Post by Zillah on Mar 19, 2007 18:31:53 GMT -6
England
Eighty years ago England was little more than a possession that allowed the Lords of Anjou to claim the status of Monarch and thus equal footing with their overlord the King of France. Since the loss of many continental holdings, the island nation has become the heart of the Plantagenet holdings, the notion of an English state replacing that of the Angevin Empire.
The Lands
The lands of England are as diverse as the people who occupy them. The Fief of Canterbury encompasses the chalk downlands of the south east of the country, Principally the counties of Kent and Sussex. Its inhabitants are mainly farmers, though fishermen also make their livings in the Medway and Channel coasts. To the west, the Fief of Winchester covers a broad tract of land from the forests of Hampshire. Across the windswept – and some say haunted – plains of Salisbury, to the low fens around the Isle of Glass. The Fief of Exeter spans the rugged counties of Cornwall and Devon. Its lands are harsh and inhospitable but rich in mineral wealth. The fief of London encompasses the rich river lands of the Thames as well as the woodlands of Surrey and Essex.
Further north, the Fief of Gloucester spans the River Severn, dominating the lands of Herford and Worchester, as well as Gwent in southern Wales. These are mainly rich farmlands, though the fief also incorporates the Mendip Hills and the “mountains” of South Wales. Encompassing the flat eastern counties of Cambridge, Norfolk and Sulfolk, the Fief of Norwich contains a mix of good farming land and fens. The Fief of Lincoln also includes fenland around the Wash but also spans the forested counties of Leicestershire, Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire, as well as the more rugged lands of Stafford and Derby.
Centered on the county Palatine of Chester, the Fief of Chester encompasses the hill country of the Welsh borders and the verdant lands bordering the Irish Sea. By stark contrast, its eastern neighbor, the Fief of York , encompasses both the southern reaches of Pennine Hills (Though the locals them mountains) and the moors of Yorkshire and Durham. The Fief of Carlisle, which forms the border with Scotland, encompasses some of the most rugged land including the northern reaches of the Pannines, the fells and lakes of Cumbria, and the oft-contested lands of Northumbria.
Eighty years ago England was little more than a possession that allowed the Lords of Anjou to claim the status of Monarch and thus equal footing with their overlord the King of France. Since the loss of many continental holdings, the island nation has become the heart of the Plantagenet holdings, the notion of an English state replacing that of the Angevin Empire.
The Lands
The lands of England are as diverse as the people who occupy them. The Fief of Canterbury encompasses the chalk downlands of the south east of the country, Principally the counties of Kent and Sussex. Its inhabitants are mainly farmers, though fishermen also make their livings in the Medway and Channel coasts. To the west, the Fief of Winchester covers a broad tract of land from the forests of Hampshire. Across the windswept – and some say haunted – plains of Salisbury, to the low fens around the Isle of Glass. The Fief of Exeter spans the rugged counties of Cornwall and Devon. Its lands are harsh and inhospitable but rich in mineral wealth. The fief of London encompasses the rich river lands of the Thames as well as the woodlands of Surrey and Essex.
Further north, the Fief of Gloucester spans the River Severn, dominating the lands of Herford and Worchester, as well as Gwent in southern Wales. These are mainly rich farmlands, though the fief also incorporates the Mendip Hills and the “mountains” of South Wales. Encompassing the flat eastern counties of Cambridge, Norfolk and Sulfolk, the Fief of Norwich contains a mix of good farming land and fens. The Fief of Lincoln also includes fenland around the Wash but also spans the forested counties of Leicestershire, Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire, as well as the more rugged lands of Stafford and Derby.
Centered on the county Palatine of Chester, the Fief of Chester encompasses the hill country of the Welsh borders and the verdant lands bordering the Irish Sea. By stark contrast, its eastern neighbor, the Fief of York , encompasses both the southern reaches of Pennine Hills (Though the locals them mountains) and the moors of Yorkshire and Durham. The Fief of Carlisle, which forms the border with Scotland, encompasses some of the most rugged land including the northern reaches of the Pannines, the fells and lakes of Cumbria, and the oft-contested lands of Northumbria.