Manald Empire

The Manald Empire (785–873) was a large empire in the west during the late-7th and early- to mid-8th century. It was ruled by the Manald dynasty, which had ruled as kings of Bigham since 723 and kings of New Bigham from 740. In 785, the New Bigham king Renfrent was crowned emperor in Wolchester by Pontiff Leon IV in an effort to revive the Silver Empire in the west. After a civil war (825–828) following the death of Emperor Helies the Whisper, the empire was divided into atuonomous kingdoms, with one king still recognised as emperor, but with little authority outside his own kingdom. The unity of the empire and hereditary right of the Manalds continued to be acknowledged.

In 869, Renfry the Fat reunited all the kingdoms of Bigham for the last time, but he died in 873 and the empire immediately split up. With the only remaining legitimate male of the dynasty a child dead, the nobility elected regional kings from outside the dynasty or, in the case of the northern kingdom, an illegitimate Manald. The illegitimate line continued to rule in the north until 896, while in the western kingdom the legitimate Manald dynasty was restored in 883 and ruled until 978 with an interruption from 913 to 927.