The so-called Turmoil of 2512 was an Imperial civil war caused by the Chaos Cult known as the Purple Hand in 2512 IC. The Purple Hand's aim was to bring about the death of the Emperor Karl Franz and to install Crown Prince Wolfgang Holswig-Abenauer as their puppet so that they might badly wound the Empire through political dissension.
The short civil war resulted in a large political reorganisation of the Empire and a change in the number and identity of its constituent Electoral Provinces and their ruling Elector Counts.
History[]
The civil struggle that became known as the Turmoil of 2512 was notable for two reasons, its intensity and short duration. In was known for intensity because in its wake, the borders of the Empire were reconfigured to a degree not seen since the Great War Against Chaos. And it was short -- the fighting was mostly limited to a few short, hot summer months.[1b]
Hostilities began in the spring of 2512 IC, when border skirmishes occurred between Ostland and Talabecland. Prince Hergard von Tasseninck, son of the then Elector Count of Ostland was lost during an expedition in the Grey Mountains, and unfortunately declared slain. Conspiratorial rumours that he was killed on the orders of the Elector of Talabecland, Grand Duke Krieglitz, became common wisdom. Skirmishes broke out between the Ostland marchers and their counterparts on the Talabecland border. Diplomats were sent to help reconcile the nobles, but by the time they reached Wolfenburg the two provinces were already at war.[1b]
At the same time, several other disputes took a violent turn. In Middenland, Middenheim, Talabheim and Talabecland, the Ulricans' hardline attitude, which had been in check for centuries, experienced a renaissance. It became fashionable for Ulricans in these places to despise their Sigmarite neighbours and declare their god and the emperor who ruled in his name illegitimate. The abdication of Ar-Ulric Jarrick Valgeir in favour of his brother Emil Valgeir, the fire-breathing preacher who disrespected the Sigmarites, only made matters worse.[1b]
The noble lords of Hochland, Nordland and Ostermark were increasingly at odds. These areas had either been independent in the past, or were culturally distinct from the states that ruled them, or both. In Nordland, an aggressive noble ruler, Theoderic Gausser, organised (or at least inspired) a rebellion against the rule of Middenheim. Less aggressive, but still strong, arguments were put forward by Aldebrand Ludenhof of Hochland and the Eastern Confederation who took Wolfram Hertwig of Ostermark as their spokesman.[1b]
But it was the province of Averland that first fell into anarchy. Unrest was growing as to whether the noble Alptraum family deserved to remain in power, or whether it was to be replaced by a new ruler from the Leitdorf line. The Leitdorfs had been rulers in Averland before, and the Alptraums were unpopular and lacked imagination, especially since the disastrous Streissen riot of 2502 IC.[3b] Both sides began to gather support.[1b]
Emperor Karl Franz was known as a competent statesman who had managed to smooth over previous disputes between the Imperial nobles and electors. However, in the previous year he had become distant and isolated, due to having been poisoned by agents of the Chaos Cult called the Purple Hand. Rumours circulated that he felt unwell and issued inflammatory edicts banning the persecution of mutants and seizing Ubersreik from House Jungfreud. Such acts left the emperor compromised and unable to condemn the aggression of the Electors lest he be considered a hypocrite.[1b]
To ease tensions between Ulricans and Sigmarites, the marriage of Katarina Todbringer and Prince Wolfgang Holswig-Aberhauer, the heir to Reikland, was announced. The event ended in tragedy due to the actions of a Nordlander assassin. In response, a hasty conclave led to the unthinkable -- violence between the current Elector Counts and the shattering of what was until then believed to have been the warhammer of Sigmar, Ghal Maraz.[1c]
The Todbringers returned to Middenheim, determined to declare war on Theodric Gausser. Middenland was divided between fiefs that supported the Todbringers and those that remembered their own wars with the City of the White Wolf, so they sought to humiliate Middenheim. Within weeks there was an uproar in Averland as the Alptraums laid siege to the city of Streissen, but their forces were outflanked by the armies of Marius Leitdorf. On the other side, the troops of the Reik state of Nuln were mobilised to annex the province of Sudenland. The Grand Countess Emmanuelle von Liebwitz claimed that the Grand Baroness Etelka Toppenheimer of Sudenland was plotting against the interests of Nuln. To the surprise of many, Grand Emmanuelle was supported in her warfare by the eight children of Grand Baroness Toppenheimer.[1c]
Grand Theogonist Yorri XV reported that Ghal Maraz had been miraculously returned, and a ceremony was prepared for the date of 9 Brauzeit in which the emperor would raise the hammer pledged to reunite the feuding Empire. During the ceremony, agents of the Purple Hand that had infiltrated the Reiksguard as well as the Black Chamber tried to summon the daemonic Lord of Change Sheerargetru. After the fighting ended, many priests of Sigmar lost their lives, the grand theogonist and crown prince were dead, and the traumatized survivors gave vague information about the manifestation of Daemons.[1c]
Despite these losses, Karl Franz regained his vigour and will to act. He began to rebuild his most trusted alliances, those with Emmanuelle von Liebwitz (now firmly in possession of Sudenland) and Grand Duke Alberich Haupt-Anderssen (who kept his province out of the fighting and was awarded the somewhat more respectable title of grand count for his restraint).[1c]
It was around this time that the Black Chamber, Altdorf's secret service, compiled an information dossier. One of their agents was exposed as a servant of the Ruinous Powers, and it was implied that much of the conflict in the Empire was due to the influence of his network. Many nobles, even Elector Counts, and perhaps even the crown prince himself, had been maneuvered into carryiong out his plans to weaken the Empire by spreading internal dissension.[1c]
Aftermath[]
In the wake of the Turmoil of 2512, the Empire saw a sweeping political reorganisation. Emperor Karl Franz called a large Electoral Conference, the largest since Magnus the Pious reunited the Empire two centuries before. Hochland, Nordland and Ostermark, which had previously lost their Electoral Count status and been attached to Talabheim and Middenheim, were reinstated as full Electoral Provinces, with Theoderic Gausser, Aldebrand Ludenhof and Wolfram Hertwig being confirmed in their respective territories as Elector Counts.[2a]
Sudenland was dissolved and reunited with Wissenland under Emmanuelle von Liebwitz.[1c] Talabecland and Talabheim were unified when Count Helmut Feuerbach married Elise Krieglitz-Untern, while the von Bildhofens of Middenland were left as dukes of Carroburg, but Middenland itself was again unified with Middenheim.[1c][3a]
Karl Franz officially married his mistress Maria-Luise von Walfen and named their daughter Alia his heir as the Elector Countess of Reikland, while his son Luitpold remained the heir to the crown as the prince of Altdorf.[2a]
Electorship Changes[]
Following the reorganisation of the Empire, several electoral Grand Provinces were disbanded and older ones granted new legitimacy and independence. Therefore, the Imperial political landscape after 2512 IC differed vastly from the one that existed during the election of Karl Franz as emperor.[1a]
Electors Before the Turmoil of 2512[]
- Ludmilla Alptraum, Elector Count of Averland
- Boris Todbringer, Elector Count of Middenheim
- Leopold von Bildhofen, Elector Count of Middenland
- Etelka Toppenheimer, Elector Count of Sudenland
- Emmanuelle von Liebwitz, Elector Count of Wissenland
- Alberich Haupt-Andersson, Elector Count of Stirland
- Hans-Hals von Tasseninck, Elector Count of Ostland
- Elise Krieglitz-Untern, Elector Count of Talabheim
- Gustav Krieglitz, Elector Count of Talabecland
- Hisme Stoutheart, Elder of the Moot
- Aglim, Arch-Lector of the East
- Kaslain, Arch-Lector of the South
Electors After the Turmoil of 2512[]
- Marius Leitdorf, Elector Count of Averland
- Boris Todbringer, Elector Count of Middenland
- Theoderic Gausser, Elector Count of Nordland
- Wolfram Hertwig, Elector Count of Ostermark
- Emmanuelle von Liebwitz, Elector Count of Wissenland
- Alberich Haupt-Andersson, Elector Count of Stirland
- Valmir von Raukov, Elector Count of Ostland
- Aldebrand Ludenhof, Elector Count of Hochland
- Helmut Feuerbach, Elector Count of Talabecland
- Hisme Stoutheart, Elder of the Moot
- Johann Esmer, Arch-Lector of the East
- Kaslain, Arch-Lector of the South
Canon Conflict[]
The short story published for Total War: Warhammer, Prince of Altdorf, contradicts which Elector Counts held their titles before the Turmoil of 2512 laid out within the latest 4th Edition Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay books. For instance, all the Elector Counts that were present for the election of Karl Franz within the short story written for Total War: Warhammer were the same as those Elector Counts in power after the events of the Turmoil of 2512.
This contradicts the tabletop canon as during the Turmoil of 2512 Karl Franz was already the emperor and ruled the Empire. This was likely changed for Total War: Warhammer because the roster of Elector Counts after the Turmoil of 2512 were the starting lords of the Imperial Electoral Provinces in the game. With the introduction of the latest Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition books for "The Enemy Within" campaign, it would appear that this short story is now non-canon.
The introduction of the Turmoil of 2512 allowed older canon from earlier editions concerning the Empire's history and political structure to connect with its current canon. Previous editions of the Empire armybook and Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay books had lore which stated, for instance, that the Empire had different Elector Counts who had undergone different events than are listed in the most current lore. Situations such as Nordland being a vassal of the grafs of Middenland were introduced in the 1st Edition Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay books before being retconned in later editions. These earlier events have now been reintroduced into the lore through the mechanism of the Turmoil of 2512 as presented in the 4th Edition of Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay.