War of Subjugation

The War of Subjugation was fought between the Kingdom of Gilneas and the Kingdom of the Mountain, ending in the latter's defeat, occupation, and subjugation.

Causes
The Houses Vaught and Dahlquish had agreed to discounted trade for the price of keeping the Kingdom of the Mountain's strength and fish supply strong. However useful this was for the hundreds of years prior, Taeron Vaught charged not only full price for all shipments between the Osprey and the rest of Ardeiria, but tripled them. Infuriated, Miklos Dahlquish contacted the House of Greymane with Ardeiria's militant weakness, causing an invasion on the wholescale. During this time, the terrorist organization known as the Vulture Brotherhood struck at the Ardeirian forces, though they stole from Royal ones as well.

Battles
While the Gilnean Royal Army, mainly lead by the warrior prince Ambrose Greymane, had won all of their battles in the Stag and pushed fearlessly into the frozen, snow-ridden area known as the Heron, the Bull - lead by Kriegen Blucher, retaliated with full force against Lord Dahlquish and General Rengford. He was famous for a brutal charge that only cost him two men against the Royal Forces at the Ruby Tide, taking the survivors and executing them directly afterwards. After lining their corpses either on the trail or tying them to trees overlooking official and dirt roads, Ardeiria demanded the "the Osprey whores" leave the area, Miklos demanded seventy times the payment King Taeron had taken from them in the prior months. Kriegen sent back General Rengford's mutiliated head, half-flayed, in response.

Battle of Honorbrook
The most devastating defeat for the Kingdom of Ardeiria, Honorbrook's defenders, the Vanquishers, were forced back by a seemingly endless amount of Gilnean soldiers with more modern weaponry. The fringe areas were destroyed by mage-enchanted trebuchets, while the city its self was largely spared, as far as civilians go, and used as a phasing point to starve out the Iron Bastion. While the House of Caer went to relieve them, they invaded the Thornwood and destroyed half of Vaugholde, killing the Keeper of the Woods and breaking all of the windows in the Elk's Keep.

Starvation of the Iron Bastion
A large turning point for the House of Maine, the starvation made them give up the Caer honor system and create their own, though not entirely different. This allowed them to survive, not daring cannibalism, due to it being against law, but consuming literally anything else. In the end, its starvation numbers were higher than Snowhaven's, but it suffered barely any later trauma for its people.

Battle of Vaugholde
With wooden walls, the Vaugholde fell quickly with half its defenders gone. Since only half were there, and the other half died, Ambrose demanded only half the city be burned. They subsequently looted the remaining, intentionally targetting those of the rich. Afterwards, he broke the steel gates surrounding the Thornwood, torching his way through to prevent the Keeper from strangling them, then killing her personally. Elk's Keep was only kept alive due to heavy reinforcements and lack of strategic value, due to the Lord of Caer already having taken to the field.

Battle of Raeford's Fields.
The second battle in the entire campaign and the first in the Stag, the "Battle" of Raeford's Fields was composed of many, smaller battles headed by militia desperately trying to defend their border villages and farms. However, only one battle, the third out of six, was successful and left alone purely because of its obscurity.

Battle of the Vaugate
The bloodiest victory for the Gilnean forces, 1,000 men were lost to guerilla fighters along the top of the area, before what little men the Ministry of War had to offer engaged. Although the archers had utterly decimated the Gilnean 17th Battalion, the King had easily 8 more to send in and defeated the Ministry's troops, being pulled back by order of their High General. However, the Gilneans chased them down and killed or captured a fourth of the soldiers, including the archers, who were forced into the frontlines on the Battles of the Stag.

Battle of the Bull
By far not the only battle, this was a wholescale attack against the Bull's outlying fringe villages, most of which were officially nameless. Unlike Ambrose, General Rengford let his troops do as they like to the populace before burning the villages, starting with the churches, while the priests were tied and cut as to force them to bleed to death. This included both the Dark Druids and Forest Priests. Despite being a total monster, General Fengford was diefied, especially after his death, as the first "Modern General" and that the rest of the Gilnean army should strive to be "More like the valiant Sir Rengford." This assured the entire populace's militant opposition, however, due to them expecting a similar mentality as the Stag's. The Battles of the Bull ended in a Kresten victory, however faint, once the Royal Forces overextended and met fierce opposition from survivors and enraged bull-born men.

Battle of Aurochstead
The second bloodiest battle in the War of Subjugation, Aurochstead's gates were destroyed completely, occupied, and cattle slaughtered. Its people were largely put into slavery and the town was used as a phasing point to attack the Ruby Tide. However, after the Royal Forces were defeated at the Ruby Tide a first time, it was reclaimed by Kresten forces and used to house refugees, if only to reforge them into soldiers. Due to the Ruby Tide being taken later on anyway, its states were largely swapped.

Battle of the Ruby Tide
Refusing to lose another battle to the murderous General Rengford, General Kriegen commanded one of his underlings to dress as him, set up a small force, and wait for the Royal Assault. True to character, General Rengford charged with his remaining men, ignoring the corpses splayed across the forests of the Bull,  and began to toss their torches over the stone walls to begin burning out the populace. A warhorn sounded soon after and, along with 3/4 of the Bull's official army, Kriegen charged headfirst into their numbers. They lost two men whereas the entire Royal 16th was slain, either during or after the battle, while General Rengford was captured and tortured, ending with half his face being flayed while he still breathed.

Despite their efforts, the Ruby Tide was unsuccessfully defended by General Kriegen a second time, due to moving his army to protect the southern villages from further Dahlquish advances. However, Miklos's forces had already ingrained themselves in him, slashing the throats of two of his major's and enslaving the rest, taking them into the Osprey. His remaining forces defended as best they could, but were flanked during the main defense by Ambrose Greymane, who decimated his right side. Killed in action, Kriegen's corpse was taken to the remaining Dark Druids while the Royal Forces began to starve Snow Haven and march into the Heron.

Starvation of Snowhaven.
The only living son of the current Kresten lord, Yerine Kresten was forced to hold out his people in Snowhaven while the Ruby Tide suffered similar categories, since Ambrose Greymane had since routed his men around the Heron's border, decimating the "Taeron's Boys" along the way. This only ended a few days after the war, with a fifth of the populace dead and the rest resorting to cannibalism.

Battle of the Heron
Named for the same sake as the Bull, it was fortunate to face the Prince Ambrose instead of General Rengford, but it had a much less militant people to start out with and fell much easier. Most surrendered and gave half their food to the Royal Forces, though the Prince would take this off for those that gave information on the Vaught forces. This was largely successful, as opposed to the indiscriminatory murder that General Rengford had lead. Once they reached the Bull borders, however, General Kriegen sent token forces to help, only for their ethnicity after being disenchanted by King Taeron after his own son wouldn't defend him. They fell as well, however, though with more of a struggle.

However valiant, the Taeron's Boys began to come after brutal attacks from the Vulture Brotherhood during this time and were, by and large, defeated by the Prince's forces with a few exceptions.

Battle of the Heron's Flight
A total surprise to the Prince's Forces, the Vauswens fought against his men were multiple magical assaults, proving the only successful battle for Ardeiria on the Heron's soil. After seeing an eight of a smaller battalion reduced to ash by Lord Kaeren Vauswen, he called for a retreat until they could subjugate the mages. However, the Lord of Vauswen was paranoid to the point of insanity, starting to execute some of his soldiers after creating a larger wall around the Heron's Flight to keep against the Royal Forces.

Assassination of King Taeron Vaught
Carried out by his own son, Prince Haron Vaught the Kinslayer, it was negotiated shortly before the Battle of the Heron's Flight with the King of Gilneas himself. Stabbing his own father in the back, Haron assured his Kingdom's continued life and, to outsiders, was known as the epitome of Vaught mentality; Pride and survival, mixing as one, vicious creation. This is largely considered the end of the war, however the reborn Kriegen ordered all the Osprey prisoners executed and hung near the tunnel to the border area.

Aftermath
Ardeiria's Ministries were all put under control of Gilneas, while taxes were raised much higher, all flags had to be flown beneath a Gilnean one, and they were subject to constant Royal patrols. While Ambrose, partially due to his Stag-born lover, was strict about a lack of cruelty during the occupation period, his successors were constant in harsh policies that were not official from the Throne. Their proximity to the Greymane Manor caused them to be considered Slaves of the Crown by many other Gilneans, especially those in the Headlands. However, the harsh treatment ended during the start of the First War. Due to the war, there is a staunch hatred of the House of Greymane, despite the Prince being, by-and-large, merciful (Comparitively) and the King still allowing them to stay an Earldom.

Lost sons
This song had become amazing prominent in the years after the war ended, especially in the protests and riots in relatively unpoliced areas (Such as Raeford's fields). It laments the Fall of Ardeiria, from the Siege of the Vaugate to the Battle for the Bull - intentionally leaving out the devastating defeats in the Stag and the loss of the Heron. It was one of the many made about Ardeiria's defeat, and is banned for much the same reason. However, its melody is constantly used due to its common nature.

The snow is fresh, the winds are strong

And our hearts beat along with the noble throng

Ardeirian steel and Ardeirian arrows line the walls

While the enemy can only hope for their fall

(Chorus) Bless ye, the Emperor's Seat

Ardeiria's protectors, your only heat be the fires of war.

When they burst our gate,

They will be met only with soldiers filled with righteous hate

And if they march still

Then let them die in the Bull's hills

(Chorus) Bravery be your shield, o noble warriors

And let our strength bless the field once more

And if the Emperor turns his back

Let it not crack your faith

For no sack can crush our pride

Nor any amount of arrows a heron's glide

(Chorus) And woe to thee, our lost sons

Your drums an echoe on the wind

And steel a memory, but one left behind