Myrcia: Difference between revisions

History of Myrcia
The First Kingdom	675 - 1120
• First Recorded Human Settlement	c. 450 BCE
• Wulfric, first Myrcian king	675
• The Fennel War	1011 - 1019
Scandic and Ingerish Rule	1120 - 1669
• Scandic Invasion	1120
• Establishment of Scandlaw	1192
• Ingerish-Scandic War	1226-1230
The Second Kingdom	1669 - Present
• War of Myrcian Independence	1669
• Council of Welkinloch	1701
• Myrcian Constitution established	1777
• Coronation of Kyng Eofric III	2023

Revision as of 14:47, 23 April 2023

Kingdom of Myrcia
Rícecynig Myrcia (Myrcian)

Capital: Dunwic

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The Kingdom of Myrcia is an island nation located in north-west Uletha. It is a constitutional monarchy with a bicameral elected legislature. The official language is Myrcian though Ingerish is also widely spoken. It has long relied on the Hesperic Ocean for its wealth, its major industries are oil and gas exploration, fishing and tourism. The capital, and largest city, is Dunwic, the two other Myrcian cities are Nórdport and St Grimbald.

History

Before the First Kingdom

The first human settlement on Myrcia is believed to date from around the 5th century BCE. It was discovered during a dig by Séftnescoleg Myrcia archaeologists on the southern island of Súdhilfad in 1974. It has been posited that the first settlers arrived in Myrcia by mistake after their fishing vessel was lost off the coast of mainland Uletha. Human settlement spread across the southern islands over the following four centuries but only reached mainland Myrcia in around the first century CE. These settlements, known as the Cérnman (Ingerish: Boat Men) were known to mainly subsist on hunting and fishing with homes built from logs. There is no evidence of contact between the Cérman and mainland Uletha until around 350 CE. This is when the first Christic missionaries arrived from Ingerland and Scandmark. Initially they found little success in converting the Cérman to Christicism, they did not share a common language, with Old Cérran having evolved independently from Ulethan languages, and the locals viewed them with great scepticism. Trading missions failed for similar reasons and the Cérman's insular existance would not be disturbed in a significant way until the arrival of Scandic invaders centuries later.

The First Kingdom

Wulfric, first King of Myrcia

The establishment of the First Kingdom by Wulfric in the 7th century

Until the 7th century the Cérman were governed by family units with the ancestral elders holding power over the local community. These elders would meet in council houses, often the only buildings built from stone in Cérman settlements. Over the course of the 6th century some families became more powerful than others and began to consolidate power across multiple hamlets, they would claim a tithe of fish or game from landowning families and they were the first people living in Myrcia to not need to fish or hunt themselves. By 650 the Ealferwic family was in control of most of Súdhilfad, Anna and St Æthelflæd (then called Wúdensisl), they had established a manor house in Welkinloch and in 670 Wulfric, leader of the Ealferwic began to construct a fortified manor in Sandwic. In 671 Wulfric killed Yórnar who ruled Hilda and established the first market system on the island to allow men to specialise in boat building and construction rather than just subsistence fishing. He repeated this in Sandwich in 672 and Welkinloch in 674 and by 675 he had amassed a number of wooden longboats and rudimentary fortifications across the islands. The ruling families on the mainland knew little of Wulfric's new economy and continued to hunt and fish for their own kin, there are no traces of stone buildings on the Myrcian mainland before Wulfric's arrival. Wulfric set sail from Sandwic in February 675 with a small army and established his control over all settlements south of Lochkinross by March of that year. By June, Wulfric had control of Beremúth and Béreisl, his final victory was against Úå in Merestowe, at the time the northern most settlement on the mainland. On June 18th 675 Wulfric decreed himself Cércip (Ingerish: Boat Lord) Wulfric of Myrcia thus establishing The First Kingdom.

Expansion of settlement

Wulfric ruled until 691 establishing market places and trade guilds in settlements across the southern islands and south of the mainland which had only ever seen subsistence fishing and hunting. He is thought to have visited Scandmark in the 680s and not only established trading links with the Ulethan mainland but bringing domesticated animals back with him to begin the large-scale farming of sheep, pigs and cattle on the downland and heath of southern Myrcia. This new economy led to an enormous boom in the human population of Myrcia and many of the towns and cities which exist today were founded over the next two centuries as settlers moved north across the mainland. St Grimbald (then Grimsdyk) was founded in 686, Lórbrig in 687, Dunwic as a small fishing village in 699, St Alfæd (then Shórwic) in 704 with settlement reaching the north coast in Nórdport by 721. Wulfric was succeeded by his son Wulfricsson, this established the ancestral line of Myrcian monarchs which lasted until the Scandic invasion.

The Fennel War

By the 11th century Myrcia was a united kingdom ruled by kings along the ancestral line of Wulfric. Settlement was concentrated on the sheltered east coast of the island with wool, fish, whale oil and wood being exported from the islands to the Ulethan mainland by wooden boat. The outlying islands of Zétund and Mannóc were the last places to be settled in 904 and 1009 respectively. The rocky, outlying island of Mannóc had been known about for some time but its isolation and exposure to the ravages of the Hesperic Ocean had meant it was not an attractive place for anyone to settle. In 1009 a feud between Wúdscip Aœtte and the king Efferic resulted in Aœtte and his supporters being exiled from their ancestral home at Merestowe to Mannóc. This event would be the catalyst for The Fennel War which would be the first major conflict in Myrcia since Wulfric's unification in the 670s. Aœtte established a homestead on Mannóc and was able to construct a ship by the year 1011, he sent out emissaries to Merestowe where many of the local families were still loyal to his fief over the king's. Without the king's permission he had more ships sent from Meretstowe and, over the next five years, constructed a fortified town on Mannóc whilst instructing his loyal men in Merestowe to recruit a secret militia drawing on the town and surrounding villages. By 1016, Aœtte had recruited nearly 8,000 men and had constructed or requisitioned 25 ships. On 7th June 1016 he sailed from Mannóc to Merestowe and led a surprise attack on the towns of Aberburh, Berefórd and Beremúth. This gave him strategic control over much of the south of the island within the space of a few short days. King Efferic was at the far northern end of Myrcia at the time overseeing the fortification of Nórdport, he rode south and united with his army in Lórbrig. They secured the city of Grimsdyk by the 21st June and engaged with Aœtte's men at battles along the line of hills which separates the south of the island from the north. At one decisive battle in Branspriór (then Bransféld) Aœtte routed Efferic's men enabling him to break through to secure control over Dunwic Castel which was largely abandoned as Efferic's troops had left to fight in the south. Aœtte declared himself King of Myrcia on 24th June 1016. Efferic consolidated his armies in Oltáfon and led them along the banks of the Áfon Dun into the city of Dunwic. There, over the course of two weeks, Efferic's men fought to regain control of the walled city. They destroyed defensive structures at the Áfongead and Harrogead but it was on the night of the 8th July that they were successful in penetrating the city walls when they set fire to the Waycrósgead and stormed Dunwic Castel. Efferic arrested Aœtte, found him guilty of treason and marched him down to the river, there he beheaded him and threw his corpse into the fast flowing river. Efferic regained his throne and saw to it that the towns of Merestowe and Derwere were razed to the ground, they remained largely ruined well into the 17th century. The war became known as The Fennel War because Aœtte's symbol was a sprig of crithmum, a plant commonly known as sea fennel which grew widely on Mannóc.

Scandic Rule

Ingerish Rule

The Second Kingdom

Constitutional Period

@@ Line 35: / Line 35: @@
 ===The First Kingdom===
+====Wulfric, first King of Myrcia====
 [[File:Firstkingdommyrcia.png|thumb|The establishment of the First Kingdom by Wulfric in the 7th century]]
 Until the 7th century the Cérman were governed by family units with the ancestral elders holding power over the local community. These elders would meet in council houses, often the only buildings built from stone in Cérman settlements. Over the course of the 6th century some families became more powerful than others and began to consolidate power across multiple hamlets, they would claim a tithe of fish or game from landowning families and they were the first people living in Myrcia to not need to fish or hunt themselves. By 650 the Ealferwic family was in control of most of [[Súdhilfad]], [[Anna]] and [[St Æthelflæd]] (then called Wúdensisl), they had established a manor house in [[Welkinloch]] and in 670 Wulfric, leader of the Ealferwic began to construct a fortified manor in [[Sandwic]]. In 671 Wulfric killed Yórnar who ruled [[Hilda]] and established the first market system on the island to allow men to specialise in boat building and construction rather than just subsistence fishing. He repeated this in Sandwich in 672 and Welkinloch in 674 and by 675 he had amassed a number of wooden longboats and rudimentary fortifications across the islands. The ruling families on the mainland knew little of Wulfric's new economy and continued to hunt and fish for their own kin, there are no traces of stone buildings on the Myrcian mainland before Wulfric's arrival. Wulfric set sail from Sandwic in February 675 with a small army and established his control over all settlements south of Lochkinross by March of that year. By June, Wulfric had control of [[Beremúth]] and [[Béreisl]], his final victory was against Úå in [[Merestowe]], at the time the northern most settlement on the mainland. On June 18th 675 Wulfric decreed himself Cércip (''Ingerish'': Boat Lord) Wulfric of Myrcia thus establishing The First Kingdom.
+====Expansion of settlement====
 Wulfric ruled until 691 establishing market places and trade guilds in settlements across the southern islands and south of the mainland which had only ever seen subsistence fishing and hunting. He is thought to have visited Scandmark in the 680s and not only established trading links with the Ulethan mainland but bringing domesticated animals back with him to begin the large-scale farming of sheep, pigs and cattle on the downland and heath of southern Myrcia. This new economy led to an enormous boom in the human population of Myrcia and many of the towns and cities which exist today were founded over the next two centuries as settlers moved north across the mainland. [[St Grimbald]] (then Grimsdyk) was founded in 686, [[Lórbrig]] in 687, [[Dunwic]] as a small fishing village in 699, [[St Alfæd]] (then Shórwic) in 704 with settlement reaching the north coast in [[Nórdport]] by 721. Wulfric was succeeded by his son Wulfricsson, this established the ancestral line of Myrcian monarchs which lasted until the Scandic invasion.
+====The Fennel War====
+By the 11th century Myrcia was a united kingdom ruled by kings along the ancestral line of Wulfric. Settlement was concentrated on the sheltered east coast of the island with wool, fish, whale oil and wood being exported from the islands to the Ulethan mainland by wooden boat. The outlying islands of [[Zétund]] and [[Mannóc]] were the last places to be settled in 904 and 1009 respectively. The rocky, outlying island of Mannóc had been known about for some time but its isolation and exposure to the ravages of the [[Hesperic Ocean]] had meant it was not an attractive place for anyone to settle. In 1009 a feud between Wúdscip Aœtte and the king Efferic resulted in Aœtte and his supporters being exiled from their ancestral home at [[Merestowe]] to Mannóc. This event would be the catalyst for The Fennel War which would be the first major conflict in Myrcia since Wulfric's unification in the 670s. Aœtte established a homestead on Mannóc and was able to construct a ship by the year 1011, he sent out emissaries to Merestowe where many of the local families were still loyal to his fief over the king's. Without the king's permission he had more ships sent from Meretstowe and, over the next five years, constructed a fortified town on Mannóc whilst instructing his loyal men in Merestowe to recruit a secret militia drawing on the town and surrounding villages. By 1016, Aœtte had recruited nearly 8,000 men and had constructed or requisitioned 25 ships. On 7th June 1016 he sailed from Mannóc to Merestowe and led a surprise attack on the towns of [[Aberburh]], [[Berefórd]] and [[Beremúth]]. This gave him strategic control over much of the south of the island within the space of a few short days. King Efferic was at the far northern end of Myrcia at the time overseeing the fortification of [[Nórdport]], he rode south and united with his army in [[Lórbrig]]. They secured the city of [[St Grimbald|Grimsdyk]] by the 21st June and engaged with Aœtte's men at battles along the line of hills which separates the south of the island from the north. At one decisive battle in [[Branspriór]] (then Bransféld) Aœtte routed Efferic's men enabling him to break through to secure control over Dunwic Castel which was largely abandoned as Efferic's troops had left to fight in the south. Aœtte declared himself King of Myrcia on 24th June 1016. Efferic consolidated his armies in [[Oltáfon]] and led them along the banks of the Áfon Dun into the city of Dunwic. There, over the course of two weeks, Efferic's men fought to regain control of the walled city. They destroyed defensive structures at the Áfongead and Harrogead but it was on the night of the 8th July that they were successful in penetrating the city walls when they set fire to the Waycrósgead and stormed Dunwic Castel. Efferic arrested Aœtte, found him guilty of treason and marched him down to the river, there he beheaded him and threw his corpse into the fast flowing river. Efferic regained his throne and saw to it that the towns of Merestowe and [[Derwere]] were razed to the ground, they remained largely ruined well into the 17th century. The war became known as ''The Fennel War'' because Aœtte's symbol was a sprig of crithmum, a plant commonly known as sea fennel which grew widely on Mannóc.
 ===Scandic Rule===