Lore:Arenthia

Arenthia
Type	Settlement
Continent	Tamriel
Province	Valenwood
Region	Reaper's March (Northern Woods)
Demonym(s)	Arenthian
Appears in	Arena,ESO

Arenthia circa2E 582

The province of Valenwood

Arenthiais one of the eight major cities in the province ofValenwood,serving as the province's largest settlement in the borderlands ofReaper's March.Arenthia is the resulting amalgamation of various cultures that reside in, and have spread their influence throughout, the march. It is an important trade city that is nestled on the fork of both theCrescent Riverand theStrid River.It was named after thefirst Kingof theWood Elves.

Layout & Geography

The city-state of Arenthia is situated in the region of Reaper's March, near the point where the borders of Valenwood,Elsweyr,andColovia,(WesternCyrodiil) meet. Arenthia's architecture and culture emphasize this cultural triumvirate. Arenthia's general area is known as theNorthern Woods,which was at one point called the South Weald.It is built on a fork where the Crescent River flows into the Strid River, which makes up a large portion of the northern provincial border and continues into Cyrodiil. Arenthia has two gates; the southern one leads into the rest of Reaper's March and Valenwood, while the northern bridge crosses the river, and enters theWest Weald.The Strid River is surrounded by large hills and mounds. The outskirts consist ofAyleidruins such asSenalana,and Colovian Forts, such as the town ofGreenhill,and the well-knownMoon Hunter Keep.Following the Crescent River will lead into theFalinesti Autumn Site,and the trading town ofRawl'kha.Rawl'kha's roads eventually led to Elsweyr and the city-state ofDune.Arenthia is neighbored by several settlements, includingThormar Keepto the southwest, theImperial Cityto the northeast, and Elsweyr to the east, towardsDune.

Arenthia is somewhat of a walled-off settlement, but the only defense comes from the natural mountains that cradle the city, and the Strid River's canyon. Arenthia is split into four districts. Outer Arenthia is surrounded by a traditional Imperial square, and various merchant stalls are set throughout the branching roads. Northwest of the square leads into the Strid bridge, while the southwest goes into Reaper's March. North of it is a small harbor, where many ships dock from the Strid River. Local guilds are found in west Arenthia. The Tower District is found in southern Arenthia, and it somewhat serves as a residential district. It is four buildings and a large tower that overlooks the city. The Temple District in the southeast contains a Temple to the Divines. It was abandoned following the Colovian's retreat from Reaper's March. It is said thatSkoomaSmugglers use the old Temple as their base of operations. Finally, there is the Residential District, found in east Arenthia. It contains several private homes and the Pious-Arenthi Inn, a rather large Imperial-style Inn that sits atop a mound that looks over the area.

History

Darloc Brae, known as The Beast ofAnequina,led theAnequine Conquestsin the Fifth Century of the First Era, when the Cat-Folk soldiers of the Golden Beast ruled the land from theLarsius Riverto theStrid,seizing the Bosmer city of Arenthia from Valenwood and adding it to his numerous military victories.

In1E 2714,the city, along with the rest ofValenwood,was conquered by theSecond Empire,after centuries of unrelenting warfare along the border withCyrodiiland a plague fromThras.Although the province became occupied by theImperial Legion,they continued to experienced resistance from some natives for several years.

During theSecond Empire,the city was re-founded, building aColovian-style citadel over the older Bosmer settlement to serve as a center of trade between Colovia, Anequina and Valenwood. As the location of Arenthia was militarily strategic, the citadel was heavily fortified with tall walls and defensive towers, and two stone bridges were constructed to cross the western river at this point, which eased the troop movements between Cyrodiil, Valenwood andElsweyr.From therefore, Arenthia consists of two well differentiated areas: theImperial-style citadel, to the south, and theKhajiitand Bosmer shantytown, to the north and by the river. The Cathedral of the settlement also was built in this time.

In2E 580,Arenthia was incorporated into theFirst Aldmeri Dominionalong with the rest of Camoran-controlled Valenwood after the Blacksap Rebellion was put down by the combined forces ofAyrennandAeradan Camoran.During theThree Banners Warin2E 582,the city was invaded byColoviansunderGeneral Lavinia,leader of the Legion of the West Weald, and annexed to theEmpire of Cyrodiil,only to discover that the cathedral, the principal symbol of Imperial occupation, had been abandoned during the early years of theInterregnum.Although nominally part of Valenwood, the eminent Khajiit presence in Arenthia elevated a Khajiit woman to leader of the Resistance against Colovian occupation. After the eventual defeat of General Lavinia with the help of theVestige,a Clanmother began to rule the settlement in behalf of the Dominion, without discussing if the city should be part of Valenwood or Elsweyr. This situation remained until the eventual dissolution of the Dominion. After this, the majority, if not all, of the Imperials fled the city.

In2E 582,a circle of scholars from Arenthia was interested in forming relations withReachfolkin exchange for knowledge. They opened an embassy inMarkarthand worked with variousclanchiefs.

Again in2E 830,the city was annexed by the Second Aldmeri Dominion after the intervention ofSummersetin another Camoran civil war.However, the use of theNumidiumby Tiber Septim resulted in the conquest of both the entirely of Valenwood and the Summerset Isles in2E 896,ending the Second Aldmeri Dominion control of the settlement, which was incorporated to theThird Empire.

Since the beginning of theThird Era,Arenthia became part of the Province of Valenwood. Between3E 249and3E 267,it was also reputedly the place where theCamoran Usurperfirst began his war of conquest, collecting a huge army of daedra and undead before first attacking Valenwood, thenHammerfellandHigh Rock.For the rest of the Third Era, Arenthia remained an integral part of theThird Empire.During theImperial Simulacrumin the lateThird Era,the city-state of Arenthia was an active settlement, being ruled by King Coman. It had a rivalry withSilvenar.

TheOblivion Crisisthat ended the Third Era and weakened the Empire provided the opportunity for the Thalmor to seized the Summerset Isles. In4E 29,a Thalmor-backed coup overthrew Valenwood's government, routing Imperial forces and their Bosmer supporters. Alinor and Valenwood then proclaimed a union, and a new Aldmeri Dominion was formed. The city fell into Aldmeri hands for the third time in history.Though it was not under Imperial control in4E 48,there was thought to still be some sentiment for the Empire by the inhabitants, asAttrebus Medebelieved the city could be taken with a thousand men and the support of the locals.

Culture

As of the Fourth Era, the city produces a vintage red wine,Arenthia Red.Arenthian Brandywas produced in the Second Era.Squeeze Boxes, hand-held musical reed instruments played by squeezing them in and out, were made in the city and popular withColoviantravelers by the mid-Second Era.

Gallery

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  Arenthia circa3E 389

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  Arenthia guerrilla

Notes

• Arenawas originally conceived as a fighting game featuring a tournament that took the player to each of Tamriel's cities to challenge different gladiatorial teams. According to a file from that stage of development left behind in the final game, Arenthia's gladiatorial team would have been called "the Huntsmen".

References

Note:The following references are considered to beunofficial sources.They are included to round off this article and may not be authoritative or conclusive.