Princess Wynne Astley

Introduction   The Astleys descend from a long line of governors that were once part of the initial settling wave that arrived on Lothlorin Island a couple of centuries ago. It is unclear when exactly the Astleys arrived in a position of power, but many sources point to them being the first mayor of Altneyn back when it was just a few wooden shacks.   After Wynne’s grandfather, Barnaby Astley, finished negotiations with the Empire of Evadrin about Lothlorin independence in the year 461 of the Fifth Age, the Lothlorians gained partial independence as a principality and the Astleys became their leaders. Wynne’s father, Renias Astley, was their first ruler as “Prince of the Principality”. However, he died rather suspiciously in the year 483 of the Fifth Age. The exact nature behind his death was never uncovered, but Wynne (25 at the time), became the new leader as “Princess of the Principality”. With the guidance of her grandfather Wynne has become one of the youngest nation leaders in the entirety of Ehldaron, yet also one of the most effective ones.   For more information about the history of Lothlorin and the part of the Astleys, read the “history” section of the “Principality of Lothlorin” page.     Princess   From the moment Wynne became Princess she has shown herself to be an efficient and determined leader, with both the intelligence, wit, and charisma associated with many of the Astleys. With the help of her grandfather she quickly grew in her role. Wynne realises that she is very young and inexperienced however, and she has carefully selected a wide array of advisors to assist her. She has always tried to search at least 2 advisors per subject, preferable 2 with completely opposite views so she can carefully weigh both sides at all times.   Like her father and grandfather before her the Princess keeps a close eye on everything happening in the Principality’s capital while leaving the one other major city, the towns, and settlements to do their own thing, only intervening if something disturbing stands out in the reports.   Wynne has also continued her father’s work with expanding the army and settlements of the Principality. This is something that disturbed the Empire, but Wynne has no intention of going to war anytime soon. Instead the army is necessary to clear the wildlands on the island, as most of Lothlorin Island remains untamed and very dangerous. In order to grow, there will have to be more settlements and cities.   The princess’ most important task however is maintaining the relationship with foreign nations, with particular focus on the Empire. The empire, and most other nations, had hoped to take advantage of the young and inexperienced new ruler when Wynne had to take over from her father. They were in for a shock however, as the young Princess does as much research as possible before entering any discussion. She will always take a very determined position in negotiations, refusing anything that would weaken the Principality or she considers otherwise unfair. She has also learned the virtue of patience, and has no problem dragging out negotiations meant to last a day to weeks or months if necessary to achieve her goal.   Her smarts and determination have garnered the respect of many of the other nations’ leaders, publicly at least. While formally the Principality and the Empire are on good terms, tensions are high between the leaders of both nations. Wynne wants full independence, and the current Emperor of Evadrin is very well aware of this. While Wynne does what is required of her and reports to the Empire multiple times a year, she does not hide her displeasure of this. Representatives of the Empire and even the Emperor himself also think that Wynne is not entirely truthful and hiding things, although no proof has ever been found.   It is true of course that Wynne has been working tirelessly for full Lothlorin independence. She knows war will never be a possibility to achieve this end, as their nation is too small to ever be able to handle the forces of the Empire of Evadrin (and their ally Dorothel). Instead, like her grandfather, she searches for useful allies, forges secret alliances and does subtle manipulations to gain power and influence. Wynne’s plan is to show the entire continent that the Principality is a strong nation, worthy of independence, and then get both public opinion and pressure from other nations to force the Empire to grant full independence. How exactly Wynne plans to do this remains a mystery however.     Personality   Those who know Princess Wynne will quickly realise she is a calm, thoughtful person with a firm grip on her own emotions, rarely letting anyone see her happiness, sadness, frustration or anger. Everything said to her is something she carefully considers, and she will always take her time weighing the different options she has, discussing with her advisors if needed.   In public or during negotiations Wynne is an extremely well versed speaker, and when speaking to her countrymen she will be patriotic but demanding. It will take effort from ever Lothloriner if they want to achieve complete independence. Her passion for Lothlorin is indisputable and will be very apparent in almost anything she does.   There is very little information on how she is privately or with the ones close to her. As Wynne is an extremely hard worker she has little time for her personal life. She has no husband, nor is she seeing anyone. Her remaining family is her grandfather, whom she works with on a daily basis and has a very good relationship with, and an aunt and uncle with a child, her niece Moreen. While Moreen is more than a decade younger than Wynne and only in her teens, she does seem to be the Princess’ best friend, and perhaps the only person she wants to make time for outside of work.   While many admire Wynne’s hard work for the nation, some wonder when the time will come for her to get married and get children, as she will need to continue the Astley bloodline.