Anno Domini 1525
A young prince walked through the streets of the capital city of Roggen und Bernstein. There were other more stylish and expensive ways a prince could travel (e.g. on horseback), but he enjoyed taking long walks alone. The young prince, named Gabriel, turned a corner into a large square/ plaza and watched a construction crew with a primitive wooden crane powered by a treadwheel. They were at work removing a large statue of the Virgin Mary from above the entryway to a cathedral, the last of numerous “papist” icons and relics to be taken away after the Kingdom of Roggen und Bernstein embraced the Protestant Reformation.
“It is the dawn of a new era for us. I hope.” thought Prince Gabriel to himself. Prince Gabriel had mixed emotions about his parents' sudden decision to convert the entire kingdom from Roman Catholic to Lutheran Christian. He truly believed that the Roman Catholic Church was a vestigial organ of the Roman Empire disguised as “One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church”, and served no purpose other than to perpetuate Roman paganism and the established Roman social order. However, he also believed that most rulers who had accepted the Protestant Reformation had done so very halfheartedly, and only to increase their power at the expense of the clergy. They only wanted clerical reforms, and they desired to keep serfdom and feudalism intact (and under their control). On the other hand, he was horrified by the wanton violence and destruction committed by the peasant rebels under the command of Thomas Müntzer as well as Florian Geyer from Giebelstadt, and the equally ruthless repercussions the nobles had enacted in retaliation.
Prince Gabriel then continued towards the sea, and wandered into the so-called “kontor” district. He could smell the salty sea air blowing in the winds. The dockyards were busy with clinker-built wooden sailing ships loading and unloading crates and barrels of rye, amber, lumber, pine tar, flax, hemp, furs, iron ore, silver, and salt. There were fresh catches of fish drying on racks, waiting to be salted, pickled, or smoked. He could hear the noises of peddlers advertising their wares, craftsmen at work in their shops, and rowdy sailors spending what little hard-earned pay they received on booze and women in disreputable taverns.
Most of the buildings in that part of town were made of wood, but in the middle of it all stood a massive construction site, with an unfinished but already quite large public building of brick and masonry beginning to rise out of the muddy ground. This was going to be the new Guild Hall, and it was clear that it would rival the royal palace/ castle, both in its sheer volume, as well as in its grandiose magnificence. The “burghers”, or merchant classes, were making an obvious statement. They were now the equals of any royalty or aristocracy, and perhaps they would someday even supplant them, though that day was still in the distant future.
“The balance of power is changing again. When one ends, another begins. In the world of tomorrow there will be new overlords and a new underclass.” thought Prince Gabriel to himself. That was enough thinking about the future for the moment, the present was calling him once more. He knew that the guests would be arriving at the royal palace/ castle in the evening, and he had to return there before sunset began. These streets could be dangerous at night anyways.
Soon enough, Prince Gabriel had returned to the royal palace/ castle. He entered the room that he normally stayed in while he was there, as he usually lived in his “jagdschloss” (hunting lodge) in the countryside. He had decorated the room with a lantern clock on the wall, a Coromandel screen in one corner, and calico/ chintz drapes with a printed floral pattern on the windows. He would sleep in an ornate oak four-poster bed, and he had several large bookcases filled with books that he had run out of space to keep in his library at his “jagdschloss”.
Prince Gabriel removed his thigh-high “cavalier boots” with flared bucket-shaped tops, which had gotten muddy while he traversed the wet and mostly unpaved city streets, and he scrubbed them and polished them. He removed the sleeveless leather jerkin with punches and vertical slashes he wore over his brocade and damask doublets, and he treated it with mink oil before letting it dry and putting it back on. He noticed one of the knees of his footed/ conjoined silk velvet hosen was threadbare and a small hole was developing, so he changed into another pair of them and decided to mend the hole later. Then he put his boots back on. He combed his long flowing locks of golden hair, and then he made a "soldatenzopf" (ponytail) with his hair and held it with a black silk ribbon he tied into a bow. He polished his Sterling silver coronet with inlaid Baltic amber stones, and placed it atop his head. Then he placed the bridge of his lorgnette on his nose.
“Why must we meet every one of the suitors and their families here at once, rather than just one, or maybe at most two at a time, and at home, without being constantly watched and judged by strangers?” said Prince Gabriel to himself out loud with a nervous sound to his voice. When Prince Gabriel was told a number of potential suitors and their families were scheduled to meet him, he imagined a small and non-intimidating salon type gathering or even a garden party at his “jagdschloss”, which he would have been fairly accustomed to. Unfortunately, there was not enough room at the “jagdschloss” to accommodate all of the guests. Instead of the type of relaxed environment he had hoped for, he would be attending a massive gala/ ball with a sumptuous feast followed by dancing all night, which was exactly the type of event he normally went out of his way to avoid. He was forced to leave all of his best friends, his dogs, at home as well. What were his mother and father thinking? They should have known better. His big brothers, Prince Michel (the warrior), and Prince Raphael (the “ladies man”), would be present as well. They were “alpha princes” and he was a “beta prince”, at least judging by their popularity and by the amount of coverage their exploits received in the popular press. It was rare for him to be the center of attention at any social event that they would be present at.
Prince Gabriel left his room, and walked through the hallways and corridors until he reached the royal palace/ castle gates, where Prince Michel and Prince Raphael were waiting for him. Prince Michel looked as stoic as usual, casually observing his surroundings and "taking notes" mentally. Prince Raphael looked like he was trying to be a very suave and debonair gentleman, and he was already flirting with two attractive young noblewomen over a bottle of white wine. Speaking of which, more importantly, the guests were arriving and Prince Gabriel was expected to greet them.
“Try to smile. People will want to be friends with you if you smile by default instead of showing that inquisitive look you always have on your face.” Prince Gabriel told to himself. He blushed instead. He waited for others to speak to him before he spoke. “Try to remember that the small talk is all rhetorical questions, so do not think too hard about your answers.” he told himself. He was sure that he could do these things, he just was not sure exactly how to pull them off, as it had been a very long time since he had ever voluntarily attended any social event of this nature.
