Henry Chamberlain

Henry Chamberlain is the Chancellor and head-of-state of the Maritime Republic of Hansa. Whom according to himself was born to a family of merchants and sea-farers somewhere along the coast of the Sea of Slaves, most likely on of the various port cities and islands in the south east. He is a largely unknown and irrelevant figure in Rathnir and only came to any semblance of power somewhat recently. Henry has ties to the Rathnir Guilds and various private enterprises, as well as diplomatic/personal connections in many larger nations including Aatyeli, Bardonia and Astyllea. He first appeared when he entered the nobility of the Kingdom of Dubris on December 15, 2021; who upon arrival via ship on the island of Dubris was given the noble title of Baron by the then King Dampswamp of Dubris. He has since become the sovereign ruler and Chancellor of Hansa.

Origin
The origins of Henry Chamberlain are not clear however according to his own personal accounts he is from a port-city in the Tortugan Sea. He presumably worked for the local merchant and maritime guilds for sometime. Although very little actual documentation of him exists prior to December 15, 2021 when he became a noble in Dubris.

Rise to Power
His rise to a nobleman in the council of the Kingdom of Dubris came seemingly out of no where as he has had no known affiliation with any other organization at the time of his ascension. It is rumored that it was King Giggio I, at the time only Prince Giggio, that granted him a seat on the Dubrian Council on December 15, 2021; possibly out of a pre-existing relationship. He was immediately promoted to the position of Chamberlain and on December 19 was given the title of Baron; a few days later he was then appointed to Chancellor and became the secondary head-of-state of Dubris on December 21, 2021 in the midst of the Dubrian Crisis. The next day however, King Giggio was delivered an ultimatum by the Kingdom of Lunaris, who according to some sources broke agreements made under King Dampswamp of Dubris and gave an ultimatum to King Giggio to either surrender Dubris as a territory of Lunaris or face war and destruction. The King who had only gained the title the previous day, reluctantly accepted and resigned mere hours after accepting the ultimatum. The Council of Dubris then passed the crown to the then Chancellor Henry Chamberlain, who became king on December 22, 2021. This was not to last however, and Henry would soon leave Dubris and Lunaris entirely; becoming the legal Baron of Hansa under the Fjarldom of Aatyeli.

Dubrian Crisis
On December 21, 2021, in an event dubbed the Dubrian Crisis. A political crisis regarding the Kingdom of Dubris in which the previous King Dampswamp of Dubris, under the threat of invasion by pirates (presumably of Tortuga although the details are unclear). Agreed to render the kingdom as vassal state of the much larger Kingdom of Seaside-Baranov. This act however outraged many of his nobles, including the at the time Prince Giggio of Dubris and Henry. The Prince along with other nobles, most notably Henry; pressured the King into abdicating and giving control to the now King Giggio of Dubris. After which the vassalisation treaty was immediately renounced and Henry Chamberlain was promoted to the newly created office of Chancellor, which is to be the 2nd highest office to that of the King. Making Dubris once again an independent kingdom with a new head-of-state. However, the Kingdom of Lunaris whom Dubris had various peace and cooperation agreements with; presumably in a sense of opportunity delivered an ultimatum to King Giggio on December 22 that offered him to either surrender the Kingdom as a vassal state to Lunaris or face war. The King reluctantly accepted and subsequently resigned mere hours after accepting the ultimatum; a very swift council decision then passed the crown to Henry Chamberlain; who (as of December 22) is now the current King of Dubris. On December 24, 2021 the Kingdom of Lunaris became part of the Sapphire Commonwealth, with Henry Chamberlain being made a direct official within the Kingdom of Lunaris, the Baron of Dubris and officially nullifying the previous Kingdom of Dubris. On December 26, 2021; Henry Chamberlain resigned his office as the Baron of Dubris and renounced his allegiance to the Kingdom of Lunaris and Sapphire Commonwealth all together, becoming the Baron of the Isle of Hansa under the Fjarldom of Aatyeli the same day.

Chancellor and Kingship (Dubris)
After assuming the position of Chancellor on December 21, 2021 appointed by King Giggio, Henry Chamberlain passed no further legislation or made any significant official decisions of note. On December 22, 2021 Henry was appointed the King of Dubris after the resignation of King Giggio, having effectively dissolved the Kingdom which was now under the control of Lunaris. The legal existence of the title King of Dubris was effectively nullified immediately and Henry Chamberlain did not achieve anything of note as the defunct King of Dubris.

Ruler of Hansa
Upon the discovery of the Isle of Hansa by Henry Chamberlain himself on December 19, 2021, Henry claimed the island under the name of the Kingdom of Dubris and gave it it's name of Hansa; the then King Dampswamp gave him rule over the island with the new of the Barony of the Isle of Hansa. The legality of this early settlement by Henry on behalf of Dubris is questionable if not outright illegal, however due to the low-profile and small nature of the island and his activities it was largely ignored. Henry retained this legally-questionable title and de facto rule of Hansa throughout the Dubrian Crisis, however a major change occurred on December 26, 2021 when Henry Chamberlain officially resigned his office as Baron of Dubris under the Kingdom of Lunaris and the Sapphire Commonwealth; as well as claiming independence and sovereignty for the Isle of Hansa and claiming himself the head-of-state of the new nation of the 'Maritime Republic of Hansa'. This however was not recognized and deemed illegitimate by neighboring powers, despite this Henry managed to successfully negotiate rule over the island as a Baron and vassal of the Fjarldom of Aatyeli who were the de jure rulers of Hansa. On December 26, 2021 he officially became a vassal under the Fjarldom and was given de jure rule over the isle with the title of Baron.

Since his settlement of the Isle of Hansa, which reportedly had several medium-sized and well constructed buildings built upon it by unknown previous settlers (though the buildings were in a dilapidated state). Henry has made efforts to develop and expand the island's infrastructure including the repair of the old buildings as well as the construction of new minor structures such as a small port and additional housing; as well as additional agriculture and farmland. In addition to recruiting additional settlers and citizens to populate and further develop the comparatively miniscule island. The island has since developed a considerable level of infrastructure for a small town and has a small but present population.

On January 31, 2022 the now Maritime Republic of Hansa officially gained independence from it's overlord the Fjarldom of Aatyeli. With Henry Chamberlain as it's first Chancellor and head-of-state.

Radio host
Henry Chamberlain owns and operates a radio station based in Hansa as part of the Henrey Broadcasting company. Which first began it's program on January 21, 2022. It's program consists of news and music and it has is as of current a rather small radio station, much smaller to it's inspiration Herb Dashwell Broadcasting. A station which ceased broadcasting shortly prior to the founding of Henrey Broadcasting, which was formed as a result of the end of Dashwell's program.

Mercenary Commander
Henry Chamberlain in addition to being a Baron is also the commander of the Hanseatic Sveiland Mercenary Company, founded by himself on December 30, 2021. The company at least 18 members including himself, and is known to have participated in the Kartek-Rohel war on January 7 and at the 2nd Siege of Adwa in the Alamaynian War of Independence on January 8, 2022; both of which the Sveiland Company were on the side of the victor. As well as the 3rd Siege of Ada on January 22, which as an astounding victory for Alamayn and the who besieged and occupied the Plagatean capital. Henry Chamberlain is known to have been present and active commander of the Sveiland Company at the 2nd and 3rd Sieges of Adwa.

Manual Laborer
Henry has on numerous occasions advertised his services in various sectors of manual labor including mining, construction, industrial and so on. He is known to have worked on the construction of 'Farquad Tower' as well as having worked at a massive cactus factory in Clearwater for a period of time.

Cartographer
Henry is a member and participant in the Cartography Guild of Rathnir and is known to have produced at least one map.

Brewer/Bartender
Henry owns and operates a large tavern and theatre in Hansa known as the Hanseatic™ Tavern & Theater along with an employee known as Itasoc. Henry built the tavern himself and works to maintain it and do some of the brewing and experimentation, and is also a member of the Brewers Guild. Hansa's domestic beverage industry is best well known for it's fine wine, vodka and rum.

Personal Life and Household
The details of Henry Chamberlain's personal life outside of his employment and public endeavors are generally unknown as he does not disclose many details about his life other than those of importance. His true familial connection too is completely unknown as he has never disclosed the identity of any of his blood family members. As of December 21, 2021 however he is officially part of as the House of Talinthus as an adopted member; a house that includes other notable individuals such as the pirate captain Archturious Talinthus I.

He has however been known to take jobs and preform various work for the sake of improving his finances. Most of which consists of manual labor and mercenary work. He is also known to travel vast distances on a regular basis, usually in pursuit of work or trade; occasionally leaving signs with his name on interesting places he has visited.