Nevarra City

Nevarra City is the capital city of Nevarra. It is situated on the banks of the Minanter River in central Nevarra.

History
Nevarra City is the original city-state from which the nation of Nevarra later expanded. It was originally part of the Tevinter Imperium before joining Andraste during her Exalted March. The lord of Nevarra at the time was Hector, one of Andraste's most loyal followers. It was from his stronghold in the city that Andraste was captured by the Imperium after Maferath's betrayal in -170 Ancient. After her death, Maferath divided the lands of the Alamarri between his three sons: Verald, the youngest, was given Nevarra City and the lands surrounding it. Verald's attempts to leverage his father's name to secure his claim to the throne resulted in his exile and the slaughter of his entire court when Maferath's betrayal was revealed in -160.

By the Glory Age, the rule of the Nevarran city-state had changed hands several times. Ineffectual leadership and infighting had resulted in a poor populace lagging far behind the other Free Marcher city-states. King Ionas was as weak as his predecessors, and in failing health. Many believed Nevarra would be better off with Orlais or one of the larger city-states like Starkhaven when in 2:46, Caspar Pentaghast of Hunter Fell deposed the king and seized the throne for himself, turning Nevarra's fortunes around. Except for the Orlesian occupation of Nevarra City between 3:25 and 3:65 Towers in the aftermath of the Third Blight, the First Pentaghast Dynasty remained on the Nevarran throne for almost three hundred years, until the Exalted Age.

In the aftermath of the Fourth Blight, Nevarran general Tylus Van Markham, who claimed descent from Emperor Kordillus Drakon, took the opportunity to stir the people against the Pentaghasts and successfully claimed the throne for himself in 5:37 Exalted. By 5:38, he had won several major border wars against the Orlesians, expanding Nevarra into a full-fledged nation. The First Van Markham dynasty produced three more kings, who continued Nevarra's aggressive expansion.

After Nevarra became a proper nation, Nevarra City became its capital. In the last century, the city of Cumberland has seen rapid growth, becoming one of the largest cities in Thedas and supplanting Nevarra City as the major trade center of Nevarra.

Culture
Nevarra is renowned for its artistry and culture, and Nevarra City is particularly rich in both.

There are hundreds of statues of heroes, powerful generals and dragon hunters strewn across the city. Statues of the kings and queens of Nevarra stand along the boulevard stretching up to the Castrum Draconis amid columns of polished black marble. During the ancestral pageants traditionally held in autumn, the great families of the city drape the statues of their ancestors in their colors and have their most famous exploits performed by troupes of actors hired for the occasion. The Pentaghasts and Van Markhams compete to put on the better show as well.

Other seasons are rife with entertainment as well: hunt balls are held in winter, a reminder of Nevarra's proud dragon hunting past; spring and the holiday of Wintersend lead to great tournaments, mostly focused on archery and test of arms rather than jousting; in summer the Duchess Ravria Anaxas was known to invite scholars from Cumberland to test their minds in contests of philosophy and rhetoric in the so-called "Duchess's Games" at the Anaxas Estate.

The Minanter river remains a source of entertainment throughout the year: in high summer, street markets sprout up along its banks as well as on trade boats on its surface, and the lower classes risk the danger posed by the boats to swim and cool off in the waters; in winter, the frozen stretches of the river attract ice skaters.

Places

 * The Grand Necropolis - almost a city unto itself, the Grand Necropolis lies just outside of Nevarra City. The mummified corpses of the dead are placed in massive, elaborate tombs.
 * Castrum Draconis
 * Anaxas Estate