Midguard

**Midguard, or Middgard** (Middish: *Mijnicgard,* pronounced **Mēdj'nik'gad**), officially the **Middish Royalate**, is a Breton-Teauf country located in north-western Benth. Located on the northeast coast of the Sea of Andreas, Midguard is composed of a mainland peninsula, Cimbrica, and a number of small islands in the sea, known simply as the Middish Isles. Mainland Midguard intersects with the Northern Andrean mountain range, and as such, the land is characterized by high snow-capped mountains and deep, lush, dense valleys. The world's third-largest single forest system, the Holling Wood, is located in Eastern Midguard.

## Midguard

### Inhabitants

Middish

Midguard is located south of Andreas and Teaufortria, and northwest of Waxwaerlia. It shares a border with all three countries. The government of Midguard, the Middish Royalate, is the last of the Teauf Royalates, the rest of which having been conquered by Waxwaerlia during the Breton Inquisition or had been subsumed by the Teaufortrian Republic in the Second Era. The modern Middish Royalate emerged in the sixth century of the Second Era, after the older Middish Confederacy was conquered by Waxwaerlia during the Inquisition. The Middish people later won back their independence and were granted amnesty by the Waxwaerlian senate.

## Etymology

The nomenclature of Midguard and the Middish people has always been a topic of much debate, primarily in regards to the origin of the prefix *Midd- (*Midguard and Middgard are used interchangeably, but *Midd* is always used in Middish). The Middish people, being descended from the Antuites, most likely used the prefix as referring to it being the middle kingdom in Antuite history, between the ancient Antuites of northern Graecia and the modern Antuites living across the north coast of Altuma.

## History

### Prehistory

The oldest peoples of modern-day Midguard were mostly hunter-gatherer tribes, as evidenced by the lack of archeological evidence pointing towards any meaningful permanent villages or towns. It is widely believed that the peoples who inhabited the Cimbric peninsula before the displaced Antuites settled the area were likely closely related to the proto-Cimmerian people and the Rondori people. After the influx of the Antuite refugees and the subsequent interbreeding between the ethnic groups, the earliest Middish ancestry was born.

### Early Middish Settlements

The oldest city in recorded Middish history was the city of Piatrava. It is located on the eastern edge of the Holling Wood, and still stands as the Capital of the modern Middish Royalate. In the ancient world, Piatrava was a major hub of trade for the Central Benthic tribes, and remained one throughout the Imperial Eras, under Waxwaerlian control and later, once again sovereign after the Middish Revolt of 3e214.

There are a number of old Middish cities that remain standing today in addition to Piatrava. Further west, located deep in the forest, stands a massive fortress-city, Lemnadânca. In ancient times, the city was completely self-sustaining, with everything that the occupants needed to survive available within the walls. The city was ministered by a hyper-feudal council that refused contact with all outsiders and prevented the denizens of the city from leaving the walls. There were countless legends centered around the city that were born from surrounding tribes. Due to its isolation, Lemnadânca garnered a mythic reputation in the greater culture of Ancient Central Benth.

### The Middish House

Before the Middish tribes made contact with the Republic of Waxwaerlia in the early Second Era, they had no concept of incorporation or heirarchical government beyond direct feudal lordship. This changed when King Dracul of Piatrava (c. 1e159- c. 2e24) met with Waxwaerlian Caesar John Waxwiller II at some point in the early Second Era. He was fascinated by the governmental structure of the early Kingdom of Waxwaerlia and its provinces, and wanted to incorporate that style of government in Middgard. He befriended Caesar Waxwiller II and, backed by the Waxwaerlian armies, waged the Wars of Cimbric Unification that resulted in the creation of the Middish Confederacy between 2e20 and his death in 2e24.