar for 60 seconds once a day. The Emperor decrees that anyone who correctly guesses the number of coins within a margin of error of 100 coins will be granted one point. As an added incentive the Emperor decrees that any contestant who guesses correctly will be granted 1000 coins from the jar, divided by the number of guesses it took them to use (rounded down); this means that for every correct guess the jar’s total count will decrease.
• The Bird Hunt (January 1540) - In the city of Lausanne it is rumored there is are albino blackbirds that live in the nearby region, and a point will be granted to anyone who can capture one such bird or prove its existence.
• Swiss Utopia (April 1542) - In the city of Solothurn it is rumored that the government has established a true utopia. Vast riches poor from the settlement, with all the inhabitants seemingly living perfect lives, with no crime, poverty, or hunger. The exact nature of what is really going on in the city is tightly guarded, and the Emperor wishes to know the true nature of what is going on, or for the city to be convinced to share their secrets and wealth.
• A Tale of Two Cities (March 1543) - The town of Sarnen has completely divided itself in two, with each half of the city refusing to work with the other. A war is practically on the verge of breaking out between the two, and the Emperor seeks to have this situation ended.

Leading Contestants

1. Edmund von Jenagotha, Duke of Lolland: 3 points. Inherited points from father Wolfgang of Thuringia.
2. Peter III of Geneva-Lenzburg: 1 point, from finding the shoes of St. Germanus (deceased, points forfeit).
3. Khalil Yorobanda: 1 point, from beating the Ulster Swiss Football Team.

Solutions

• The Murders of Konstanz - Wolfgang of Thuringia successfully deduced that a monkey had been responsible for the murders, as no human could have completed it.
• Quest for the Shoes - The Shoes of Saint Germanus were tracked down to a cave near Delémont, guarded by a shadowy organization. After a struggle between several different contestants, including Peter III, Henry the Black, and Jan Jakob, Peter emerged with the shoes.
• Hunt for the Beerwolf - Wolfgang of Thuringia deduced that the Beerwolf was a metaphorical representation of tyrannical rule, and could be slain by overcoming personal fear to resist injustice, and was awarded with a point by the Emperor in January 1481.
• The Red Birthday - ???
• The Great Game - Khalil Yorobana successfully solved and beat the team.
• Into Thin Air - ???
• The Treasure of Tirol - The following people have successfully guessed the number of coins:
  • Wolfgang of Thuringia

History

1st Generation

The first generation of the competition lasted from its creation in 1479 to approximately 1510. This era was exemplified by a sense of optimism and honor by its contestants, which included numerous major dynasts and nobles, as it was expected that a winner would emerge quickly. Some of the first leaders of the contest would emerge during this time, such as Wolfgang the Wander, whose publications and memoirs helped to spread awareness of the events to a greater audience. However, these works did not portray many of the happenings in a positive light, eroding the perceived image of the virtuous and chivalrous contestant by the time of the second generation. This era encompasses the Lenzburg-Premsylid War, which majorly disrupted and changed the nature of the competition. By the early 1500s the Protestant Reformation began, leading to numerous conflicts across the Empire. The religious divide brought a new dimension to the competition, and is largely seen as the start of the second generation.

Notable contestants:

• Henry "the Black" of Bohemia - The emperor's son first searched for the relic of Germanus, following a false lead to France, before arriving in Moutier.
  • Winand Raitz “the Engineer” - Responsible for aiding in Henry's attempted "Trojan Horse" and his heist in the Moutier Abbey.
  • Jantis "the Jackaal" Jett - A famed member of the Imperial Guard, and later Premier Captain.
  • Bonaventure “the Monk” - Arrested in Burgundy for impersonating musicians.
  • Florian Geyer - Arrested in Burgundy for impersonating musicians.
• Wolfgang the Wanderer(3 points) - Ventured to Lotharingia and successfully completed the hunt for the Beerwolf. He would later also solve the mystery at Konstanz and correctly guess the amount of coins in Tirol. Was leading in the contest until his unexpected death.
  • Bernard “Twice-Died”
  • Edmund Alwin de la Marck - Wounded in the shoulder. Later became Duke of Saxony.
  • Sir Julius
  • Sir Lorenzo - Killed in action by a cannon blast.
  • Ottokar the Squire
  • Casimir - A peasant leader who is discovered murdered.
• Philip of Habsburg - Attempted to solve the murders of Konstanz before giving up in 1481.
• Georg von Erlach - Local of Konstanz who attempted to solve the murders.
• Ernest “the Bastard” - Leads a band of adventurers to Lotharingia, before becoming distracted by the hunt for Ernest Frederick. Later traveled to Konstanz.
• Kilian von Bibra - One of the richest men of Bohemia; attempted to find the Beerwolf by destroying the forests of Lotharingia.
• Peter III of Geneva-Lenzburg (1 point) - Traveled to Moutier and worked with the bishops of Switzerland to search for Saint Germanus. He would later succeed in finding the shoes.
  • Caspar von Mühlhausen, Bishop of Basel
  • Aymon von Lenzburg, Bishop of Lausanne
• Engelbert von Lenzburg
• Jan Jakob - Knight of Hesse and childhood friend of Agnes of Hesse, tasked with searching for Saint Germanus
• Walter Geyer of Namur - A noble who searched for the Beerwolf.
• Johann “the Fat” - A noble who searched for the Beerwolf.
• Thumas Lowen II of Arles - Took part in the hunt for Saint Germanus' shoes.
• Simon Burkhart of the Hansa - Sought to solve the mystery of Hesse.
• Shadrach de la Marck - member of Saxon royal family, arrested after violently assaulting Ulster football team, attempted to solve the Murders of Konstanz after they'd already been solved, claimed to have met Alexander Suslin, later found valuable clues regarding Suslin's whereabouts, but they were easily stolen.
• Sir Dolphus Thurn - successfully found a papyrus relating to the whereabouts of Alexander Suslin.

Henry and the Folly of France

In 1480 the emperor’s son Henry "the Black" decided to search for the lost relic of Saint Germananus, but soon realized he has no idea where to start. He traveled first to Auxerre and spent months investigating and searching there, with the locals sending him on quest after quest. He eventually assembled a team of other knights; Winand Raitz “the Engineer”, Jantis “the Jackal” Jett, Bonaventure “the Monk”, and Florian Geyer.

He reached a small fortress in the countryside and demanded entry, to which the local noble refused and instead taunted him. One of Henry’s companions, Winand Raitz “the Engineer”, elected that they should build a “Trojan Horse” to sneak their way into the castle, and they built a giant wooden horse for this purpose. When the horse was left in front of the castle the defenders let it in, but Henry soon discovered the peasant mob he hired to be inside the horse had slept in and forgot to get inside. The group abandoned that lead and instead split up to search the countryside.

Sir Florian encountered a camp in the woods where a Black Knight guarded and the two were forced to duel. After a lengthy fight the Black Knight’s arm was severed, but he continued to duel with his other arm, to Florian’s amazement, before finally dying. Sir Jantis ventured elsewhere and received a message shot by an arrow from a nearby keep, describing a damsel in distress. He fought his way inside, killing all those in his path to reach the damsel, before discovering that the “damsel” was actually a young man who was annoyed that his father was forcing him to marry a woman he did not like.

Bonaventure “the Monk”’s travels brought him to a small town seemingly only populated by young, beautiful women. He fought in vain to avoid the advances of the women, trying to stick to his Christian vows. Luckily, Jantis arrived just in time to “rescue” Bonaventure from the clutches of the women clawing at his robes. Elsewhere Sir Winand found an old hermit living in the woods, who gave him clues of a nearby cave. The group eventually regroups.

They headed to the nearby cave where it was rumored that Saint Germanus was martyred, and they uncover an inscription detailing the castle where his body was taken to. Returning to the old hermit, he agreed to help them solve the riddle of the inscription and lead them to the castle, if they could answer a question of his own. He asked, “what is the hardest thing a man can do?” To which Henry answered, “to tell the truth.” The hermit agreed to lead the party to the castle, but they soon discovered the castle was actually the one from earlier in the year that they had failed to infiltrate. Henry began making preparations for an army to arrive to siege the castle, before he received word that he has been in the wrong place the whole time; he was hunting after the remains of Germanus of Auxerre when he was supposed to be searching for Germanus of Granfelden. Distraught for wasting the year, he returned to Germany with his knights to try again next year.

Ernest: First Blood

In Lotharingia the great hunt for the Beerwolf was underway, as hundreds of peasants ventured into the woods in all directions, searching high and low for the mystical beast. Imperial Guard Ernest “the Bastard” declared that he would prove himself as a great warrior, and led a small band of hunters into the woods, into the most perilous part of the forest. Another noble, Kilian von Bibra, hired hundreds of men to search the forest and chop down every last tree if needed. At one point, two hired peasant bands of two nobles engaged in a skirmish in the woods as a proxy war of the two houses’ longstanding feud.

A soldier of the Greek War, Ernest Frederick, found himself caught up in the conflict coincidentally while passing through the forest as a vagrant. The fighting triggered something in him and he snapped, accidentally wounding a sheriff’s deputy after the sheriff harassed him, and he fled into the woods. Sheriff Otto von Jori started assembling a mob to track him down for the crime, but Frederick kept escaping their grasp, trapping the deputies in makeshift traps. Ernest became distracted by this development, seeking to carry out the Emperor’s justice, and he joined the hunt for Frederick as well.

Finally they chased Frederick into town where he burnt down the sheriff’s house and went on a rampage through town, culminating in him cornering the sheriff. Before Frederick could slay the sheriff, Ernest intercepted and talked him down, causing Frederick to collapse into tears. He revealed he was the last survivor of an elite unit of mercenaries during the war, and still struggled with nightmares from his experiences. Ernest sympathized with him and decided he would spare the man for his crimes, taking him back to Aachen, and removing himself from the contest for the remainder of the year.

Philip's Conspiracy

Philip of Habsburg, noted for his proud and pompous demeanor, decided he was clearly gifted enough to solve the unfortunate murders in Konstanz. He traveled to the city with a great entourage and stayed in the city in high style, becoming minorly distracted by parties and aristocratic matters. Eventually, noting that there was gold dropped at the scene of the crime, he tracked the bags of gold down to a local merchant named Karl and had him arrested and interrogated, wagering that the man may have broken into the house and done the murders, and he continued to investigate further.

Meanwhile a local Swissman named Georg von Erlach arrived in the city and began his own investigation. He was attacked by ruffians supposedly hired by Philip, and Georg realized he would have to dodge the other contestants in order to succeed. Karl’s brother, Klaus, also made a case that the merchant wouldn’t have had a motive to do the crime, that he simply dropped off that money the day before, but Klaus mysteriously disappears soon after.

The Red Birthday

In 1481 Herman III of Hesse was preparing for his birthday party. He was noted for being a man with a short temper, who often exploded against people he disagreed with, such as the Swiss. For example, in that year he notably wrote, "The 'marriage proposal' that the Lenzburgs broker as a third party, for some reason, involving Hesse and *checks notes* Ice Land? is obviously rejected. Herman III has half a mind to tell Lenzburg to 'go to hell'." He also notably slaps his chamberlain Alexander Suslin across the face in anger, after his wife dies of consumption.

In July a feast was held for the margrave's birthday, in which almost his whole family was invited. According to legend, Suslin went up to the Margrave and delivered his present: a painting of Nemesis, goddess of revenge, and then left the hall. An hour later there was a great explosion, as underneath the floorboards gunpowder had secretly been stockpiled. Herman and the entire party were all instantly killed. Only his daughter Agnes survived, as she had been unexpectedly sick the morning of the party and stayed in bed.

The unmarried Agnes was declared the new ruler of Hesse and Upper Mark. After the event she became highly paranoid and locked in a highly guarded tower, and dispatched soldiers and knights to search the land in order to apprehend Alexander Suslin, who has seemingly disappeared without a trace. She remains unsure if he was even guilty, but nonetheless searched after her only lead. She receives numerous letters from potential suitors, with some claiming to have evidence that other parties were responsible for the assassination, including at least one letter from the Thin White Duke blaming Lenzburg. The emperor would declare a fourth challenge for the Kingdom of Switzerland the following year; hunt down Alexander Suslin and find out the truth behind the great tragedy in Hesse.

The Heist of Moutier

Peter III of Geneva-Lenzburg took an interest in the challenge about the shoes of Saint Germanus of Granvelden, and traveled to the Abbey of Moutier-Grandval in 1480, where he knew Germanus had been an abbot. Peter asked the monks living there if they knew of the location of the Saint's remains, and in order to give his requests more authority, he sought the help of Bishop of Basel Caspar von Mühlhausen, who agreed to help him because of Peter's relationship to the Lenzburg family and specifically Aymon von Lenzburg, the current Bishop of Lausanne.

Peter III's investigation would lead him to a number of leads. He discovered a monk in town (the same one that Jan Jakob met), who claimed the shoes were in Luxeuil Abbey in Burgundy. With the help of the Bishop, Peter also managed to uncover more clues in the abbey, including a forgotten tomb in the abbey supposedly belonging to Germanus that could be opened. They also found a book in the abbey's archives claiming that when Germanus was slain, Duke Eticho took many of his artifacts with him to a specific spot in Delémont.

In 1481 Henry "the Black" arrived in Moutier after his failed quest in France. He spied Peter III in and around the Abbey, but was unsure why or what he was doing. Realizing that the abbey must be important however, he decided to stage a secret heist into the facility in the middle of the night. Pretending to be window cleaners, Henry and his group of knights assumed costumes and scaled the side of the abbey’s library. Sir Winand the “Engineer” created a makeshift pulley system, which allowed the men to lower Henry inside through a window in the ceiling by rope.

He made his way silently through the abbey, and to his shock even overheard the Bishop of Basel engaging in “carnal relations” with a lady of the night in one of the guest rooms. He managed to find several documents on a table left out from the day before and grabbed them, before trying to find his way out. Unfortunately he discovered several monks had wandered into the room where his rope was, and Winand was forced to pull the rope back up. He instead tried to sneak out the front door, where he coincidentally ran into the abbot himself. Thinking quickly he punched the man in the face and fled out the door.

The next day the group examined the stolen documents, only to find they had mostly stolen the abbey’s tax information. They found one note indicating that the Bishop of Basel has information and was helping Peter III, so they devised a second plan. A local prostitute named Marie was paid off to have relations with Basel and get him to spill information. After a few weeks she seemingly got into the bishop’s company, but she told Henry that unfortunately the bishop liked to wear a “gag”.

While that avenue failed, Sir Florian luckily managed to find some information by shadowing some of the other contestants. They learned that many people were heading to Luxeuil Abbey in Burgundy, so the group decided to split up. Bonaventure and Florian departed for Burgundy, and in order to keep their actions quiet, they impersonated musicians in a minstrel show in the circus. To their surprise the circus was noticed by the ruler of Burgundy himself, and the minstrels were chosen to perform at a festival in the great hall in front of all the lords and ladies of Burgundy. Florian and Bonaventure improvised as best they can but had no instrument playing experience, and the music was noticeably unbearable. The show was so unbelievably horrible and embarrassing that the Duke of Burgundy ordered them thrown in prison.

Meanwhile Henry was completely unaware of this development, and continued searching in Switzerland. He found a map leading to the death site of the saint, but unknown to him Sir Jan Jakob had sabotaged the map so that it led in the opposite direction. While they wandered through the farmland where the site was supposed to be, a farmer ran out with a pitchfork and chased them off.

Cave of Germanus

Peter III and the Bishop of Basel discovered the supposed forgotten tomb of Germanus at the Abbey of Moutier-Grandval, and began a correspondence with Pope Innocent VII to request permission to open it. The tomb was opened but to everyone's astonishment the body was completely gone. Inside there was only a strange symbol: a small wooden sword-like cruciform. Later Peter traveled to Luxeuil Abbey as well but failed to find any notable clues, although he ran into several other contestants, and noted an unwavering feeling like he was being watched. Elsewhere, after days searching the trails near Delémont, one of the monks dispatched by Peter claimed to find something deep in the woods. However, before he could investigate further he claimed to hear a voice say, "In the name of the Cruciform Sword, do not come any closer." Several mysterious men walked toward with swords drawn. Luckily this was witnessed by one of the other monks in secret, and he fled in terror, leaving the fate of his fellow monk unknown.

Peter heard of this tale and immediately headed for the cave, but his thoroughness in searching every lead undoubtedly alerted the other contestants, who began to tail him. He regrouped with Bishop of Basel Caspar von Mühlhausen and began to do research into the "cruciform sword" found in both the Abbey of Moutier-Grandval and with the mysterious men near Delémont. The Bishop of Basel would ask several priests at the Basel Cathedral and several scholars at the library of the University of Basel to search through their records to see if they could find any references to this Cruciform Sword or a group associated with it. The investigation into the symbol proved inconclusive, although they did find several instances of historical records where it seems to be recorded that the symbol was seen at the sites of other saints.

Peter and a group of two dozen members of the city guard of Basel set out down the trail in Delémont, eventually reaching a mysterious cave complex. Once inside he saw a cave wall covered in carvings and paintings. An elderly man in robes approached and said, "I am the guardian of this shrine. If you are worthy, you will find what you seek." he motioned around the corner to a room filled with upwards of 100 pairs of shoes, many of which made of ornate materials, with some being gold encrusted, others covered with jewels, and other shoes made of pure glass. Peter thoroughly searched the room, and concluding that since the saint was a pious man, he would not have worn one of the ornate pairs of shoes. Thus Peter concluded that a plain pair of shoes made of simple leather must have been the correct pair. "You have chosen wisely," said the old man.

Peter and his entourage made their way to the exit, but upon leaving the cave they heard a man outside say, "Not so fast." It was Henry and his handful of knights. "We'll be taking those." Suddenly there was a second voice from elsewhere in the woods who said, "No, I think we will." It was Sir Jan Jakob and a handful of armed townsfolk.

Battle of Beerwolf Forest

Wolfgang of Thuringia arrived in Lotharingia with several companions: Bernard "Twice-Died", Edmund Alwin de la Marck, Ottokar the Squire, and the knights Julius and Lorenzo. He discovered that the hunt for the Beerwolf had caused the peasants to mobilize in searching the forest, and nobles from across Germany had arrived, who created peasant mobs to search on their behalf. The most dastardly of the nobles, Kilian von Bibra, creates an army to destroy the forests of the area systematically in search of the Beerwolf, causing a group of locals led by a man named Casimir, with the backing of other nobles to take up arms against him.

One night Kilian begins to bombard the peasant defenders, causing a chaotic battle in the forest. A cannon shot goes off in front of Wolfgang and his entourage. Badly wounding Wolfgang and Edmun Alwin, and killing Lorenzo. Wolfgang manages to escape to safety, and him inadvertently being present for the battle and being wounded causes great embarrassment for Kilian. A Hussite priest, who assumes Wolfgang was acting courageously, talks to him which causes him to have an epiphany.

The Great Game

A number of Icelandic wrestlers were sent by the King of Iceland to try to best the Swiss team of Ulster in a football match. However, they were apprehended by the guards and police of the town for being too violent, and dumped in the town prison.

Several years afterwards, Shadrach de la Marck and his band of Saxons attempted a similar ploy. Prior to the football match, they violently incapacitated several members of the football team, and attempted to bribe the referee. However, the town, which had managed to hire a number of guards with the spoils of the football team's victories, arrested Shadrach and the Saxons and locked them up in the town prison with the Icelanders, who were still rotting there. Shadrach's bail money was later paid by his cousin Edmund Alwin, Duke of Saxony. Contrary to the rules of bail, he then immediately left the town to complete the next task - solve the murders of Lovech. He began to hire assassins, and then had his guards seize them and tortured them until they confessed to committing the murders. However, Shadrach's information was out-of-date: the murders had been solved and the task completed several years ago. However, he was awarded a large amount of money by handing over the criminals he caught over to the law and justice, which he then used to purchase a small army. He then launched various unsuccessful attempts over the years, engaging in espionage and partaking in dangerous activities. Eventually, he died, and his descendants carried on the struggle.

Footnotes