Orroux

**Orroux** is a sizeable city located on the banks of Orroux River, in central Mercia. The city is the county capital of the eponymous County Orroux, one of the larger counties of Mercia. The city is located on the Orroux River, a major tributary of the Slorend River. The city is located within a heavily farmed region of the province, roughly between Belvil and Alkleen.

The city was founded on the site of a large Mercian fortress sacked by the armies of Estergaald in the early 3rd century SY. The new settlement would become a fixture within the vast agricultural region irrigated by the Orroux River, serving as the area's principal market town. This reputation would leave the town mostly untouched from conflict. This would be until the armies of Exelon invaded Mercia in 970 SY, carving a path of bloodshed in their wake. Most of Orroux would be burned, but would recover by the collapse of the formerly mentioned empire.

By the year 1450 SY, the town had grown into a walled city. The city houses a predominantly Lohnian population, mostly the descendants of immigrants who arrived in Mercia in the 1300s. This immigrant population has made the city poorer than its neighbors, yet still a notable city in Ahremia.

## Etymology

The current name for the city, *Orroux* (pronounced OR-oh) presents a Lohnian spelling of an otherwise Ahremian place name. Before its Lohnian population gained a foothold in the city, the name was spelled (usually) like *Orro* or *Orrow*. This place name is a shortening of *Hath Orrow*, an old Ahremian name for a fortress that used to be situated where the city is currently. *Hath Orrow*'s earliest records has it spelled like *Hathe Orrowre.*

## History

The history of Mercia, and therefore Orroux, is one of the most extensive of any region of Ahremia. This historical account of Orroux is only a summary. The first settlers of County Orroux were early Ahremians who built communities of thatch huts across the plains of Mercia. They would herd sheep and grow vegetables on the sparsely inhabited lands of Northwest Ahremia. These settlers would be challenged later by large migrations of Sectinian horsemen who entered the region in ancient times and would raid the small towns that hugged the rivers of Mercia.

This conflict would cause the native Mercians to begin building walls and defenses around their largest settlements, mainly the cities of Lanturr and Rothsbane. This advancement in societal technology gave rise to more city-like settlements across Mercia, and castles and fortifications to guard the outskirts of their small territories. And it is as one of these outposts that the history of Orroux began.

In approximately 190 SY, the lands fed by the Slorend and Orroux rivers would unite into the beginnings of the first kingdom of Mercia. Seeking to strengthen their southern border, the rulers of Mercia built a fortification on a bend in the Orroux River, a fortification which they named Hath Orrow. Hath Orrow, although accounts are sparse, can be described as a "...stone structure, square in shape, located atop a rocky mound and surrounded by a wooden palisade." (Nagravien, 300 SY).

### Kingdom of Mercia (190-587 SY)

Hath Orrow would see little use in its first years, being located in a mostly peaceful kingdom. But the growing conflict between the native Mercians and the descendants of the Sectinian Horsemen (now called the *Mesralli*) was sure to boil over soon. This conflict would eventually come to fruition as a war between Mercia and its northern neighbor, the kingdom of Norbrampton.

Although a newer kingdom, Norbrampton was not an easy foe. its citadel-like cities and its heavily fortified capital of Halde made a traditional invasion almost impossible. The Mercian king, Brinherd-May (c.190 - 226 SY) would seek out of victory that would involve a focus on defense of the Mercian territory, after which he would launch an invasion on a weakened Norbrampton. His plan, however, would be thwarted by a poorly-documented alliance between Norbrampton and Mercia's southerly neighbor, Estergaald. This alliance allowed transportation of Norbrampton's legions by sea to Estergaald, the location from which Norbrampton would invade Mercia.

This invasion would begin in the late spring of 219 SY. The surprise attack allowed Norbrampton's forces to plow through the most southern regions of Mercia. Brinherd-May would immediately call for the relocation of his troops to the southern border. But by the time the forces arrived, the enemy had already reached the fortified settlement of Alkleen, resulting in a battle which Mercia would lose. The enemy would then push up the central road, northwest towards the fort of Hath Orrow.

Brinherd-May would, in a desperate attempt to stop the invaders, place nearly all his troops at Hath Orrow. The arrival of Norbrampton's army initiated one of the bloodiest battles in early Ahremian history.

#### Battle of Hath Orrow (220 SY)

Brinherd-May's army arrived at Hath Orrow only two days before the king of Norbrampton, Yalliaga II, lead his armies to the walls of the fort. The armies clashed on the 23rd of Sunnias, 220 SY. Although the exact tactics used in the battle are unknown, it is known that both sides suffered large amounts of casualties. The battle would end with a Mercian victory, but at a massive cost. Among the casualties were two sons of Brinherd-May and the king of Norbrampton himself.

The battle would result in the destruction of Hath Orrow, leaving the former fort in ruins surrounded by mass graves. The war between Norbrampton and Mercia would end at Hath Orrow. After a few decades, a town would begin to grow around the site of the former fort which would remain in the territory of the Kingdom of Mercia until 587 SY.

### Duchy of Orroux (587-973 SY)

In 587 SY, a civil war between the supporters of the son of the king Arrose of Slourend (528-587) and the supporters of the king's steward, Malciachs Garrome, would break out. The war would not see a winner, but what result in the separation of Mercia into multiple petty states. Among these were the Duchy of Orroux, a small city-state centered on the relatively newly founded city of Orroux (then Orrowe).

The first king of Orroux, Dainus, would be the ancestor of nearly all future rulers of Orroux. By the 7th century SY, the city would sport a large dockside market, a palisade surrounding the city, and a timber frame bridge that crossed the Orroux River. The town was noted as being a destination for fishermen and barges carrying crops and livestock from the southern counties of Mercia. Dainus would be succeeded by his eldest, a man named Sachulrus, who would expand the borders of his city-state to include the settlement of Alkleen, an important step in fortifying the reputation of Orroux amongst the Mercian kingdoms.

Sachulrus married princess Cordelia Walsh of Dilare, and together they would conceive eight children, only two of which being boys. The younger boy, Ackmene, would become a monk serving in a abbey near Belvil. His eldest son, who's name has been lost to time, was set to become king of Orroux but was coerced by his lover into fleeing to Kastovia, whereupon they would marry.

Sachulrus, having no living cousins or any other notable male relatives, was succeeded by his daughter, Fernarda. Fernarda's son would succeed her, and his son after that, and so on as the leaders of Orroux. Her second son would marry into the royal family of Dilare, and would become king of Dilare after the death of the current king.