Ferdinand Rafale

Ferdinand Rafale, Duke of Ferraio was the leader of the Patrician Forces during the Wars of May. Born into the House of Rafale to the venerable Frederick Rafale, Ferdinand would prove among the most capable military commanders of the Wars of May. Under Ferdinand's command, the disparate armies of the Altian nobility would be forcibly united into the famed "New Model Imperial Army" with the self-declared Emperor Ferdinand at its head. While his autocratic tendencies and political ruthlessness during the Wars of May would blight his later reputation, his military expertise and political legacy make him among the most well-known figures during the Social War.

Early Life
Ferdinand Rafale was born on 21 January, 330 as the oldest of seven children to Frederick Augustus



Rafale, the Duke of Ferraio and Elizabeth Hohenlohe, the Marquise of Ariens. Ferdinand's childhood would take place largely within the confines of his father's feudal domains within the Duchy of Ferraio. Ferraio's relative prosperity and the benevolence with which the Rafale family ruled would insulate the Ferdinand from the strife that was brewing within the Patrician Republic. Sent to the family's private military institute for Junior Staff Officers, Rafale excelled as a cavalry officer whilst concurrently receiving top marks within his course of studies. Following his graduation, he was offered a senior level positon within the formal Altian Military, commanded under the auspices of the Altian Senate. Rafale would reject this offer in favor of a post within the Rafale family's venerable private army - the illustrious Ferraio Black Coats.

Ferdinand's role with the Black Coats and the confederated status of the Patrician families' private armies would see him in the capital for the earliest parts of his formal military career. Exposed to the harsh inequality and civil unrest brewing in the capital, the young Duke would develope a deep contempt for the liberal and progressive movements wracking the Republic.

The Ancona Campaign
Following the boiling over of unrest following the death of Charles IV, the Altian nation was divided into several sections. The Second Altian Republic, constituting the capital and the surrounding lands had been declared in the south. Meanwhile, in the North, a political bloc loosely aligned with the Second Republic in the south had been formed. Composed of numerous insurgent Departments of the Old Republic, the parallel "New Republic" would be the first target in the sights of the Patrician forces. While at the time geographically larger than the "Second Republic" the "New Republic" possessed a substantially smaller population. Moreover, its proximity to hotbeds of Patrician power - Ferraio, Edessa, Chemnitz and Erlangen made it both an immutable threat and obvious target.

The remnants of the Patrician Republic - the federated alliance of Noble Families - soon decided on the city of Ancona as the main objective in dismantling the "New Republic." The execution of patricians within the city and radicalism of the Ancona population made its destruction top priority, not to mention its strategic and symbolic importance. Given its close proximity, the Duchy of Ferraio and the Rafale family volunteered to provide the bulk of the manpower necessary for the capture of Ancona.

Ferdinand would serve in the Ancona Campaign as a Captain within the Black Coats Elite Famiglia Ducale - a Horse Guard regiment designated as the personal unit of the Dukes of Ferraio. While Ferdinand would not play an instrumental role in the actual capture of the city, his capture of several redoubts composing the city's ring of fortifications would make his tactical prowess a well known fact within Patrician circles, even as his father garnered the majority of the glory for the capitulation and capture of Ancona.

The Auvergne Campaign
Following the decisive victory against the "New Republic in the North," the Patrician forces, now loosely organized within a unified command, looked South, towards the "Second Republic" and the Altian capital to wipe out the rest of the Revolutionary forces. The initial advance went overwhelmingly in favor of the advancing patricians. Republican resistance against the invading troops collapsed, stiffening only as the Patrician army neared the regions bordering the capital itself. By this time, the Patrician forces had slowly grown over-extended while the Revolutionary forces' advantage in superior manpower, resources and urgency began to manifest themselves. During this span, Ferdinand continued to serve as a captain within the Famiglia Ducale, and distinguished himself on numerous occasions for his daring tactics and long-term strategic acumen.

The Battle of Trantridge
While Captain Ferdinand's duties during this time would largely be relegated to reconaissance, screening of the main line and raids on forward positions, the increasingly perilous situation of of the Patrician forces would put the young Captain in more important roles.

On 3 October, 352, the Patrician armies would be met by an amassed Republican force numbering between 30,000 and 45,000 composed of the fledgling National Army, militia and National Guard units from surrounding regions and yet unknown numbers of other irregulars. Outnumbering the Patrician forces by nearly a third, unhindered from the rigors of campaigning over the summer and motivated by the urgent circumstances preceding the battle, the Second Republic's would manage to pull off a decisive victory in the face of the Patrician advance. The course of the battle would be guaranteed by the addition of 4,500 turncoat troops from the Count of Penborough, whose treachery of the patrician armies would seal the hopes of smashing the Second Republic early on.

It was during this battle that Frederick Augustus Rafale, Ferdinand's father, would be isolated from the main line and subsequently killed. While the encircled Ferraio Black Coats would be able to break out from the salient and rejoin the main line, the heavy casualties and subsequent blame for the defeat on the deceased Frederick Augustus would leave the young Ferdinand contemptuous of the Patrician forces and the basic concept of a restoration government.

The Chemnitz Campaign
Following the defeat of the Patrician Forces at Trantridge, the Patrician fortunes saw a major reversal, being pushed out of the new borders of the Second Republic, and back into the remaining lands under the Patrician Republic. As a consequence of this reversal of fortune, the year 352 and 354 would massive revolts in Patrician held territories and cession of powers to the Second Altian Republic. Rather than fight the wave of Revolutionary fervor, many Noble families (especially those lacking strong private armies) would choose to surrender their armies and political autonomy to the Second Republic in exchange for a guarantee of protection of person and property. Among the many families that chose this path were the House of Rafale, now led by the late Frederick Augustus' younger brother, Ulrich Scipius Rafale. While the great majority of the Rafale family would follow this root, a minority, including Ferdinand and his senior officers in the Ferraio Black Guards, would choose instead to join the Patrician cause.

The Aure Campaign
The Battle of Entonfeld