Lore:Old Hroldan

Old Hroldan  (formerly known as Hroldan)  is a historical landmark in the southern river valley of the Reach, in the province of Skyrim. The land has frequently passed hands between the Reachfolk and the Nords of Karth. To the Nords, it is a historical settlement from the early   and one of their earliest known footholds in the Reach,  but to the local Reachfolk, the site was known as Hroldan Ring, and it was neutral grounds for the Reach tribes to trade resources or share stories with one another.  The site is known as Ahroldan in the Dragon language.  
 

History
thumb|right|Markarth
It is unknown who first settled on the area, but the name dates back to the early First Era, when that portion of the southern Karth River valley was part of  , at the time under Jarl  .   At the time it was known simply as H'roldan, and it was a large spacious wooden hall with open land for pasturing. It was reportedly taken from the Reachfolk, and they would give   and   as tribute.  Many years later, Hroldan was the seat of an unknown Jarl, alongside the city of  . In  , Emperor   of the   ordered the   to seize hostages from both settlements, so their jarls can meet his conscripted quota. The incident had decrease public relations between the Dragonguard and the people of Skyrim. 

By the time the   took place, Old Hroldan was relinquished back to the Reachfolk and it was reverted to the site known as the Hroldan Ring. The meeting ground was featured in the fictional book,  . The eponymous   met with Clan-Chieftain   of the  , who informed her about the missing offerings for the spirits of Hroldan Ring. Some of the tribes including the Spirit-Tale Clan were nigh close to war, but the investigator was able to find the culprits in mere seconds. Two young hunters and a harmless prank gone wrong. The investigator was then granted safe passage through the Reach. 

thumb|left|The Meeting of Two Clans at Hroldan Ring
In  , the   gathered at Hroldan Ring at the behest of their matriarch,  , before they made their way south to the  . The matriarch promised the clan a great revelation inside the ruins, but it was later revealed to be a mass sacrifice to restore the   that rests underneath the Reach.  In that same year, two rival clans, the   and the   gathered at Hroldan Ring to celebrate the arranged marriage of their youngest members,   of the Eagleseers and   of the Six-Fords. Before the marriage had begun, the two ran out into the wilderness and the Chief-of-Chiefs,   sent an   to bring them back. Their quest eventually brought them across the Reach, on a journey to understand why the rivalry began in the first place, to maybe mend the broken connection the two clans had. The three of them returned to Hroldan Ring with the  , an artifact that symbolized the love between the two clan's founding members before it was broken. It is unknown whether they continued with the handfasting ceremony or not, but the feud between the Eagleseers and Six-Fords had eventually died out. 

thumb|right|The Ghost of Old Hroldan
By the late- , Old Hrol'dan was the site of an impervious stronghold still occupied by the Reachmen and it proved a formidable threat for the Nords of Southern Skyrim, especially for the Colovian-King of  ,  , who sought to unite the   for his campaign for the  . The King enlisted the help of his prized general,   to besiege the keep and secure their northern border. The   had commenced, and with his small band of  n troop and Nordic berserkers, General Hjalti broke the initial line until the enemy was forced back inside the gates. The next morning, the General approached the gates and penetrated the walls with ease and the power of his  . The enemy's volley of arrows did nothing to sedate him and soon, Old Hrol'dan's walls had completely fallen and Hjalti's soldiers stormed in, securing the keep. The general acquired the name of Hjalti   and later took on the Cyrodilic name,  . 

By the third century of the  , the only piece of property on Old Hroldan was a lowly inn owned by the publican,   and her husband. Throughout the years, she has managed to preserve Tiber Septim's bed and it has since been used.  One day, a   stayed in the inn for a night and woke up to find a   sitting idly in the inn. The ghost mistook the traveler for Hjalti and asked that he may be named his sworn brother, just as he promised him. The traveler left the inn to search for Hjalti's long-lost sword, somewhere in the expanse of the Reach. Eventually, they returned to Old Hroldan Inn and passed the sword onto the fallen soldier. Before he was able to rest in peace, the ghost taught the traveler techniques he and Hjalti learned from the swordmasters of  . 
 

Notes

In the late-Second Era, Old Hroldan was considered part of the province of  , and not far from it in an uninhabited mountain region was where the original  ish tribes were located after their exodus from the southwest in mythic times. 

See Also
For game-specific information, see the Skyrim and ESO articles.
Books


References