Conrad, King of Valkanren

Conrad, King of Valkanren (78 AU—129 AU) was the sixth High King of Valkanren and the first of the House of Dornay. He rose to power after being crowned in the Treaty of One Crown—an agreement created by Marius of Lowell which ended the First Interregnum and restored the crown of Valkanren. Much of his reign was weak, and characterised by an incessant demand for separatism. Although Conrad attempted to restore relations with the separatists by marrying his son, Alhir to Lucelle Lettmar, his rule never truly recovered and he went down in history as one of the weakest kings.

History
Conrad Dornay, Lord of Hetzburg was the husband of Falena of Lowell, who was the granddaughter of Somnar I of Valkanren and the cousin of Marius of Lowell. The First Interregnum's two factions—unionists and separatists—had divided Valkanren for two generations; separatists sought Cyngvar, Brythonia and Cyngvar to be released from a united Valkanrian crown, viewing unionists as corrupt and domineering, and holding the belief that Somnar's legacy should have died with his dynasty. Meanwhile, unionists saw separatists as objecting the wish of Hynethe by attempting to cast her kingdoms asunder. Marius of Lowell, the leader of the unionist faction and Lord Protector of Valkanren, signed the Treaty of One Crown with Conrad in 119 AU, bestowing the crown of Valkanren upon Dornay and reforming the Kingdom of Valkanren. The separatists, who had been uninvited to the conference, promptly rebelled under the banner of Carlon Lettmar.

The Separatist Rebellion was incredibly successful at first, however in the Battle of Dorhelm, Somnar, Prince of Levenstad crushed the Cyng host and defeated Carlon in personal combat. Carlon was promptly attained and beheaded; his daughter was forced to marry Alhir as a peace-weaver, and his son Lucion was only returned the lands in 131 AU.

During Conrad's reign, the Cyng remained a persistent threat even after the Separatist Rebellion. Several peasant revolts occurred in Harthing and Selvarn throughout his rule, prompting Conrad to reevaluate the justice system in Valkanren, instituted by Brenmar I 100 years earlier.