British Isles

England

The Kingdom of England consists of the south-eastern part of Britain, with the duchies of Brittany and Normandy - legacies from William the Conqueror - across the English Channel. The English nobility are exclusively Norman, descendants of Danish vikings who settled on the French coast. Common people come mostly from Anglo-Saxon stock, with quite a lot of Scandinavian blood in the northern county of York. The capital is London, an independent county by itself.

A generation after the Norman invasion, the relations between Anglo-Saxons and Normans are still strained. King Henry is working on uniting the nobles, but many bitter Saxons are still leaving their homeland for a mercenary career in Byzantium or the Holy Land.

England is ruled by Henry Beauclerc, dubbed "The Lion of Justice", the fourth son of William the Conqueror. As a youngest son he is well educated and a skilled politician. Henry had quickly seized power after his universally hated elder brother William Rufus died in a hunting accident. Among his many vices, William was a sodomist so he left no heirs to claim the throne.

The eldest of the brothers, Robert Curthose, joined the First Crusade and to finance this expedition he had mortgaged his duchy of Normandy to the late king William. Upon returning, Robert tried to wrest the crown from his little brother, but Henry defeated him twice - in Porsmouth and later in Tinchebray, Normandy. Currently Robert is imprisoned in the Devizes castle in Wiltshire, England.

Scotland

In the northern highlands of Britain, the celtic kingdom of Scotland is enjoying a time of prosperity. The previous king Edgar has negotiated peace with Norway in the north and England in the south. The crown of Scotland has just passed to Edgar's young brother Alexander the Fierce, or Alastair mac Mail. However, the third brother David rules the southern part of Scotland as a Prince, supported by his brother-in-law Henry Beauclerc of England.

Alastair is noted for his piety, but is also known as a ruthless warrior. He grudgingly accepts David's rule over the southern lowlands and has no ambitious plans of expansion. The alliance with England seems to suit him quite well.

Wales

The western part of Britain holds three small welsh kingdoms: Gwynedd in the north, Deheubarth in the south, and Powys in the east. All kingdoms are hard pressed by the Norman barons of England, and currently Deheubarth is almost entirely lost to the invaders. Powys is still partly held by the sons of Bleddyn of the House of Mathrafal, but their internal struggle males them easy prey for the Norman Marcher Lords.

The aged but shrewd king of Gwynedd, Gruffydd ap Cynan has lost his throne already three times and does not intend to lose it again. He is allied with the Danish and Norwegian lords in Ireland, and with their help he has so far been able to resist the advances of the Normans. The weak kings and princes of Powys and Deheubarth are gradually warming to Gruffydd's cause and some go as far as call the old monarch the King of Wales.

Ireland

The green isle of Hibernia is divided into five kingdoms: the four celtic kingdoms of Leinster in the east, Munster in the south, Connacht in the west, Ulster in the North, and the Norwegian kingdom of Dublin. The most powerful of the Irish kings is Tairrdelbach mac Ruaidri Ua Conchobair of Connacht, or Turlogh O'Connor, who styles himself the High King of Ireland. Of course Muircheartach Ua Briain of Munster and Domhnall Mac Lochlainn of Leinster disagree. The Norwegians in Dublin couldn't care less about the arguing of the temperamental celts.

The Isles

The islands Between Ireland and Scotland, largest of which are the Isles of Man and Skye, are nominally under the rule of the King of Norway. However, the Lord of the Isles Olaf has made his mixed norse-gaelic dominion in fact independent. The galleys of the Gall Gaidheal, together with their kinsmen's even further north on the Orkneys and Hebrides, have become the most feared naval power of the North.