Ghealdan

[Chris]

Capital	Jehannah
Public Happiness	70/100
Military power	Perhaps somewhere in the order of 10,000 men, mixtue of light cavalry and light infantry
Details	Ghealdan stretches from the Forest of Shadows, also called the Great Blackwood, along the southern banks of the River Manetherendrelle, to the River Eldar in the south, and from the Mountains of Mist in the west to the immense ridge known as Garen's Wall in the east. Its capital city is Jehannah, located on the banks of the River Boern. Ghealdan is a land of mountains and foothills in the west, the rocky lands along the ridge in the east and large swathes of forest inbetween, such as the Dhallin Forest. Ghealdan is one of the smallest kingdoms in the Westlands. As a small country, Ghealdan does not possess a substantial standing army. Instead, it has a small, professional force known as the Legion of the Wall, which protects the borders, polices Jehannah and protects the ruler. In times of war the Legion forms the core of the Ghealdanin war effort and trains new levies to support its operations. The Legion of the Wall is the elite military formation and standing army of the kingdom of Ghealdan. It is named for Garen's Wall, the immense ridgeline on the north-eastern edge of the country that formed its major defensive fortification for the entirety of its existence and even prior, when the kingdom of Dhowlan used the wall as a defensive bulwark in its wars with Farashelle to the north. The Legion was the only major, professional military body in a small country whose main martial strength lay in levies. The Legion provided the core to a levy army raised in times of crisis, and also acted as both the bodyguard to the King or Queen, and also policed the capital city of Jehannah. Ghealdan produces alum and its mines are responsible for much of the wealth of the kingdom. However, Ghealdan is not a rich nation, especially compared to its neighbours, and the mines in the Mountains of Mist are not as productive as those in Andor to the north. The normal Ghealdanin clothing style is a coat fastened with a double row of wooden buttons. For excise men working at the docks, this is typically a blue coat with chains and a seal on the chest. During the War of the Hundred Years several attempts were made to refound the kingdom of Dhowlan, which used to share Ghealdan's borders before the days of Artur Hawkwing. After the failure of the last attempt in FY 1109, Lord Kirin Almeyda, Lady Valera Prosnarin, Lord Cynric Talvaen and Lady Iona Ashmar founded the new kingdom of Ghealdan in its stead. Kirin Almeyda became the first King of Ghealdan and the others formed the Crown High Council to advise him. Ghealdan's history has largely been peaceful, despite minor border incidencts with Amadicia and Altara. Ghealdan is not a rich country and its natural resources are not worth the cost of trying to invade the country. Jehannah is the capital of Ghealdan. It was built on the site of Shanaine, formerly a part of Manetheren. Bethal is a good sized town in Ghealdan. Most of the buildings there have slate roofs. Boannda is a town in Ghealdan. It lies at the point where the River Boern joins the River Eldar and is considered to be a large town, with three towers and a small palace. Samara is a town in Ghealdan. It is situated on the River Eldar.