Raqqos (City)

The city of Raqqos, historically known as Raqq, is the most populous city in the empire of the same name, and is the country's economic, cultural, and historic centre.

The city hosts a population of around four million residents, and is one of the world's most populous cities.

## History

### Early History

Originally, Raqq was the home of an independent Argaivian matrilineal monarchy known as Mésoukeanisi, whose name means '*island in the middle of the ocean'.*

The Queendom was a small agricultural island dominated by fishing and the production of rare spices. It had two small towns, the royal seat of Sapphos (now the Medina Safir), and the harbour town of Musta (now the Medina Muzdahir).

Mésoukeanisi was conquered by Empire of Ankh in 1776 BGE during the War of the Sapphire Brooch against the Argaivian States. It was incorporated into the empire as a minor colonial holding, and subsequently Mésoukean language and culture was brutally suppressed. Spice production however was strongly encouraged. This led to a near complete loss of all knowledge of the traditional native culture, with those records that do exist being largely biased accounts given by the conquering Ankhari. Those relics which remain are thought to exist in the Consular vaults out of public sight.

Throughout the majority of its existence as an Ankhari colony, the ethnic Ankh ruling class were a small minority compared to the native Mésoukeans. This led to several attempted coups, risings and general naughtiness amongst the general public, most famously the Rising of the Slaves in 1451 BGE coinciding with the Second Ankh-Argaiv War. However, waves of immigration to Raqq slowly transformed the island, with Sapphos and Musta slowly growing to absorb each other, resulting in the city of Raqqos.

### After the Cataclysm

After the Divine Cataclysm essentially erased all other parts of the Ankhosian Empire from existence, there was a twelve year period of anarchy in Raqqos known as Gomsode. Although there are few extant contemporary records of the time, folk legends regularly confirm that it was a period of great suffering and starvation. The ash clouds which rose from the mainland blocked out the sun for a whole year, and when it fell, choked the crops which the people of Raqqos had grown.

Refugees from Isra are known to have been greeted as heroes after fleeing to Raqqos in the aftermath bringing food they had stored away, however accounts suggest that all others who reached Raqqos were put to the sword. Differing stories suggest why. Some suggest that that they were put to death out of mercy due to the horrible mutations which the divine fire had wrought on them, others say that it was simply out of fear that too many people would lead to starvation. The darkest accounts however refer to cases of cannibalism by the desperate souls already on the island who were willing to survive at any cost.

Though Gomsode has been transformed by time into a period of literary fantasy, these twelve years remained a source of great shame and sadness amongst the Raqqosi people for centuries afterwards. It is uncertain because of this whether records were never made, or were subsequently destroyed.

Gomsode ended with the overthrow of the warlord Tebes, and the naming of a new Grand Consul at the Conclave of New Birth. The first post-cataclysm Grand Consul was the humble yet intelligent bureaucrat Consul Badahar'ka'Raq.

### Early Modern Raqqos

The subsequent years after the restoration of the Consulate were not easy. Political turbulence was common for a century afterwards, as Raqqos evolved to meet the needs of the new world. Famines were frequent, and cases of Ancestor's Lung pervasive, as the ash and dust storms continued to blow across the waters from the Burnt Coast.

For much of its post-Cataclysm history, the politics of Raqqos was inward looking, as the people struggled merely to survive and hold on to the tatters of their heritage. Reforms came from the Consulate, first with the rule of Grand Consul Husojar, whose rational humanist values were popular among a people who felt they had been abandoned by their patron god Sha'Mak.

## The Medinas and Other Areas

### Medina Safir

Known as the "Old Town" and "Old Saphos", this district is one of the two oldest settled areas of the island, although no original buildings remain. Saphos was originally a walled settlement which served as a sheltered harbour for ships travelling to Argaiv before the Ankhosi conquest. It also served as the royal seat of power for the Mésoukean monarchy.

Nowadays, it is often considered an abominable slum by many, having fallen out of favour with the wealthier classes long ago, due to the narrow lanes and depressing number of beggars. Despite this, it remains a hotbed of culture with a vibrant nightlife (so long as you guard your coin-purse). It is also a rumoured home to many members of both the Thieves' Guild and the notorious Guild of Craftsmen.

### Medina Mak-Sadik

After the conquest of the island by Raqqos, the first building constructed was a fort, built on the site of the old palace of the vanquished Mésoukean queen. The present castle is the second fortification on the site, with the first being destroyed during the Gomsode. In addition to the castle, there exists a large mausoleum, built at the entrance of the city's ancient cave tombs. The mausoleum was built by Grand Consul Badahar to commemorate those lost in the Divine Cataclysm and its terrible aftermath. It is a solemn place, dominated by memories of the past. However it is also extremely popular with foreign tourists due to the wealth of history which pervades the quarter. In addition to the mausoleum and the castle, the quarter is home to the famous Consular Museum, as well the ancient Sentinel statue (thought by some to be a sole surviving depiction of the Red Lord, and others claiming it is a depiction of Husojar) and a large Ankhosian obelisk (unearthed in Ankh and once displayed at the Great Exposition in Pembleton). Until 11 GE, a market met in the Mausoleum Square in which could be bought a variety of mourning paraphernalia, hired mourners for funerary processions, and somewhat incongruously in later years, a variety of exotic goods which had recently been unloaded at the Medina Naba.

### Medina Nehn

Literally translating to 'Fields Town', the Medina Nehn was traditionally the primary centre of agriculture in Raqqos until the recolonisation of parts of the Occidental Continent, and the development of rooftop gardens across the city. The medina has since been developed as an up-market residential district.

### Medina Demigos

The 'Scholars' Town' of Raqqos, the Medina Demigos is dominated by the Academy of Raqqos, whose reputation is internationally renowned as one of the great seats of learning in the world. It is also the home of a number of elegant middle class houses.