Harstad

Harstad was founded by the royal family exiled from Kaldhavn in 4 CE. Its first king, Jallan Ice-Hands led a contingent across the Inner Sea and selected a site on the northwestern coast of Apenrike. He began a large military build-up, and conducted raids on the Ankomst coast, burning the villages his people had previosuly occupied and provoking the newly established Coringian Empire. Believing his lust for vengeance would bring about the destruction of the new settlement, Jallan's lords deposed and executed him and his family, although one of his sons escaped to the north. The lords chose a new king from among themselves, naming Gorsick Bluenose the new thane and leader. Under Gorsick's leadership, the new settlement of Harstad became more internally focused, relying on its may ships for defense and exploring the fjord inland. As the community prospered, peoples moved inland toward the mountains and even established a mining community where the mountains met the fjord. Gorsick's son's battled for the right to rule the new kingdom after their father's passing. Dividing the ships and men, they began to undo the work of their father with infighting until one of the sea-captains, seeing an opportunity at the disunity in the royal house, gathered a large enough fleet to overcome the warring factions and establish himself as king. He would become the third king of Harstad, and his line is still intact. Turning Harstad into a formidable sea power and establishing himself as one of the great sea-kings, Haval the Great, as he would come to be known, had many wives and sired many sons. He strengthened the Harstad fleet, increased its number of warriors and encouraged his sons to explore the far reaches of Apenrike. In 75 CE, two of his sons traveled east looking for new lands to settle. Mirias and Hagnar stopped at the mouth of the Belting River and were surprised to find elves. They struck up a good relationship with the elven nation and its king, Gudrun the Wise, who told them of his battles with orcs on his northern border, and that he would be happy to have men on his right flank on the eastern side of the Belting. Myrias established his kingdom at the mouth of the Belting, building the great city of Vilion in cooperation with the elves and founding the kingdom of Miriador. Hagnar sailed up the Belting claiming the land north of the Elven gate settling between the Elvish and Dwarvish lands, building a great keep at the mouth of the Cinnamon River on the Elvish frontier, and naming it Norgaard. The throne of Harstad is currently held by a descendent of Haval the Great, Throdorn Rolloson.  Also know as Throdorn the Treacherous, although not to his face, he is famous for having allied himself with the King of Thorswrath, only to turn on his ally after a succesful series of raids, and plunder and sink the fleet from Thorswrath.