The League of the Palisades

**The League of the Palisades of Merion**, more commonly called the **League of the Palisades** (and known in United Merion as the **Eastern Duchies**), is a country in the world of *All My Wicked Nephews Crave the Throne*. The nation is located between United Merion to the west and the Dawnerland Empire to the east, separated by the Longmarsh and the Young Thousands respectively.

## Geography

The League of the Palisades is separated into five regions: North, East, West, and South, and Central. The differences between these regions are based on on their views on foreign powers (with the North and northern parts of the East, West, and Central regions being fairly cosmopolitan while the South and southern parts of the East, West, and Central regions are more insular) and which neighboring nation their culture most reflects, with the East and eastern parts of the North, South, and Central regions presenting more like the Dawnerland Empire and the West and western parts of the North, South, and Central regions presenting more like United Merion. For example, a person living in the northeast of the nation would likely be more cosmopolitan and culturally similar to those from the Dawnerland Empire, while a person living in the southwest of the nation would likely be more insular and culturally similar to those from United Merion.

### Landscape

The League of the Palisade's landscape is fairly similar to United Merion's but with less drastic changes from one geographic region to another. The nation is also considerably more hilly than its western neighbor, and it is increasingly swampy the further west one travels into the Longmarsh.

## Government

The League of the Palisades is a confederacy of seventeen Duchies, all larger in size than a single Merionese Twelvescore House.

### The Duchies

The individual Dukedoms and Duchessdoms of the League of the Palisades are extremely autonomous and are considered roughly equal in rank and importance, though the "Three Ancient Ones" are typically considered to be the "first-among-equals." Individual Duchies take flora as their personal and familial vigils, while the battle-flag of the nation is a single wall (or Palisade) of the various flowers intertwined, showcasing the diversity, power, and united front of the League as a whole.

Each Duchess and Duke has a chosen Champion (in general, members of the League's most prestigious knightly order, the Golden Knights) who acts as a kind of Vice-Duchess/Duke and Secretary of State for their liege. Dukes typically prefer not to leave their Duchies, so it generally falls to the Champion to make official trips outside of the Duchy. Each Duchy also has a Ducal Court that serves as an advisory council.

The Seventeen Duchies are as follows:

* The Three Ancient Ones/"Northshore"
	+ The Duchy of the Mountain Laurel - Rumored to be the oldest Duchy and typically considered the wisest. Excluding the Duke of Dukes (when they are not the same person), the Duke or Duchess of the Mountain Laurel is typically the most powerful and high-ranking person in the League.
	+ The Duchy of the Tulip - Known for being very haughty and having a significant amount of wealth despite having a small amount of land. Very similar to the Duchy of the Lotus with whom they have a rivalry.
	+ The Duchy of the Lotus - Historically a major leader for the League, even when compared to its fellow Ancient Ones. Very similar to the Duchy of the Tulip with whom they have a rivalry.
* Southern Duchies/"The Duchal Mountains"
	+ The Duchy of the Flytrap - Among the most martially-inclined Duchies and home to the Knights of the Flytrap. They are known to spend a good amount of time fighting against the Birchcrown, though not as much as House Illwoll of United Merion.
	+ The Duchy of the Black Viola - The military heart of the League. Known for dark forests, lots of bats, and a generally creepy atmosphere.
	+ The Duchy of the Sunflower - The least martially-inclined Duchy, known for its gold mines, flowered valley, and unflappable courtesy.
	+ The Duchy of the Petunia - The least spoken about Duchy. Known for nice lakes full of exotic fish, and its people are noted fish experts, both as scientists and cooks, continent-wide. One of the poorest Duchies, but its people seem to be some of the happiest.
* Eastern Duchies
	+ The Duchy of the Water Lily - One of the least involved in national affairs but still respected, and has the second largest population of the Duchies.
	+ The Duchy of the Trumpet Vine - Known for their musicians and artists. For seemingly no reason, typically produces weak Dukes and Duchesses with incredibly capable Champions.
	+ The Duchy of the Cherry Blossom - A small Duchy, heavily forested, known for its visual arts, woodworking, and all-around happy demeanor.
* Western Duchies
	+ The Duchy of the Primrose - The most populous Duchy, but considered a rather soft people.
	+ The Duchy of the Grapevine - Known for their wines. One of the smallest Duchies in both amount of land and population size.
	+ The Duchy of the Paleflower - A mysterious and misty Duchy with the smallest population and an often absent Duke/Duchess.
* Central Duchies
	+ The Duchy of the Rose - The wealthiest Duchy by a large margin. Known for its awe-inspiring castles and architecture.
	+ The Duchy of the Orchid - Known for its incredibly gorgeous flora and fauna (though they are not much for agriculture) and its lovely, if aloof, people.
	+ The Duchy of the Violet - Most famous for being the former Duchy of the Candlebrooks, the royal family of United Merion. More famous in modern times for its quiet, if pleasant, people, some of whom still claim to be descended from the Candlebrooks.
	+ The Duchy of the Red Carnation - Primarily pig farmers and butchers, well liked throughout the other Duchies.

When the various Dukes and Duchesses need to meet to discuss a matter of national importance, they will typically meet either on the Northshore (where the Ancient Three converge) or in the small, symbolically wall-less city of Windrose, nominally governed by the Duke of the Rose but easily accessible to all of the Central Duchies.

### The Duke of Dukes

During times of crisis, typically one of the Dukes will gather power and support to take control of the situation, possibly besting other Duchesses and dukes along the way. They are then declared to be the "Duke (or Duchess) of Dukes" and becomes a "First-Among-Equals" towards the other Dukes. When a new Duke of Dukes is declared, the constitution of the League is altered, and a new Palisade (the League's term for a time period of government) is declared. The family/Duchy of that particular Duke then maintains power for a length of time, even as long as centuries. However, their power relative to the other Dukes, already fairly minimal, slowly diminishes over time until a new crisis comes up and the Dukes decide they need a new leader and a new Palisade.

## Orders of Duchal Knights

The League of the Palisades has three knightly orders. In order from most to least prestigious, they are The Golden Knights, the Knights of the Windrose, and the Knights of the Flytrap.

1. The Golden Knights - Roughly equal in skill to the Knights of the Gardens from United Merion (and the historical precursor to the Knights of Merion) but have more generalized skills and are not specialized like Merionese Knights. Golden Knights can be found across the nation, but the majority of them are concentrated among the Three Ancient Ones. There are approximately 100 of them at any given time. While they are known to be fairly arrogant, they typically have the skills and prestige to support their boasts.
2. The Knights of the Windrose - Learned men and women (mostly men) based in the city of Windrose. Becoming a Knight of the Windrose is mostly an honorary affair granted for great service to the League and most Knights of the Windrose are old and/or past their prime, meaning any martial prowess they may have once had is now a thing of the past. There are several hundred at any given time.
3. The Knights of the Flytrap - Primarily border guards against Birchcrown and other menaces from the southwest. They're looked down on by the other Duchal knights, but have a strange kinship with United Merion's Knights, especially Knights of Fire and Air from Ashervale, the Eastern Marks, and the Magewood. Knights of the Flytrap can only be created by the Duke of the Flytrap personally. There are approximately a thousand Knights of the Flytrap rotating in and out of the League's southwestern border (and neighboring lands) at any given time.

## Religion

As a whole, the League of the Palisades is an atheistic nation and extremely secular, although citizens close to the borders of the Dawnerland Empire and United Merion occasionally may (secretly) follow the relative beliefs of those nations. Citizens do not tend to believe in an Afterlife, but the practice of writing long "Death Poems" to commemorate their dead is very common. These are kept in centrally-located Ducal Libraries.

## Relations with Foreign Powers

### United Merion

Following the fall of the Old Throne and the rise of the House of Candlebrook as a political entity separate from the League of the Palisades, relations between the political bodies have been, and remain, strained. While the League remains one of United Merion's largest trading partners (only recently being supplanted by Barande during the reign of King Lawrence XII) and genetic similarities between the Merionese and Palisade citizens have led to similar cultures, especially in the western Duchies, the League of the Palisades is known to hold a grudge and pure hatred of United Merion regarding its departure from what eventually became the League during the time of the Old Throne. Despite this, United Merion and the League maintain a wary alliance.

### The Dawnerland Empire

Like most nations, The League of the Palisades keeps a watchful eye on The Dawnerland Empire, even more so due to their shared border. As the largest and most powerful political entity in the known world, The Dawnerland Empire's ability to conquer the League, as well as the rest of the continent, is well known; it is assumed that only the combined forces of the League, United Merion, and Barande could stand a chance against the Dawnerlands. However, the Dawnerland Empire has shown no sign of expanding or interest in conquering new territory and mostly keeps to itself. Trade between the Dawnerlands and the League is neither minimal nor extensive, and the political relationship is, in general, a neutral and uneventful one. Despite this, and the shared culture in the eastern Duchies, the League continues to count the Dawnerland Empire as a serious and possible threat.

### Barande

It is well known that Barande and the League of the Palisades have a poor relationship, bordering on despising each other. Any diplomatic actions or talks between the nations are kept to a minimum, and most of their trading is done with United Merion acting as a middle-man.

## Trivia

* The current Duchess of Dukes is the Duchess of the Lotus
* The League is currently in its Eighteenth Palisade. The crowning of Alice I and the establishment of the Candlebrook Monarchy occurred during the Thirteenth Palisade, quickly leading to the Fourteenth Palisade.
* The Duke of Dukes is most frequently the head of one of the "Three Ancient Ones."
* Despite their autonomy, the Duchies have a large amount of trade between themselves. Each tends to have one or two exports that they excel at and they rely on those to maintain their individual fiefdoms.
* Culturally, the southern Duchies are comparable to the culture displayed in the epic poem *Beowulf,* while the northern Duchies are more comparable to the culture of England during the Tudor monarchy.
* Recreation in the League tends to take the form of either ritualized group dancing or a game of The Clash, a rougher variant of Rugby.
* The majority of known mercenary companies come from the League of the Palisades.