Exalted Age

The Exalted Age (5:00–5:99)[note 1] is the fifth named Age in the history of Thedas. Divine Justinia II chooses the name in recognition of the on-going Exalted Marches against the Imperial Chantry.
== Chronology ==
* 5:10 Exalted: The fourth Exalted March on the Imperial Chantry concludes with the Orlesian retreat.
: Calenhad the Great is born as the third son of a Highever merchant.Codex entry: The Legend of Calenhad: Chapter 1
: The Grey Wardens sign treaties with the various Alamarri teyrns and build a fortress in Denerim, as well as several small outposts to watch for signs of darkspawn.
* 5:12 Exalted: The series of Exalted Marches against the Imperial Chantry comes to a decisive end with the awakening of the Old God Andoral and the outbreak of the Fourth Blight.Dragon Age: Origins: Prima Official Game Guide Collector's Edition - Traveler's Guide, p. 344. Darkspawn emerge mainly in the northeast and northwest of Thedas.
: Antiva is swarmed by darkspawn. The Grey Wardens arrive to evacuate Antiva City but the royal family refuse to leave. The Antivan Royal Guards rebel and kill King Elaudio before they are stopped by the Wardens. It is publicly reported that he was killed by the darkspawn.Dragon Age: Last Flight, ch. 4
: The Wardens evacuate the surviving royals and court members via griffons. As they retreat they are attacked by the archdemon and the surviving royals are killed along with most of the Wardens.Dragon Age: Last Flight, ch. 5
: Using improvised aravels supported by magic and drawn by griffons, the Grey Wardens evacuate a large number of civilians from Wycome to Starkhaven.Dragon Age: Last Flight, ch. 8
: The darkspawn attack the Free Marches and Rivain.
: The Blight reaches the Anderfels, and the capital city of Hossberg comes under siege.
: Orlais and the Tevinter Imperium face a smaller darkspawn force and quickly repel it from their lands. Tevinter refuses to provide help to other nations, while Orlais sends only a token force.
: The dwarves of Orzammar assist the Imperium in lifting the siege of Marnas PellDragon Age: The Stolen Throne, p. 363 however the Ortan Thaig is lost.Mentioned by Orta.
* 5:16 Exalted: Divine Hortensia II dies.Codex entry: Her Perfumed Sanctuary
: Divine Rosamund, at nineteen, became the youngest Divine elected in history. She was personally groomed for the position by Divine Hortensia II.
* 5:20 Exalted: Garahel, an Elven Grey Warden, leads an army of Wardens and Anders and breaks the siege of Hossberg.
: Kirkwall declares the common nug as a noxious vermin over fears that the animals carried the Blight. The extermination became known the Battle of Squealing Plains.Mentioned in a Dragon Age II loading screen.
* 5:21 Exalted: Darkspawn lay heavy waste to the Free Marches. Chateau Haine, located in the Vimmark Mountains, serves as a makeshift Grey Warden garrison commanded by Isseya. A network of caves and tunnels is constructed inside the mountain, becoming known as the Retreat. Refugees from Kirkwall and Cumberland come to live there as the Blight rages on.Dragon Age: Last Flight, ch. 17-20
* 5:22 Exalted: Garahel commands Wardens from Orlais and the Anderfels to march to Starkhaven. Once they reach the city-state, he facilitates an alliance between the leaders of the Free Marches. A united army marches north, led under the banner of the Grey Wardens.Dragon Age: Last Flight, ch. 21
* 5:24 Exalted: The last battle of the Fourth Blight occurs in the city of Ayesleigh. Garahel dies upon slaying Andoral. Antiva is finally freed from the Blight. The darkspawn are killed in such massive numbers that many people believe the threat will never return. Underground, the dwarves of Orzammar continue to experience the darkspawn threat, but this fact is ignored by all except the Grey Wardens. The nation of the Anderfels also feels the persistent effect of the Blight. Everyone else focuses on rebuilding their own lands.
: Lambert Valmont, a young Orlesian captain, is declared a hero by King Azar Adalberto Campana of Antiva for coming to the rescue of the Antivan army during the Battle of Ayesleigh. Lambert weds one of Azar's daughters and the Valmont family is elevated to the nobility. Upon returning home, the Orlesian emperor is forced to match Azar's honors by granting Lambert a marquisate.Codex entry: The Lion of Orlais (Inquisition)
* 5:25 Exalted: Since many griffons perished during the Fourth Blight and their numbers diminished considerably, the beasts are heading towards extinction.
* 5:33 Exalted: Calenhad Theirin is named teyrn of Denerim.Codex entry: History of Ferelden: Chapter 1[note 3]
* 5:37 Exalted: Tylus Van Markham gains power in the Nevarran city-state. He is a hero of the Fourth Blight and claims to be a descendant of Kordillus Drakon. Tylus overthrows the ruling Pentaghast family in a coup and becomes the first king from his line.
Tylus claims to be a descendant of Drakon's son who was killed in Cumberland.
* 5:38 Exalted: King Tylus Van Markham incites the population of the western Free Marches to rise against the expanding Orlesian Empire. He leads Marchers to victory in several border wars against Orlais. Nevarra starts growing from a city-state to a full-blown nation.
* 5:42 Exalted: Calenhad defeats Teyrn Simeon of Denerim in the Battle of the White Valley.Codex entry: The Legend of Calenhad: Chapter 2
Calenhad is crowned king in Denerim. Various tribes of the Alamarri come together to form Ferelden. The unification of the country is complete.Dragon Age: Origins: Prima Official Game Guide Collector's Edition - Traveler's Guide, pp. 360-361.
* 5:71 Exalted: Divine Rosamund's reign of fifty-five years comes to an end with her death. She is remembered as one of the most compassionate women who held the position.
: Divine Amara III is chosen to lead the Chantry. She gains notoriety as a religious fanatic and is said to enjoy bonfires fueled by burning maleficar.
* 5:85 Exalted: Divine Amara III dies in suspicious circumstances; this sparks a hunt for the conspirators led by Emperor Alphonse Valmont, Amara's brother. The culprits are never discovered.
* 5:99 Exalted: Queen Madrigal of Antiva, is assassinated on a hunt. She is found with four blades piercing her chest.
: Divine Theodosia I learns about Queen Madrigal's death. The following night, she is troubled by nightmares of Madrigal's mutilated body with multiple swords plunged into her chest. Once Theodosia wakes up, she announces the name of the next age: Steel Age.
== Notes ==
* The "Ages" description in Dragon Age: The World of Thedas Volume 1 page 21, erroneously describes every age starting with year 1 and ending with year 99, claiming the Glory Age took place between 2:1-2:99, the Towers Age between 3:1-3:99 etc. This is directly contradicted in the timeline within the same book, which cites the existence of 3:00 Towers, 4:00 Black, and 9:00 Dragon. Such a system would result in each age lasting ninety-nine years, not one hundred.
* Sometime during the Exalted Age, a civil war broke out in Orlais against Emperor Xavier Drakon, described as a usurper and false emperor. Alphonse Valmont came to lead the war, seeking to overthrow Xavier. Alphonse's younger brothers, Duke Isidore d'Arlesans, Duke Yvon of Savrenne, and Duke Stephan of Val Montaigne, commanded some of his armies.Codex entry: Winter Palace In the final battle of the war, Alphonse fought and killed Xavier in single combat. His victory gave rise to the Orlesian legend of "the Lion slaying the Dragon", inspired by the symbols of House Valmont and House Drakon–a lion and a dragon, respectively. The civil war put an end to the Drakon dynasty and Alphonse became the first of the Valmont emperors. The war had ended by the year 5:71 Exalted.. The timeline can be inferred from the date of Amara III's ascension as the Divine because she is described as the sister of the newly elected Emperor.
* Although Codex entry: History of Ferelden: Chapter 1 claims that Calenhad became the teyrn of Denerim in the 33rd year of the Exalted Age, this is contradicted by other sources, such as Codex entry: The Legend of Calenhad: Chapter 2 and , that state Simeon was the teyrn of Denerim until 5:42 Exalted, which is when the final battle of Fereldan unification campaign took place. The date presented in Codex entry: History of Ferelden: Chapter 1 is likely an oversight.
== References ==
Category:Ages
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