House of Toron
King Poleryn died childless in 585; his queen was barren but the king was devoted to her and the line died out with him. A distant cousin, Lodros Toron, was chosen to succeed Poleryn. The Torons have habitually been more accessible than their predecessors and take a much greater interest in foreign affairs. While the hand of the Melderyni throne is a gentle one and its influence subtle, the last century and a half has seen Melderyn increase its obvious participation in Harnic events. It is sometimes argued that this change in policy, if change it is, can be traced to Poleryn's granting of Thay to the Aleathian refugees and his foundation of the Order of the Lady of Paladins, a Laranian fighting order. Even if that is true, however, it is certainly the case that Lodros and his successors have continued and expanded that policy.
The Nuem Settlements:
In 624, Lodros ordered the building of Racyn, Cundras, and Fosumo keeps. The stated purpose of this was to allow for the resettlement of surplus population from Melderyn. The keeps were built in what had been, until then, thinly populated wilderness on the edge of the Solori tribal range. The fourth Nuem settlement, Yael was built is 645 when Shelir II granted a license to crenellate to Halat Duathane. Since settlers to the area were voluntary and there was never any attempt at forced relocation, the population of the region has remained small.
Lodros may have hoped that civilization would rub off on the Solori. If so, he must have been disappointed. The tribal reaction was generally disinterest, after a few half-hearted and abortive raids on the the builders. They showed little inclination to trade and made no attempts to abandon their traditional lives.
Lodros also reorganized the shire system of Melderyn. The earlier shires were based on the old Five Kingdoms and the borders of Elorinar. With the passage of centuries and the steady growth of population, the system had grown unwieldy and was badly in need of streamlining. The Shires Edict of 630 established the modern shire boundaries with the exception of Dyriamarch, which was added in 691 when the Earl of Elorin claimed the region. The only border that remained untouched was that of Ikoshire.
King Etobron
Etobron is the closest Melderyn has come to an incompetent king. Etobron was somewhat effete and extremely fond of hunting, almost to the exclusion of all else. Fortunately, this irresponsibility had a minimal effect on the affairs of the kingdom; the Council of Eleven governed with its usual skill. Etobron planted many groves of trees throughout Melderyn. His purpose was to increase and improve the available hunting grounds; sever thousand acres of forest were created during his reign. These trees have all grown with amazing speed since his death. Etobron's major contribution to history is that he sheltered King Balesir of Chybisa in exile after that kingdom was annexed by King Torastra of Kaldor in 678.
King Chunel
Chunel succeeded his father, Etobron, in 684. He is much more interested in affairs of state, although, as has always been the case with Melderyni monarchs, he leaves much of the governance to his councils. Chunel is an assiduous student of realpolitik; he maintains an extensive library on the subject that contains the works of writers as diverse as the Terrans Sun Tzu, Hobbes, and Clausewitz; the Sheremites Andassen and Severotis; and the Yashainian Narrolg the Sullen.
In 686, Balesir of Chybisa, who was still in exile at Cherafir, swore fealty to Chunel. The following year, with the aid of Melderyni advisors and a number of military adventurers, he was able to raise an army and win back his throne at the Battle of Geda. Having done so, he promptly renounced his fealty, news of which Chunel is reputed to have received with total lack of surprise. Some say that he actually laughed. He subsequently denounced the treachery and has not given up his claim on Chybisa. It is notable, however, that he has taken no obvious action to press this claim and there have been reasonably friendly embassies between the two courts.
Chunel, however, refers to the Chybisan king as "Our vassal, the earl," much to the distress of Chybisan ambassadors. While this situation provides Chunel with sardonic amusement, it probably hastened the death of Balesir from stomach cramps and has aggravated the ulcers of Verlid VII, the present king of Chybisa.
It is likely that Chunel's continued claim to Chybisa is based not so much on a desire to possess the tiny kingdom as a deliberate attempt to neutralize any claims that Kaldor may attempt to press. As long as Chunel maintains that Chybisa is subject to Melderyn, it is extremely unlikely that Kaldor will use force to regain its former conquest.
The Nuem Settlements:
In 624, Lodros ordered the building of Racyn, Cundras, and Fosumo keeps. The stated purpose of this was to allow for the resettlement of surplus population from Melderyn. The keeps were built in what had been, until then, thinly populated wilderness on the edge of the Solori tribal range. The fourth Nuem settlement, Yael was built is 645 when Shelir II granted a license to crenellate to Halat Duathane. Since settlers to the area were voluntary and there was never any attempt at forced relocation, the population of the region has remained small.
Lodros may have hoped that civilization would rub off on the Solori. If so, he must have been disappointed. The tribal reaction was generally disinterest, after a few half-hearted and abortive raids on the the builders. They showed little inclination to trade and made no attempts to abandon their traditional lives.
Lodros also reorganized the shire system of Melderyn. The earlier shires were based on the old Five Kingdoms and the borders of Elorinar. With the passage of centuries and the steady growth of population, the system had grown unwieldy and was badly in need of streamlining. The Shires Edict of 630 established the modern shire boundaries with the exception of Dyriamarch, which was added in 691 when the Earl of Elorin claimed the region. The only border that remained untouched was that of Ikoshire.
King Etobron
Etobron is the closest Melderyn has come to an incompetent king. Etobron was somewhat effete and extremely fond of hunting, almost to the exclusion of all else. Fortunately, this irresponsibility had a minimal effect on the affairs of the kingdom; the Council of Eleven governed with its usual skill. Etobron planted many groves of trees throughout Melderyn. His purpose was to increase and improve the available hunting grounds; sever thousand acres of forest were created during his reign. These trees have all grown with amazing speed since his death. Etobron's major contribution to history is that he sheltered King Balesir of Chybisa in exile after that kingdom was annexed by King Torastra of Kaldor in 678.
King Chunel
Chunel succeeded his father, Etobron, in 684. He is much more interested in affairs of state, although, as has always been the case with Melderyni monarchs, he leaves much of the governance to his councils. Chunel is an assiduous student of realpolitik; he maintains an extensive library on the subject that contains the works of writers as diverse as the Terrans Sun Tzu, Hobbes, and Clausewitz; the Sheremites Andassen and Severotis; and the Yashainian Narrolg the Sullen.
In 686, Balesir of Chybisa, who was still in exile at Cherafir, swore fealty to Chunel. The following year, with the aid of Melderyni advisors and a number of military adventurers, he was able to raise an army and win back his throne at the Battle of Geda. Having done so, he promptly renounced his fealty, news of which Chunel is reputed to have received with total lack of surprise. Some say that he actually laughed. He subsequently denounced the treachery and has not given up his claim on Chybisa. It is notable, however, that he has taken no obvious action to press this claim and there have been reasonably friendly embassies between the two courts.
Chunel, however, refers to the Chybisan king as "Our vassal, the earl," much to the distress of Chybisan ambassadors. While this situation provides Chunel with sardonic amusement, it probably hastened the death of Balesir from stomach cramps and has aggravated the ulcers of Verlid VII, the present king of Chybisa.
It is likely that Chunel's continued claim to Chybisa is based not so much on a desire to possess the tiny kingdom as a deliberate attempt to neutralize any claims that Kaldor may attempt to press. As long as Chunel maintains that Chybisa is subject to Melderyn, it is extremely unlikely that Kaldor will use force to regain its former conquest.
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