Chapel Valley Province Settlement in Tellandria | World Anvil

Chapel Valley Province

Chapel Valley Province is a political subdivision of the Iron Dominion. It operates as a unique political entity within the broader Dominion, having its own laws, leadership, and customs, but is still subservient to the national laws of the Dominion's government in Midset Province. It is one of four current provinces in the Dominion, sharing a border with Midset Province and the Central Province

Demographics

Like the rest of the Iron Dominion, Chapel Valley Province is home to a plethora of different races and ethnicities. A deep class divide exists between the different social and economic classes of the province, which is detailed in the Wealth Distribution in the Iron Dominion

Government

Like the other provinces of the Iron Dominion, Chapel Valley Province operates more or less as a republic. It is ruled by an elected executive, Governor Alydia Vestra, and its laws are created by a legislature known as the Frontier Parliament that is made up of representatives from the larger settlements of Chapel Valley

Judicial and military functions, however, are controlled by the National Government; legal questions are decided by the inferior courts of The Crucible, and the citizens of Chapel Valley province are protected by the Frontier Guard and the Iron Regiment

Chapel Valley Province is also unique among the other provinces with respect to the Iron Barons, a collection of state-sponsored entrepreneurs and business moguls. Unlike other provinces of the Dominion, the Iron Barons were granted broad authority to develop the resources and economy of Chapel Valley Province without the need for approval from either the Governor or the Frontier Parliament. 

Industry & Trade

Chapel Valley Province has established itself as an exporter of agricultural goods and raw materials. The Good Harvest Plains of the Upper Valley supply the rest of the Dominion and its trading partners with food and produce, while the mines along the Silverridge and Vaincrag Mountains provide a steady flow of mineral wealth to fuel the Dominion's industrial capacity. Chapel Valley is also home to a number of elementals trapped on the Prime Material Plane, allowing for a booming Elemental Trade to take place within the Valley. 

Guilds and Factions

Due to a number of factors, political unity within Chapel Valley Province has not always been achieved. Dissatisfaction over the Dominion's economic, military, and judicial hold over the Valley have lead to the creation of oppositional political parties in the form of the Children of the Frontier, as well as full-blown separatist movements like the Valley Partisans

The inconsistent distribution of authority throughout the Valley has also opened the way for thriving criminal networks to emerge. The Shadows of the Valley, a secretive criminal gang, holds power in the Lower Valley, whereas The Fat Man and his vast web of influence holds power over the Upper Valley

Geography

Chapel Valley Province owes its name to Chapel Valley, the geographic region of the Faylen Continent that defines the borders of its jurisdiction. The Province extends from the southern shores of the Ironloch to Settler's Bay, and is walled in by the Vaincrag Mountains to the west and the Silverridge Range and Gracewall Range to the east. 
Type
National Territory
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Owner/Ruler
Additional Rulers/Owners
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Owning Organization


Cover image: by Owen Fulton