Elegy for Francis, Duke of Dukes | An Alternate History

Revolution!

PENULTIMATE STANZA, VERSE II

Following the death of Henry, England was thrown into turmoil. A violated populace grew tired of the cycle of monarchical despots, seeking to end it once and for all in a bloody revolution. Leading said revolution was a member of parliament named William Atwood. William led a secretive life, often electing to keep to himself.

Why, then, did he find himself at the forefront of the revolution? The answer was surprisingly simple: He was away plotting the rise of an English Republic, a place where the yeoman could be protected from oppression and from himself. Others believed in his vision, with the small caveat that all the power fall into their hands. This William accepted, albeit begrudgingly.

Charles of Ghent had a vested interest in preserving the monarchy and watched these events unfold with great apprehension. If the Tudor kings fell, his next venue of expansion would be closed forever. He needed to do something quickly in order to stop those hordes of peasants and would-be oligarchs from challenging his dominion over Europe.

Among the first measures to this end was declaring himself rightful king of England. Nobody other than the universalists accepted his claim, seeing it for the blatant power grab it was. To complicate matters even further, he called upon Francis to bolster the validity of his accession. Unsurprisingly this offer was refused.

If no one was willing to accept his rulership diplomatically, he'd just have to take it by force. The Spanish Armada was an invasion force of terrifying size mustered from across the entirety of the northern and central Mediterranean. Nearly half of the sailors were flying the black cross of Brittany. When I saw those massive ships enter port in Nice, I almost fainted.