page_0: "\"Brief History of the Kingdom
of Norda and the City of Bohn\"

Over 1200 years ago, five tribal
seafaring chiefdoms (the Dana,
Sveri, Nor, Reyka and Suo) held
sway over these northern lands.

Sharing a common heritage and 
mythology that glorified heroic
death in battle, the tribes were
constantly fighting one another;
that is, whenever they weren't
raiding and pillaging their
terrified neighbors.

Devotion to this combative ethos
would have eventually lead to 
the extinction of the tribes, 
since birth rates no longer kept
pace with the numbers of the
fallen, if not for the foresight
of one man, Kalmar the Great.

Of unknown origins, Kalmar 
was able to convince the 
rivaling tribal chiefs to end 
their conflicts and unite under 
one banner. The tribes responded 
by electing the charismatic 
Kalmar as king of the newly 
formed Kingdom of Norda."

page_1: "
Kalmar founded and established
the City of Bohn, as the capital
of Norda during the first year
of his reign. Consequently,
history in these lands has been
recorded in terms of before and
after the founding of Bohn (BFB
and AFB, respectively).

Norda prospered and grew to it's
greatest extent during Kalmar's
47 year reign ... mostly through 
diplomatic means ... helped no
doubt by the fact that Kalmar
never lost a battle and that his
fleet ruled the seas.

Under Kalmar, the tribes keep
the best of their mythical past
while channeling their erstwhile
warrior energies into absorbing
the culture and mastering the
technologies offered by the more
advanced civilizations of the
day. Bohn, itself, soon became an
international center for trade,
commerce, architecture, the arts,
philosophy and religious freedom.

When Kalmar died, the kingdom
was initially divided between his
two sons, Knut and Sweyn, per
ancient custom."

page_2:
"However, when Sweyn also died
soon afterwards in a mysterious
hunting accident, the barons
chose to reunite the kingdom
under Knut instead of putting
Sweyn's son on the vacated
throne.

Subsequent monarchs were
elected from the most suitable
male and female candidates
among the direct descendents of
Knut (House of Shen) and Sweyn
(House of Lar) and the crown
would often pass between royal
houses instead of direct lines. 

Thus the best were succeeded by
the best, and the people of Norda
enjoyed the rule of the Kalmar
dynasty for over 1100 years.

Unfortunately, two lengthy and
exhaustive wars, first against 
the invading Eastern Hordes and
then the southern Hammerite
Imperium, in the early part of
the 12th Century AFB had so
diminished the kingdom and its
Royal Houses that when Olav II
died without issue in 1125 AFB,
there was no one left of Kalmar's
direct line to take the throne."

page_3: 
"Since the Kingdom was still
entrenched in its war against
the Imperium, Norda's barons 
pleaded with General de Moren,
Bohn's war hero, to take the
crown. But, he refused and only
accepted the role of Regent of
the Realm, in the interim
while search continued for the
the rightful heir to the throne.

The mighty Imperium was on the
defensive when de Moren died
7 years later and Turtu III (a
descendent of Kalmar's brother,
Magnus) was crowned king.

Turtu III continued pushing the
Imperium back, and during his
40 year reign, Norda recouped
much of the territory previously
lost to both the Eastern Hordes
and the Hammerite Imperium.

Under Turtu III, Norda regained
its prominence as a world power
and the City of Bohn was once
again recognized as a world
class cultural center.

The Turkulian Dynasty, founded
by Turtu III,  is personified
today in Her Majesty, Karelia V."