"My brother is not dead, he's alive in me. I am the Grand Duchess of the Scôzes"

(Louize-Henschel, 1451)



The Great Calamity of 1451

In 1450 Arnold V replaced his insane father (Hog III) as Grand Duke of the Scôz. The old Duke had managed to keep the city safe from the turbulences of war. Arnold V had other plans, and immediately threw himself into the rage of warfare. He left the Burg and the government of the city, into the hands of his sister Louize-Henschel. She was only 13 years old, and was in fact just a puppet in the hands of the Burgermeister Hans Hammerfest.

When Arnold V was killed in the battle of the Pomz (1451), Hammerfest saw a chance to seize true power over the city. He marsched with 2000 men to the gates of the Burg, demanding to see Louize-Henschel. When she opened the gates, Hammerfest accused her of treason and had her arrested. Firmly convinced he now had the power in his hand, he decided to let her have a public trial. His plan was of course to convince the people of the city, that he was the legal ruler of the Burg.

The trial has gone to history as the Great Calamity.


Louize-Henschel managed to defend herself with great success, and when Hammerfest tried to rush the verdict he found himself being outsmarted by the young girl. Secretly she had had her brother's body being fetched from Pomz, and in front of the restless crowd she held a flaming speech beside the coffin.

"This is my brother" she said, "and this is me. My brother is not dead, he's alive in me. I am the Grand Duchess of the Scôzes".

The crowd imediately demanded Hammerfest to accept her rank as a Grand Duchess, but Hammerfest refused.

Then suddenly the old Grand Duke Hog III emerged in the hall. Since people believed him to be dead and buried long ago, they saw it as a sign from God. The old Duke had in fact only been locked away in the dungeons, but in the eyes of the crowd it was indeed a miracle to see their old ruler alive and kicking.


The old Duke was mad with rage, accused his daughter of treason and attacked her with an ax. Quite surprisingly Hammerfest tried to defend her, and stabbed the old man with a knife, only to be killed by the angry mob himself.

Louize-Henschel survived the incident, but lost her left arm. She became known as the Herzogzky Einzarm (Duchess One-arm).

Shortly after the trial she married Hammerfest's son.
Both she and her husband were murdered in 1462.