A Guide to the Free City of Essen

**Khorne** · January 17, 2021

Cattle die
Walls crumble
Crops wither
same as with Men
but I know of something that is eternal
and that is the glory of the Raven City

Table of content

I. Overview

II. A Look at the Armed Forces

III. The People and Politics

Raise the Raven Banner - A Guide to the Free City of Essen

Quote

"There's always smoke rising from Essen, its insatiable furnaces hungry and its people industrious as ever. Some say that's why it's called 'the Black City'. I just think it's because of their nature. Brooding and gloomy sods, the lot of 'em."

-- George Chatham, Corrish trader visiting the Raven City

Description
The Free City of Essen - the Raven City, the Black City and home of the Ever-Oak - is nested in the upper bend of the mighty river Karn, near the Iron Hills. Once a powerful and high-standing duchy, it lost most of its might and territory during the Dance of Dukes: a dynastic dispute with its rival Aden that saw the death of all of Essen’s von Helborg rulers and thus their claim to the Carnite throne.

Despite its historical misfortunes and loss of the ducal titles and territories, Essen still remains one of the strongest city-states of Carno, backed by a powerful economy that thrives on metalworking, forging and arms manufacturing, which have earned the city the title of Carno’s Armory.

Nickname
Essen has several monikers, but the most common ones are the Raven City or Carno’s Armory.

Colors
Predominantly black, accompanied by shades of dark grey and odd traces of white.

Flag

The historic flag of Essen was yellow and black (figure I). However this flag is rarely used nowadays and is known as die Fahne der Grossmachtzeit, or the Flag of Great Power (Times). It was the flag flown during the heyday of the city, when its was part, and capital, of the duchy ruled by the von Helborg dynasty - before it was defeated during the Dance of Dukes.

As a sign of the great wealth they lost and the ushering into a new era, the Essians since decided to discard the yellow-gold from their flag and now fly a stark solemn black and white banner instead (figure II).

Iconography

Der Rabe, or the Raven (figure III) - the Raven is the symbol of Wotan, chief god of the Essian pantheon. Legend says Hraban the Founder settled his people after following a raven to the location of what was to be Essen. Essen's riches are said to have been a gift from the gods themselves.
Der Totenkopf, or the Skull (figure IV) - the Skull was added to Essian uniforms and general iconography after the Dance of Dukes. It is the symbol of the nation's perpetual mourning for the loss of their dukes and the city's prestige and stands as a reminder of what once was and should be re-won. It was also chosen as a means to strike fear in the hearts of opponents. It has since become ubiquitous throughout Essian society, so much that it is now as much synonymous with the city as the iconic Raven. The Skull reminds the Essians of "memento mori", or "keep Death in mind" and thus make most of every day and make your name and city proud.
Die Eiche, or the Oak Tree (figure V) - while not as often used as the Raven and Skull, Oak iconography still forms a major part of Essian symbolism. The oak is the tree to which Wotan speared himself in search of greater understanding of the world. As such a great oak tree was planted at the city's founding in his honor. The tree was later burned down with the rest of the city in the aftermath of the civil war, but has since slowly started to regrow. Many Essians see this as the symbol for things to come and believe one day, they will be the ruling city-state of Carno once more. Oaks and oak leaves also form an integral part of Essian religion and places for contemplation are often centered around ancient oaks. Laurels made of oak leaves are bestowed upon those who have performed great features or deeds for the city.

A DETAILED LOOK at the FREE CITY OF ESSEN

Leadership

Stadtrat or Senate
The Free City is governed by the Stadtrat, literally 'city council' but in essence a Senate populated by a number of representatives elected from the burghers of the city. These comprise of mostly wealthy merchants and bankers, those chosen to voice the woes of Essen’s dependencies and ranking figures of the military. While anyone holding citizenship in Essen can be elected to the Stadtrat, a number of seats are always reserved for members of the First Families: Grand Burghers of immeasurable wealth and influence who can trace their lineage back to the early days of the city's founding.

Burgomaster and Stadtholder
The Senate is presided by the Burgomaster, who is also the ruler of the city. In the aftermath of the civil war, royal forces in Aden also demanded a symbolic seat for the King in the Senate in order to show royal power and keep an eye on things. The Carnite King is thus represented by the Stadtholder or Steward, from outside of Essen. In the wake of the war the office of Steward held much power and often vetoed decisions of the Senate in spite, but over time it has faded to irrelevancy and is now simply a glorified title, bribed to turn a blind eye in favor of Essen's interests.

Location

The Free City of Essen and its surrounding territories are located in the upper bend of the river Karn. Upstream to the west of its rival - and the nation’s capital - of Aden. In the past, the great power and western location of its ruling ducal dynasty gave rise to the nickname 'Grand Duchy of the West', with the von Helborg dukes referred to as 'Grand Dukes of the West'.

Spoiler

Black: current territory of Essen. To the east - at the mouth of the Karn - lies the exclave of Karnemünde. The lands surrounding Karnemünde were given over to Aden as result of the treaty following the civil war.
Dark red: the Grand Principality of Wisimar, ally of Essen. You can read more here.
Red: territory of the ruling royal city-state of Aden. Lighter shaded territory is personal Crown territory of the king. As such, since the king is also the ruler of Aden, it can somewhat be viewed as Adener territory.

One day, I will finish this map

Fiefs and dependencies

Quote

"While the Raven City is nestled on the shores of the mighty river Karn, it is the heart of the region called the Black Country - its hinterland beyond. Originally referring only to a stretch of land dominated by grand surface-level coal seams that blackened the soil and powered the myriad of ironworks, coalworks, furnaces, brickworks and other manufactories which spewed its dark smoke into the sky, darkening the days and lighting the nights with fire. Together with the mercantile and artisanal prowess of the Essen, the region formed the backbone of its economical might. Over time the term came to cover all of the lands owned by the Free City, regardless of its geographical or economical characteristics, rather being named thusly due to Essen's heraldic association with the color black."

-- Excerpt from 'Carno, Its Land And People' by Fritz Lorensen

The dominion of Essen not only controls the Free City itself, but also holds sway over vast farmlands and smaller villages and hamlets outside of the city’s walls. Collectively this area is called the Black Country, literally referring to its coal-rich dark soil, many iron ore deposits and smoking chimneys of manufactories and in a symbolic sense referencing the land's ties to the city of Essen.

The original territory owned by the von Helborg Duchy was once much larger, stretching even further west, and consisted of a patchwork of lands and cities gained by conquering or marriage politics. Despite the loss of the duchy and the greatly diminished size of Essen’s territory since its heyday, it is still large enough to make Essen one of Carno’s powerhouse city-states.

Points of interest:

In the Old World:
- Drakenberg - A small mining village in the Iron Hills, mostly known as the place of origin of the Karsten family.
- Karlsbad - A spa town founded on natural springs in the Iron Hills. A luxurious place where many of Essen's elite come to relax and spend their weekends.
- Kärnitz - A rural village located on the fertile plains around Essen. A farming and husbandry community, Kärnitz supplies Essen army with a unit of Kärnitzer Ulanen.
- Wiesenborg
- Karnemünde - An exclave of the Free City situated at the mouth of the river Karn, on the Carnite coast. It was acquired by Essen via marriage politics and was once the capital of a larger strip of land along the coast. After the war Aden gifted most of Karnemünde's territory to its own allies, leaving only the city in Essen's control.
In the New World:
- Treesborg - The Carnite name for 'Fort Arltrees'. It is not truly a proper colony, but rather a joint settlement with Oléon on El Oleonda. It has grown out of a regiment of soldiers stationed there in the aftermath of the Lotti conflict.

History
~~To be updated, currently a copy-paste from Flickr.~~ Updated 06.09.'24

Essen was founded a long time ago by Hraban the Founder. Legend has it he followed a couple of ravens who led him to a bend of the great river Karn. There they nested upon black rock, which Hraban took as a sign of Wotan, the All-Father. Thus he settled his people - descendants of Garveyan stock, migrating northwards - there. In honor of the gods, Hraban planted a mighty oak, a holy tree that would become a symbol for Essen.

Over time the city grew, thanks to its ideal trading position. Originally a commercial center for textile trade and manufacturing, Essen was granted city and market rights, further stimulating the growth of its economic base. It was during this time the city started to exploit the natural resources of its region and lay the foundation for Essen's future and started to shift from mostly a trade hub into a manufacturing center. Hraban's black rock turned out to be only the tip of large stretches of seams of coal and coupled with an abundance of metal ore in the surroundings hills Essen's economy was propelled forward in unprecedented ways, transforming it into the metalworking and arms forging capital of Carno.

How or when the Free City was acquired by the von Helborg dukes is vague, but its inclusion into their territories and subsequently becoming the very capital of the Duchy proved a further catalyst for the power of Essen and the Duchy as a whole, which came to dominate the southern banks of the Karn - rivaling and perhaps even outshining Aden.

Under the guidance of the von Helborg dukes, first Wilhelm and then his son Karl, Essen clashed with Aden over control of the Kingdom of Carno after a supposed dispute during the new King's election. The clashed turned into a bitter-fought civil war that ravaged the country and saw both von Helborg dukes killed, with Essen and its allies on the losing side. The end of the war saw the Raven City razed and its mighty oak put to the torch. In revenge, royalist forces put many of Essen's ancient and noble families to the sword, with only a few making it out alive. Thus, Aden remained the prime city state of Carno. In order to further secure its power, a royal decree was drafted up abolishing the Helborg Duchy, recanting its ducal titles and partitioning most of its territories to either the King or his allies.

However, Essen and its people are resilient and just like the oak started to regrow over time, so did the city and its people spring back up with an iron resolve. Some of the Grand Burghers that had been able to escape the war - some abroad - with most of their fortune returned to the city, investing heavily and rekindling the fire of Essen's economical might which once again started to flourish. Not looking for another war, the King compromised and restored some of Essen's privileges making it a Free City in the Kingdom, ruled by a Stadtholder appointed by the King.

Essen begrudgingly accepted the terms. In an act of defiance, however, they decided to change their uniforms to black in honor of their late rebellious dukes and added the skull and crossbones to their caps, so their deaths and the once great power of the Duchy would never be forgotten.

Society and Culture

A Mercantile Nature
The Essians are very mercantile in nature and belief that hard work pays off eventually. Unlike most other great city-states, duchies or fiefs in Carno, Essen does not have a noble landed class of Junkers in the strict sense of the notion. Founded and expanded as a Free City, Essians have always been proud of their independence and have held their republican system in high regard. It is true that its untraditional non-feudal nature with relatively free mobility and entrepreneurial spirit has most likely been a key factor in the resurgence of the city in the aftermath of the civil war.

Despite its meritocratic nature, it does however have an upper patrician class of wealthy ancient merchant and banking families called the Grand Burghers. These are burghers of exceptional wealth or contributions to the city, who dominate economical and political life. The pinnacle of these Grand Burghers are a select few families called the First Families of Essen, who have been part of its social and mercantile fabric for ages. Representatives of these families form the nucleas of the Stadtrat.

Many of true noble families, or Junkers, of the Helborg duchy were outsiders and not true burghers of the City. Most lost their lives either during the civil war or were put to death afterwards as a reprisal measure to ensure no other claimant could rise up to defy Aden - a fate that also befell several families of the Grand Burghers.

As such, the divide between commoners and upper class is less rigid in Essen and a strong mercantile middle class has sprung up. Indeed, the city’s wealth has come from its merchants and artisans for ages. Thus, it is no surprise they hold much of the city’s power. Many powerful merchant families have worked their way up into highest echelons of Essian power over time and large conglomerates control much of Essen’s economic and political life.

The merchant families of Essen form the catalyst for its economical power and many outsiders flock to the city looking for work in one of their many workshops, factories or forges or the mines outside the city walls, spread all over the Black Country. One of the most well-known and mightiest of families is that of Karsten. Originally from Drakenberg, they moved to Essen some generations ago and first made their money in the mining business, which later expanded to forging and metalworking, eventually leading to them even opening a banking system and operating a wagonway in the countryside, amassing great wealth and land in the process.

Religion
As is common amongst the Madrice Peninsula, Essen too knows the Faith. However, only a minority of its subjects follow the Faith in its traditional sense. Carno in general, just as Garvey, mostly has its own unique versions of the Faith, its gods and its customs and Essen is no exception.

Slightly deviating from standard Carnite practice, most people of Essen practice a very naturalistic and spiritual approach to the Faith called Wotanism. Wotanism focuses on the purity of the mind, body and the surrounding world through contemplation and finding solace in work and understand one’s surroundings.

Wotanism has no real rigid structure and is more of a collection of customs and beliefs than an actual religion as such.

Like the Faith, it knows many deities and spirits, but as its name implies Wotan is the chief god: the One-Eyed Allfather who speared himself to the World Tree in search of understanding of the world. It is known some radical Rune priests follow his example and take their eye, hoping to unlock the secrets of the world, just like the All-Father. A key belief of Wotanism is that everything has its own Spirit that can lead to bad things when not properly appeased, which also partly explains the tradition and folklore of maintaining the Great Oak - if it were to die or fall, ill omens will come to the City.

Ironically, the Wotanist faith has also led to a slight dichotomy in Essian society, with some wanting to strongly preserve nature in all its aspects and others steadfastly pursuing all means of understanding the world around them and thus furthering the path of scientific and mechanical progress.

Fondness of Science
Perhaps a combination of the Essian mercantile instincts and an influence of its naturalistic Wotanist ways of finding enlightenment have led to a great scientific interest. Essians are thoroughly intrigued by all things technological and mechanical and have amassed vast knowledge in the field of metallurgy and ballistics over time. Many rich families send their children to famed Corrish universities so they can learn from the best there.

Values and Traditions
After their defeat at the hands of Aden and its allies, Essen lost most of its power base and prestige and was stripped of virtually all privileges it had obtained over time. Its people were at a loss, the city had lost its leadership and income. However, diligent as any Carnite, the Essians doubled down on their values and traditions and somewhat secluded themselves from the outside world, working on rebuilding their city and recovering its former glory.

While most Carnites are know to be disciplined and industrious, the Essians are double so, making them seem detached, overtly serious and distant to many outsiders. The society of Essen became geared towards one purpose: showing their adversaries that despite their defeat during the Dance of Dukes, Essen was and still is the beacon of Carno.

Essians are proud of their independence and are known for their austerity, determination, discipline and extreme industriousness and punctuality. A strong sense of loyalty, obedience and respect is instilled from an early age on and one is heavily frowned upon when neglecting these values.

The Military

The army is the pride of Essen and the reflection of its might. Like all Carnite city-states, Essen controls several of its own units, next to the tithe of men they are obliged to send the crown for the nation’s unified royal army.

Essen’s soldiers are famous for they black uniforms and aggressive tactics, whereas many other Carnites prefer to be cautious and tactically defensive. While the infantry forms the largest part of Essen’s army, there are also small yet effective cavalry units, drawn from the surrounding rural villages.

Characteristics of the Free City of Essen

Overall when part of the Carnite nation proper, Essen will follow Carno's general values. However, in terms of Essen's specific background or for actions concerning Essen specifically, some values differ from those of Carno.

Naval Power • • • • • • • • • •
As a largely landlocked state, Essen holds little naval power. It upholds a minor fleet of military ocean-going vessels to protect its trade posts, which are mostly stationed in the Essian exclave of Karnemünde. However, as a commercial hub connected to other cities there is always a steady stream of privately-owned commercial ships and barges entering and leaving the city. In extremely dire times, these could be commandeered to build up a fleet.

Military Power • • • • • • • • • •
Essen is renowned for its disciplined infantry and agile combat doctrines. In the military field, Essians tend to be less conservative than other Carnite states and more easily adopt new strategies and armaments. Essen's combat stratagems emphasize speed, surprise and psychological warfare.

Science • • • • • • • • • •
Like most Carnites, Essians are quick to accept tried-and-tested advances. However, unlike most other Carnites, Essians themselves also search for scientific insights, especially in the fields of metallurgy and engineering.

Diplomacy • • • • • • • • • •
Essen lost most of its diplomatic autonomy after the civil war and as such holds little official diplomatic influence outside of Carno. Over the years and with the memories of the war waning, its influence has been on the rise again. Behind the scenes, it still has considerable sway over lesser city-states it once dominated.

Inner Stability • • • • • • • • • •
The society of Essen runs like a clockwork and is geared towards one purpose: the greater good of the city and restoring the honor and power it lost.

Treasury / Coffers • • • • • • • • • •
Essen's role as prime metallurgical and arms manufacturing center of Carno have given it considerable wealth, despite having been ravaged in the past. This, coupled with its strategic location perfect for trade with Carnite interior and other Madrician nations, has made the city one of the most wealthy and powerful in Carno, rivaling Aden itself.

Exploration • • • • • • • • • •
While Essians have always been intrigued by the world surrounding them and try to learn and understand as much about it as possible, state-sponsored exploration and colonization has never been a prime objective. Most explorative enterprises are undertaken by private individuals.

Culture • • • • • • • • • •
Essians are considered dour by most and their cultural exploits are often put away as "archaic", "gothic" and "passé". It is true that the pragmatic Essians are rather conservative in terms of art, but they still love artistic fields such as architecture, painting, theatre and poetry. They are romanticists at heart somewhat stuck in an idealized past.

Known Essians

Maximilian Coehoorn, Chief of Essen's military on El Oleonda

Helmut Von Braun, Knights Treasurer Chapter Master in Terraversa [OL - @Ross Fisher]

Rupprecht Ravenclauwe, head of the Ravenclauwe First Family and key founder of Ravenclaw Company

Sources

A collection of links and posts containing RP'ed information pertaining to Essen and its background:

The results of the Battle for El Oleonda - Here you can find out about Carno and Essen's involvement in the conflict, plus the aftermath.
Advent calendar MOC - Here you can find an in-game MOC pertaining to Essen's religious customs.
Fort Arltrees Carnite house, by @CapOnBOBS - Following the Essians' footsteps, other Carnites too have come to Fort Arltrees to make a profit off close Carnite-Oléonder relations in the area.

You can also check out the post below to find more MOCs with their own topics.

Inspiration

The Free City of Essen draws inspiration from many sources, both fantasy and real-world.

Key elements of its lore can be found in following real-world influences:

Brick gothic architecture and art of Northern Germany and the Low Countries
Economic and societal aspects found in Hanseatic city-states such as Hamburg, Lübeck, Duisberg, etc.
The militaristic traditions of the Kingdom of Prussia
An economy of manufacturing and a hotbed for ironworking innovations as in Birmingham (UK), Manchester (UK), Essen (GER) and similar

You can view an architectural mood board I put together here.

Essians are down-to-earth, pragmatic, militaristic and conservative which is reflected in their sparsely decorated (neo) Gothic brick buildings, the likes of which you would see along the Baltic Sea among various Hanseatic cities.

The real-world influences translate into the names of its citizens, which are mostly Low German or Old Dutch (comparable to Afrikaans).

Edited September 6, 2024 by Khorne
Updated text and some pictures.

Count Vroskri · January 17, 2021

Awesome idea!

**Khorne** · January 17, 2021

AN IN-DEPTH LOOK at the FREE CITY OF ESSEN'S ARMED FORCES

Infantry

Jäger

Role: Light infantry
Description: The Jäger, or 'hunters' have only recently been officially added to the army of Essen. Originally hailing from the Iron Hills, drawn from brigands, adventurers and mountain men, the Jäger have served Essen mostly as ad hoc Freikorps in times of need, the relation dating back even to the time of the civil war. They are hardy, free-spirited soldiers known for their excellent marksmanship and tracking skills. In battle they use a loose formation to screen the main lines, using the terrain to their advantage.