Arthur Perenolde I

King Arthur Perenolde I is remembered as one of the more prominent King's of Alterac. The beginnings of his military career, he seemed a failure, later redeeming himself and going on to be instrumental in recovering Alterac after the Garnet Skull Rebellion. Evolving the Kingdom of Alterac to focus on trade over military strength.

Childhood
Arthur Perenolde I was the second son of King Fitzroy Perenolde I and Queen Annabel Perenolde. Never expected to inherit the throne, Prince Arthur lived in the shadow of his older brother, who took more after his father. Prince Arthur deeply respected his father and brothers strict adherence to principles, but also realized their extremism and took to more moderation. Nor did he agree that military power was the key to success. These feelings might have been instilled in the young prince by his tutor and combat teacher, Lord Ethan Karlsburg, who served as the Lord-Treasurer of Alterac before resigning due to age and agreeing to tutor the second prince.

Adulthood
Hoping to distance himself from his older brother, young Arthur took more of an interest in the navy than the army, which was his brothers domain. Although truthfully, Prince Edward Perenolde II had the talent with ships and Prince Arthur I better suited to strategy on land.

Prince Arthur entered the Alterac Navy as Admiral after his predecessor's death, being unproven in battle but among the few with the proper education to fill the task.

Second Alteraci-Stromic War
Young Prince Arthur Perenolde I was given his chance to earn his own glory in the Second Alteraci-Stromic War. The Prince oversaw the Alterac Navy's first attempt at installing a naval blockade on the city of Strom to compliment his father's siege by land. However, the Stromic Fleet outnumbered the Alteraci and Arthur retreated in defeat. Arthur only returned to the war after receiving assistance from the Kingdom of Kul Tiras when they finally installed the blockade.

Yet his success did not last for long, the Tirassian Navy later withdrew and before long the Garnet Skull Company moved to end the blockade which they did so successfully. The Prince-Admiral returned to Herring Rock in shame.

Yet as the war progressed, Arthur was given an opportunity of redemption. The Garnet Skull Company attempted to take Southshore by land, the Prince-Admiral arrived after they had established the blockade and defeated them now reinforced by newly made ships.

After the Raid of Southshore, Arthur's role in the Second Alteraci-Stromic War ended. He accompanied his father to Boralus, participating in the negotiations for the Treaty of Boralus which ended the war. Prince Arthur also became the heir apparent, his elder brother had been captured early in the war and reported dead. Although saddened by his brother's lost, becoming the heir instilled a sense of confidence in Arthur.

Reign
Two short years following the Second Alteraci-Stromic War, King Fitzroy Perenolde I perished due a heart attack. Arthur was coronated, King Arthur Perenolde I the following day beginning his long reign. The first three years of Arthurs reign were uneventful, Arthur continued the rebuilding of his fathers military but also began at undoing some of his fathers domestic policies. King Arthur I lifted the heavy censorship laws, allowing for the Revival to resurface which had gone underground. Artists, thespians and philosophers were able to create new forms of art. Although anything directly treasonous or slanderous of the Crown was still labeled as treason. The reemergence of the Revival did not tarnish the Kingdom of Alterac's relationship with the Church of the Holy Light. King Arthur remained a devour king, encouraging a beautiful mixture between the Revival and religion.

The Garnet Skull Rebellion
Three years after his coronation, war returned to Alterac. His thought dead brother, Edward Perenolde II returned, a changed man. Now leading the very mercenary company that captured him, Edward revealed himself as cruel and criminal. The Garnet Skull Company saw several victories before being defeated beneath the Mouth of the Mountains. However, several Alteraci nobility betrayed King Arthur I, betraying the King to aid the Rogue Prince. The conspiring of these Traitor Lords led to an assassination attempt of King Arthur I.

As the King was returning to the Alterac Keep after a Liturgy, an orchestrated mob overtook the royal guard. Inside the mob, were several assassins. Two of them were capable of harming the king, one assassin thrust his dagger in King Arthur's stomach whereas the other shot a crossbow bolt that pierced through the King's left hand.

The King stumbled away, now under the protection of reinforcements and was rushed into the keep. The Royal Physician labored relentless, in the end saving King Arthur's life. The wound to his stomach was healed in time, however the cross bolt demanded that the king amputate his left hand. To replace his lost hand, King Arthur I replaced it was a steel one, dyed white. King Arthur would come to be known as the White Fist.

While King Arthur recovered from his wounds, the Garnet Skull Company and rebel forces took Alterac City, only the keep continuing its resistance, besieged. Edward Perenolde II declared himself King of Alterac and his younger brother dead. However, King Arthur I had feared this and begged the Kingdom of Lordaeron for aid. The day after his brother's apparent victory, five thousand Lordaeronian stormed Alterac City, destroying his forces and liberating the city, restoring King Arthur's authority. This salvation came at an expense, King Arthur betrothed Princess Menethil and returned to the Kingdom of Lordaeron all lands his father, King Fitzroy Perenolde I had won in the War of Frozen Stone.

After the restoration of his throne, King Arthur set about bringing the traitor lords and Edward Perenolde II to justice who had escaped the Lordaeronian soldiers in flight. King Arthur first conquered the County of Strahnbrad with ease and then moved onto the Duchy of Durnholde. After a three day siege of Durneholde Keep, the traitor lords surrendered. King Arthur then arrested the remaining rebel leaders who had taken refuge in Durnholde Keep.

King Arthur then led a quick campaign, liberating the Hillsbrad Foothills, namely Southshore which had come under the control of the now weakened Garnet Skull Company, quickly retaking his lands. King Arthur returned to Alterac City to find the rebels were found guilty in a court of law for treason, the White Fist oversaw their execution himself, including his own brothers.

Years of Peace
Following the Garnet Skull Rebellion, the Kingdom of Alterac was deeply weakened. Much of its farmland had been razed, its primary port seized for a year, most of the military lost and the people divided. King Arthur Perenolde I set to recovering his kingdom, which took decades of hard work. Within twenty years, the Alteraci Military was restored to its former numbers, subtracting the conscripted soldiers. However, instead of sending his soldiers to war, King Arthur sent them to colonizing abroad. Another isles in the Baradin Sea off the coast of Hillsbrad was settled, named Gull Isle. The Kingdom of Alterac also settled Purgation Isle which had been attempted in the past, every attempt ending in failure, although all stories had faded into legend. Several sugar colonies were also settled far away in the South Seas. However, these colonies never grew into actual towns and remained small military forts.

Through oversees colonization efforts, increased tariffs and several trade deals, over the course of many years, the economy repaired. The destruction of the Hillsbrad Foothills was long undone and the Kingdom of Alterac returned to its former economic strength in a short two decades.

King Arthur enjoyed several more years of prosperity beneath his reign, little happening in Alterac outside of its economic success and intellectual experiments with the Revival.

The Sanguine Gavel and Silver Stake
To be written...

Death
Years later, after having survived two assassination attempts on his life, King Arthur Perenolde I, the White Fist expires at the age of seventy-eight. King Arthur I is succeeded by his son, Fitzroy Perenolde II. During his unexpected reign King Arthur I accomplished much. Quelling the Garnet Skull Rebellion and then recovering Alterac's economy and people after over three decades of almost endless wars. King Arthur I returned intellectual freedom to the Kingdom of Alterac but also strengthened ties between the Church of the Holy Light. King Arthur I also oversaw the founding of the Silver Stake and combated magical threats from within. His reign is remembered as a long and prosperous one, despite the hardships he faced.