Imperial history

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Imperial historians date from the foundation of the Empire. Events that happened after the Empire is created are recored as YE for "Year of the Empire" and BE for "Before the Empire." A few historians use IY for "Imperial Year", giving positive numbers to dates after the Empire is formed and negative dates to events before the Empire.

The Distant Past

• Humans and orcs fight over the fertile lands.

Long before the Highborn arrived in their great ships, much of the land that is now the Empire was occupied by orc tribes. According to historians among the Navarr, Urizen and Wintermark peoples, the orcs occupied land that had once belonged to early human kingdoms. Truth is debatable - there are few if any records still extant from the distant past. What is certain is that when the first waves of human colonization began, there were already humans here - the Navarr in their forests, the Urizen in their mountains, the Ssuaq and the Kallavesi in the inhospitable north, the Ushka huddled around their camp fires, and the Feni lurking in their swamps. History also records that there were humans living with the orcs, largely as chattel, slaves or subjects. Where these humans were freed from orc oppression, they were usually assimilated into the conquering culture having little of their own.

Pre-Empire Years

• Successive waves of colonisation create proto-nations.
• Conflict with the barbarians begin

Several waves of colonization create the structures that will eventually become the Nations. The Highborn are generally held to be the first, but the forebears of Dawn and the Marches, and the people that will eventually civilise WIntermark and Varushka, also come to the area from elsewhere. Despite occasional outbreaks of peace, this period is one of conflict, both with the barbarian orcs who claim the best land, and within and between the human proto-Nations.

While the orcs are driven out of the heartland of the Empire, life is hard and brutal for the initial settlers. The orcs continue to press them, and history suggests that it was only a matter of time before the individual human kingdoms were overrun and subjugated.

Foundation and the Reign of the First Empress

Year Zero (476 years ago)

• The Empress convinces the eight nations to unite against the barbarian threat
• The Empire is founded

The First Empress is from the nation of Highguard. Details of her life prior to becoming Empress are conjecture at best; she appears to have actively discouraged efforts to record facts about her family and upbringing, claiming that her life began with the Empire. Even her name is unknown, although again there is some conjecture. She is referred to as First Empress, underlining her commitment to being a citizen of the Empire, and to the assertion that she will be the first of many.

Seeing the human nations in turmoil and on the verge of destruction at the hands of the barbarians, she takes action. She gathers around herself a small group of like-minded individuals from various nations. With their assistance, and with the aid of the Navarr people, she brings together the leaders of humanity to discuss the barbarian threat they all face. Her vision and cleverness - and the hard work of her allies - convince various of them to recognise the value of an Empire. The people of Urizen decline to join, but sufficient folk from The Brass Coast, Dawn, Highguard, The League, The Marches, Navarr, Varushka and Wintermark accept the proposal to allow them to form the first nations of the Empire.

When they recognise the woman as Empress, she immediately breaks her ties to Highguard and declares herself the first citizen of the Empire proper. In doing so she lays the groundwork for future Imperials to hold themselves apart from the nations of their birth, and for the various servants of the Empire (especially the civil service) to cultivate a neutrality that allows them to serve the Empire as a whole rather than any one part of it.

(1 AE - 5 AE) Expansion

• Creation of the Egregores
• A period of conflict begins during which the early Empire strengthens its borders and conquers its neighbours.
• The Empire defeats Alderei the Fair and liberates Varushka

The early Empire turns its attention to those humans who have not chosen to be part of the Empire. There is a period of conflict and revolution during which various nations “clean house” and solidify their identity as part of the Empire. During this time, the Empress gives the territory of the Riding to the Marches. The first Egregores are created through a ritual created by the Hakima of The Brass Coast to ensure that the various nations are able to maintain their distinct cultural identity.

During this time the orcs in particular become increasingly violent and aggressive. Many campaigns are fought against the orcs. At the same time, the Imperial forces engage those of the corrupt boyar Alderei the Fair who threatens to conquer Varushka and create his own corrupt Empire. Powerful wizards ultimately are involved in neutralising the sinister Volodya - wicked magicians who hate the Varushkans - and he is ultimately defeated by the Marcher general Tom Drake. Neither body is ever recovered.

(6 AE) The Senate, The Synod and the Generals

• The Senate, the Synod and the Council of Generals set up

The Empress and her advisors lay the groundwork for Imperial structures to support and empower the Empire. Building on traditions of government in Wintermark, the Senate is created to advise the Empress and give the nations a voice in the rule of the Empire. Following a plan developed in the Marches, a council of Generals is set up to co-ordinate the military forces of the various nations. The Synod is formed by the priests of Highguard, drawing together priests and allowing the Imperial Faith not only to serve as a unifying force but with a remit to ensure that the leaders of the Empier do not become corrupt. This power sharing is seen as a clever move to ensure no one group can easily dominate the entire empire, and to ensure that a weak or vainglorious Emperor can be controlled and channelled.

The Empress also defines up the process whereby a new Emperor or Empress will take the throne, intentionally removing any ability for rulers to create lineages or royal houses. In doing so she ensures that no one nation will easily dominate the Empire, but that instead it will be ruled for the betterment of all.

(22 AE) Death of the First Empress

• The First Empress dies
• The Empire is her legacy

The First Empress leads her troups from the front, rallying and inspiring them in their campaigns against orcs and humans alike. She dies shortly after a climactic battle against the barbarians. Historians argue as to whether it was a fatal wound inflicted by her wicked opponent, or a curse brought down on her by his death, Regardless, the woman who inspired the foundation of the Empire is dead. She is interred in the Necropolis at Highguard, beginning a tradition that many dead Emperors and Empresses will follow.

(22 AE - 34 AE) Reign of Emperor Giovanni the Peacemaker

• The Empress Dies
• The First Emperor establishes the seasonal meetings
• Creation of the new currency
• Urizen joins the Empire

The First Empress reigns for twenty-two years before she dies. Upon her death Emperor Giovanni of Sarvos is chosen by the Senate to replace her. An advisor to the late Empress, Giovanni is a statesman and politician rather than a military leader like his predecessor. He sets about ensuring the Empire has the infrastructure required to help it prosper. He "civillises" the Empire that the First Empress has carved out. His first act is to initiate a tradition of meeting once every three months at the site of the first meeting where the Empire was formed. A Senate building is built on the site, and it is declared Imperial Territory.

Giovanni approaches the people of Urizen with an invitation to join the Empire, and this time they accept. In addition to helping Giovanni to set up the Conclave, they offer their expertise as scholars and mages. Harnessing the power of Urizen divination with the manpower of the civil service helps Giovanni to make his egalitarian dreams a reality.

He also lays the foundations of the Bourse, and works with the Senate and Synod to codify the body of Imperial Law. During his reign he makes it illegal to use the old gold and silver coins that had been popular in many nations. Rather than continue to exist in circumstances where different currencies vied for supremacy, he establishes a single currency based on steel coins issued by the Imperial Mint, based in Tassato but it is also considered Imperial Territory and comes under the ultimate control of the Civil Service.

During Emperor Giovanni's rule,the Senate and the Synod begin to flex their political muscles, and the military is called on to deal with some rebellion, but the period is largely one of continued expansion and consolidation. Giovanni dies in 34AE but his legacy is at least as durable as that of his predecessor. His relentless commitment to civilisation earns Giovanni the ephithet "Peacemaker.".

(AE 30) Tragedy of the Horses

• The last horse dies

Precisely why horses died out is unclear. They are known to have existed, and the first Empress is always shown on a horse. By year thirty, however, there are no more horses. Never numerous, it is believed that horses are not native to the Empire but were imported by some of the original settlers. They do not prosper in the Empire, and are largely unknown among the Foreigners with whom the Empire deals.

Stability

(274 AE) Westward Expansion

• A campaign of expansion pushes the Empire west

A campaign to secure the western flank of the Empire takes the Mourn from orcs, and secures Mitwold to the sea giving the Empire a western coast.

(300 AE - 309 AE) Reign of Emperor Nicovar "the Mad"

• Urizen Emperor Nicovar elected and expands role of civil service
• Increasingly unstable Emperor burns universities and libraries across the Empire
• Civil War threatens

The first major “wobble” in the Empire occurs during the reign of Emperor Nicovar. Elected in the year 300, the Urizen Emperor is initially a competent administrator and expands the role of the civil service in support of the Empire. However, a decade of attempting to micromanage every element of the Empire, as well as a reliance on the magic of Day to gather and interpret ever greater amounts of information, eventually causes him to descend into madness.

He becomes increasingly unstable, perceiving patterns in events that appear paranoid to others. He begins to see conspiracies under every bush. His increasingly unpopular policies divide the Senate and the Synod, and there are rumbles of Civil War. He begins to demand extreme amounts of record keeping and it becomes increasingly clear that he is not in his right mind.

Things come to a head in 309 when Emperor Nicovar sends his troops to burn down universities and libraries. Using Imperial Troops against their own people threatens to destroy the Empire. There is a revolt, which culminates in the destruction of the central repository of records in Highguard and several key spires in Urizen. The mad emperor is executed by the captain of his own guard, the Navarri Thorn Isaella, who then immediately hands herself over to the Judiciary. The Synod calls for clemency, but the fact remains that she has murdered the Emperor. She takes full responsibility, and is executed as a traitor, while simultaneously being lauded as an exemplar of courage and duty and a hero of the Empire.

The destruction of the libraries leaves a big hole in the history of the Empire - thousands of books and scrolls are lost. While records exist, there are many gaps and those that remain are fragmentary. Over the next hundred and seventy-five years scholars try to recreate the books and records they have lost, but with mixed success.

Stability: Year 320 (155 years ago)

• A period of stability
• The Empire stops growing
• Orcs join the Empire

The Senate decrees that the Empire is now “big enough” and argues that further expansion is counterproductive, despite vociferous argument from the General Staff and the Synod. Prosperity follows. Trade routes with various Foreigners are established, and peace treaties are signed with various barbarians. Bregasland in the Marches is added to the Empire by treaty at this time.

Some barbarians continue to threaten the borders, but the army is forced into a defensive role. Some territories change hands several times over this period.

At some point during or just prior to this time, a handful of small orc tribes choose to join the Empire. The Imperials are pleased with the deal because they are getting dedicated shock troops. The Orcs are pleased with the deal because they are leaving a hunter-gatherer environment for an environment where their warrior ethic can prosper. Both sides think they are getting the better of the deal.

Decline

Year 424 (50 years ago)

• Stagnation leads to decline
• Successive weak emperors allow territory to be lost to barbarians
• Discontent grows in Empire

The period of stability slowly devolves into a period of decline. Territories are lost to the barbarians. A greedy and corrupt Senate, more concerned about its internal political manoeuvring than the strength of the Empire, supports two successive “average” emperors and a third catastrophically incompetent ruler.

Resurgence

Year 474 (2 years ago)

• A vibrant young Empress comes to the throne
• Seen as a reincarnation of the first Empress, she galvanizes the Empire
• Some territory is reclaimed by the orcs

The new Empress, in the wake of the disastrous previous Emperor, takes up the sword and shield and challenges the corruption of the Senate and Synod. She demands and receives powers for herself and the Generals, and begins to formulate and prosecute a campaign to recover lost territories and drive the barbarians back.

A popular and charismatic figure, she unites the people of the Empire behind her and deals ruthlessly with her enemies. The Empire begins to drive the barbarians back.

Year 476 (this year)

• The new Empress dies on campaign, creating a power vacuum

The Empress is killed on campaign. The first event of the year takes place some short time after her death. It is possible her body has yet to be recovered and will make part of the plot for the first year.