Timeline: Grimm

This is an approximation of a timeline and only an approximation, based on available evidence from the show and our own knowledge of history. Updates will show up whenever we get new information. Dates and information with an attribution given in parentheses indicate that we don't trust the accuracy; coin-touched people are notoriously not good sources of anything other than doing whatever it takes to get the coins.

• 700s BCE: Coins of Zakynthos are minted (according to Kolt).
• 37 CE - 68 CE: Coins of Zakynthos held by Roman Empire (according to Kolt).
• ?? CE - no later than 220 CE: Coins of Zakynthos held by Han Dynasty (according to Kolt).
• 1147-1149 CE: Second Crusade. Germany provides over twice as many knights as France, and many of the German fighters were from southern Germany, including Bavaria and Swabia. Presumably  (given the history we have) the Wesen fought for the Royals and the Grimms fought for the Royals and kept the Wesen in line. 
• 1187-1192 CE: Third Crusade
• 1202-1204 CE: Fourth Crusade during which the seven ancestral Grimm knights fought for the Seven Royal Families and acquired (created?) the keys that form the map that lead to the treasure taken from the sack of Constantinople (that lived in the house that Jack built). (According to Kelly Burkhardt and even she admits it's based on legend and a solitary page of a diary.)
• ??? CE: Death squads of Endezeichengrimm roam the countryside, killing Wesen indiscriminately and branding them and everyone/thing associated with them with the Sterbestunde brand. (According to Monroe's Alptraume für Wesenkinder.)
  
• 1285 CE: The Wesen Wars, or one instance of them, during which the remainder of the Grimm diaries relating the story of the treasure and the sack of Constantinople were lost (according to Kelly Burkhardt). Also, Philip IV took the throne of France, which led to the eventual suppression and disbandment of the Knights Templar. We're sure this will be not at all relevant later.
• 1480 CE - 1834 CE: Catholic Inquisition in power. Though we only have a line reference from Monroe about this so far, it's worth noting for later, between the Royal tropes and the Catholic tropes.
• 1517 CE - 1648 CE: Protestant Reformation, beginning with the Ninety-Five Theses and ending with the Treaty of Westphalia. Again, not yet important within the show but included here as a major religio-political series of events that we anticipate the showrunners drawing from.
• 1519 CE: Presumably October, though there should definitely be differing calendars here. A Grimm (reputed to be one of Nick's ancestors) joins with Hernando Cortes's army and marches to Veracruz to investigate rumors of La Llorona. (The entry says "we," so presumably the Grimm had backup.) Note that as of mid-August, Cortes had left a small force at Veracruz and begun his march on Tenochtitlan; in October of 1519 his army slaughtered the residents of Cholula, second-largest city in the Aztec empire. A week after All Soul's, Cortes entered Tenochtitlan peacefully and subsequently took it over, ruling through Moctezuma.
• 1521 CE: The Code of Swabia is formed, dictating the extent of public Wesen behavior and establishing a punishment or set of punishments for revealing the existence of Wesen to humans or Kehreseite. This is called the Gesetzbuch Ehrencodex. Also notable for being the year the Diet of Worms occurred, which addressed the Protestant Reformation and Martin Luther's Ninety-Five Theses.
• 1600s CE: Renard's ancestors in power. Also, the Wesen Council's first communication with the Royals and Grimms (at that time apparently a cohesive unit by how Rosalee said it), during which a treaty was forged allowing the Council to be in charge of handling the removal of the [??? we'll get you a name this Friday!] who are widely considered to be a severe danger to the Masquerade.
• ???? CE: "The" Revolution, Renard's ancestors lose power. (Or at least the painting from Island of Dreams and "a lot of heads.") Which revolution? WHO THE FUCK KNOWS. Rarr. Common fandom assumption seems to be French due to the heads comment, but there were a lot of revolutions in the 18th and 19th centuries, to say nothing of quieter revolutions under cover of the Masq. Also, that assumes he means losing heads literally.
• 1760 CE: October 31st, an entry in the Grimm diaries about La Llorona. This has potential Julian/Gregorian calendar issues, though it's possible the writers have discounted that.
• 1791 CE: Haitian revolution, and the first known documentation of a Cracher-Mortel. Also documented is the Royal influence on the Haitian revolution and the fact that the Grimms were working for the Royals at this point in time.
• 1835 CE: The HMS Beagle reaches the Galapagos Islands on September 15. A Grimm (reputed to be one of Nick's ancestors) is on board, and kills every Genio Innucuo s/he (probably he) finds.
• 1901 CE: Dragon's Tongue founded.
• 1902 CE: the type of Luger Waltz uses in Cat and Mouse comes into production.
• 1926 CE: Date on the Luger Waltz uses in Cat and Mouse; whether or not his family acquired it in that year or shortly thereafter is unclear.
• 193? CE/WWII: Hitler is a Schakal and has possession of 2 Coins of Zakynthos (that we know of). No date given on the film reel Nick watches at the end of Three Coins in a Fuchsbau, but it appears to be an earlier speech. Roughly contemporary with the reel from Franco's Spain, see below.
• 1936 CE: Franco's Spain film reel regarding the Verrat.
• 1945 CE: The Coins of Zakynthos from Three Coins in a Fuchsbau are recovered from Eagle's Nest and kept at Allied HQ; no knowledge of what happened to them in the meantime.
• 196/7? CE: Kelly Burkhardt comes into her Grimm heritage at age 10.
• 199? CE: Dragon's Tongue resurfaces with Yakuza ties, having gone underground during WWII. No date given, approximation of chronological order only based on our-world Yakuza history.
• 1994 CE: Nick's parents (well, father and mother's friend) deaths; the Burkhardt-Kessler line loses control of the three Coins of Zakynthos.
• ???? CE: A coins dealer in Munich acquires the missing Coins of Zakynthos.
• ???? CE: Renard's mother absconds with him to the States (Montana?).
• ???? CE: Sam Bertram acquires the missing Coins of Zakynthos.
• ???? CE: Renard marries, has a daughter (no later than 2005 CE judging by photos of daughter and assuming loss is recent).
• 2011-12 CE: Events of the show so far, including a game of hot potato with those damn coins (currently possessing Kelly Burkhardt so far as we know) and a massive series of power plays within the Royal Families to get their hands on the key Nick holds. Notably, the Families either don't know he had the coins or don't care about them nearly as much as they do about the key.

Jesus Christ It's Renard Get In The Car Grimm S2E02 The Kiss

Okay. I will warn you in advance this contains massive impressive spoilers and will be huge. (ETA: Oh holy crow, this was 7500 words long??) This was a hell of an episode for Renard. It’s been a couple days and we’re still processing, although thankfully we got to chew over it a fair bit between then and now. Judging by some other recaps I’ve seen, it was a lot to chew on, too. This is also the first one where Kitty did not do all the actual text writing, although we always toss analysis and theories back and forth. So! Bonus cookies to anyone who spots the author change point.



So, a while back I was rewatching Legend and remembering how Tim Curry scared the hell out of me when I was a kid. A friend of mine made this icon for me. Then Renard turned all Diablo/Darkness/Lobster red and this was the first thing that came to mind. But I get ahead of myself.

Family Matters Grimm S2E01 Bad Teeth

So. THAT happened. Also, I would like to register a complaint about the opening credits. I severely dislike them. Also also I would like to register a complaint about how much research frenzy the second season premiere induced in me and my partner in profiling. We spent far too many hours digging through our information base on the Crusades, the dynasties, the Holy Roman Empire…
We like chewing on the show, okay?? XD Don’t look at us like that.



I said don’t look at us like that!

Captain McLurkypants and the Organ Leggers Grimm S1E10 Organ Grinder

Let's see if I can get through at least the most Renardcentric of these episodes before the premiere tomorrow! Not likely, but maybe.

Oh, and this episode, Organ Grinder, was written by the dear Akela Cooper. Hi Akela! Don't read this. I swear.

Despite this being one of the more impressive episodes with our dear Captain, he doesn't show up till over halfway through. The detectives are briefing him and the first glimpse we get is over his shoulder. I'd just like to note here that his computer keeps switching from a desktop with a CPU we don't see and a monitor and keyboard that we do see, to a laptop. I have no idea what's up with that, if there's a Watsonian or Doylist reason, or what. I'm going to just assume Doylist and it's not out of the realm of possibility that a busy police captain takes his work home with him on a laptop these days. Hell, half the cop cars I see have laptops in them with police officers writing reports.

Not In My Town: Grimm S1E12 Last Grimm Standing

Last Grimm Standing! Also known as the big reveal that Renard is a Prince of the Blood. Whose blood? We have no idea! Isn’t it great.

Captain Renard and his Merrie Men Grimm S1E08 Game Ogre

Suddenly, A WILD RENARD APPEARS.

Renard uses Epic Looming! It's Super Effective!

Yes, I'm punchy, why do you ask.

Stuck In The Middle With You S1E04 Lonelyhearts

If you don’t know why this post is titled that, you are missing a hilarious pop culture reference and you should go watch Reservoir Dogs right now. Lonelyhearts! The Captain being Captainly! The Prince being Princely, our first sign that not only is he not what he appears, he has a whole other set of authority to call on. Also, hot and regal.