Tara
| Faction | Trivia |
Tara, formerly known as the Kingdom of Tara (Righeacht na Temhair), is a Terran country that has ceased to exist by the events of Arknights. Its former territory consisted of the swampy biomes of modern-day southern Victoria. It was a monarchy ruled by the Draco house of Dublinn, and ruled by its monarch, King Gaeil. However, in the eighth century it was annexed back to Victorian territory by force. Currently, the surviving Tarans strive to preserve their declining culture, and a nationalistic movement has arisen despite suppression from the Victorian government.
The Taran language, or the Tengae, is similar to Irish in our world. However, both have distinct grammars and accents even though both are mutually intelligible with each other.
Background
According to folklore, Tara was founded by the Dublinn house, one of the two Draco houses of Victoria, when its red dragon and first king, Gaeil, brought his loyal subjects to a new land. In actual historical record, Tara was founded by nomadic Draco tribes which seceded from Victoria and settled in the region. Over the centuries, Victoria and Tara have engaged in frequent conflict over control of the region, which has brought misery to the peoples of both countries.[1] It's said that the last nomadic Draco leader was defeated by the victorian Red Dragon.[2]
By the dawn of the new era a thousand years ago, Victoria had annexed Tara again in the name of protecting the latter from war with the Nightzmoran Khaganate.[3] According to Victorian documents, the process was a peaceful one, and the Taran kings were given autonomy to rule their land under the title of King Gaeil, which was first granted by the Victorian regent.[4] However, Taran accounts beg to differ, and the Tarans view the loss of their homeland as forced colonization by the Victorians,[3] with them supposedly putting King Gaeil in power by force in order to subjugate them and canonize many victorian nobles.[5] Despite the promises of autonomy, Victorian overlords placed the region under the constant supervision of nobles and military forces stationed there, with some sources claiming that the ones sent as delegates to the Taran Court were actually controlling the country behind the scenes.[3] The fate of many Taran rulers was also tragic. A young prince was forcefully installed by the Victorians, giving him the King Gaeil title when he was still in the craddle. On the other hand, an exiled king left the taran crown and was banished into the wilderness for twenty years before being murdered by his fellow kinsmen.[2]
Around two centuries ago, in the eighth Terran century, Tara became the Dracos' last territorial holding during the Aslan-Draco civil war.[5] By then, the Aslans had already defeated the house of Artorius. However, as the war went on, both sides gradually became exhausted. Wishing to put an end to the war, the last King Gaeil finally surrendered himself and signed an armistice with the Aslans, a treaty which established the present-system of dual monarchs. He also ordered his soldiers to melt their weapon to prove their sincerity in ending the war, but this led to his assassination at the hands of Taran rebels who wanted the war to continue. Although with the absence of a proper monarch, the Tarans were finally subjugated by Victoria's authority.[6]
Years of devastating war and Victorian oppression have turned Tara's former territory into a backwater region and led to a decline in Taran culture. Local Tarans are treated as second-class citizens in Victoria and are deprived of basic rights. Even then, Tarans strive to preserve their culture through folk songs and poems praising the "victory" of the Gaelic Kings. Among the aristocrats, a nationalist movement has arisen that seeks to restore the Taran homeland and take power from the Aslan house, which was weakened by a popular uprising twenty years ago (the year 1072). However, the movement has only benefited the Taran upper class, while the common folk still live in misery.
Notable people
- Gaeil: The first Draco King of Tara and the founder of the kingdom. His name was granted by a Victorian regent, and it would later become the title of later Taran kings. However, it's said that his coronation was actually a forced establishment by Victoria as a way to consolidate their power over the Tarans.
Taran descent
- Saoirse Kelly (Episode 09)
Places
- County Hillock (now part of Victoria)
- County Oak Grove (now part of Victoria): A Nomadic county which is part of the Duke of Wellington's duchy,[4] as well as Reed and Eblana's hometown. It was razed by Eblana's flames after killing the Aslans who murdered her parents on a Christmas night.
- County Trent (now part of Victoria)
- Redridge (now part of Victoria): A small village located in the Scáthanna Fields, County Trent.
- Scáthanna Fields (now part of Victoria)
- King Gaeil's Castle: The overgrown, decaying ruins of what once was the royal palace of the Gaelic Kings of Tara.[4] It was erected upon a ceremonial stone circle atop of a hill shortly after Victoria crowned the first King Gaeil.[5] It's said that long after the Taran dynasty's fall and with the Dracos already abandoning the palace, the Aslans decided to leave the place to rot, expecting that one day a Catastrophe would destroy it.[4]