Lore:Ra Gada

The   (sometimes spelled Ra' Gada  or Ra'Gada ) was the name given to the Yokudan "Warrior Wave" that left the doomed continent of   and sailed towards  . This mass colonization occurred in four successive waves during the eighth and ninth centuries of the  , and spanned approximately twenty eight years.   The native  s,  s and  s fell to them quickly, as did the various creatures and beasts farther inland. Eventually, they claimed the entire province after only a few major battles and established a new home for the Yokudan people called  . 

The term Ra Gada became corrupted to  , and although it originally referred only to the warriors of the refugees, it gradually came to be used to refer to the whole race.  
 
The Warrior Waves
:"No pity or mercy shall be afforded the wretch who stands against the Warrior Wave" &mdash; The Unveiled Azadiyeh''
right|thumb|300px|A map showing the islands of Lore:Yokuda|Yokuda, the ancient home of the Redguards
Frandar Hunding
The first recorded wave of migration took place around  , prior to the destruction of Yokuda. After winning a war against Emperor  ,   and his army of  s left their homeland and sailed to Hammerfell.  Alongside him were renown warriors such as  ,   and his son  .   Hunding's flotilla of ships landed in Hammerfell and discovered vast numbers of giant   strongholds littering the sands. Frandar refused to co-exist with the   tribe on their new homeland, and rallied his army to slay the beasts. Frandar was killed in one of the early conflicts, but Divad pushed onward and conquered the  .  

The Tavans
The next wave is believed to have occurred around the time of Yokuda's sinking in  .  This wave consisted of ships that departed from both the continent and its islands, including   and  , the largest island of Yokuda and home to its capital. The bulk of the refugees, including the   ruling class, were put ashore on the island of   while the Ra Gada sailed on to mainland   in  .   

The fleet first landed at   on the southwest coast of Hammerfell. From Hegathe they spread along both southern and western coasts, while others continued north and east into Hammerfell itself. 

The fifty-six ships of the second wave went to the southeast.  Also known as the "Tavan wave", the Tavans revered the Yokudan bird-god  , and believed she guided them to Herne. As such, Tavan arms and armor were replete with bird imagery.    Their fleet of fifty-six ships traveled towards   and the southern coast of Hammerfell.  The island of   was one of the first landfalls settled by the Yokudans.  They discovered the peninsula of  . Led by Prince  , he established the city of   and built a citadel named No Shira.  Some accounts speak of a Ra Gada sect known as the  . These warriors also revered Tava and were possibly related to the Tavans. They were known to engrave their blades with the wings of a hawk, and employed a fighting style so aggressive that it left their enemies standing stunned. They fought in a conflict known as the Battle of Six Hands, but much of the details are lost to history. 
right|thumb|300px| , the current home of the Redguards

Grandee Yaghoub
To the north went the third wave of warrior-sailors under the leadership of Grandee  , in ships they had brought from Akos Kasaz. Yaghoub was the first of the Ra Gada to discover the   as he rounded  . Yaghoub, following the constellation of  , decided to make his home on the northern coast of Hammerfell and established the city of  .
   Many of the Ra Gada kings were wealthy corsairs, and raided Breton coastal cities and merchant vessels along the southern Iliac Bay.  However on one occasion, Peregrine   drove an entire Ra Gada flotilla back to Sentinel by using her prodigious sorcery to manipulate the waves of the Iliac Bay. 

Ra Gada colonists from the island of Yath clashed with an  i clan known as the  . They quickly established settlements along the coasts of Cape Shira, and built a grand palace in a valley known as the  . They also attacked the Altmeri inhabitants of  , and established their own settlement within the ruins.  The Yokudans pushed farther inland into   and discovered the ruins of  , which were also inhabited by  . 

The Anka-Ra
The fourth wave of Ra Gada was arguably the most ruthless. Led by the self proclaimed emperor  , the   cut a bloody swath across Hammerfell and all the way into   in their search for a new home.   In their wake, the Nedes as a distinctive people disappeared from the historical record shortly after their arrival, although some accounts claim Nedic culture was already fading prior to the Ra-Gada.  Of note are a band of prominent   known as The Four. According to legend, their prowess with the Shehai was unmatched and they single-handedly captured Nedic fortifications, breached walls, and cut down entire armies. 

The Anka-Ra established  , a vast complex believed to be used as a training ground for their  .  

The Forebears
Once the Ra Gada had established footholds in Hammerfell, the Na-Totambu ruling council and the Yokudan nobility followed and rapidly resumed their traditional rule. In response the renowned warrior Razul, a contemporary of Divad Hunding, made himself Yokeda (or Lord) to cement the power of the Ra Gada.

After conquering Hammerfell, the Yokudans found themselves in a time of relative peace. Many Ra Gada put down their swords, in favor of their love of farming and building. Within three generations, many Yokudans forgot the teachings of the Way of the Sword, leaving them vulnerable until the time of  .  

Under the provincial organization of the  , Redguard society fractured to form two "parties" to aid Cyrodiil's administration of Hammerfell. The Na-Totambu ruling class retained the rights of noble council, and began calling themselves the " " to illustrate their history of leadership and nobility. The warriors of the Ra Gada were granted rights of ownership within their tribal districts. This empowerment fundamentally changed the Ra Gada, who began to call themselves the " ", to emphasize the fact that they arrived on Tamriel first.  Despite the Forebears' later desire to assimilate, their forefathers were strongly opposed to outsiders during the First Era, and were mostly responsible for preventing the   from having a strong presence in Hammerfell. 

Notes
The emblem of the Ra Gada was said to be the water symbol, however no known representation of it exists. 
The warlords of the Ra Gada were awarded medals when they first arrived on Tamriel's shores, some of which were still in circulation into the mid-Second era. 
In  , several Ra Gada artifacts were circulating around the   area. Light armor, blunt weapons, longbows and magically protective warpaint were among the documented items. 
Several items of Ra Gada weaponry also came to light in Cyrodiil in  , at the time of the  . 

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