Principality of Edolarn

The Principality of Edolarn, commonly known simply as Edolarn, is a formal alliance and nation based in the Edolarn region of the Empire. Originally an independent state, Edolarn has long been under imperial control, until the recent War of the Black Throne

Pre-Mælstrom
The cold northern regions of Edolarn were never meant to be inhabited by the more civilised of the Ancient's races. The region was originally settled, however, by the Dwarves, who did not fear the inhospitable landscape above, retreating to deep and cavernous mountainhomes.

The mountainhomes of the Dwarves proved wealthy, with gold and other precious materials deep below the earth, and soon trade flourished. Eager to catch a share of the wealth, other races moved slowly north. Over a period of centuries, pioneers had established cities and some men had even pushed as far north as the Isles de Grans. It was not to last however.

When the Mælstrom came, Edolarn was in a strange position. Far enough away from it's epicenter, it's people could have survived as before, and indeed many of the cities did. But with trade with the south cut, people began to starve.

The Snow King
Desperate and dying after the Mælstrom, the first Snow King, Bjorn the Younger, struck a pact with the Dwarves under the ground. For resources needed to survive, he would pledge him and his families loyalty to the Dwarves, for all time. While the Dwarves did provide for all that could survive in their halls, the Snow King was soon forced to bring his people out into the air of the new world.

The fierce and independent people of Edolarn spread far from the Mountainhomes, each seeking their own desires throughout the cold and bitter land. Bjorn the Younger himself remained in Beurandorf, a great Mountainhome, seeking to rule over the new world. Under him, he made men of former nobility Princes of Edolarn, to rule over the new world. While some rejected this new order, Bjorn the Younger held dominion over larges swathes of the Edolarn at the time of his death.

War in the North
In 211, Emperor Alfred I began a unified push on the northern border of the Forstem Empire. Initially reaching the independent Northmen who had not remained under Beurandorf's rule, the Empire also found willing submission from these individuals

National Governance
Since the days of King Bjorn the Younger, Edolarn has maintained a stable feudal system which survived even the rule of the Forstem Empire. The Snow King maintained absolute power and authority, but granted power to the Princes to assist with rule. The Snow King maintains a court of the Princes, which decides on matters of national importance. The minutia of daily life and it's tasks are slowly fanned out as power trickles down the hierarchy.

The Snow King holds no lands officially except for the city of Beurandorf. The Princes rule in his name, each controlling one of the twelve regions of Edolarn. Much like the Snow King, the Princes often rule over the capital of their respective region.

Regional Governance
Under the Princes the Jarls rule. The same pattern is repeated once more: the Princes hold a court of their Jarls, and for their service the Jarls rule over much smaller packets of land. Under the Jarl a host of Thanes perform tasks to keep civilisation running, from the collection of taxes, to the keeping of the law to the distribution of food.