House Heltharn

Current patriarch:
- Technically King Liam von Doin-Heltharn
- de facto Duchess Sambryl Heltharn
Heir apparent: Prince Gabriel Heltharn
Current lord of the Conclave: Idriane Heltharn

Living Members

Name	Birth	Age in 1385	Descent
HG Duchess Sambryl Heltharn	1299	86	First daughter of King Rilimbrar; after death of father and husband, ruled as Queen Regent until the accession of the next male in succession. Reigned from 1338 to 1351, whereupon she yielded the throne to King Soarimbrar.
HM King Liam von Doin-Heltharn	1337	48	By his grandmother Ilmara Heltharn, and by her father, King Lashilmbrar.
HM Queen Sophia Lauviger	1340	45	By marriage to King Liam.
HRH Prince Gabriel Heltharn	1362	23	By his father, King Liam.
Lady Ser Idriane Forgecrown-Heltharn	1364	21	By her grandmother Sambryl

Recently Deceased Members

Name	Birth	Death	Age at Death	Descent	Circumstances of Death
HM King Soarimbrar Heltharn	1335	1357	24	Descendant of Imphras II through the line of his fourth son Velimbrar	Assassinated, presumably by Dragan Vasska.
HRH Prince Imphras Heltharn	1357	1357	0	Younger brother of Soarimbrar.	Murdered by Soarimbrar as a rival claimant.
HRH Prince Imphras Mirandor-Heltharn	1344	1357	13	Nephew of Soarimbrar by his sister Ilmara. Heir apparent until the birth of Imphras Heltharn (Soarimbrar's brother).	Murdered by Soarimbrar as a rival claimant.
Lord Ser Haelimbrar Heltharn	1328	1285	57	Grandson of King Rilimbrar, nephew of Sambryl	Natural causes

Notes

The most recent common relative of all of the above is King Imphras II (1190-1225).
The von Doin-Heltharn claim traces through King Lashilmbrar (1190-1294, reigned 1225-1294) as its most recent male ancestor.
Sambryl's claim comes from her father King Rilimbrar, whose claim is superior to any female descendants of Lashilmbrar. However, by Impilturan law, she can only retain the throne for the rightful male heir of the house until he comes of age, which, given the deaths of Soarimbrar and both princes Imphras, means Liam von Doin-Heltharn.
The matter is actually quite complex, as the laws of succession are not governed by Impilturan law, but by the traditions of the Great Houses. The southern houses, including Heltharn, hold to male dominance of the throne, while the northern houses merely prefer a male heir, allowing a woman to reign as High Lord in her own right if no other male heir exists.
The question of the hour is this: by the house's own traditions, Liam must be the patriarch of House Heltharn. But then, is it still a southern house? The house of his father, von Doin, holds to male preference, not dominance. Both north and south consider the male line to determine a house's identity, and therefore its traditions. But he needs the Heltharn name to lay claim to the throne, and he needs the southern traditions to claim preference over Sambryl.
Many argued fiercely over his accession, demanding lengthy trials to determine the exact law of the matter. These efforts, largely organized by southern lords who opposed Liam's takeover of the royal line, did not proceed far in the high courts; the Conclave, the realm's highest court of law, chose not to hear the case. The matter slowly cooled off as Sambryl aged--though she was always too old to ever bear another heir, she is now old enough that it seems unlikely she could do much to sway politics before inevitably passing the throne back to Liam. In any case, she publicly ceded her claim to him on the day of his coronation, and has denied any intention ever to contest his claim to the throne.
But if that would seem to be that, there is one more twist: Liam has ceded patriarchy of House Heltharn to Sambryl in all but name. Most assume this is a passive attempt to distance himself from the dying house, which has no male heirs, and some would claim it is an act of kindness to a bested rival, with little risk on his part. But there are female heirs of the house, and they could yet bear male heirs, so it would behoove the house of von Doin-Heltharn to rein them in.