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History
The Kingdom Of Kaledor is a country that seems to never have advanced beyond 5th century technology. Kaledor was first inhabited by humans during the Stone Age. These early humans mostly comprised of hunter-gatherer clans. The clans continued to inhabit the land during the last Ice Age, surviving by hunting mammoths. Farming developed towards the end of the Stone Age, as people learned to rear animals and cultivate crops. It was around this time that barrows were built to house the dead, and the great Stone Circles, which still stand today were erected. The Bronze Age saw the introduction of hillforts, as settled and defended communities began to take shape, and the early tribes were formed. The Iron Age saw oppidums replace hillforts as the primary settlements. It also saw the first known era of warfare as the tribes began to fight over land.
Kaledor had little contact with the outside world before 45CE, when the Romans landed and defeated the Kaledorian tribes. Over the following century they would conquer all of Kaledor, with the exception of the Northern Plains. The Romans were eventually defeated when the first king of Kaledor, Artorius united the tribes in an unprecedented alliance. Kaledor has been ruled by the line of Artorius ever since. The current ruler is King Roland III.
Politics
Kaledor is a feudal society that is divided into two classes; the nobility and the peasantry. It is an absollute monarchy. At the top of the feudal hierarchy is the King. Beneath the King are the Dukes, Counts, Earls, Barons and Knights. The throne of Kaledor is usually passed down from father to the eldest son, though on a few rare occasions the nation has been ruled by a Queen. Overall Kaledor is a patriarchal society, though women appeared to be respected in an official context. The Peasants do have some rights, though not many. Most work as serfs on their feudal lords lands, and must surrender a percentage of their grown crops to him.
Geography
The Geography of Kaledor is varied. Kaledor’s terrain mostly comprises of low hills, plains and forests. The east is mountainous, while the west is full of swampland and lakes.The north consists of the snow-capped Kaledorian Alps and northern snow plains. The City Of Kaledor, taking the same name as the kingdoms is the primary settlement in the country, where the King reigns from. Most of the population live in minor village settlements surrounding a Castle, normally ruled by a Baron or Duke. The climate of Kaledor is temperate. The temperatures are mild, not reaching higher than 90 degrees in the summer, and with the exception of the Northern Plains doesn’t go lower than 0 Degrees in the winter.
Religion
The official religion of Kaledor is The Old Religion (That can be at best described as a form of druid wiccanism). The chief diety in this religion is The White Lady, or the Triple Goddess. The religion is led by the High Priests and Priestesses. Noble born females often take up service as Damsels of The White Lady, and if a child is magically gifted, they are taken from their family to serve as prophetesses and priestesses.
Military
Kaledor possesses a powerful military. The spine of the Kaledorian military is made up of the Knights who live by a traditional code of honour and chivalry. Each Knight has his own personal crest and heraldry.There are two routes to becoming a knight. The first is to be born into a noble family – all fit male nobles become knights after serving a number of years as squires. The second method is to earn it on the battlefield. The Knights make up the cavalry force of the army, wielding sword, shield and lance. Other than to hunt, they consider it highly dishonourable to use long distant weapons.Each Knight has their own Men-At-Arms force consisting of the most fit and able peasants. Those peasants in return for service receive a small piece of land for themselves and their family. The Men-At-Arms are called up at times of war. They consist largely of infantry foot soldiers with some longbowmen. The Kaledorian navy consists of 20 war galleys.
Misc
The economy of Kaledor revolves mainly around the military, agriculture and mining. Kaledor doesn't export or import anything from overseas and is largely self-reliant on the resources at hand. Old English is the most widely spoken language in Kaledor, though there are several other celtic dialects that crop up in remote villages. Ethnically speaking Kaledorians tend to be Caucasian. Sporting events in Kaledor are frequent, with the most popular being jousting and Gladitorial combat tournaments between the knights. Football is the most popular non-life-threatening sport, though the Kaledorians arn't very good at it.
Trivia
The adjective Kaledorian is usually used to refer to its citizens and matters relating to the country. The Coat of arms is a crowned wolf on an emerald and blue background. The Wolf represents the knightly virtues of loyalty and courage, The crown represents the royal family and the green and blue background represent the green landscape and the surrounding sea of the nation. Strangely the actual meaning of Kaledor translates as 'The Land of Cabbage'. |
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