Kingdom of Grander Joraje

The Kingdom of Grander Joraje was a large kingdom in Juhnvechteya, spanning the coast from the south of Tanderland, north to Cireni, and inland along the River Torad. Founded by King Jarotajep I of the Sabot Dynasty, in year 1 of the Joran Calendar, it would expand from the current region of Karred, and by 72, it would become the dominant power in the east of Juhnvechteya. It would fall in the year 152, when Lalet the Weak ceded crucial lands to Vechtese of Estrevenya, and his nobles revolted against him. Following his dethronement, however, almost all of the nobles who participated, and were powerful enough to claim the throne, were assassinated, thrusting the kingdom into a century of chaos.

## Formation and Early Years

The Kingdom was officially proclaimed following the Battle of Samos Pese, by Jarotajep, who succeeded the throne of the Halurst tribe of the Jorans, by wedding Bianka, daughter of the local king Permsaje. Soon following his rise in the Halurst, he would unite other disparate Joran tribes, through diplomacy and through conquest.

### Reign of King Wenselsos (34-55)

Grander Joraje would become the most powerful kingdom in the northeast of Juhnvechteya by 34, the year of Jarotajep’s death. His second son, Wenselsos, would succeed him, following a short war with his brother Erla.

Wenselsos was, by all accounts, a good king. He expanded the  boundaries of the kingdom north to the sources of the Ploughwater, and began conquering south along the coast and west. His greatest achievement was the implementation of currency to the region, minting a type of coin called a Wensol. This would allow the streamlining of the system of taxation, enabling the introduction of a bureaucracy to support the large armies now fielded by the kingdom.

Also during his reign, the population of Joraje expanded greatly, as the region became more stable, and more food could be produced without the threat of bandits and reivers. Localized famines became less common, as grain could be more easily moved across the region, and trade would also boom, using the currency introduced to simplify the buying and selling of goods.

### Reign of King Harret

Harret would ascend to the throne in 56, following his father’s death. During his reign, Grander Joraje would become the most powerful kingdom on the Western Coast of the Vechtese Sea. His reign was prosperous, with the kingdom becoming fabulously wealthy during this period, though it would be marred by the Plague of 64 and several incursions by raiders along the western frontiers. In 68, a group of Estrevenyans would arrive on the eastern shores, and Harret would allow them to settle the western frontier, as a defense against raids from the west, thus founding the Duchy of Brankonya, a client state.

## Middle Period

Following the death of Harret, Grander Joraje was rocked by a succession crisis. Harret had appointed no heir, and his sons Jarotajep and Hal, and his daughters Gaina and Helja began fighting over who should ascend the throne. Jarotajep would claim the throne for a short time in 74, yet he would be usurped and exiled by his youngest sister, Helja. The short war would prove devastating for the kingdom, and there would be a famine in 75.

### Reign of King Karel

Helja would be killed by a plague in 80, and Karel would come to rule the country. His reign would be long and prosperous, and he would bring the country to its greatest territorial extent by 89. However, his reign would also see several minor rebellions, and he would be killed in 101, shot off his horse by a hidden archer during the Laref Revolt.

## Ducal Period

### Reign of King Errus

Following the death of Karel, Errus would rise to the throne, in 102. Throughout his long reign, he would attempt to avoid the rebellions and raids that plagued his father, and thus gave the Dukes and margraves more localized control over their domains. Due to this, they would gain power throughout the latter end of his reign. His reign would be characterized by the increasing power of his nobles, and thus the beginning of the decline of Royal authority.

### Years of the Short-Lived Kings

Following the death of Errus in 130, his son Arf would ascend to the throne. He would attempt to regain the central authority that his father had surrendered in exchange for peace. He would be assassinated by a ducal knight in 132.

Hartet, cousin of Errus, would succeed the childless king. He would successfully stripped some of the rights the dukes had claimed, though he allowed them to maintain the rest in exchange for their support. However, his reign would be cut short in 140, as he would drown while walking along the riverside, allegedly he was pushed by his brother, Karel.

Karel would succeed his brother in 140, and would rule for 5 years. He streamlined the growing infrastructure of the kingdom, removed unnecessary bureaucrats from the government, and reformed many of the laws of the kingdom. It would enter a short period of prosperity, and he would die in 145.

## Fall of Grander Joraje

### Reign of Lalet the Weak

In 145, his son Lalet the Weak would ascend to the throne. Lalet’s reign would be dominated by the second rising of Basamund, an ancient sorcerer king defeated by Jarotajep I of Sabot. Lalet, relying on his subordinate Kafesta, defeated the evil king once more.

Following the defeat of Basamund, in 152, the Vechtese, fleeing Amastre, would arrive on the shores of Joraje. While they were haggard from the long journey, and would have been easy to defeat in battle, Lalet ceded them a large region to the south of Joraje propper, along the coast, including the mouth of the River Ploughwater. Discontented with the king, several of the upper nobility, including Kafesta, would revolt against him, and he would be deposed. However, as thy held a council to elect the next king, the majority of the dukes were killed, plunging the kingdom into further chaos.

The kingdom would collapse into infighting as barons and counts began to attempt to size power for themselves, and many of the more distant provinces would either break away, or would be overwhelmed by foreign invasions.