Candonia

Nostraluce si Legacosi (Our Light Thus Binds)

Candonia is located in the middle of Aellolyn. It is the center of the content, a connection to all the countries.

### **Politics**

* **Capital**: Ilium. Often believed to be the seat of power for most of the world
* **Language**: Candonian, Emmish
* **Cities**: Ghynts, Oploria, Ecten
* **Symbol**: Lion
* **Colors**: Silver and Gold

* **King**: Antias
* **Queen**: Former, Clara (Deseased) Current, Zamora
* **Princesses**: Charlotte, Thalia, and Eleanor
* **Lords and their Families**:
	+ Alexander II of Theans. He is the only son of Alexander of Theans. Both his father and mother died when he was twelve years old.
	+ Edmund of Ecten.

### **Beliefs**

* Worships: Basilius, Ancient of Light & Ruler of Xeollerene
* Slavery. This was prevalent for decades until Charlotte took over. It was abolished two years ago by Princess Charlotte. It was her first law she has passed in preparation for her to rule the throne one day.
	+ Charlotte is to be the first queen of Candonia

### **Festivals and Events**

* ***Festival of the Harvest Moon***. This is when the people of the country celebrate all their crops
* ***Celebrazione della Libertà***. Charlotte created this day to celebrate the day slavery became abolished in her country.

### **Climate**

Candonia receives all four seasons. Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. Each season lasts three months.

### **Resources**

Candonia has lots of food, wood, livestock, and minerals. It is one of the most powerful Kingdoms in this world. Anything it doesn’t have it imports. The mountains that border Candonia and Ciral are rich with expensive ores, specifically, gold, silver and copper. Candonia is also where all new money is minted and distributed.

### **Main Trade**

Candonia is known as the Jewel of Aellolyn, as it houses the major market where all nations come to buy and sell their various items. Though Candonia itself does not need to specialize in any kind of crop, its country does pride itself in being self-sufficient, if necessary, raising a large amount of poultry and the greenhouse in Velaris growing some rare fruits and vegetables. However, these are not it’s major trade, Candonia is home to the Metal Mountains, it’s mines where most of their country’s populace finds honest work. Inside the mine, valuable ore such as gold, silver, and copper are sourced, along with rare gems such as diamonds, emeralds, rubies and sapphires. As all other countries bring their wares to the market in Velaris, Candonia is responsible for the mining, minting and backing of the currency of Aellolyn. Coin is minted in three forms, gold, silver and copper, each being known as “Crowns”, called such by the eight crowns minted on both sides of it. The eight crowns are a symbol for the backing of all eight kingdoms behind the currency.

### **Relations**

* Maintains strong treaties with most of the other kingdoms, due to its central position in Aellolyn, it has often been host to peace talks with warring nations as the middle ground.
* Steodia and Candonia have some tension but nothing has happened.
* Vruica and Candonia were at war until King Antias married Vruica’s princess Cara.

### **History**

Candonia was first settled King Aillard, believed to have been a mortal son born to Basilius, king of the ancients during the Great Fervor. King Aillard ruled with great strength and cunning, and named the country Candonia to honor his wife, Candonelle. Though it is said that King Aillard doted on his wife, showering her with all the jewels and gold he could source from the Metal Mountains, it was believed that she was indifferent to him. After delivering their first child, Crown Prince Bronimir, Aillard was found to have died suspiciously in his bath tub. The queen never remarried, though she was later banished by her son when he reached majority, it was rumored that he discovered her hand in his father’s death.

During the reign of King Bronimir, the first territorial dispute with Ciral began. Bronimir lead the invasion, occupation and conversion of the two island nations, Silvercoal and the Emerald Isles, making them principalities of Candonia. This enraged the sovereign of their neighboring country, Queen Cirilli, who believed both belonged to Ciral and the Metal Mountains, the source of Candonia’s great wealth belonged to Ciral too.

This sparked what became known as the Great Schism, resulting in both sides going to war periodically over the next five hundred years, the feud handed down from monarch to monarch on both sides. There were periods of peace, though they were few and far between, until King Kaan of Candonia, known later as the Peacemaker, and Queen Naida of Ciral, known later as the Great Queen, sat down and discussed the peace between the two countries that lasts till the present. The Silvercoal would become Ciral’s sovereign islands, the Emerald Isles and the Metal Mountains would remain in Candonia. This division was only agreed to when King Kaan offered that a portion of Candonia’s annual income from the Grand Market in Velaris would go to the coffers of Ciral. The percentage at the time being a measly five percent, but enough of the income to keep Ciral’s coffers flowing with gold.

For the next five hundred years, Candonia became known as the Jewel of Aellolyn, its strategic placement on the continent lending it to gaining the reputation of a powerful ally, and a terrible enemy. Instead of utilizing this power and bending the rest of the continent to its will, Candonia focused on fostering the relations between the Northern and Southern countries, often hosting a neutral location for peace talks.

Though it appeared that the long history might come to an end with the late King Bronomir the Younger, who cast his eyes immediately to the neighboring country of Vrucia, feeling the need to live up to his namesake. Within a year of his reign, a full out war erupted between the two countries, causing all of Aellolyn to take sides, the Northern countries siding with Vrucia, believing them wrongfully attacked. The Southern countries siding with Candonia, believing they were the more powerful adversary. The war lasted for twenty years, looking like there would be no end in sight. However, Bronomir’s unprovoked advance on Vrucia created enemies in the North, specifically in the court of Steodia. It is rumored that the Steodian king dispatched his loyal assassin, known only as the Black Thorn, to dispatch with the war hungry king.

Bronomir’s body was hung from chains at the tips of the palace in Velaris. With his death, his young son took the throne, hoping to usher in a new era of peace, returning to the roots of his ancestors. Now King Antais, brokered a treaty with Vrucia, and an end to the bloodshed, sealing the deal by offering his own hand to a daughter of Vrucia, binding the two countries together through marriage. The King of Vrucia accepted, and the marriage was arranged. Though initially Antais and Clara despised each other, they soon fell in love, having three children together, Charlotte, Thalia and Eleanor. However, Queen Clara died during delivery of her youngest daughter, and the King, feeling pressure from Steodia, agreed to marry the recently widowed wife of Prince Crillio, providing a mother to his young children.

**Note**: Candonian is Latin/Spanish. Emmish is English.