House Vaillant
Faites votre devoir quoi qu’il arrive
Do your duty, come what may
The Vaillant line is one of Port-A-Lucine’s oldest bloodlines, tracing its lineage back to the days of Emperor Leon. Some notable members of the family have been regarded as heroes of the republic, renowned for their courage and nobility in the face of adversity. Over the years however, the once mighty house has lost much of the power it once enjoyed, and these heroic figures are barely remembered as long forgotten ghosts.
It was with silver that the Vaillant family found their fortune originally, as pioneers and frontiersmen that mined and exported the precious ore across the Core. In Dementlieu, silver was in much demand to craft the expensive jewelry and ornaments so much beloved by the gentry. For many decades the Vaillant house enjoyed the benefits of being one of the sole sources of the precious mineral, operating their network of mines from their ancestral household of Château de Gris. The family never forgot their responsibility to the republic, however, as their sons would contribute to the Dementlieu military and played a large role in the political arena.
Recently the house has fallen onto difficult times. The silver has begun to dry up, and the family’s long standing trading arrangements with various organisations, including the Bellegarde family, have likewise begun to falter. Now the Bellegarde have looked elsewhere for their source of silver, with rumours that vast quantities of the ore have been discovered in Barovia. The rumblings of war to the North where the family’s mines are located also throws the house into uncertain times. In addition, the house patriarch,
Sieur Louis Vaillant, Duc de Bourdonnet, is currently very ill and is bedridden at his estate of Château de Gris. The duke has recently passed his eightieth year, and is cared for by his younger wife
Duchesse Collette Vaillant. He has little involvement in his stately affairs. His heir and eldest of his three sons,
Antoine Vaillant, Baron de Duchbourg, is plagued with scandal and controversy regarding his controversial lifestyle. The Baron is known among social circles for throwing extravagant parties, for maintaining questionable personal relations, and for excessive spending of the family’s now dwindling funds on luxuries and hedonistic pursuits. He has shown little interest in managing his father’s estate. The Baron de Duchbourg is known to not have any heirs - or at least, none that may be legitimate.
The Baron’s younger brother, himself aged forty-nine, is the exact opposite in most respects. Whereas the Baron de Duchbourg is hedonistic,
Grégoire Vaillant is traditional and conservative to a fault. As is tradition for Dementlieuse noble families, the elder Vaillant was taught to manage the family estate and businesses, as well as shown the art of politicking and social maneuvering. These were lessons which he soon chose to ignore. As the second son Grégoire was expected to join the military, in which he had a long and respectable career before retiring due to a war injury sustained during the Dementlieu Civil War. In the absence of the Baron’s attention in dealing with the family’s important matters, Grégoire has since taken to managing the family’s estate and business concerns, being the only one able or responsible enough to do so. Grégoire Vaillant, signeur de Bourdonnet is a very stern and harsh man, known for both his unwavering commitment to tradition and duty but also for his strict mannerisms and the high expectation he holds for his family members, particularly his three children. It is no secret that he and his elder brother are not on talking terms.
Grégoire married his first wife
Juliette Vaillant at a young age, and through their union were born the two eldest of his children. Tragically, Juliette suffered a long illness and would eventually have her life claimed by it. Grégoire remarried a young daughter to a Mordentish noble family,
Viviana Vaillant. Rumours spoke that the marriage was one of duty only, done only in a bid to secure the future of the Vaillant family until Grégoire's own children came of age. The couple were blessed with another child, the youngest son Alexandre.
The youngest of the three sons of the duke,
Eugene Vaillant, born with seemingly no prospects of inheritance unlike his older brother Antoine, was similarly surrounded with rumours of problematic behavior. He was suspected, but never proven, of being involved in nefarious affairs that would no doubt scandalize the family with ties and connections to the criminal underworld. Perhaps at the behest of his father, perhaps as punishment for an unforgivable transgression against the family, or perhaps for another reason entirely, Eugene has dedicated his life in service to Ezra. He is a widower with two children.
The eldest of Grégoire Vaillant’s three children,
Fleury Vaillant seemingly desires to follow in the footsteps of his father, seeking a military commission and is known for his enjoyment of hunting and other martial endeavours. However, unsubstantiated rumours and gossip speak that he suffers the same fatal flaw of his uncle the Baron de Duchbourg, a near unstoppable hedonistic appetite with unfounded rumours of Fleury enjoying the company of men. These rumours are suppressed as libelous by the Vaillants.
There is not much known about Grégoire's only daughter,
Sévérine Vaillant. A student at the university studying thanatology, she is known to avoid the political spotlight and keeps herself mostly to her studies. Some comment that she is driven and studious; others whisper that she is cold and aloof. It is known that Grégoire seeks to wed his daughter to an eligible bachelor.
Her younger brother,
Alexandre Vaillant, is well known in social circles as an activist and outspoken supporter for the rights of commoners. Alexandre’s tenure at the Universite de Port-A-Lucine was brief, despite being afforded the best tuition that money could buy. Having dropped out from his academical studies, the youngest of Grégoire’s sons now spends his days in peaceful protest, organising charity drives and parties to benefit the poor and unprivileged in Dementlieuse society, and, much to his father’s disapproval, speaking out against the Council of Brilliance’s latest policies.
