Gang....I'm away from my books.
Can anyone remember if New England was mentioned in the Thebes book?
This isn't the New England in the USA: there's a myth mentioned in a couple of sagas of some Anglo-Saxons fleeing England when the Normans took over, went to Constantinople, and were given land in Crimea. They called it Nova Anglia.
More here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_England_(medieval)
There is TSE p.15 The Macedonian Dynasty about the Varangian Guard consisting after 1066 mainly of Anglo-Saxon fugitives.
Nothing about Nova Anglia in TSE tmk.
It definitely wasn't mentioned. (Just did a quick check of TSE for the word "England" and it didn't appear. Also there's no use of the word "Crimea" in TSE).
I've been interested in the topic ever since I read Caitlin Green's summary of the evidence
OMG this is amazing! I now hvae to figure out how to use it...
Bob
To support other statements, a PDF search found nothing for Nova (except Nova Roma) and no Anglia.
Thanks all,
So, that'll be a podcast episode. Darkwing's link to Caitlin Green's work is the best thing I've seen on this. In our case, though, you might recall there was a covenant founded to fight the Normans that has since fallen? It was called...H????'s Revenge or something? I can see them heading east.
Basically a migration that great, as opposed to just going to Ireland or Italy, has to have some sort of odd spin on it, and a covenant would make sense. The area they are in is treated, in the Tribunal map, as if its in the middle of nowhere, but actually they are right on the Silk Route that makes Genoa enough money that they can throw down with Venice.
The Genoese haven't bought Kaffa yet, but they are close, and I think we have a really interesting sort of setting in the Black Sea that we haven't fully explored. For example, ploticially: why are they in the same Tribunal as the Rus, when they are just a week's sail from Thebes? IRL its because the people who laid out the original boundaries didn't know sea travel is faster than land travel in period, but in game, there's a clear political tension between the vis poor Roman tribunal's colonies sent into land Thebes may want to claim.
I'm pretty much committed to my Cornwall and Venice stuff just now: but I've been eyeing Georgia as a potential area to write about for a bit, and Ghazia has similar themes (how do you deal with the Khanate as overlords, for example?)
The Saxon refugee covenant is Horsingas. Loch Leglean tribunal, near the north of the Stonehenge tribunal border (Hadrian's wall).
Great stuff about the Saxon crimeans. Love it!
Definetly not in the Thebes source book but very interesting for the saga I am preparing
Some thread necromancy.
I have been playing around with the idea of a "Cult of Davnalleus", whose members seek to create/cast a ritual to bring back the big, bad D.
It occurs to me they would likely to be from the North of the British Isle. And with William's Harrowing of the North, it is conceivable they ended up in the Crimea.
If they resurrected D in the Crimea, would the Order see him coming?
I don't think the Order would see him coming regardless of where the resurrection takes place. Traitor's Gambit, while most suitable for the Tribunals of the Isles where Spider War took place, can happen anywhere with a little adjustments. The further away you are from his old strongholds, the less of a concern he would be, I imagine.
The Covenants setup to keep watch for his return have long since fallen or changed their purpose. Its been so long that vast majority of the Order consider him dead and gone, with probably only the most paranoid believing he could ever return. Actually, the main group who would have an inkling of that would be Damhadh-Duidsan. IIRC it is said almost every member will at some point have a vision of the Spider basically offering them a variation of "Join or Die", funnily enough.
If the Spider returns in Crimea, lets see...He would probably have lot less Hermetic neighbours to worry about for a time, with most covenants being far away enough to give him a layer of seclusion. Proximity to Novgorod would give him a pool of Hedge Wizards to build up his forces with. Potentially, he could even witness an Amazon raid and choose to reincarnate into an apprentice of an Amazoness Sorceress - with the goal of eventually adding their entire nation to his new anti-Order coallition. He might strike an alliance with Viae, another immortal with a grudge against the Order...
That or pair up with the Mongol invader to form a double threat.
Or better yet; Both!
Granted I do think that Mongol Shamans would be harder to win over for the time being. I imagine them fanatically loyal to Ghengis Khan, and maintaining firm loyalty to his immediate successor, at least for a time.
The slavic Kolduni I imagine he could very easily gather to his cause, since his druidic magic functions basically the same as his own, with some minor differences that I imagine he would be most keen on incorporating into his own arsenal. Durable External Soul and Arcane Connection range for instance.
While a bit out of the way, the Baltics to the north could also prove ripe for recruitment; the Northern Crusades would surely have left more than one embittered wizard or tribe open to his machinations, though its at that point he might overreach and show his hand; there is an active Tytalian cabal there aiding the pagans. It would be kind of poetic if Tytalians were the first to notice something unusual is going on, which snowballs into the revelation of the Spider's return.
Back on the topic of New England, he could arguably resurrect the Anglo-Saxon Vitkir in New England. A Gifted child born here could perhaps be swayed by stories of his ancestor's valor in the face of foreign invaders...Strikes close to home, doesn't it?
The idea is growing on me.
All the Cult of D needs to do is convince the Anglo-Saxon lords of New England that D supports the old order, and would oppose the Norman invaders, and all of New England would probably support his return.
The North Shall Rise Again!
He could even be bostonian this time, a true villian...
In the context of historical myths and legends, "Nova Anglia" in Crimea represents the fascinating idea of Anglo-Saxons establishing a new homeland after fleeing Norman rule. While the Thebes book might not explicitly mention this myth, it reflects the complex tapestry of medieval migrations and cultural intersections. Much like a leather hoodie pullover offers a contemporary twist on a classic garment by blending old and new styles, the story of Nova Anglia adds a unique layer to the rich historical narrative by connecting English heritage with Byzantine influence. If you're interested in exploring how such myths were interwoven with medieval history, checking the Thebes book might still be worthwhile when you have access to it again.