Alva: Difference between revisions
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The '''Great Khanate of Alva''' is a republic located in the north-central region of the continent of [[Yasteria]], sharing a border with [[
==History==
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While there was always elven habitation of the region, none of the people there used writing for several centuries after the Urgabom Script writers disappeared. Instead, a largely nomadic society arose, with small tribes moving across the grasslands with grazing livestock such as goats and cattle. It was not until more than a thousand years later, in approximately 1200 BC, that written materials ascribed to the natives of the area begin to reappear in Alva. The language, while believed to have descended linguistically from what the Urgabom Script Civilization spoke, was written in an entirely different script - both referred to as Old Alvish. The name "Alva" appears to have already been in common use before the texts were written, as some of the texts refer to Alva as an "ancient place" or "the Alva of old." Contemporary Alvan historians use these texts as evidence that an Alvan polity existed as early as 1200 BC and that it was a direct descendant of civilizations that had existed in the area prior, but because they are few in number and the claims made are not attested in records found outside the region, historians outside Alva consider these claims controversial.
By approximately 800 BC, texts found in what is now [[Packilvania]] refer to "the tribes of Alva," and a leaders who were known by the title "Kaan." This date is used by most international historians to date the first formalized Khanate of Alva. The title of Khan was believed to be martial in nature, rather than hereditary, which whichever chief who was able to marshal enough support among other tribes gaining the title. In this era, there were typically multiple Khans, with one Khan gathering power in one particular region and engaging in hostilities against other Khans. Power tended to fluctuate between tribes in the more arid east and the tribes on the west near the sea. While tribes in both areas were nomadic in nature, the tribes in the west tended to move between established settlements on a seasonal schedule, whereas the tribes in the east rarely settled in the same location more than once. The east, while less populous, had one resource the west lacked: horses. Wild stallions are native to eastern Alva, and the warriors of the eastern Alvan tribes were famous for their connection to and skill with their horses. Alvan archers were known worldwide for their ability to shoot while on horseback.
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In 1125, a succession crisis arose when the Khan at the time had neither sons nor brothers to assume the throne after his death. A brief civil war ensued among various competing bases of power, but it was won very quickly by a young chief from the north known as Temuj who would assume the title Khan of all Alva in 1128. As Khan, he would use the name ''Gunghris'' and is often recorded in history by the name Gunghris Khan. This ended the Eastern Dynasty period and began a period known as the Alvan Empire period. During the lifetime of Gunghris Khan, Alva would expand across central Yasteria, reaching the western border of Packlivania by 1175. Gunghris Khan died in 1199 and was succeeded by his son, who was called Tugri Khan.
[[File:Alvan empire.png|left|thumb|300px|The Alvan Empire at its peak extent, shortly before the death of Tugri Khan in 1254. The total area was over 5 million square kilometers.]]
Under Tugri Khan, Alva expanded both to the west and the south, conquering territory on both coasts of the Sea of Alva and reaching nearly as far south as Yasteria Minor. Upon his assumption of the title of Khan, Tugri proclaimed that his lands would be known as the Alvan Empire. In addition to martially expanding the borders of the state to their largest extent, he also emphasized literacy and education among the population, not just among the bureaucratic elite. He also proclaimed that people living in conquered territories would have freedom of religion and that so long as they agreed to Alvan rule, they would be allowed full rights of citizenship. However, there were some among the leadership of the Empire who felt that Tugri was taking the people away from their traditional culture and religion, as Tugri encouraged the establishment of permanent settlements in the Alvan homeland just as he saw in conquered territories. The city of Urgabom, a name meaning "rich port," was established by Tugri Khan in 1234. Tugri would eventually be assassinated by members of his royal guard in 1254, and the Empire would fracture with power going to five of Tugri's sons after his death. The first region to break away was the Noorvic peoples, residing in what is now
From the 13th century onward, there would regularly be Alvan raids in central Yasteria as Alvan tribes - and Alvan states in some cases - competed for influence. While various states claimed to be the legitimate heir to the Alvan Empire, none would ever re-conquer all of the territories held by Tugri Khan. Historians use the term "Alvan Khanate" to refer to the state that existed where Alva exists today, which is the homeland of the Alvan tribes and was consistently the most economically dominant of the Alvan states. By the 17th century, all the former areas of the Alvan Empire would be under the control of non-Alvan regimes with the exception of the Alvan Khanate, although the Khanate of Suvania, a state nade up of lands once controlled by the Alvan State of Alvshina has sometimes been called the Alva of the West for it's eager adoption of Alvan Culture and Religious Beliefs, until its collapse into civil war in the 1950s.
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