Prince Anlaf

Crown Prince Anlaf is the current ruler of Burthorpe, a small human settlement in northern Asgarnia that has recently declared itself an independent entity within the region. Anlaf is the son of King Vallance, the ruler of Asgarnia and an important figure within the white knights of Falador.

Political unrest within Asgarnia has recently driven Prince Anlaf to drop from the public eye. Concerned with the possibility of assassination or capture, Anlaf has for some time governed Burthorpe behind closed doors.

Anlaf does not appear within the game, although he is referred to by several characters. He appears in the first RuneScape novel, Betrayal at Falador.

Early Years
Prince Anlaf was born to King Vallance and his wife some time around the Years 130 to 140 of the Fifth Age, although no specific date has ever been given regarding his birth. As the heir to the throne of Asgarnia, Anlaf lived a pampered and educated early life, learning skills such as reading and swordcraft and gaining understanding workings of politics, economy, and war. He was raised by his father as a Saradominist in keeping with Asgarnia's strong Saradominist ideals, although he was never particularly interested in the teachings of the Church of Saradomin. All evidence suggests Anlaf was a light-hearted child with a particular fondness for games.



King Vallance, though, feared the political unrest within the kingdom of Asgarnia would eventually pose a threat to his son. The constant conflict between the White Knights, Kinshra, and Asgarnian Royal Family meant that when Anlaf took the throne after his father's death, he would be faced with the daunting task of settling what could become a bloody civil war.

As Lord of Burthorpe
As Prince Anlaf progressed into young adulthood, his father felt the time had come for him to experience leadership first-hand. King Vallance gave his son lordship in the town of Burthorpe, a small settlement near the border of the Troll Country. Vallance felt that Burthorpe's close proximity to the hostile trolls of the north would give his son a trying but necessary experience in governing.

For years Anlaf ruled Burthorpe, raising the Burthorpe Imperial Guard as its primary defence against the trolls in the north. The city's palace was fortified to better resist siege, while a massive series of tunnels and hidden chambers were created beneath it under Anlaf's supervision. Although the threat of open war with the trolls would continue to loom over the city, Anlaf has managed to circumvent any large-scale conflict between the two even to this day.

As the White Knights, Kinshra, and Asgarnian government continued to silently battle for political supremecy, Anlaf silently formed a strategy to avoid becoming engulfed in the conflict. A self-declared but never openly-stated Guthixian, Anlaf felt becoming involved in dirty politics would threaten his nation's integrity.

Rise of the White Knights
In 162, shortly after declaring Burthorpe's independency, King Vallance fell very ill to the point he could not appear publically. Seizing this opportunity, the White Knight order managed to gain political supremecy in Asgarnia, weakening the central government and declaring the already hostile Kinshra to have no political power within the nation. Anlaf, who should have ruled in his father's place (it being his birthright), was denied even temporary control of Asgarnia by the White Knights. In response, Anlaf declared Burthorpe an independent nation, refusing to co-operate with Asgarnia or the White Knights until he was granted the powers that under normal circimstances would have been given to him.



In response to the Kinshra's ousting, the Kinshra Commander Daquarius Rennard led a massive force of black knights to the pine forests north of Falador in 163, where they attempted to claim Falador as their own. The White Knights retaliated, resulting in the brief but bloody Battle of North Falador. Anlaf, wanting to remain uninvolved in what was fast becoming a dangerous situation, did not permit his Imperial Guard to become involved in the battle.

Open hostilities between the two knightly orders, however, would not last long. The even military strength between the two would lead to massive casualties and little progress. Grudgingly, both sides disengaged and returned to their respective fortresses, the white knights to Falador and the Kinshra to their fortress near Ice Mountain and the Wilderness.

Background
In the Year 164, the unpopular successor to the late Lord Shadwell of the Kinshra was assassinated. The orchestrator of this plan, a Kinshra commander known as Sulla, claimed the throne as his own and executed any open opposition within the organisation. Lord Sulla, now unquestioned leader of the Kinshra, declared the knightly order was once again at a state of war with Falador and that they would not rest until the White Knights were abolished and Saradominist intolerance eliminated.

Burthorpe's Involvement
Simultaneously, reports of attacks on travellers surfaced throughout Asgarnia. In secret, a werewolf known as Jerrod had managed to cross the holy River Salve near Morytania under the orders of Lord Lowerniel Vergidiyad Drakan. Unaware of this beast's nature, Anlaf instructed the Burthorpe Imperial Guard to aid the White Knights in finding the creature as well as charging them with protecting travellers along major roads and passages.

As the Imperial Guard and White Knights began to cooperate for the first time in more than a year, though, Sulla began to corrupt the Burthorpe government from the inside. Employing a witch known as The Sybil, Sulla managed to send disturbing dreams and visions to the Prince, often showing the destruction of his city or the massacre of his people.

As Anlaf became increasingly burdened by this, his mental and physical health deteriorated. Resigning himself to his private chambers, Anlaf left much of the city's governing to Lord Amthyst, his personal advisor and long-time friend. The dreams that afflicted him became progressively more violent, telling him to turn to Zamorak and aid the Kinshra in their war. In a small hidden chamber near his bedroom, Anlaf constructed a crude altar to Zamorak, where he made several animal offerings. Hesitant, Anlaf continued his stance of diplomatic neutrality, to the outcry of Burthorpe's people.

The Siege of Falador
Lord Sulla, after orchestrating attacks on civilians in Taverley, the Dwarven Mines, and the Monastery, led his massive forces to the forests north of Falador. Enlisting the help of the northern Asgarnian goblin tribes (with the exceptions of the Thorobshuun and Garagorshuun), a group of chaos dwarves, and a number of Wilderness Mercenaries, Sulla had gained an army that far outmatched that of Falador. Falador, in response, extended its diplomatic arm, gaining the support of multiple foreign militaries and agencies.

Taking advantage of the turmoil, Sulla sent Lord Daquarius to Burthorpe, where his men rode unchallenged to the Palace. The Kinshra, wanting to gain the complete support of Anlaf, executed Amthyst as a traitor, cutting him to pieces and scattering them throughout the palace's courtyard.

Daquarius and his men ascended to Prince Anlaf's chambers, where they falsely claimed Amthyst had been slowly poisoning Anlaf. Accepting this, Prince Anlaf revealed his hidden altar to Zamorak, whome he now made regular animal sacrifices to. Now a pawn of the Kinshra, Anlaf demanded the Imperial Guard go home and disarm.

A large wing of the Guard under Lord Radebaugh refused to accept this command, believing their ruler had gone insane. Under the Asgarnian commanders Kara-Meir and Squire Theodore, the Imperial Guard joined the Dwarven Black Guard in protecting the city, arriving in Falador after its walls were breached. This would ultimately prove the deciding factor in Falador's victory and the decimation of the Kinshra army.

When the War of 164 ended, Anlaf was placed under mental care and temporary rulership of Burthorpe was given to Lord Radebaugh. After The Sybil's dreams stopped plaguing the prince, he regained his normal mental state and was eventually given his throne back. Despite the Imperial Guard's important role in the Faladian victory, they continue to be political rivals of the White Knights to this day. Since Anlaf's throne was returned to him, he has rarely been seen before the public eye.

Modern Activities
Today, Prince Anlaf continues to struggle with the political unrest in Asgarnia. Should King Vallance pass away, Anlaf is the rightful heir to the throne.

Recently, in the Year 169, Anlaf opened what were formerly the private Burthorpe Games Room to the public. Here he hopes gamers from all over Gielinor will compete in friendly competition.