Henrik Eklund

Henrik Eklund is the founder of Tamwull, seen as the hero of the nation and the first President. He is seen by historians as strange but honorable, choosing to create a democratic system for Tamwull’s Government rather than become King himself. In Tallian culture they treat him as near-divine, fighting anyone who insults him.

## Early Life

Not much is known about Henrik’s life before he was brought to Erstal. It is believed he was a tribal member, living amongst other humans. Some of his reasoning is believed to be because some of his family members were killed by the Dwun army but nothing valuable has been discovered to provide any evidence to this being the truth.

### Capture

In **329PR** Henrik was known to the Dwun army as an enemy, leading a band of humans to hurt the various supply lines that led to the city. Many bounty hunters were sent out to kill or capture him but all failed. Eventually the Dwun army sent a regiment out to capture him, defeating his band of bandits and enslaving him.

In a public display Henrik was beaten and whipped by the Erstal Dwarves, ordered by the Dwun family. After he was beaten to the brink of death he was forced to work in the mines as a slave.

## Erstal Rebellion

See: *Erstal Rebellion*

Now that Henrik was a slave he was able to spread his influence, contributing to a lot of the rebellious thoughts growing through the slaves. The following he gathered remained secretive to the guards, bribing them to look away at most times.

In **344PR** Henrik and his group of slaves managed to steal a cart containing Dwarven weapons and shields. The group hid the cart away in the mines, knowing them better than the Dwarves at this point. King Adron, King of Erstal, launched a huge investigation but found nothing. In the end he framed some other slaves for the act and publicly executed them.

At the start of Mak **346PR** Henrik and his slaves began to openly rebel against the Dwarves. Using the stolen weapons they overwhelmed and killed the soldiers sent to guard them, quickly moving and taking control of the North-East side of the Undercity.

With a foothold, Henrik began to use his influence elsewhere to bait King Adron and his soldiers into coming down into the mines, where Henrik’s slaves were much better equipped to deal with the bigger number. It ended up working and King Adron came down with his army, splitting up into smaller detachments in order to travel.

The tunnels were hell for the Dwun troops, Henrik’s slaves collapsing many or simply blocking off the soldiers and killing them from both sides. When a tunnel was collapsed they would simply return later and scavenge what armour and weaponry they could find.

King Adron, however, was elusive, his bodyguard more experienced and of better quality equipment than the usual soldiers. Any groups of slaves that tried to stop them perished, letting him march wherever he wanted unopposed. Thinking of a plan, Henrik led him to the residential section where he ambushed the Dwarven King. On the top of the houses rebel slaves threw what projectiles they had, including firebombs, javelins, rocks and sticks. Despite the heavy armour that the Dwun troops wore, the firebombs had immediate effects, forcing King Adron to retreat to controlled parts of the city. Along the way he was ambushed more, wiping out 80% of his forces.

With the King dealt with for the time being, Henrik and the others proceeded to claim the rest of the city, losing many slaves along the way. When they reached the centre of the city, Henrik and the slaves rushed up the Erstal stairs to escape the Undercity. Inspired by Henrik, other slaves rebelled and pushed up the stairs, making a cluster of bodies rushing up.

During the fighting a small earthquake began to erupt, caused by the various explosives being set off. The earthquake was vicious in small amounts, breaking many of the support structures for the city and causing a collapse. On the ground lava began to rise up, engulfing whatever remained. By the end Henrik and what slaves remained managed to take the Overcity, proclaiming the birth of a new nation.

## Creation of Tamwull

*See: Tamwull*

Immediately after his victory Henrik realised that he needed a general governance system for the freed slaves. Rather than take the moment to claim himself King, he built an oligarchy, controlled by a council of 6 members and a president. Henrik himself was elected King, but in his free time began creating a better system to rule.

### Tamwull Government

*See: Tamwull Government*

In his free time, Henrik began drafting up the Tamwull Constitution. The constitution would list out through sections exactly how the government would work and what systems were in place. Unlike laws, the constitution could not be easily changed, removing any dictators seizing power.

The constitution included the Tallian Federal Parliament and the Tallian Supreme Court, two branches of government that would help separate the branches of power to ensure no one person or group held all the power. On the third branch was the Executive Head.

All this was eventually implemented in **352PR**, Henrik being declared the first President of the Tamwull Government.

## Presidency

As President, Henrik spent a lot of time building Tamwull up as a nation, all from his capital in Erstal. Some efforts were also made to reclaim the Undercity but it was too damaged and hostile, simply blocking it off to avoid anything coming out.

Through diplomacy he was able to get many of the tribes in his area on his side without any violence, using his own experience as a tribal member to help.

He also remained an advocate against Slavery, something that many of Tallians wished to reinstate but against the Dwarves instead. Henrik would publicly state his regrets about not writing it into the Constitution, but knew it would fail to pass now if he tried.

In **356PR** Henrik’s term was up, allowing the political faction: Tamwull United, to take control. While he could’ve run for a second term, successfully as well, he decided that it was time to hand over the leadership of the nation to someone else. He gave some reasons to his decision: 1) He didn’t want to be seen as a dictator or King, and 2) While he was alive he wanted the system to work as he intended, and if it didn’t he could make adjustments.

## Private Life

Now that another president was in power, Henrik returned to his private life. He initially owned a house in Erstal but sold it after the *Erstal Reparations Act 357PR* was instated, bringing Slavery to Tamwull. An outspoken critic, he eventually gave up and returned to the countryside, owning a house where his tribe used to be.

He eventually died in **374PR**, believed to be aged around his late 60s or early 70s. He never wed or had children, ending his direct legacy at him but leaving behind the entire nation of Tamwull.