The Broken Promise Chain

A king promised land to a baron if the baron would provide soldiers for a war.

The baron promised land to a knight if the knight would recruit the soldiers.

The knight recruited soldiers, but the war was cancelled.

The chain had to unwind: the knight released the soldiers. The baron had no soldiers to offer, so he kept his land. The king had no war, so he kept his.

Each promise was tied to the next. When one failed, all had to reverse.