House Courcel holds the throne of Terre
d'Ange. The Courcel crest is a silver swan on a royal blue background;
often, the Courcel flag is flown with Elua's own flag, a golden lily
surrounded by seven stars on a green field.
The eldest scion of the direct line of House Courcel inherits the
throne, regardless of gender. The monarch must be crowned in the City
of Elua.
House Courcel is descended very directly from Elua, although of course
their marriages have brought traces of the other companions' lineage
into the line.
Courcel livery is midnight blue. The Palace Guard wears it. The
Dauphine's Guard, once she is of age, wears Courcel blue with vertical
stripes of a paler blue (KJ 425).
Queen's Couriers carry a pennant, a square of rich blue with a
diagonal bar of silver (KS 21).
Lord Robert is the Royal Chamberlain under Ysandre (KM 615).
Apparently, the ruling monarch costumes herself as the Snow Queen at
the Palace's Longest Night masque (KC 74)... even though in
Scion, she is arrayed as
Summer (276). In Mercy,
though, she is "glittering in wintry white" (66).
Sitting rulers had been known to summon the Dowayne of Cereus House
for counsel, four generations or more before Ysandre's rule.
Members of House Courcel (spoilers thru
Avatar, although they're not
major, merely by characters' existence; spoilers thru Dart for
actual plot points):
Ganelon de la Courcel: The oldest of the siblings (Ganelon, Lyonette,
Benedicte-- we don't know the relative ages of the younger two),
Ganelon inherited the throne of Terre d'Ange and married Genevieve
(presumably de Somerville). His only son was Rolande de la Courcel;
Ysandre is his granddaughter. Ganelon died near the end of Dart,
during the Bitterest Winter, right before the Skaldi invasion.
Lyonette de Trevalion: Lyonette married Marc de Trevalion and birthed
Baudoin and Bernadette. Lyonette was known as the Lioness of Azzalle (Trevalion
is an Azzallese House). She and Bernadette are Princesses of the
Blood; Baudoin was a Prince of the Blood. Lyonette and Baudoin commit
treason by conspiring with Foclaidha of Alba to put Baudoin on Terre
d'Ange's throne. Lyonette and Baudoin are both sentenced to death;
Lyonette takes poison, while Baudoin falls on his sword.
Rolande de la Courcel: Rolande is Ganelon's son, the Dauphin of Terre
d'Ange. Rolande and Anafiel Delaunay were in love/lovers. At first,
Rolande was betrothed to Edmée de Rocaille. Edmée died in a hunting
accident when her rival, Isabel L'Envers, cut her saddle girth. Isabel
and Rolande were eventually wed; Ysandre is their daughter. For
Rolande's sake, Anafiel swore Cassiel's Oath to protect Ysandre.
Anafiel also wrote a poem naming Isabel L'Envers a murderess; his
poems were declared anathema, but Rolande intervened and
protected him from further consequences. Rolande died at the Battle of
Three Princes while fighting the Skaldi.
Phèdre was too young to remember this battle (KD 30).
Courcel Family Tree **Spoilers thru the first chapter of
Naamah's Kiss**
A very gracious
friend of terredange.net has created a detailed family tree which
includes all the Noble Families of Terre d'Ange.
Courcel Family Tree
(link will open in a new window)
If you're a member and have
something that you would like to submit to our library, please send a private
message Mariana Shahrizai.
