Mierrsa

## Overview

Mierrsa is a nation in the southern, ex-Namorian part of Ritian. It lies to the north and west of Kewes, and is currently in close alliance with that nation. Together they have pushed the Norsvik back and held against their most recent incursions. Mierrsa has lost a lot of territory to the Norsvik, and people can be very bitter about that.

Ealdor Eddred rules alongside his wife Edflaed. They have been successful on the battlefield and are very much looked up to at home, as well as being respected internationally. They are bringing several of King Alfen’s anti-Norsvik developments to Mierrsa, with some success. The fortified town network is very much in its infancy, but along the northern border things are beginning to change.

The people of Mierrsa largely follow the native gods who have joined the Thebian congregation. These gods are many and varied, and almost every settlement has a temple within easy travelling distance, even if it doesn’t have a priest in constant residence.

The largest city in Ritian is officially a Mierrsan settlement, newly rebuilt in the ruins of the Namorian regional capital. Bustling with traders, Dolinium is the first place in Ritian to begin to build a portal.

## Court and Government

Mierrsa is currently ruled by Ealdor Edred and his wife and co-ruler Edflaed, the daughter of King Alfen of Kewes. They have one child and heir, Edwynne. The Tawin of Mierrsa selected Edred in NY 1531, and he married Edflaed in NY 1639, when she was eighteen. They are true co-rulers; early in their partnership Edred was the one who commanded in battle whilst Edflaed took charge of other matters. Now Edflaed is frequently in command of troops whilst Edred deals with the rest of ruling. When there is no pressing threat, they take major decisions jointly. Perhaps this is not what the Tawin expected when they chose Edred, but as Mierrsa is the junior partner in an unequal alliance with Kewes, they have not questioned it and it works very well.

Unlike in other parts of Ritian, the Ealdors in the districts of Mierrsa are not appointed by the ruler but are chosen from eligible candidates (usually those whose families have held the position in the past). The Ealdors are responsible for administering justice in their domain, accountable to the ruler. They may delegate this responsibility whilst they are away, but if someone disagrees with a civil judgement made by the representative then they can wait for the Ealdor’s return, and if still dissatisfied can appeal to the ruler. There is a significant penalty for this if it results in a frivolous delay, and a well-administered region should have few appeals.

Punishment is mostly by means of fines – breaking the law and being unable to pay the cost is a way of becoming a slave. Everybody has a blood-price, and fines are calculated based on the blood-price of the injured parties, and on the value of stolen goods. This system is common across a large portion of Porea, but the way of assigning blood-prices varies a lot. In Mierrsa, it varies with ancestry, profession, and land ownership. There are no prisons – justice is dispensed swiftly if possible and if fines cannot be paid within a set time (often a week), then the criminal will either become a slave or be executed – but execution is reserved for treason or the most dangerous, usually repeat, offenders.

Theigns administer smaller districts, organise military levies (currently at need rather than fixed terms), and collect taxes in kind or in cash to transfer to the Ealdors and then to the treasury. They are likely to be in charge of individual building projects, whereas Ealdors are in charge of deciding which projects will happen.

All communities are responsible for maintenance of bridges, roads, and defences in their areas. If they are not up to scratch, the community will be fined. Given the importance of defence in the face of the Norsvik, this is less resented than it might be.

## People

The people of Mierrsa are a mixture of those tribes that lived in Ritian prior to the fall of the Namorian empire, and settlers from Porea who moved across the seas in dribs and drabs over the next few centuries. Given that the last wave of settlers (drawn by cheap or empty land abandoned by the Namorians) was centuries ago, it is difficult to tell who is who – though the more powerful families tend to be more recent arrivals.

As elsewhere, there is a ruling elite, powerful families from which Ealdors are selected by their peers. Ealdors have tended to be selected for military ability, given the longstanding and ongoing Norsvik crisis, but if they cannot also keep a reasonable degree of order and prosperity they may be supplanted. Non-Ealdor members of these families are often career soldiers, large landowners, or influential priests. They can afford more colourful clothes, precious metal jewellery, and better armour – maybe even a metal helmet. Even among the highest in the land, metal armour is rare. They may drink wine from abroad, and eat meat at most meals. Many of them will be the patrons of crafters, and they will give generously to the temples – faithful or not, it is a good way to earn prestige. The vast majority are literate.

Free people are a wide class, ranging from town-dwelling traders and prosperous farmers employing many farmhands to landless iterant labourers living hand to mouth. It can be difficult to tell the more prosperous free folk from the elite from which Ealdors might be drawn, and indeed a particularly capable freeperson might be able to take such a position. This would allow their descendants to also be eligible.

Prosperous traders live in the towns, particularly Dolinium. There are traders in smaller towns, but the network of market towns is in its infancy and often traders will travel from place to place rather than have a permanent premises in a smaller town. Crafters are also principally in the larger towns, though smiths and woodworkers are found in many places. People in the country usually weave their own cloth from wool, and are more likely to wear undyed cloth.

Prosperous farmers may employ farmhands, a smith, and possibly other crafters. Some will build small temples and sponsor a priest of their favoured god to provide pastoral care. The most forward thinking with suitable ground may build a mill, and this will free up a lot of time for their employees that would otherwise be spent grinding flour by hand. Mills are so efficient they are likely to grind flour for a fee as well, allowing smaller farmers to also have more time to tend non-subsistence crops. An area with a mill is fortunate – and its prosperity will provide the Ealdors with more taxes.

Lower on the social scale are small farmers who own and farm their own land, feeding themselves and their families but not much more. They may never use coins, bartering for what little they can afford that they do not produce. Iterant unskilled labourers will be fed and housed, and likely given some extra food or clothing as payment, but will also rarely see or use coins. A skilled shearer or other specialised worker may be paid in cash.

Those of the free who can afford jewellery will buy it, with brooches being extremely popular. Precious metal is obviously the most sought after, but base metal brooches are common and so are bone or even wood.

Slaves are the lowest social rank. People can end up as slaves by having debts they cannot pay, but it is more likely that they were captured during hostilities with the Norsvik or the people to the west, or purchased from abroad. There are laws regarding their treatment, and if ill-used their owners may have to give them a portion of their blood price. Slaves can buy their way to freedom, but as they do not have to be paid it is difficult.

Everyday dress is similar in general shape for most people, but variations in cut and material will set the wealthy a long way from the average and even further from the poor. A tunic with long sleeves, coming down to between mid-thigh and ankle, is usually worn over trousers or hose. A sleeveless overtunic is sometimes worn over the top, and if do it will be in a heavier fabric with the undertunic thinner. This is a fashion worn by the wealthier people, and they may dye one or both garments in contrasting colours. Priests are likely to wear robes over their tunics instead of an overtunic, and these are open at the front and have sleeves.

There are some career soldiers in Mierrsa, and they will typically use a shield and spear, with swords being expensive.

The Dowran are not called for military duties but may be levied for general labour instead. Mierrsa doesn’t have much coastline, but it does have several great rivers along which some Dowran make their homes. They are too few in number to make a much of a contribution to the economy. The Herri are almost entirely seen only in Dolinium – Ritian in general isn’t usually seen as an exciting place for them to explore and trade isn’t big enough to bring overseas traders to anywhere but the hub of Dolinium. Occasionally a young Herri will travel round the country to gather songs and stories, usually from the wealthier inhabitants but it isn’t totally unheard of for them to seek out remote communities and little-known gods.

## Religion

The Thebian faith originated nine hundred years ago, when a magician of great power and compassion was killed by the Namorians. Her ghost haunted the place where she had died, and her followers began to revere and then to worship her. Eventually, some of those who worshipped her found themselves filled with divine power. Ever since, she has been venerated as a god. Her ghost has not been seen since the first divine acts done in her name.

Though all those of the Thebian faith acknowledge Thebe as the First, most of them follow their own gods. Many of these gods are very specific, tied to a place or a profession, and have existed since long before Thebe lived, but joined the Thebian congregation either defensively because of Namorian persecution, or strategically to gain the support and cooperation. There are some few more powerful gods in the pantheon, depending largely on how many faithful they have. This faith is found from Kewes to Atturia, and West to Zantian.

The first in Ritian to join the Thebian faith were the Namorians – by the time the empire collapsed, the worship of Thebe was widespread among the soldiers and the elite. Although not every god in Ritian has joined the congregation, most of those native to Mierrsa have.

Large communities of priests and monks gather in the temple towns. Most of these have their own gods, as well as acknowledging the existence of Thebe. There is some competition between these temple towns as to which is the holiest, most cultured, and possessing of the biggest community. The temples are some of the biggest landowners in the country (as in most of the congregation of Thebe) and are tax-exempt to a large degree. They pay for this by providing pastoral care to the surrounding area, and sponsoring satellite temples so every are theoretically has access to weddings, funerals, and teaching of the basics of the three Rs.

Feast days of the various gods are scattered through the year, many celebrated only locally. The Year’s End is observed throughout the country, and most places have at least one god celebrating the summer solstice and each of the equinoxes.

## Trade

International trade is largely limited to Dolinium and some of the temple towns such as Repkir. There is a growing appetite for small luxuries in Mierrsa again, as the Norsvik incursions appear to be less threatening and, even when they do attack, not unstoppable. There is now a market for mass-produced base metal jewellery, beads, and exotic foodstuffs like wine, oranges, and olive oil. Most foreign traders just import to the large towns and sell their wares to Mierrsan traders who will travel around to the estates of the Ealdors and the larger temples, sometimes taking in market towns on their way. In this way foreign things are spread slightly through the country. Mierrsa’s exports are mainly raw ingredients like wool and timber – the quality of crafting cannot compete with that of more developed areas.

Most trade, however, is domestic. Pottery, for example, is produced in a few areas where high-quality clay can easily be quarried, and even very basic pots are almost all made there. Some potters will make very high-quality ware and sell it for high prices in cash, but most will produce large volumes of adequate pots and sell them for a copper deci or bartered item. Metalwork is the same – town or estate smiths will make the basics of nails, knives, horseshoes and so on, but anything elaborate or unusual will be made by town crafters.

Most people dress in wool, but there is a growing number of farmers who are growing flax, and there are now communities dedicated to manufacturing linen cloth or even clothes. Again, it is the basic, undyed cloth that is most popular, as more people have a coin or two to spend on looking better and feeling more comfortable without wool scratching their skin. Other domestic industries beginning to take off are utilitarian glass, and tanning on a large scale for vellum used by priests and scholars. Illuminated manuscripts are a dramatic, high value luxury good produced in the temples, as are Artisan crafted objects containing priestly spells.

## Magic

As in most areas where the Thebian church is strong, spiritual magic is of very high status. Elemental magic is seen as a useful tool for crafters, and might be used in a small fight but not to turn the tide of battle. Totemic magic, as it cannot sit in the same soul as spiritual, is barely seen and usually only in the Dowran.

## Places

**Dolinium** is an extraordinary city. Although the biggest settlement in Ritian, it is small by comparison with Namor, Nevicia, or Zantios, and tiny if compared to the cities of Anhia. Its most unusual feature, though, is that it is new. Almost all of the buildings are less than twenty years old, though built within the old walls of the Namorian regional capital. Only a few temples were built or still standing there before this. Twenty years ago, the Norsvik sieged and occupied (for about the 5th time) the city of Dolinwaerk, a mile down the river Thame from the ruins of Dolinium. When they left it, much of it was destroyed. Alfen of Kewes, having prevented the Norsvik returning for another winter, decided that Dolinwaerk was too vulnerable, and moved the population en masse to Dolinium. He started work on the walls and planned for a bridge to help prevent the Norsvik from returning in their ships. At about this time, Edred had come to rule Mierrsa (though as an Ealdor, not a king), and Alfen handed the city over to him, and his new wife and co-ruler Edflaed.

There are three large enclaves belonging to three separate temples (one dedicated primarily to Thebe, one to Bonusti, god of traders, and one to Geori, god of Dolinium), and the population is small enough relative to the size of the Namorian walls that there are areas under cultivation in each. Other individuals and entities also own areas of land in the new city, and foreign traders make up a noticeable proportion of the population. The Nevicians have a small enclave (as they have in many cities) where humans and Herri come and go. Some crafters also ply their trades in Dolinium, particularly those making high value goods requiring imported ingredients.

Excitingly, Edflaed and the temples have commissioned a portal building to be erected in Dolinium. It is said that there was considerable investment from Kewes, and also that the Nevicians may have contributed. The exterior has been finished, and rumours abound that the first arrivals could happen any day. People in the city are worried and elated in about equal measure.

**Repkir** is an ancient dynastic centre, with a temple to Walsta, god of the harvest. Walsta was the first god in Ritian to make it known to their followers that they were part of the Thebian congregation, and within Mierrsa they have a following second only to Thebe. The main temple there is both old and new – the tiny central part is a millennium old at least, but it has been extended many times, and today the temple is splendid and flourishing. It has shrugged off its Norsvik occupation lightly, presumably because they took it in a coup with the aid of Cewul rather than by force. Many of the rulers of Mierrsa have been buried there, and the current rulers have what is possibly their most important residence there. There is a school which trains children (and adults) in the basics, but also one which trains priests in pastoral care, attempting to bring literacy, numeracy and knowledge to many.

## History

Mierrsa’s history is prouder than its present. For two centuries, Mierrsa was the dominant power in ex-Namorian Ritian, but that had begun to change even before the Norsvik incursions became overwhelming.

During Namorian times, only a small number of Mierrsans followed Thebian gods, mostly in the east and south of the country. To the north and west, they followed gods who had either not yet joined the congregation, or never would. This began to change about NY 1350, three hundred years ago. Because prior to this, records were kept only locally with much less communication between temples (the traditional repository of records), this is when Mierrsan history begins.

At this time, the nations were still in quite a state of flux. Mierrsa contained many tribes, and had had many unrelated rulers. It was threatened by Deir and Bernnic to the north, Wynned to the west, and the people who would become Kewes to the south.

The first ruler known to have cobbled together several tribes in the area that would become Mierrsa was Pende, who traced her ancestry back to a lost god, no longer now worshipped. The first we hear of her is as an Ealdor, supporting Cadwal of Wynned in an attack on the double kingdom of Deir and Bernic. The double kingdom, ruled by Edwin, had attacked and annexed the small kingdom that had lain between his kingdoms and the northern borders of both Mierrsa and Wynned, and was threatening to continue south. The attack was successful, Edwin died, and Pende was able to demonstrate her strength enough that she could gain the following of many tribes in the area, and call herself a queen. Over the next decade, she gathered other tribes under her overlordship. Some submitted peacefully, their Ealdors seeing her as a strong leader who would not allow them to be annexed by anyone else. Some submitted to her after losing their leaders to her campaign. She also had numerous children, and many of them married the children of rulers and Ealdors in neighbouring countries, trying to create dynastic ties to make cooperation more likely than war.

Sadly, this didn’t work. Edwin’s successor in the double kingdom, despite having a niece married to Pende’s son, managed to defeat the Mierrsans and exert overlordship of the whole country. This might have escalated to direct control, but whilst campaigning on Mierrsan soil, Pende slew him.

Over the next seventy years, the line of Pende continued to rule Mierrsa, with hostilities with the double kingdom grumbling along. For a short period immediately following her death, Mierrsa was subordinate to the king of the double kingdom, but her second child organised a rebellion and drove the foreign Ealdors out. During the reigns of Pende’s children and grandchildren, the elite of the country began to follow Thebian gods, and the last in the direct line abdicated and went to Namor to become a monk of Thebe in NY 1469.

After this, Thebal succeeded to the throne. They were descended from Pende’s brother, and proved a very capable ruler. By NY 1484, they claimed overlordship of all the kingdoms of south Ritian, including Cient, Halaren, and Kewes. Despite all the conquering, they were praised for being just and peacable, the defender of the weak and the poor. They were a generous patron of Thebian temples, granting many of them exemptions from taxes and work burdens (providing labour for bridges and so on). Within their realm, trade blossomed and the economy improved.

Thebal was killed in NY 1510 by one of their retinue, who briefly seized the throne before being deposed by perhaps the most famous Mierrsan monarch, Aevo.

Because Thebal had no partner and no children, there was no direct heir. Aevo was descended from the same brother of Pende as Thebal was, but that was their last common ancestor. After Thebal’s death, some of the kingdoms that were under tribute to Thebal tried to go their own ways, and many rebelled against a new Mierrsan overlord. They were quickly brought back under tribute by Aevo, who turned out to be a strong and capable king, married to a strong and capable queen. The kingdoms who had not rebelled had become part of Mierrsa’s core territory, their rulers no longer even sub-rulers but now Ealdors of districts of Mierrsa. In many cases this was because they had common cause with Mierrsa and feared invasion by Deir and Bernic, or even Kewes or Wynned.

By the time Aevo took the throne the currency had become quite debased, and trade was beginning to suffer. In NY 1518, he began a currency reformation, minting coins that mirrored those on the near part of continental Porea, and thus made taxes on trade (and on trading under the ruler’s protection) easier to collect. Although this was a step that made a big difference to the prosperity of Mierrsa, this is still not the best-known of Aevo’s accomplishments.

As a strong ruler, Aevo and his queen oversaw the largest building project in Ritian since the Namorians left. The country was menaced from the mountainous country to the west by Wynned and related kingdoms, which was an unneeded distraction given the bigger threats from the north and east. Aevo’s Dyke, a massive ditch and wall structure, gave some protection to the west, and stretched over the entirety of Mierrsa’s western border. The Dyke still stands and is maintained, though the western kingdoms are no longer at war with Mierrsa.

Mierrsa had one more strong king. Despite Aevo’s best efforts, associating his oldest child Agfrith as a co-ruler after his wife died, his line died within a year of his own death. Agfrith, despite five years as a co-ruler, was not a strong or wise king, and was assassinated quickly – but not before Cient and Halaren had revolted and been lost to Miercan control. After a period of unrest, Cenwul took the throne.

Cenwul took back Cient, but never retook Halaren, and he died on campaign in Wynned. After his death, Mierrsa had many short-lived rulers who did not have a clear link with any of those who had held power previously.

The rulers of Kewes took full advantage of the instability in Mierrsa. After a brief hostility between the countries, Cient and some other areas in the south and east became subordinate to Kewes in NY 1578. In NY 1582, the king of Wessex defeated the king of Mierrsa and became its overlord. However, Mierrsa and its ruler had a high degree of independence, mostly paying tribute to the overlord and having its own government.

By this time, the Norsvik raiders were a part of life, and in NY 1604 the Norsvik stormed Cantiaco and routed the Mierrsan army before moving on to Kewes, where they were defeated for the time being.

The last monarch of Mierrsa was Brugid, who came to power in NY 1605. He married the daughter of the king of Kewes, Alfen’s older sister. The power balance at the time was such that she was crowned as a sub-ruler rather than a consort, able to mint her own coins and given her own lands within the country. For a while they prospered, and in NY 1621 were even able to join Kewes in an assault on a Norsvik-held town. But it did not last.

In 1627, the Norsvik took the important Mierrsan site of Repkir, the burial site of the rulers, the tribute centre of a huge area, and the centre of worship of one of the first local gods to join the Thebian congregation. Cewul, a descendant of Cenwul, took control as an Ealdor under tribute to the Norsvik, and after a fruitless attempt to regain power the ruling couple left for exile in Namor.

Cewul was able to work with Alfen, the king of Kewes, and until King Alfen’s exile to Thelney he paid tribute to the Norsvik. But when Alfen re-emerged from hiding, Cewul saw a chance to rid himself of the burden of tribute, and shut the Norsvik forces out of Chipenhaeme, denying them a fortified base to retreat to. This played a part in the defeat of that Norsvik force, and reduced the power the Norsvik had over Kewes and, to some degree, Mierrsa. Mierrsa was no longer under tribute, but had lost a large portion of territory in the north-east, amounting to almost half of its pre-Norsvik area. Cewul died later that same year, and Edred succeeded him as Ealdor of Mierrsa – a position selected by his Tawin but approved by Alfen of Kewes. Although ruler of Mierrsa, and paying no tribute, Edred was the very definitely junior partner an a very close alliance with Kewes. Their armies fought the Norsvik together, preventing them from taking any more territory.

In NY 1639, Alfen and Edred drove the Norsvik from Dolinwaerk. Alfen took control, moved the population to the much more fortified area close by, and handed the city back to Mierrsa. It was at this time that Edred married Alfen’s daughter Edflaed and she became co-ruler. For most of the years since, if battles were needed Edflaed has managed the country’s governance whilst Edred has seen to the defences. Recently however there has been some sharing of roles, and Edred has been overseeing day to day business whilst Edflaed campaigns as required. When there is no active fighting, they share governing, diplomatic, and justice responsibilities. They have started to build a network of defensible towns in a similar manner to those in Kewes – indeed, the network started in Mierrsa in the time of Aevo, as defences against the peoples to the west. As the Norsvik continue to fail to gain territory, Mierrsa is looking more secure in many ways.