Gwened (+)
COA: Ermine with cape
Demographics
The majority of the population is Bretoned, but there is a sizable influence from Iram via the Shattered Peninsula, with the city employing mercenaries to defend against Formorian attack. Most Ubarites have culturally and genetically blended with the native Bretoned after centuries, giving the city and surrounding regions a small, but noteworthy percentage of darker skinned individuals compared to other regions of Breizh. Akitanian, Anjevin and Gallian peoples also live in the city in large numbers, with Akitanian being the most prevalent.
The city itself is a Bediz stronghold, the species comprising the majority of the population. Milliget Korrigan and Formorian populations, as well as itinerant Pilhaouer making their home in the Imperial ruins of Boismoreau.
The Kriores Korrigan inhabit the nearby areas en-masse, which has spilled over to the urban region, even though few permanently reside in the city itself, and those who do live in Boismoreau.
The Hill District of Garenne supports a small, but noteworthy population of Kornikaned, tending to the gardens and hunting grounds of the nobility.
Government
Gwened is one of the three Ducal cities, and as such is ruled by the Count of Gwened, who is most often also the Duke of Breizh. The Count is also the Viscount of High-Gwened, with the city serving as their county seat.
In the absence of the Count, the city is led by an appointed Senechal, who serves both as Castellan and adminstrator, focusing largely on the military and defense aspects of the city. A merchant's council and a noble's council represent the intrests of the Mené and the Garenne districts, handling most day to day operations. The Boismoreau district is generally led by a rotation of community elders, gang leaders or city watchmen depending on the circumstances, largely ignored by the central authorities.
Defences
The town is surrounded by a network of curtain walls and fortified gatehouses, arranged in two enclosures. The first contains the district of Mené, La Cohue and the Cathedral of Gwened. The first enclosure includes part of the outer walls and several towers and small castle bastions, before cutting through the city centre, making up one wall of the Place des Lices. The outer sections are linked with the second enclosure, that encompasses the lower parts of the Garenne district. Like the first, it is defended by several towers and small keep complexes. Upper Garenne and the Boismoreau districts are outside the city walls, although smaller fortifications protect some of the manors of the former, makeshift palisades the latter.
In addition to the city watch, the city is also defended by the Brassgaurd alchemical automata developed to perform a number of tasks, including patrolling the walls and streets. These are deployed from a large castle located in the Boismoreau district, the Palace of Brass. Gwened hosts one of the largest contingents of Brassgaurd soldiers in Breizh.
Industry & Trade
Located on gulf of Morbihan, Gwened has risen to one of the largest market towns in Breizh, a trade nexus of Imperial roads, maritime trade and windships arriving from Naoned of the Penn-ar-Bed. The city marks a key stop along the "Ocean Road", the Imperial coastal highway from Liyon to Brest, as well as 6 smaller Imperial roads.
The city exports fish, shellfish and salt, as well as Brassguard. Its location on the Mor Bihan makes it an ideal harbour for wines from Naoned Vignobles and Akitania, allowing the city to become the largest wine-trading port in Breizh. The city is an important centre of the tanning industry.
Ships and Windships are built in the Mene district.
Infrastructure
In addition to the Ocean road, Gwened is the crossroads of 6 other Imperial Roads, and the largest port on the Mor Bihan, making the city one of the largest merchant gatherings in Breizh. The bay and two rivers are heavily trafficked by ships and low river barges, such as Péniche. Windships cross the skies, serviced by a central windspire in the Mené district at Place des Lices. , and smaller, private windspires in the manors of the affluent Garenne district.
The rivers that wind through the city are flanked by distinctive washhouses, low structures open on the waterfront side. These unusual structures follow the bend of the rivers, their rounded, curving forms giving the city a packed feeling, even on the river. The one-story riverfront structures are often topped with small buildings, serving as houses for the washerwomen of other tenants.
La Cohue, a central marketplace, is usually bustling with activity as the centre of urban life, also housing the courthouse and administrative buildings. A long street leads to the Prison Gate, a large fortified structure serving as both a gatehouse and the primary prison of the city.
The Place des Lices is a large tilting grounds within a walled crenelated courtyard, hosting major Hastiludes and Tournaments. When not used for tournaments, it becomes a major marketplace. The upper levels, used by the nobility during the Hastiludes, become upscale shops while the commoners crowd the lower levels of the structure.
Assets
A major trade hub, the city is one of the wealthier ports in Breizh, benefiting further from its status as a ducal city.
Guilds and Factions
The Merchantmen and smaller guilds control the Mene district, the nobility control the Garenne and organized gangs dominate the Boismoreau. The three factions vie for control of the city, powers constantly shifting between.
History
Gwened was first founded by Caradoc Strongarm, a Knight of Camelot who served King Riotham of Logres in the The War of the Broceliande. Following the war, Caradoc and his soldiers, unable to return to Albia through the Feth Fiada, established a stronghold on the Mor Bihan, using the port as an outpost to combat the remains of the Erlking's army. The Southern Church established an early presence there, the first formal region under its control in Breizh and the seat of its first Bishopric.
Gwened was the capital of its own petty kingdom until the reign of Waroch I, where a string of intrigue led to a conflict between Waroch and his son, Macliau, the puppet of Conomor the Cursed. Waroch initially resisted Conomor's conquests, building up a strong defense on his border and holding off the Black Dog's armies. This proved futile when the invasion instead came from the sea, under the Bloodmoon, destroying the capital and forcing the surrender of Waroch.
Gwened changed hands with Anjev and Gallia several times, becoming a key location in the Marches of Neustria (V) between the two regions.
Tourism
The Kornikaned gardens are a palace of crystal glass located in the Garenne District, a magnificent garden of impossibly beautiful Faerie flora, tended by an army of Kornikaned, a gift to a noble of Gwened by the Korrigan. The Gardens are a major draw of nobility from all over the Western Realms. Competition to match this legendary garden has led to the reputation of Garenne as a garden, with fountain plazas, tree-lined promenades and ornamental gardens around the noble houses and into the city itself. Gardens are also found below the city walls in the other districts to a lesser extent. The greenery has given the city its nickname of the Garden city.
Architecture
The city of Gwened is dominated by half-timbered houses, packed tightly within the city walls on the Hill of Mené.
The lesser populated hill of Boismoreau host the ruins of the Imperial city. Grand structures like the bathhouse, ampitheatre and governor's palace, as well as the Imperial streets still remain largely intact. Long abandoned in favour of the fortified city, the region has become home to beggars, thieves and outcasts, living in their own community of Imperial ruins and ramshackle construction.
Large manor complexes of small keeps and large houses are found in the Garenne district, its wide, tree-lined streets and fountain squares controlled by the nobility.
Geography
The port city of Gwened is located on the gulf of Mor Bihan at the mouth of the Marle and Vincin rivers, built in the shape of an ampitheatre, sloping down the hills to the bay. The Moors of Lanvaux stretch to the north, their hilly and rocky terrain covered in heather and gorse, rock outcroppings dominating the landscape.
The city itself is built atop and around three hills, the hill of Mené, the hill of Boismoreau and the hill of Garenne. The main city and its walls are located on Mené, while noble manors dominate Garenne. Boismoreau was largely populated in the Imperial age, but was destroyed during the Wyldstorms of the first bleed, Formorian attacks forcing the population to flee within the city walls. The city terminates in the South with a large, basin like harbour,
The city is served by a network of channels controlled by the tides, their narrow width leading to one of the most dramatic tidal changes in the region.
Natural Resources
Shellfish are harvested en masse in the Mor Bihan near the city, which supports several small ports and hamlets to launch the fishing fleets, which then sell their catch in the large basin-harbour of Gwened.
To the East, salt marshes have been cultivated to assist in the harvest and trade of salt.
Founding Date
45 SI
Alternative Name(s)
The Ermine City, the Garden City
Type
Large city
Inhabitant Demonym
Gweneded
Location under
Owner/Ruler
Owning Organization
Characters in Location
Comments