Tielëjoar / Tále'emë
Állewelgë, Mánedë and Sáldemelë. Three ships left their homeland along Tenwän shores for the unknown in the midst of the First Age. At the helm of Állewelgë stood Óldegáre, chieftain of his clan and leader of the expedition. Before the end of that autumn, at the newly built great hall of Iedëlunwë, he was crowned and given the title of Tielëjoar. So was born the first of the Kings of Aellasar.
Aellasar's kings were as much symbols of unity in their own right as they were leaders and individuals. Though Aellasar's clans mostly governed themselves and solved petty squabbles and disagreements one their own, larger disputes had to go through the Tielëjoar. If an issue arose that could affect the entire island, the Tielëjoar needed to know. If someone or something was harming, killing or otherwise committing crimes and disrupting the clans, the Tielëjoar needed to know. If two clans couldn't come to terms with each other's existence, the Tielëjoar would step between them and solve the issue. Or at least quiet the parties down so life on the already harsh Aellasar could return to normal.
While the clans met on a yearly basis to establish rules and solve issues among other things, the Tielëjoar's was the last word and deciding vote. And while the king couldn't go completely against the clans, especially if the latter were to unite against him, the influence and power he commanded gave the Tielëjoar enough sway to single-handedly rule on a subject, especially if he kept in good standing with the clan heads or had otherwise proven himself beyond doubts.
Election of a Ruler
While often the eldest child of the previous Tielëjoar came to be their parent's successor, other clans could raise their objections and offer alternatives. After the death of their ruler, clan heads would either come themselves or send a representative to Iedëlunwe, where they would have to accept or reject candidates for the throne. Only after the clan heads had all come to an agreement could the successor be crowned at the great hall of Iedëlunwë.
A Broken Throne
Aellasar's clans stood disgruntled late in the First Age. For two generations their kings, their elected Tierëjoar rulers had all but destroyed their society, their nation and their homes with weakness and naivety. What do we need a king for, anyway? We already rule amongst ourselves, some clan heads began to ask, and not only themselves. Factions rose between those remembered the old Aellasar Kings and those who did not.
A surge of fever trampled over Aellasar; fish left the island's shores and the claws of Erinär seemed to stall their retreat beneath the dim sunrays of early spring. Truth was clear to all of the island's people: the Kings of Aellasar had angered the spirits of the land and sea alike with their incompetence. And as it had been the choice of the clan heads to allow their rise to power, they too were being punished.
The civil war began during the last meeting of clans. Tension had been high from the beginning. One word let to another and eventually a singular blade met the unguarded face of the opposition. The spark had been lit, and the midsummer meeting of Aellasar's clans had kindling to spare.
The war was quick, more a mindless massacre than a battlefield of tactics and strategies. At the end of it the line of the Kings of Aellasar had dwindled to mere children, some of whom were adopted into clans still loyal to their family. Clans returned home, ruling only themselves among themselves, though friendships were common among those who previously fought side by side. Not many could imagine the crown could ever be reforged, the seat of Kings returned to its former glory. The Kings of Aellasar became a memory, legend to tell children by a hearthfire.
A Crown Reforged
Last years of the First Age saw the birth of Asdamiel, eldest son and heir of Meannoi, chieftain of his clan and descendant of the old kings. He was weak and frail and terrified for reasons he rarely spoke of to anyone. He had little promise even to succeed as the clan head after his father would pass, nevermind uniting all of Aellasar under one banner.
At least that was what was said behind his back and closed doors until Meannoi passed and Asdamiel lunged the sharp end of his axe through anyone who claimed they had more of a right to be leader than him. The clan's new head turned his gaze toward the rest of the island and began his conquest in earnest.
Asdamiel refused to rekindle the title of Tielëjoar until a decade passed and all of Aellasar finally bowed to him. In the great hall of Iedëlunwë the man was crowned King of Aellasar, the first Tielëjoar since the civil war to sit on the throne as the ruler of a kingdom instead of the chieftain of a clan.
But Asdamiel's ambitions led him to destruction, not only his own but that of the world itself. A ritual commenced in Aellasar, and Asdamiel made immortal. The Year of Tremors saw the beginning of his life eternal, and the end of him as Tielëjoar. Instead, while Asdamiel was locked far beneath the earth, his eldest child and daughter Joade'álbe was crowned Tále'emë. She was given the terrible job of not only keeping her kingdom together, but to guide her people through the Second Age and the coming Long Winter.
Kings of the Island
Form of Address: tále, /ˈtaːle/ + (given name)
Alternative names: King/Queen of Aellasar, Aellasar King/Queen
Region: Aellasar, Tenwä