Lore:Aldmeri Dominion

The   refers to any of at least three separate empires established by the   on the continent of   over the course of its history. The term "Aldmeri" is literally translated as "Home of the Elves". While the justifications have differed, each incarnation of the Dominion has sought the same objective: to reassert Elven dominance over Tamriel. 

First Aldmeri Dominion
:"Only the Aldmeri—the High Elves and their noble allies, the Wood Elves and Cat-Men—have the wisdom and restraint to peaceably rule the disparate peoples of Tamriel. Though we are reluctant to take up this burden, events have shown that we must. Recent events prove that the Dragon Break was not a unique event. Men always follow the destructive path of their defender and apologist, the Missing God whom we shall not name. This ends here. Once again, Elves shall rule Tamriel from White-Gold Tower... this time, forever. The world has gone wrong, and we must put it right. March proudly beneath the eagle banner of the Aldmeri Dominion! " — Aicantar of Shimmerene 
The original Aldmeri Dominion, also known as the First Aldmeri Dominion, was an empire founded by   in  , in the midst of the  .   It was conceived after Ayrenn assumed the throne of  . Having traveled Tamriel extensively before returning to the  , she was aware of the dire threats menacing the world and saw it as the proper duty of the Elves to put things right.  At the same time, the   and   were facing troubles of their own and in need of allies. Consequently, the Summerset Isles,  , and   signed the   and joined together to form the Dominion, which by the end of 2E 580 had entered the    to claim  's Ruby Throne and control of Tamriel, as well as to prevent the rival   and   from doing the same. The First Aldmeri Dominion's ultimate goal was to usher in a new age of Elven rule across Tamriel in order to protect the land from the careless actions of the younger races. This was never accomplished, and the Dominion eventually dissolved.

Second Aldmeri Dominion
The Second Aldmeri Dominion was formed in   when the Summerset Isles conquered Valenwood over a dynastic dispute. When the heirs of the   sought to capture Valenwood's throne, a faction of Bosmer attempted to make peace with their enemies in the   by offering part of the Valenwood territory in exchange for the faction's own claimant. The Altmer, upon hearing of this, invaded Valenwood, citing a stewardship clause in a thousand-year-old treaty between their nations.  The Altmer established the   as the new government in Valenwood on behalf of their claimant  , whose ancestors had made the treaty. Since the Interregnum still gripped Tamriel, the Colovian armies were easily forced back by the Elves and the Second Aldmeri Dominion was born. Over the next several years, the Thalmor strengthened their hold on Valenwood and Bosmer tribes continued to skirmish with the Colovian Estates. The Elves also made allies with some  , the   of  , and the Elsweyr Confederacy.

Meanwhile,   rose to power in Cyrodiil and began his conquest of Tamriel. The nascent   expanded and encroached on Dominion territory, forcing the Bosmer attacks to subside. Despite their military setbacks on land, at sea the Elven forces were considerably more powerful and steadfastly held the southern waters from the   to the  . Although there was no formal declaration of war between the Dominion and the Empire, Tamriel had become divided between them in an unfolding clash of civilizations. The catastrophic use of the   ended the long confrontation in  , resulting in the surrender of the Summerset Isles and the human conquest of Tamriel. The Second Aldmeri Dominion would represent the last time for centuries that the Elves of Tamriel ruled sovereign kingdoms on the continent, the legacy of the   and   holdings.

Third Aldmeri Dominion
The   that ended the   and weakened the Empire provided the opportunity for the Third Aldmeri Dominion to form. The Thalmor, who had survived as a marginalized political faction that espoused Elven superiority, painted themselves as the saviors of the Summerset Isles during the Crisis. The Altmer public believed these claims, and with the Empire too disarrayed to reassert its authority, the Thalmor's popularity swelled. In  , the Thalmor solidified their position and seized total control of the Summerset Isles, renaming it Alinor. Seven years later, a Thalmor-backed coup overthrew Valenwood's government, routing Imperial forces and their Bosmer supporters. Alinor and Valenwood then proclaimed a union, and the Aldmeri Dominion was reborn.

For the next 70 years all contact between the Dominion and the Empire was severed, leading to speculation of civil unrest in Alinor. Whatever the cause of this silence, it ended in   with the abatement of the  : the Thalmor declared they had caused the return of   and  . This earned them great favor in the former Imperial province of Elsweyr; the Khajiit in particular had suffered during the moons' absence. Under Thalmor influence, Elsweyr split into the kingdoms of   and   in  , which subsequently became client states of the Dominion.

As the Dominion grew, so did tensions between it and the Empire. In  , the Thalmor invaded   and Cyrodiil after Emperor   rejected their ultimatum, opening the  . Initially seeking only to add Hammerfell to its territory, the Thalmor soon realized that the Empire was much weaker than they initially assumed and advanced deeper into Cyrodiil. The   fell in  , but Titus II escaped and joined   stationed in  , where he plotted his counterattack. The Thalmor army in Cyrodiil was obliterated in the  , their greatest defeat, the following year.

Rather than capitalizing on his victory to evict the Thalmor from Hammerfell or attack the Dominion, Titus II acknowledged that the Imperial legions were exhausted and decided to agree to the  . Under the Concordat's terms, the Great War formally ended,   worship was banned within the Empire, and a significant portion of southern Hammerfell was ceded to the Dominion. Angered by the terms, Hammerfell rejected the Concordat, forcing Titus II to renounce it as an Imperial province. The Thalmor continued fighting Hammerfell over the next five years, but signed the   and withdrew its forces from the region when the war reached a stalemate. 

By  , the Dominion and the Empire had settled into an uneasy peace. When Skyrim became embroiled in a civil war between Imperial loyalists and secessionist  , the Dominion watched the conflict warily. A long civil war would keep both Skyrim and the Empire distracted and off-balance, but a victory by either faction would hinder the Dominion's plans, one way or another.  It was believed that whatever the outcome, a second conflict between the Dominion and Empire was inevitable.

See Also
For game-specific information about the First Aldmeri Dominion, see the ESO article.

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