Tenobia si Bashere Kazadi

Author: Atarah al'Norahn

General

Tenobia Kazadi is the young Queen of Saldaea. Her uncle Davram Bashere is the Marshal-General of Saldaea. She is Faile's cousin (TSR, Ch. 4). Her full title is "Her Illumined Majesty, Tenobia si Bashere Kazadi, Shield of the North and Sword of the Blightborder, High Seat of House Kazadi, Lady of Shahayni, Asnelle, Kunwar and Ganai" (WH, Ch. 27).

Tenobia is tall for a woman, with large, tilted eyes that are a dark, deep blue that is almost purple, and a large nose. She has a high voice. Ethenielle thinks that she manages to be pretty, if not beautiful. She has a confidence in herself that is so strong the seems to glow with it (TPoD, Prologue; WH, Ch. 27).

Tenobia's temper is like a wildfire in a high wind. Ethenielle thinks that Tenobia takes Saldaean strangeness to the extreme, and that she takes delight in shocking Domani and making Altarans seem drab. Ethenielle also thinks that Davram Bashere is the only one who can ever make Tenobia listen to reason when she doesn't want to (TPoD, Prologue). Davram Bashere thinks that she is a good ruler (CoT, Prologue).

Timeline

• Accompanied by her uncle Kalyan Ramsin, Tenobia meets with the other Borderland rulers to discuss Rand (TPoD, Prologue).

• Tenobia and the other Borderland rulers meet with Merilille (WH, Ch. 26).

• Tenobia and the other Borderland rulers meet with Elayne Trakand (WH, Ch. 27).

• She slaps Rand when he meets with her in Far Madding (ToM, Ch. 51).

• She swears fealty to Rand so that he will take her and her armies to Tarmon Gai'don. She tells Rand she wants to speak to her uncle (ToM, Ch. 51).

• She is present at the meeting where the Dragon's Peace is signed and agrees to sign with little pressure (AMoL, Ch. 5).

• During the defence of Tarwin's Gap, she takes to leading the Saldaeans herself (AMoL, Ch. 29).

• She is sent to her death by Agelmar before his Compulsion is revealed (AMoL, Ch. 29)

Prophecies and Viewings

"Tenobia has a spear hovering over her head, Bloody, but shining in the light" (Min, ToM, Ch. 51).

Miscellaneous

• Siuan thinks that because of the trade stopping in Saldaea due to the war in Arad Doman, Tenobia might be forced off the throne (TSR, Ch. 17).

• When she was sixteen, Tenobia once exiled Davram Bashere, but she soon changed her mind (TSR, Ch. 56).

• Tenobia is eight years older than Faile (TSR, Ch. 56).

• Tenobia wants the White Tower to stop meddling in her affairs (TFoH, Ch. 49).

• Elaida intends to have Tenobia kidnapped (ACoS, Prologue).

• Tenobia tolerates the counsel of soldiers, but no one else (TPoD, Prologue)

• Tenobia ran into five Aes Sedai as she was leaving Saldaea and brought them with her (TPoD, Prologue).

• Her Aes Sedai advisor was Memara (TPoD, Prologue).

• Tenobia tries to play matchmaker between Ethenielle and her uncle, Kalyan Ramsin (TPoD, Prologue).

• One of Tenobia's uncles is married to Ethenielle's sister Einone (TPoD, Prologue).

Quotes

"Turn back? I will not turn back, whatever the rest of you do. I sent my dear Uncle Davram to bring me the head of the false Dragon Mazrim Taim, and now he and Taim both follow this Rand al'Thor, if I can believe half what I hear. I have close to fifty thousand men behind me, and whatever you decide, I will not turn back until my uncle and al'Thor learn exactly who rules Saldaea." (Tenobia to Ethenielle, Paitar and Easar; The Path of Daggers, Prologue).

"Tenobia was still young, though years past the age she should have wed - marriage was a duty for any member of a ruling House, the more so for a ruler; alliances had to be made, an heir provided - yet Ethenielle had never considered the girl for any of her own sons. Tenobia's requirements for a husband were on a level with everything else about her. He must be able to face and slay a dozen Myrddraal at once. While playing the harp and composing poetry. He must be able to confound scholars while riding a horse down a sheer cliff. Or perhaps up it. Of course he would have to defer to her - she was a queen, after all - except that sometimes Tenobia would expect him to ignore whatever she said and toss her over his shoulder. The girl wanted exactly that! And the Light help him if he chose to toss when she wanted deference, or to defer when she wanted the other. She never said any of this right out, but any woman with wits who had heard her talk about men could piece if together in short order. Tenobia would die a maiden." (Ethenielle thinking about Tenobia; The Path of Daggers, Prologue).

"In all truth, Tenobia did worry him. The Light only knew why Easar and the others had decided to leave the Blightborder together, much less strip away as many soldiers as hearsay said they had brought south. Even hearsay divided by half. Doubtless they had reasons they considered good and sufficient, and doubtless Tenobia shared them. But he knew her; he had taught her to ride, watched her grow up, presented her the Broken Crown when she took the throne. She was a good ruler, neither too heavy-handed nor too light, intelligent if not always wise, brave without being foolhardy, but impulsive was a mild description of her. Sometimes, hotheaded was mild. And he was as sure as he could be that she had her own goal aside from whatever the others aimed at. The head of Davram Bashere. If that was so, she was unlikely to settle for another period of exile, after coming this far. The longer Tenobia worried a bone in her teeth, the harder it was to convince her to give it up." (Davram Bashere thinking about Tenobia; Crossroads of Twilight, Prologue)