Timeline of Old Ebonheart

[Rats]

This is what I've scraped together from the plethora of sources concerning OE. I've tried to keep the timeline brief, adding only the things I think are somewhat important or at least interesting when designing the TR version of OE. My primary sources are the Lore pages of the UESP, the ingame books (mainly "Real Barenziah" and "King Edward"), the TIL as well as a couple of posts made in these forums (Sload's Notes on government in Morrowind and TDF's History of Old Ebonheart book concept). There are things which I've just made up myself. They are colored green for convenience's sake.

a little disclaimer: this is here for reference, i'm not trying to say this is all definitive and super relevant stuff that we need to take into consideration every step of the way; i just happen to like timelines and find them helpful

A Timeline of Old Ebonheart

pre-Septim era

1E ?? - Sometime after Veloth leads the Chimer people to Morrowind, the city-state of Ebonheart is founded. It is the first city-state to emerge.

ca. 1E 240 - The Nords of Skyrim, led by Vrage the Gifted, conquer much -- if not all -- of present-day Morrowind. The Chimer are driven out of Ebonheart and Nords seize it for themselves.

ca. 1E 416 - After some 150 years of guerilla warfare the Elves lead by Kronin Raathim retake the city. The Raathim establish their dynasty in Ebonheart, their wealth coming from ebony mining. Kronin Raathim is crowned the king. He has at least two sons: Cruethys and Moraelyn, as well as a stepson, Ephen (or S'ephen). Meanwhile, the Chimer and Dwemer forces led by Nerevar Indoril and Dumac defeat the Nords at Red Mountain.

1E ?? - After his father's death Ebonheart is ruled by Cruethys Raathim.

sometime after 1E 480 - The council chamber in Ebonheart collapses killing Cruethys Raathim, his half-brother Ephen and their mother. Moraelyn Raathim is crowned the new king. Later, in the fictional 'King Edward' series of books he's portrayed ridicilously awesome. In his half-brother's honor Moraelyn founds a cult to venerate the late Ephen as a god (!), entrusting the cult with the Staff of Chaos. Some weird Cult of S'ephen still exists in OE

ca. 1E 700 - Moraelyn's daughter Lian is now the queen of Ebonheart. She has twin sons and the kingdom is split into two: Ebonheart and [Old] Mournhold. Meanwhile the War of the First Council is waged, and the Tribunal emerge as god-kings of Morrowind. The Great House driven Grand Council system is now introduced, and the 'kingship' of Morrowind is no more. The dethroned but still wealthy Raathim join the ranks of House Hlaalu.

1E 2920 - Reman III tries to conquer Morrowind, but is assassinated after breaking a truce by seizing fortress known to the Imperials as the Black Gate (supposedly close to Ebonheart). After the destruction of Mournhold by Mehrunes Dagon the rival city is rebuilt and its new glory outshines that of Ebonheart. Almalexia resides in Mournhold -- now considered the capital of Morrowind --, whereas Sotha Sil is rumored to linger underneath Ebonheart at least until the last year of the First Era.

Septim Empire era

2E 893 â€â€￾ Barenziah Raathim Hlaalu is born to the Lord and Lady of Mournhold.

2E 896 - The Armistice is signed and Morrowind becames a province of the Empire of Tiber Septim. By the Emperor's degree the Staff of Chaos is removed from Ebonheart and is taken to Mournhold for better protection. The higher nobility of Ebonheart react drastically to everything that has happened by putting the city to the torch, burning alive with their manors rather than yielding to the Empire's will. By the time the Imperial delegates arrive the city is ablaze and doomed. An Imperial city is built atop the ruins and some rag-tail end of the Raathim clan is made the Governor (Symmachus uses the figure of speech 'sits a king in Castle Ebonheart'; figured Governor would be fitting). [digressing sidenote: Some of the surviving lesser Dunmer cross the mouth of Thirr and found what will be known as the shack village of Gol Mok.]

3E 42 - The foundation stone of the Leyawiin chapel is underneath Ebonheart Castle along with the Hammer of Saint Kaladas. (this is from the existing OE Sewers interior)

3E 120-127 - During the War of the Red Diamond, Ebonheart fights a proxy war against their rival Mournhold by siding with the Wolf Queen Potema. This shows that the clan of Raathim has divided into the royal Mournhold branch and the 'lesser' Ebonheart branch.

3E 141 - Katariah Raathim of Ebonheart marries Pelagius Septim III, also known as Pelagius the Mad. A pretty good political move for a city that previously opposed the said Septims.

3E 153-200 - After Pelagius the Mad's death Katariah is crowned the Empress of Tamriel. The days of her rule fare well for her city of birth. She spends most of her reign traveling and dies in a minor skirmish in Black Marsh. She is buried in the Raathim ancestral tomb in Ebonheart.

3E 202 - The first and last Septim-Raathim Emperor Cassynder dies after only two years on the throne, and with that Ebonheart loses its status as the 'Second Imperial City'.

3E 376 - The thief Nightingale steals the Staff of Chaos from underneath Mournhold. Symmachus suspects that the last waning Raathims of Ebonheart are to blame, since the statue of heathen god Ephen surrendered the staff to the thief. Mayhaps, Drayven Indoril was indeed of the family.

3E 389-399 - The Imperial Simulacrum. Ebonheart wages a civil war against Firewatch, and the Imperial Legions led from there don't respond to the Arnesian War. Casik Farragian, the then-Lord Marshal, claims that -- much like the Emperor--, he himself was held captive in another dimension and replaced with a doppelganger and can't be held responsible for any of his actions. The Commission for Post-Simulacrum Restoration find the explanation plausible but sentence him to exile-as-an-outlaw just in case. The 'war tax' is established, forcing the provinces who engaged in unlawful activities such as border wars during the Simulacrum to pay compensations to the Empire they have in such a way defied. All of the gold paid by the province of Morrowind is being stored in Ebonheart, quickly restoring it to its former glory.

ca 3E 414 - Ebonheart-on-Vvardenfell is constructed, and Ebonheart-on-Mainland receives the 'Old' prefix.

Recent events

3E 427 - From gro-Dhal's excellent 'Concept' post: The situation in the city reflects the circumstances of the Empire in Morowind as a whole, which are that of a grand project in decline. If the Legion defending the city is recalled to Cyrodiil then the remaining population will find themselves subjects of the Indoril- not an appealing prospect. Even if the worst doesn’t come to pass and the Empire remains in control of the province there are increasing calls for the provincial administration to be moved to Narsis. The Hlaalu are offering to share the extensive upkeep costs of the local imperial bureaucracy, but if the administration leaves then OE just becomes one trade port among many, losing the privileged position it has depended upon.

So Old Ebonheart is doomed. The artificially prosperous, imperialised way of life enjoyed by its inhabitants is unlikely to last much longer. The ways different local individuals and factions react to this doom (by adapting, resisting, or ignoring it) should be one of the key dynamics of the city.

[Yeti]

Unless there is solid lore backing its foundation in the early First Era, Ebonheart should not be that old. Back then the Dunmer mostly lived in strongholds and nomadic camps. At least that's my interpretation of Morrowind's early history. There also should be no credible references to the Dunmer having kings before the coming of the Empire.

On a related note, any lore coming primarily from Arena and Daggerfall should be adapted with care and a selective eye.

[Rats]

I agree with everything you've wrote, Yeti. Of course, Ebonheart of the early First Era was most likely just a bunch of tents and huts, and of course the ruling clanmer of yore were not called 'Kings' but something else. The word 'king' is used in the King Edward and the Real Barenziah, both of which are clearly written for a western audience.

I don't deny my fascination with even the most obsolete cases of Arena (or Daggerfall) lore, but I do try to take it with a large tablespoon of salt.

The purpose of this timeline was to collect all the lore there is for OE from different sources (however outdated that source may be) and put them in an easy to read / easy to follow format, and hope that some of it might prove useful or at least inspiring.