Bažra
From Almeopedia
| Bažra | |
| Native: | Bažra |
| Verdurian: | Bažra |
| Characteristics | |
| Capital: | Zariaspa |
| Government: | Duchy |
| Language: | Verdurian |
| Relative prosperity: | 69 |
| Population: | 260,000 |
| % Pagan: | 83 |
| % Eleďe: | 17 |
| % None: | 0 |
| Currency | |
| Gold | ežonde 12 |
| mesuy 4 | |
| Silver | ešenë .8 |
| ešenalt 1/3 | |
| Emur | razo 1/12 |
| < BAŽRA |
Bažra [ˈbaʒ ra] is a duchy on the middle Svetla river, essentially a city-state centered on the capital, Zariaspa, located about 20 km downstream from the confluence of the Svetla and the Meuna. Zariaspa is also one of the patriarchates of Caďinorian paganism.
The region was part of the core of the Caďinorian empire, and shared in its reverses, including conquest by the Bešbalicu and by the Curiyans. The duchy (šohát) derives from the governorship (Caď. scoȟantos) of Bogira, a large town in classical times, fallen into ruin in the Dark Years. By the 2600s, the title was the property of the Meuney family.
In 2917 Bura liberated Žésifo from the Curiya, and in 2923-5 he extended his little realm southward to Zariaspa; he deposed Veaďanes Meuney, for having supposedly supported the Curiyans, and gave the duchy to a Ctesifoni noble, Peil Benda. When Caleon of Verduria conquered Žésifo from Bura's son Ertala, the state of the duchy was uncertain. The Curiyans raided Zariaspa, and in return Caleon invaded Curiya and burned its capital (2953). The duchy drifted away from Verdurian rule during the Usurpation of 3128. Independence seemed a chancy proposition, however, and in 3175 the burghers of Zariaspa forced the duke to accede to the confederacy of Svetla, which is why Bažra to this day uses Svetlan names for its coins. However, in the late 3200s the burghers reversed themselves. Svetla and Verduria were fighting a brief trade war, and had declared tariffs on each others' goods— and Bažra traded downriver more often than upriver. The duchy removed itself from the confederacy in 3284.
With the emergence of the strong Aďlon dynasty in Ctesifon, Žésifo became once again the most important factor in Bažra's economic and political life. The duchy is effectively a dependency of Ctesifon.
The current duke, Loneon, is an avid patron of miniaturists; he has turned the gardens of his estate into a miniature representation of his duchy at 50:1 scale, complete with a running stream representing the Svetla. A team of carvers has the task of immediately modifying the model Zariaspa to match the real city, and a courtier gravely moves 3 cm effigies of the duke and his family every hour in order to represent their actual locations.
Neighbors: Curiya (to W), Pakšohan (to S), Svetla (to E), Guaya (to N)
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Countries and important regions in or near Eretald: |
Etymology: Caď. Bogira, said to be from Meť. bogrir 'stinking'.
