Prince Tiberius, despot of Ikaria

Tiberius was the middle son of Emperor Numerian IV, and thus, grandson of the Emperor who reconquered Ikaria from the hands of the "barbarians".

Biography

Born in 709 AP, he was the second son of Numerian IV and Princess Abi of Seria. A very curious and intelligent boy since very young, Tiberius was one of the first Blatian princess to assist to classes at the Academy of Blati. Also since he was a child he had good relations with Heraclius, the eldest of the brothers and future Emperor.     In 729 he was married to princess Verina of Cloudia as part of the Treaty of the White Mountain between Cloudia and Blati, in a lavish ceremony at the Temple of the Garden. She was the perfect match for him as she was also a very cultivate woman. His first years as governor were spent in repairing the roads and fomenting immigration from other places of Moria peninsula to the old capital.   In 735 AP Numerian IV fell seriously ill and Tiberius rushed to the capital in case of his father's death. Upon arrival, Tiberius found Blati in chaos, as the Emperor hadn't chosen a successor. In theory, Heraclius, the first born son should succeed him to the throne but the Blatian Senate was indecisive about which prince should be the next Emperor. Tiberius had no desire to become the next Emperor as he had very good relations with his older brother. Theodore, the youngest of the siblings was neutral, although he clearly favoured Heraclius and Tiberius over Demetrius.   The latter saw an opportunity and when the illness of his father seems to be worsening, he rode to the Senate and delivered his alleged testament where Numerian IV divided the territories of the Empire between his four sons in a sort of Imperial College with Demetrius as the senior of the four Emperors. The idea was well received by some senators, as the Imperial defence could be coordinated better with four emperors than only one. Knowing about that, Tiberius ordered Theodore to deliver another letter to the Senate stating that such testament was a forgery. In the end, Numerian IV recovered and, once he was informed of what happened and decided to name Heraclius as his successor and send Demetrius as Ambassador to the Republic of Valia, far away from the court.   After that event, Tiberius returned to his position as governor of Ikaria and in 738 AD his first son, Eligiuswas born, and soon another four would follow, some of them would become influential figures of the Empire in the years to come!.   In 753 AP he was recalled to Blati by the new Emperor Heraclius V, possibly to supress a attempt by Demetrius to take the throne with an army of mercenaries, but this attempt was short lived. Two years later, in 755 AP he was appointed Count of Dubris (effectively taking command of the Field armies of the southern Kallian Plains) and he launched a campaign against the last remnants of the kingdom of Astrasia in the North-East. The Astrasian war, as it became known, lasted 3 years, after which the former Astrasian lands were annxed, effectively reconquering the country for the Blatians. This would be the last war against the "barbarian menace" that the Blatians would undertake in their own homeland.   In 757 his brother the emperor granted him the immense honour of celebrating a triumph in the capital, where part of the treasury of the former Astrasian king was distributed among the population of the city. From then on Tiberius spent most of his time at the capital, in the Imperial palace, writing and translating ancient texts. In 760 he was present on a diplomatic mission to the Kingdom of Oronia and a year later he was the Emperor representative on a Synod of the Reformed Church, his good looks, charming and charisma made a very good impression on the nobles and high society of this distant Blatian republic.   In 764 AP he was appointed as the Supervisor of the Grain Doll for the Imperial capital, a job that he took very seriously, improving the instalations at Blati's harbour as well as the number of convoys full of grain that reached the capital and his distribution among the population. On Autumn 764 AP Tiberius was hunting with some friends in the forests near Blati when his horse went mad (apparently it had been stung by a bee) and unfortunately he fell off his horse knocking his head against the ground, dying instantly, he was 56 years old. His body was exposed at the Temple of Zerah and thousands of citizens paid their respects to the good old prince. His remains are located on a little mausoleum east of the Great temple of Blati.  

Physical description

  Tiberius was described as one of the most handsome princes of his time , his appearance when he was young surprised the seris ambassador who described him as "Having the face and hair of his father but the eyes of his grandfather, the Seris Emperor".     He was tall, he had a tanned skin and curly dark hair and "beautiful light brown eyes, almost like honey" as his wife once said. He always wanted to dress in the latest of fashion when he was at court but on campaign he preferred to dress "like a soldier". He and his brother Prince Theodorewere considered as some of the most stylish members of the Blatian Court, but these elaborate dresses were also criticized by some members of the Senate who wanted to return to a simpler, more austere fashion, like in the old days.  

A handsome man with a fine, serious look about him and a noble and quite lordly bearing

— A Liwali ambassador to Blati

 

Relations

Tiberius got along pretty well with his older brother, the future Heraclius V, who had so much confidence in him that he appointed him as governor of the imperial capital while the Emperor went on a diplomatic tour to the Republic of Valia.     But things were different with his other brother, Demetrius , who was the most ambitious of the sons of Numerian IV and always plotted to be the next Emperor. Tiberius deeply mistrusted Demetrius ( and in the end he wished that his brother could not be so focused on getting the throne). He as well as his older brother wanted the family to stay together without rivalries between the brothers. After the failed coup by Demetrius , he was one of the supporters of Theodore's idea of exile him rather than executing him. In his later years, relations with Demetrius improved and it is said that the ambitious prince wiped inconsolably after news of Tiberius's death reached him: I've never have anything against my dear brother, who was one of the most honourable people on this planet he allegedly said.   Tiberius was also a loving father and husband, he always cared about the education of his children so that they would have a brilliant future both at court and in administration.  

My children, no matter their gender, will be well educated, well-mannered and respectful of the traditions and morals of our country

 

Legacy

  Tiberius was a very cultivated man, perhaps one of the most cultivated members of the Blatian Imperial family ever, probably also because of his education at the Academy of Blati. He could speak, aside of his native Ikarian and The Blatian languages, Seris, Oronai and Classical Elvish, allowing him to talk with diplomats and ambassador from these nations in their own languages (or spying their conversations) but this also allowed him to read the Oronai and Seris philosophers in their own languages as well as Elf historians from many centuries ago.   Tiberius used this knowledge of languages to translate many ancient works into Blatian. For example, he translated the works of the famous seris philosopher of the 10th century BP Vados and also the History of the Nations of the Elf historian Nelridiel. He was also the owner of a very important library with hundreds of books. After his death, part of his book collection was donated to the Academy of Blati.