Chéad Caisléan
The last was Chéad Caisléan. / The first became the last to stand, / the last to fall to the brave and small. / And when it fell, O when it fell / the land rejoiced as the dragons fled.The First Compound, located within the city limits of modern-day Lexport, holds much of the history of Tír na Creatlach and indeed modern-day Crathlia itself. It was where the colonization was born. It was the home of the High Lord of the Colony, the leader of the colonization. And it was where High Lord Flaithrí the Earth-Splitter was killed by his own descendant, ultimately ending the colonization and birthing Crathlia as we know it now.
Government
As with all the compounds, the High Lord of the Colony (all the holders of this title are listed in the sidebar) had the ultimate authority in Chéad Caisléan. Since he lived there, he had particular control over it.
However, he and all the other male shapeshifters ultimately answered to the female shapeshifters, who enforced the word of the Council of Elders. If any of the population disobeyed any of the Council's laws, they would be dealt with by the female shapeshifters or directly by the Council, depending on the severity of the infraction.
Defences
Like all other compounds built during the colonization, the First Compound was built with a doorless, circular wall 100 feet in height around its perimeter. During the night, bonfires were sometimes used as a deterrent against the naered.
Assets
The primary assets of any colonial compound were the shapeshifters and part-dragons that lived there. The power in their veins was more valuable to the Council of Elders than anything in the world.
For food, vegetable gardens were tended by the wives and children of the male shapeshifters. Milk cows, sheep, and goats were also kept.
Outside the walls of the compound, the local full-blooded humans (and later the part-dragons who failed physical examinations or were not powerful enough to be useful in combat) were vassals to the High Lord of the Colony. Under the threat of death if they dared to disobey, they worked the land, raised livestock, made clothes, and performed other tasks for those who lived within the walls.
History
Chéad Caisléan was founded in 1 DA. Seanán's Diary recounts that the wall and the first castle were finished shortly before being occupied by Seanán and his first six wives, as well as the first High Lord of the Colony, Torin, and Aoibhín, an aged female warrior who was assigned to protect the colony.
Once Seanán's oldest daughters were of marriageable age (15 during the Colonial Era), the Council of Elders sent Áed and Éimhín to each take one of Seanán's oldest daughters, as well as human wives from the first raising compound. They were the second and third to be part of the experiment.
In the year 84 DA, Chéad Caisléan became the center of command for the colony, after the creation of the second living compound.
Geography
The First Compound is located a mile north of the Rorusk River, the widest river on modern-day North Lautney, and is only a few miles from the Cosaun Ocean. Without modern-day Lexport's crowded metal and concrete skyline, the view from the sky was all greens and blues, with the stone compound itself hardly visible.
The compound's walls were surrounded by a thick forest, difficult to pass on foot. To the south, closer to the river, floodplains were cultivated for crops. To the north, the green rolling hills were also farmed, though shepherds, swineherds, and cowherds kept their livestock there as well.
Natural Resources
Chéad Caisléan itself had access to plenty of wood for buildings and fires right outside its walls, though they were careful not to cut down too much of its forest, since it served as a buffer between the compound and any attackers.
The close proximity to both the Rorusk and the Cosaun Ocean meant that the compound also had plenty of access to both freshwater fish and saltwater fish.
As described above, the compound also made use of the oats, wheat, and other crops cultivated by their vassals, as well as their livestock.
Written by Cordelia Colbreak Evenbrook
RUINED SETTLEMENT
600 DA
Founding Date
1 DA
Alternative Name(s)
The First Compound
Type
Capital
Population
1500
Owning Organization
High Lord Seanán
High Lord Flaithrí the Earth-Splitter
Demographics
- Shapeshifters, Male: 5. Number set by the Council of Elders.
- Shapeshifters, Female: Approximately 20. This comprised one all-female law enforcement and protection squad.
- Part-Dragons, Male: Uncounted, most likely less than 100. All under the age of 6 years.
- Part-Dragons, Female: Approximately 1000. This number includes wives and children.
- Full Humans, Female: Approximately 500. Obviously, this number only includes wives.
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