Lireo

* New Lireo, Day
* New Lireo, Day (2)
* New Lireo, Night
* Landscape
* Palace
* Close-up
* Opening

The **Kingdom of Lireo** (in Tagalog: *Kaharian ng Lireo*) is a matriarchal monarchy at the eastern end of Encantadia. It is the home of the diwatas. They are the keepers of the Air Gem.

After the war between Sapiro and Hathoria, Lireo emerged as the foremost power in Encantadia. Its queen is sometimes called the **Queen of Encantadia**, as she is also de facto ruler of Sapiro and Adamya. But upon the reestablishment of the Sapiryan monarchy under Rama Ybrahim, it is implied that Lirean control over Sapiro had been relinquished. However, Lireo seems to have been recognized as suzerain of Sapiro and Hathoria at the conclusion of the Hadezar War.

It can be said that Lireo is the capital of the Encantadia continent.

The current royal house is descended from Hara Demetria, the third Hara of Lireo.

## National emblem

The national emblem of the diwata race is the lambana.

Known colors:

* Gold on blue
* Gold on green

Military colors:

* Silver and purple (during the reign of Cassiopea)
* Silver and blue (during the reigns of Minea and Amihan)
* Gold and blue (during the reign of Danaya)

## History

### Origin

Lireo was established during the time when Etheria was the foremost power in the continent. It allied with the other three territories in order to defeat Etheria ruled by Queen Avria after being threatened by conquest from the latter kingdom. Cassiopea was crowned as its first queen, and Emre entrusted the Mother Gem to her. After her reign, she was succeeded by Ursula and followed by Demetria.

### Division of the Mother Gem

Adhara expected to become Queen of Lireo after the death of her aunt, Queen Demetria. But she was unable to obtain the crown and learned that Demetria still had living descendants, the true heiress being Minea. Since Adhara was unwilling to accept this turn of fortune, Cassiopea cursed her never to be able to enter Lireo until Minea became queen.

A disgruntled Adhara attacked to Lireo with her cronies to seize the Mother Gem. In retaliation, the retired queen Cassiopea used the gem to wipe out most of Adhara's army, forcing Adhara to retreat. The insurrection caused Cassiopea to cleave the gem into four sub-gems each representing one of the classical elements of fire, air, water and earth. She gave the Air Gem to Minea and gave each of the three other races the other gems: The Water Gem to the Adamyan leader, Imaw, the Earth Gem to the Sapiryan king, Armeo, and the Fire Gem to the then-Hathor king, Arvak. This was to ensure the gems are well-protected from Adhara's clutches. Despite Cassiopea's good intentions, Emre punished Cassiopea by granting her immortality, and would only be freed from the curse once the four gems are physically whole again.

### Hathoria's betrayal

For a time, peace was at hand in Encantadia, while the four kingdoms heavily benefited from their respective gems. However, King Arvak launched a campaign to seize the other three gems to establish a continent-wide empire. This betrayal gained the ire of Cassiopea, who then cursed the kingdom that one of her kind will put an end to their greed. Despite Hathoria's success in obtaining the water gem from Adamya, the combined forces of Sapiro and Lireo engaged Hathoria in battle, where Prince Raquim of Sapiro slew King Arvak, who then surrendered the water and fire gems. However, his cousin, King Armeo, was also killed. In his dying breath, Armeo entrusted Raquim with the earth gem, insisting to surrender all three gems under Minea's care.

### Possession of the Four Gems

With the four elemental gems reunited, the kingdom successful staved off any subsequent Hathor attacks. Concerned by Raquim slaying the king of Hathoria however, Queen Minea insisted to have him and their daughter, Amihan exiled in the mortal world to escape the wrath of the heir to the Hathor throne, Hagorn. However, after several years, Hagorn managed to find and kill Raquim but spared Amihan's life. An unconscious Amihan was found by the Diwata army who had chased Hagorn's from the portal and brought to her mother. Amihan was well-received by everyone except her elder sister, Pirena.

### Restoration of Lireo under Hara Danaya

Lireo, under the reign of Hara Danaya, was able to recover from the War for the Gems period. It became the most powerful kingdom in Encantadia being the guardian of the Mother Gem.

The whole kingdom did not experience any disturbance from enemies during this period upon Hitano's report after patrolling its grounds. It reveres the late Hara Amihan for being an example of giving up her life for the sake of Lireo's freedom. A statue of Amihan is placed in front of Emre's statue at the room reserved for the general populace as a reminder to everyone.

Lireo welcomed two additional Sang'gres, Lira, daughter of Hara Amihan of Lireo and Rama Ybrahim of Sapiro, and Mira, daughter of Queen Pirena of Hathoria, after the two were able to pass the test of Cassiopea.

## Geography

### Notable locations

* **Royal Palace:** The palace where the Queen of Lireo and the Sang'gres reside. The most prominent room in the Palace is the throne room where the Queen and her Konseho decides. Another notable room is the *kamara* where the treasures of Lireo are kept - including the first Crown of Lireo, Queen's scepter, and the Mother Gem. The throne room is its most prominent feature, the background colors adjust based on the preference of the incumbent Hara.
	+ Main Hall / Throne Room - where all the main functions and meetings take place.
	+ Treasure Room (officially called ***Kamara ng mga Brilyante*** or **Gem Room**) - where the Brilyantes, alongside the weapons and items of the Queen is kept.
	+ Armory - where the soldier's main weapons is kept. Adhara's Lupig is still presumably in the said room.

It is implied in Episode 170 that the Royal Palace is separate from mainland Lireo

* **Capade**: Island of Cassiopea, east of Lireo across the sea
* **Carcero**: Northeast of Lireo, it is a prison island of Lireo's most notorious criminals.
* **Ayleb**: Small town north of Lireo.

Lirean arcs indicate that the land is under the suzerainty of Lireo.

### Natural resources

Lireo is a forested area - making it a viable source of timber in the realm. The kingdom is also blessed with fertile agricultural lands where Encantados practice farming in order to supply the needs of Lireo and of Encantadia.

The Royal Palace is placed on the mountains implying a mountainous landscape in Lireo including rivers providing irrigation.

## Citizenry

### Appearance

Diwatas mostly resemble humans.

A subspecies of diwata, known as *lambana* (pixies), are very small. The first diwatas, ancestors of the current generation, once had pointed ears but due to interracial relationships, marrying with Sapiryans, Hathors, and other races, their descendants lost these pointed ears. Cassiopea is the only remaining diwata with pointed ears causing her to be called *Sinaunang Diwata o Sinaunang Reyna*.

### Fashion

The Diwatas are used to fancy gowns and dresses such as the queen and the Sang'gres. They mostly love dresses arrayed with diamonds and gems. Most citizens of Lireo adopt blue and silver in their color scheme; high ranking officials, such as members of the Konseho, are adorned with gems in their clothing.

### General abilities

Sang'gres (diwatas of royal blood) have been depicted to have the ability to cast spells. It is currently unknown if ordinary diwatas also have powers.

## Culture

Diwatas are forced to accept a challenge especially if the challenger if is a Sang'gre. Failure to accept the challenge is believed to cause ten years of misfortune to the kingdom.

## Politics

*See main article: Sang'gre.*
A matriarchal society, Lireo is ruled by a queen. The queen may never marry during her reign as Diwata custom dictates that the queen is married to her duty and to her subjects. However, the queen may mate with men through dreams to conceive children, to ensure that the royal line remains intact.

In case of the Queen's absence, she may appoint her heiress, or any Sang'gre or high ranking official, to act as regent while she is away. Queen Amihan once assigned Danaya, Aquil, and Lira, Mira, Muros as regents to manage Lireo's affairs while she attended other important matters. Hara Danaya of Lireo usually assigns her full-blood sister, Sang'gre Alena of Lireo to act as regent in case she is doing other important duties. A regent, however, is only limited to the orders assigned to her by the reigning monarch.

The Konseho, a group of wise men, and the Sang'gres, members of the royal family, assist the queen in the government of the realm. Official meetings of the Konseho are strictly confidential, and may not be intruded into even by Sang'gres, if they were not invited.

### Succession

Strictly speaking, the succession to the throne of Lireo is appointive. The Queen of Lireo can designate as her successor any person, provided she is also a Sang'gre or being a descendant of Hara Demetria, she deems fit, by a proclamation during her lifetime or by will. If the queen has several possible successors, she could set up a contest which could serve as the basis of her choice.

In default of appointment, the rules of hereditary succession come into play. If the queen has only one daughter, she automatically becomes the successor. But according to Imaw, if the lone heiress is deemed not yet capable of ruling, the Konseho could select another eligible Sang'gre in her place.

## Law

Diwatas have a law, which even the queen is honor-bound to respect. It is unknown who made the diwata law, whether it could be changed, who could change it, and how it is changed. It is unknown what would happen if the queen herself disregards it.

### Known diwata laws

* The Queen cannot marry.
* A Sang'gre cannot marry a commoner
* Treason, including defiance of the Queen's orders, is punishable by death
* The queen can grant pardon
* It is treason to attack a Sang'gre
* The fathers of the Sang'gres have no legal authority over their daughters. But some episodes imply that fathers of royal blood are exempted from this rule (e.g. Raquim to Amihan, Ybrahim to Lira) .
* Only a Sang'gre may bear another Sang'gre's name
* Those who conspire with enemies are considered enemies. The punishment is 100 lashes.

### Royal powers and functions

* The queen rules with the aid of the Konseho. The Konseho could morally pressure the queen to obey the law instead of her true wishes.
* The queen can grant lands.
* The queen possesses judicial power. She could preside at trials and impose sentences.
* The queen can select her successor by any method she wished.
* The queen's blessing is sometimes sought by those who wished to marry.
* The queen can order arrests.

### List of Queens of Lireo

1. Hara Cassiopea of Lireo
	* Chosen Heiress: Ursula
2. Hara Ursula of Lireo
	* Chosen Heiress: Demetria
3. Hara Demetria of Lireo
	* Chosen Heiress: Sang'gre Minea, her granddaughter
4. Hara Minea of Lireo
	* Chosen Heiress: Sang'gre Amihan, her daughter
5. Hara Amihan of Lireo
	* Chosen Heiress: Sang'gre Danaya, her sister
	* Hara Pirena (de facto, designated by Hagorn upon the first fall of Lireo)
	* Hara LilaSari (de facto, designated by Hagorn upon the fall of Pirena)
6. Hara Danaya of Lireo
	* Chosen Heiress: Sang'gre Alena of Lireo, Protector of Adamya
7. Hara Alena of Lireo
	* Next in line: Several potential candidates.

## Military

All known Lirean soldiers are male, even though the rulers are female. The main weapon used by their infantry is a long spear and shield (similar to the Hoplites of Greece) or the khopesh. Former Mashna Aquil uses the Hirada while Mashna Muros uses two khopesh.

Like Hathoria, Lireo uses spies in order to check enemy activity by using their camouflage which is suitable to the environment of Encantadia.

Lireo utilizes the use of sky ships and a naval armada during war. Their sky ships can fire energy blasts while their naval ships can shoot fireballs against enemy warship. Rehav Ybrahim implied that the Lirean air force has a commanding officer under the helm of Mashna Muros.

After many years, the Lirean army dons a new combat armor with gold, silver, and dark blue in their armor during the reign of Hara Danaya.

The Royal Palace of Lireo and its territories are protected by the blessing of the Earth Gem, Fire Gem, and Air Gem to serve as their line of defense in case anyone from Etheria will attempt to enter their kingdom. This does not apply to their allies, such as Sapiryans, Barbaros, Punjabwe, etc.

Their current mashna is Mashna Muros of Lireo and their current Hafte is Abog. Aquil returns his position as Mashna. Hitano assumes his position as a Mashna. Amarro later returns to Lireo to assume his position as Mashna once again after his defection from Etheria.

## Religion

The Diwatas worship Emre alone among the three celestial gods of Encantadia. His statue is adorned in two places in the Palace of Lireo - one is for the personal use of the Sang'gres (a small room) and the other is for the priestesses of Lireo and the general populace (a bigger room) .

Aside from being a dama, a female Diwata may serve as one of the priestesses of Emre in Lireo where shrouds are used to cover their head while in prayer or wearing a flesh-colored garment. In times of need, the Queen may order the priestesses to pray to Emre in order to grant their request; this occurred once when Minea ordered the priestesses to pray for Emre to find a suitable mate to Queen Amihan in order for her to sire an heir to the Lirean throne.

Even with the absence of a statue, the Diwatas may pray to Emre and provide offerings to him in order to gain his favor. Usually the offerings comprise of flowers and fruits.

## Trivia

* Only the diwatas are called by a name not based on their kingdom. The other races were called Sapiryans, Hathors, and Adamyans, based on their home realms of Sapiro, Hathoria and Adamya, respectively.
* The royal lineage of Queen Amihan have been resurrected:
	+ Lira, the successor to the Lirean throne, through her own will and Danaya's efforts
	+ Amihan is resurrected as an ivtre but she must return to Devas before the light on her palms fade, otherwise she will be thrown at Balaak
* It is implied that the Sang'gres, close relatives of the incumbent Queen, are ex-officio members of the Konseho in order to assist the Queen of Lireo in governing her kingdom.
* The reign of Hara Amihan probably lasted for 18 years, based on the age of her daughter Sang'gre Lira. The current reign of Hara Danaya is also around 18 years, based on the appearance of Deshna.

* There are Lireo references in *Mulawin vs. Ravena*.
	+ One of the Hunyangos (chameleon humanoids) reported to then Prince Gabriel of Halconia that Lireo and Avila were joining forces to invade the kingdom of Halconia. It is clear that it was during the reign of Hara Amihan of Lireo basing on *Mulawin the Movie*.
	+ A banner containing an emblem of Lireo beside Chief Maningning of the Taguba Tribe appears during the election for the leadership of Avila.
	+ Aramis had went to Lireo in Encantadia before he went back to the human world.
* During Hara Danaya's reign, the Lirean army has four Mashnas. Only two of them have returned to their Mashna ranks (Aquil and Amarro). Muros was promoted to Mashna since Hara Amihan's reign and Hitano has assumed into Mashna rank during Hara Danaya's reign.

## References

1. ↑ It was never explicitly stated that males cannot succeed to the throne of Lireo. So far, almost all members of the royal house happened to be female, except for Kahlil, who lived only for a short time.
2. ↑ Episode 165. Even the strictly patriarchal Punjabwes recognize Lireo as the seat of power in Encantadia.
3. ↑ Episode 169
4. ↑ Episode 217. Ybrahim and Pirena accepted punishment from the Hara of Lireo, which would have been unthinkable if they were sovereign equals.
5. ↑ MvR Episode 49 where all the Lirean banners are colored green instead of blue.
6. ↑ Episode 11
7. ↑ Episode 170
8. ↑ Episode 119
9. ↑ Episode 133
10. ↑ Episode 169
11. ↑ In Episode 123, Imaw did not disclose to Lira and Mira about the decisions of the *Konseho* regarding Hagorn's proposition.
12. ↑ Episode 15
13. ↑ Episode 17
14. ↑ Episode 17
15. ↑ Episode 32
16. ↑ Episode 40
17. ↑ Episode 60
18. ↑ Episode 217
19. ↑ Episode 24
20. ↑ Episode 9
21. ↑ Episode 41
22. ↑ Episode 155
23. ↑ https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1436270073052029&set=gm.1646753532295971&type=3&theater
24. ↑ Hara Alena bore a son; according to Noel Layon Flores, females would be preferred for the Lirean throne.
25. ↑ Noel Layon Flores [1]
26. ↑ Episode 12
27. ↑ Episode 147
28. ↑ Episode 169
29. ↑ Episode 13
30. ↑ Episode 13
31. ↑ Episode 141
32. ↑ (GMA Network's YouTube channel) Mulawin VS Ravena Teaser: Ang paghaharap ng dalawang lahi