Lore:Third Era Wars

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The following is a list of all known wars and conflicts during the Third Era.

The War of the Isle
   

The province of Summerset was nearly lost under the leadership of Antiochus. King Orgnum of the island-kingdom of Pyandonea attacked Summerset Isle as a result of a political plot of Queen Potema of Solitude.

The united alliance of the kings of Summerset and Antiochus only managed to defeat King Orgnum due to a freak storm. Legend credits the Psijic Order of the Isle of Artaeum with the magic behind the storm and victory, rather than the Imperial Navy.

The War of the Red Diamond
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Kintyra II became Empress on the death of her father, Antiochus, in 3E 120. Her uncles, Cephorus King of Gilane and Magnus King of Lilmoth, attended the coronation, but her aunt, Queen   of Solitude, was banished after insulting Kintyra in front of the Elder Council. Potema was scheming to obtain the throne for herself and her son, Uriel. Her schemes resulted in a civil war known as the War of the Red Diamond, the name coming from the symbol of the Imperial family. In early surprise attacks, Skyrim and High Rock were easily defeated by the force of Queen Potema. The war was highly contested, but was abruptly decided by the death of Potema's claimant, Uriel III, in 3E 127. While the end of the succession crisis ostensibly brought an end to the conflict, Potema held out in Solitude with an undead army for another decade.

During this civil war, the Knights of the Nine were fractured and later completely dissolved. The four recovered relics of Pelinal Whitestrake were used in the war and lost afterwards.

More information can be found in the books The Wolf Queen and Biography of the Wolf Queen.

Major Battles
Battle of Ichidag, 3E 127. Forces under Cephorus defeated Uriel III, who was killed in the aftermath of the battle. Cephorus was crowned Emperor.  
Battle of Falconstar, 3E 127. Contemporaneously with the Battle of Ichidag, the forces of Queen Potema fought the forces of Magnus Septim in Skyrim. Upon learning of her son's capture, Potema flew into a rage and led a successful assault on Magnus' weakest flank, causing Magnus and his army to retreat. Word reached them soon after of Uriel III's death.
Siege of Solitude, 3E 137. The Wolf Queen, Potema of Solitude, was finally defeated after a month-long siege of her castle. Although not a full part of the War of the Red Diamond, the siege is best viewed as a postscript, as with the death of the entire royal family except Cephorus, Magnus, Pelagius and Jolethe, all possible argument over the line of succession was ended. 

The Camoran Usurper's Invasion
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Haymon Camoran, known as the Camoran Usurper, a pretender to the Camoran throne of Valenwood, conquered all of Valenwood and Hammerfell with an army of daedra and undead.

In 3E 267, the combined armies of High Rock mustered the greatest navy ever seen, and defeated and killed the Camoran Usurper and his armies on the Iliac Bay and on land.

Major Battles
 ,  . The defeat of the armies of Taneth and Rihad lead to the fall of southern Hammerfell. 
 ,  . The   had taken over Dwynnen, but they were later defeated by Othrok and his armies from the forest. He later became the first Baron of Dwynnen and started to prepare his fight against the Usurper.  
 ,  . The combined armies of Dwynnen, Ykalon, Phrygia, and Kambria led by Dwynnen's Baron Othrok finally defeated the Usurper. 

The Invasion of Akavir
23rd of Rain's Hand,   -   

Uriel Septim V attempted to invade the continent of Akavir, starting with the Tsaesci Kingdom. The preparations for the invasion begun in the  ,  almost immediately after Uriel V took the throne, started off with the invasion of several islands between Tamriel and Akavir and were concluded in   when final scouting actions were done on Akavir soil. A special Far East Fleet, the largest fleet in Tamriel's history, was created for the invasion. After that, the Expeditionary Force was sent to Akavir in 3E 288. Despite initial success, due to unusual weather, no permanent supply routes were possible to establish. Early in the winter of 3E 290, the majority of Uriel V's invasion force, including thousands of colonists, were killed and the emperor himself was slain in combat.

Major Battles
,   -  . The Far East Fleet sets sail for Akavir on the way conquering the kingdoms of Cathnoquey, Esroniet, Roscrea, and Yneslea.
, Mid Year  . Six weeks after Uriel's fleet took off from Black Harbor on Esroniet, they landed on Akavir and took a river port town from the Tsaesci populace that abandoned it as soon as they saw the Expeditionary Force. They renamed it Septimia and it was to be the first colony of the newly founded Imperial Province of Akavir.
, 3E 288. Soon after capturing Septimia, the emperor himself marched along the river and found another abandoned city, named Ionith after it was taken.
, Sun's Height  . The emperor had his legions attack the amassing Tsaesci forces north of Ionith. Even though the Tsaesci were caught off guard and their leader captured, the legions were forced to fall back and took heavy losses during the retreat. As a result, Ionith was besieged and remained such until its eventual fall.
, 3E 290. After contact was established with the Far East Fleet, that was sent to return with supplies, the emperor ordered the army to break through the enemy lines and to fall back to Septimia. Not far from Ionith, on the road to Septimia, the remains of the Expeditionary Force were ambushed. Uriel V and his personal guard, the Tenth Legion, stayed behind to hold off the Tsaesci, while the others continued their retreat. Only two men from the Tenth Legion survived to tell the tale of emperor's demise.
, 3E 290. Two days after Ionith was abandoned, the fleet that had returned with the supplies found the town of Septimia under heavy siege by Tsaesci forces. They drove the attackers away, rescued the survivors and left for Tamriel.

Wars during the Imperial Simulacrum, 3E 389 - 3E 399
Imperial Battlemage   betrayed and secretly imprisoned Emperor   and used     to masquerade as the Emperor for a decade.  Imperial authority declined under the Simulacrum, resulting in several provincial wars.

The Five Year War
 
The Arnesian War
  

What started as a simple slave revolt in the House Dres lands to the south escalated into a full war between Morrowind and Black Marsh.  The cause of the war was the death of a Dunmer trader named Roris, who was later canonized into a saint by the Tribunal Temple.  He was captured by the Argonian rebels and when he refused to denounce his faith, he was brutally tortured and murdered. When news of his death reached the rest of Morrowind, war was declared on Black Marsh. Morrowind's armies ultimately defeated the Argonians and expanded Morrowind's territory to the south. 

The father of the famous Dunmer painter Rythe Lythandas was a known participant in the war. After peace was established, a commission was created to repair the damage done by the war. 

War of the Blue Divide
  

Named after the body of water separating them, the War of the Blue Divide pitted Summerset Isle against its former ally Valenwood. After a vicious but short war, Summerset defeated Valenwood,  gaining several coastal islands as a result of the war.  The most notable damage from the war was when the Altmeri destroyed many of Valenwood's harbors. 

The only known episodes concerning the war was when in 3E 396 the Bosmeri Parikh tribe began their rampage through southeastern Valenwood against other tribes, receiving aid from Summerset itself.  It is unknown whether or not this was the cause of the war.

Major Battles
 , 3E 397. Summerset Isle surrounded the coastal city with the intent of starving its inhabitants and forcing them to surrender. Since the Bosmer practice cannibalism, the attack was presumed to have been a tactical error on Summerset's part. A humorous contemporary remark stated that "at the end, only one fat wood elf will remain to wave the flag". 

The War of the Bend'r-mahk
 
Invasion of the Battlespire
The Daedric legions of Mehrunes Dagon invaded the Imperial Battlespire, slaughtering the stationed Imperial Battlemages and blocking reinforcements from Nirn. The invasion was suggested by Jagar Tharn to gain the support of Dagon. The Daedric armies retreated back into Oblivion, but the actions of   and an apprentice ultimately led to the destruction of the Battlespire. 

The War of Betony
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The war was caused when Lord Mogref of   asked King Lysandus of   for protection against pirates and other brigands. King Camaron of Sentinel and his advisors, citing an old contract that suggested Betony was a holding of their kingdom, declared war. Hostilities ended after Lysandus' son, Gothryd, who became king after his father was killed in battle at Cryngaine Field, won the battle and defeated Camaron in single combat. Sentinel surrendered and Betony passed under the control of Daggerfall.

More information can be found in two books, both called The War of Betony. Vulper Newgate's version contains the official history, as written by the victors; Fav'te's book, however, tells the story from the viewpoint of a citizen of Sentinel. The Daggerfall Chronicles also provides a slightly different version of the story, a summary of which can be read here.

Major Battles
 : The first major battle of the war. Won by Daggerfall. 
 : The Island of Craghold was besieged by the forces of Sentinel for several days, but the siege was broken by Daggerfall forces under Lord Bridwell.  
 : Final battle of the conflict. The battlefield was covered in a dense mist created by Skakmat, and after it lifted King Lysandus was found to have perished from an arrow through either his heart  or his throat.   His son Gothryd was crowned on the battlefield and led the army to victory.

Oblivion Crisis
 
 

 
Notes
 

References