Conquest of Essos
First had been Ghiscari and Rhoynar, then came the Valyrians, now the Alvion Sovereignty had taken the mantle of the new great power. House Whitehall's dominions were vast rivalling the size of the Valyrian Freehold and possessed extraordinary wealth. Their hand of influence stretched from Volantis all the way to Asshai. Encompassing the territories of the Ghiscari, Qaathi, Lhazareen, the Shadowlands and the city-state of Volantis east of the Rhoyne.
One had to remember that it was House Blackreyne that made Alvion's expansion possible, albeit unintentionally. For the longest time, the majority of the population of Essos was comprised of Slaves from the free cities to Slavers Bay and further to the trading hub of Qarth. The Great Slaver War not only brought an end to the majority of slavery in the known world but had crippled most of the great powers in the region leaving cities in ruins. Slavery had made them powerful and now that power was broken with their military decimated and economy in shambles. Furthermore, it led to a mass exodus of the regions former slave populace with the people settling in the lands west from the Bravos to the Sentinel isles and even Westeros. This split Essos in two, the West (Lands west of the Rhoyne River and the Forests of Qohor) were heavily populated, prosperous and in good order under the Triumvirate. In contrast, the much larger east was defenseless and lightly populated and swarming with Dothraki. It was land that the Whitehalls were able to take without a fight, starting with Ecthelon's seizure of Qarth and finally ending with Arthas' conquest of Volantis
Since their encounter with the pegasus lords, the Targaryens and the Faith decided to sent emissaries to find out more about the House that had usurped the Valyrians as the dominant power in Essos and the more they learned the more they were displeased with what they found out.
To the naked eye it seemed their domain was thriving and at its heart Alvion, where it's nobility, represented the pinnacle of chivalry, honor and splendor. A feudal power superior to what the Blackreynes could ever hope to be. But upon a closer look, it was clear that this show of chivalry was nothing more than a pretty mask for an ugly truth. The prosperity of its nobility balanced by the poverty of its peasantry.
The one distinct feature that had changed within House Whitehall was the line that had been drawn between Nobility and peasantry. Over the course of its history, Eridonian nobility found itself becoming so intermingled that there was not a single family what wasn't strongly related to one another. As a result, the risk of inbreeding increased and furthermore as their kingdom increased, the Eridonians desired to increase the number of nobles to gain a better grip on the lands they controlled without having to draw from their foreign subjects. So not long after House Whitehall subjugated the Jogos Nhai, Hammond's grandson Horrus Whitehall did something that overturned their old traditions, he elevated of Gentry.
The Gentry were considered the highest position a peasant could get in society. While most Eridonian peasants ended up breeding with other subjugated peoples such as the Jogos Nhai and the barbaric peoples of the far east, a select few were spared from this life. These peasants were selected by having no physical or mental defects and were comely or at least average. This select bunch, known as gentry were taken to serve as household servants for nobles such as grooms, handmaidens, wetnurses, stableboys and of course Pilgrim Knights. Not only were they treated considerably better, but they were only allowed to intermingle with peasants of similar standing. As a result, there was a considerable number of peasants who like the nobles had pure Eridonian blood. To this end, the Horrus Whitehall legitimize the children of these peasants into nobility starting off as barons and might slowly work their way up over time. They were given proper education and training just like the nobles. In order to replace their roles in the future, House Whitehall recruited foreign exiles, mainly Yi Tish women and men from Hyrkoon due to their long history. They took on most of their roles of the former gentry save for Pilgrim Knights.
With this new pool of fresh nobles to choose from, the Whitehalls could now send their older more prestigious families out to establish footholds for future expansion. From that point forward the only nobility would be Eridonian Nobility.
House Blackreynes domains were minuscule in comparison to House Whitehalls, but while Troyad was efficiently-run and carefully managed, Alvion was disorganized and poorly managed. While farms in Troyad shared a uniformed pattern and were often encircled settlements, Alvion farms varied in size, shape, distance and were scattered all over the countryside. All settlements in Troyad had protection in the form of guards, palisades, trenches and even stone walls. This luxury was saved solely for Alvion inner cities and nothing smaller. Furthermore, Alvion's territories were lightly populated in relative to a kingdom of its size.
Unlike Alvion which was divided into Dukedoms, the colonies were divided into Viceroyalties to simplify rule and distinguish nationalities such as Ghiscari, Qaathi, Lhazareen and Valyrian. The ruined cities were also divided between the colonies based on proximity. With the colonies came the introduction of a new type of noble, the Viceroy. The Viceroy's purpose was essentially to act as the regional governors for the colonies. They would rule over a number of counts that governed each minor city. Viceroys were chosen from Alvion's most prominent dragonslayers.
House Erebbus, the Viceroys of the Shadow Lands and Magistrates of Asshai. House Arteum, the Counts of Stygai.
House Falcor, the Viceroys of the Freehold and Magistrates of Volantis. House Taro, the Counts of Sar Mell. House Elliott, the Counts of Selhorys. House Arman, the Counts of Mantarys. House Norbert, the Counts of Oros.
House Barcan, the Viceroys of Qaathi and Magistrates of Qarth. House Giscor, the counts of Qarkash. House Machus, the Counts of Port Yhos. House Hannio, the Counts of Vaes Qosar/Qolahn, House Drubal, the Counts of Vaes Tolorro, House Magon, the Counts of Vaes Shirosi, House Aderbal, the Counts of Vaes Orvik
House Podarge the Viceroys of Ghiscar and magistrates of Old Ghis. House Ocypete, the Counts of Meereen. House Celaeno, the Counts of Yunkai. House Aello, Counts of Astapor. House Nicothoe, the Counts of Tolos. House Aellopus, the Counts of Bhorash.
House Arius, the Viceroys of Lhazar and Magistrates of Lhazosh. House Pann the Counts of Hesh. House Pelias, the Counts of Kosrak. House Nommios, the Counts of Vaes Mejhah. House Agriuss, the Counts of Krazaaj Has/Ghardaq
Being the nearest to Alvion, the Lands of the Qaathi were the first Vicedom. Taking Qarth as their regional capital, they seized the neighboring cities of Port Yhos and Qarkash. Once this was done they set bour to restoring the ruined cities of Vaes Qosar/Qolahn, Vaes Tolorro, Vaes Shirosi, Vaes Orvik. This was not out of kindness but to secure and tighten their hold over the region.
This became the pattern with the other nations that quickly followed. In Ghiscar, They restored Old Ghis and made it a capital. From there they secured Astapor, Yunkai, Meereen, Tolos and restored the ruins of Borash. In Lhazar choosing a capital between Lhazosh, Hesh and Kosrak was tricky since neither of these cities was more prominent than the other. So they decided on, Lhazosh which lay in the center of the region. In a twist, the Whitehalls restored the ruins of Vaes Mejhah and Krazaaj Has/Ghardaq and added them to the Lhazar Viceroyalty. The Viceroyalty of the Shadow Lands was by far the most Isolated of them all. Aside from a road that led from Stygai to Carcosa, much of the surrounding mountains remained unexplored from the ground though the Eridonians still got a good look at it from the sky thanks to their pegasi. The only reason The Eridonians bothered with it was that it gave Alvion dominance over the Saffron Straights. Still, the Whitehalls considered the region as theirs since they occupied the only two cities that existed there, Asshai and Stygai.
Many found it strange that House Whitehall never bothered to conquer any of the nearby islands, despite their increasingly aggressive expansion. But the Whitehalls were first and foremost a land-based power and thus preferred to keep their empire as contiguous as possible. This allowed the Whitehalls to play to their greatest strengths.
The Whitehalls treatment of their new subjects varied based on nationality. Lhazareen were treated fairly well for peasants since they represented the Ideal peasantry. They were naturally peaceful which made them compliant and being naturals at sheep herding made them the best herdsmen. In other words, humble people who knew their place.
Others like the Qaarthi were acceptable tradesmen were tolerated with the most skilled in the business allowed to keep their positions with the rest divided between Gentry and peasantry. The old blood of Volantis were the best treated with many Eridonian nobles finding brides among the women. No Volantene Valyrian was ever given a position lower than gentry.
But of all these people none were so poorly treated, then the former Ghiscari slave masters. Eridonians, thought lowly of most foreigners even their closest allies. But the Ghiscari were considered the lowest surpassing even the andals which is no easy feat. Like the Blackreynes they considered kingdoms built on the backs of slaves to be an inferior society. Rather Ironic considering that they treat their peasants nearly as badly as the ghiscari treat their slaves. Nevertheless, in the eyes of the Eridonians, the Ghiscari are seen as lazy, greedy, bloated, arrogant and stupid. This belief was further backed by the Ghiscari's Idea of 'clothes' being a single sheet of cloth.
"An andals can at least can work for themselves," it is said. "A ghiscari clings to dead beliefs and decrepit traditions and has nothing to show for it. In all his talk of how high and mighty, he is what do you get? A bloated slug, that can't even do something as simple as slipping on breeches and a shirt." Such was their hatred for the Ghiscari that a new word was invented, 'Ghizky', a derisive term to describe savages, subhumans and Ghiscari. Due to their new status in Eridonian society, they were often given the most degrading, and dangerous tasks such as dung collecting, sewage cleaning and worst yet mining in the fourteen fires.
Despite their disdain for the Ghiscari people, the Whitehalls did adopt one thing from their culture, the Pyramids. Regardless of what other people thought of the people who built them, The Pyramids were nonetheless impressive structures not only in size but also structural integrity. Ranging from 400 to 800 feet in height, they had massive thick foundations, outer walls 30 feet thick and interior walls ranging from 8 feet to thicker than most curtain walls. Steep, narrow flights of steps ran up and down the Pyramid.
Even the Blackreynes who razed the cities during the Great Slaver War didn't bother trying to destroy these structures. To commemorate their foothold over their colonial cities, the Whitehalls had Pyramids erected to serve as a residence for the Viceroys and Counts. Standard Pyramids standing 400 feet high were built for the Count in all the minor cities. While Great Pyramids built for the Viceroys, standing 800 feet high were built in each provincial capital, Ghis, Qarth, Asshai, Volantis and Lhazosh.
Naturally to accommodate for these great structures room had to be made. This was no problem in the ruined cities but for the intact cities certain structures had to be torn down. So the Whitehalls levelled the area with the least amount of useful buildings such as noble residences and commoner households. It is there that the Pyramid complexes were built.
The Pyramidal Complexes were surrounded by a curtain wall with a number of buildings hugging them. About halfway up were battlements protecting the balconies above them. The entrance to the Pyramids was up a long narrow flight of stairs with heavy wooden doors and as a unique feature a Portcullis and followed the slope of the Pyramid. They also extended underground with a hidden escape route.
Aside from the Pyramids, the Whitehalls quickly began integrating Eridonian architecture into the cities they ruled. In the ruined cities it was all but dominant. In terms of construction, The Whitehalls were just as good as the Blackreynes in a different way. Eridonian architecture has been described as elegant, elaborate, ornate and beautiful. Many even dared to say that it even rivalled Old Valyria. Rib Vaults, high pointed arches, steep roofs and elongated spires
In the Viceroy capitals, The Whitehalls constructed great cathedrals dedicated to their god Polarius capable of seating fifty thousand people with smaller monasteries also being built in the other cities. These religious places were often dominated by a central dome in the center surrounded by smaller elongated spires with two high bell towers dominating the main entrance. The exterior of the walls were lined with pillars with statues of animals on corbels and stain glass windows. Inside were painted murals mosaics and statues of previous Prophets. The new Noble residences and holy places were often rich in detail though not to the extent as the holy places.
All these cities were divided in two, the inner city and the outer city not unlike Kings Landing. The Inner City housed the nobility and the outer city housed the peasantry. There is no mistaking the two parts. The inner city presented the finest of Eridonian architecture, with manses, cathedrals, theatres, stadiums for tourneys to be held, aqueducts and artisan workshops wrought in stone, bricks and copper. The Inner city was divided by a high stone wall and watchtowers
The dwellings of outer city, in contrast, were houses cobbled together in an ugly mass. The material used to build these houses varied from straw bales to wattle and daub. They often surrounded a large marketplace. The outer city was usually protected by a ditch and palisade.
Since the conquest of Qarth, the Valyrian Penninsula became a hotbed for knights considered by many to be the gateway to Hell. As the most dangerous place to go aside from their former homeland a successful quest there was a guaranteed knighthood. The Quest of Valyria involved a solo journey on foot through it spending months on the three main islands as well as the 7 ruined cities in the region.
Naturally, they would have to fight off stonemen and basilisks and to prove their success bring back an artifact of Old Valyria. But the grand prize was the serpent-like Firewyrms. Distant relatives to Dragons, Firewyrms could not fly and made their home underground tunnelling through the earth with ease. Like Dragons they could breathe fire but unlike their winged counterparts, Firewyrms were completely impervious to heat capable of even swimming through lava. This was why the Fourteen Flames was a natural habitat for them. As a result, their fire was even hotter than that of a dragon. But while Firewyrms could not be harmed by fire they were not so impervious to steel. A well-placed strike right between the eyes or a well-thrown spear down its throat would be a death blow. For most knights killing a Firewyrm was a bonus that assured one became a pegasus knight. But for the Whitehalls it was mandatory. You could not return from the peninsula unless you brought home the head of a Firewyrm.
The expansion did not come without a great cost to House Whitehall. While it did give them vast swaths of land it also had them gaining an extensive amount of coastline which meant Port cities and sea trade. Being mostly landlocked for most of its history, the Whitehalls never needed many ships, a couple cities on their northern coast used to trade with the Ibbenese hardly had to fear pirates due to lack of any other form of civilized society and the harsh conditions of the shivering sea.
Now they owned what was the center of trade in the south which meant they were now responsible for thousands of trading vessels. This also meant that they had to concern themselves with the countless pirate dens located on the coast of their former homeland. As House Blackreyne patrolled the Narrow Sea, and the Sunset Sea, pirate bands were forced to raid in the summer sea and the jade sea. They soon discovered that their safest harbour was the coastline of Sothoros where even the mighty Blackreyne armada didn't venture. After the Blackreynes razed Gogossos, they pirates started setting up in the Basilisk isles as well as other islands in the area. From these bases, Pirates launch countless attacks on tradesmen disrupting vital income and causing the Whitehalls an endless headache. So they were forced into investing in a fleet to protect their interests.
Unlike House Blackreyne, House Whitehall had very weak navy comprised of only 500 Dromons to protect thousands of merchant vessels. In comparison, the Blackreynes had 2,000 quadriremes for war, and 4 times as many longships with deadly prows used for patrol. Blackreyne warships were large three-masted vessels with iron rams, and large outriggers that improved speed and stability. Though their main method of propulsion was sails, they were also capable of using oars in emergencies. Such ships were better than the typical galleys in that they were faster more manoeuvrable and better at handling rough weather.
But ships were only as good as the men on them which forced the Whitehalls to yet again restructure their military to accommodate. Since Knights were too heavy and Men at arms were cumbersome, this led to a wider use of the Crossbowmen. Eridonians had always hated ranged weapons considering them a coward's weapon but those that did have always used the crossbow. Although crossbows were more expensive than regular bows, Eridonians believed it to be worth the price since it spared them the trouble of having to train the users since a simpleton could use it. The Crossbows they used were always of the light variant that required a goat's foot lever to draw. The hand-drawn ones were considered too weak and the winch design was not even considered due to is complexity and expense especially for a peasants weapon.
The greater need for arbalists (crossbowmen) resulted in such men outnumbering men at arms in the new Eridonian armies acting as siege attackers and now ship marines. Aside fron their signature weapons, arbalists were also equipped with daggers, axes and pavise shields.
Confident in their new fleet and determined to end the threat of the pirates, the Whitehalls launched full-scale invasions on the islands to the south. Naath, Marahai, Qal, Vahar, the Manticore Isles, the Isle of Whips, the Isle of Elephants, Lesser Moraq and even Great Moraq. felt the sting of Eridonian aggression. But these invasions served another purpose. As well as flushing out the pirate dens The Whitehalls seized the entire population of these islands and brought back to the mainland with the sole purpose of swelling up their peasant population.
While not as militant as House Blackreyne, the Whitehalls were far from inept in the ways of war. While the Blackreynes has mastered infantry, archery, fortifications and naval warfare. The Whitehalls talents lay in their cavalry, Knights and siege assault.
Alvion was said to be the realm of a hundred thousand knights, and that their prowess matched that of the finest knights in westeros. It was a number that was not exaggerated, by the time of Aegon's Conquest, Alvion's knights fighting force numbered 30,000 Paladins and 70,000 Pilgrims. But they also had a new knightly force of 10,000 Crusader Knights.
The Crusader Knights were an organization of celibate Pilgrim Knights formed after the Andal invasions. The Andals mistreatment of the Ancients had enraged the Eridonian nobility and many had petitioned for a full scale invasion of Andalos and eventually Westeros itself. But the major problem was that westeros was at the other end of the world and at the time they had no maritime means of getting there. Nevertheless, the Covenant of Polarius decided that a more noble order of guardians was needed to work in conjunction with the dreaded Martyrans. Hand selected from the pilgrim Knights for their fanatical holiness, the Crusaders took an oath of celibacy, swearing off women, alcohol and all other sinful practices.
So the Prophets formed the crusaders whose mission was the complete and utter destruction of the Andal Civilization. But before they could carry out their mission the Blackreynes and Starks had already sailed east and razed Andalos to the ground. With their purpose seemingly nonexistent the Crusaders were given a new mission to act as commanders to the Martyrans and as bodyguards to the Prophets.
While the Blackreynes could be said were better at defensive tactics, House Whitehall was superior at attack. To this end, they had a pool of different engines to utilize. These ranged from siege towers, trebuchets, onagers, mangonels, bastillas, scorpions, Battering Rams, scaling ladders, grappling hooks. While the Blackreyenes did use some of these such as Rams and ballistae they prefer methods that kept the enemy fortifications intact for them to use after they had been taken. The Whitehalls would use any means at their disposal. They also employed tactics like tunnelling and flung dead bodies over the walls as a form of biological warfare.
The Blackreynes may have been mental giants when it came to warfare, but in the political field The Whitehalls reigned supreme. As a pinnacle feudalistic society Alvion overflowed with nobles locked in a perpetual state of scheming wielding weapons like intrigue, deception, espionage, bribery, blackmail and treachery. In fact, you wouldn't find a single nobleman at court that didn't have a dagger tucked in their sleeves.
These were the tools Whitehall males were taught to master. Their house may remain in power due to their pegasi but much like the Blackreynes they were not ones to over-rely on them. For them to remain on top Whitehalls schooled their descendants in the art so they tended to be the most ambitious, cunning, deceitful and ruthless men at court.