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A vassal duchy of Nilfgaard, widely considered a beautiful, fable-like land where everyone is eternally tipsy. |  | |
| - Game map description | |||
Toussaint is a small autonomous duchy under the banner of the Empire of Nilfgaard, famous for its wines, enabled by the region's volcanic soil and ideal combination of sunny and rainy days. Toussaint does not maintain a large standing army of its own, instead relying on a few regiments of knights-errant, watching the borders and roads[2][3] in conjunction with Ducal Guard.[4] Toussaint is also one of the few countries in the Continent which doesn't have a Secret Service.
Despite being a vassal state of Nilfgaard, Toussaint maintains high level of autonomy and the Nilfgaardian Empire does not tend to impose imperial authority on its internal affair or violate its borders for the most part.
While the duchy's surface may be fairy and serene, beneath the wine cellars it hides a gargantuan underground system of interconnecting ancient adits, mines ans dungeons, as well as natural caverns and tunnels hollowed by lava, allegedly connected with the center of the earth.[3]
History
Prehistory and ancient times
For ages the undergrounds of modern-day Toussaint were inhabited by intelligent creatures like korreds, kilmulises, pryskirniks and many others, some of them unknown in witcher tomes even till the 13th century.[3] In the 8th century BR[4] a group of Aen Seidhe elves founded their kingdom here with modern-day Beauclair as its capital. They built beautiful cities made of white marble[3] and ivory.
When the Conjunction of the Spheres occured, it was here where the gate from the vampiric universe opened, trapping vampires in this world. They splitted into three distint tribes: Gharasham, who stayed in the western part of the Continent, Tdet, who ventured east, and Ammurun, who crossed the Great Sea heading to the west.[4]
Human conquest and fragmented land
A couple of decades after the First Landing, elven king Divethaf's realm faced a invasion led by Nordling chieftain Ludovic. In 781 the elves abandoned their ivory cities and left for the Amell mountains, taking with them all that they could and destroying everything else. Whatever they could not take and did not manage to demolish or burn, they cursed. Ludovic marched into the foothills with his army, demanding Divethaf to surrender and proclaim him as king. A battle ensued after the elf refused and Aen Seidhe army was slain. Weeping over the loss, Divethaf agreed to pay the homage. Next year humans decided to celebrate the anniversary of the victory with a pogrom, genociding all the remnants at the Mount Gorgon slopes.[4] The last untouched by humans elven trace was the hidden necropoly of Tir ná Béa Arainne which continued to be used over the course of subsequent ages, protected by Aen Saevherne.[2]
In the following centuries the main occupation of early Toussantois was apparently mining, as they hollowed many adits and mines. Several dungeons were also constructed then,[3] probably to imprison political enemies – the land was parcellated among several petty lords and dukes. One of such lordships was Epicéa on Gorgon Foothils, near the very place of Divethaf's defeat.
One of the most important and landscape-changing events of this period was Nazairi Duke Adam's attempt to regulate the flow of the Sansretour River to his likeness – and unwilling creation of the Sansretour Marsh in the process.
Reforms
In the 12th century the region witnessed its first reforms, initiated by Duke Henri III. Admiring distant lands at Lower Alba he tried to civilize the realm, e.g. by changes in the punitive law.[4]
At the middle point of the century the power in the country was consolidated by Duchess Adela Marta. She ordered the renovation of the elven capital palace and moved her seat there, establishing the city of Beauclair.[3] She planted the seeds of chivalric traditions in the Duchy by organising a tourney for her suitors, rewarding the qualities she valued most in men – Strength, Valor and Cunning. On her journey south she met the youngest son of Nilfgaardian Emperor Torres[5] and wed him,[4] creating a bond between Toussaint and the Nilfgaardian Empire.
Carolina Roberta, Ademarta's daughter, continued the reforms. She forbade the use of pointed knives during the feasts, as she found the custom of using them to pick one's teeth barbarous.[3] She was also the one who recognised the cult of Lebioda, brought here by Saint Plegmund.[4]
13th century
The duchy was ruled by Caroberta's granddaughter Anna Henrietta at least since the 1258 when she married duke Raymund. Despite having a husband it was she who held the greater estime of her subjects. However, since Raymund's death in 1265[2] Anarietta had been kept unaware of the world's events by her councelors due to her supposed emotional instability and learnt that the Northern War II had broken up only in late 1267 when informed of it by Geralt's hanza. For this treason she imprisoned minister Tremblay in the tower.[3]
In 1275 the Duchy fell under the attack of vampires led by Dettlaff van der Eretein. Depending on certain circumstances the Duchess might have died leading to giving the power in hands of the Regency Council, but it is not certain.
National Emblems
The region's coat of arms was the golden grapevine on green field.[6] Two other emblems were used as well, the one depicting lions[7][8] and the other a mounted knight.[4]
Geography and climate
Toussaint is located between three mountain ranges: Amell, Tir Tochair and Fiery Mountains. The volcanic soil left here by the region's warm past allowed the cultivation of grapevine. Another relicts of the yore are now-dry lava tubes which, joint with caves and humanoid-made dungeons, form the duchy's underground system.[3]
Locations
Vineyards
Regions
Demographics
The above-ground part of the region is inhabited predominantly by humans of Nordling origin. Underground parts remained unsearched to at least 13th century and are inhabited by gremlins, kilmulises, korreds, pryskirniks,[3] vampires[4] and a number of species yet unknown to science.[3]
Notable Toussaintois
Aristocracy
For a complete list of known Toussaintois, see Category:Toussaintois.
Culture
Tradition is a holy thing in Toussaint. Holidays, the most important of them being Wine Vat, are keenly observed.
Economy
In the ancient times the region had a mining industry. Since the middle point of the 12th century however, the major area of the duchy's economy has been wine industry and the closed adits and shafts are being slowly colonized by monsters.[3]
Notes
- Toussaint is the main setting of the Blood and Wine expansion for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.
Trivia
- Toussaint is the French name for the "real world" Catholic holiday celebrated on November 1st, All Saints' Day. It is also the name of a commune in Upper Normandy in the northern part of France.
- In the Blood and Wine expansion, many of its inhabitants will speak French at times. This includes grammar; one letter mockingly calls the Italian wine Est est (Latin for "is is") "Était Était," French for "was was" or "used to be used to be."
- Beauclair's architecture is based on the mannerist architecture of Zamość, Poland.
- The culture is based on the mediterranean regions in Italy, Spain, and southern France.
- The Ducal Guard wears morions, helmets of Spanish origin.
References
- ↑ Note that Toussaint doesn't have an official military branch, having given up military power and replaced with knights
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 The Tower of the Swallow
- ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 The Lady of the Lake
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 Blood and Wine expansion
- ↑ According to The Witcher Role-Playing Game Torres was the first true emperor, meaning that he is the only one matching the Blood and Wine expansion dialogue
- ↑ Stanislav Komárek
- ↑ Template:Gwent standalone
- ↑ The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 9.6 9.7 9.8 9.9 CD PROJEKT RED's The Witcher franchise
| Regions in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | |
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Minor regions
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Blood and Wine expansion
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