Meskilch

Mesklich is a duchy in Awegon, Achthal. It's capital is Eppendorf (technically it is Morbach just outside Eppendorf walls with Eppendorf being a free city, but the Duke of Mesklich has been ex-officio mayor of Eppendorf since 923 and Morbach is generally just refered to as part of Eppendorf).

History
Mesklich was founded in 601 as part of some border adjustments to settle a dispute between its two larger neighbours, and to create a territory for Sir Anselm for loyal service to the King of Awegon. Anselm embarked upon an extensive series of infrastructure improvements, especially to the dock in Eppenbach, roads, and drainage. With the improvements Meskilch became important in the Awegonian leather trade but the merchants of Eppenbach grew to resent the interference of the Dukes and successfully petitioned the emperor for imperial immediacy, becoming Eppendorf in 773.

Without the tax revenue from the leather trade the duchy ran into numerous problems. Firstly the army largely started working for Eppendorf, leading to raids from one of its neighbours. While these stopped after Eppendorf acquired a few companies of pikemen, in 813 a plague hit the nation causing the death of the Duke. Then in 826 a trade dispute with Eppendorf lead to a refusal to ship food into the duchy causing a mild famine. Then there was unrest due to a cult. Then there were the 853 floods which caused that neighbour to again annex part of Mesklich with the other invading itself just over 40 years later in 894.

Throughout this, Eppendorf and the merchant family (the von Eppendorfs) who ran it, had become increasingly influential in Meskilch. Indeed a popular joke ran that the ruler of Meskilch was 'Hezog von Eppendorf'. The Eppendorfs would, especially in times of disaster, essentially dictate policy to the Herzog of Meskilch - Mesklich's army with reinforcements from Eppendorf met the invaders of 775 on a ridge overlooking a cow farm; money was provided by Eppendorf to relieve the plague only when the Herzog stopped cow farming villages from cutting themselves off; food was only allowed back into Meskilch when a raise to the tax on cow exports was dropped; it is still unclear what happened to the cult but there is a note from the Achthal Witch Hunters to Eppendorf to stop indiscriminately butchering anyone who goes to a temple regularly as it is giving them a bad name; The first levies to be repaired in 853 were those around cow farms, with food crops being left to soak; again the invaders were allowed to annex arable farms but pastures were defended.

Shortly afterwards, the Duke opened a tin mine and with the new resource stream and Morbach now having its own dock, it seemed like Meskilch was finally on the road to recovery. Then, in what would probably be the ultimate bout of bad luck, the mine collapsed while the Duke was inspecting it in the winter of 921. He had no children and his closest surviving relative was his cousin who was aged only 10. There was no obvious regent and a spy for one of the neighbours was discovered in the court.

Into this who would step but Jaspar von Eppendorf. He became the regent and then, when the cousin died in suspicious circumstances, appointed himself duke. In 923 the deal was sealed with the Herzog of Mesklich becoming mayor of Eppendorf ex-officio.

(only much less profitable taxes on the export of cows and cow products to Eppendorf), the duchy fell into problems.