Dwarven royalty

“Let the Memories find you worthy, first amidst the lords of the houses, the king of Orzammar.” ―Shaper Czibor

Czibor crown — The Shaper of Memories coronating Orzammar's new king

The dwarven empire once spanned the length and breadth of Thedas, encompassing a vast number of thaigs which were connected via the Deep Roads, until one by one fell to the incursion of the darkspawn. The history of the dwarves is a long one and encompasses the rule of numerous kings and queens.

Role

To be a king or queen in dwarven society is to have both immense power as well as an immense system of checks and balances in the form of the Assembly and, to a lesser extent, the Shaperate. Subsequently the form of government of the dwarves can be described as constitutional monarchy.

Throne of Orzammar — The throne in Orzammar Royal Palace

The Assembly holds the power to advise the king, approve or veto acts of the king, propose policy, declare Paragons, and elect new kings. The Shaperate works in conjunction with the ruler and the Assembly by overseeing matters of civil dispute.^[1] It is often consulted as a neutral third party in disputes both legal and social and sets legal precedent and determines the authenticity of documents and the binding nature of contracts.^[2]

Royal throne in the Assembly — The throne in Orzammar Assembly

The king or queen hold their position for life, as do the deshyrs, unless they are removed or replaced.^[3] As the ruler, the king or queen is the theoretical war-leader of Orzammar but in practice this means that the ruler merely commands the warrior houses sworn to their own house and their allies.^[3] The king also has authority over the Legion of the Dead.

Kings and queens of the dwarven empire

The royalty of the empire was situated in Kal-Sharok before the capital was moved to Orzammar during the reign of King Orseck Garal.

Bloadlikk^[4]: According to the legend he is the youngest and wisest of the Seven Brothers who founded the Dwarven Empire. Furthermore, he became the first king of the empire was the founder of the noble caste.

Orseck Garal: The empire was jointly ruled by Orseck Garal and Endrin Stonehammer. Endrin entered into a covenant with the Archon Darinius of the Tevinter Imperium to forge a trade alliance with the human empire.^[5] In -1170 Ancient^[6] the seat of power was moved from Kal-Sharok to the southern kingdom of Orzammar, the ancestral home of the Smith and Mining Castes, and there Garal ruled until his death.

Endrin Stonehammer^[7]: The second king of Orzammar after Garal and the most famous of the dwarven Paragons.^[8] He is called as First Paragon,^[9] presumably because he is considered "first among Paragons."^[10] He is credited with having built Stonehammer Hall. He has also forged a strong alliance with the Imperium^[11] as well as attended the first match of the Grand Proving arena in Tevinter.^[12]

Aeducan^[13]: A Warrior caste dwarf who saved Orzammar from annihilation during the First Blight by collapsing strategic passages in the Deep Roads to save the city from attack. For this he was made a Paragon and a king. He is also the founder of House Aeducan. His queen was named Anika.

Valtor^[14]: He ascended to the throne in -260 Ancient.^[15] Valtor preserved some of Caridin's writings on creating golems after the Paragon destroyed most of them. Valtor had Caridin himself put on the Anvil of the Void when his desire to create golems was opposed by the Paragon.^[16] Caridin vanished in -248 Ancient, the eleventh year of Valtor's reign.^[17]

Getha^[18]: One of few queens mentioned by name. In the second year of her reign the entire Legion of Steel was sent to recover the Paragon Caridin. None returned. Due to the incalculable loss of the Legion of Steel, Queen Getha was deposed.^[19]

Threestone^[20]: Arguably one of the most important kings in dwarven history, he was responsible for the empire's greatest tragedy and its current isolation shortly after the First Blight. He sealed the Deep Roads in -15 Ancient in a last bid to save Orzammar from the darkspawn invasion.^[21] This effectively separated the last great kingdoms of Kal-Sharok, Gundaar, and Hormak from the capital and isolated the dwarven empire into, seemingly, one lone city as the outlying thaigs fell. It should be noted that Threestone was the last known king to be known as High King.

High Kings and Queens of Orzammar

In modern-day Orzammar the king's power is leveraged by that of the Assembly, the dwarven governing body who chooses the king and from whom kings are typically drawn.^[22] Although the king rules Orzammar he must garner the support of the Assembly lords, called Deshyrs, to maintain his position, for kings can--and have been--expelled from the throne. Unpopular kings and their heirs are deemed unfit to rule and the kingship then passes to another. While the chosen ruler is typically male, women have also been chosen by the Assembly to rule.^[23]

The “Lost King”^[3]: This king was utterly removed from the Memories, his deeds unknown. He ruled during the Divine Age for a 30 year period.

Garen^[24]: A Paragon and king in the early Exalted Age whose son was sentenced to exile into the Deep Roads for a foul murder. Eventually he found out that the Carta was actually responsible for the murder and became so obsessed with finding his son that he was constantly sending Legionnaire units for ten years in an effort to find him and bring him back. Furthermore, as a tribute to his son, House Garen was renamed to House Tethras.^[25]

Eithnar Bemot^[26]: He became a Paragon and King of Orzammar in a single move from the Assembly during the Fourth Blight. He is the founder of House Bemot.

Annalar Geldinblade^[27]: Geldinblade reigned during the period around 8:48 Blessed when The Primeval Thaig was rediscovered--and promptly lost again on his order. It should be noted that Geldinblade's reign appears to overlap with that of Anaalar Perethin and Ansgar Aeducan. This is possibly an error of conflating the kings or the ages in which they ruled. Geldinblade and Perethin may be one and the same based on their first names, which would account for the chronological inconsistency. It may also simply be a reuse of the same name or a mistake.^[note]

Anaalar Perethin^[28]: He was assassinated in 8:50 Blessed, sparking a civil war. He was the predecessor to the current king, Endrin Aeducan. There is a chronological conflict between Perethin's and Endrin Aeducan's rule. Perethin was assassinated in 8:50 Blessed and Endrin ruled afterward, which means the latter ruled for 70-80 years. This seems unlikely and may be a mistake in confusing Endrin with Ansgar, his father.^[note]

Ansgar Aeducan^[29]: The grandfather of the Dwarf Noble Warden and father to King Endrin Aeducan.

Endrin Aeducan: He took the throne of Orzammar at 8:96 Blessed.^[30] He is the father to the Dwarf Noble as well as Trian Aeducan and Bhelen Aeducan. In his reign the lost great thaig of Kal-Sharok was rediscovered, to mixed joy and regret.

This section contains spoilers for:
Dragon Age: Origins.

In the eve of the Fifth Blight, King Endrin Aeducan passes away and Orzammar suffers an internal crisis as none of the two candidates can gain enough support in the Assembly in order to be elected as the next king. During A Paragon of Her Kind quest line, the Warden will decide Orzammar's next ruler who will either be:

Bhelen Aeducan^[31]: The third and youngest child of King Endrin Aeducan. His most notable trait was his ability to stay out of trouble. As a king he proves to be a reformer and trade with the surface lands increase and caste restrictions are loosened. The casteless are permitted to take arms against the darkspawn in exchange for new freedoms. For the first time in generations, the line in the Deep Roads is pushed back, and a few thaigs are reclaimed.^[32]

or

Pyral Harrowmont^[33]: Head of House Harrowmont, he is well known for being an able administrator, and the author of many compromises in the ever-warring Assembly as well as King Endrin Aeducan's most trusted advisor. As a king he tries to isolate Orzammar from the surface.
- If the Anvil of the Void was preserved, caste restrictions and the rights of the nobles both grow. A law is also passed which excludes the casteless from common areas of the city.
- If the Anvil is destroyed, Bhelen's rebellion leaves him unable to find stability and after a protracted illness he passes away.^[32]

Kings and queens of other kingdoms

After the First Blight, the communication lines between the four surviving kingdoms of Orzammar, Gundaar, Hormak and Kal-Sharok started to fail. Because of that, at -195 Ancient (1000 TE), each kingdom elected its own king or queen while maintaining allegiance to the High King or Queen of Orzammar.^[21] By -35 Ancient the kingdoms of Gundaar and Hormak have fallen to the horde.^[34]

Jegrek: A king of Gundaar, killed by Beregrand of the warrior caste in a Proving. The Memories mention that this event had dire consequences for the entire kingdom.

Kings not placed in chronology

Ragnan Aeducan^[35]: Mentioned in passing in regards to the Proving Grounds.

Darbir: Mentioned by Kasch in the Dwarf Commoner Origin.

Felbin the Mad^[3]: Felbin went mad and was dethroned by the Assembly.

Gherlen^[36]/Gherlon^[37] the Blood-Risen: He was born casteless. However, he ventured to the surface and after he gained enough prestige from his adventures, he returned to Orzammar and became a Paragon and king by overthrowing the previous ruler. His tale is still honored by dwarven adventurers.

Princes and Princesses

Tethras Garen, the son of king and Paragon Garen. In the early Exalted Age, he was accused for the murder of his sister and was exiled into the Deep Roads. When it was found out that the Carta was responsible, his father sent numerous units of the Legion of the Dead to find his outcast son however all of his attempts failed. Tethras Garen's body can be found in Corypheus's Prison - Tower Base.^[38] Furthermore, as a tribute to his son, every member of House Garen assumed the name Tethras.^[39]