20

From Create Your Own Story

Although it is a beautiful and glorious world city today, Rome in 1154 was little more than a miasmic swamp, owing to the ravages of the Third Crusade and the resulting plague. Feeling the plague of Italian clerics hardly less awful, you resolve to remove the papacy to the more healthful climate of your old see.

Owing to custom, the Curia insists that no land be distributed until the current wars are resolved. Peace with the battered Fatimid Caliph is easily arranged, although their outpost in Lisbon falls before the besiegers hear of the treaty. In Britain, you take your marshal's advice and allow events to run their course. Havard is removed from Essex and beaten into submission. This isolates the French vassals in the Midlands and reduces brigandage in the Channel, along with upholding your rights as the Archbishop of St. Denis.

The Pierleoni sons and Frangipane insist on Pope William's son Henry as your replacement, despite his bastardy, youth, and mesalliance with a young girl of the court. They have him created vicar of Rome in the hopes they will be able to dominate his court - you have the sense to create him Archbishop of Sardinia as well, to give him a power base free from the Roman patricians and ecclesiastics in case of rebellion or invasion.

You yield Napoli to the Duke of Salerno and Livorno to the Montefeltros.

• At long last set sail as you turn to [[]].