Direnni Hegemony The Direnni Hegemony was the early Elven kingdom established within the traditional region of High Rock in 1E 355 . The Hegemony gained its namesake due to the massive significance of the ruling Direnni Clan , in which controlled the Hegemony throughout its entire duration from their great stronghold on the Isle of Balfiera known as Direnni Tower . The Hegemony would collapse in the year 1E 498 with the rapid ascendancy of the Breton population . Background . The Direnni Hegemony ' s authority was for the most part decentralized , with its sworn vassals given a significant amount of autonomy . Feudalistic social castes were widespread throughout the Hegemony , with this method of organization being heavily reflected later on through the ruling families of Breton society . Contrary to earlier beliefs , the Elves of High Rock did not outright enslave the humans of the lands they dominated . Rather , Nedic peoples found within their lands were made subject to the Elven aristocracy and were placed in the lowest levels of the Hegemony ' s social hierarchy . The low societal standing held by humans saw to it that many of them were forced into servitude , working for their Elven overlords . Due to the Direnni ' s unorthodox liberal attitude towards fornication with humans , many Elven lords would compete to collect the most attractive human concubines . Laws were eventually established that gave the Elven nobility permission to mate with any human they desired , contributing heavily to the creation of the Breton race . History . While some sources state that the Direnni ' s rise to power began with Ryain Direnni , who , in the early fifth century of the First Era , was said to have bought Balfiera and conquered High Rock . The Direnni ' s influence in the area is in fact much older , finding its earliest roots back in the middle Merethic Era when Cygnus Direnni discovered the Adamantine Tower and claimed it for her clan . Since then , the Direnni Clan would become the most prominent noble family within the region . Certain sources seem to imply the Direnni may have conquered the Nede s of High Rock prior to their settlement of Balfiera , however these may be in reference towards Elves in general . Despite the clan ' s long history , the Direnni Hegemony itself was not formed until much later . It was only in the year 1E 355 that Clan Direnni managed to consolidate all the other Elven noble families under their rulership through questionable political maneuvers . For years the Elves of High Rock were a large enough economic and military power to hold back the Nords of Skyrim and the Alessian Empire in Cyrodiil . The Elven holdings remained safe from foreign incursion until the conquests of High King Vrage in 1E 240 , which led to the annexation of almost the entire region into the Nordic Empire . However , around the year 1E 358 , only three years after the Elves of High Rock united under the leadership of the Direnni Bloodline , the Hegemony began to push back against the invading Nordic forces in the Western Reach . This effort was miraculously achieved even while the Nords received committed military aid from the Alessian Empire . In the year 1E 369 , the unexpected death of High King Borgas and its subsequent succession crisis erupted Skyrim into the bloody War of Succession , making the Nordic Empire incapable of defending its outlying territories . With the entirety of Skyrim at war with itself , the First Empire of the Nords began to collapse . The Direnni took advantage of this opportune moment and began further reclaiming Elven territories that had been lost to the Nords decades ago . By the year 1E 401 , the Hegemony had completely removed all Nordic influence from High Rock . With its neighboring lands still in turmoil , the Direnni Hegemony began its own conquest , seizing large portions of Skyrim and Hammerfell , stretching as far as Markarth and Elinhir . Conflicts with Skyrim would continue long after the War of Succession , with the Direnni Hegemony facing off with the armies of Hoag Merkiller sometime in between the years 1E 461 and 1E 477 . In the year 1E 477 , the Hegemony reached the height of its power , then spanning a fourth of the entire continent . The Direnni Hegemony had greatly benefited from the mass displacement of Ayleid s into their territories , fleeing the growing influence of the anti - elven Alessian Doctrines . The Ayleids who began leaving Cyrodiil for Direnni lands as early as 1E 361 , would come to dramatically bolster the Direnni ' s military power perhaps even allowing for the Direnni ' s coinciding expansion . In 1E 478 , the Alessian Empire suffered an embarrassing defeat at the hands of Rislav Larich ' s widespread Colovia n revolt . Ryain Direnni , the presiding head of the Direnni Hegemony , saw the defeat as a sign of weakness in the Empire , and took the opportunity to outlaw the Alessian Reform , which had taken root within the Breton population . The emboldened Ryain even began launching assaults on Alessian controlled territories . The Alessian Empire responded to the Direnni aggression with an all out invasion of the Hegemony , eventually culminating in 1E 482 at the Battle of Glenumbria Moors , where Hoag Merkiller set aside his hatred for the Elves to help defeat the Alessians , resulting in a crushing defeat for the Alessian Order . Though the Hegemony was victorious in its war against the Alessian Empire , the battle was so costly that the Direnni could no longer keep the vast reaches of their kingdom in check . Ysmir Wulfharth began reconquering the lands of Skyrim that had been lost to the Hegemony in previous wars , and within two decades , Breton nobility began seizing power all across High Rock . In the year 1E 498 , the Direnni Hegemony collapsed , with Elven sovereignty diminished to the Isle of Balfiera and a few heavily fortified bastions in the Western Reach . These Elven holdouts in the Western Reach would eventually fall during a bloody uprising of the native Reachmen population , leaving only Balfiera under Direnni control . It is generally accepted that the Bretons rose to prominence in High Rock through a great widespread rebellion against their Elven masters around 1E 500 , when the Hegemony was in decline . However , others claim that this event was much less a rebellion and more so a natural process brought about by the waning Direnni power over and already severely over - extended territory . From this historical view , in order to justify their claims to their holdings , the Breton populace began severely vilifying their former masters , causing the Direnni Clan of Balfiera to isolate themselves from the rest of High Rock . The Breton defamation of the Direnni may have led to the creation of myths that the Bretons , rather than gradually take the land from the Direnni , resisted their rulers through rebellion . By the time the Ra Gada arrived in 1E 808 , Clan Direnni had already fully retreated to their Island holdout of Balfiera . In 1E 907 The Redguard s attempted to invade the isle , but failed due to the Direnni ' s superior magical abilities .