Aleth
A powerful port town on the Northern Coast of the Duchy of Letha, known for its independence and stubborn attitude. A home of traders and pirates, this town is one of the most active in the region, where the elite and the criminal underworld break bread and share coin
Demographics
Aleth supports a mobile and multicultural population, one of the most diverse on the Ar Mor Breizh. A prosperous and well-situated port along the Northern Trade Routes, the Privateer's Paradise draws its population not only from Letha and nearby Normandi, but also Orkney, Gallia, Akitania and the Fortunate Isles. Crews and merchants pass through the town on their voyages, some meeting with enough success or failure to remain in the city as its wealthy elite or bottom-scraping vagrants.
Aleth was founded as a Bediz settlement, and while the Bediz retain a majority, they have been joined by the Faerie peoples in great numbers as the populations grow closer together. The Teuz present the largest Korrigan community, working the lands in the marshes and rocky headlands outside of the city in small agricultural villages The Jetins Kriores follow them closely, working as shipbuilders and sailors, while the Fées-des-Houles visit the city on market days on their silver boats. Poulpiquet, Kornikaned and Tohoseguéannets also make the city and its surrounding region their home, but in lesser numbers.
The Fomorians have taken up residence in the city in large numbers, with both Norman and Orkish communities working as sailors, longshoremen and shipwrights alongside the Jetins and Bediz. The Norman Fomorians are typically better established and wealthier, living inside the city walls or nearby estates, while the Orkish population, recent immigrants, live in the slums or the surrounding villages,
The Sidhe of the Fortunate Isles are represented by the Tuatha de Danaan, Nathair and Tempestarii, among others, in less numbers than the Korrigan or Fomorii, but with significant communities within the region.
Government
Neither Gallian, Nor Lethan, but Alethed
In the eyes of the chroniclers of such things, Aleth is the largest city in the Barony of Clos-Poulet, serving as the seat of the Barons, who have sworn to the Konts of Dreger, themselves vassals to the Dugs of Letha. With Aleth and the mouth of the Renk River in their possession, the Barons exert large influence over the region, ranking among the most powerful nobles in the Duchy.
In reality, the situation on the ground is significantly more nuanced and complex, despite the Baron's power in wider Lethan politics. The port is home to hundreds of ships and crews from all across Alvez, with many being out on long voyages for much of the year. The upper classes of the city is a large collection of sea captains, adventurer nobles, and merchant guildmasters who have built their wealth on the waves, each with their own ships, counting houses, and crews. The wealth and independent spirit of both the ship owners and sailors, not tied to their lands on the Peninsula but rather their trade income, has greatly limited the Baron's influence over the often rebellious city, earning its well-deserved nickname of the "City of 100 Kings." Despite this, unlike the rival town of Montroulez, Aleth is not legally considered a "free city" and is unable to raise an army or mint coins, instead existing with a tacit understanding of who truly holds the power in the Bay.
The largely independent citizens try to take no part in the Lethan civil war, but their strategic position has made this difficult. Supporters of both sides make up small, but active minorities, attempting to force the city into the conflict and attacking each other when possible.
Defences
A crucial trading stopover along lucrative trade routes, Aleth is one of the most well-defended ports along the Ar Mor Breizh, boasting impressive physical defenses, advantageous terrain and the steel of a hundred hardened crews that call the Privateer's Paradise home.
The town's primary defense is the same unique terrain that gives it an advantage in trade. The harbor's dramatic tidal pattern places both attacking armies and navies at a disadvantage, changing from long stretches of quicksand filled flats to deep water in a moment, made more dangerous by shifting channels, high winds and Feth Fiada.
The town itself is surrounded by granite walls around the city, supplemented by several towers and fortified gates. The largest of these is the Sea Gate, accessible on foot at low tide. Small and medium-sized boats can traverse it when the tide is high, allowing them to moor within the protection of the city walls, resting on the wet sands when the water recedes. Rowboats and Sand-Skiffs are used to ferry sailors from these vessels to the sloping cobbled walkway leading into the city itself. The Sea Gate is flanked by two round towers, crossed with a machiolated walkway above the arch with a heavy portcullis. A notable feature of the ramparts is the Solidor Tower, located opposite the Sea Gate, a strengthened keep with three connected towers. Solidor was recently built by Duke Yann III, both to protect the river from enemy fleets and serve as a reminder to bring the occasionally rebellious city under military control. Solidor is used to protect the bay and city, but also to secure taxes on shipping into Letha. A magically reinforced river gate can be raised between Solidor and the city ramparts.
The Dinan Gate, also called the Bishop's Gate, is the largest mainland entryway, named because it is here that St. Guenole entered the city for the first time following victory at the Battle of Keremma Dunes. Nearby, the Baron's castle, separated from the rest of the city by a moat, is completely within the city walls, providing additional security as visitors walk along the main street along its moat from the gate into the city proper. Two large, round towers on the curtain wall protect this side and connect to the central Donjon, a rectangular keep capped on the wall side with a horse-shoe curve. Opposite these two towers are two smaller round towers, each of the four marking a point in a slightly trapezoidal curtain wall. A chapel of the Southern Church is connected to this keep, while a sacred oak tree sits at the Northeast corner of the parade ground. A smaller, older keep is found opposite the central keep, as are several smaller outbuildings.
In addition to the ramparts, several of the tidal islands in the estuary are fortified to provide additional protection from the sea. The Sun Fort is the largest of these island forts, connect to the land at low tides and boasting a small castle on its rocky precipice. Smaller forts are found on the islets of Big and Little Bé, little more than primitive watch towers.
The city has gained some notoriety from its unique City Watch, which owns a pack of Cŵn Annwn, spectral black mastiffs of Fae origin with glowing eyes, which is released into the streets and beaches at night to ensure curfew. This pack of 24 dogs is released from the Sea Gate at the ringing of a bell in one of its towers.
Industry & Trade
Aleth makes its fortune from its vast shipping empire, located near the border between of Letha and La Manche. It serves as a stopping point for ships before and after making their way through the tumultuous waters off the Armorican Peninsula, connecting ports such as Port De La Lune and Montroulez in the West with the Eastern and Northern destinations like Rotomagus, Kameled and the Cloth Cities. The proximity to the Ailhedenneg on Menez-Mikael and the ease with which cargo can be unloaded on the sand flats further cements its importance as a generally accepted mandatory stopover.
The inlets and coves near Aleth have made it a hotbed for smuggling. In particular, Dreamdust from the Fortunate Isles arrives in the area as an arrangement between Bediz smugglers and local Korrigan Troupes. Piracy is also common, with Aleth attracting all maner of privateers, mercenary sailors and pirates, who ply their brutal trade from the Cloth Cities to the Gates of Ruin. Many pirate crews maintain a presence in the town, giving their operations a legitimate front and a veneer of respectability.
Infrastructure
The walled town of Aleth, and its primary harbor, is located on the East bank of the Renk River, where its waters widen to drain into the Pleg-Mor Menez-Mikael. The port takes advantage of the small lagoons and inlets that form along the marshy shoreline to create additional artificial harbors, which are used for small craft, loading and drydocks. The main harbour is located within the city walls, accessed by the large Sea Gate. This harbour drains at low tide, allowing ships to be loaded and unloaded with relative ease along the tidal flats without the need for extensive docking facilities.
The Bay, located to the Northwest of the city, is sheltered further by a string of tidal islands, reefs and sandbars, protecting it from the wild storms and raiders on the Mor Breizh. The water here is deeper, allowing larger ships to slip in at high tide and take refuge in the shallow waters.
Districts
Quelmer Graves
- Upstream of the city center lies the Quelmer Graves, a natural lagoon off of the Renk river that serves as the dumping ground for the wreckage of ships lost to storm, wreckers or demolition. The upturned hulls, masts giving the impression of a cemetery, have become something of a ramshackle community of the underclass of Aleth, home to thieves, beggars and Fomorian raiders. The Coquillard under the enigmatic Patav Lourdaud had their start as a overlooked group of wreckers. Many of the original members now have homes in the city center or mansions in the headlands. A low mist rises from this lagoon, combined with the smoke from near-constant bonfires of salvagers burning flotsam to give the graveyard of otherworldly feel.Guilds and Factions
Several merchant and trading guilds, such as the Lugoni, the Frihep Textiles Company and the Lavigerien Guild maintain an active presence in Aleth, managing the complex shipping routes of Northern Kornôgel from the walled city, as do multiple Korrigan Troupes, most notably the Jetin "Jolly Cormorant Company".
The Urzh Kroashent once maintained a small fleet and Commandery here, the complex abandoned and ships seized by Royal Authorities following the Order's destruction and sold at a pittance to House Frihep.
In addition to legitimate business interests, the port also plays host to criminal organizations, such as The Coquillard , which had their start in the Quelmer Graves.
History
The city at the mouth of the Renk River has its origins as a small fishing village during the Empire of Tarif, but grew during the reign of Gradlon Mwar, marking the Western frontier at the city of Gardayne. Garadyne was a Kriores-constructed city, surrounded by a wide canal-moat that extended to the sea, its gates inlaid with gold and silver. The city was guarded by trained Chapalu, granting it a fearsome reputation.
Gardayne survived the Fall of Ys, but its time was limited. A Gallian warlord, unable to break the city, destroyed its waterworks and flood controls, destroying the city in a torrent of unleashed water. The destruction and death shook even the Gallian King, who broke his siege. But the damage was done, and subsequent Gallian, Manchais and viking raids pillaged the battered city, which was eventually razed by order of a Bishop of the Faith.
A group of aesthetics later established a monastery nearby, the location along the river easily fortified against coastal raiders. Civilian settlement quickly followed and the town grew. Despite their mind for defensive position, the town remained a frequent target to attacks and was burned to the ground several times, rising each time from the ashes to rebuild anew, ultimately establishing a permanent fortified presence in its current location.
Following their defeat at the The Battle of Keremma Dunes, the Eladan Fleet fled to the port for safety. However, their planned refuge was not to be as the armies of Saint Guenole arrived first, lying in wait in the city and setting fire to the ships as the tide pulled away. Those who failed to flee were nailed to posts with iron nails and burned alive in massive bonfires on the beach, joined by any townspeople thought to have provided aid or sympathy to the enemy. l'Îlette Rock, which currently serves as a lighthouse into the port, also served as the site of these executions. Its fires fueled by the lifeforce of the executed, the air around the island continues to burn with the eerie blue glow of the Will-o-wisp, with no visible fuel source.
Since its creation, the city has developed into an independent-minded port town with a long history of privateering and piracy.
Architecture
Aleth is known for its polylithic construction, utilizing rocks and rubble of varied size and origin, rather than uniform materials, giving the city an organic and heterogeneous style, compared to some of it's rivals, such as Montroulez
In addition to the Castle (see defenses), the city boasts a cathedral of the Southern Church, which forms its second largest building, a mix of Gothic and Romanesque styles.
The region surrounding the city, known for its wealthy merchants and shipowners, has led to the rise of a unique construction of country homes in the higher elevations to the South. These "manors of the fields", are large central houses flanked by two wings housing the services for the manor, further supported by outbuildings. Unlike fortified fiefs elsewhere, these manorial estates rarely are built with defense in mind, although most are surrounded by simple stone walls on the grounds, instead fleeing to the safety of the city itself during times of war, typically less than an hour's ride from the Bishop's Gate. Each of these manors is equipped with a sizable dovecote to allow for continuous communication with the owner's interests in the city and at sea, as well as ornamental hedge-gardens, orchards and vegetable gardens. The interiors are typically sumptuously appointed with elaborate carvings and imported luxuries brought back from the voyages of the owner's shops
Geography
Aleth is located on a series of rocky tidal islands on the Northwest tip of a peninsula between the Renk River and the Pleg-Mor Menez-Mikael, jutting out into the Mor Breizh along the Northern Coast of Kornôgel. The landmass marks the Western edge of the low-lying Marais de Dol before the land begins to rise into the Plateau de Dreger. While not the official end of the Ar Mor Emrodez, Aleth is seen as the spiritual "cap" of the region between the bays around Sant-Brioc and Menez-Mikael.
Aleth sits entirely within the Barony of Clos-Poulet, seperated from its Western neighbor, the Viscounty of Dinan by the Renk River. With its North and West edges surrounded by water, the only permanent land-based entry to the city comes from the Southeast along a narrow ridge between the river and the saltmarshes, with water coming up to the roadside at high tide. The majority of the surrounding area is dominated by sandy dunes and tidal flats prone to dramatic shifts of water level. Even of calm days, the tide sweeps in quickly along the salt flats, and the road is rendered completely inaccessible during storms. As such, access over the tidal flats by foot, boat or sand-skiff is just as common, if not moreso than by land. The waterlogged coastline and riverside is full of countless inlets, lagoons and pools that are used for everything from drydocks to small harbors.
The area beyond the city is surrounded by sandy dunes, while reefs, sandbars and tidal islands shelter the bay to its North. Eastward along the coast, the land rises into short granite outcroppings interspersed along sandy beaches. Further to the Southeast, the coastal wetlands give way to rocky fields and Bocage hedgerows.
Founding Date
~ 300 SI
Alternative Name(s)
Sant-Maloù, City of 100 Kings, Privateer's Paradise, Garadyne (Former)
Type
Large town
Inhabitant Demonym
Alethed
Location under
Owning Organization
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