The Old North

The Old North CORNELL MODEL UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE 2021 Copyright © 2021 by the Cornell Model United Nations Conference All rights reserved. This document or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the Cornell Model United Nations Conference (CMUNC) except when used for educational purposes. Commercial reproduction or reference to this document requires the express written consent of the current Secretary-General of CMUNC. Further terms of use for commercial purposes will be determined on a case-by-case basis. For more information on CMUNC, use the Contact Us page located at: cmunc.net 2 CMUNC 2021 Secretariat Secretary-General Malvika Narayan Director-General Bryan Weintraub Chief of Staff James “Hamz” Piccirilli Director of Events Alexandra Tsalikis Director of Outreach Akosa Nwadiogbu Director of Communications Annie Rogers Director of Finance Daniel Bernstein Director of Operations Andrew Landesman Under-Secretary Generals Robyn Bardmesser Avery Bower John Clancy Mariana Goldlust 3 From Your Crisis Director Dear Delegates, My name is Lucas Wesselius and I’ll be your crisis director for CMUNC. To tell you a little bit about myself I’m a senior studying government and minoring in History and European studies. Additionally, I have taken a number of courses studying medieval history, all of which have added up to my interest in running this committee. I’m looking forward to this weekend and hoping to make it an enjoyable experience for everyone, as it will be my fifth and final time being a crisis director as I graduate this semester. I’m super excited to see you all engage with this committee, as it offers a rare insight into a piece of history that we don’t often get the chance to interact with. Additionally, this timeline is perfect for a crisis committee, as backstabbing, rivalries, grand battles, assassinations, were all commonplace. All that said, this is a period of history that our knowledge of is limited to a degree, as such don’t fret too much with trying to do background research, most everything that you’ll need to know should be in this background guide. If you end up with any points that you need clarification on don’t be afraid to shoot me an email ahead of the conference ([email protected]), or send notes in asking for clarification during the conference. Finally, remember that at the end of the day these conferences are meant to be fun. I think that this needs extra emphasis this CMUNC as we all struggle to deal with a new format due to the ongoing pandemic. The dias of this committee is set on making this an enjoyable experience, and we will do what we can to ensure that. If at any time you begin to experience problems with the committee, either due to the nature of a remote conference or zoom fatigue please reach out to a member of the dias and we’ll be sure to assist in whatever way we can. Lucas A. Wesselius The Old North Crisis Director CMUNC 2021 4 Background Info Before England was England, it was known to the Romans as Britannia, named after the local group there known as the Britons. A celtic group, they had more in common with the Irish, Manx, Welsh, and Scottish than the Angles and Saxons who would come to form the modern Anglo-Saxon that today calls England their home. This committee will take place starting in 592, a time in which both the invading Angles and Saxons hold much of England while at the same time several of the Brytonic Kingdoms cling onto life. As members of this committee most of you will take up the role as Brythonic people, be it nobles, poets, or monks, and while each of you will have your own individual goals, as a committee we will try to hold together against the invading germanic forces, and if successful enough, perhaps even push back these invading forces to their homelands. Of course this committee will not be without its issues, as this alliance of Kingdoms has in the past tried to fight against the encroaching Angle Kingdoms, but failed, having devolved into infighting, fearing the power their fellow Brytonic Kingdoms had. In fact this betrayal went so far that some Brytonic Kings had given orders to assassinate others. While most members of the committee will be Brytonic, it is clear by this previous betrayal, that it is far more important to many Kings and other nobles in committee that no other Kingdom be allowed to gain too much power over the others. One of the biggest issues this committee will need to overcome is dealing with these past betrayals and ensuring that they can rely and trust each other. Other issues that will need to be addressed if this alliance is successful in pushing back the Angle Kingdoms, is the resulting change in demographics. How will you manage to pacify the Angle people when you take back your land, as many of them are used to different customs and laws. If you are not careful enough it is likely they may grow distraught, tense, and agitated, possibly even to the point of rebelling against your rule if you are unable to keep them at ease. That isn’t the only struggle in controlling these people however, as they have kept their faith that they brought with them from Germania, and unlike many of yourselves they practice paganism. With the majority of your own people practicing a branch of Catholicism, there is certain to be hostilities between the two groups unless something can be done to ease the tension between them. It is then up to you the delegates of this committee to pave a way forward for the Brythonic Kingdoms, or else just as in history they will fall and be overrun by the invading Angles. But just as you do battle against the Angles, be wary, for there are those in your midst who seek power above all else and may be quick to backstab you if it means expanding their own power. Will you be able to save the Old North and avoid it’s destruction, or will you too fall to infighting and be lost to the annals of history? 5 Kingdoms of the British Isles and History of the Isles Originally the Brythonic kingdoms were a fluid mash of larger Kingdoms and surrounding client states that would shift as power came and fell with various kings. But with the Roman invasion in 43 AD, the old Kingdoms fell to their conquest with only the Pictish, Scottish, and Irish kingdoms retaining their independence. With the Romans being made to leave in the 400’s however, a power vacuum emerged and left many with a chance to found their own Kingdoms. Those who were in positions of power with the Roman’s used the influence they had over abandoned Roman fortifications and equipment to seize on this opportunity and form their own Kingdoms. Others however did not have the opportunity to use this, and instead called on foreign allies to intervene. One Welsh King named Vortigern held a powerful kingdom, but was soon threatened by other surrounding ones. In order to try and win the war he called on the Jute, Angle, and Saxon tribes - this would prove a fatal mistake. The tribes helped at first but after the war were left without purpose resulting in many of them raiding and conquering the land. Finding it rather fertile and open, they soon called upon more of their fellow tribes to come and settle the land that they captured. After a long period of wars we find ourselves in the year 592, with only the western portion of Britain being held by the native celtic people. Even here however we see forces fighting each other, with the Irish colonising much of the coast and Dal Riata even conquering much of the north. Between the Brythonic north and Welsh south there is also much conflict as a series of raids between several kingdoms have recently started due to a disputed succession to the Kingdom of Gwynedd. From the north are incursions by the Pictish Kingdoms, each of which is sizing up the south; with the Brythonic Kingdoms weak from their last war against the Angles, the Picts may see this as their time to strike south and grow their Kingdoms. On all sides the Brythonic Kingdoms are surrounded, it is up to you to save it. 6 The Old North itself is composed now of a number of Kingdoms, including the Brytthonic kingdoms of Alt Cult, Elmet, Gododdin, Lothian, and Rheged. Additionally, other lands also are in the area such as the Irish kingdom of Dal Riata which holds large parts of Scotland and numerous colonies throughout the Irish sea - as do several other Irish Kingdoms; Gwynedd, which is the northmost Welsh kingdom is often involved in the political affairs of the Old North with a series of raids and counter-raids; and finally the dual Kingdoms of Bernicia and Deria are both controlled by Anglo Kings are the newest incursions into the Old North and threaten the future security of the Brythonic kingdoms. The Brythonic Kingdoms also tend to centralize around one political figure who exerts more influence and power than the rest. While this was previously the King of Rheged, King Urien, since he has passed on, the King of Elmet, King Ceretic, has taken over in this role. King Ceretic as the new leader has now called upon all of you to his council in order to come up with a plan to combat the rising threat to the Byrthonic Kingdoms.

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