History of the Capitol

**The History of the Capitol** begins with the founding of Megaton following World War III in 1077

## Background

### Early Beginnings

#### Megaton

One of the oldest settlements in the Capitol, Megaton was founded by rejects from nearby Vault 101, building a steel dome structure around a large crater created by the impact of a nuclear bomb that failed to detonate. While the residents suffered severe health issues due to radiation poisoning, the nuke seemingly remained dormant and the settlement continued to grow, thus many people chose to remain, ignorant to the cause of cancers and many other ills.

A former slaver named Colin Moriarty established a bar in Megaton, which drew the attention of several other retiring slavers including Billy Creel, Greg Church, Leo Stahl, and Lucas Simms. These men had recently freed a great deal of child slaves, and wished to provide the next generation a chance at freedom. They proceeded to raise the children as their own, grooming them to take over the businesses they would found, and providing them with a stable home. These men drive the economy of Megaton and sustain it's population, thus they're considered the founding fathers of Megaton.

Stahl opened an eatery and bar, creating a competitive market between his family and Colin Moriarty, and Church opened a clinic, which he funded by selling drugs to the addicted Stahl. Simms declared his status as Sheriff of the town, wishing to maintain peace and civility, unlike the environment of the slaver compound he had frequented in the past. Creel trafficked weapons into the city, funneling weapons to arms merchant Moira Brown via his colleague Pete Harith and Eulogy Jones.

The slave trade affected Megaton minimally, and citizens were primarily protected from enslavement by the local militia founded by Simms and consisting of Billy Creel, Jericho Lewis, John Stockholm,

#### Paradise Falls

Slavery was the first capitalist venture pursued in the Capitol in the years preceding WWIII, established by successful raiders who founded the industry in response to the demand for slaves from the Pitt. Within a few decades it expanded across D.C. and into the former states of Pennsylvania, Virginia and Maryland, where there was no consensus on the law of the land due to sparse populations and isolated communities.

Since there was no unified government of D.C. at the time, the slavers operated unchallenged, except by newly established settlements on the defensive. After forming a liaison with Lord Ashur Imshael of the Pitt, a young trader named Eulogy Jones took advantage of the functional steel mill operating in Pittsburgh, and used it to manufacture weapons in exchange for slaves from the Capitol. He employed several slavers to collectively traffic humans through his contacts and established the arms trade in the wasteland by selling them to slavers, who frequently became arms merchants following their departure from the slave trade.

Jones is considered one of the founding father's of the capitol, accredited with building the economy of D.C. through the slave and arms trades and establishing a free market with competitive business. Many political entities defended this industry in hopes of preserving it, regardless of how morally reprehensible they find it they understand that the Capitol's economy would collapse and poverty, death, and violence would follow.

#### Tenpenny Tower

Founded by the wealthy former slaver Alistair Tenpenny, Tenpenny Tower is considered to have the most successful economic system in the Capitol, disregarding Rivet City who's trade relies on merchandise and funds from Tenpenny and Canterbury Commons.

Upon his retirement he employed dozens of men to reconstruct a hotel his family had owned before the war, and proceeded to invite his wealthiest acquaintances to take up residence as his tenants. He hired those who had worked as construction workers to comprise his security force, and in Tenpenny started his own arms trade agreement with Paradise Falls to supply them, and the economic benefit this provided eventually gave rise to the apparel industry.