The Return

The Return was period of time in late Merethic Era when Men returned to Tamriel to settle there permanently.
==Pre-Return events==
Many old myths, especially amongst the Nords, state that the very first Men came into being on Nirn on the fabled mountain known as Throat of the World during the Merethic Era. From there, the first Men split up as they emigrated from Tamriel, looking for new homes across the sea, eventually settling in places such as Yokuda and Atmora, where they founded their first civilizations.
Eventually though, Atmoran Men slowly, but surely, began to come back down to Tamriel, starting to explore the lands that their ancestors had left behind many generations ago. With time, some of their number even started taking up permanent residence in Skyrim, founding several settlements, most prominently Saarthal, which in time grew into mankind's first proper city on Tamriel.
Up until the late Merethic Era, the Snow Elves of Skyrim had lived in peace with the Atmoran settlers, but things started to change, and the elves began to grow increasingly uneasy towards the settlers, and eventually outright hostility followed. The exact reason why is not entirely know, but scholars speculate that the elves saw that humankind was growing at an exponential rate, given a human's faster reproductive period, and feeling threatened by this rapid expansion, they started a genocidal campaign against them. What is known, however, is that the elves made a night-time surprise attack on Saarthal, killed the vast majority of its citizens, and reduced the city to ruins, in an event that would be known as the Night of Tears.
Almost the entire human population of Skyrim was wiped out. Only three people were purported to have survived the attack on the capital city of Saarthal. They were Ysgramor and his two sons, Yngol and Ylgar. They escaped Skyrim on the last longboat back to their homeland, Atmora. Upon arriving to Atmora, Ysgramor told stories of treacherous elves and of gathering an army to come back and avenge the lost souls.
==Return of the men==
On the day known as Day of Final Passage Ysgramor and his army, the Five Hundred Companions, left the port of Jylkurfyk on the continent of Atmora, to sail back to Mereth and take back what was rightfully theirs.
During their voyage to Mereth, The Five Hundred got caught in the Storm of Separation. As a result, the legendary Ysgramor lost his eldest son, Yngol. Yngol Barrow was made as a proper burial place for an Atmoran warrior.
Shortly after the Five Hundred arrived at Hsaarik Head, Saarthal was taken back from the elves. The first goal of the Five Hundred was fulfilled and the next was yet to plan. The Circle of Captains was assembled and it was decided that every captain and his crew should go their own ways. Thus began a period of genocidal slaughter of elves.
The first notable event to be recorded was the founding of Whiterun. The crew of the Jorrvaskr under command of Jeek of the River scouted the area later named Whiterun Hold. They found a mysterious monument that was feared by local elves and decided to put it to proper use. The lands in this valley were suitable for harvest as well. The crew settled there not knowing that they had started a settlement that would later grow into a great city that still stood in Fourth Era.
The second notable event to be recorded was the founding of Windhelm. The crews of the Kaal Kaaz, Sadon Reyth and Ylgermet, under command of Harbinger Ysgramor himself, fought elves in the area later named Eastmarch. Ysgramor stumbled upon his son's grave and in his grief decided to build a great city where the nearby river, White River, met the Sea of Ghosts. The city was to serve as a monument of all mankind. It was built by elven captives in Atmorian fashion. A long bridge was built as the only entrance to the city, so that no elf could sneak in unnoticed to avenge his own kin. As well as Whiterun, Windhelm still stood in the Fourth Era as one of the biggest cities in Skyrim.
==End of the Return==
The period along with the great expansion of mankind and a merciless reprisal campaign against the elves ended with the death of Ysgramor. News of his death spread like a dark cloud all over Tamriel, and most of the warriors put down their weapons in grief never to pick them up again. Ysgramor chose to be buried at sea, looking in the direction of his true homeland, Atmora. But even after death of the great Harbinger, his castle served High Kings for many generations after.
However, by the end of the Return, Man had already gained a permanent standing in Skyrim. Snow Elves had been banished underground, to emerge only thousands of years later as the beasts known as Falmer. Tamriel soon became the only home for men, as Atmora had froze beyond recognition and had ceased to be a haven of settlement and survivability.
==Sources==
*Songs of the Return, Vol 2
*Songs of the Return, Vol 7
*Songs of the Return, Vol 19
*Songs of the Return, Vol 24
*Songs of the Return, Vol 56
*Night of Tears
*Yngol and the Sea-Ghosts
de:Die Rückkehr
es:El regreso
nl:De Terugkeer
pl:Powrót
ru:Возвращение
Category:Lore: Events
Category:Lore: Merethic Era Events
Category:The Five Hundred Companions