The trial of Lord Cyrus Manderly

[Bacon King]

I hereby appoint Lords Bolton, Reed, and Umber as judges. As I personally issued the charges against Lord Manderly I shall hereby serve as the leader of the accusers.

(OOC wow I didn't see this thread until now, I wish someone would have sent me a PM or linked to here from the game discussion thread. I will prepare another post shortly)

[Bacon King]

All judges, please offer and recite this oath, so you may be seated, and the trial begin:

"I solemnly swear before the Old Gods that I will faithfully seek justice and shall diligently consider all evidence presented before me. I accept the responsibility placed upon me by my rightful King, Lord Cregan of House Stark, to search for the truth and uphold the laws of Gods and men. I swear to respect the ruling we make as well as whatever sentence our King may impose"

All witnesses, before offering testimony, shall offer this oath:

"I swear before the Old Gods (and the New*) to provide the truth in full. I shall not omit any part of the truth, I shall not utter any lie, and I will do everything within my power to ensure the truth be found by this court."

* only required by Faith of the Seven worshippers

Defendant:

"I swear before the Old Gods and the New to speak only the truth. I accept the authority of this court and my rightful King, Lord Cregan of House Stark. I acknowledge that the judgement made by this Court and the sentence made by King is final -- once the judgement is proclaimed, I lose any right to demand any trial by any method to alter the judgement against me."

[Bacon King]

Lord Manderly enters, with four of his honor guard first declaring his entrance. The Lord, dressed in his blue and green cloak of House Manderly, proceeds to stride slowly to his position, with six of the guard ahead of him and six behind, with the remainder guarding the door and judges. On one of his shoulders, a scarlet shoulder pad holds the sigil of House Manderly. On the other, a scarlet shoulder pad holds the sigil of House Stark. Once he takes his position, four of the guards stand behind it, and four stand on each side of it. He opens his mouth, and slowly yet surely speaks:

"I, Lord Cyrus of House Manderly, swear before the Old Gods and the New to speak only the truth. I accept the authority of this court and my rightful King, Lord Cregan of House Stark. I acknowledge that the judgement made by this Court and the sentence made by King is final -- once the judgement is proclaimed, I lose any right to demand any trial by any method to alter the judgement against me."

Lord Manderly, I assume you are finished with your theatrical show of force, so if you would be so kind as to order your men to exit this chamber then we may begin. Sit down, alone, and your guards can turn around and leave through the door they just came through. It’s treason to bare steel against your liege lord, of course, so I’m sure you had no intention of keeping your fancy guards standing by your side through the entire trial, certainly? I shall give you the benefit of the doubt, Manderly, and assume this is just another example of your queer Southron culture’s obsession with pointless spectacle. You aren’t in the Reach anymore, you don’t need a dozen armed men to protect you from backstabbing schemes and intrigues – we respect guest right in Winterfell. You are safe here from anything, save what justice may deliver.

Now that we are all gathered here, without a dozen swordsmen in our midst, we may begin. I thank the Lord Judges and the Accused for arriving promptly.

[Bacon King]

Lord Judges, I shall now recount and explain the crimes of Lord Cyrus Manderly.

1. Treasion, conspiracy, undermining the integrity of the North, and threatening its King.

I attempted to enter routine tax negotiations with Lord Manderly. He immediately threatened to rebel against the North. He also threatened he would swear fealty to Lord Arryn of the Vale and Mountains to facilitate this planned rebellion. He directly stated he already “knew” the Vale would offer their support to House Manderly in a fight against the North, thereby clearly implying he had been conspiring for some time, negotiating with the Lords of the Vale in secrecy.

Not only does he demand complete debt forgiveness from me, using his threats in an attempt to dictate the terms of his economic relationship with his liege lord, He makes bizarre claims of “secrets” he has learned in his secret negotiations with the Vale yet refuses to state anything clearly. Emphasis in the following text is mine own:

To My Lord Cregan Stark, King in the North:

The demands you require are high, indeed. Should we fulfill them, we would be forced to abandon any plans for a navy or silver mine. It is indeed true that this amount would make House Stark the richest House that we know of. That being said, we must beg my lord to not demand this amount. Should we pay it, we would request freedom from vassalage - you do demand nearly half our gold. Should the debt be forgiven, we shall build you the largest navy in Westeros, capable of threatening any city you wished to attack. In fact, we may even be able to attack the Vale. We know secrets that are likely not dreamed of in Winterfell. You may have the knowledge and the navy for the forgiveness of debt. And - a daughter of yours may marry my son or a son of yours may marry my daughter. In a relationship with a vassal, it is custom for the lord to provide a dower or bride price in the case of a son marrying a daughter.

The Lord of the Vale may offer vassalage, which we intend to refuse, for a great deal of land. Our loyalty to House Stark is well-known. Do not push us to the Vale - our hearts lie in Winterfell. I beg you, accept one of the offers made before. The Vale is powerful indeed, despite its secrets we have recently learned. This secret could give House Stark the title “Lord of the Vale.” Do not turn it away in haste.

- Lord Cyrus Manderly, Lord of White Harbor, Loyal Vassal of House Stark

2. Treason, conspiracy, attempt to incite unrest, undermining the integrity of the North.

Shortly after receiving the provocative response from Lord Manderly I became aware of the following message he had sent to Lords Ryswell and Dustin. In it, he explicitly offers their two Houses protection “from House Bolton and House Stark” - their lawful sovereign! – and he informs them of the considerable military support and diplomatic support the Vale has offered them. He is blatantly acting as a foreign agent, attempting to recruit fellow conspirators in his plot to undermine the North and overthrow his King. He concludes his missive with a declaration, "victory at any cost" the ominous and threatening words of a man who has surrendered every principle in his feudal oaths in his obsessive pursuit of power.

You must be logged in to read this quote.

At this time I shall pause, briefly. I request the witnesses, Lord Dustin and Lord Ryswell, to elaborate upon any further messages they have received from the Accused. I also welcome questions and comments from the honorable Lord Judges concerning my testimony, and I will also allow the Accused a chance to explain himself.

[Bacon King]

Lord Manderly, upon hearing the words of his liege, turns towards his honor guard.

“Gentlemen, I release the bond of your word to my personage inside of this room. You are dismissed to guard the doors, unless my liege intends to object to this as well?” Lord Manderly turns to his liege, assuming he will nod his assent.

*nods assent*