CHARACTER PROFILE: ARCHDUKE PHINEAS ASHEN THE GREAT
"The Great Archduke Phineus Ashen had earned his title not for his accomplishments but for his size. Already today the Duke had feasted upon two dozen pancakes drenched in honey butter, served with a side of six poached water iguana eggs and six links of raptor sausage imported from the jungles of Azmire. To wash all this down the Duke had chugged a flagon of syrup. His hunger satiated, he then opened his mouth and stuck an ivory stick down his throat. After the Duke had spilt his breakfast onto the palace floor he then chugged four flagons of mead to purge his mouth of vomit. Hungry once more, the Duke began his second breakfast." -Sins of a Sovereignty
Phineas was a character inspired by a real life Frenchman named Tarrare. Born in 1772, Tarrare was afflicted with the unfortunate curse of being always hungry (to this day, the exact medical causes are unknown.) Unlike Phineas, Tarrare never got fat from his eccentric diet, but stunk so bad that few dared approach him. Tarrare was accused of cannibalism more than once, and it’s been recorded that Tarrare would eat puppies, snakes, and cats whenever he could catch them. No I’m not making this up. Check out the article.
Phineas had the good sense to cook his food, but his family line is cursed with endless hunger. SPOILER: As we see in his bastard and estranged son, Fat Peter.END SPOILER Born to a humble family, Phineas quickly discovered he had a knack for counting coin. This earned him the attention of Duke Brarian Ashen, who employed Phineas as his new accountant. When the Elfkin rebelled and started the Green War, Brarian was accused of trading with the enemy and was beheaded by Sir Clark Pendragon. Phineas was appointed as Norfield’s new Duke and took his predecessors last name as a show of respect and as an act of defiance. The murder of Brarian Ashen has haunted Phineas for years.
(Here is a vaguely similar fat guy from Monk)
Norfield’s neighboring city, Capricorn, was gassed only a few months after Phineas was appointed. Elf and dwarf refugees began pouring into Norfield, and suddenly Phineas had more on his plate than even he could handle. For 10 years Phineas has fought to maintain an uneasy peace in Norfield. Because of Norfield’s unique situation, and Phineas’s job as Amernia’s treasurer, he was given the title of Archduke. Being Archduke grants Phineas little more than a slight pay raise. Hardly worth the jobs endless stress.
It’s easy to write Phineas off as a simple Glutton, as Pendragon and many of Phineas’s own subjects are quick to do. Phineas’s obesity and endless hunger isolate him, making him a joke in the eyes of his people. Phineas has come to jealously resent the people he serves, while they see him an engorged symbol of everything wrong with the ruling class, unaware of his roots or personal struggles.
I try not to present readers with black and whites, but to me, Phineas is one of the many unsung heroes in my tale.
"You’ve played your part in a fair share of atrocity, haven’t you Clark? But, to be fair, so did I. We’re both partially responsible for fogging the elves and backing the dwarves into a corner,” said Phineas. “That’s another thing you and I have in common, Pendragon. We’ve both done our part to make this world worse. Of course, me more than you by far.”- Phineas Ashen, the GREAT
This blog post is part of a series and has been reposted from my goodreads.
