Lore:Cheydinhal

Cheydinhal is one of the nine major cities in the province of Cyrodiil, situated in the boreal highlands of the Nibenay Basin. Cheydinhal is an idyllic and prosperous Nibenese city that is most well-known for its heavily Dunmeri inspired culture and architecture, which came in nearly half a century before the Fourth Era. The city is known for its broad, green parkland and neatly trimmed cityscape, all of which surround the graceful willows of the Corbolo River.  Cheydinhal is also known as the home of House Tharn, an ancient family of Imperials that have lived in the region since before the Empire's inception.  
 

Layout & Geography
thumb|left|Castle Cheydinhal
thumb|right|Symbol of Cheydinhal
Cheydinhal is built on the Blue Road, one of the important thoroughfares of the Imperial Province, which stretches between the temperate climate of the  , and the misty alpines of the  . It is surrounded by evergreen woodland and the steep foothills of the nearby   to the east, the land north of the city has been controlled by House Tharn since the late First Era.  The region provides little flatland for any settlement as large as Cheydinhal, with the closest being the small farming community in   just south of the city or even estates across the county. While the exact border of the county are unclear, the area north between the city and the   is part of Cheydinhal. 

The city is split between three different districts, the land of Castle Cheydinhal, the Chapel District, and the Market District. They are separated by the banks of the Corbolo River and the willow trees that laden the river. The Market District lies on the west side of the river, and here is where all of Cheydinhal's commerce is located. It is complimented with a statue depicting  , the founder of the  . The Chapel District is located on the east side of the river and it contains both the Great Chapel of Arkay and the residential quarter.  It is said that even the poorest citizens are bright and clean. To the north on the same side as the Market District is Castle Cheydinhal's courtyard and inner keep. Both sides are connected by bridges and the long park island in the middle of the river. 

Notable Locales

 

History
Early History & the Alliance War
thumb|right|Sylvian Herius of Cheydinhal
thumb|left|Chancellor Abnur Tharn
While it is known that House Tharn of Cheydinhal has existed in the region since before the   was founded,  it is unknown when exactly the settlement, nor the county of Cheydinhal were founded. Some of the earliest mentions of Cheydinhal dates back to the   circa  s, when General   became the Earl of Outer Cheydinhal before he married the niece of Admiral  . 

When the   left the province of Cyrodiil sundered and ruined in the mid- , the Imperial garrison in Cheydinhal amassed control over the town and imposed themselves as tyrannical rulers, often forcing the people into borderline slavery. They would draft able-bodied people into their ranks whether they wanted to or not, however, when they tried to draft a commoner,  , he ran away into the wilderness and left his family devastated.  

That event was the spark for a large revolution led by  , who called the people together to raise their arms against the  . Eventually, the town had been split by the Corbolo, with the west occupied by the rebels and the east controlled by the Legion. Another figure,   joined the resistance later and proved a capable leader, coming at odds with Sylvian's authority. 

By  , the   raged across central Cyrodiil, engulfing Cheydinhal in the conflict. Generally speaking, the ruins of the city was located in territory controlled by the  , but real power over the roads around Cheydinhal were determined by control over nearby  .  Every so often,   of the Alliances would travel to the city and assist the rebellion in their plans to take down the Imperial Legion.
 

Cheydinhal in the Third Empire
thumb|right|Count Andel Indarys
thumb|left|The last of the Knights of the Thorn
Sometime in the fifth century of the  , many Dark Elves traveled west from their ancestral homeland of Morrowind, to distance themselves from their rigid society and the   theocracy. They were said to have been inspired by the patronage of  , which propagated the stimulating commercial atmosphere in Cyrodiil. Half a century later, one of these immigrants,   became the Count of Cheydinhal, alongside his wife,  . His sudden rise to the Cheydinhal nobility is hard to explain and most of the oldest Imperial families regarded him as a "presumptuous upstart." When his wife was discovered on the steps of Castle Cheydinhal badly battered and later dead, it quickly turned Andel Indarys into a very controversial figure, and many rumors of suspicion, wrath, and infidelity began to follow him. It left several people, such as the writer,   to believe a darker mystery was at play. 

When the   occurred in  , Count Andel Indarys enlisted the help of the  , led by his son, Sir   to vanquish the   from their domain. Their endeavor ended in failure, reportedly outnumbered by a hundred to one and that only Farwil and Sir   survived in the  . That was until the   delved into the Oblivion Gate and fought their way through the volcanic wastes and the demonic Sigil Keep with the remnants of the knighthood. It is unknown if the knights survived the ordeal but the gate was closed and Cheydinhal was saved.   The Count later offered their assistance to the Hero for the defense of   by sending some soldiers.  The Hero was able to infiltrate the Sigil Keep in the Great Oblivion Gate and acquire the  . 

thumb|left|Rythe Lythandas
thumb|right|The Sword of the Crusader
Concurrent to the Crisis, many noteworthy events took place in Cheydinhal. For one, the famous painter,   went missing for several days, leaving his wife, Tivela grieving. Some rumored that Rythe was kidnapped by the Cheydinhal Guard and kept in for ransom.  When an   came to their place to investigate, they discovered that his canvas was a magical portal to a painted world created by the  . A thief stole the brush and delved deep into the painted forest and that the only way they can escape is if they can find the brush. Rythe and the adventurer were able to escape.  The   reported on the incident, but the Lythandas family did not comment on what exactly happen, nor told the name of the person that helped them. 

The Captain of the Guard,   used his power to impose heavy tax and extort people for their money. While the Count took no notice of these activities, the second in-command of the guard,   did not take these actions lightly and collaborated with a traveler to thwart his corruption. The traveler talked to one of the citizens,  , who was thrown out of his home for not complying with the guard.  He confronted the guard in front of his home and was subsequently killed for fighting back. Afterward, the traveler began to talk with Garrus and another citizen,  , Ulrich's most out-spoken critic. They each offered a solution to the situation, but it is unknown which method was used. In any case, Ulrich's schemes was caught and Garrus was promoted to the Captain of the Guard.  At around the same time,   assaulted the chapel of Arkay and killed many people, including the Living Saint,  . The   defeated the Aurorans and blessed the   at the altar in the chapel. 

Cheydinhal in the Fourth Era
thumb|left|Emperor Titus Mede II
Cheydinhal continued well after the end of the Third Era, but faced tribulations when the floating city of   made its way toward the county-seat from across the Valus Mountains. People from across the region such as the folk in   were escorted to Cheydinhal as the Umbriel  s positioned themselves a few hundred yards from the city, just out of range from the ballistae and catapults. After a day of fighting, the people in Cheydinhal were able to evacuate the city and head down the Blue Road toward the Imperial City. The Knights of the Thorn, led by   helped the Imperial Legion escort the refugees. After the crisis was resolved, the people of Cheydinhal returned to their homes. 

Emperor   had split his armies into three at the tail end of the   for what would become later known as the   in  . General   and her army of Nordic Legion soldiers were stationed near Cheydinhal before they reached the   and advanced south to the  , where they met General  ' army in the west, to completely surround the  . 

On the 1st of   in  , the city of Cheydinhal erupted into violence and chaos like other cities at the time. The details on such an event is currently unknown but what is known is that the Dark Brotherhood's sanctuary in Cheydinhal was left deserted in   by the Keeper of the  ,  , the last remnant of the province's brotherhood.  On another note, despite the past conflicts that crippled Cheydinhal throughout the years, its most esteemed citizen, Rythe Lythandas continued to live out his days in the city, even supplying people with rare samples of  . 
 

Culture
thumb|right|The Symbol of Cheydinhal
thumb|left|Staff of Indarys
In  , the   mandated that the sale of spells throughout Cyrodiil should be re-distributed to separate guildhalls and that certain halls in the county cities should focus on a specific school. The Cheydinhal Mages Guild was made the center of the province's School of  ,  at least up until the guild's dissolution in the Fourth Era. The city's patron divine is Arkay, the God of Life and Death and veneration for the deity takes place in the Great Chapel of Arkay in the city's chapel district.  The cathedral is the largest building in Cheydinhal and it can be seen from miles away. 

There is a play called the   written by the playwright,   that is based on a famous haunted house in Cheydinhal.  It is based on a real-world folktale that he happened upon in Cheydinhal, about a haunted house that locals were certain was haunted. The story had frightened him so much that it gave him the inspiration to create the script. By the time he had started his first draft, he was already in talks with the   to see it performed on stage. Baloth-Kul claims that his story explains the layout of the original haunted house to a tee. 

The land north of Cheydinhal that House Tharn rules is known as Outer Cheydinhal, originally leased to the Nibenese family in the late First Era when General Turpis "Volte-Face" Tharn married Bendu Olo's niece, at the end of the War of Righteousness.     in this region was mined by Tharn vassals for   and  , but by the mid-Second Era, it lost its original purpose. 

Later in the First Era, a farmer outside of Cheydinhal discovered a large carrot of significant proportions, one that stood taller than a fully grown  . It was bought for an undisclosed amount of money by Emperor  's castellan and turned into the centerpiece of a dish called  . It was part of the third course in a feast hosted by Emperor Brazollus Dor, the feast of Saint  .  Cheydinhal is reportedly famous for its thirty-layered cake.  

  was a wizard from Cheydinhal that is most well-known for his attempt to animate the   statue in   and his conical hat that twisted into a spiral. Rumors have said that whenever Fibonaccus was surprised, the hat would unfurl and stand straight up. 

Dark Elf Diaspora
When the Dark Elves of Morrowind came to Cheydinhal, they brought a lot of their culture along with them, which shaped the city ever since.  For the longest time, Cheydinhal was built in the traditional Imperial style seen across central Cyrodiil,  but after the Dark Elves migrated into Cheydinhal, it soon took on aspects of their ornate architecture style.   Buildings were made half-timbered and given concave roofs similar to the ornate and traditional style seen in mainland  ,  most notably with the former capital,  .

Not only did they bring their architecture, but they brought over their celebrations, such as the St. Jiub's Fair, which honors the eponymous   of Morrowind,   the Eradicator.  He was initially canonized by the   for his crusade against the  s.  By the late Third Era, Cheydinhal was ruled by a Dunmer family, Clan  , whose crest depicts a tied thorny bramble.  For several generations, they have lived in Castle Cheydinhal with two family heirlooms, the   and the  ,  the latter of which serves as a symbol of the city's knightly order, the Knights of the Thorn. 

Gallery
 

See Also
For game-specific information, see the Oblivion and Online articles.
Books



References