Marian de Clare

[Marian Cooper]

.:Name of Character:. Lady Marian de Clare
.:Alias:. Maid Marian, Rachel
.:Birth Date:. April 21, 1172
.:Age In 1192:. 20

.:Look:. Marian is very pretty. She’s tall for a woman, and slender, with a figure that makes men stare and women look away. But her skin is too tanned from hours spent out of doors to be considered fashionable, her light brown hair made lighter by sun streaks, and freckles dotting her otherwise delicate face. Her hair is long enough to be coiled and pinned, but Marian prefers to wear it loose, hanging over her shoulders and down to her mid-back in tousled waves. She has brown eyes and full, pink lips, with long, graceful limbs that are deceptively stronger than they appear.
.:Height:. 5’7”
.:Portrayed by:. Kate Beckinsale

.:Basic Personality:.
Marian is a particularly strong-willed and stubborn woman, determined to get what she wants and willing to work hard to get it. She has very high morals and even higher standards, and she places her personal honour above all else; however, she also has her own ideas about what constitutes her ‘duty’, and she does not consider marrying according to a loathsome prince’s personal agenda to fall under that category. She has a vicious temper and a great right hook, and she can be set off rather easily given the proper circumstances. Fearless, Marian is not so much brave as too foolish to understand when she’s really in trouble, and often talks back and gets herself into even more trouble when she ought to just be silent. She enjoys hunting and blood sports more than simple embroidery, and is known for spending more time out of doors than in, whenever possible.

Marian used to be known for her good sense of humour and her sunny disposition; but that was before she was carted off to the dark woods of Sherwood forest to marry some country bumpkin of a sheriff. Embittered by her plight, but determined to get out of it no matter what, she often comes across as cold and uncaring. For the moment, she has no way to escape this fate and save face, so until she does, she just wants to make the Sheriff’s life as hellish as possible.
.:Accents:. Upper-class English

.:Alliance:. Herself. Damn the court and damn the prince and damn all of England, dammit!
.:Rank:. Lady of the Court
.: Special Skills:. Annoying the Sheriff & Robin
.:Weapon Training:. Bow & arrow, stave

.:Birthplace:. Pembroke
.:Family:.
Father: Richard ‘Strongbow’ de Clare (Deceased)
Mother: Aoife MacMurrough
Brother: Gilbert de Clare (Deceased)
Twin Sister: Isabel de Clare (Married to Sir William Marshal)
.:History:.
The son of the first Earl of Pembroke, Richard de Clare succeeded his father when he was eighteen years old, and just as his father before him, he supported the usurper Stephen of Blois, then King of England, in retaining the throne over Empress Matilda, the rightful heir. This worked out in his favour until the king died in 1154 and Matilda’s son, Henry II, took the throne, and vengefully stripped Richard of his title, although not his lands or wealth. But Richard wasn’t one to take this lying down, and managed to regain his esteem by helping the King of Leinster retake his kingdom, with the permission of King Henry II, and not only earned the nickname ‘Strongbow’ for his skill with a bow, but the hand of his wife, the King of Leinster’s daughter, Aoife, and through her the succession of Leinster.

Strongbow’s success backfired, however, when King Henry II began to fear that his nobles were becoming too powerful and independent, and ordered them to return home. When Richard arrived, it was to be stripped of his new holdings. It was during his time in disfavour that his twin daughters, Isabel and Marian, were born. But even while his wife was heavy with their third child, he saw an opportunity to return to favour with the king and regain some of his power, and so traveled to Normandy to help Henry’s campaign against his rebelling sons. He spent the next few years so busy with his campaigns that he would never meet his young son, dying not in battle, but of an infection when his daughters were only three years old.

Carrying on in the upbringing of her children after her husband’s death, Aoife was a strong woman who was used to being in control of her own life, and so the task of governing her lands on behalf of her son and raising three children was well in hand for her. She had no trouble corralling three rowdy children and ensuring they grew up to be smart, strong adults, instilling a deep sense of honour and responsibility in each of them, although even she could not cure the children of their mischievous natures. One of their favourite games was to have Isabel play the role of the damsel in distress so that Gilbert and Marian could take it in turns to play the knight in shining armour, and rescue her from the other, who would be a dragon or a wicked baron or some other equally nefarious being who required slaying.

Marian and Isabel were brought up with all the lessons appropriate to ladies of the court, learning history and politics and, of course, needlepoint, which Marian hated more than any other activity under the sun, but tolerated under her mother’s iron fist. They also learned archery, an acceptable talent for young ladies to indulge in, which Marian absolutely loved. She was a good shot, too, surprising many people by inheriting her father’s natural talent for the bow. Seeing Marian’s proficiency with the physical arts, her mother taught her to wield a stave, as she believed that a woman couldn’t always rely on a man to come to her rescue, she must be capable of looking after herself, and even pounding some heads should the situation call for it.

Things changed when, at only the age of twelve, Gilbert took ill suddenly and passed away, shocking the family and driving their mother into a very deep depression. She took to wine and spirits for comfort, and grew increasingly unstable and even violent, to the point that friends no longer thought the girls were safe living with their mother. It was decided that the twins should be sent to London, to live at the court as ladies-in-waiting to the higher ranking nobles, where they would be safe from their mother’s ill temper. Court life was exciting for the teenage girls, even if the circumstances were less than ideal, and despite picking up new duties, they were able to have a good time. There were, however, temptations in London that hadn’t existed in Pembroke, and Marian often found herself torn; although her mother’s influence always seemed to win out in the end, her sense of duty and honour winning out and her strength of will giving her the backbone to turn away from temptation. In a place like the London court, this counted as a good thing only with the elderly, and earned Marian the nickname ‘Maid Marian.’

Despite the teasing of her colleagues, Marian still managed to enjoy her time at the court. Her sister caught the eye of Sir William Marshal, and not long after the two were wedded. While Marian had many suitors, she was always somewhat flighty and flirty, and no one had drawn her interest enough for her to settle down; so she was very surprised when Prince John announced that she would be traveling to the county of Nottingham in order to marry the Sheriff there. It turned out that he had curried favour with the Prince, and as Marian had no father nor brothers to decide who she should marry for her, the Prince had decided to take it into his own hands to see her properly looked after; regardless of her wishes. And so she was bundled off to the middle of nowhere, in order to meet her husband-to-be.

[The Narrator]

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