North Hampton: History and Rumors

The first non-elven city of Vanavar, founded in 902 by human and halfling sailors that sought refuge from a ten day long storm. They beached their ship and set up camp to weather the storm on top of the hill where today the royal castle is built. On the passing of the storm, they surveyed the land and, thinking it to be uninhabited, decided to start a town and bring their families to colonize the land. Time passed and the little village blossomed into a large city as even more seamen settled around the hill that grew in importance as the center of the shire's capital.

Before the uniting of the land, North Hampton was the richest shire as profits could be made from fishing and exploiting the exporting of the goods from shires without access to a large shipping port. The plutocracy financed a large conscript army, composed of disenfranchised inhabitants, to guarantee their rights to property and intimidate the other shires into compliance.

During the period when the unification of Vanavar was being discussed, North Hampton built up its army, censured travelers and formed alliances with Lor and Silgar to protect its commercial interests. The shire-reeves of the three regions didn't expect their own populations to turn against them when elven agents, at Miranda's request, started spreading the idea of unification and the breaking of the old power structure that kept the rich in power and the poor as their servants.

The rich families, needless to say, were not happy losing their control over the land, its roads, port and riches but Queen Miranda would have none of it was decided that North Hampton would be her capital and she would serve as its shire-reeve and mayor while she held power.

Many families have lost their huge holdings of land and properties that have been redistributed to the less fortunate or converted into civic buildings. Queen Miranda personally deals with the disappropriations and has yet to take a building or land that is being used for crops or commerce.

The poor from all the land have flocked to North Hampton as a result of Queen Miranda's redistribution of wealth and this has severely strained natural resources and even living space in the city. As a result of this, great works are being prepared to help support the city.