Massacre of Palenstrad

On the same year of the Sovereign Order's foundation, the first Grand Master, Cassius Palenix, had tasked his brothers and sisters at arms to abduct various heretics that roamed about the Eastern Plaguelands. The heretics that were caught mainly consisted of Forsaken travelers, seeking refuge to the recently claimed Argent settlement of Hearthglen. Occasionally, there would be living beings kidnapped as well mostly Fel and Forgotten Shadow sympathizers. Rarely, they would even have wicked death knights of the Ebon Blade captured, though most preferred to fight till the end instead of being held captive.

All of the captives were brought to the Barony of Palenstrad, bordering both the West and the Eastern Plaguelands, and gathered in its courtyard where all of them were trialed for crimes against the Holy Light and that their only chance for absolution was in death. Whether they agreed to it or not, Cassius ordered the heathens to be purged and cleansed from their unholy husks, releasing their souls to the next world. The cleansing of vice was regarded as a massacre by outsiders, mainly the Undercity heathens and the denizens of Hearthglen.

One member of Hearthglen's council, Annabelle Greene, spoke out against the Sovereign Order's crimes and even offered shelter to Forsaken followers of the Forgotten Shadow. The Grand Master Palenix did not take this lightly and had Annabelle abducted, trialed and executed without delay. The controversial action committed by the Sovereign Order, as some may regard it as just or mad, was an action that brought forth its undoing in the north.

The Argent Crusade declared a very short and nameless war that only endured a week until their crushing victory in the Siege of Palenstrad that was backed by numerous Ebon Blade and Forsaken allies. The battle alone marked the end of the first Sovereign schism in the north of the Eastern Kingdoms.