The Royal Council, part 3 - Crownlands Cities and Roads
Out of the many, many reforms laid out by Aenys during the first King's Council, one change in the way Westeros worked which seems bizarre to modern eyes, is that it made City Charters a thing for all.
Today, City charters is accepted as a given for any settlement that reaches above 7000 inhabitants, and with it comes all the rights and duties.
However, in the age before the unification, actual cities were a rarity in Westeros. So few in fact that each the free cities controlled more cities in their own domains than could be found in all of Westeros combined.
The reasons for this is many, but what it can basically be summed up as, is that the Kings of old were not. Confident enough in their own power to allow more than a few lordly houses have access to the wealth and power that came with a true city.
The Hightower of Oldtown for example, were by far the most powerful lords in Westeros, in large part due to ruling the greatest city on the continent.
In many cases, attempting to make a city could easily bring down the wrath of the local king upon the unfortunate overreaching Lord, as shown with the Manderly's attempts at turning Dustonbury into a true city without royal permission, an act which led the Gardners to strip them of all land and banish them from the reach.
The kings of old guarded the right to grant citiy charters jealously, to such a degree they would stop ecomic growth of their nations rather than let their vassals grow too powerfull.
Aenys Targaryen however, marched to the beat of a different drummer.
Aenys would famously enforce economic development and theory on his subjects, to such a degree that when he created the mandatory Westerosi school system, he enforced that both genders would learn math and basic economic theory from childhood.
Aenys economic theory was all built from the bottom up, entirely dependant on every single producer of food, wood, iron or otherwise having local cities to take their goods to.
Aenys would famously say that he planned for Westeros to have a hundred cities by the time of his death. The actual number was 77, which more superstitious folk have attributed as a sign of him having the favour of the seven following the war of the faith.
It is not this author's wish to be embroiled in this debate, and as such we shall not focus on said war.
Instead, we shall focus on the way he revolutionized the very concept of city charters, by giving them to pretty much every single large settlement in his kingdom, laying the foundations for this to become the norm.
His successor would very much follow in his footsteps in this regard, and by the time when Maegor the first rose to his unparalleled greatness, Westeros had a total of 869 cities of varying degrees of wealth, trade and power.
However, we shall mainly go over those cities that were laid forth either to be built following the first Council, or be granted city status, and how they affected each of their Grand Duchies.
The Grand Duchy of the Crownlands:
No talk of cities in Westeros can be complete without discussing the crownlands, and it's cities.
While the capital of King's landing is the largest, most developed, richest, most populous and best structured city on the continent, the crownlands is home to many other important cities.
Still, it is prudent to cover the crown of Westeros first.
King's landing.
First founded by Aegon the Conqueror, at the spot where he first landed on Westeros during his conquest, the city lies at the mouth of the Blackwater rush.
Orginally the city was a nameless fishing village, but as it became the capital city of Westeros, it quickly exploded in size, population and importance. Unfortunately, Aegon did not actually have any plans for the city itself, and thus, he let it grow unchecked and unplanned, leaving his son a massive, enormous mess of random buildings, no grid layout, no sewer system, and no way for easily acquired water.
Aenys would effectively tear down the city and remake it from scratch into it's modern form with it's enormous roads, it's very space efficient houses, it's factories and it's large and green parks.
The methods of city building which Aenys designed and perfected for his new King's Landing, is the standard for which future city builders would work from, and with good reason.
Aenys put a massive emphasis on making sure the city was easy to navigate, had a very structured sewer system, clean water readily available for all, and also made the idea of one singular type of building structure for most people to live in, an unavoidable fact of life.
Water distribution and sewers were not anything new in city building, but Aenys great apartment complexes were. Maximizing the amount of space needed for a family to live in, Aenys made it both cheap and easy to afford living space.
The downside of this was of course that in cities, from then on, actual privately owned houses became a thing of the past, at least for the common people.
It was simply much more efficient to make everyone live in these "city blocks" as they were also called. This was not much of a problem. In King's Landing, as the apartments were large enough to comfortably house a family of 7 people.
Many of the continents other cities however, would use such small room for the apartments that it I practically became impossible for families to actually live in them.
This would cause enormous resentment amongst city dwellers in many cities, until in one of his first acts upon returning from Essos, king Maegor the First, would put into law that apartment complexes had to contain as much room as they had in king's landing.
This law would kickstart the period known as "the great rebuilding", which had become necessary as technology moved on from the level they had been during the days of Aenys the first.
Though the apartment complexes were a marvel in their own time, and would lead to many much needed architectural developments, they also had the massive drawback that they weren't easy to modify once finished.
Thus, "the great rebuilding" was an inevitability as the March of technology marched on.
-
The second aspect of King's Landing that all other Cities would emulate, was it's Factoriy districts.
King's landing has an enormous amount of factories, producing everything under the sun. It is not an exaggeration to say that the economy of the city revolves around these factories, both in how they produce, but also in the role they shaped the laws of the land.
The amounts of laws Aenys enacted specifically to deal with every aspect of factories, is nothing short of mind-boggling.
From laws regarding a very clear cut of how much a factory worker would be paid and how it would change over time as the economy grew, to making sure every single worker was hired under contracts stipulating how long his employment was to be, to laws preventing children from working in this kind of field.
These kinds of laws are, of course, just the way things are now, but in the first century, they truly were completely revolutionary. The idea that children shouldn't actually work was an idea that was regarded by many as insane at the time.
However, Aenys saw the way forward clearly, and he predicted, correctly, that these kinds of laws were necessary for society to fully take advantage of new technology, as well as protecting his smallfolk from factory workers who would doubtlessly take advantage of every loophole there were to maximize profits, no. Matter how it would affect the workers.
By making sure workers couldn't just be fired for no reason, the hours they would work, that every man who was permanently injured had to be paid a large sum in correlating to how severe their injury were, that every man was paid the same and similar laws, the king put a very hard focus on making sure the workers were protected, all to increase productivity, while making sure upjumped businessmen would never be able to enjoy a level of power that belongs to Lords.
It was, in short, the very foundation of Workers Protection Laws.
Even the regular week was affected by these laws, as Aenys decreed the 5 days work, and 2 days rest law, in which the final 2 days of the week to be resting days, whole the other 5 would be work ones.
Though these laws would not initially affect jobs outside the factories, as time went on, they would eventually be adopted for pretty much every job imaginable to some degree or another.
-
However, it wasn't merely in it's impact upon regular houses, plumbing and factories, that King's Landing stands out from the rest.
The city is filled with incredible constructs, such as the Sept of Westeros, the center of the faith of the seven, and the largest religious structure in the world.
Standing tall on Visenya's hill, this monolithic construct is by many regarded as the most beautiful building ever made, a marvel of pure white cement and marble.
From above, it's shape is an enormous septagram, with it's main structure in the middle rising above it's seven outwards points like a pyramid.
-
Along the coast on the south side of the Blackwater, stands the statues of Kings.
The first set of statues was made by Aenys Targaryen II to honor the previous Kings of Westeros. However, since then, it has become standard for each monarch to honor the previous monarch by casting them in Bronze and Durran's Stone.
Each statue is a hundred meters tall, and is the first things anyone who sails into King's landing's harbor sees.
-
On Aegon's hill, overlooking the mouth of the Blackwater, rises the red Fortress, the palace and fortress of the most powerful family on the planet, the seat of all Westerosi power.
This is where the King's council gathers every three years, where the King of Westerosi rules from the enormous monster of steel and iron that is the Iron Throne.
-
On Rhaeny's hill lies the Dragon Pit, the stable for the royal family's dragons. A massive amphitheater like structure, with an open roof, the building has only one entrance, a road leading up to it, fortified by 7 forts of surprising strength.
The pit is guarded and overseen by 777 men from the Army, and in the event that the pit ever comes under attack, they could hold and defend the first fort against attack, before falling back to the second fort should the first one fall, and so on and so on.
-
Beneath the dragon pit lies the black yard, the center for the Royal Army of Westerosi, The Black Army.
As it's name implies, it's a massive training yard made out of Durran's stone, easily capable of housing tens of thousands of soldiers. The yard also houses the Westerosi military academy, where young nobles who wishes to be a part of the army are trained military tactics.
-
In the north of the city lies the the Sports Grounds.
While these grounds are used regularly for tourneys(Westerosi most popular sport), and melees(it's seconds most popular sport) the grounds are most famous for being the site of The Westerosi Games, the famous sports event that is held two times every seasonal cycle, once during the end of spring, and once at the beginning of autumn.
The games are a celebration of national. Unity, containing all sports Westerosi partake in, where every single region of the Kingdom sends representatives who compete for everlasting fame, glory and riches.
The sporting events which are held here includes jousting, melees, wrestling, log tossing, archery competitions, hammer-throwing, spear throwing and boxing.
Out of the original sports introduced by Aenys I, all except for boxing were regional sports from somewhere in the kingdom.
Boxing was instead a valyrian martial art, which were not practiced in westeros, where the preferred martial art was wrestling, or armed battle.
The sport did however become popular following the first Westeros Games, and by the time Aenys died, it was regarded as a westeros art.
The addition of further sports to the event is one that has always been wrought with controversy.
One sport which was heavily argued should be added was the Ironborn finger dance, where two contestants threw axes at each other where each would try and catch the other. The debate lasted through the reign of Aenys, as he refused to add it to he games, despite how popular it was with the Ironborn.
Aenys II, would put permanent end to the debate, when he flat out outlawed the sport in 72.
During the integration of Dorne, there was heated debates whether Dormish sports would be added to the games. In the end, it was decided that only one Dormish sport(Although the most popular one) would be added, and a hippodrome racing ground was constructed.
-
Along the main road of King's landing, lies the great tower of time. Though Aenys laid the foundation for this massive tower, and constructed the blueprints, the technology to build it simply wasn't there during his reign, and it wasn't before year 85 that this planned constructi actually began to be built.
The tower is a massive(245 meters tall) tower that also doubles as a time machine, showcasing the time of day to all those who see it.
It is by many regarded As Aenys most impressive technological innovation, and a showcase of just of far the king was ahead of the limitations of his age.
--
Duskendale
The city of Duskendale has a long and prestigious history, and for millennia, it was the great city on the east coast of westeros.
During the reign of Aenys however, it unfortunately became stuck with the legal definition of being a town, despite having a population in the 70 000 range.
Thus as King's landing grew, the former city, now very limited in how it could build infrastructure, began to lose it's enormous population, as it's inhabitants began to trickle south to the new capital.
This course was reversed however, following the first King's council, where Aenys included it amongst the many, many towns he granted charters to.
In regards to Duskendale economy, the city is in many ways just a smaller King's landing, with similar productivity, similar demand for food from the blackwater Bay, and similar exports and imports, just on a smaller scale.
Smaller cities in the Duchy of Duskendale: Antlers.
--
Spicetown and Hull
Spicetown is the third most populated city in the crownlands, and situated on the spot where the southern dike reaches Driftmark, all trade into the Crownlands from the eastern seas had to pass through it's canal into the bay initially, at least until the canals were finished.
Even then though, the wast majority of trade still flowed through this city, simply due to convinience making it the easiest way to King's Landing.
As the name implies, the city is famous for it's spices, a feature that was a result of the Eastern Seas Trading Company having their headquarters in the city.
The trade company brought home spices, raw materials, jewels and pretty much everything else from the entire world, from the reborn Sarnor, to Mossovy, to Sothoryos, to the Lengi Empire, to the lands beyond Asshai.
All goods might be produced in King's Landing, but it had to pass through Driftmark. Needless to say, this made the City into one of the richest cities on the planet, surpassing even the free cities in wealth and trade.
On the north side of the island lies Spicetown's sister city Hull, which has the same deal of controlling one of the two original canals into the new blackwater bay.
Hill is also a rich city in it's own right, but due to several factors, such as Spicetown being more convinient to travel through, and being more developed in most areas, most trade flows through it.
In terms of produce, Spicetown and Hull are generally defined by being middlemen, but they are also the center for the crown's great shipyards, and the center for a large part of the royal navy.
The castle of High Tide also contains the royal Naval academy, where young nobles who wishes to join the navy are taught in naval tactics and the way of commanding a ship.
--
Dragonstone.
The island of Dragonstone, and the fishing town beneath the castle which would be known as Dragonstone city, produces exactly two products.
Volcanic sand, and obsidian, better known as dragonglass.
Though the prince of Dragonstone is one of the richest men in the nation due to being the overlord of Driftmark, the actual capital of the region is nowhere near as well situated as the island of house Valyrion.
However, it still produces two incredibly important materials to all of Westeros. It's sand, which is used for cement to make it strong and lasting, and Dragonglass used in the production of Durran's stone.
Needless to say, it is thus incredibly important for production in the rest of the Kingdom, even if the city itself is nothing to write home about.
Smaller cities in the Princedom of Dragonstone:
Sweetport City.
Bar Emmon City.
Crab Claw City.
Rambton.
--
Beyond these four main cities, the Crownlands are also home to a pletora of smaller cities, who's economy is generally to provide common goods and services to the farmers of the region.
Though much and more goods flows through them, and each cities has it's own factory sections, they are all completely dependant on King's landing, and are by most regarded as satellite cities of the capital.
In the various Duchies on Crackeclaw point, each Duchy got a city charter for the capital. The region, much like blackwater bay itself, is a region heavily centered around farming, the former swampland having been enthusiastically drained out by the locals(In sharp contrast to the crannogmen, who's rebellion would cause Aenys so many problems and humiliation) under Aenys leadership.
The towns Aenys gave charters to after the first council is today known as:
Crackeclaw Point.
Dyre Den.
Whispers City.
Brownhollow
Rooks Rest.
--
The Duchies of Rosby, Hayford, Stonedance and Stokeworth each were only granted one city charter each, corresponding to the seats each were named after.
Each of the cities acting as a satellite to King's landing.
---
The Duchy of Blackwater Rush was unusual terms of the new cities for the Crownlands, in that an entirely new city was to be founded to serve as a regional capital. In the Crownlands, this was something it only shared with the new capital of the Duchy of the Kingswood.
The city in question was Blackwater City, which in time would become a stop for all trade between King's Landing and Riften.
At it's founding however, it was mainly an exporter of fish from the Gods eye to the capital.
---
The Duchy of the Kingswood, also had an entirely new city founded to serve as a regional capital.
This was Bywater City, founded on the mouth of the Bywater River that flowed from the Stormlands into Blackwater Bay.
Bywater city is mainly an exporter of wood to Driftmark, as well as a massive exporter of paper, the second largest in the kingdom in fact, only after Winterfell and the Wolfswood.
This industry makes the Bywater's incredibly rich, to such a degree that after inheriting the duchy of Stonedance after the Massey extinction in 74, they celebrated their rise as Archdukes by funding a canal across the Duchy of Bywater, connecting the south part of Blackwater Bay to the Narrow sea.
Though this canal would make life far easier for Dornishmen, Stormlanders, Summer Islanders and other folks sailing in from the south, it's construction was mainly a result of the Bywater's having grown sick and tired of the chokehold Driftmark had on trade into the bay.
They thus proceeded to do the exact same thing as the Valyrions, and squeeze as much coin out of traders as possible.
--
The Crownlands were, and are to this day, dominated by the city of King's Landing.
The Grand Duchy's economy is entirely based around exporting and importing from the enormous behemoth that is King's landing.
Pretty much the only city which doesn't fit this pattern is Bywater, whose paper industry goes goes to everywhere the King's writ goes.
In terms of it's overall production, the Crownlands was not hyper specialized like the rest of Westeros. Unlike the North who had an unparalleled wool industry, or the Iron Islands and it's Iron and Steel, the Crownlands generally did everything, and it did it well, if still completely dependant on raw materials from the rest of Westeros.
Iron from the islands, wool from the North to clothe it's population, wood from the Storm lands to make it's navy, food from the reach to feed it's people during Winters, gold and silver from the Westerlands to run it's economy, and coal from every mountain range in Westeros.
In this laid it's great strength, but also it's weakness. The Crownlands produced more finished goods than any other region in the world, but it also was entirely dependent on the rest of world providing it materials, and a market to export to.
---
Extract from "The King's Councils: Aenys the first, Volume 1" by Rohanne Von Tyrosh. Historian serving Maegor the First, the breaker of chains.
A map showcasing Aenys plans regarding roads and cities, along with raised land in the Crownlands, after the first King's Council.