"Otto, my dear child, of these three noble ladies, who do you like more?"
Mrs. Karin looked at Otto who was holding three portraits with a smile and asked softly.
After the last showdown with Otto, Mrs. Karin met with Otto only a handful of times. Basically, they only met when Otto came to visit Count Aargau, and there was no communication with each other, as usual.
After Mrs. Karin realized that Otto was not someone he could deal with, she decisively gave up the idea of confronting Otto, and instead focused on raising her son El, and planned to provide for El through marriage.
Looking to expand territory and strength.
However, when looking for a marriage partner for El, Mrs. Kaylin discovered that Otto, as the heir, was undoubtedly more favored by the nobles than El, the second son of the earl.
Since the marriage is with the Aracholf family, why not choose a future earl instead of a baron?
Mrs. Karin realized that if she wanted to find a good match for El, she had to resolve Otto's marriage first. In this way, others who wanted to marry into the increasingly powerful Alahorf family could only choose him.
His son El died.
After a period of inquiring and selecting, Mrs. Karin selected three more suitable marriage partners for Otto, and specially asked them to send portraits for Otto to choose.
Otto looked at the three portraits and had difficulty making a decision for a while.
It can be seen that Mrs. Kailin has put her heart into it. At least judging from the paintings, the three noble girls all have good looks.
"If you just look at the portraits, the three ladies are all beautiful. But if you want to get married, you can't just look at the appearance, but also look at the character, family background and so on. I wonder, Mrs. Kellyn, can you introduce me to the situation of the three ladies?
"
"Of course, the families of these three young ladies are not ordinary." After hearing what Otto said, Mrs. Kelin's eyes lit up, there was something interesting! She quickly introduced Claire with a smile.
"The first Miss Nia Welf is the daughter of the Count of Ulm and is only thirteen years old this year.
The Welf family is very powerful. Not only does the family have multiple earl titles, it even has a duke title. Marrying with them can bring us a powerful ally to Alaholf.
The second one is Miss Sophie Sieghard. She is the niece of Count Ansbach. She is fourteen years old this year. Her father, Baron Tillingen, is very rich and has only one daughter like this so far.
The Sighard family is the most powerful vassal in the Principality of Swabia. Marrying with them can enhance our status in the Principality and protect our territory and interests in the Principality.
The last one is Miss Katarina Udalrich, the granddaughter of Count Bresgau and the daughter of the heir to Count Bresgau. She has just turned ten this year.
Although the Udalrich family is not as powerful as the other two families, Bresgau is very close to our Argau collar. If the two parties marry and form an alliance, it can greatly enhance our influence in the nearby area."
Mrs. Kailin quickly introduced the family situation of the three noble girls.
Mrs. Kellyn was from an ordinary background, but she had a good political vision, and the marriage partners she chose were all very good.
The Aracholf family was originally just a baronial family in the Principality of Swabia. By chance, they obtained the title of Earl of Allgäu, but they never lost their land and title in the Principality of Swabia.
In other words, the Alaholf family still has many enclaves in the Principality of Swabia.
Therefore, even though Otto's father and grandfather became Counts of Allgäu and were located in the Kingdom of Lotharingia, they were still vassals of the Principality of Swabia in the Kingdom of East Frankia.
In other words, Count Allgäu was both a vassal of the Kingdom of Lotharingia and a vassal of the Kingdom of East Frankia. This situation was relatively common in the middle and early Middle Ages.
Since a noble could obtain many titles, he might be a powerful duke in one place, but in another area, he might still have feudal obligations to a count.
It was not until the late Middle Ages that various kingdoms stipulated that vassal titles could not be inherited by foreigners, and various lords continued to integrate enclaves, so this phenomenon was put to an end.
For example, in the historical Anglo-French war, after the Duke of Normandy, a vassal of the French king, conquered Britain, he refused to fulfill his feudal obligations with the French king. Coupled with the issue of the succession of the French throne, etc., it eventually evolved into a war that lasted for hundreds of years.
And turned the two countries into feuds.
And Mrs. Kaylin chose two families from the Swabian Principality as Otto's marriage partner, and she may not have the intention to preserve the family enclave. It can be seen that this Mrs. Kaylin does have quite a political vision.
It's a pity that greed gave her crooked thoughts and narrowed her path. Otherwise, if she assisted Otto, she might leave her name in the future.
Otto immediately ruled out the idea of marriage with the Udalrich family.
As the saying goes, it is better to make friends at a distance than to attack at home. The distance between Bresse and Aargau is too close. Marrying each other would not block one direction of expansion. What's more, both sides have ideas about the Basel area.
Definitely not a choice.
As for the marriage partners of the other two families in the Principality of Swabia, Otto was more inclined to the Sighard family.
Although the overall strength of the Welf family is stronger, the family's core territory, the Duchy of Anjou, is located in the Kingdom of West Francia. Its strength in the southern German region is only average, and the benefits of marriage are limited.
As the powerful earls of the Principality of Swabia, the Sighard family will be able to rely on their strength in many places in the coming days.
Otto knew very well that with the continuous decline of the Carolingian dynasty, the Carolingian family would not only lose all their kingships, but would even lose many dukedoms. And the current Duke of Swabia is the descendant of the Carolingian family.
member.
The root cause of the decline of the Carolingian dynasty comes from the family's extremely fair feudal inheritance system and the feud between brothers. No matter how strong the legacy built by the previous generation, once it is passed down, it will lead to divisions and wars.
Situations like this happen again and again, and no matter how rich the family is, they cannot withstand such torture.
Now is the last afterglow of the Carolingian dynasty. What Otto wants is to not only eat the biggest piece of cake, but also at least get a piece of meat when the giant Carolingian family falls. Otherwise,
Wouldn't it be a missed opportunity given by God?
The marriage with the Sighard family would help Otto expand his influence in Swabia after the Carolingian dynasty lost control of the Swabia region. Not to mention, this marriage would also give him the opportunity to receive a large amount of land.
"Forget about the other two families, let's contact the Sighard family. By the way, are there any more suitable families and marriage partners in Austria?"
"Austria?" A trace of doubt flashed in Mrs. Kelin's eyes. Austria is too far away from the Allgäu and there are no powerful families there. Why would Otto suddenly think of Austria?
But since Otto mentioned it, she might as well ask him. The earlier Otto's marriage was decided, the earlier she would be able to help El find a good marriage.
"I'm not familiar with the nobles over there, but I can make some inquiries to see if there are any more suitable candidates."