An ancient noble house originating from the British Isles. They have dedicated their family to the cause of vampire hunting since the founding of the noble house and have expanded their expertise into everything monstrous and supernatural.
They have long held the position as the leading experts in how to combat the supernatural in England, often giving them an immunity against petty human squabbles throughout history. Their presence carried with it a sense of foreboding, as their tolerance for creatures preying on humans is non-existent. Not that they were the sworn enemies of everything supernatural, but it was certainly an incentive to not cross them.
In the modern age, they keep up the family tradition of hunting monsters, but in the age of scepticism and science, all of it remains secret to all but those who are similarly involved in England. They maintain their titles, the Earldom and a viscountcy, and to many they are simply eccentric nobility, wealthy and odd.
They have long held the position as the leading experts in how to combat the supernatural in England, often giving them an immunity against petty human squabbles throughout history. Their presence carried with it a sense of foreboding, as their tolerance for creatures preying on humans is non-existent. Not that they were the sworn enemies of everything supernatural, but it was certainly an incentive to not cross them.
In the modern age, they keep up the family tradition of hunting monsters, but in the age of scepticism and science, all of it remains secret to all but those who are similarly involved in England. They maintain their titles, the Earldom and a viscountcy, and to many they are simply eccentric nobility, wealthy and odd.
- Prudentia per dolorem
The family can reliably trace their lineage back to the founding of the Kingdom of Wessex, around the time of Cerdic in 501 CE. They were of Brittonic Celtic descent, specifically of the Atrebates with strong links to Calleva Atrebatum, or modern day Silchester, and suspected to have some Roman influence as well. Archaeological excavation of their ancestral lands around Reading revealed a significant presence of both Celtic and Roman remnants.
Their surname developed from the Old English crāwe and hyrst ('crow-wood') referring to the wooded hill their ancestral estate was built on, which developed from hill fort to castle. The estate, according to the written record, has always been the gathering point for Crowhurst hunters. Roman and Celtic warding charms and magical objects excavated or found on or around the estate further provides evidence that the family has been active combatants of the supernatural even further back than their written record implies.
What written record there is, places the Crowhursts as the largest clan of hunters present in Southern England at the time, with a near hegemony on the expertise. They were in the good graces of kings and chiefs, expanding beyond the borders of their Wessex estates, and often moved more freely than many other nobles, even in times of war. A Crowhurst arriving in your court implied far greater dangers than political upheaval.
They were Christianised alongside the kingdom of Wessex around 603–685 CE, and embraced this religion and its teachings as another tool against the creatures of the night they fought against. Early on, they may have counted as quite zealous, having long since realised that faith and belief lent power to holy symbols to ward away or harm supernatural creatures with evil intent.
Several of their number went on pilgrimage to Rome, bringing back blessed weapons and symbols of warding. Many have been lost, but some of these artefacts persist in the Crowhurst vaults and are even still in use. Furthermore, there is evidence that not all Crowhursts fully embraced Christianity, although the family did frame themselves as Christian to outsiders. Pagan elements for protection followed the family for some time after their Christianisation, and there is evidence that the belief in pagan gods persisted alongside belief in the Christian God, framing the Maker of all things as a creator of the pagan spirits.
Although the Crowhursts rarely involved themselves in conflicts between the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, when pitted against the Danelaw and the Viking threat, even the Crowhursts were involved in pushing them back. While the supernatural was their priority, they could not work if heathen Norsemen took over and deposed their power-base. The Crowhursts maintained their wealth, lands, and influence through being indispensable to the common folk and nobles alike.
During this period of unrest, both during and after Alfred the Great's reign, some members of the house moved to Normandy on the invitation of the Duke of Normandy to practice their craft across the channel. They married into the Duke's family and established a modest noble branch that would extend into the establishment of the French Kings.
Later, under King Æthelred, the Anglo-Saxons fared worse off than before in the face of Danish invasion. First, Sweyn Forkbeard of Denmark ruled for a time, sending Æthelred into exile. After the return of Æthelred, King Cnut invaded in 1015, ultimately overtaking the Anglo-Saxon kingship in 1016. This time, the Crowhursts did not get out unscathed. Although they avoided Cnut's efforts to eradicate all threats to his Kingship from former Wessex nobles, their political power was greatly reduced, as were their numbers. They were given respect only through their role as those who fought the beasts that preyed on Cnut's subjects and their ties to Emma of Normandy's family line.
A Crowhurst was on the Witan when Edward the Confessor died and Harold Godwinson was elected as their new King, although his reign was short-lived as he died under William of Normandy's invasion at the Battle of Hastings. The Crowhurst was not one of the Witan who elected Edgar Ætheling as the new King, as William of Normandy controlled most of England at that point and the Crowhursts had seen the wisdom of forging a new alliance with the Normans using their Norman family branch.
Their surname developed from the Old English crāwe and hyrst ('crow-wood') referring to the wooded hill their ancestral estate was built on, which developed from hill fort to castle. The estate, according to the written record, has always been the gathering point for Crowhurst hunters. Roman and Celtic warding charms and magical objects excavated or found on or around the estate further provides evidence that the family has been active combatants of the supernatural even further back than their written record implies.
What written record there is, places the Crowhursts as the largest clan of hunters present in Southern England at the time, with a near hegemony on the expertise. They were in the good graces of kings and chiefs, expanding beyond the borders of their Wessex estates, and often moved more freely than many other nobles, even in times of war. A Crowhurst arriving in your court implied far greater dangers than political upheaval.
They were Christianised alongside the kingdom of Wessex around 603–685 CE, and embraced this religion and its teachings as another tool against the creatures of the night they fought against. Early on, they may have counted as quite zealous, having long since realised that faith and belief lent power to holy symbols to ward away or harm supernatural creatures with evil intent.
Several of their number went on pilgrimage to Rome, bringing back blessed weapons and symbols of warding. Many have been lost, but some of these artefacts persist in the Crowhurst vaults and are even still in use. Furthermore, there is evidence that not all Crowhursts fully embraced Christianity, although the family did frame themselves as Christian to outsiders. Pagan elements for protection followed the family for some time after their Christianisation, and there is evidence that the belief in pagan gods persisted alongside belief in the Christian God, framing the Maker of all things as a creator of the pagan spirits.
Although the Crowhursts rarely involved themselves in conflicts between the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, when pitted against the Danelaw and the Viking threat, even the Crowhursts were involved in pushing them back. While the supernatural was their priority, they could not work if heathen Norsemen took over and deposed their power-base. The Crowhursts maintained their wealth, lands, and influence through being indispensable to the common folk and nobles alike.
During this period of unrest, both during and after Alfred the Great's reign, some members of the house moved to Normandy on the invitation of the Duke of Normandy to practice their craft across the channel. They married into the Duke's family and established a modest noble branch that would extend into the establishment of the French Kings.
Later, under King Æthelred, the Anglo-Saxons fared worse off than before in the face of Danish invasion. First, Sweyn Forkbeard of Denmark ruled for a time, sending Æthelred into exile. After the return of Æthelred, King Cnut invaded in 1015, ultimately overtaking the Anglo-Saxon kingship in 1016. This time, the Crowhursts did not get out unscathed. Although they avoided Cnut's efforts to eradicate all threats to his Kingship from former Wessex nobles, their political power was greatly reduced, as were their numbers. They were given respect only through their role as those who fought the beasts that preyed on Cnut's subjects and their ties to Emma of Normandy's family line.
A Crowhurst was on the Witan when Edward the Confessor died and Harold Godwinson was elected as their new King, although his reign was short-lived as he died under William of Normandy's invasion at the Battle of Hastings. The Crowhurst was not one of the Witan who elected Edgar Ætheling as the new King, as William of Normandy controlled most of England at that point and the Crowhursts had seen the wisdom of forging a new alliance with the Normans using their Norman family branch.
After taking the English throne through the right of conquest, William left the lands in the hands of his half-brother Odo. While Edward the Confessor had introduced some Norman nobles to England, with William the influx was more notable. This created plenty of displeased and displaced Anglo-Saxon nobles, but the Crowhursts straddled the world of Norman and Anglo-Saxon and were left unharried.
William, through Odo, proved himself efficient at putting down rebellions. The Normans held all positions of authority, especially in the earldoms and the church, with Latin becoming the language of official documents. The Crowhursts knew Latin, and had long since learnt the Norman language thanks to their overseas cadet branch, with which they kept close ties now that their Anglo-Saxon blood might encourage the Normans to move against them.
During Norman rule of England, the Crowhursts cemented their position as exemplary monster hunters, expanding their expertise throughout Normandy and into Frankish lands. The aim was again to make themselves indispensable with the new power in the land, realising their position as the lone Anglo-Saxons who had managed to hold onto power through clever manouvering. One such strategy was joining Robert Curthose, William II's brother, on the First Crusade.
A significant portion of the Norman branch of the Crowhursts followed the Duke of Normandy to the Levant. Although they did not gain any land among the Crusader states, the Crowhursts found plenty wealth, both in the form of information and coin. The realm of the supernatural expanded tremendously, introducing dangers beyond European scopes, and new varieties of what the Crowhursts termed as vampires. Alongside this, new weapon technologies was brought home with them, blades of Wootz steel and resources, along with dissertations on combating magic or performing ritual magic from Seljuk, Fatimid, and bedouin sources.
The Crowhursts returned to Normandy and England with knowledge of Arabic and laden with tomes of new opportunities. Many Christians around them may have called what they were doing heresy, but they were well used to hiding their less acceptable methods from those around. To the Crowhursts, knowledge was power agains the supernatural, no matter the source of that knowledge.
In their absence, William II had died and Henry I overtaken the throne. This left the Anglo-Saxon branch and the Norman branch of the Crowhursts at odds, although in the end it was Henry I who won out. This tumultous period, only made worse by the White Ship disaster in 1120, causing the death of Henry I's heir William Adeling and other notable noble names, among them the current heir to the Anglo-Saxon branch of the Crowhursts, although they had plenty of sons who could inherit at that point.
- The Anarchy (1138-1153)
- Second Crusade (1145-1149)
- Fall of Jerusalem (1187)
- Third Crusade (1189-1192), Richard I
- Conquest of Wales by Edward I (1277 and 1283)
- War of Scottish Independence, First War (1296–1328)
- The Second War of Independence (1332–1357)
- Hundred Years' War (1337–1453)
- The Black Death (1346-1353)
William, through Odo, proved himself efficient at putting down rebellions. The Normans held all positions of authority, especially in the earldoms and the church, with Latin becoming the language of official documents. The Crowhursts knew Latin, and had long since learnt the Norman language thanks to their overseas cadet branch, with which they kept close ties now that their Anglo-Saxon blood might encourage the Normans to move against them.
During Norman rule of England, the Crowhursts cemented their position as exemplary monster hunters, expanding their expertise throughout Normandy and into Frankish lands. The aim was again to make themselves indispensable with the new power in the land, realising their position as the lone Anglo-Saxons who had managed to hold onto power through clever manouvering. One such strategy was joining Robert Curthose, William II's brother, on the First Crusade.
A significant portion of the Norman branch of the Crowhursts followed the Duke of Normandy to the Levant. Although they did not gain any land among the Crusader states, the Crowhursts found plenty wealth, both in the form of information and coin. The realm of the supernatural expanded tremendously, introducing dangers beyond European scopes, and new varieties of what the Crowhursts termed as vampires. Alongside this, new weapon technologies was brought home with them, blades of Wootz steel and resources, along with dissertations on combating magic or performing ritual magic from Seljuk, Fatimid, and bedouin sources.
The Crowhursts returned to Normandy and England with knowledge of Arabic and laden with tomes of new opportunities. Many Christians around them may have called what they were doing heresy, but they were well used to hiding their less acceptable methods from those around. To the Crowhursts, knowledge was power agains the supernatural, no matter the source of that knowledge.
In their absence, William II had died and Henry I overtaken the throne. This left the Anglo-Saxon branch and the Norman branch of the Crowhursts at odds, although in the end it was Henry I who won out. This tumultous period, only made worse by the White Ship disaster in 1120, causing the death of Henry I's heir William Adeling and other notable noble names, among them the current heir to the Anglo-Saxon branch of the Crowhursts, although they had plenty of sons who could inherit at that point.
- The Anarchy (1138-1153)
- Second Crusade (1145-1149)
- Fall of Jerusalem (1187)
- Third Crusade (1189-1192), Richard I
- Conquest of Wales by Edward I (1277 and 1283)
- War of Scottish Independence, First War (1296–1328)
- The Second War of Independence (1332–1357)
- Hundred Years' War (1337–1453)
- The Black Death (1346-1353)
- Wars of the Roses (1455–1485)
- English Reformation (1529–1536)
- That Bullshit with Henry
- Edward VI: Protestant Zeal (1547-1553)
- Wyatt's Rebellion (1554)
- Marian Persecutions (1555-1558)
- The Elizabethan Religious Settlement (1558-1563)
- Spanish Armada (1588)
- English Reformation (1529–1536)
- That Bullshit with Henry
- Edward VI: Protestant Zeal (1547-1553)
- Wyatt's Rebellion (1554)
- Marian Persecutions (1555-1558)
- The Elizabethan Religious Settlement (1558-1563)
- Spanish Armada (1588)
- Union of the Crowns (1603), James I
- Unicorn augmentation of honour for the Crowhurst coat of arms
- The Execution of Charles I (1649)
- The Protectorate (1653-1659)
- The Restoration (1660)
- The Great Frost and Erasmus Cross (1684-1685)
- The Glorious Revolution (1689)
- The establishment of the Exchange (1688-1689)
- Unicorn augmentation of honour for the Crowhurst coat of arms
- The Execution of Charles I (1649)
- The Protectorate (1653-1659)
- The Restoration (1660)
- The Great Frost and Erasmus Cross (1684-1685)
- The Glorious Revolution (1689)
- The establishment of the Exchange (1688-1689)