Book 4, Chapter 31: Inflection Point
In most historical analyses, the Old Kingdom of Francia lasted from 843 AD, with the Treaty of Verdun which divided the Carolingian Empire into Western, Middle and Eastern Francia, to 1053 AD, with the final partitioning and annexations of Francia's former territory into its successor states. While Francia had been politically unstable for decades, with a weak kingship and strong feudal lords competing and fighting one another over their personal fiefdoms, it was still a single polity.
This ended in 1043 AD, with the actions of King Henry of the Capet dynasty, and the subsequent reactions by his feudal vassals, with the duchies of Normandy and Brittany joining the Kingdom of Berk, and the Duchy of Aquitania and the County of Tolosa declaring full independence and allying with the northern Castilian kingdoms. The remainder of the kingdom limped on until being annexed by the Holy Roman Empire a decade later...
—A History of Old Francia, 1432, Oxford Press
Tropes that appear in this chapter:
- Balkanize Me: The epigraph mentions that King Henry's act of attacking King Stoick proves to be the last straw for his kingdom after decades of instability, which resulted in Normandy and Brittany breaking away to join Berk while Aquitania and Tolosa declared independence from Henry's kingdom.
- Content Warnings:Chapter Trigger Warnings: Character Deaths, Explicit Severe Injuries, Implied References To Torture
- Dramatic Irony: King Henry orders his forces to attack King Stoick not knowing he is coming in genuine peace. He only later realises his blunder after they flee when his marshal finds and brings the generous treaty to him.
- Fantastic Religious Weirdness: A discussion comes up on whether dragons have souls when Macarius asks the question.
- I Resemble That Remark!: Chien-Po quotes the trope word for word when Shang mentions they can use him as a battering ram.
- Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: During King Henry's ambush Stoick gets impaled by a spear.
- Internal Reveal: Serena learns her son is part of a polycule and is introduced to his other lovers besides his official wife.
- Oh, Crap!: King Henry is horrified to see the generous treaty King Stoick dropped and planned to offer before the ambush, because it means that he attacked a man coming in peace and Berk has previously proved that doing so is a colossal mistake.
- Rank Up: At Wulfhild's recommendation, Padraig is promoted from high-ranking Food and Bed Rights bureaucrat to Treasurer of the Kingdom of Berk after Camilla resigns from the Treasurer post due to her being unable to handle the stresses of the job.
