The Riverlands

## Geography

### Location

Central Westeros, bordered by the North, the Vale, the Westerlands, the Reach, and the Crownlands.

### Topography

Fertile green fields with several rivers.

### Notable Locations

OldstonesFairmarket

The Trident

Ruby Ford

The Crossing

Whispering Wood

The **riverlands** is a central region of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, consisting of the rich, fertile, and populous areas around the three forks of the Trident and the northern Blackwater Rush. At the time of Aegon's Conquest the riverlands and the Iron Islands were ruled by House Hoare, the Kings of the Isles and the Rivers, although native river kings ruled centuries earlier.

Because of their central position in Westeros and lack of natural boundaries, the riverlands have been a frequent battleground. The people of the riverlands are known as "rivermen" or occasionally "riverlanders", and they are a mixture of hardy warriors, peaceful fisherfolk and devout smallfolk. Their lords have a reputation for being notoriously quarrelsome, and are referred to as "river lords". Noble bastards born in the riverlands are given the surname Rivers.

The riverlands are ruled from Harrenhal by House Baelish, the Lords Paramount of the Trident. Notable houses of the region include Blackwood, Bracken, Brune of Darry, Frey, Mallister, Mooton, Piper, and Vance.

## History

### The Great Council, 300 - 301 AC

Following the death of King Tommen I in a riot, Hand of the King Mace Tyrell called a Great Council, which elected **Myrcella I Baratheon** as the Lady of the Seven Kingdoms. A regency council, made up of Mace Tyrell, Randyll Tarly, Nestor Royce, Petyr Baelish, and Ser Jaime Lannister, was established to rule until Myrcella came of age. **Aegon Targaryen**, claimant to the Iron Throne, who also put his name forward during the council, was forced to call off his conquest and flee to Essos with the remnants of the Golden Company.

The Riverlands were the hardest hit region of the War of the Five Kings but through some dealing, Petyr Baelish arrived to his new lands with a train of grain stretching out through the horizon. The new Lord Paramount made an impression on his vassals.

### Years of Consolidation, 301 - 306 AC

The Years of Consolidation was the period of time in were the War of the Five King's came to an end and saw the reintegration of Westeros into one realm once more under Queen Myrcella I Baratheon following the Great Council of 301 AC.

### A Queen's Marriage, 306 AC

As the Long Winter passed and spring once again brought life to Westeros, Queen Myrcella married Willas Tyrell in King’s Landing. The ceremony was the first event in years to bring the whole of the Realm together in merriment and promised an age of bounty and unity.

### War of the Two Dragons, 309 AC

Coming from the far east, Aegon Targaryen returned to the Seven Kingdoms with his aunt and wife **Daenerys Targaryen** at his side, and they brought dragonfire and twenty-thousand swords to try and reclaim the Iron Throne for their dynasty. Their attempt at conquest ultimately failed, however, and the Realm persevered under Queen Myrcella. It was during this time that Petyr became Queen Myrcella's Hand of the King and split his time between King's Landing and Harrenhal.

### Pitchfork Revolt, 312 - 314 AC

All was well until the remnants of a war-torn land finally reared their fiery heads. Followers of R’hllor had increased in number as time went on and their practices grew more radical. Nor did the harsh winter help matters. During the years from 311 to 313 AC, thousands in Westeros were dying of famine and the Faith did little to help. Impatient, Lord Mooton insisted that he handle the matter but his overly aggressive efforts enraged the peasants and they overran Maidenpool, killing Lord Mooton. Along with his death, the **Slaughter of Maidenpool** came with an unprecedented rampage of looting, robbing, rape, murder, and all terrible crimes that humanity could commit.

Other holds in the Riverlands felt the commoners’ wrath as well. Saltpans was put in a pseudo-siege which led to a skirmish between the peasants and the lord’s soldiers known as the Sack of Saltpans. Unable to muster a full army due to a number of factors, the Riverlands struggled to manage the rebels. Lord Shawney was the first to face a true pitched battle with the rebels in the Battle of the Kingsroad. Then, House Bracken and House Frey of Riverrun came to blows with more rebels in the Bleeding of the Fork. The Riverlands were beset on all sides by rebels and aid from the Crownlands were held down by commoner rebels of their own. Finally, all forces met at the Battle of High Heart and the combined armies of the Riverlands and the Crownlands put down the R’hllor fanatics once and for all. Repercussions were strict and severe with Lord Petyr standing right by Queen Myrcella’s side as those most responsible for the rebellion were executed.

### A Dynasty of Roses, 336 AC

**324 AC**: King-Consort Willas Tyrell passed away in illness and the young Prince Tommen inherited Highgarden, becoming the Lord Paramount of the Mander. As the latter was rather young, Queen Myrcella bestowed the honor of Warden of the South to her former betrothed, Prince Trystane Martell.

**336 AC**: Queen Myrcella I passed away and her son Tommen II Tyrell followed her as the sovereign of the Realm. His ascension to the throne was subject to some controversy, as he subsequently abolished the titles Lord of Highgarden and Lord Paramount of the Mander, and named his firstborn, Prince Alester, the Prince of Highgarden. This act signified the formal unification of the Crown and the Reach under the Dynasty of the Rose.

### Rivals' Rebellion, 342 AC

The Riverlands enjoyed peace after the Pitchfork Rebellion. Lord Petyr ruled well, doted on his vassals, and the lands prospered. When he finally passed, all awaited the new Lord Rogin Baelish with bated breath. What followed was shameful and destructive.

Rogin’s lewd and cruel behavior culminated in the death of Minisa Bracken, the heir to House Blackwood’s betrothed. Harrenhal was quickly surrounded by the arriving armies of both houses and the others that joined them with the surprising leadership of House Frey of Riverrun. Rogin used his father’s goodwill with the Crown to call for their aid to peacefully end the conflict. Queen Myrcella I agreed and sent [Representative] to negotiate. The negotiations were stressful and tenuous. Eventually, the two sides came to an agreement.

However, two years after all were sent home, an assassin was discovered killing the fallen Lord of Harrenhal. Brusco Baelish, heir to Harrenhal, rose to power.

### Brusco's Blunders, 344 - 357 AC

During the reign of Brusco Baelish, the Riverlands were ruled in earnest by the Riverlords and Ladies themselves instead of their Lord Paramount. Brusco was weak-willed and his vassals knew it.

After Brusco came of age and [Representative] left the young ruler to his own devices, the Riverlands were disappointed to see their lord was weak-willed and indecisive. Embarrassments followed time and time again.

In 353, Bruso was wed to Willow Blackwood and a tourney was held to celebrate the occasion. However, after the feast when the guests conducted the bedding, all discovered Brusco’s sister, Bellegere, with Jammos Frey. Shamed and disrespected, Brusco called Jammos Frey to the great hall and demanded he marry Bellegere. The man refused and so started the years of disrespect Brusco would suffer due to his weakness.

Such weakness even extended to the Crown. In 356, the Crown called Brusco to court to answer for back taxes that he allegedly had not paid due to a typo in the ledgers. Without the slightest inquiry, Brusco agreed and emptied most of the Baelish coffers to comply with the request, much to the dismay of his House.

### The Sundering, 358 - 362 AC

After Prince Lyonel raised his banner in rebellion against the Crown with many following, the Riverlands awaited the chance to fight. Yet, the King said nothing. After much debate in House Baelish, the Riverlands finally marched without the Crown's permission to attack the rebellious Westerlands.

Only two battles were fought, the Riverlands making more inroads than most would have thought possible but suffering many casualties as a cost. They would soon be sent home by the King upon his victory and the Riverlords were content with showing their strength.

Shortly after the war, Lady Paramount Willow Baelish, died in childbirth. Distraught, Brusco departed for King’s Landing and allowed his brother to serve as Castellan. During this time, the Riverlords were exposed to a different kind of Lord Paramount: one who ruled. Benjicot was not as diplomatic as his grandfather could be nor was he as skilled with ledgers but the veteran of the Sundering made firm decisions and followed-up on his orders. All was well until Brusco returned from King’s Landing with a new wife, Laena Velaryon, and a pair of twin babes, Damon and Jirelle.

The birth of children gave Brusco new life and while the Riverlords and Ladies still pined for Benjicot to return to power, they appreciated the more jovial Brusco than the old one. He celebrated more at feasts, spoke more freely with others, and gained some genuine fondness from his vassals. House Baelish was still thought of last when the Great Houses came to mind but the Riverlands were content for the time being.

### A War of No Fighting, 363 - 379 AC

As the years went on, the Riverlands endured many minor conflicts and issues. Banditry had arisen in the Riverlands, mostly centered around Lord Harroway’s Town, the Twins, and Maidenpool. Ser Benjicot led many excursions to attack the more brazen ones but there were always reports of more. After months of this, Ser Benjicot found the body of a minor Vale knight among the slain of an attack on a bandit’s base near the Freylands. Benjicot demanded Brusco hold Lord Arryn accountable but Brusco refused. This continued for many years until, ironically, the Vale had to defend their lands from the Starks. Brusco recognized the coincidence but did nothing, pointing to the end of the banditry as sufficient.

However, not all the bandits were gone. A minor revolt of R’hllor followers in 367 AC resulted in an attack on a traveling party of Riverland nobles and kidnapping of Jirelle Baelish. With the Crown's assistance, Jirelle was recovered from the bandits and Ser Boros Brune, the knight responsible for sneaking into their lair in the dead of night to save her, was named to the Kingsguard as a result.

### War of the Last Dragon, 378 - 381 AC

Following her conquests in Essos, **Daena Targaryen**, Queen of the Narrow Sea, invaded Westeros with her army of sellsails and mercenaries to once again bring the Seven Kingdoms under the banner of the dragon.

The Riverlands were, unusually, the last region to suffer from the War of the Last Dragon. Daena had ripped through the Westerlands and was quick to move into the Trident. Wayfarer’s Rest fell first and Riverrun was set ablaze with dragonfire but held firm before Daena moved south. It was on the hills of High Heart where Lady Vance and twenty-thousand Riverlanders stood with spears and shield ready to fight back. They held their ground the first day but on the second, Drogon’s flames were too strong and they had to retreat into the White Woods. A fortunate rainstorm gave the army well-received respite from Drogon as they were able to use the trees as cover without worrying about them burning.

Lady Vance’s clever tactics saved many Riverlanders. What started off as twenty-thousand had plummeted to twelve-thousand. However, she adapted upon entering the forests by splitting them up into smaller groups of soldiers. Keeping Daena and Drogon wary of retaliation from so many directions, the Riverlands were wounding the dragon but no one managed to land a killing blow. Lady Vance would continue to lead the Riverlands' armies throughout the rest of the war, including the brief time where Harrenhal and Lord Damon hosted King Garlan as his court.

After several years of brutal fighting Queen Daena and Drogon, the Last Dragons, were finally brought down, ending once and for all the final remnants of the Targaryen dynasty.

### Mockingbird's Harmony, 382 AC - Present Day

After the Riverlanders went home, her Lords and Ladies sighed in relief knowing that Benjicot was ruling and Damon was soon to come into his own right. The wounds of Daena’s attacks healed except for Damon’s regression. Yet, House Baelish was still improving from its days under Brusco and the Riverlands prospered as well.

In the second month of 382 AC, House Piper and House Roote hosted the Riverlords for a tournament to celebrate the wedding between their two houses. Damon’s death set a black shroud over the festivities and many lords began to scheme and plot for now Lady Jirelle was the Lady Paramount of the Trident.