History of Sarconia
- See Also: For the history of Sarconia's southern provinces in the period 2049-2115, see History of Aquaria.
Prehistory
Ancient Sarconia
Aiken's Conquest
In 1305, Sarconia was invaded by Zeoul with devastating consequences, resulting in the end of Hervol's Khanate and the conquering of much of the southern reaches of the nation. The land de facto ceded in the war would not fall back under Sarconian control for over 800 years until the Fall of Aquaria. The conflict was largely responsible for defining the modern linguistic borders of Zeoul and Sarconia.
By the 14th century, Zeouli shipbuilding had greatly intensified, and almost every forest in the nation had been depleted. In response King Aiken II ordered several hundred men to cross the mountains and begin harvesting the forests. Upon discovering these labourers, nearby southern Sarconian tribes organised several raiding parties and attacked the Zeouli.
When the reigning king of Zeoul Aiken II heard of the raids he became enraged, mistakenly assuming them to have been ordered by Sarconia’s Khan Hervol.
| “ | He? Who has no need of trees, who sleeps under cloth and burns grass to find warmth! I will take the wood and more besides. A country of beasts and horses. | ” |
| —King Aiken II Kerman | ||
At almost the same time, he received word that the Khan’s wife had fallen pregnant and as a result he had begun relocating his household to Arrataxt Island as dictated by tradition. Aiken then spent approximately 5 months assembled a host of 10,000 and crossed the Zeuldopines. After massacring the tribes of modern day Corain in several small engagements, King Aiken II encamped his force on the southern banks of the Great Lakes and ordered his men to cut down Delge Forest. With the aid of several expert shipbuilders he had brought from south of the mountains, his army built a fleet of approximately 30 light wooden warships. He then marched and sailed north up the Great Lakes, conducting a form of asymmetric warfare against the mounted archers of the nomads. Some were caught completely unawares by the vessels and assumed them to be Dorvic. The Zeouli possessed vastly more maritime experience; their vessels were better constructed and their crews were more skilled. Only around a dozen Sarconian craft were encountered, and none expressly made for fighting - in the few ship-on-ship clashes that occurred the defenders were routed without exception. His strategy of moving his army and the bulk of his warships in tandem allowed him to occupy most of the Laroc Peninsula as well as a thin strip of land on the opposite western bank, which would come to be known as Dziak after the largest tribe found and defeated on its shores. The use of bombards and artillery amongst his warfleet was the earliest instance of naval fire support in recorded history.
Hervol was at this point still bound from leaving the island, and his attempts to direct a counteroffensive or halt the invaders was limited. Lacking clear direction and a rallying figure, attempts to stall the attackers were uncoordinated, and inflicted relatively few losses before being driven off or defeated. Additionally, the rate at which the Zeouli’s advanced outstripped the speed of of northern reinforcements arriving at his call.
When the Zeouli were just days away from Arrataxt, the Khan was forced into action. Still forbidden by tradition to leave the island until the birth of his child, he cut off his hair and left it at his palace, then crossed the water and assembled his force of mainly mounted archers on the tip of the Laroc peninsula. This action was received uneasily, and many amongst his men perceived it as an ill omen.
| “ | Aerfel will muster naught but ghosts ‘til the time of our grandsons. | ” |
| —Thernodil Kerman, Advisor to the King | ||