My Knight in Shining Armor (Romance RP)

[Kyro]

Kyro watched the teacher pass him in the park. "hm..." He was supposed to be in his class but was ditching, as usual.

[crowheart]

Ito Masaru strolled through the park casually with his bokken over his shoulder. He usually he would get up at the last minute and dash to school because he lived so close, but he woke up early this morning and found himself unable to get back to sleep.

He still had some time before school started, so he decided to actually enjoy the park's scenery. He headed toward the flowers when he caught a sight that stopped him in his tracks. He saw a beautiful Japanese girl leaning over to sniff the flowers. "Well, hello gorgeous." he muttered.

He stood there observing her for a few minutes. Blue really suited this girl. He pictured her wearing different colors, and she looked jus a cute in all of them. "Wait a second." He smacked himself on the head. He should be talking to her. He stepped up to the flower patch and kneeled on the other side of it.

"Hi."

[Gregory House, MD]

Arthur was in his classroom. After he had graded the student who repeated the last lesson he looked out of the window. He had a good view from his window and he even saw the park. ''Don't they know that school started?'', he thought.

He composed himself and started teaching.

- Now, we shall start. I have already told you about The Great Migration. The Franks also represent a nation who migrated to West Europe during that period. It is now presumed that the Franks appeared in the 3rd Century AD as group of several tribes of which the Salii Franks were the most powerful. Now, as every barbaric tribe they were wild and wanted to conquer. In the 4th century, they were finally calmed down by the West Roman emperor Julian the Apostate, who, after three years of war (355 - 358), made a federate, an alliance treaty, with them. After that, the Franks started making territorial expansions, but those expansions did not endanger the Roman Empire, so there were no major problems. We now jump to the 5th century. A man, a leader, called Merovech, or Meroveius on Latin. He was the first person to fully unite the Frankish tribe in one nation. He was a member of the Salii Franks, the most powerful of the tribes, if you remember, from earlier. His existencw, which is also important for the lesson, is semi-mythological, meaning that his existence is not fully proven, but existed or not, that is not our problem - said Poe

He looked at the board.

- Where is the map? I wanted to show you the Frankish State. Could someone please get it - said Arthur

One of the students stood up and went to get the map.

-Oh yes, look at the picture in your books. That is an artistic depiction of Merovech. Is it realistic or not, no one could tell. Where is that map ? - he said

The students looked at the picture. It was a good engraving: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/c ... rovech.png

[lilemokatya]

As Sai entered the park she notices a boy talking to Hanami, she decides that maybe she should go see her later.

She starts to head towords the school instead.

[Gregory House, MD]

Arthur looked at the window while the student was getting the map. ''Ah good, at least one of them comes'', he thought. At that precise moment, the student entered the classroom with the map.

- Good, now hang it in front of the board. Good. Thank you. Now, this is a map of the Frankish Empire during the reign of Charles the Great. But, about him, a little later. So, the Frankish tribes started migrating from here, nowdays Northern Germany to here, the region of nowday Paris and Northern France. Now, since you have seen it on the map, I think we should continue with the lesson. So, Merovech, managed to unite the tribes and form a stable Frankish state. But, that state did still not have the name Frankish Empire. It was a stable state, but only because Merovech was a good leader, not because of any constitution or something similar, because such a document did not exist. Just a small digression, do you know the name of the first constitution ? - he asked

The students thought, but nobody knew.

- We will learn abou it too. It is the Magna Charta Libertatum, which was written and adapted by the king John of England in 1215, but you will see what happened then and there later. Now, Merovech died probably in 458, but that is not fully proven. Since he was the ultimate ruler of the Franks, his son Chlideric I inhereted the trone in 458, and ruled until 481. You should remember Chlideric for being the first Frankish ruler who's tomb has been found. It was found in the 17th century by a mason reparing a church in Belgium. The tomb contained many valuable relics which have been preserved until today. The second thing which you need to remember about our friend Chlideric is that he was the father of Clovis I, the firs Frankish ruler to be crowned as king. Clovis I was the first King of the Franks and the founder of the Merovingian dynasty. He named tha dynasty after his grandfather, Merovech, and that dynasty lasted until 751, when Pepin the Short founded the Carolingian dynasty. Now, to return to Clovis. Clovis, as I have said, was the firs croenwd ruler of the Franks. He lead several campaigns against several tribes before he became king, and that was surely a influential fact for him being crowned king of the Franks. The most importand fact about his rule is his relationship with the Church. Since the Church was the most influential institution of the Middle Ages, every ruler of every state wanted to be in good terms with the Church and so did Clovis. He donated vast amounts of land to the Church, the same vast amounts whihc Charles Martel would later take away and donate to the people of the Frankish state. His wife was called Coltilda, a famous catholic saint, patron of brides, adopted children, parents, exiles, widows.

Saint Remigius baptizes Clovis, in a painting of ca 1500

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Under her influence, Clovis chose to get baptised. In 496, on Christmas day, Clovis was baptised in the Church of Reims by Saint Remigius, the patron saint of France. With this act, Clovis I became the first Christian Frankish ruler, a tradition that all later rulers would continue.

A miniature showing Saint Clotilde's devotion to Saint Martin, 14th century

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Now, it is traditionally balieved that Clovis died in 511, but there are some sources stating that he died on 513, but you can seldomly find such sources. After his death, the Kinggom was split into 4 parts, a thing which should not have happened, but did. The Kingdom stayed split until Pepin the Short came to power. He managed to renuite the Kingdom, which stayed united until its fall in 843. The rulers after Clovis were so weak that th state was de facto lead by their Mayors of the Place, which were high ranking courtsmen, similar to a Vice-President nowdays. The most powerful of them ''ruled'' in the first half of the 8th century and was called Charles Martel.

Arthur went to the map. He showed the students how the Kingdom was split after Clovis' death in 511.

[Yellowsakura]

Ito Masaru strolled through the park casually with his bokken over his shoulder. He usually he would get up at the last minute and dash to school because he lived so close, but he woke up early this morning and found himself unable to get back to sleep.

He still had some time before school started, so he decided to actually enjoy the park's scenery. He headed toward the flowers when he caught a sight that stopped him in his tracks. He saw a beautiful Japanese girl leaning over to sniff the flowers. "Well, hello gorgeous." he muttered.

He stood there observing her for a few minutes. Blue really suited this girl. He pictured her wearing different colors, and she looked jus a cute in all of them. "Wait a second." He smacked himself on the head. He should be talking to her. He stepped up to the flower patch and kneeled on the other side of it.

"Hi."

Hanami blinked, hearing an unfamiliar voice. Sai would usually come to talk to her before she went to school, so she was curious on who had greeted her. She looked up slightly, seeing a handsome looking, young man. "uh...Hello" She said with a smile as she gently let go of the flower she was holding onto before.
It wasnt every day that a guy would come greet her, so she felt unusually nervous.

((Oh and let me note that Hanami doesnt go to school, but i assume that everyone else's character does.))

[Gregory House, MD]

Arthur went to the window to see the students outside. ''Good God, if you would exist, what are they doing? It is already 20 minutes from the first bell'', he thought.

- Pardon me, Koushiro, could you do me a favour? Come here. See those two in the park? Please go and tell the girl that she should go to class. Tell he it is from Arthur - he said.

Koushiro exited the classroom. ''I hope she listens to him'', he thought.

- Now, let us continue - he said - We have said that, after Clovis' death, the empire was de facto run by the Mayors of the Place. That period is not so important until the rise of Charles Martel, so eveyrthing you need to know is that all the de iure emperors were extremely weak and the empire was de facto divided under the Mayors of the Place, although it still remained whole on paper. A smiliar stitation happened in the Holy Roman Empire during the rule of Henry IV and his fight with the pope Gregory VII, but we will discuss that later. Now, we come to the 8th century. The 720s. The Arabs, who we will talk about later, are invading Europe and are slowly arriving at the door of the Frankish Kingdom trough the Pirinean Peninsula. Although everyone realizes the threat, only one of the Mayors of the Place decides to act. It was Charles Martel. Martel started organizing a strong army, with skills, wapons and tactics similar to those used by the Arabs. But, how did he gain such a vast number of troops, which included lower ranked nobility, generals and even some folk people ? If you remember from earlier, I have said that Clovis gave huge amounts of land to the Church. Martel took all that land and divided it among the people who would later serve in his army. Martel's army was ready, so was the Arabian army. The final clash between the Franks and the Arabs happened on October 10, 732 near modern-day Tours, France and is nown as the Battle of Poitiers. It is reported, although not 100% sure and verified, that the Frankish army numbered about 30,000 troops and the Arabian, led by Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi, about 80,000. The battle itself finished the same day with a decisive Frankish victory. Although the exact causalites are not known, it is known that Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi died in the battle - Arthur continued

Charles de Steuben's Bataille de Poitiers en Octobre 732 depicts a triumphant Charles Martel (mounted) facing ‘Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi (right) at the Battle of Tours.

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- Now, this battle is very important and you have to remember it. First of all it is important because it stopped the Muslim Conquests in Europe and ''drew'' the border of the Arabs State in Spain. Secondly, it is very important for Charles himself. After the battle, Charles Martel became the strongest Mayor of the Place, more powerful that the King himself, and he was the de facto ruler of the state. But, although he could have crowned himself officially, he refused to do so in favour of his son and later king, Peppin the Short. Now, would you excuse me for a second, I need to see if Koushiro is there. Oh, look at the picture of Charles. It is one of the only pictures said to portrait Martel, but the authenticity of that picture is still not fully proven - Arthur said

A miniature probably showing Charles Martel

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After he had told that to the childern, he went to see on Koushiro.

[Kyro]

((No offence dude but like....each post is like a history lesson. I rp to relax, not to learn))

He picked a small pink flower "<3"

[crowheart]

((I like intelligent RP's. I like the history stuff, but it can get a little lengthy. That really isn't a problem for me though))

"I couldn't help but notice you over here by the flowers." It was as good an icebreaker as any. He had learned not to rely on lines because they were lame. He would just try to be natural. He inwardly smacked himself again for not talking to the pretty girl. "I'm Ito Masaru. Are you a new student? I've never seen you before."

He waited patiently for answer noticing that the girl was a little nervous. He was pretty nervous himself. It's not every day a gorgeous girl appears out of nowwhere.

[Gregory House, MD]

(OOC: Am I the History teacher or not ? I do not like one-line posts, so I fill them with history lessons, something that my character does. I do not see such a big problem)

[Yellowsakura]

((Alright, for the guys that are complaining. Everyone has their own way of roleplaying, so please get used to one another.
Kyro: I know that Gregory-san's posts are long, but thats just how he wants to post. and i dont think there is anything wrong with that.
Gregory: Please try to make the posts a bit shorter. it would be much easier for us all.
And its alright to put the history lessons. I happen to enjoy reading them.....or maybe im just getting old....ahaha~ anyway.
Everyone, please be cautions of other's needs as well as yourselves. Thank you~))

"Ah...w.well..t..thank you" Hanami mumbled as she blushed slightly at Masaru's words. "I..its nice to meet you, Ito-san. My name is Ai Hanami. I am...well..im not really a student..actually..." She muttered, trying hard not to show her nervousness...(yeah right..lol)

[Gregory House, MD]

- He is returning - said Arthur

After a few minutes, Koushiro entered the classroom.

- Professor, she told the boy that she does not attend school - he said
- Does not attend? Weird, but I do not have time for that. Although she looks familiar, but never mind. Let us continue. Now, as I have said, Martel, after his victory, did not proclaim himself king, but instead let his son, Peppin the Short take this honor. The de iure King, Chlideric III died in 747, when Peppin came to rule. But he was not crowned until 751. With that coronation, Peppin also founded the Carolingian dynasty, the second, and the last Frankish dynasty. He named the dynasty Carlolingian in honor of his father, Charles, or Carlous on Latin. So, the Merovingian dynasty was founded by Clovis and is named after Merovech, and the Carolingian was founded by Pappin and is named after Charles Martel. So, Peppin became the first Carolingian king in 751 and he started ruling differently than his father almost instantly. He immedeately returned the vast amounts of land to the Church and, in 752, gave the Pope Stephen a state, called the Papal State. Although you may somewhere find 756 as the founding year, you treat the first year as the correct one. This move was very important for the Church. The Church had already had the 'spiritual rule' over Europe, but now, with a 'wordly' state, it could only expand its power over other states as a wordly state. That Papal State will lead several wars with several European countries later on - said Arthur

He looked at the watch. Only 10 more minutes.

- OK, we have 10 minutes. Just enought to finish Peppin's rule. Something more about the Papal State. The state managed to survive until 1870, more than a 1000 years, which is rather amazing fo a state that did not even have a strong army. The Pope also produced a document, called the Constitutum Constantini or the Donation of Constantine in English, with which he proved that the famous Roman emperor granted the Pope wordly and spiritual power. In the 15th cenutry, a famous Italian theologist and preist proved thet the Donation of Constantine is actually a hoax and that Constantin never wrote such a document. But, during Peppins rule, who is also famous for beating the Langobards, the predcessors of modern-day Italians, no such proof existed and the document was considered as real and legal. These are the things you should remember Peppin by. He also had two sons, Charlemagne or Carolus Magnus and Carloman I, who ruled as joint rulers after Peppin's death in 768. The joint rule ended in 771 when Carloman misteriously died and Charlemagne took over the position as a dux solus, or only ruler in English, and he came managed to become the most powerful, most respected and most widely-known Frankish Emperor, but about his rule during the next lesson which is on Wednesday. See you then, oh and please look at the two pictures in your books. One of them is showin the hoax related to the Donation of Constantine and the second one is showing Lorenzo Valla.

A 13th C. fresco of Sylvester and Constantine, showing the purported Donation. Santi Quattro Coronati, Rome

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A pencil portrait of Lorenzo Valla made by an anonymous author.

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Just after he had said it, the bell rand.

- Thank you for your attention, see you tommorow on Music History - said Poe - now, again the second year and again the same lesson. Since I have a break, let me see what Sai is doing - he said as he was exiting and locking the classroom.

She was on the 4th floor, so he had to be quick if he wanted to see her, talk to her and then get back in the classroom on time. He went upstairs.

[crowheart]

"No need to be so nervous, I don't bite Hanami-san. Well, I don't bite people I first meet, anyway." " Masaru smiled deciding to have a little fun to mask his own nervousness. He moved over to the flowers and kneeled down touching one of the little flowers and plucked one.

"I need to be going because I am horribly late for school. Maybe we can finish introductions after I get out though. Consider this some incentive." He extened the flower to her. He had never really been this forward before. He hoped he wouldn't just come off as a creep.

[Gregory House, MD]

In less than a minute, he was on the 4th floor. He greeted some students, who he thought History, and went in Hanami's classroom. When he entered, the students greeted him.

- Good day. Could you please call Sai out - he said

[Yellowsakura]

((Like i said before, Hanami does NOT go to school. Shall i repeat, She does not go to school! ))

Hanami giggled slightly at Masaru's little joke. She watched as Masaru picked the flower handing it to her. She gently took the flower, cupping it with both her hands. "T..thank you" She said with a smile.
She was blushing quite a bit as she looked back up at Masaru. "T..then you better head to school for now" She said giving a slight bow.

[Gregory House, MD]

(Like I said - Professor, she told the boy that she does not attend school - he said/- Does not attend? Weird, but I do not have time for that.. Shal I repeat, - Professor, she told the boy that she does not attend school - he said/- Does not attend? Weird, but I do not have time for that. )

- Tell her that I will be in my classroom on the second floor please - said Arthur

''Good Lord, the two outside'', he thought. He quickly ran out to the park and saw a girl with a boy. ''I do not know her, but him I know'', he thought.

- Hey, you, old chap. Masari, Masaru or something like that. Shouldn't you be in class. The second period is starting in less than 3 minutes. Oh, and a good day to you. Could I bother for your name young lady - asked Arthur with a semi-cynicall voice turnig to Hanami.