Alethkar

Alethkar
by User: Otto didact
Ethnicity	Alethi
Capital	Kholinar
Ruled by	Queen Jasnah Kholin
Occupied by	Singers
World	Roshar
Universe	Cosmere

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“We've got a noble heritage, Kal, darkeyes and lighteyes alike. That’s why the best warriors have always been from Alethkar. ”

—Laral

Alethkar is the largest and most prominent of the five Vorin nations on Roshar. People from Alethkar are known as Alethi, and their royal colors are blue and gold. The singers' name for Alethkar is Avendla, meaning Land of the Second Advance. Prior to the True Desolation, the Alethi were engaged in the War of Reckoning against the listeners. At the present, the vast majority of their territory is under the control of the Voidbringers.

Geography

by Isaac Stewart

Map of Alethkar. Alethi territories (barring the Shattered Plains) are marked in purple.

Borders and Territories

Alethkar lies in eastern Roshar, stretching across the entire continent, from the Steamwater Ocean in the North to the Tarat Sea in the South-West. To the East, it leans on the Unclaimed Hills, while to the South, it reaches the nationless Frostlands and the Shattered Plains, the latter of which it has recently claimed for itself. In the West, Alethkar has a long and long-disputed border with Jah Keved, which currently follows two rivers and the bend of the Sunmaker Mountains. In North-West, Alethkar borders Herdaz across a stretch of land decided through a few years of border wars.

It has an area around 7,134,000 km. In comparison to real-world nations, it is a little smaller than the total area of Australia.

Besides the mainland, the Alethi have a number of territories off the coast. On the Steamwater Ocean, Alethkar has Akak and a number of surrounding islands, giving it complete control over the Bay of Elibath. On the Tarat Sea - more specifically, a region of it called Mevan Bay - it controls a number of small islands in the delta of Deathbend River, near the city of Karanak.²

Interior

At the tail end of the Era of Solitude, Alethkar is the largest state on Roshar, covering around seven million square kilometers of land. Despite the fact that it is far more exposed to the highstorms than any country further West, large swathes of it are lush with animals and vegetation. It has numerous rivers crossing it, the two major ones being Windrunner and Deathbend. The Windrunner River runs East to West, from Unclaimed Hills to the Bay of Elibath, and has numerous tributaries across the northern half of the country. The Deathbend River likewise starts in the Unclaimed Hills, though it turns South, ultimately ending in the Mevan Bay, with one of its major tributaries being an enormous lake called the Sea of Spears. The North and South of Alethkar are divided by a long, cross-shaped masiff called the Sunmaker Mountains.

Notable cities

For a more complete list, see here.

• Kholinar - the seat of House Kholin and the national capital following Alethkar's unification. The Alethela Oathgate is located there.
• Rathalas - ruined city once known for being constructed in a massive canyon for safety. It was burned down by Dalinar Kholin following the rebellion of the local highprince, Tanalan.
• Revolar - one of the largest cities in the Vamah princedom. During the True Desolation, it's taken over by the Voidbringers and used as a major assembly point for their armies.
• Hearthstone - a large town in the Sadeas princedom, and home of Kaladin Stormblessed.
• Dumadari - a major city on the border of Alethkar and Jah Keved.

History

The Silver Kingdoms

by Isaac Stewart

Map of the Silver Kingdoms

For more information, see Alethela.

Alethkar was founded as Alethela in the Silver Kingdoms Epoch, settled by Ashynite emigrants who arrived on Roshar in Shinovar, before eventually expanding outward and settling all across Roshar. They were an extremely militaristic nation which remembered and studied the arts of war so that they would be able to teach it to new generations whenever a Desolation comes. Due to this, the Knight's Radiant primarily lived in Alethela, even if their operations were based in Urithiru. This militarism laid the foundation for modern Alethi militarism and military strength.

Its territorial during this era was larger than its current territory, including the Unclaimed Hills in the Rosharan far east.

Due to the Desolations, they were constantly returned back to primitive technological levels, often to the point to making use of stone tools. Though they advanced each time with the help of the Heralds whenever they returned, often helping them to enter into the bronze age.

At some point, it was ruled over by King Nohadon. During one Desolation during his life, they fought for over eleven years and nine-in-ten Alethelan citizens were killed. Eiliz, Tarma, and Sur, likely sub-divisions of Alethela, fell during this Desolation. They are no longer remembered in modern historical memory by 1173.

It was the place that many people wanted Urithiru to be built, although, for a reason obvious to many others at the time, it could not be.

At some point before the Hierocracy, and likely before the Recreance, the ancestors of the Oldbloods acted as the monarchs of what would become Alethkar. Little is known about them, but they are known to have been a dynasty, implying that they had ruled for a long time. It is not known how, when, or why, but they eventually lost their authority, but it would be remembered by their descendants for many generations.

At some point following Aharietiam, the kingdom splintered apart into many different smaller nations, and would not reunify for centuries following the splintering.^{[citation needed]}

The Hierocracy and Sadees the Sunmaker (??? - c.673)

The Hierocracy

For more information, see Hierocracy.

Alethela survived the Desolations, but fell under the sway of the Hierocracy some point after the Recreance. This was occurred as religion permeated every aspect of life and Ardents were allowed to own poperty and political office, and were seen as the only figures capable of interpreting scripture. This allowed them to, at some point, overthrow the power of the government and make themselves into a powerful theocracy, claiming the divine right to rule over mankind. They further controlled the populace through their access to information, both religious and secular.

While ruling, they sought to expunge historical information regarding Shadesmar, the Knights Radiant and the Recreance, from the records as best as they could. They did not just expunge information, but also tampered with text to create their own revisionist history of Roshar. This left knowledge about the past clouded by propaganda and censorship.

They did not just control Alethelan territories, but expanded to become a wider Vorin coalition, including the likes of what would come to be known as Jah Keved, Kharbranth, and Thaylenah. But as it grew larger, it become more and more difficult to keep it itself stable and consolidated, thus their power began to become unstable, laying the foundations for the War of Loss.

The War of Loss (c.673)

For more information, see War of Loss.

This lasted until the Sunmaker led the kingdom in a successful revolt against Vorin rule circa 673, known as the War of Loss. Following his successful reunification of Alethela under the name of Alethkar, he set his eyes upon the rest of Roshar.

Many cities were sacked and destroyed in this war and the chaos of its aftermath, with Kholinar being one of the few eastern cities to survive.

After overthrowing the Hierocracy, Vorinism was split into many Devotaries, leaving it heavily decentralized. Furthermore, ardents had their rights to own property and political office stripped away, they were no longer allowed to amass wealth, and they were reduced into being little more than slaves. However, they were stilled allowed to excommunicate people without political consultation. Furthermore, they had their claims of seeing visions of the future thoroughly debunked, questioning their authority as unquestionable religious figures even further.

This was all done by Sadees in the attempt to prevent another Hierocracy from rising in the future. The Hierocracy and its fall served to shape modern Vorinism.

Despite its collapse many centuries ago, various groups during the War of Reckoning and the True Desolation, such as the Sons of Honor, still seek for the return of the Hierocracy.

The Rule of the Sunmaker

His first conquest was over the northern nation of Herdaz, which was successful. At some point following the occupation of Herdaz, he marched upon Azir, then under the rule of Prime Aqasix Snoxil. He successfully conquered the capital city of Azimir, claiming to have come to "civilize" them. With a powerful army stationed in the nation, he instituted a policy of genocide against their people, it is said one of every ten Azish people died under the tyranny of Sadees.

After the Sunmaker's death, his ten sons could not agree on one of their number as his successor. With none of them willing to forego their claim to the throne, they split the kingdom into ten princedoms, which they ruled individually as Highprinces, with no unifying government. This loss of central government in the empire led to the Azish regaining their independence.

The legacy of this era would live on, with the Alethi seeing him as a great conquerer and a hero to his people, while many other people across the world saw him as a genocidal tyrant, causing other leaders to be hesitant to trust Dalinar and the Alethi. However, Alethkar's conquests forged trade routes to other regions including Azir, Herdaz, and Jah Keved; these routes persisted into the modern era, bringing great wealth to the nation.

Alethi War of Unification (1140-1163)

Several centuries later, in approximately 1140, Gavilar Kholin--inspired by the Sunmaker--sought to conquer and unite the highprinces, which he achieved by about 1145. He was then crowned king and his brother Dalinar Kholin became highprince to the Kholin Princedom. However, due to the lineage of each Princedom going back to the Sunmaker and his sons, the Highprinces were loathe to surrender their autonomous power to a supreme ruler. The integrity and unity of Gavilar's kingdom is therefore questionable, as evidenced by the ferocity with which the Highprinces resisted his military approach to unification and continued to strain against his rule. The most severe instance of this was the rebellion in Rathalas, where Gavilar eventually had to send troops led by Dalinar and Torol Sadeas in order to quench the revolt, as political means had resulted in a failure.

Brightlord Yezriar (1140)

One notable battle during the war was the battle against Brightlord Yezriar.

Conquest of Rathalas (1141)

They led a conquest against Rathalas in 1141, the seat of Brightlord Tanalan. During this fight, Dalinar slew Tanalan, but his body was taken away before his shard manifested. Thus he tracked it down and found his family, where he observed as the Brightlord's son took up the Shardblade Oathbringer in an attempt to protect the rest of his family. Ultimately, he couldn't bring himself to kill them, so he simply took the blade and left.

The conquest was ultimately successful, placing Rathalas under Kholin hegemony, although the rule was not peaceful. The ruling family was enraged by the conquest and the death of Tanalan, and was even further enraged by the loss of Oathbringer, which they demanded be returned to the rightful heir.

This battle was notable for laying the foundations of the Burning of Rathalas, and with the Kholin family obtaining the Shardblade Oathbringer.

Conquest of Kalanor's Territory (1145)

Gavilar and Kalanor were major enemies during the Unification War, with Kalanor acting as one of the major stonewalls in Gavilar's quest towards the complete unification of Alethkar. They have both been politically maneuvering around one another for two years before the start of the conquest. Gavilar believed that he needed to fall at all costs.

In 1145, the Kholin army attacked myriad small cities in Kalanor's region in an attempt to undermine his authority and pull him out of hiding, provoking him into a large scale battle in which they could secure a decisive victory. This strategy was successful, leading to the two armies into a large-scale battle on a large, open plain. This was the largest battle the Kholin army engaged in during the Unification War, and ended in a decisive Kholin victory and the death of Kalanor.

Kalanor's shards were given to Gavilar by Dalinar, and Kalanor's territory was given to Loradar Vamah, thus it was officially named the Vamah princedom. This battle marked the official end of the Alethi war of unification, however battles and skirmishes could continue for decades afterward.

Alethi-Herdazian Border Conflict (1150 - 1154)

A violent war between Alethkar and Herdaz occurred starting in 1150 and lasting up until 1154. It was intended primarily as a show of Alethi strength, and as a way to ensure security at the border and expand Alethi territory. Dalinar Kholin was a major general in the conflict.

This conflict led to the deaths of many on both sides, and defined the modern Alethi-Herdazian Border.

Conquest of Akak (1155)

At some point in 1155, Dalinar Kholin led a military conquest of the Reshi island of Akak. The conquest was ultimately successful as he destroyed the Akak Reshi, and claimed the island for Alethkar.

Alethi-Veden Border Conflict (1155 - ???)

Around 1155, a war broke out at the border between Alethkar and Jah Keved. Dalinar also acted as one of the major generals in this conflict as well.

Burning of Rathalas (1163)

In 1163, due to increasing hostilities and calls for rebellion in Rathalas, led by Brightlord Tanalan's son, also named Tanalan, Gavilar sent Dalinar back to the Rift in order to quell them. Dalinar attempted to peacefully negotiate, offering Tanalan the position of Highprince if he surrendered. His offer was refused and his contingent, including himself, were struck by a landslide orchestrated by Tanalan, killing all of his men and leaving him injured, but alive.

Enraged, Dalinar slaughtered his ambushers, and ordered his surviving men (stationed outside of the Rift) to douse the city in oil and set it alight, as to slaughter all of its people and leave the city in ruins. Panicked at what Dalinar ordered, Evi went into the city in secret and attempted to negotiate with Tanalan herself, in order to prevent the massacre from being carried out. Tanalan came to agree, and decided to send out a plea for surrender.

When messengers were sent out waving a flag of surrender, he ordered them shot dead, and demanded that the burning be continued without any deferment. The attack went through at night, and the attack left all inhabitants of the city dead with the exception of Tanalan and his family, who Dalinar killed without hesitation. However, it soon came out that Evi was in the city during the burning, and was killed in it.

The guilt of killing Evi and thousands of innocents weighed heavily on his mind, and ultimately led to his seeking of the Nightwatcher and fundamental change as a person.

Wastescum Skirmishes (???)

For more information, see Wastescum skirmishes.

A collection of skirmishes in the northern section of Alethkar which occurred some time before 1166, and some time after the crowning of Gavilar in 1145. The skirmishes were against groups of Reshi raiders who thought they could take advantage at the instability of Alethkar early after the crowning of Gavilar Kholin. It can be reasonably assumed that the attempt to repel the raiders was successful.

Soldiers for the battle were brought in from across the Sadeas Princedom, and presumably beyond, including various darkeyes in Hearthstone. The Reshi forces notably did not have any Shardblades.

This conflict did not fully dissuade the Reshi from engaging in border assaults, and they are known to have still be attempting to take Alethkar as late as Kak 1173.

Early Interactions with the Parshendi (1166 - 1167)

Gavilar met with the Parshendi in Vev 1166 and was instantly fascinated by them. The Parshendi exploration that underwent first contact was led by Eshonai, who became a very important figure in Alethi-Parshendi relations.

Assassination of Gavilar Kholin (1167)

For more information, see Assassination of Gavilar.

During the feast celebrating the signing of the Parshendi-Alethi Treaty in Ishi 1167, Gavilar revealed to Eshonai that he knew how to bring back the old gods they abandoned, and that he planned on doing so. Horrified, Eshonai reported his plans to the Five, and they agreed that he needed to be assassinated.

They sent Szeth to kill him, and Gavilar fought back in a desperate attempt to survive. Szeth ultimately won in the battle and assassinated him. However, Gavilar managed to make out some last words, telling his assassin to tell Dalinar that "he must find the most important words a man can say", and gave him a Voidlight sphere. Szeth honored these last wishes, writing his last words on a piece of nearby debris, and taking the sphere.

The War of Reckoning (1167 - 1173)

For more information, see War of Reckoning.

When Gavilar was assassinated by Szeth under the orders of the Parshendi in 1167, his son Elhokar Kholin became king and declared war on the killers. Each of the highprinces joined the Vengeance Pact and they set out into the Shattered Plains to besiege the Parshendi in the War of Reckoning.

During the war, the highprince Dalinar Kholin began to have visions of the past, and warnings of the future. These visions caused other highprinces and his soldiers to start doubting his sanity. However, over time, his talking during these visions led to the decipherment of the Dawnchant. These translations began to spread amongst scholars, leading to an immense increase in Rosharan understanding of their own history as they learned how to translate various ancient texts.

The siege took much longer than was expected, and was still active by 1173.

Despite the Highprinces all joining together in the War of Reckoning, fighting for territory between Princedoms continued without abeyance. Such as one skirmish between the Sadeas Princedom and Vamah or Aladar princedom.

Sadeas Princedom Border Conflict (c.Tanat 1172)

In c.Tanat 1172, the Sadeas Princedom engaged in a border skirmish with the Vamah or Aladar princedom. During this battle, which was led by Meridas Amaram on the Sadeas side, Helaran Davar, a Veden Shardbearer, was killed on the battlefield. While the killer was Kaladin, and thus he had legal right to the dropped Shardblade, Amaram killed his squad and marked him as a slave, taking the Shardblade for himself.

In late 1173, Reshi border encroachments grew increasingly bold, recognizing the weakening state of Alethkar due to the prolonged War of Reckoning.

The Fall of Kholinar (1173)

Late into the War of Reckoning, after Navani Kholin left Aesudan to rule for herself after deeming her fit to do so without her advisement, Kholinar was infiltrated by Ashertmarn, Sja-anat, and Yelig-nar. These Unmade caused Aesudan to fall into an abyss of decadence, throwing lavish feasts as Kholinar society collapsed around her, while Sja-anat corrupted the spren of the city; and Yelig-nar bonded with Aesudan, but she ultimately couldn't handle it and it led to her death.

Battle of the Tower (Tanatashev 1173)

For more information, see Battle of the Tower.

On Tanatashev 1173, Highprince Sadaes set up a battle on the Tower as a trap to murder Dalinar Kholin. The motivation for this was his anger at Dalinar attempting to shift the focus of the war from the harvesting of gemhearts back to the attacking of Parshendi military forces.^{[citation needed][expand]}

The battle led to the decimation of Dalinar Kholin's army, he arrived at the battle with 8000 men, but returned with only 2,653 men, coming out at 5347 fatalities. It also led to Dalinar successfully attempting to gain the title of Highprince of War in order to insure more authority to manage the war directly, in response to Sadaes' betrayal.

Battle of Narak and Failed Assassination of Elhokar Kholin (Ishishach 1173)

For more information, see Battle of Narak.

The Battle of Narak occured on Ishishach 1173, and marked the summoning of the Everstorm and the start of the True Desolation.^[expand]

The True Desolation (1173 - )

For more information, see True Desolation.

It eventually ended when the Parshendi summoned the Everstorm, beginning the True Desolation during the Battle of Narak. Afterwards, some of the Highprinces -- Dalinar, Aladar and Sebarial -- along with their remaining forces, took refuge in Urithiru, while others remained on the Shattered Plains, slowly taking over the abandoned warcamps of those who left and consolidating their power base there.

Shortly following the start of the True Desolation, Torol Sadeas was murdered by Adolin Kholin. Following his murder, rulership of the Sadeas Princedom was passed to Meridas Amaram by Ialai Sadeas, as the heir to the position was too young to fill it.

Siege of Kholinar (1173)

For more information, see Siege of Kholinar.

Meanwhile, the Alethkar homelands were besieged by the newly awakened singer forces led by the Fused, culminating in the siege and eventual fall of Kholinar.

After Elhokar was killed by Moash during the siege, and Adolin Kholin refused to take the throne after the Battle of Thaylen Field, Jasnah Kholin became Queen. The current heir to the throne is Elhokar's son, Gavinor -- however, he's still a child and a regency in his name was deemed too unstable and dangerous during the time of the True Desolation.

Fused Occupation (1174 - )

By the time of the Battle of Thaylen Field, most of Alethkar was under Fused hegemony.

A year after the Battle of Thaylen Field, Dalinar had managed to retake the southwestern corner of Alethkar which touches the Tarat Sea. Dalinar considered launching a major offensive into Alethkar but was convinced by the Mink that it would be wiser to attempt to retake Emul.

Evacuation of Hearthstone (1175)

In Chach 1175, an attempt was mounted by the coalition to evacuate the city of Hearthstone. After a battle with Fused occupiers, most notably Lezian, all but fifteen occupants of Hearthstone were successfully evacuated via the Fourth Bridge, and brought to Urithiru. During the battle, Brightlord Roshone was killed by Vyre, leading to the position of citylady eventually being passed on to Laral.

Culture

by Grant M. Hansen

Jasnah Kholin, the current Queen of Alethkar

“Conquering folks is basically their primary cultural heritage. ”

—Lopen

People

The Alethi people are generally tan -- darker-skinned than the Veden and Shin, but not as dark as the Makabaki -- with dark, typically black hair. They are typically extremely tall, standing on average at least a foot taller than people living further West. Like most Rosharan people, they possess Epicanthic folds and see those without folds as wide-eyed and childish.^{[citation needed]} They are a very racially-mixed people due to their history of conquest.

In the late Era of Solitude, the Alethi tan and black hair are considered the general standard of beauty. Multicolored hair is also present within Alethkar and is an indication of mixed heritage. Some see this as a sign of an "impure" bloodline, while others use it as evidence of Alethkar's superiority, hard won through conquest. Among the Heralds, Jezrien and Vedeledev look Alethi.

Like all Vorin nations, Alethi practice a division between the sexes. Women have safehands, covered either by a buttoned-up sleeve, typical of lighteyes, or a glove, typical of darkeyes. They are discouraged from picking up weapons and fighting. By contrast, men are forbidden to read. As such, oftentimes a man and a woman will work together as a team in an important position that overlaps both their areas of responsibility, such as the military, with the woman acting as a scribe while the man issues commands. The militaristic nature of the Alethi further influences this divide, leading to most of Alethi rulers being kings, and women rarely, if ever, becoming highprincesses.

Alethi discourage emotional openness and any show of what could be perceived as a weakness; an engaged couple keeping close in public is considered, while not obscene, at least extremely improper. Men are encouraged to be combative and forceful, and women to be witty and willing to engage in barbed banter. Unwillingness or inability to act in this way can often lead to a person being labeled as inept or stupid.

Music

Their music makes a heavy use of string instruments, and tend to dislike percussion. Battle hymns makes use of brass-like instruments.

They practice a sort of throat-singing.

Caste system

The Alethi culture is divided into two major castes, the lighteyes and darkeyes, separated by, as can be surmised, the color of a person's eyes. The lighteyes form the upper caste, with broader rights and privileges, while the darkeyes are the lower, working caste. Furthermore, each caste is divided into ten ranks, with the lighteyed ranks being called dahns, while the darkeyed ones are the nahns. Some nahns and dahns are hereditary, or stable, while others can only be held by attaining a particular position. The Alethi monarch, for example, is the only person in the country holding the first dahn.

There are many ways for a person to improve their rankings, such as through marriage or military service. A soldier who becomes an officer will almost automatically be raised to a proper dahn or nahn, along with their children. Holding land automatically entitles a lighteyes to at least the sixth dahn, regardless of their previous status, and becoming a Shardbearer entitles at least the fourth dahn.

Alethkar is generally a feudal nation. The Alethi monarch is served by ten highprinces, which have their own lower-dahn subjects, down to the citylords, who rule over individual settlements. Shardbearers stand slightly aside from this system, although many of them are either highprinces themselves, or in direct service to one highprince or another.

by ThomasW

A darkeyes facing a Shardbearer

Militarism

The Alethi culture is highly militaristic, stemming from their origins as Alethela. A soldier is considered the highest religious Calling, with the fight to reclaim the Tranquiline Halls being believed to be the greatest afterlife one could hope for. The country is almost perpetually at war, if not between the highprinces, then with some external power. Children as young as twelve can and sometimes are recruited by raving armies to feed this endless war machine.

Military service is one of the more reliable paths of social advancement in Alethkar. A soldier can expect to raise in dahn or nahn to match his military rank. Moreover, many darkeyed soldiers go to war hoping to defeat a Shardbearer and gain ownership of a Shardblade, due to a widespread belief -- later proven correct -- that bonding a Blade would change their eyes to light-colored.

Alongside this culture, the Alethi highly honor the Thrill, a form of battle-lust that can sometimes encompass them when in combat. The Thrill is often considered a private thing, not to be shared with others; however, it's also highly desirable, with men often awaiting its arrival when in combat. For many, it's downright addictive.

Religion

“The Alethi preferred to let the ardents deal with the Almighty, like he was some annoying parlor guest who could be safely distracted by servants offering a particularly tasty tea. ”

—Shallan

For more information, see Vorinism.

Alethkar is one of the five great Vorin Kingdoms, with vast majority of their populace worshipping the Almighty. The worship is mostly carried out by the priests, called the ardents. The ardents, while influential, are not free -- rather, they are slaves to various lighteyes. Unlike most other professions, ardentia is open to both men and women, and to people from all social castes. Ardents are considered genderless from a social standpoint, and as such, many of the Vorin taboos regarding gender and gender roles do not apply to them. They are also the only people permitted to use Soulcasters.

Unlike other varieties of Vorinism, the Alethi are not required to be personally devout, or to perform religious ceremonies. While each citizen is supposed to pick their Calling and Glory -- their goal in life, and the aspect of the Almighty they wish to emulate -- the actual religious part of the religion is handled by the ardents, who perform the requisite rituals and prayers for their masters, so as to reassure them of their righteousness. The Alethi themselves rarely interact with the Almighty, save for an occassional glyphward or prayer.

Language and Writing

For more information, see Women's script.

The Alethi language is part of the Vorin language family, which includes others such as Veden (spoken in Jah Keved) and Herdazian. It's particularly close to the former, making it easy to learn. It is also descended from Alethelan. Known words from the language include dahn and nahn for the ranking system, numerous glyph pronunciations, as well as two terms for family members -- Mathana, a formal term for older sister, and Mashala, for aunt.

The Alethi language can be written using two different systems. The Women's script, used broadly across eastern Roshar, is an alphabet, with twenty five letters, and at least two symbols -- a mark of maximum character height, at the start of a passage, and a small diactric denoting that a particular letter should be read as an "H". This being said, the women's script is restricted for use by the female part of the populace, in accordance with Vorin cultural rules. Men are permitted to learn glyphs, a separate system where each symbol or pair of symbols represents a separate idea or concept.

Politics

“Dalinar had been around Alethi politicians so much that he found honesty an obscure thing, like a language he no longer spoke. ”

—Dalinar

Monarch

The Alethi have a long history of monarchies rising and falling, with few families able to retain authority for any significant period of time.

The first figure to unify Alethkar after the fall of Alethela was Sadees the Sunmaker in c.673, although his rule quickly collapsed after his death as Alethi territory was split between his ten sons, leading to another interregnum due to a proper heir not being selected before his passing.^{[citation needed]} This interregnum lasted until Gavilar Kholin led a war of unification, once again bringing Alethkar under a single ruler by the year 1145.^{[citation needed]}

While the king has power over the Highprinces, highprinces still retain a high degree of autonomy within their own princedoms, to the extent that they essentially function as their own sovereign nations. Therefore, the king is not an autocratic source of authority.

The monarchy's power over the highprinces, however limited, is primarily maintained through military strength and access to soulcasters, which he taxes highprinces for their rights to use. In part due to the limited power of the king, many people feel more connection and loyalty to their highprince or local lord than they do to the king themself, or to the institution of the monarchy.

The king has the right to promote individuals into the position of a classical Highprince if they deem it necessary, therefore consolidating inter-princedom national power in certain aspects of government into individuals. This right is controversial, and only began to be put into use late into the War of Reckoning in 1173, when King Elhokar granted highprince Torol Sadeas the position of Highprince of Information.

Jasnah Kholin, the current queen, expresses an interest in disbanding the monarchy after the True Desolation is over.

Rules of Succession

Traditionally, the crown passes down to the eldest male heir of the ruling king upon his death.^{[citation needed]} However, this traditional line of succession can be overruled if the heir is deemed too young to serve as king in the contemporary political climate of the nation. In such a case, the crown can pass to the sibling of the deceased king, to act as monarch until the heir comes of age or the political situation calms enough for them to be able to take the throne.

A king can choose to grant the throne to another individual outside of their line of succession, as Elhokar briefly did to Lopen, making him the legitimate king for a short period of time. Though the nation refused to recognize the legitimacy of his claim or add him to the official list of kings.

List of Known Alethi Monarchs

Alethi Monarchs
Name	Length of Rule
Nohadon	Pre-Aharietiam
Interregnum	???
Oldblood Dynasty	Pre-Recreance
Interregnum	???
Heirocracy	circa 673
Sadees the Sunmaker	???
Interregnum	??? - 1145
Kholin Dynasty
Gavilar Kholin	1145 - Ishi 1167
Elhokar Kholin	Ishi 1167 - Nanachach 1174
Jasnah Kholin	Nanat 1174 - Incumbent

Princedoms

by Isaac Stewart

Alethi Princedoms

Though it is ruled by a single king, Alethkar is divided into ten princedoms, each ruled by a lighteyed highprince. Each princedom is named after the family controlling it, and each has its own military, independent of one another - a remnant of the times prior to the reunification. While the highprinces do work together, the king has limited control over them, maintained less through tradition, and more through sheer military power and access to amenities like Soulcasters, which are heavily taxed. In addition, the ruling House Kholin controls the largest territory, as apart from their own princedom, they also hold an underpopulated stretch of land called the Eastern Crownlands.

Borders between Princedoms were largely, but not exclusively, defined by natural borders created by the Windrunner and Deathbend rivers, the Sunmaker mountains, and the Sea of Spears.

It is unclear what princedom Akak is a part of.

The Classical Highprince System

During the rule of Sadees, the ten Highprinces had specialized roles in government, controlling certain aspects of the entire kingdom. This system fell into disuse after the death of Sadees, as Alethkar broke into ten self-governing regions.

This system has seen a resurgence as of late 1173, starting with the election of Torol Sadeas as the Highprince of Information.

Known Highprince Positions

• Highprince of Commerce: This position held authority over all merchants and his troops would patrol the roads across all ten princedoms.
• Highprince of Information: This position had authority over criminal investigations and policing across the entire kingdom and appointed judges and magistrates. Of particular interest to the Highprince of Information were criminal investigations where the Crown's interest was at stake.
• Highprince of War: This position had control over the kingdom's combined military forces, likely only during a time of war.
• Highprince of Works: This position had management of the kingdoms infrastructure, such as sewage disposal, civil services, and potentially Stormlight management; with the increase in uses for Stormlight since the Battle of Narak.

Inter-Princedom Conflict

Despite unification under one banner, it is common for princedoms to engage in violent border conflicts with one another. This continued even long into the War of Reckoning.^[expand]

Administrative Districts

Each Princedom is further divided into named regions, such as Akanny in the Sadeas Princedom. These regions are controlled by Brightlords that hold extensive land and property within a princedom.^{[citation needed]}

Another level down from regions are individual settlements, which are ruled by citylords. When a citylord dies without a proper heir, a new citylord is sent to replace them. These citylords own the land and territory of a settlement, and rent it out to inhabitants.^{[citation needed]} These inhabitants pay an income tax, which varies depending upon the size and purpose of the settlement in question, with smaller towns like Hearthstone primarily paying in produce such as lavis grain, while larger cities levy more financial taxes.

Citylords have legal authority over those on their manor, and are allowed to impress them into passing armies at will, so long as they are over the age of fifteen. They are also able to forbid an individual from willingly joining into service.

Known Princedoms

The territories of Alethkar and their major settlements are:

Kholin princedom

In the east of Alethkar

• Kholinar (capital city)
• Shulin

Sadeas princedom

In the north-west of Alethkar

• Hearthstone
• Hobbleken
• Hornhollow
• Mourn's Vault
• Tomat
• Shorsebroon
• Stringken

Aladar princedom

In the north of Alethkar

• Dalilak

Roion princedom

In the north-east of Alethkar

• Relanas
• Varikev

Vamah princedom

In the north-west of Alethkar

• Farcoast
• Revolar

Ruthar princedom

In the west of Alethkar

• Kelathar
• Danidan

Thanadal princedom

In the center of Alethkar

• Davinar
• Savalashi

Hatham princedom

In the west of Alethkar

• Darkhill
• Shamel

Bethab princedom

In the south-west of Alethkar

• Dumadari
• Karanak

Sebarial princedom

In the south of Alethkar

• Rashir

Eastern Crownlands

In southeast Alethkar, ultimately part of the Kholin Princedom

• Rathalas
• Vedelliar

It is unclear princedom the settlements of Talinar or Inkwell are under the jurisdiction of.

Military

Chain of command
Unit	Soldiers	Typical Commander
subsquad	6–8	sergeant
squad	~25	squadleader
platoon	~50	captain/captainlord
company	~100	companylord
battalion	~1000	battalionlord
division	~2000	general
army	—	highprince
In companies made solely of lighteyes, the rank "lieutenant" is used as the equivalent of sergeant.

The modern Alethi army is one of the strongest military forces on Roshar with well over 100,000 troops and over thirty Shardbearers. The army employs most of its troops as spearmen and archers, as well as a very small amount of cavalry due to the rarity of horses on Roshar; only the officers wield swords because, according to Vorin traditions, the sword is regarded as a lighteyed's weapon. Soldiers are usually trained in one or two additional Skills, i.e. horse grooms. Under most circumstances, military service is voluntary, though the leaders of the army has the right of conscription for darkeyes that do not provide an essential function to a community (e.g. a town's only surgeon) when they feel there is need for additional troops. It is extremely rare for a darkeyed soldier to rise higher than the rank of squadleader. Lighteyed officers that have the command of a branch of the army are usually referred by their duties (e.g. cavalrylord, infantrylord).

Despite Alethkar being a monarchy, the king has very little actual say in how the military is run and does not directly command any force other than the 250-strong King's Guard. The troops are sworn to and led by their individual highprinces. In that sense, Alethkar army is not truly a unified army, but a loose coalition between ten smaller armies. Indeed, even in wartime, there is constant in-fighting between the highprinces' armies, and cooperation between the highprinces themselves is seen as a weakness; this is bolstered by the tenets of Vorinism that say the purpose of life is to prepare in order to join the Heralds in the fight to regain the Tranquiline Halls and Alethi belief that everything is a competition in life.

Because of the immense size of the army and the difficulty of travel, compounded by the poor supply line infrastructure of Alethkar, Soulcasting plays a vital role in supplying the army with wood, metal, food, and many other necessities, as well as being used in building fortifications. The king controls most of the Soulcaster ardents; in fact, manipulating the highprinces with his Soulcasters is one of the ways that the king maintains a control over them.

Recently, in an effort to truly unify the kingdom, Dalinar Kholin has been appointed as the Highprince of War by the king. This title was used in Alethkar before being fragmented into ten princedoms when each highprince was given the ultimate authority over one aspect of the governing of the kingdom. On paper, this gives Kholin authority over all war-related activities.

According to official records, Alethkar possesses more Shardblades than any other nation on Roshar, with only Jah Keved coming anywhere close. Furthermore, a notably large amount of their army is made up of Knights Radiant, primarily those of the Order of Windrunners and the Order of Edgedancers, with a smaller but still notable number in the Order of Lightweavers. They are used effectively as a means of transport and combat against the Fused and Regals.^{[citation needed]}

The Alethi military is currently one of the major military forces fighting against the Fused Invasion, most notably during the Battle of Thaylen Field and the Emuli Campaign.^{[citation needed]} Although many more battles and skirmishes were fought between the two armies between 1173 and 1175.^{[citation needed]} They also led the Evacuation of Hearthstone in early 1175. They are currently centered around and stationed in Urithiru.^{[citation needed]}

by Ben McSweeney

Bridge Crews

For more information, see Bridge crew.

Bridge Crews were a very important part of the army during the War of Reckoning, serving as an expendable workforce that carried bridges to help soldiers cross over the large chasms between plateaus. They also acted as canon fodder for Parshendi bowmen, as to direct attention away from more trained and valued soldiers. Due to this, bridgemen had a very high mortality rate, with around half a crew dying per run.^{[citation needed]}

Each Bridge Crew was made up of 35-40 men, which were lead by a Bridge sergeant, who reports directly to the Brightlord in charge of the crews. Each crew has an internal leader elected amongst themselves known as the bridge leader, who has no official authority outside of that which his crewmembers choose to give him.^{[citation needed]}

The bridges themselves were typically eight feet wide and two feet thick, with supports on both sides extending its width to sixteen feet. They were also thirty feet long, and allowed one to set up 8 men per column and 5 men per row.

While not on bridge runs, they are typically used as cheap manpower to preform undesirable duties at war camps, such as chasm or latrine duty.

Not all highprinces made use of bridge crews, with Dalinar notably refusing to make direct use of them. He instead makes use of bridges on wheels, pulled by chulls.^{[citation needed]}

Eventually, Sadeas' Bridge Crews were bought off of him by Dalinar, who granted them freedom from slavery and promoted them to a battalion.^{[citation needed]}

Notable Alethi

For a full list, see :Category: Alethi.

• House Kholin
• Meridas Amaram
• Hesina
• Turinad Sebarial
• Kaladin
• Laral
• Moash
• Roshone
• Torol Sadeas
• Sunmaker
• Teft
• Wistiow

Trivia

• Alethi are modeled on half Asian and half Hawaiian people, and according to Brandon, picturing Alethi as looking east-Indian works very well.

Notes

This article is still missing information. Please help The Coppermind by expanding it.