The History of the Grand Duchy

Petrana, technically the capitol of the Grand Duchy, got its start as a provincial capital of the the Kingdom of Maldonaise (or simply the 'Old Kingdom', to the lay-folk). The region -- which at that time consisted of a series of small to medium-sized enclaves along the Long Road and upper Erynnor valleys -- was the last major conquest of the ruling line of the Kingdom.

The Maldonaise rule of Petrana lasted slightly less than four centuries. During this time, the population of the city expanded and many great buildings were constructed to house the governor's court and the official functions of the Kingdom. Petrana's political status as a provincial capital added to its natural trade advantages, and the city and its inhabitants prospered, even though the tax levies were high and many local resources were exported back to the ruler's homeland.

Others in the region did not fare as well, however, and some cracks began to form in the Kingdom's supremacy. The Elven kingdoms and the numerous Dwarven cities were never completely subjugated, although these strongholds of resistance were unable to unite to totally drive the invaders from their ancestral territories.  During the reign of Cometus IV, the Orcs of the Peace Mountains unleashed one of their periodic assaults into the fertile lowlands nearly simultaneously with incursions from the northern plateaus by the human barbarians who called that place home, resulting in almost two decades of bloody raids which greatly diminished Maldonaise imports and exports in the region. Coupled with this (and perhaps brought on by agreements with the northern barbarians) were the revolts in Caer Maighdean and Carn Tor led by descendants of the ousted barbarian tribes that left these areas essentially independent and only loosely allied to the Kingdom. Finally, the western Prelate of the Kingdom pulled his troops out of the region and returned to the Kingdom's capitol in the east in a bid for the throne against his half-brother, leaving the Grand Duchies on a double-edged sword -- Free, but abandoned.

The departing armies looted much of what their predecessors had built; afterward, the local nobility and those royal cliques who elected to stay asserted control over what remained with the reinstitution of a feudal system that eventually stabilized into the Grand Duchy and their assorted lesser duchies, counties, and baronies. One of the most powerful noble families, Soranzo, assumed the title of Arch-Duke of Petrana (and overlord-ship of a sizable portion of the lower Erynnor river valley) -- control of the city continues in this family to the present day. About 175 years ago, economic necessity and pressure from the growing trade guilds forced the Duke to grant the city a charter that made it an independent political entity and freed its slaves. The city is now primarily run by the families who dominate the powerful mercantile guilds. The feudal nobility is declining, and some of the families have been forced into bankruptcy or to selling off their lands -- often to land-hungry guildsmen. Nonetheless, the remaining nobility continues to be an influential force both within Petrana and without.

The current Arch-Duke Feliks Soranzo -- an extremely astute negotiator with excellent business sense.