![]() Their vast empire quickly collapsed as the outer provinces and colonies fought for supremacy, a chaotic time known as the Century of Blood. The Free Cities continued to thrive for another six centuries, until Valyria itself was destroyed in a single day by the volcanic cataclysm known as the Doom. Valyria rushed to the aid of its colony with an army of three hundred dragons, and in the end the Rhoynar city-states were totally defeated and left in ruins. These trade wars flared off and on for two centuries, but eventually the Rhoynish Wars climaxed when Prince Garin of Chroyane rallied the remaining Rhoynar city-states into a grand alliance which threatened Volantis itself. Īfter many centuries, Valyria's expansion of the Free Cities and other colonies into western Essos brought it into conflict with the Rhoynar, a loose confederation of six independent city-states along the Rhoyne River network. The modern Pentoshi do have very similar appearances to the Andals of Westeros, but the sources claiming it existed before Valyria are biased and might not be trustworthy. Alone among the Free Cities, Pentos might be a continuation of a prior settlement: some histories say it was an Andal colony where many Valyrian merchants migrated to seek their fortunes, and because they were of low social rank they freely intermingled their bloodlines with the locals. Lorath was originally settled by a series of other peoples, from the Mazemakers in ancient times up to the Andals, before they were burned out by Valyria's dragons, leaving it totally depopulated: centuries later it was re-settled by dissidents from Valyria, though the ruins of its former inhabitants remain. While most of the Free Cities were created by Valyria itself (or in the case of Braavos, escaped slaves), Lorath and Pentos were the sites of prior cities. Braavos is also located at the far northernwestern edge of the Free Cities because the escaped slaves who created it fled as far from Valyria itself as possible. Norvos was founded by the Bearded Priests, Qohor was founded by the cult of the Black Goat, and Lorath was settled by the followers of the Blind God Boash. The northern Free Cities, farther away from Valyria, have more diverse cultures and were mostly founded by religious dissidents seeking to distance themselves from the center of Valyrian power, who disagreed with the Freehold's tolerance for the plethora of different faiths practiced within it. Tyrosh was actually first created as a military outpost to guard shipping lanes through the Stepstones, though it quickly turned into a major mercantile center as well. They had a high degree of contact with Valyria and each other and thus have similar cultures. The southern Free Cities, closest to Valyria, were all founded as trade colonies: Volantis (first and oldest of the Free Cities), Lys, Myr, and Tyrosh. What made them "free" is that their leaders purchased contracts from Valyria's dragonlords that gave them limited self-rule over their own affairs, but they called on their "mother" for aid in times of war or other crisis. ![]() With the exception of Braavos, which was founded by slaves escaping the Freehold, the Nine Free Cities are all colonies founded by the Valyrian Freehold. North of the Free Cities lie the Shivering Sea and the islands of Ibben. To the east of the Free Cities lies the Dothraki sea, to the south Slaver's Bay. There are significant differences between the geography of the various cities, from the thick forests around Qohor, to the rolling hills of Norvos, to the tiny islands of Braavos. Braavos, Lorath, Lys, and Tyrosh are located on islands, Myr, Pentos, and Volantis are located on the coasts, and Norvos and Qohor lie inland. The nine city-states composing the Free Cities lie across the narrow sea, east of Westeros, on the western side of the eastern continent.
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