Joseph von Wallenstein
Joseph Maximilian von Wallenstein (827 - 891 AIC) was the duke of Krachenmehr and member of the Consilium Basileii. He played a pivotal role in the Imperial Civil War, pushing the Consilium to accept the Edict of Vissegrad and leading the rebel armies to victory in the Battle of Lake Pontus.
Early Life and Nicolovian Civil War
Joseph von Wallenstein was born a second son of Franz von Wallenstein, hereditary duke of Krachenmehr and long time High Judge of the Nicolovian Confederation. As the duchy was meant to pass on to his older brother, Leopold, Joseph was instead groomed for the military. He gained experience both by serving in the ducal guard and in the Royal and Imperial Army of Emperor István Nagy. In 853 AIC, he was appointed as commander of the Northern Royal Army, tasked with guarding the capital. However, following the forming of the Noble Alliance by his father and duke Tomáš Bílín of Nedele in 855, István Nagy stripped him of his position and attempted to arrest him. However, Joseph and a handful of his loyal soldiers managed to escape Nicolovia and joined his father in the conflict that would quickly grow into a civil war.
He quickly amased fame and and was regarded as one of the most skilled military commanders on either side. He led the Noble Alliance in the battle of Poszotér in 857, in which the Royal Army was crushed, as well as the successful defense of Adlersberg in 858. However, his brother died in the same year during the second battle of Poszotér, leaving Joseph as the heir to the duchy. Following this, his father ordered him to return to Krachenmehr to defend the city, while Franz himself took the command of the Noble Alliance forces.
This eventually led to István Nagy's victory after he managed to capture and execute both Wallenstein and Bílín and dispersing the bulk of the Noble Alliance. However, as István Nagy first decided to pacify Archadia before turning on the rest of the Alliance, Joseph von Wallenstein managed to outlive his king, who was assassinated in the city in 860.
Member of the Consilium Basileii
Following the ascension of Ottavio Makesini and his reforms, Joseph von Wallenstein became a member of the Consilium Basileii as one of the Nicolovian dukes. During that peaceful period, he mainly focused on administering Krachenmehr to the best of his abilites. He accepted the position of Senechal of the Imperial Guard in 863, but resigned after 2 years, wanting to instead focus on family life. In the Consilium, he was one of the key supporters of duke Baldassare Velisario in his attempts to legalize Sotiranity in the Empire, although these motions remained unsuccessful. In 874, he was the only member of the Consilium from non-Archadian provinces to attend the funeral of Emperor Ottavio.
Joseph von Wallenstein remained a close ally of now Emperor Baldassare and attended the Council of Vissegrad as such. As Baldassare was assassinated there, he quickly formed an alliance with Lodovico di Gonzaga and Vincenzo della Rovere to oppose autocratic tendencies of the regent Berenike Garantia. As an ageing man, he tried to use his authority to diffuse any potential conflicts, but when he was accused of murdering young Emperor Cleon Garantius in 882, he fled Garantinople and joined the quickly forming Consiliar Forces, starting the Imperial Civil War. As one of the few military leaders with any real battle experience in the all of Empire, he was appointed Commander-in-Chief and managed to defeat the outnumbering Imperial Army in the Battle of Lake Pontus.
After Emperor Jahangir dissolved the Empire, Joseph von Wallenstein chose to remain loyal to the Consilium and brought Krachenmehr under the protection of Archadia, instead of choosing the Vladimirian Vozdh.
He died in 891, being succeeded by his son Franz Leopold.
Family
In 861, Joseph married Zsófia Hunyádi of Vissegrád. Together, they had four children:
- Luisa Amalia (862 - 901), married Konrad von Hutburg of Hochalmshof
- Franz Leopold (865 - 925), duke of Krachenmehr, married Konstancie Veleslavná of Pražmo
- Karl Maximilian (867 - 921), became master on the Imperial Academy, married Federica Visconti of Pontica
- Anna Sophia (871 - 943), unmarried
