Myfanwy of Hercynia - Revision history

Twiggy at 21:10, 12 July 2025

2025-07-12T21:10:16Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:10, 12 July 2025
Line 59:		Line 59:
	The Striding seems to have found itself in and out of Hercynia many times over the next three centuries, and it is probable that its long history here is the reasons that Myfanwy is sometimes in this territory called Myfanwy Swallow’s Flight - and indeed it may well be the reason she is so consistently known as being “of Hercynia” elsewhere. The Flight kept her memory alive when she could easily - as many have, over the years - fallen out of thought. Unfortunately, the story ends in 325YE, when it appears the vast majority of the Flight left to travel to Montane as followers of Crescencia i Marusa i Riqueza - having fallen under the sway of that cultist of [[Malign_spiritual_presences#Anarchy\|Anarchy]] as so many did. Perhaps what remains of the rebels now still contains some who knew of the Flight? If they ever held some extra insight into the life of their most famous member, it is lost to blood and folly.		The Striding seems to have found itself in and out of Hercynia many times over the next three centuries, and it is probable that its long history here is the reasons that Myfanwy is sometimes in this territory called Myfanwy Swallow’s Flight - and indeed it may well be the reason she is so consistently known as being “of Hercynia” elsewhere. The Flight kept her memory alive when she could easily - as many have, over the years - fallen out of thought. Unfortunately, the story ends in 325YE, when it appears the vast majority of the Flight left to travel to Montane as followers of Crescencia i Marusa i Riqueza - having fallen under the sway of that cultist of [[Malign_spiritual_presences#Anarchy\|Anarchy]] as so many did. Perhaps what remains of the rebels now still contains some who knew of the Flight? If they ever held some extra insight into the life of their most famous member, it is lost to blood and folly.

	So, there at the beginning we lay our rest. Myfanwy Swallow’s Flight. Born of Hercynia; ~~traveler~~ across nations; confidante to the Empress; defender of ideals; perhaps the very model of what a proud citizen of Navarr should be.		So, there at the beginning we lay our rest. Myfanwy Swallow’s Flight. Born of Hercynia; traveller across nations; confidante to the Empress; defender of ideals; perhaps the very model of what a proud citizen of Navarr should be.

	It is in my view - and I appreciate, yes I appreciate that it is my personal academic obsession, but it is true! - that the loss of surety in history - our shared history - is a great crime, a stain. The Highborn are very proud that they founded the Empire, and justifiably so; but it is their obsession with virtue over truth that casts whole peoples and times into the black void of doubt - and, yes, the get of the Spires, cursed Nicovar, bears stain also. We must remember this: the Navarri saw in the ambition of the First Empress a flame that could burn as bright as lost Terunael, and Myfanwy deserves to be remembered as a woman who lived for that dream. Perhaps in her I see, too, the Torch.		It is in my view - and I appreciate, yes I appreciate that it is my personal academic obsession, but it is true! - that the loss of surety in history - our shared history - is a great crime, a stain. The Highborn are very proud that they founded the Empire, and justifiably so; but it is their obsession with virtue over truth that casts whole peoples and times into the black void of doubt - and, yes, the get of the Spires, cursed Nicovar, bears stain also. We must remember this: the Navarri saw in the ambition of the First Empress a flame that could burn as bright as lost Terunael, and Myfanwy deserves to be remembered as a woman who lived for that dream. Perhaps in her I see, too, the Torch.

Cathtice at 17:49, 12 August 2021

2021-08-12T17:49:05Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:49, 12 August 2021
Line 29:		Line 29:
	This work represents three months of intensive effort on the part of my colleague Majorian and I - the unvirtuous might call it sheer providence that this request came when it did, for we have both always specialised in the subject of the Empire’s origins and of the history of the First Empress; and here we were, homeless, scattered by [[Druj]] and in need of work, and we found that the Historical Research department had need of people with precisely our skillset. Majorian - as is his wont - provided editing and commentary as I wrote; fieldwork and the wider view, on the other hand, has always been my specialty.		This work represents three months of intensive effort on the part of my colleague Majorian and I - the unvirtuous might call it sheer providence that this request came when it did, for we have both always specialised in the subject of the Empire’s origins and of the history of the First Empress; and here we were, homeless, scattered by [[Druj]] and in need of work, and we found that the Historical Research department had need of people with precisely our skillset. Majorian - as is his wont - provided editing and commentary as I wrote; fieldwork and the wider view, on the other hand, has always been my specialty.

	What you must first understand, reader, is that the first problem with any historical research into the foundation of the Empire and the figures prominent at that time is the utter paucity of sources. This is not a problem in some cases - the treatise in recent years on the [[Crown of Three Tears]] borrowed heavily from the oral tradition of the [[Wintermark_culture_and_customs#Art_and_history\|scops]] in its sourcing of the information about [[Crown_of_Three_Tears#The_Last_King.2C_Alof_Bearning\|King Alof Bearning]], for instance - but in general, other than names and vague attributions to events and accomplishments, most of this early history is difficult to discern. Why is this? First and foremost, one has to assume it is because the early Empire simply was not writing about itself on the collective and organised scale that was seen in later years. There was simply no early unified scholarly tradition. People wrote, of course - look towards [[Kala\|Kala the Wise]], 200 years previous; the thoughtful and detailed collections of practical observations of the natural world that the Navarr have collected over the centuries, the guarded wisdom of those who have already lost a civilisation; the very particular attitude the [[Highguard\|Highborn]] have towards history, as a roiling sea in which virtue can be found with no care or heed for truth except the simple truth of the Virtues; the fantastical and stirring legends of the Dawnish [[troubadours]].		What you must first understand, reader, is that the first problem with any historical research into the foundation of the Empire and the figures prominent at that time is the utter paucity of sources. This is not a problem in some cases - the treatise in recent years on the [[Crown of Three Tears]] borrowed heavily from the oral tradition of the [[Wintermark_culture_and_customs#Art_and_history\|scops]] in its sourcing of the information about [[Crown_of_Three_Tears#The_Last_King.2C_Alof_Bearning\|King Alof Bearning]], for instance - but in general, other than names and vague attributions to events and accomplishments, most of this early history is difficult to discern. Why is this? First and foremost, one has to assume it is because the early Empire simply was not writing about itself on the collective and organised scale that was seen in later years. There was simply no early unified scholarly tradition. People wrote, of course - look towards [[Kala\|Kala the Wise]], 200 years previous; the thoughtful and detailed collections of practical observations of the natural world that the Navarr have collected over the centuries, the guarded wisdom of those who have already lost a civilisation; the very particular attitude the [[Highguard\|Highborn]] have towards history, as a roiling sea in which virtue can be found with no care or heed for truth except the simple truth of the Virtues; the fantastical and stirring legends of the Dawnish [[troubadour\|troubadours]].

	But it is the Urizen who invented historiography in the sense we understand it today, and it is only after the coming to prominence of the [[Urizen leadership#Torchbearers\|Torchbearer]] movement during [[Emperor Giovanni\|Giovanni’s]] reign that one sees an attempt to engage with history on terms as we think of it, as a record of What Happened, of one thing after another, an attempt tie the world down.		But it is the Urizen who invented historiography in the sense we understand it today, and it is only after the coming to prominence of the [[Urizen leadership#Torchbearers\|Torchbearer]] movement during [[Emperor Giovanni\|Giovanni’s]] reign that one sees an attempt to engage with history on terms as we think of it, as a record of What Happened, of one thing after another, an attempt tie the world down.

Rafferty: /* On Myfanwy of Hercynia */

2021-06-09T12:26:14Z

On Myfanwy of Hercynia

← Older revision		Revision as of 12:26, 9 June 2021
Line 31:		Line 31:
	What you must first understand, reader, is that the first problem with any historical research into the foundation of the Empire and the figures prominent at that time is the utter paucity of sources. This is not a problem in some cases - the treatise in recent years on the [[Crown of Three Tears]] borrowed heavily from the oral tradition of the [[Wintermark_culture_and_customs#Art_and_history\|scops]] in its sourcing of the information about [[Crown_of_Three_Tears#The_Last_King.2C_Alof_Bearning\|King Alof Bearning]], for instance - but in general, other than names and vague attributions to events and accomplishments, most of this early history is difficult to discern. Why is this? First and foremost, one has to assume it is because the early Empire simply was not writing about itself on the collective and organised scale that was seen in later years. There was simply no early unified scholarly tradition. People wrote, of course - look towards [[Kala\|Kala the Wise]], 200 years previous; the thoughtful and detailed collections of practical observations of the natural world that the Navarr have collected over the centuries, the guarded wisdom of those who have already lost a civilisation; the very particular attitude the [[Highguard\|Highborn]] have towards history, as a roiling sea in which virtue can be found with no care or heed for truth except the simple truth of the Virtues; the fantastical and stirring legends of the Dawnish [[troubadours]].		What you must first understand, reader, is that the first problem with any historical research into the foundation of the Empire and the figures prominent at that time is the utter paucity of sources. This is not a problem in some cases - the treatise in recent years on the [[Crown of Three Tears]] borrowed heavily from the oral tradition of the [[Wintermark_culture_and_customs#Art_and_history\|scops]] in its sourcing of the information about [[Crown_of_Three_Tears#The_Last_King.2C_Alof_Bearning\|King Alof Bearning]], for instance - but in general, other than names and vague attributions to events and accomplishments, most of this early history is difficult to discern. Why is this? First and foremost, one has to assume it is because the early Empire simply was not writing about itself on the collective and organised scale that was seen in later years. There was simply no early unified scholarly tradition. People wrote, of course - look towards [[Kala\|Kala the Wise]], 200 years previous; the thoughtful and detailed collections of practical observations of the natural world that the Navarr have collected over the centuries, the guarded wisdom of those who have already lost a civilisation; the very particular attitude the [[Highguard\|Highborn]] have towards history, as a roiling sea in which virtue can be found with no care or heed for truth except the simple truth of the Virtues; the fantastical and stirring legends of the Dawnish [[troubadours]].

	But it is the Urizen who invented historiography in the sense we understand it today, and it is only after the coming to prominence of the [[Urizen leadership#Torchbearers\|Torchbearer]] movement during [[Emperor Giovanni\|Giovanni’s]] reign that one sees an attempt to engage with history on terms as we think of it, as a record of What Happened, of one thing after another, an attempt tie the world down. Ironically, the historical record does not tell us why the Torchbearers rose, although it is the opinion of this author that it was a nascent [[Pride]] in their new place in the Empire that drove this philosophy in the spires; a mirror of that same Pride spread it from camp to camp, village to village, across all the points of light in our Empire.		But it is the Urizen who invented historiography in the sense we understand it today, and it is only after the coming to prominence of the [[Urizen leadership#Torchbearers\|Torchbearer]] movement during [[Emperor Giovanni\|Giovanni’s]] reign that one sees an attempt to engage with history on terms as we think of it, as a record of What Happened, of one thing after another, an attempt tie the world down.

	And then, of course, hanging over all of this is the other reason we know so little: [[Emperor Nicovar\|Nicovar]]. Nicovar, a curse even as the Torchbearers were a blessing, who destroyed so much. Indeed, some accounts - some of the few accounts - indicate that Nicovar might have held particular ire for those libraries known to contain more detailed accounts of the Empire’s early history; while none can know now what madness motivated him to commit the atrocities he did, it seems probable that at the root of it was a fear of the past.		And then, of course, hanging over all of this is the other reason we know so little: [[Emperor Nicovar\|Nicovar]]. Nicovar, a curse even as the Torchbearers were a blessing, who destroyed so much. Indeed, some accounts - some of the few accounts - indicate that Nicovar might have held particular ire for those libraries known to contain more detailed accounts of the Empire’s early history; while none can know now what madness motivated him to commit the atrocities he did, it seems probable that at the root of it was a fear of the past.

Rosemary: /* Overview */

2021-02-14T13:22:45Z

Overview

← Older revision		Revision as of 13:22, 14 February 2021
Line 1:		Line 1:
	[[Category:History]][[Category:Navarr]]		[[Category:History]][[Category:Navarr]]
	==Overview==		==Overview==
	This document was compiled for Eleri Bronwen’s Rest, [[Dredgemaster of Feverwater]] for the Winter Solstice 381YE by Octavia ~~Steam’s~~ Source, a civil service member of the department of [[historical research]]. It was made public shortly after the Spring Equinox of the same year with Eleri's permission. It covers the life and times of the [[Navarr]] Myfanwy of [[Hercynia]], a key figure in the creation of the Empire, focusing especially on her relationship with the [[First Empress]].		This document was compiled for Eleri Bronwen’s Rest, [[Dredgemaster of Feverwater]] for the Winter Solstice 381YE by Octavia Stream’s Source, a civil service member of the department of [[historical research]]. It was made public shortly after the Spring Equinox of the same year with Eleri's permission. It covers the life and times of the [[Navarr]] Myfanwy of [[Hercynia]], a key figure in the creation of the Empire, focusing especially on her relationship with the [[First Empress]].

	The document takes the form of a letter written to Eleri, and is somewhat informal in tone.		The document takes the form of a letter written to Eleri, and is somewhat informal in tone.

Hastur: /* On Myfanwy of Hercynia */

2021-02-12T13:19:01Z

On Myfanwy of Hercynia

← Older revision		Revision as of 13:19, 12 February 2021
Line 33:		Line 33:
	But it is the Urizen who invented historiography in the sense we understand it today, and it is only after the coming to prominence of the [[Urizen leadership#Torchbearers\|Torchbearer]] movement during [[Emperor Giovanni\|Giovanni’s]] reign that one sees an attempt to engage with history on terms as we think of it, as a record of What Happened, of one thing after another, an attempt tie the world down. Ironically, the historical record does not tell us why the Torchbearers rose, although it is the opinion of this author that it was a nascent [[Pride]] in their new place in the Empire that drove this philosophy in the spires; a mirror of that same Pride spread it from camp to camp, village to village, across all the points of light in our Empire.		But it is the Urizen who invented historiography in the sense we understand it today, and it is only after the coming to prominence of the [[Urizen leadership#Torchbearers\|Torchbearer]] movement during [[Emperor Giovanni\|Giovanni’s]] reign that one sees an attempt to engage with history on terms as we think of it, as a record of What Happened, of one thing after another, an attempt tie the world down. Ironically, the historical record does not tell us why the Torchbearers rose, although it is the opinion of this author that it was a nascent [[Pride]] in their new place in the Empire that drove this philosophy in the spires; a mirror of that same Pride spread it from camp to camp, village to village, across all the points of light in our Empire.

	And then, of course, hanging over all of this is the other reason we know so little: [[Emperor Nicovar\|Nicovar]]. Nicovar, a curse even as the Torchbearers were a blessing, who destroyed so much. Indeed, some accounts - some of the few accounts - indicate that Nicovar might have held particular ire for those libraries known to contain more detailed accounts of the Empire’s early history; while none can know now what madness motivated him to commit the atrocities he did, it seems probable that at the root of it was a fear of the ~~post~~.		And then, of course, hanging over all of this is the other reason we know so little: [[Emperor Nicovar\|Nicovar]]. Nicovar, a curse even as the Torchbearers were a blessing, who destroyed so much. Indeed, some accounts - some of the few accounts - indicate that Nicovar might have held particular ire for those libraries known to contain more detailed accounts of the Empire’s early history; while none can know now what madness motivated him to commit the atrocities he did, it seems probable that at the root of it was a fear of the past.

	I digress; Myfanwy. What can be said? Well, she definitely existed! This is always a start: when considering the early history of the Empire, one has to be a little suspicious of some figures who seem cut from whole cloth to satisfy some later example; for instance, there is a movement for a long time - we see records stretching all the way to Nicovar - of perennial attempts to have “Sheber” - the apocryphal Vision Priest that guided the First Empress about her vision - declared an [[Paragons_and_exemplars\|Exemplar or Paragon]] of various virtues; almost every account of Sheber’s life contradicts any other, and she is essentially a blank slate on which generations of Highborn projected their personal piety.		I digress; Myfanwy. What can be said? Well, she definitely existed! This is always a start: when considering the early history of the Empire, one has to be a little suspicious of some figures who seem cut from whole cloth to satisfy some later example; for instance, there is a movement for a long time - we see records stretching all the way to Nicovar - of perennial attempts to have “Sheber” - the apocryphal Vision Priest that guided the First Empress about her vision - declared an [[Paragons_and_exemplars\|Exemplar or Paragon]] of various virtues; almost every account of Sheber’s life contradicts any other, and she is essentially a blank slate on which generations of Highborn projected their personal piety.

Matt: First First Empress Link Link

2020-08-03T10:46:07Z

First First Empress Link Link

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:46, 3 August 2020
Line 1:		Line 1:
	[[Category:History]][[Category:Navarr]]		[[Category:History]][[Category:Navarr]]
	==Overview==		==Overview==
	This document was compiled for Eleri Bronwen’s Rest, [[Dredgemaster of Feverwater]] for the Winter Solstice 381YE by Octavia Steam’s Source, a civil service member of the department of [[historical research]]. It was made public shortly after the Spring Equinox of the same year with Eleri's permission. It covers the life and times of the [[Navarr]] Myfanwy of [[Hercynia]], a key figure in the creation of the Empire, focusing especially on her relationship with the [[~~Imperial history#Year Zero\|~~First Empress]].		This document was compiled for Eleri Bronwen’s Rest, [[Dredgemaster of Feverwater]] for the Winter Solstice 381YE by Octavia Steam’s Source, a civil service member of the department of [[historical research]]. It was made public shortly after the Spring Equinox of the same year with Eleri's permission. It covers the life and times of the [[Navarr]] Myfanwy of [[Hercynia]], a key figure in the creation of the Empire, focusing especially on her relationship with the [[First Empress]].

	The document takes the form of a letter written to Eleri, and is somewhat informal in tone.		The document takes the form of a letter written to Eleri, and is somewhat informal in tone.

Responsible1: /* On Myfanwy of Hercynia */

2018-06-24T09:40:35Z

On Myfanwy of Hercynia

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:40, 24 June 2018
Line 31:		Line 31:
	What you must first understand, reader, is that the first problem with any historical research into the foundation of the Empire and the figures prominent at that time is the utter paucity of sources. This is not a problem in some cases - the treatise in recent years on the [[Crown of Three Tears]] borrowed heavily from the oral tradition of the [[Wintermark_culture_and_customs#Art_and_history\|scops]] in its sourcing of the information about [[Crown_of_Three_Tears#The_Last_King.2C_Alof_Bearning\|King Alof Bearning]], for instance - but in general, other than names and vague attributions to events and accomplishments, most of this early history is difficult to discern. Why is this? First and foremost, one has to assume it is because the early Empire simply was not writing about itself on the collective and organised scale that was seen in later years. There was simply no early unified scholarly tradition. People wrote, of course - look towards [[Kala\|Kala the Wise]], 200 years previous; the thoughtful and detailed collections of practical observations of the natural world that the Navarr have collected over the centuries, the guarded wisdom of those who have already lost a civilisation; the very particular attitude the [[Highguard\|Highborn]] have towards history, as a roiling sea in which virtue can be found with no care or heed for truth except the simple truth of the Virtues; the fantastical and stirring legends of the Dawnish [[troubadours]].		What you must first understand, reader, is that the first problem with any historical research into the foundation of the Empire and the figures prominent at that time is the utter paucity of sources. This is not a problem in some cases - the treatise in recent years on the [[Crown of Three Tears]] borrowed heavily from the oral tradition of the [[Wintermark_culture_and_customs#Art_and_history\|scops]] in its sourcing of the information about [[Crown_of_Three_Tears#The_Last_King.2C_Alof_Bearning\|King Alof Bearning]], for instance - but in general, other than names and vague attributions to events and accomplishments, most of this early history is difficult to discern. Why is this? First and foremost, one has to assume it is because the early Empire simply was not writing about itself on the collective and organised scale that was seen in later years. There was simply no early unified scholarly tradition. People wrote, of course - look towards [[Kala\|Kala the Wise]], 200 years previous; the thoughtful and detailed collections of practical observations of the natural world that the Navarr have collected over the centuries, the guarded wisdom of those who have already lost a civilisation; the very particular attitude the [[Highguard\|Highborn]] have towards history, as a roiling sea in which virtue can be found with no care or heed for truth except the simple truth of the Virtues; the fantastical and stirring legends of the Dawnish [[troubadours]].

	But it is the Urizen who invented historiography in the sense we understand it today, and it is only after the coming to prominence of the [[Torchbearer]] movement during [[Emperor Giovanni\|Giovanni’s]] reign that one sees an attempt to engage with history on terms as we think of it, as a record of What Happened, of one thing after another, an attempt tie the world down. Ironically, the historical record does not tell us why the Torchbearers rose, although it is the opinion of this author that it was a nascent [[Pride]] in their new place in the Empire that drove this philosophy in the spires; a mirror of that same Pride spread it from camp to camp, village to village, across all the points of light in our Empire.		But it is the Urizen who invented historiography in the sense we understand it today, and it is only after the coming to prominence of the [[Urizen leadership#Torchbearers\|Torchbearer]] movement during [[Emperor Giovanni\|Giovanni’s]] reign that one sees an attempt to engage with history on terms as we think of it, as a record of What Happened, of one thing after another, an attempt tie the world down. Ironically, the historical record does not tell us why the Torchbearers rose, although it is the opinion of this author that it was a nascent [[Pride]] in their new place in the Empire that drove this philosophy in the spires; a mirror of that same Pride spread it from camp to camp, village to village, across all the points of light in our Empire.

	And then, of course, hanging over all of this is the other reason we know so little: [[Emperor Nicovar\|Nicovar]]. Nicovar, a curse even as the Torchbearers were a blessing, who destroyed so much. Indeed, some accounts - some of the few accounts - indicate that Nicovar might have held particular ire for those libraries known to contain more detailed accounts of the Empire’s early history; while none can know now what madness motivated him to commit the atrocities he did, it seems probable that at the root of it was a fear of the post.		And then, of course, hanging over all of this is the other reason we know so little: [[Emperor Nicovar\|Nicovar]]. Nicovar, a curse even as the Torchbearers were a blessing, who destroyed so much. Indeed, some accounts - some of the few accounts - indicate that Nicovar might have held particular ire for those libraries known to contain more detailed accounts of the Empire’s early history; while none can know now what madness motivated him to commit the atrocities he did, it seems probable that at the root of it was a fear of the post.

Responsible1: /* Overview */

2018-06-24T09:38:20Z

Overview

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:38, 24 June 2018
Line 1:		Line 1:
	[[Category:History]][[Category:Navarr]]		[[Category:History]][[Category:Navarr]]
	==Overview==		==Overview==
	This document was compiled for Eleri Bronwen’s Rest, [[Dredgemaster of Feverwater]] for the Winter Solstice 381YE by Octavia Steam’s Source, a civil service member of the department of [[historical research]]. It was made public shortly after the Spring Equinox of the same year with Eleri's permission. It covers the life and times of the [[Navarr]] Myfanwy of [[Hercynia]], a key figure in the creation of the Empire, focusing especially on her relationship with the [[First Empress]].		This document was compiled for Eleri Bronwen’s Rest, [[Dredgemaster of Feverwater]] for the Winter Solstice 381YE by Octavia Steam’s Source, a civil service member of the department of [[historical research]]. It was made public shortly after the Spring Equinox of the same year with Eleri's permission. It covers the life and times of the [[Navarr]] Myfanwy of [[Hercynia]], a key figure in the creation of the Empire, focusing especially on her relationship with the [[Imperial history#Year Zero\|First Empress]].

	The document takes the form of a letter written to Eleri, and is somewhat informal in tone.		The document takes the form of a letter written to Eleri, and is somewhat informal in tone.

Dre at 18:23, 21 June 2018

2018-06-21T18:23:02Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:23, 21 June 2018
Line 37:		Line 37:
	I digress; Myfanwy. What can be said? Well, she definitely existed! This is always a start: when considering the early history of the Empire, one has to be a little suspicious of some figures who seem cut from whole cloth to satisfy some later example; for instance, there is a movement for a long time - we see records stretching all the way to Nicovar - of perennial attempts to have “Sheber” - the apocryphal Vision Priest that guided the First Empress about her vision - declared an [[Paragons_and_exemplars\|Exemplar or Paragon]] of various virtues; almost every account of Sheber’s life contradicts any other, and she is essentially a blank slate on which generations of Highborn projected their personal piety.		I digress; Myfanwy. What can be said? Well, she definitely existed! This is always a start: when considering the early history of the Empire, one has to be a little suspicious of some figures who seem cut from whole cloth to satisfy some later example; for instance, there is a movement for a long time - we see records stretching all the way to Nicovar - of perennial attempts to have “Sheber” - the apocryphal Vision Priest that guided the First Empress about her vision - declared an [[Paragons_and_exemplars\|Exemplar or Paragon]] of various virtues; almost every account of Sheber’s life contradicts any other, and she is essentially a blank slate on which generations of Highborn projected their personal piety.

	Sheber is sometimes named as one of the “Companions of the First Empress”, along with Myfanwy and many others - there is always seven of them, but the seven is hardly consistent - and this fashion for “Companionism” seems to have been roughly contemporary with Teleri’s reign, when so much of the intricate and apocryphal details of [[the Way]] were hammered out. It’s for this reason that we have so many fragmentary details about many early figures - what survives are brief hagiographies of larger accounts on the latest theory as to which Companion matches with which virtue. So Myfanwy is certainly found here in this tangled web of [[Highguard_history#Archivists\|Archivist]] records; however, she is also found in the safe and decidedly real settlement of Myfanwy’s Rest in [[Necropolis#Fishguard\|~~ishguard~~]], and it was here I began my research proper.		Sheber is sometimes named as one of the “Companions of the First Empress”, along with Myfanwy and many others - there is always seven of them, but the seven is hardly consistent - and this fashion for “Companionism” seems to have been roughly contemporary with Teleri’s reign, when so much of the intricate and apocryphal details of [[the Way]] were hammered out. It’s for this reason that we have so many fragmentary details about many early figures - what survives are brief hagiographies of larger accounts on the latest theory as to which Companion matches with which virtue. So Myfanwy is certainly found here in this tangled web of [[Highguard_history#Archivists\|Archivist]] records; however, she is also found in the safe and decidedly real settlement of Myfanwy’s Rest in [[Necropolis#Fishguard\|Fishguard]], and it was here I began my research proper.

	I am pleased to say that in the course of this research - which happily involved not being in [[Zenith]], in which my Spire now currently sits abandoned and evacuated - I spent a lot of time based in the Rest. It is a pleasant place; welcoming in the best tradition of a [[wayhouse]] with people coming and going on pilgrimage and business from across the Empire. On one wall there is a great painting of its founder - our subject herself, Myfanwy, a dark-haired Navarri with a look of fierce defiance. I got talking to Eirian, one of the current owners of the Rest, about it: they told me that it was painted by somebody who knew Myfanwy in life - Geraint Swallow’s Flight, who fought alongside her when she died in the recapture of [[Miaren#Seren\|Seren]].		I am pleased to say that in the course of this research - which happily involved not being in [[Zenith]], in which my Spire now currently sits abandoned and evacuated - I spent a lot of time based in the Rest. It is a pleasant place; welcoming in the best tradition of a [[wayhouse]] with people coming and going on pilgrimage and business from across the Empire. On one wall there is a great painting of its founder - our subject herself, Myfanwy, a dark-haired Navarri with a look of fierce defiance. I got talking to Eirian, one of the current owners of the Rest, about it: they told me that it was painted by somebody who knew Myfanwy in life - Geraint Swallow’s Flight, who fought alongside her when she died in the recapture of [[Miaren#Seren\|Seren]].

	Ah! Yes! Finally, Octavia, you say, you begin, and I begin as all stories do: at the end. Yes - the story passed down in the carefully kept writings of the Rest is that Myfanwy died some half-decade after the Empress which she served, as so many Navarri bravely did in Seren’s recapture. Regard the source, here: it is clear that Myfanwy is regarded with intense fondness - as an Exemplar, even - by many of the Navarri who are part of the [[steading]] she founded; but yes, what they say - and I have seen a fragmentary account written by Geraint at the time which looked real enough - is that Myfanwy died tragically so that Geraint could escape [[Vallorn\|~~Vallornspawn~~]]. Geraint also writes of the Myfanwy he knew in life: "''Virtues, there was never somebody so idealistic, so optimistic, so dedicated to her cause as you. You brought us all together; you forged the great bonds that now hold us in fastness, and by your word we are loyal to this Empire as it grows. You taught me everything, Myf. What will we do now, now you are gone? I still see you die in front of me every night, screaming at me to go, to save myself. That was everything that you were.''"		Ah! Yes! Finally, Octavia, you say, you begin, and I begin as all stories do: at the end. Yes - the story passed down in the carefully kept writings of the Rest is that Myfanwy died some half-decade after the Empress which she served, as so many Navarri bravely did in Seren’s recapture. Regard the source, here: it is clear that Myfanwy is regarded with intense fondness - as an Exemplar, even - by many of the Navarri who are part of the [[steading]] she founded; but yes, what they say - and I have seen a fragmentary account written by Geraint at the time which looked real enough - is that Myfanwy died tragically so that Geraint could escape [[Vallorn\|vallornspawn]]. Geraint also writes of the Myfanwy he knew in life: "''Virtues, there was never somebody so idealistic, so optimistic, so dedicated to her cause as you. You brought us all together; you forged the great bonds that now hold us in fastness, and by your word we are loyal to this Empire as it grows. You taught me everything, Myf. What will we do now, now you are gone? I still see you die in front of me every night, screaming at me to go, to save myself. That was everything that you were.''"

	A little cryptic absent its context - much of the journal has been lost to damp and flame - but it tells us something about who she was. Many of the accounts of Myfanwy by Companionists paint her as, often, the Companion of [[Loyalty]]; it seems that to the Empire and to the Empress she was a key and early convert. Abel’s ''First Steps in Virtue'' - which collects various accounts, inevitably contradictory, of the ways in which the nascent Empire made contact with each of the nations - often has Myfanwy as a key player, and it seems likely that she may have in effect been the chief envoy of the Empress, chosen for her ability to break bread with all. Who else could do this except a Navarri, really, who at the time were the only people of the Bay of Catazar and its surroundings to have seen a little of all the nations?		A little cryptic absent its context - much of the journal has been lost to damp and flame - but it tells us something about who she was. Many of the accounts of Myfanwy by Companionists paint her as, often, the Companion of [[Loyalty]]; it seems that to the Empire and to the Empress she was a key and early convert. Abel’s ''First Steps in Virtue'' - which collects various accounts, inevitably contradictory, of the ways in which the nascent Empire made contact with each of the nations - often has Myfanwy as a key player, and it seems likely that she may have in effect been the chief envoy of the Empress, chosen for her ability to break bread with all. Who else could do this except a Navarri, really, who at the time were the only people of the Bay of Catazar and its surroundings to have seen a little of all the nations?

	There is one tantalising illustration of her first meeting with Brigit of Dourfen - a historical figure about which we know frustratingly little, other than that she served as the adviser who brought word of the Empress’s intent to [[the Marches]], and later in life as the founder of the [[Rod and Shield]]. In this illustration, Myfanwy is depicted - and it is the same woman in this woodcut as in the painting that hangs in Fishguard! - shaking hands with an older, dour-faced [[Landskeeper]] - Brigit - as a treaty lies signed on a nearby table. Was Myfanwy then responsible for bringing Brigit on board and hence, she and the Empress might have hoped, the rest of the Marches? Who can say: but legend and the bloody graves of history tell of what happened next, of the Cousin’s War. In whatever authority Bridgit shook Myfanwy’s hand, it was clearly not enough.		There is one tantalising illustration of her first meeting with Brigit of Dourfen - a historical figure about which we know frustratingly little, other than that she served as the adviser who brought word of the Empress’s intent to [[the Marches]], and later in life as the founder of the [[Rod and Shield]]. In this illustration, Myfanwy is depicted - and it is the same woman in this woodcut as in the painting that hangs in Fishguard! - shaking hands with an older, dour-faced [[Landskeeper]] - Brigit - as a treaty lies signed on a nearby table. Was Myfanwy then responsible for bringing Brigit on board and hence, she and the Empress might have hoped, the rest of the Marches? Who can say: but legend and the bloody graves of history tell of what happened next, of the Cousin’s War. In whatever authority Bridgit shook Myfanwy’s hand, it was clearly not enough.

	There are a few more stories of this type. On a slightly more fanciful note, ''Regan and Myfanwy'' is a Dawnish ballad of two women whose love for each other is as intense as it is adulterous (and hence forbidden); there are enough hints in the way the Myfanwy of the song is described to suggest it is the self-same [[Brand]], and it appears in a couple of old songbooks from around 30YE, which would seem to fit. Regan is described in florid and poetic terms - really, the song is about her and all her good qualities - and Myfanwy is written of in sparser words. Still: "''she of the silver tongue and heart of sky that dreamed to fly''” - it is not hard to see the woman Geraint describes in this. Who was Regan? Unclear - although interestingly there is some commentary from later scholars - only uncovered in this research! - that suggests that this may be a ciphered reference to the First Empress - the name under which she [[Dawn_history#Joining the Empire\|entered the grand tourney]] to claim the [[Dawn_monarchy\|Crown of Dawn]].		There are a few more stories of this type. On a slightly more fanciful note, ''Regan and Myfanwy'' is a Dawnish ballad of two women whose love for each other is as intense as it is adulterous (and hence forbidden); there are enough hints in the way the Myfanwy of the song is described to suggest it is the self-same [[Brand]], and it appears in a couple of old songbooks from around 30YE, which would seem to fit. Regan is described in florid and poetic terms - really, the song is about her and all her good qualities - and Myfanwy is written of in sparser words. Still: "''she of the silver tongue and heart of sky that dreamed to fly''” - it is not hard to see the woman Geraint describes in this. Who was Regan? Unclear - although interestingly there is some commentary from later scholars - only uncovered in this research! - that suggests that this may be a ciphered reference to the First Empress - the name under which she [[Dawn_history#Joining the Empire\|entered the grand tourney]] to claim the [[Dawn_monarchy\|Crown of Dawn]].

Rafferty at 11:12, 21 June 2018

2018-06-21T11:12:19Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 11:12, 21 June 2018
Line 1:		Line 1:
	[[Category:History]][[Category:Navarr]]		[[Category:History]][[Category:Navarr]]
	==Overview==		==Overview==
	This document was compiled for Eleri Bronwen’s Rest, [[Dredgemaster of Feverwater]] for the Winter Solstice 381YE by Octavia Steam’s Source, a civil service member of the department of [[historical research]]. It was made public shortly after the Spring Equinox of the same year with Eleri's permission. It covers the life and times of the [[Navarr]] Myfanwy of [[~~Herecynia~~]], a key figure in the creation of the Empire, focusing especially on her relationship with the [[First Empress]].		This document was compiled for Eleri Bronwen’s Rest, [[Dredgemaster of Feverwater]] for the Winter Solstice 381YE by Octavia Steam’s Source, a civil service member of the department of [[historical research]]. It was made public shortly after the Spring Equinox of the same year with Eleri's permission. It covers the life and times of the [[Navarr]] Myfanwy of [[Hercynia]], a key figure in the creation of the Empire, focusing especially on her relationship with the [[First Empress]].

	The document takes the form of a letter written to Eleri, and is somewhat informal in tone.		The document takes the form of a letter written to Eleri, and is somewhat informal in tone.

← Older revision		Revision as of 12:26, 9 June 2021
Line 31:		Line 31:
	What you must first understand, reader, is that the first problem with any historical research into the foundation of the Empire and the figures prominent at that time is the utter paucity of sources. This is not a problem in some cases - the treatise in recent years on the [[Crown of Three Tears]] borrowed heavily from the oral tradition of the [[Wintermark_culture_and_customs#Art_and_history\|scops]] in its sourcing of the information about [[Crown_of_Three_Tears#The_Last_King.2C_Alof_Bearning\|King Alof Bearning]], for instance - but in general, other than names and vague attributions to events and accomplishments, most of this early history is difficult to discern. Why is this? First and foremost, one has to assume it is because the early Empire simply was not writing about itself on the collective and organised scale that was seen in later years. There was simply no early unified scholarly tradition. People wrote, of course - look towards [[Kala\|Kala the Wise]], 200 years previous; the thoughtful and detailed collections of practical observations of the natural world that the Navarr have collected over the centuries, the guarded wisdom of those who have already lost a civilisation; the very particular attitude the [[Highguard\|Highborn]] have towards history, as a roiling sea in which virtue can be found with no care or heed for truth except the simple truth of the Virtues; the fantastical and stirring legends of the Dawnish [[troubadours]].		What you must first understand, reader, is that the first problem with any historical research into the foundation of the Empire and the figures prominent at that time is the utter paucity of sources. This is not a problem in some cases - the treatise in recent years on the [[Crown of Three Tears]] borrowed heavily from the oral tradition of the [[Wintermark_culture_and_customs#Art_and_history\|scops]] in its sourcing of the information about [[Crown_of_Three_Tears#The_Last_King.2C_Alof_Bearning\|King Alof Bearning]], for instance - but in general, other than names and vague attributions to events and accomplishments, most of this early history is difficult to discern. Why is this? First and foremost, one has to assume it is because the early Empire simply was not writing about itself on the collective and organised scale that was seen in later years. There was simply no early unified scholarly tradition. People wrote, of course - look towards [[Kala\|Kala the Wise]], 200 years previous; the thoughtful and detailed collections of practical observations of the natural world that the Navarr have collected over the centuries, the guarded wisdom of those who have already lost a civilisation; the very particular attitude the [[Highguard\|Highborn]] have towards history, as a roiling sea in which virtue can be found with no care or heed for truth except the simple truth of the Virtues; the fantastical and stirring legends of the Dawnish [[troubadours]].

	But it is the Urizen who invented historiography in the sense we understand it today, and it is only after the coming to prominence of the [[Urizen leadership#Torchbearers\|Torchbearer]] movement during [[Emperor Giovanni\|Giovanni’s]] reign that one sees an attempt to engage with history on terms as we think of it, as a record of What Happened, of one thing after another, an attempt tie the world down. Ironically, the historical record does not tell us why the Torchbearers rose, although it is the opinion of this author that it was a nascent [[Pride]] in their new place in the Empire that drove this philosophy in the spires; a mirror of that same Pride spread it from camp to camp, village to village, across all the points of light in our Empire.		But it is the Urizen who invented historiography in the sense we understand it today, and it is only after the coming to prominence of the [[Urizen leadership#Torchbearers\|Torchbearer]] movement during [[Emperor Giovanni\|Giovanni’s]] reign that one sees an attempt to engage with history on terms as we think of it, as a record of What Happened, of one thing after another, an attempt tie the world down.

	And then, of course, hanging over all of this is the other reason we know so little: [[Emperor Nicovar\|Nicovar]]. Nicovar, a curse even as the Torchbearers were a blessing, who destroyed so much. Indeed, some accounts - some of the few accounts - indicate that Nicovar might have held particular ire for those libraries known to contain more detailed accounts of the Empire’s early history; while none can know now what madness motivated him to commit the atrocities he did, it seems probable that at the root of it was a fear of the past.		And then, of course, hanging over all of this is the other reason we know so little: [[Emperor Nicovar\|Nicovar]]. Nicovar, a curse even as the Torchbearers were a blessing, who destroyed so much. Indeed, some accounts - some of the few accounts - indicate that Nicovar might have held particular ire for those libraries known to contain more detailed accounts of the Empire’s early history; while none can know now what madness motivated him to commit the atrocities he did, it seems probable that at the root of it was a fear of the past.

← Older revision		Revision as of 13:19, 12 February 2021
Line 33:		Line 33:
	But it is the Urizen who invented historiography in the sense we understand it today, and it is only after the coming to prominence of the [[Urizen leadership#Torchbearers\|Torchbearer]] movement during [[Emperor Giovanni\|Giovanni’s]] reign that one sees an attempt to engage with history on terms as we think of it, as a record of What Happened, of one thing after another, an attempt tie the world down. Ironically, the historical record does not tell us why the Torchbearers rose, although it is the opinion of this author that it was a nascent [[Pride]] in their new place in the Empire that drove this philosophy in the spires; a mirror of that same Pride spread it from camp to camp, village to village, across all the points of light in our Empire.		But it is the Urizen who invented historiography in the sense we understand it today, and it is only after the coming to prominence of the [[Urizen leadership#Torchbearers\|Torchbearer]] movement during [[Emperor Giovanni\|Giovanni’s]] reign that one sees an attempt to engage with history on terms as we think of it, as a record of What Happened, of one thing after another, an attempt tie the world down. Ironically, the historical record does not tell us why the Torchbearers rose, although it is the opinion of this author that it was a nascent [[Pride]] in their new place in the Empire that drove this philosophy in the spires; a mirror of that same Pride spread it from camp to camp, village to village, across all the points of light in our Empire.

	And then, of course, hanging over all of this is the other reason we know so little: [[Emperor Nicovar\|Nicovar]]. Nicovar, a curse even as the Torchbearers were a blessing, who destroyed so much. Indeed, some accounts - some of the few accounts - indicate that Nicovar might have held particular ire for those libraries known to contain more detailed accounts of the Empire’s early history; while none can know now what madness motivated him to commit the atrocities he did, it seems probable that at the root of it was a fear of the ~~post~~.		And then, of course, hanging over all of this is the other reason we know so little: [[Emperor Nicovar\|Nicovar]]. Nicovar, a curse even as the Torchbearers were a blessing, who destroyed so much. Indeed, some accounts - some of the few accounts - indicate that Nicovar might have held particular ire for those libraries known to contain more detailed accounts of the Empire’s early history; while none can know now what madness motivated him to commit the atrocities he did, it seems probable that at the root of it was a fear of the past.

	I digress; Myfanwy. What can be said? Well, she definitely existed! This is always a start: when considering the early history of the Empire, one has to be a little suspicious of some figures who seem cut from whole cloth to satisfy some later example; for instance, there is a movement for a long time - we see records stretching all the way to Nicovar - of perennial attempts to have “Sheber” - the apocryphal Vision Priest that guided the First Empress about her vision - declared an [[Paragons_and_exemplars\|Exemplar or Paragon]] of various virtues; almost every account of Sheber’s life contradicts any other, and she is essentially a blank slate on which generations of Highborn projected their personal piety.		I digress; Myfanwy. What can be said? Well, she definitely existed! This is always a start: when considering the early history of the Empire, one has to be a little suspicious of some figures who seem cut from whole cloth to satisfy some later example; for instance, there is a movement for a long time - we see records stretching all the way to Nicovar - of perennial attempts to have “Sheber” - the apocryphal Vision Priest that guided the First Empress about her vision - declared an [[Paragons_and_exemplars\|Exemplar or Paragon]] of various virtues; almost every account of Sheber’s life contradicts any other, and she is essentially a blank slate on which generations of Highborn projected their personal piety.

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:40, 24 June 2018
Line 31:		Line 31:
	What you must first understand, reader, is that the first problem with any historical research into the foundation of the Empire and the figures prominent at that time is the utter paucity of sources. This is not a problem in some cases - the treatise in recent years on the [[Crown of Three Tears]] borrowed heavily from the oral tradition of the [[Wintermark_culture_and_customs#Art_and_history\|scops]] in its sourcing of the information about [[Crown_of_Three_Tears#The_Last_King.2C_Alof_Bearning\|King Alof Bearning]], for instance - but in general, other than names and vague attributions to events and accomplishments, most of this early history is difficult to discern. Why is this? First and foremost, one has to assume it is because the early Empire simply was not writing about itself on the collective and organised scale that was seen in later years. There was simply no early unified scholarly tradition. People wrote, of course - look towards [[Kala\|Kala the Wise]], 200 years previous; the thoughtful and detailed collections of practical observations of the natural world that the Navarr have collected over the centuries, the guarded wisdom of those who have already lost a civilisation; the very particular attitude the [[Highguard\|Highborn]] have towards history, as a roiling sea in which virtue can be found with no care or heed for truth except the simple truth of the Virtues; the fantastical and stirring legends of the Dawnish [[troubadours]].		What you must first understand, reader, is that the first problem with any historical research into the foundation of the Empire and the figures prominent at that time is the utter paucity of sources. This is not a problem in some cases - the treatise in recent years on the [[Crown of Three Tears]] borrowed heavily from the oral tradition of the [[Wintermark_culture_and_customs#Art_and_history\|scops]] in its sourcing of the information about [[Crown_of_Three_Tears#The_Last_King.2C_Alof_Bearning\|King Alof Bearning]], for instance - but in general, other than names and vague attributions to events and accomplishments, most of this early history is difficult to discern. Why is this? First and foremost, one has to assume it is because the early Empire simply was not writing about itself on the collective and organised scale that was seen in later years. There was simply no early unified scholarly tradition. People wrote, of course - look towards [[Kala\|Kala the Wise]], 200 years previous; the thoughtful and detailed collections of practical observations of the natural world that the Navarr have collected over the centuries, the guarded wisdom of those who have already lost a civilisation; the very particular attitude the [[Highguard\|Highborn]] have towards history, as a roiling sea in which virtue can be found with no care or heed for truth except the simple truth of the Virtues; the fantastical and stirring legends of the Dawnish [[troubadours]].

	But it is the Urizen who invented historiography in the sense we understand it today, and it is only after the coming to prominence of the [[Torchbearer]] movement during [[Emperor Giovanni\|Giovanni’s]] reign that one sees an attempt to engage with history on terms as we think of it, as a record of What Happened, of one thing after another, an attempt tie the world down. Ironically, the historical record does not tell us why the Torchbearers rose, although it is the opinion of this author that it was a nascent [[Pride]] in their new place in the Empire that drove this philosophy in the spires; a mirror of that same Pride spread it from camp to camp, village to village, across all the points of light in our Empire.		But it is the Urizen who invented historiography in the sense we understand it today, and it is only after the coming to prominence of the [[Urizen leadership#Torchbearers\|Torchbearer]] movement during [[Emperor Giovanni\|Giovanni’s]] reign that one sees an attempt to engage with history on terms as we think of it, as a record of What Happened, of one thing after another, an attempt tie the world down. Ironically, the historical record does not tell us why the Torchbearers rose, although it is the opinion of this author that it was a nascent [[Pride]] in their new place in the Empire that drove this philosophy in the spires; a mirror of that same Pride spread it from camp to camp, village to village, across all the points of light in our Empire.

	And then, of course, hanging over all of this is the other reason we know so little: [[Emperor Nicovar\|Nicovar]]. Nicovar, a curse even as the Torchbearers were a blessing, who destroyed so much. Indeed, some accounts - some of the few accounts - indicate that Nicovar might have held particular ire for those libraries known to contain more detailed accounts of the Empire’s early history; while none can know now what madness motivated him to commit the atrocities he did, it seems probable that at the root of it was a fear of the post.		And then, of course, hanging over all of this is the other reason we know so little: [[Emperor Nicovar\|Nicovar]]. Nicovar, a curse even as the Torchbearers were a blessing, who destroyed so much. Indeed, some accounts - some of the few accounts - indicate that Nicovar might have held particular ire for those libraries known to contain more detailed accounts of the Empire’s early history; while none can know now what madness motivated him to commit the atrocities he did, it seems probable that at the root of it was a fear of the post.

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:23, 21 June 2018
Line 37:		Line 37:
	I digress; Myfanwy. What can be said? Well, she definitely existed! This is always a start: when considering the early history of the Empire, one has to be a little suspicious of some figures who seem cut from whole cloth to satisfy some later example; for instance, there is a movement for a long time - we see records stretching all the way to Nicovar - of perennial attempts to have “Sheber” - the apocryphal Vision Priest that guided the First Empress about her vision - declared an [[Paragons_and_exemplars\|Exemplar or Paragon]] of various virtues; almost every account of Sheber’s life contradicts any other, and she is essentially a blank slate on which generations of Highborn projected their personal piety.		I digress; Myfanwy. What can be said? Well, she definitely existed! This is always a start: when considering the early history of the Empire, one has to be a little suspicious of some figures who seem cut from whole cloth to satisfy some later example; for instance, there is a movement for a long time - we see records stretching all the way to Nicovar - of perennial attempts to have “Sheber” - the apocryphal Vision Priest that guided the First Empress about her vision - declared an [[Paragons_and_exemplars\|Exemplar or Paragon]] of various virtues; almost every account of Sheber’s life contradicts any other, and she is essentially a blank slate on which generations of Highborn projected their personal piety.

	Sheber is sometimes named as one of the “Companions of the First Empress”, along with Myfanwy and many others - there is always seven of them, but the seven is hardly consistent - and this fashion for “Companionism” seems to have been roughly contemporary with Teleri’s reign, when so much of the intricate and apocryphal details of [[the Way]] were hammered out. It’s for this reason that we have so many fragmentary details about many early figures - what survives are brief hagiographies of larger accounts on the latest theory as to which Companion matches with which virtue. So Myfanwy is certainly found here in this tangled web of [[Highguard_history#Archivists\|Archivist]] records; however, she is also found in the safe and decidedly real settlement of Myfanwy’s Rest in [[Necropolis#Fishguard\|~~ishguard~~]], and it was here I began my research proper.		Sheber is sometimes named as one of the “Companions of the First Empress”, along with Myfanwy and many others - there is always seven of them, but the seven is hardly consistent - and this fashion for “Companionism” seems to have been roughly contemporary with Teleri’s reign, when so much of the intricate and apocryphal details of [[the Way]] were hammered out. It’s for this reason that we have so many fragmentary details about many early figures - what survives are brief hagiographies of larger accounts on the latest theory as to which Companion matches with which virtue. So Myfanwy is certainly found here in this tangled web of [[Highguard_history#Archivists\|Archivist]] records; however, she is also found in the safe and decidedly real settlement of Myfanwy’s Rest in [[Necropolis#Fishguard\|Fishguard]], and it was here I began my research proper.

	I am pleased to say that in the course of this research - which happily involved not being in [[Zenith]], in which my Spire now currently sits abandoned and evacuated - I spent a lot of time based in the Rest. It is a pleasant place; welcoming in the best tradition of a [[wayhouse]] with people coming and going on pilgrimage and business from across the Empire. On one wall there is a great painting of its founder - our subject herself, Myfanwy, a dark-haired Navarri with a look of fierce defiance. I got talking to Eirian, one of the current owners of the Rest, about it: they told me that it was painted by somebody who knew Myfanwy in life - Geraint Swallow’s Flight, who fought alongside her when she died in the recapture of [[Miaren#Seren\|Seren]].		I am pleased to say that in the course of this research - which happily involved not being in [[Zenith]], in which my Spire now currently sits abandoned and evacuated - I spent a lot of time based in the Rest. It is a pleasant place; welcoming in the best tradition of a [[wayhouse]] with people coming and going on pilgrimage and business from across the Empire. On one wall there is a great painting of its founder - our subject herself, Myfanwy, a dark-haired Navarri with a look of fierce defiance. I got talking to Eirian, one of the current owners of the Rest, about it: they told me that it was painted by somebody who knew Myfanwy in life - Geraint Swallow’s Flight, who fought alongside her when she died in the recapture of [[Miaren#Seren\|Seren]].

	Ah! Yes! Finally, Octavia, you say, you begin, and I begin as all stories do: at the end. Yes - the story passed down in the carefully kept writings of the Rest is that Myfanwy died some half-decade after the Empress which she served, as so many Navarri bravely did in Seren’s recapture. Regard the source, here: it is clear that Myfanwy is regarded with intense fondness - as an Exemplar, even - by many of the Navarri who are part of the [[steading]] she founded; but yes, what they say - and I have seen a fragmentary account written by Geraint at the time which looked real enough - is that Myfanwy died tragically so that Geraint could escape [[Vallorn\|~~Vallornspawn~~]]. Geraint also writes of the Myfanwy he knew in life: "''Virtues, there was never somebody so idealistic, so optimistic, so dedicated to her cause as you. You brought us all together; you forged the great bonds that now hold us in fastness, and by your word we are loyal to this Empire as it grows. You taught me everything, Myf. What will we do now, now you are gone? I still see you die in front of me every night, screaming at me to go, to save myself. That was everything that you were.''"		Ah! Yes! Finally, Octavia, you say, you begin, and I begin as all stories do: at the end. Yes - the story passed down in the carefully kept writings of the Rest is that Myfanwy died some half-decade after the Empress which she served, as so many Navarri bravely did in Seren’s recapture. Regard the source, here: it is clear that Myfanwy is regarded with intense fondness - as an Exemplar, even - by many of the Navarri who are part of the [[steading]] she founded; but yes, what they say - and I have seen a fragmentary account written by Geraint at the time which looked real enough - is that Myfanwy died tragically so that Geraint could escape [[Vallorn\|vallornspawn]]. Geraint also writes of the Myfanwy he knew in life: "''Virtues, there was never somebody so idealistic, so optimistic, so dedicated to her cause as you. You brought us all together; you forged the great bonds that now hold us in fastness, and by your word we are loyal to this Empire as it grows. You taught me everything, Myf. What will we do now, now you are gone? I still see you die in front of me every night, screaming at me to go, to save myself. That was everything that you were.''"

	A little cryptic absent its context - much of the journal has been lost to damp and flame - but it tells us something about who she was. Many of the accounts of Myfanwy by Companionists paint her as, often, the Companion of [[Loyalty]]; it seems that to the Empire and to the Empress she was a key and early convert. Abel’s ''First Steps in Virtue'' - which collects various accounts, inevitably contradictory, of the ways in which the nascent Empire made contact with each of the nations - often has Myfanwy as a key player, and it seems likely that she may have in effect been the chief envoy of the Empress, chosen for her ability to break bread with all. Who else could do this except a Navarri, really, who at the time were the only people of the Bay of Catazar and its surroundings to have seen a little of all the nations?		A little cryptic absent its context - much of the journal has been lost to damp and flame - but it tells us something about who she was. Many of the accounts of Myfanwy by Companionists paint her as, often, the Companion of [[Loyalty]]; it seems that to the Empire and to the Empress she was a key and early convert. Abel’s ''First Steps in Virtue'' - which collects various accounts, inevitably contradictory, of the ways in which the nascent Empire made contact with each of the nations - often has Myfanwy as a key player, and it seems likely that she may have in effect been the chief envoy of the Empress, chosen for her ability to break bread with all. Who else could do this except a Navarri, really, who at the time were the only people of the Bay of Catazar and its surroundings to have seen a little of all the nations?

	There is one tantalising illustration of her first meeting with Brigit of Dourfen - a historical figure about which we know frustratingly little, other than that she served as the adviser who brought word of the Empress’s intent to [[the Marches]], and later in life as the founder of the [[Rod and Shield]]. In this illustration, Myfanwy is depicted - and it is the same woman in this woodcut as in the painting that hangs in Fishguard! - shaking hands with an older, dour-faced [[Landskeeper]] - Brigit - as a treaty lies signed on a nearby table. Was Myfanwy then responsible for bringing Brigit on board and hence, she and the Empress might have hoped, the rest of the Marches? Who can say: but legend and the bloody graves of history tell of what happened next, of the Cousin’s War. In whatever authority Bridgit shook Myfanwy’s hand, it was clearly not enough.		There is one tantalising illustration of her first meeting with Brigit of Dourfen - a historical figure about which we know frustratingly little, other than that she served as the adviser who brought word of the Empress’s intent to [[the Marches]], and later in life as the founder of the [[Rod and Shield]]. In this illustration, Myfanwy is depicted - and it is the same woman in this woodcut as in the painting that hangs in Fishguard! - shaking hands with an older, dour-faced [[Landskeeper]] - Brigit - as a treaty lies signed on a nearby table. Was Myfanwy then responsible for bringing Brigit on board and hence, she and the Empress might have hoped, the rest of the Marches? Who can say: but legend and the bloody graves of history tell of what happened next, of the Cousin’s War. In whatever authority Bridgit shook Myfanwy’s hand, it was clearly not enough.

	There are a few more stories of this type. On a slightly more fanciful note, ''Regan and Myfanwy'' is a Dawnish ballad of two women whose love for each other is as intense as it is adulterous (and hence forbidden); there are enough hints in the way the Myfanwy of the song is described to suggest it is the self-same [[Brand]], and it appears in a couple of old songbooks from around 30YE, which would seem to fit. Regan is described in florid and poetic terms - really, the song is about her and all her good qualities - and Myfanwy is written of in sparser words. Still: "''she of the silver tongue and heart of sky that dreamed to fly''” - it is not hard to see the woman Geraint describes in this. Who was Regan? Unclear - although interestingly there is some commentary from later scholars - only uncovered in this research! - that suggests that this may be a ciphered reference to the First Empress - the name under which she [[Dawn_history#Joining the Empire\|entered the grand tourney]] to claim the [[Dawn_monarchy\|Crown of Dawn]].		There are a few more stories of this type. On a slightly more fanciful note, ''Regan and Myfanwy'' is a Dawnish ballad of two women whose love for each other is as intense as it is adulterous (and hence forbidden); there are enough hints in the way the Myfanwy of the song is described to suggest it is the self-same [[Brand]], and it appears in a couple of old songbooks from around 30YE, which would seem to fit. Regan is described in florid and poetic terms - really, the song is about her and all her good qualities - and Myfanwy is written of in sparser words. Still: "''she of the silver tongue and heart of sky that dreamed to fly''” - it is not hard to see the woman Geraint describes in this. Who was Regan? Unclear - although interestingly there is some commentary from later scholars - only uncovered in this research! - that suggests that this may be a ciphered reference to the First Empress - the name under which she [[Dawn_history#Joining the Empire\|entered the grand tourney]] to claim the [[Dawn_monarchy\|Crown of Dawn]].