Category:Ephesium

=Overview= Fairly private about internal matters, there is little known about Ephesium save for basic knowledge of their trade and the close ties they hold with Terre d'Ange. Now more a part of the international scene, Ephesium takes pride in being a purveyor of luxury goods such as silk, satin and master woven rugs as well as holding a significantly large treasury.

=History= Founded by the joining of over eighty tribes under the Great Sultan Bey Osman nearly seven centuries ago, it was not until the Tiberian city of Byzantium was conquered by the Ephesian leader, Sultan Fahti Mehmed, that Ephesium became a true Empire. After that, Ephesian's fought to gain control of bordering lands and for centuries it was a game of tug-of-war, sometimes winning and sometimes losing. Eventually, treaties and truces were made and the country of Ephesium became more of a 'quiet neighbor'. When Childric d'Essoms of Terre d'Ange was sent as an Ambassador to Ephesium, ties with Ephesium's more distant neighbors were significantly strengthened. Since then, Ephesium and Terre d'Ange have been long standing allies, both profiting in the fruits of their alliance.

Recent History
Since the establishment of a strong alliance with Terre d'Ange, as well as Khebel-im-Akkad and Hellas, Ephesium has taken its place as a trading hub and rich nation.

During the d'Angeline-Skaldi War of 1207, Ephesium came to the aid of Terre d'Ange by offering a sizable number of troops to fight off the barbarians. Rumors spread about the help of troops being in exchange for the King's consideration of marriage to Sultan Mustafa Ghazehra's eldest daughter. These rumors were given much more substance when the First Daughter of Ephesium, Hatun Ezra Ghazehra Sultan arrived in Terre d'Ange in the Winter of 1207.

=Culture= The culture of the Ephesian Empire evolved over several centuries as Ephesium absorbed, adapted and modified the cultures of conquered lands and their peoples. There was a strong influence from the customs and languages of Akkadian and Hellenic societies while Tiberian culture had a significant contribution residual from the Ephesian's predecessors, the Tiberian Empire.

Throughout its history, Ephesium had substantial subject populations of Tiberians, Hellenes, Yeshuites and Akkadians who were allowed a certain amount of autonomy whose distinctive cultures enriched that of the Ephesian state.

As the early Ephesian's drove the Tiberian administration from their lands, later pursuing them to the west, it was perceived as part of the struggle against the Tiberian Gods and the worship of them: the first Ephesian rulers called themselves Gazi, or Warriors. However, as the Ephesians moved further south and west and the assimilation of the Hellene and Akkadian populations progressed, and the Ephesian culture soon morphed into a balanced mixture of these two peoples with a heavily Yeshuite influence mixed in as well.

The People
As varied as the Ephesian culture is, so are the people of Ephesium. Full of life and a rich history, the masses of this country prosper with the hearty trade and economy of their empire. In Ephesium, men are the providers of their families and the women are the bearers of children and mistresses of the home. In Ephesium, while the style of attire leans more toward that of Hellenic essence, many of the societal beliefs are a strong mixture of both Yeshuite and Akkadian.

Slavery is also legal in Ephesium although society severely frowns upon the enslaving or owning of a slave.

Women in Ephesium
Women, at all times, are to have their heads covered by a scarf. Common women are allowed to bear their faces to the public as long as they keep a scarf over their head. Noble women however are taught from birth that their faces and heads are to be covered by a scarf and veil. The lesser born you are in nobility, the more sheer the veil may be just as the opposite, those higher born among the ranks, must wear solid veils and scarves to cover all but their eyes. Only to their families or husbands may they reveal their face.

Also, noblewomen of Ephesium are not allowed to speak to anyone if in the presence of a man without that man having spoken to her first. If only women or eunuchs are present, a woman may speak freely until a man enters the room.

Courtly Titles
=Religion= In the beginning, the Tiberian gods ruled over the beliefs of the Ephesian peoples who had not held onto their folk views. When the Tiberians were evicted from Ephesian land and Ephesium began to form into its own empire, as it assimilated the cultures of the countries around it, it began to purge out the beliefs of the Tiberian Empire.

Today Ephesium's official religion is Eastern Yeshuite, a religion that follows a bit differed view of Yeshua ben Yosef. The Eastern Yeshuite religion practices what it understands to be the original faith passed down from the companions of Yeshua ben Yosef. They are, in part, beleivers of what they call a more 'pure faith' of Yeshua ben Yosef and the One-God, beleifs passed down to future generations without additions and without subtractions.

To them, their faith and faith's history does not change in the Eastern Yeshuite faith because it encompasses those things that do not change: the nature of the One-God, the history of the One-God's interactions with his peoples, the Law as given to the Yeshuites, all Yeshua's teachings as given to his companions as recorded in scripture.

=Geography: Ephesium's Seven Regions=
 * Aege - The Aege Region is found on the western seaboard of Ephesium against the warm sea. The climate of the Aege Region has a tropical climate at the coast, with hot, dry summers and mild to cool, wet winters and a semi-arid continental climate in the interior with hot, dry summers and cold, snowy winters. There are eight provinces in this region.


 * Akdeniz - The Akdeniz Region is found on the southern border of Ephesium with its coast against the warm sea. Its climate is very hot, long and dry summers with cool rainy winters.There are eight provinces in this region.


 * Anadolu - The Anadolu Region is found centrally in Ephesium. It has semi-arid continental climate with hot, dry summers and cold, snowy winters. This region usually has low precipitation throughout the year. There are thirteen provinces in this region.


 * Chernoz - The Chernoz Region is found on the northern edge of Ephesium on the edge of an inland sea and borders a small part of Vralia. It is a steep, rocky land with rivers that cascade through the gorges of the coastal ranges. It has an an oceanic climate with high and evenly distributed rainfall the year round. There are eighteen provinces in this region.


 * Dogu Anadolu - The Dogu Anadolu Region is found centrally on the eastern side of Ephesium, bordering the majority of Drujan and a part of Khebbel-im-Akkad. It is host to a varied geographic location that includes plains, plateaus and massifs. Since most of the region is far from the sea, and has high altitude, it has a harsh continental climate with long winters and short summers. During the winter, it is very cold and snowy, during summer the weather is cool in the highlands and warm in the lowlands. There are fourteen provinces in this region.


 * Gune Anadolu - The Gune Anadolu Region is found on the southeastern side of Ephesium, bordering Khebel-im-Akkad. It has a semi-arid continental climate with very hot and dry summers and cold and often snowy winters. There are nine provinces in this region.


 * Marmara - The Marmara Region is found on the northwestern coast of the warm sea and inland sea and the border of Hellas. The Marmara region has a hybrid tropical climate/humid subtropical climate on the warm sea coast and a humid continental climate in the interior. Summers are warm to hot, humid and moderately dry whereas winters are cold and wet and sometimes snowy. There are eleven provinces in this region.
 * Ephesus - Formerly known as Byzantium, Ephesus is the Capital City of Ephesium. Located on the coast of the inland sea in the province of Ephesilu, it is a rich and historical paradise filled with marvelous architecture and a bustling trade marketplace.

=Notable Characters of Ephesium=

Current Day

 * Hatun Ezra Ghazehra Sultan, First Daughter of Ephesium

Historical from Kushiel's Legacy

 * Childric d'Essoms - d'Angeline Ambassador to Ephesium


 * Diokles Agallon - Ambassador to Terre d'Ange during Ysandre de la Courcel's reign. Member of The Unseen Guild.