Wellimbrook Archipelago

The main topic of debate among Eirish scholars since the dawn of their realm - how many islands it actually owns.

Located about a hundred miles off the shore of Ordonia, the Wellimbrook Archipelago is homeland of the Kingdom of Eire. It is densely populated and prosperous, but arable land is fairly scarce on most of its islands. As such, the locals learned to rely heavily on fishing and sea trade, travelling far into the ocean waters in their search for more land. It is common among Eirish to leave the archipelago for one of their many colonies, and countless treasures of the New World are being brought to these shores every day.

History

The general consensus among scholars is that the Wellimbrook Archipelago was largely uninhabited for most of its history. That changed when the victorious Ardenian Empire took to conquering all of Hummish city-states, displacing entire communities. Fearing no place is safe on the continent anymore, many of them took to the sea. While most boats perished in its uneasy waters, some refugees made it to nearby islands where they hoped to get a fresh start. With few threats other than themselves, the archipelago's population quickly grew. Family farms turned villages, then towns, then entire kingdoms. The people of the archipelago started calling themselves Eirish, "those who live elsewhere".
Remembering the past days of infighting and not wishing to repeat the same mistakes again, several dozen kings came together to talk. They wanted to find a way in which islands would govern themselves, yet they would only fight against the outsiders and not each other. It was decided that confederation is the answer. Each of nine major islands stayed a kingdom, with the strongest ruler chosen crowned as High King. The High King would be "first among equal" and keeper of peace, while each King remained largely autonomous - as long as no common laws are broken. Instead, the Eirish directed their attention outwards - inventing new ship types, exploring the seas and establishing new colonies. Since then, the history of the Wellimbrook Archipelago has been tied to that of the Kingdom of Eire.

Alternative Name(s)

Eirish Isles

Type

Archipelago

Location under

Old World

Included Organizations

• Old Church

Owning Organization

Kingdom of Eire

Related Ethnicities

• Eirish