History of Peninsular Iverica

Peninsular Prehistory

The Iverican Peninsular is believed to be among the last regions of Arigs to have been settled by nomadic populations during the Paelolithic settlement of Argis by Pseudo-Buranian tribes originally from Northern Europa. Buranian Paleolithic hunter-gatherers entered Argis from the North Adlantic land bridges, which had formed between northeastern Argis and Occidental Europa due to the lowering of sea level during the Last Glacial Maximum. These populations expanded south of an Ice Sheet and spread steadily throughout Argis; Eastern and Southern Argis being the most quickly settled regions somewhere between 20,000 years BP and 15,000 years BP. Around 14,000-10,000 years BP, the Buranian Argics (of which there were many already consoldiated splinter cultures of) spread across Western Argis. Celtic, Early Nordic, Proto-Slavic and Proto-Germanic had somewhat consolidated in Europa prior to the trans-Adlantic migration, but began to develop greater differences and regional insularities during the settlement period. By 10,000 years BP, Celtic offshoot populations began to enter the Peninsula, presumably via the Vasqqan Isthmus. The earliest populations in the Peninsula, thought to settle around 10,000 years ago, are known formally as the Paleo-Erouthi but are also referred to in many sources as Sindragente.

First Populations

Sindragente ring fort, near Vargo, Vasqqa D'Oeste

The earliest archaeological evidence of Pre-Iveric inhabitants come from the excavated remains of Neolithic settlements preserved in layers volcanic ash. These Neolithic inhabitants were named "Sindragente" or "ash people" by the Ivericans who had learned of the people's existence from the Narvic oral traditions. This ancient group purportedly utilised the volcanic ash found surrounding the mountains for pottery and crude masonry. In old Narvic, the group is called "Erouthixonein" another word literally meaning "ash people"

The tribes are noted to have originated from the continent proper of Argis. The common theory being that they migrated via the thin north-eastern isthmus in waves from a period between 4500-4000 B.C. Currently, this land-migration theory is the most widely accepted on the basis of the volume of archaeological evidence. Maritime migrations are largely speculative as evidence of such activity in that period has yet to be discovered.

A series of volcanic eruptions seem to have deterred the growth of the Neolithic tribes from periods between 2000-1000 B.C. After this period, archaeological evidence of human activity decreases dramatically. There is a general consensus among Archaeologists that this event signalled the downfall of the Sindragente.

A period of inactivity is known to have followed the downfall of Iverican Neolithic peoples. According to geological data, much of the surface of the land is known to have been covered in volcanic ash, resulting in the death of most of the crops left behind by the Neolithic people.

Early Peninsular History

Though the Narvic settlement of the Peninsula is popularly known, smaller demographic groups had also been present in the Peninusula. Archeological digs around northern coastal settlements show evidence of Canamonic settlement as far back as as 5,000 years before present. Other groups in the south such as the Alharun Andalo-Marrakish peoples (not to be confused with Andallans), Ververo peoples, and Indes were found to have settled parts of what is now Nou Argon, Altaria, and Nou Stille. Though these populations were many times assimilated or removed by adjacent Narvic kingdoms.

During this period, the historical record is largely known thorugh findings of clay tablets and sometimes papyrus records of Andalo origin. As the Andalo and Marrakish were literate in an Azanian-derived language and writing system, their accounts and trading records survive to detail their experiences with Narvics (most of whom were illiterate, or did not keep writeen records outside of glyph and rune carving).

Between 1,000 BC and 800 BC, the Narvic tribes, a collection of Celtic Argics had settled the peninsula, effectively becoming the majority population from the coasts of what is now Providencia to the western coasts of Argis proper.

Narvic History

As early as 1200 BC, waves of the varying Narvic nomadic subgroups began to settle the western coasts of Narva, Vasqqan Isthmus and the northern coasts of the Iverican Peninsula. It wasn't until the 8th and 9th centuries BC that the Narva would come en masse. Groups from those centuries onwards grew noticeably larger. Archaeologists consider the 9th century as the start of the migration in earnest, excavations of the previous waves' settlements appearing to be mainly exploratory or too small in number to consider in earnest.

Ethnography
The Narva originated from Northwestern Argis and sailed south-west down the coast in wooden longships. Collectively known as the Narva, these loose collection of nomadic tribes from continental Argis were likely seeking new and fertile lands to settle in the south. This period in time coincides with the expansion of the Canamo Nordic petty kingdoms and their conflict with the Proto-Slavic and Argic Celtic groups in northern and central Argis. Historical consensus largely agrees on the resource scarcity and turbulent nature of northern Argis as the important factors prompting a migration to the southwest. That the Narva sailed to the Iverican Peninsula on single-masted, square-rigged longships is known by many wrecks carried by ice floes to shallower waters where some of their parts lay preserved. Others were unearthed in burial mounds that dot the Narvic and northern Iverican coasts.

Pottery and megalithic patters togther with carbon dating and genetic testing traces the origins of the Narvic ethnogroup to the valleys and coasts west of the Canamo Sea. It is speculated that like the Argic Proto-Nordics and Proto-Slavics, the early Narva diverged as a descendant of the waves of varied Buranian tribes migrating from Northern Europa. The earliest sites that bear resemblance to the pre-peninsular Narva are dated at around 1800 BC, though differently from the Nordic and Slavic ancestor groups, the Narva appear to have retained a language much more phonetically similar to the Celtophone Buranians. Given that the Narva had been the furthest west among all of the migrating Buranian tribes, their conservation of Buranian Celtic phonemes is likely a result of longer isolation. It was not until 1200 BC or 1000 BC that the Narva would enter a somewhat subordinate vassal relationship with the expanding Slavs and Nords. Information on the Buranian Celtic and Narvic was learned through Ibero-Narvic expeditions to isolated tribes whom, in 1870 AD, were still living east of the Canamo. Scholars from the Ibero-Narvic Conservation Society embarked on expeditions to visit these tribes in 1870 and discovered that their language had experienced little change. The scholars had proven this by contrasting the tribal language with both an index of known Prymontian, Russian, and central Argic loan words. Further evidence referred to the wealth of manuscripts documenting their western neighbours' language and customs. Fortunately, the manuscripts were written in old Canastotan which itself is well documented by Prymontian scholars.

Peninsular Settlement
By around the mid 8th century B.C, the Narva had established a small number of frontier settlements in the Vasqqan isthmus, which prompted later expeditions, and eventual settlement in Iverica proper in the 9th century B.C. Within the next 5 centuries, the Narva would settle the peninsula and its adjacent regions thoroughly. By around 800 BC, the first wave of Narvic settlers constructed a settlement in what is now the outer city-limits of Intreimor. Much of this settlement's palisade and forge is preserved and on display today. The establishment of a fortified coastal town in the Southwest of the peninsula caused the Narva to come into contact with the Andalo settlements. Just as the Andalo had annexed Indiense settlements, many unearthed battlefield and early settlement sites show signs of razed dwellings and small-scale battles. Andalo records confirm later archaeological finds, showing that by the 10th and 11th century BC, the Narvic tribal alliances had all but pushed out the Andalo from the southern peninsula, save for a few strongly walled and defended towns in what is now Nou Argon. The Narva would continue to occupy most of their occupied settlement sites until the coming of the Iberics in the mid-17th century. Though some sights had first shown signs of the Andalo retaking a handful of these settlements, the dates of these occurrences matching the dates of the Narvic plague.

Many of today's population centres being built over or around the historic Narvic originals, of which many of the southern ones were built atop the remains of the Andalo and Indiense predecessors. Wealthier settlement on the coasts tended to favour naturally sheltered harbours and hills adjacent to river mouths and deltas (as was strategically favourable) and so were desired positions that warranted building-over rather than abandoning. The Narvic sites revealed evidence of sophisticated knowledge of fortifications, the evidence of bronze, and later iron tools similar to those from the continent proper. These technologies presumably putting them technologically on-par with the Andalo soldiery.

Society and Culture
It should be noted that despite the Narva's society and culture was drastically changed by their settling of the peninsula. Where they had been tribal and almost completely illiterate before, their new conquests brought the need to adopt new structures and social technology. Glyphs and runes became taught to the upper classes and druid circles (though the Narva remained mostly illiterate and did not adopt the use of papyrus from the Andalo very much). The Narva developed a socio-political structure centred around a monarch and began to formalise their animist religions with rune-inscribed monuments to codify some rituals or serve as memorials for certain heroes revered as demi-gods. The wealth and resource abundance brought about by their mastery of the peninsula developed their tribal structures of small lords into structures of early feudalism. Their culture, on the other hand, remained focused on ancestral worship, pantheistic animism, and oral tradition despite having come into contact with Islam from Alharun traders. By the time the Iberics had their first encounters with them, the Narva had gone through several stages of near-unification, civil conflict, and a major linguistic shift. Their system of petty kingdoms and clans, their celtophone descended language, and their druidic religion had evolved substantially from the early Buranian-offshoot culture that their ancestors in northwestern Argis had possessed.

Much of Iverica between the 10th and 17th century BC was divided into petty kingdoms which were constantly at odds fighting over rich hunting ground, arable land, and bountiful fishing sites. This status quo persisted until their eventual capitulation to the Iveric emigrants. Likely the only forces keeping the related but divided kingdoms from total civil strife were the constant attempts of the Andalo to contest the Narva of the south and the attempts of some Slavic and Nordic expeditions to conquer the north. In those cases, the Narva had always consolidated as a confederation of kingdoms and their martial ferocity and spirited resistance have been of much note in Nordic and Andalo accounts.

Narvic Plague

An epidemic of what can be described by a few written accounts as a highly contagious, and aggressive influenza struck the Narvic kingdoms repeatedly over the years of 1380, 1478, and 1591 A.D, resulting in a total death toll of over two-hundred thousand Narva. These lead to periods where the Narvic supremacy in the peninsula waned, allowing the Andalo to reclaim some of their former holdings. Some historians also refer to the plague as the main factor that prevented Narvic consolidation. King Argeider of the Western Vaskunin, was a notable victim of the 3rd plague in 1591. Argeider was attempting a marital union with Elixane of the Plekunin, one of the dominant kingdoms of the Leon river valley. When Argeider was killed, the union was not pursued by the Plekunin, despite Argeider's son by his first (by then deceased) wife, Vasjuin, proposing to take his father's place. Had it taken place, the Vaskunin would have had the resources and manpower to defeat their adjacent rivals, thereby creating the largest Narvic kingdom in their history.

Historians point out that worst outbreaks coincided with the large population growth in Narvic cities during this age. It is likely that the cramped conditions and poor infrastructure of cities at the time had aided in the spread of the virus.

As a result of this, the Narva had largely abandoned many of their largest cities by the start of the 17th century.

Iberic Colonisation

During the year 1620 A.D, Tacolic priest and historian Lemuel Urquijo documented the conflict between Iveric and Narvic Kingdoms. The account holds that Iveric Admiral, Esteban Deiargon, attempted to settle the inlets and bays around the western coasts but was turned back by constant raids by Narvic warriors. The Iverics, also called Iberics, were newly arrived from the event known as the Gran Viatge or the "Great Voyage".

The Gran Viatge was a mass exodus of ships fleeing a radical peasant's revolution destroying the Iberic Empire, in Southern Europa. It encompassed more than 16 separate waves of refugees, embarking in different numbers at different times. The first and longest exodus journey took place between 1593 to 1620 and involved a starting population of approximately 70,000--it was known as Deiargon's fleet, after Almirante Esteban Deiargon who lead it. The routes vary between exodite waves, but the most storied and infamous route was Cross-Oriental route, which claimed the lives of more than half the fleet's population. Constant storms, illnesses, and pirate raids would slowly reduce Iveric numbers until a population of 28,000 would make landfall in 1620.

Hostilities with the Narvics began when Iveric settlers made camp in a river delta in what is now Providencia. The site was purportedly uninhabited, although the large Narvic Kingdom of Narstun, based up-coast to the north had apparent religious interests in the area. It is speculated that this was unknown to the settlers at that time. Regardless, they were attacked in the night and subsequently slaughtered or taken as captives. Deiargon, who was aboard his flagship at that time, moored miles further off due to the receding tide only learned of the settler's fate in the morning. He quickly dispatched messengers to his subordinate captains most of whom were away mapping the coastline.

Deiargon's orders were to mount a counterattack to liberate the captive settlers. Fierce skirmishing ensued around the coastal hills and river plains. The Iverics had the advantage of arquebus and pike weaponry and tactics, which they employed to great effect against Narstunic cavalry armed with short spears. Eventually, with the help of artillery from the newly arrived Iveric ships, Deiargon was able to successfully lay siege to and occupy the Narstunic kingdom's walled capital. Today, the ruin sits atop the Elector's hill in Intreimor, which overlooks the later-built fortifications of the city's bay-inlets.