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tiredandoptimistic · 10 days ago

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Every change in the new flower card book

Because I think about this series a normal amount, I went through my old copy of "An Illustrated History of Notable Shadowhunters and Denizens of Downworld" from 2016 and my new kickstarter edition that arrived yesterday, and took notes on every change. Some characters were added, some were given new art or facts, some had their information updated, and some are the same as they ever were. I split all these changes into categories, so you can look up what interests you. Full spoilery details below the cut.

First off, the general formatting was changed slightly. Instead of characters being split into categories based on series (TID, TLH, TMI, TFSA, TDA) and alphabatized by first name within those categories, they're all in one cohesive list that's alphabatized by surname.

So, to start with, there were a couple overall changes. In my old edition, characters had their common names listed above their flower card (ex: Alec Lightwood), and their full names on the page to the left that held their facts and stuff (ex: Alexander Gideon Lightwood). Some characters also have their maiden name on their flower card but their married name on the fact page, or vice versa (Celine Montclaire and Celine Herondale, or Helen Blackthorn and Helen Penhallow-Blackthorn). In the new edition, everyone is referred to by only one name, the common name that was already on the flower card. The section in the personal information for married/maiden name was also removed for all characters except Sophie Collins, Jocelyn Fray, Tessa Gray, Cecily Herondale, Imogen Herondale, Maryse Lightwood, and Jessamine Lovelace Gray. Characters with minor alterations to how their name is written: Helen Penhallow-Blackthorn became Helen Blackthorn Julian Atticus Blackthorn became Julian Blackthorn Mark Antony Blackthorn became Mark Blackthorn Emma Cordelia Carstairs became Emma Carstairs Charles Buford Fairchild became Charles Fairchild Charlotte Branwell became Charlotte Fairchild Clary Adele Fray became Clary Fray Amatis Herondale became Amatis Graymark Linette Owens became Linette Herondale Stephen William Herondale became Stephen Herondale William Owen Herondale became Will Herondale Alexander Gideon Lightwood became Alec Lightwood Isabelle Sophia Lightwood became Isabelle Lightwood Maxwell Joseph Lightwood became Max Lightwood Celine Herondale became Celine Montclaire Jonathan Christopher Morgenstern became Jonathan Morgenstern Jonathan Fairchild Morgenstern became "True" Jonathan Morgenstern Axel Mortmain (Hollingworth Shade) became Axel Mortmain Aline Blackthorn-Penhallow became Aline Penhallow Jaime Rocio Rosales became Jaime Rosales Woolsey Marmaduke Scott became Woolsey Scott Bartholomew Velasquez became Bat Velasquez All of these names are unchanged on the actual flower cards, it's just that the names on the fact page have been changed to match the names already on the flower cards.

Characters with alterations to their personal information: Magnus Bane's birth year was changed from "unknown" to "early 1600s" Arthur Blackthorn's birth year was changed from 1973 to 1964, though 1973 still makes more sense with the timeline and I believe that 1964 is a mistake. Drusilla Blackthorn's favorite weapon changes from unknown to "her sister Livvy's saber," and Rosewain is added to her family Livia Blackthorn has Rosewain added to her family Octavian Blackthorn has Rosewain added to his family Tatiana Blackthorn's favorite weapon is changed from n/a to demonic magic Tiberius Blackthorn's birth year is changed from 1997 to 1993 (which has to be a typo, Livvy is still born in 1997), his favorite weapon is changed from quarterstaff to sling weapon, and Rosewain is added to his family Alastair Carstairs's family name is changed from Turan to Jahanshah, and his favorite weapon is changed from Cortana to spears Cordelia Carstairs's family name is changed from Turan to Jahanshah Jem Carstairs's birth year is changed from 1861 to 1860 Sona Carstairs's birth year is changed from 1850 to 1861 (the new year matches better with the TLH timeline), her maiden name is changed from Turan to Jahanshah, and her previous married name of Verlac is removed Lily Chen's birth year is changed from unknown to 1885 Sophie Collins's favorite weapon is changed from hand mirror to hairbrush Charlotte Fairchild's favorite weapon is changed from sword to whip Matthew Fairchild's favorite weapon is changed from rapier to chalikers Nathanial Gray has Moore added to his family Gwyn ap Nudd's favorite weapon is changed from unknown to sword carved from the bone of a redcap Cecily Herondale has Owens added to her family James Herondale's family name is changed from Gray to Gray/Starkweather Lucie Herondale's family name is changed from Gray to Gray/Starkweather, and axe is added to her favorite weapons Will Herondale's birth year is changed from 1861 to 1860, and Owens is added to his family Anna Lightwood has whip added to her favorite weapons Jaime Rosales's favorite weapon is changed from poison to crossbow

Characters with new details added to their fun facts: Lady Midnight is changed to Lady Midnight AKA Annabel Blackthorn, and her fun fact has information about Annabel added onto the legend of Lady Midnight Drusilla Blackthorn gets a completely new fact about rigging up a projector to show Night of the Living Dead at the new Shadowhunter Academy Helen Blackthorn has the last sentence of her fact changed to say that she's no longer banished to Wrangel Island Livia Blackthorn has a completely new fact about Livia's Watch Tiberius Blackthorn gets a new fact about a mystery he solved at the Schoolmance Jem Carstairs has a new sentence added to the end of his fact acknowledging his new family with Tessa, Mina, and Kit Sona Carstairs gets a new fact explaining the retcon about her poisoning Theodor Verlac by saying that as a youth she was attacked by a demon that caused untrue rumors about her to spread and be believed Church has the last sentence of his fact changed to say that he's retired with Jem rather than at the LA institute Ragnor Fell has a new sentence added to his fact saying that he and Catarina have been going on adventures together since he came out of hiding Gwyn ap Nudd has a new sentence added to his fact saying that he's now able to confide his troubles in Diana Jace Herondale has a new half sentence added to his fact Kieran has two new sentences added to his fact about his reign as Unseelie King Alec Lightwood has new sentences added to his fact about his role in the Clave-in-exile Alien Penhallow has a new sentence added to his fact about how she's no longer banished to Wrangel Island Jia Penhallow has the last sentence of her fact changed to no longer reference being separated from her daughter Maia Roberts has a sentence added to her fact about her role in the Shadowhunter-Downworlder Alliance Diego Rosales has a new sentence added to his fact about his new role as the Inquisitor

Characters with new art in the new book: Drusilla Blackthorn Alastair Carstairs Cordelia Carstairs Jaime Rosales

Characters added in the new book: Adaon Ash Paige Ashdown Inquisitor Bridgestock Mina Carstairs Zara Dearborn Oliver Hayward Kit Herondale Janus Jarog the Enraged Divya Joshi Shinyun Jung Ke Yi Tian Claude Kellington Eugenia Lightwood Rayan Maduabuchi Nene Oban Thais Pedroso The Riders of Mannan Hypatia Vex Manuel Villalobos

Characters unchanged from the old book: Cameron Ashdown The Band (Eric, Kirk, and Matt) Camille Belcourt Grace Blackthorn Jesse Blackthorn Henry Branwell Maureen Brown The Dark Sisters Malcolm Fade Jocelyn Fray Luke Garroway Tessa Gray Edmund Herondale Imogen Herondale Tobias Herondale Jordan Kyle Simon Lewis Benedict Lightwood Gabriel Lightwood Gideon Lightwood Maryse Lightwood Robert Lightwood Thomas Lightwood Max Michael Lightwood-Bane Rafael Santiago Lightwood-Bane Catarina Loss George Lovelace Jessamine Lovelace Gray Meliorn Beatriz Velez Mendoza Chairman Meow Valentine Morgenstern Alexei de Quincey Raziel Johnny Rook Cristina Mendoza Rosales Raphael Santiago Seelie Queen Jonathan Shadowhunter Hodge Starkweather Michael Wayland Diana Wrayburn Brother Zachariah

Characters left out from the old book: Asmodeus (it's literally just him I don't know why he wasn't included in the new one)

Anyways, I know this is a lot of dense information that might not be interesting to everyone, but I had fun putting it all together (because there is no joy like cross-referencing). Obviously there might be some mistakes because I am a failible human, but this should be more or less everything. If anybody wants exact wording on the changed/added facts then just ask and I can tell you.

#the shadowhunter chronicles #shadowhunters #tsc #seasons of shadowhunters #the mortal instruments #the infernal devices #tid #the dark artifices #tda #the last hours #tlh #the wicked powers #twp #i'm not even trying to tag all the characters #if you're meant to find this then it'll happen

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shadowhuntering · 2 years ago

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Blackthorn Children and Their Names

I might be going overboard with this, nevertheless, I still want to talk about it. The Blackthorn children are some of my favourite characters, and I’m a history nerd so...🤷‍♀️ I want to take the time to discuss the Blackthorn children, their names and how it relates to their characterisation.

I found this post from Cassie way back in 2012 when she first was developing the Blackthorns, there was meant to be 8 children, with Ariadne being the last. This is funny now as there is still a character that has a name of Ariadne in the Last Hours.

This is going to be very long post so I would recommend reading it in chunks if one wishes.

Helen

Helen is named after Helen of Troy. It is difficult to know whether Helen of Troy actually lived. We know that there was a Troy, we know it was destroyed. Were the Greeks so dramatic that they would go to war over a kidnapped woman? Probably, if she had enough status. She did considering the men she was associated with and was a daughter of Zeus. Helen was known for her beauty. The important thing to note is that a war supposedly started due to her kidnapping, but there was a lot of build up preceding it. This poor woman was tossed about from man to man. Aphrodite also really didn’t help. She was kinda the one that initiated the war because she wanted Paris and Helen together, despite Helen being married to Menelaus, the next in line to being the king of SPARTA of all things. What I find significant about this story in regard to Helen Blackthorn’s story is that she was exiled, wasn’t given a choice despite her innocence and in a round about way, led to the war that was carried out in TDA, but had also been caused by the Endarkened war in the first place.

I’m sorry I don’t have much to say about Helen in regard to her namesake because the Illiad is extremely male dominated, and women were not really... considered as people if we're being honest. I think the most influential woman in the story is Aphrodite who stirs up the shit in the first place and continues to be a pain in the ass because that’s gods and Aphrodite for you. Helen Blackthorn was subject to being torn from her family and from that she struggled to slip back into the role of sister, but also being the parental figure. Helen’s character is that she is a kind person who loves her family and has been through a lot of trauma. She’s also pretty clever and sly when her and Aline pretended to register all the Downworlders.

Mark

Cassie says that this isn’t Marcus Antonius and then literally explains Marcus Antonius… He’s just known as Mark Antony because it can easily confused with others of the same name. Anyway, so yes, Mark Antony was a close friend of Caesar’s, and wasn’t one that helped murder him. He was a Consul for some time and a cavalry commander, helping Caesar’s conquest of Gaul. He also became Quaetor which gave him the position of a financial administrator. During the civil war in 49 AD between Pompey and Caesar, Mark Antony fled Rome as he was in support of Caesar, he helped fight in the Italian Penisula. Caesar even left him in control of Italy during the Spanish campaign, later joining him in Greece to fight. He failed to keep order in Italy and was removed until 44 AD when became Consul and was beside Caesar again.

After Caesar’s death, Mark Antony gained possession of the treasury and Caesar’s papers. He had control of Southern Gaul and Northern Italy, but originally he was at odds with Octavian. Later Octavian made a 5 year pact with Mark Antony and Lepidus, forming a second Triumvirate. After the Battle of Philippi, the three divided up the Empire, Mark Antony took control the Eastern provinces where he first met with Cleopatra. In 40 AD Mark Antony’s wife, Fulvia, decided to rebel against Octavian with the backing of his brother, Lucius. Octavian quelled this rebellion but killed the rebels. Antony and Octavian reconciled, and Mark Antony married Octavian’s sister Octavia.

Mark Antony spent much of the rest of the Triumvir in Greece and soon was with Cleopatra permanently, he had also started giving his children the lands that he controlled. This was a sign of being “kingly” which is something Roman Society prevented and despised. Once Mark Antony officially divorced Octavia, Octavian waged war, but not against Mark Antony per se, as that would indicate a Civil War (something that was not favourable), this was against Cleopatra. They were cornered in Greece, but Mark Antony and Cleopatra managed to escape and retreat to Egypt. They were safe for a year until Octavian started making his way over. Mark Antony killed himself, Octavian was going to ask Cleopatra to be a fixture in Rome and create a triple Triumvir (possible ploy to imprison her), but she also killed herself. They suspected they would be captured and tortured.

Sorry, I found this stuff interesting, espcially when it came to Mark Antony and Caesar. I mostly think of how Julian in Lady Midnight asked Mark to look after the kids and Mark just completely failed, in that it didn’t meet Julian’s standards so it caused more of a rift between them, but they worked it out in the end. When it came to Octavian it was a little different. He was almost way too lax by that time which kind of fits Mark's character. To me there isn’t much about Mark Antony that I could truly think Oh! Mark. The fact that Mark Antony was loyal to Caesar though is clearly a statement for Mark’s loyalty to Julian and that they can rely on each other.

Julian

My god! There is so much to say about Julian.

Julius Caesar is a fascinating character, he was a strategist, corrupt in many ways but also a good general, and ultimately a decent ruler. I see a lot of similarities, so no wonder Julian is named after Caesar.

First I have to talk about pirates. This section of Caesar’s history is what made me think about how Julian was described as he would come away from hell, owing the devil himself a favour. So, Caesar was kidnapped by pirates who issued an exchange of 20 talents. Caesar, being Caesar was saying that he took offense to being valued as 20 talents, 50 talents was a more reasonable price (this roughly translates to £79m in modern money), to which the pirates humoured. Whilst holding Caesar and waiting for the exchange, Caesar told them stories and poems, joked with them etc- Caesar joked about when he gets out he would come back and crucify them all. All the pirates found this hilarious and guess what? That’s exactly what Caesar did. Not very long after Caesar was exchanged did Caesar turn ship, capture them all, put the pirates on an island and crucified them all. This also meant that he could take back the 50 talents and loot the ship. Honestly, aside from the invasion of Gaul and other parts of Europe, this the most deplorable thing Caesar did, just because they were stealing from Rome and offended what his monetary value was. I just can’t, I see so much of Julian in this act though, when he was emotionless, but also not.

He was also a fan of supporting a meritocracy, but then again Roman society was just like that. Yes, you had inherited excellence, but you had to prove that you were capable of that excellency. I’m getting off track. Despite Julius Caesar having some kind of excellence, his father was never Consul, which was the position he wanted. So he rose up through the ranks to get it mostly through political acumen. When he got there? Totally abused it for his personal gain, yet also made some decent reforms that helped the people of Rome. As Consul you couldn’t be prosecuted because you have Imperium, so some very illegal decisions could be made… I link this to literally all the decisions made throughout TDA. I mean, it was all circumstantial though, but man, Julian broke the law a lot.

There are some other things that I want to point out in Caesar’s history, such as creating the first Triumverat which divided the leadership of the Roman Empire and created a good governance. Caesar being legislative, Crassus being treasury, Pompey being military. I mean, again a little corruption here and there, but it worked. There was also a case of the last forces of Gaul tried to fight against Caesar in centre Gaul once Caesar had conquered all of Gaul. Vercengeterix rose an army to fight against Caesar, taking place atop Alesia which was a major city. When this army rose up he created a 24 mile wall to stop them! This stumped the Gaul forces for a while, but just as they were about to sneak attack Caesar set a cavalry to scare them, Gaul forces thought this was the first of a huge onslaught of Roman forces (It was not) and they booked it, therefore Caesar secured all of Gaul once again. It just shows how intimidating Caesar was, but also how perceptive he was. I would argue that he knew his enemy, which allowed him to effectively defeat them. Again, can’t help but think of Julian being strategic and extremely perceptive.

When it came to Caesar becoming Dictator, Pompey had betrayed him and he declared war against a fellow friend and Roman in Rome- something that Roman society was scared of as this was a declaration of Civil War. Pompey retreated and when Caesar reached him in Greece Pompey had already been captured and beheaded. Caesar did not want this, he wanted to pardon him, he did so with the rest of Pompey’s army. The thing that people don’t realise about Caesar is that he was big on granting Clemency (except for pirates apparently...). People who had fought against him, he would grant Clemency when it came to fellow Romans. Besides, going to the East encouraged him to go to Egypt where he met Cleopatra. They struck a deal with each other; he would help get rid of her brother, so she could become Pharaoh, and she would supply Rome with food. When he named himself Dictator for life, that’s when people grew increasingly suspicious of him, because it was too close to being a monarchy which was resented by Roman society. Then we have the infamous stabbing in the Senate where 60 odd senators, including some of his closest friends turned against him. His time as Dictator, Caesar made reforms for public welfare, government efficiency and general stability. He limited political and military power of provincial governors, to stop repeating history with him and Pompey (ahaha, that didn’t work though, but it did show that he tried to prevent another Civil war), he also reformed the Roman calendar, conducted a Census, carried out several building operations, unified provinces closer to Italy and was genuinely a good leader. I can’t not see Julian in any of this, I mean, Julian was the one who organised the rebellion against the Cohort. Julian is an effective leader, but I would argue that he has more of a compassionate heart than Caesar had, but that was due to Caesar being an Imperialist, he still looked after his fellow Romans as best he could. Julian is ruthless though, his actions all benefitted him in the end, all he cared about was making sure his friends and family were safe. Julian made allies with people, they weren’t necessarily friends, just like how Caesar had to make friends and prove his excellence to become Consul in the first place and also become Dictator. They both manipulate and perceive exceptionally well.

Julian’s section is obviously long already but I also wanted to talk briefly about his middle name of Atticus, because I think it also lends some insight. It’s not like Mark and Ty’s names where that was still the name of the person of their namesake. So Atticus was a popular name, but the two most famous people named Atticus do lend some insight to Julian. There was Herodes Atticus who was an intellectual and Orator. He was a teacher of philosphy, but also helped develop water-ways. He was severly disliked though, known for being tyrannical. He also killed his wife.

The other famous Atticus is Titus Pomponius Atticus. The only non-political contender here, but a businessman and philosopher of sorts. He was close friends with Cicero, often helping him create his writings. He was known for being suave and charismatic. Despite not being a part of politics, he made powerful relationships with people in the centre of major politics, such as Octavian. Cicero had claimed that Atticus was not someone who had goals... Cicero famously spoke out against Octavian, and was killed because of it. Atticus, however, remained friends with Octavian, later becoming friends with Agrippa, Octavian’s right hand of sorts. This I found interesting because it seemed to me that he never revealed his own intentions. He made friends with powerful people and no doubt had a heavy influence on their actions. The fact that Atticus was “suave” and “charming” definitely made me think of how Julian strikes deals with people, how suave he was when addressing Horace Dearborn after his emotions were taken away et cetera.

Speaking of Atticus, you also can’t not think of Atticus Finch who once again was a character of great intellect and strategy, remaining calm. You can’t not be when being a lawyer. What is important about the charactisation of Atticus Finch is the relationship with his kids. He teaches them about compassion, but would explain without qualms anything they were curious about, treating them like adults. Ironically, I feel that this is something that Julian struggles with doing to a certain extent. With Ty he can’t lie as easily to, the others though he struggles with letting them go because of his attachment. It’s not that he doesn’t allow them autonomy, it’s just he’s too overtly conscious of their well-being. For instance, he tells Dru that the reason he wants her to keep safe in Lord of Shadows and in Queen is because with good conscience he won’t perform best in battle because he would be constantly worrying about her. He 100% supports their individuality though.

Atticus Finch takes the trial of defending Tom Robinson because he wanted to prove to his children that what he does matters, individuals shouldn’t be judged, but also encourages them to understand him as he belief in the Justice system. Atticus knew that Tom Robinson was innocent, but he would be ruled as guilty as he was black- it teaches Jem and Scout that they should be considerate of people. Atticus is respected, having supported the poorer people of the community in court, but by supporting Tom Robinson, he was scorned. He knew this would happen. This is just food for thought, but I especially find this parallel the most intriguing in regards to how the Blackthorn children regard Julian. They all hold him in a bright light, Julian makes some choice decisions and the kids pay no mind to it because they already understand his intentions. It’s flipped for Jem and Scout. They gradually learn and understand their father, his values and the lessons he is trying to teach them and therefore grow to respect him. It’s fascinating really.

Anyway, lets move on…

Livia

This one is… hoooo. Her name is Livia Drusilla, she was indeed a Roman Empress and married to Tiberius Claudius Nero, but Cassie fails to specify how she is a Roman Empress as she was an Empress by being married to Octavian/Augustus, and was the mother of Tiberius Nero Claudius Drusus, the second Emperor of Rome. She is literally somehow associated to every younger Blackthorn child, and also technically Julian as in Augustus’ will, he adopted her into the Julius family where she is named Julia Augusta… I just can’t what the hell.

Livia Drusilla is an extremely interesting person. Her first husband was Tiberius Claudius Nero who was a Quaetor under Julius Caesar and later a Praetor. He was also in support of Julius Caesar, but after his murder, Tiberius was against Octavian and fled Rome with Livia for a few years with their son Tiberius. They returned to Rome but Octavian saw Livia and was like “damn, I want her” he forced a divorce on them and soon married Livia, despite her being pregnant with her second child, Drusus. She and Octavian tried having a child but it was a miscarriage. Their marriage though is SO INTERESTING. 1. They were married for 51 years (until Augustus’ death) 2. She was an advisor to Octavian/Augustus, helping to make decisions on his policies 3. Augustus gave her autonomy over her own finances! Yes, you read that right. That is completely unheard of for this time for women. She also administered copper mines in Gaul, entire estates of palm groves in Judea and dozens of papyrus marshes in Egypt 4. She also had her own circle of clients that she tutored into becoming political figures! Like damn!

Livia Drusilla was almost definitely the cause of the deaths of Augustus’ favoured nephews that he adopted and wanted to inherit the Empire. Though, this narrative in a story many centuries later included Tiberius… he wasn’t though. The impression that I got was he never wanted the Empire anyway and resented his mother to an extent. Livia wanted her son to take on the Imperium next. So when it came to Augustus’ death, he ended up leaving 2/3rds of the Empire to Tiberius, adopting him in his will and leaving 1/3rd of the Empire to Livia also adopting her as aforementioned. This tells me that she was either extremely charismatic or even manipulative, or Augustus genuinely valued her input and loved her. I mean considering how easily he broke off his marriages with his previous two wives and abruptly married Livia, it speaks volumes that he stayed with her, even though she produced no legitimate heir for him. My mind is reeling from this.

When it came to Tiberius’ rule, it is assumed that she remained an advisor as well to him until her death. I find this all really bittersweet. The kind of life this Livia had in comparison to how Livvy died prematurely. However, Livvy isn’t properly gone either… on the basis of what Livia Drusilla accomplished as a women in oppressive ancient Rome, who knows what Ghost Livvy can achieve. I have so much excitement with what destruction will come from Ghost Livvy, and knowing this it has enhanced it. She has always been an advisor to Ty, but also even to Julian at times, heck she had set his mind at ease sometime! She was arguably the one that Julian didn’t have to worry about as much, but unfortunately, she was the one who had her life cut short.

Tiberius

So this one… The Second Emperor of Rome, the son of Livia Drusilla. How Cassie explains him is really interesting, pointing out that he was tyrannical and vengeful(I’ll get to that). Why she felt the need to explain this compared to the thers idk. According the the written histories by Tacitus which is where the title of the Dark Artifices comes from... These writings of Tacitus were called the Annals of Imperial Rome but there is no terminology that I found that derives “Dark Artifices” but oh well. How Tacitus talks about Tiberius will definitely take a biased stance because no one liked Tiberius.

Tiberius was said to be quiet and awkward, often shy. This is one of the reasons why Augustus didn’t want Tiberius to rule after him because he didn’t think Tiberius fit the bill of Emperor (clearly Livia thought otherwise). They also couldn’t agree on anything. Tiberius was a proficient commander of the military, he enjoyed battle and often fought alongside Drusus, his brother, one of his only confidants aside from his wife, Vipsania. It is written that most likely these two kept Tiberius happy. Unfortunately though, Augustus forced Tiberius to divorce Vipsania to marry his daughter Julia, something that Tiberius was deeply upset about. Soon Drusus also dies on the Germanic front. So he ended up losing his two most dear people. Tiberius ended up staying in Rhodes, most likely in a life of frivolity, away from Julia. Augustus didn’t approve and banned him from showing his face in public. Julia had then been accused of adultery and was exiled by Augustus due to it. Tiberius was not political, so when he inherited the Empire he had no political acumen to refer to. So no wonder he was recorded to be “Tyrannical”- he wasn’t proficient in it! However, financially speaking he was great. He was another who appointed people based on merit to his administration which benefitted massively.

Tiberius didn’t like foreign religions, actors or gladiators, so literally the entertainment that every other Roman enjoyed, he disliked. As he couldn’t contend with making friends in the court, he was overshadowed, especially by his nephew Germanicus for his military feats. It is speculated that Tiberius may have ordered Piso to kill Germanicus after Piso fell out with Germanicus in Syria. When Piso was tried in the senate, he killed himself, this did not help the assumption that Tiberius ordered to have Germanicus killed. This was furthered by the fact he did not attend Germanicus’ funeral. After this Tiberius became even more reluctant to rule, and had Sejanus handle his affairs. Sejanus was disliked by many of Tiberius’ family members, especially those closests to Germanicus. Sejanus used flimsy treason laws as an excuse to have his political enemies arrested, banished or killed. Sejanus looked to have acted on Tiberius’ own paranoia, but it could’ve been a ploy to get rid of those closest to Tiberius who would inherit the Empire, so that he might inherit it. Tiberius spent a lot of his time on the Island of Capri, where he apparently engaged in drinking and promiscuous proclivities, he was 70 years old by this time. Supposedly, he had sexual relations with prepubescent boys whilst on the Island. This was according to Caligula who ends up inheriting the Imperium. Some speclate that this exposure is what lead to Caligula’s erratic behaviour. I also remember reading that he was depicted in the empire as turning into a monster whilst on the Island of Capri.

Back to Sejanus! As Tiberius was not in Rome, and therefore in centre politics, he put himself in an awkward situation- he practically put Sejanus in charge of the Empire. Sejanus was cruel but effective. He gave provincial military commands to his friends, killed many influential people through his network of “spies”, continuing what I mentioned previously, where he accused them of treason. There was a lot of death though… Sejanus had also positioned himself as head of the guard with strong military connections. If Tiberius was to take him out, he had to be careful. He lured Sejanus to the Senate, making him believe he was going to be awarded more honours, the Senate then announced him a traitor, had him imprisoned and killed. The people who followed Sejanus were also killed in a bloody retribution. After being betrayed once more, Tiberius lived in solace for the rest of his life and bestowed the Empire to Caligula in his will. By the time Tiberius died, he had stabilized Rome’s economy and reformed many of it’s institutions.

So I can’t be the only one reeling over the name of Sejanus? This could be completely coincidental. Sejanus comes from the name Sejus which basically means one who brings misfortune (This was only from one source though). However something else that is just too coincidental is the fact that the god Janus and his wife Caramae (a nymph) had a son called Tiberinus, connecting to the creation of the Tiber. This aside, I am not convinced that Janus will be closely intertwined with Ty. I’m sticking with the fact that Janus is most likely a TMI gang problem.

So, Tiberius in relation to Ty… The personality traits of being quiet and awkward roughly translate. Ty is more curious to be honest. Ty is a quiet person and is “awkward” to people who don’t know him, I would argue that he isn’t the “leader” type either. The ironic thing is that Ty doesn’t like being in the throng of battle, despite Kit commenting that Ty did exceptionally well (biased or no, Kit😂). Tiberius excelled and enjoyed battle, especially as it was alongside his his brother; besides Livvy, Ty was better. I find it very interesting how Tiberius was separated from Vipsania is similar to how Kit left without saying goodbye. However what followed was Drusus dying, whereas the death of Livvy happened before. Tiberius wallowed in his sorrow and did things that were morally wrong, Ty was in denial and tried to correct it by practicing necromancy, despite it being morally wrong. Tiberius must have been intelligent for securing the economy and making decent reforms to benefit the people of Rome, and we know how intelligent Ty is, though he is also technologically inclined.

Tiberius was known as tyrannical and vengeful probably due to Germanicus and the fact that he ran and drank away his problems, he didn’t engage in political acumen or enjoy the entertainment of his people. I do resent the things that may have occurred on the Island of Capri. He was forced into a role he didn’t want, was shunned often out of public life, Augustus had given him a lot of anguish, had relationships torn from him, he had been betrayed several times. To me he seemed really tragic. Despite all the tragedy in Ty’s life, we haven’t quite seen him react in the same way. This may be because to a degree he has Livvy back and is a bit more stable, but he never accepted the fact she was dead in the first place. Sure, he’s broody over Kit, but I would argue he is doing better than Kit in the department of carrying on.

Ty’s second name is Nero, but I think that’s because that was also Tiberius’ second name. Either way, Emperor Nero, if you are not familiar with him, not just killed but sacrificed people and fellow Romans. He was insane. If you want a tryant- that would be one of my first examples. What I also wanted to mention though is referring back to Julian. So Julian makes sense to be morally grey, especially as his counterpart is Julius Caesar, however Ty’s counterpart was known for being monster, tyrannical and a recluse, and if Nero is also a name that lends to why he is named “Tiberius Nero” then I’m thinking if Julian is morally grey, Ty is going to be morally charcoal grey. He’s already half raised Livvy from the dead without batting an eyelid. Sure, Julian would’ve raised Emma in a heartbeat and literally stopped her from dying even though she asked him not to. Ty also just doesn’t understand morals when people say “It’s wrong” or “because I love you” it’s not an explanation. Julian does acknowledge them, yet can still act in spite of them... Julian also says that Ty was even more intelligent (than him). Ty was the one in Lady Midnight who strategised with Livvy’s help for some of the major investigations. I think what I’m trying to say is that already Ty takes after Julian so much. Ty has also been secretive in the fear of not being allowed or being berated. I have always had this feeling that Ty will be more morally grey/complex than Julian. I know that all Shadowhunter mains so far knew the laws of the land and actively went against them (because the laws were stupid, and/or oppressive). It’s what’s going to be funny with Kit, who was briefly his moral compass. KIT HERONDALE. A moral compass? A boy who is extremely arbitrary and has been raised by two people who don’t abide by laws; one being a trickster and the other is a retired Silent brother and ex Shadowhunter who doesn’t abide himself by Shadowhunters laws. I suppose one of the reasons Ty isn't as law abiding as he's suggested to be is because Julian never really abided by them😂. I just find this fascinating. Julian acts for his own gain in extension to his family, and so does Ty but he can be even more self-invested at times due to his curiosity. Does that make sense? Anyways, long story short, I think Ty is and will become more morally grey than Julian and I am LIVING for it.

Drusilla

Ahaha, this one is interesting. Drusilla is the sister of Caligula, who inherits the Empire after Tiberius. I find it interesting that her name is a variation of Drusus as well leading off of Tiberius’ brother. Cassie explained what happened to Drusilla pretty well. Anyways, Drusilla and Caligula had an extremely close relationship. In public Caligula practically treated her like his “first wife”. Due to Caligula being insane, mixed with it being “strange” how close they were alongside Drusilla having a husband (which Caligula organised as it was a friend of his)- it was thought that they also had a sexual relationship. This can’t be confirmed though.

Caligula had a health scare at one point and he wrote in his will that Drusilla would be given the Imperium in his death, this would make her the first Empress of Rome. This is thought to be so that her husband would rule in her stead and in the hopes that they would produced male heirs to continue the Julian line to rule. Caligula survived though, instead Drusilla did have an untimely death. Caligula was distraught and did not leave her body for days, not wanting anyone to take her body away. At the funeral he fit the image as the widower. He deified her as Diva Drusilla as a symbol of the Julian genetrix remaining in the Public eye. In deifying her, he compared her to the goddess of Venus, the goddess of beauty. This little detail I find very interesting as Dru is often so self-conscious about her looks.

I know that in the books it blatantly has Dru question and worry that is replacing Livvy, and I don’t think she is, because she’s Dru. Ty gained some respect for her during the events of Queen, because he too, underestimated her. However, the fact that Livvy is named after Livia Drusilla, and Drusilla here had an untimely death which her brother was so distraught by, he DEIFIED HER. It’s like they interchange slightly. I mentioned under Livia that her status could translate to what hell will break loose by Livvy being a ghost, but also, what if it’s also about how badass Dru could be. THEY SHARE THE SAME NAME. Cassie did research, she is fully aware of this and still kept going with Dru being called Drusilla. There is no other notable Drusilla in Roman history and due to Drusilla dying quite young and being a woman, you have to scrape the barrel anyway.

Octavian

Oh man. I’ve already said so much about Octavian/Augustus under Julian, Mark and Tiberius that I just can’t be bothered to unload more. It’s not like we know too much about Tavvy as he’s still a small child and growing so I’ll just give you the important stuff.

Octavian is indeed named “Eigth child” even though way back in 2012 when Cassie was still brainstorming the kids, there were meant to be 8, Octavian was still going to be the 7th child. I personally like the little detail that someone pointed out that the fact that Octavian is 7th and he was born after Emma was immersed in the family means that Andrew and Eleanor already considered Emma as one of their children. It breaks my heart. The fact that Julian is affectively Tavvy’s father is also clever as Julius Caesar did help cultivate Octavian, he was his Uncle, but adopted him as his son. Caesar also coincidentally preceded all the others as well, with Mark Antony being at the same time and continuing on is just HILARIOUS to me. Julian really is the father. Helen is a little hard because 1. it’s most likely a myth 2. she’s from the Mycenean Greece 3. Homer didn’t write the Iliad until 8th century BC.

I can suspect that Tavvy may take after Julian, like what I’ve picked up about Augustus taking after Caesar when it comes to things like strategy. The fact that Caesar tried to put things in place to prevent what happened between him and Pompey from happening again, but then Octavian has the same experience like a decade later with Mark Antony. I mostly find this stuff insightful when it comes to Tavvy and Octavian in comparison to the rest. Octavian had his name changed by the senate in 27 BC giving him the honorific title of Augustus when first becoming Emperor; therefore making his name Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus.

In conclusion, most of the Blackthorn’s namesakes are pretty relevant to their charactisations. It also may give us insight into what may become of them in regards to the mains of the Wicked Powers.

Sorry, this is a lot to read 😅but I had to talk about it somewhere and I really want to start a discussion on it, so please comment! I want to hear people’s thoughts.

I also want to thank @lifeofbrybooks and @bookishjules of @kraigsretirementparty because they have inspired me to go down this rabbit hole again (first I did research after Lord of Shadows). I would especially love to hear your opinions on this and I hope to make more analysis in the future.

#shadowhunters #tsc #tsc analysis #blackthorns #julian blackthorn #mark blackthorn #helen blackthorn #livvy blackthorn #ty blackthorn #dru blackthorn #tavvy blackthorn #tda #the dark artifices

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