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Welcome to the Realm of

Belle Terres

       The nineteenth Realm of the Domain - once known as Southron in the Domain's past - gained its name change in the Reconstitution of Southron and Orinoco after the Troubles of 2004-05 by special circumstance to the Law of First Rulers. While Orinoco retained its name, Southron changed. It's present name - given by former Ruler Lady Dame ShadowHeart the Crimson Dawn ni DarkFyre, who took on the Realm in the Reconstitution - means "beautiful lands" in French. And the Realm reflects the name.

       Only recently has the Realm become bereft of a Ruler. And so, the Beautiful Lands wait.

       The Southernmost Realm to sit on the spine of the Tir ni nÓg Range, Belle Terres is known as much for its forests and swamps as it is for its mountains: sitting between the mountains on one side to the North, and the Gulf of Mexico on the other side to the South. It's flag - also designed by Lady ShadowHeart, and constructed by the ur-Lord - stands guard as a symbol of the right of freedom of all who live within the Beautiful Lands (and the Domain, for that matter), and a vow to rebel against any who would take it. 

Belterran

Stats and Information

Full N ame: The Realm of Belle Terres

Pronunciation: Bell Tare-iz

Entymology: French for "beautiful lands", in reference to the beautiful nature of the Realm

Date Founded: July 14, 2003

Demonym: Belle Terran, Belterran

Population(current): 0

Ruler(s): Under Imperial administration

House(s): None at current time

Flag: Mystick Freedom - The  misty image of the Mississippi River represents the mystery and beauty of Nature in the Realm. The obscuring clouds symbolize the mysteries that surround us all in our day-to-day lives: waiting for us to discover and solve them. A Rebel eagle and flag are reflected on the surface of the river. The eagle represents freedom, while the flag represents the history of the region. The flag as a whole represents freedom for everyone together amid the mysteries of life and land, regardless of who we each are.  

Anthem: None at current time

Provinces: Cajun Bayous (Louisiana and Mississippi), Stone Mountain Forest (Alabama and Georgia)

Royal District: None at current time

Royal Court: None at current time

Royal Home: None at current time

Belterran Provinces

Name of province: Cajun Bayous

Location: Louisiana and Mississippi

Population(current): 0

Origin of name: Named for the rivers and swamps - called bayous ("small streams" in Choctaw) - that are indicative of the area, and for the Cajun people that enhabit them.

Ruler(s): None at current time

Duchies(to date): None at current time

Name of province: Stone Mountain Forest

Location: Alabama and Georgia

Population(current): 0

Origin of name: Named for the vast, seemingly continual forest that blankets the province, and for the Stone Mountain that stand within the vicinity of Atlanta, Georgia.

Ruler(s): None at current time

Duchies(to date): None at current time

Places of Interest, Power, and Enchantment

Fort Mountain

      Fort Mountain is a mountain in northern Georgia, just east of Chatsworth. It is part of the Cohutta Mountains, a small mountain range at the southern end of the Appalachian Mountains. It also lies within the Chattahoochee National Forest.

       The most well-known feature of Fort Mountain is the rock formation around the crest, usually mentioned as the ruins of an ancient fort or other manmade structure, consisting of stone piles without mortar. Local stories sometimes attribute its construction to the Cherokee, but published sources date its construction to a more ancient culture of indigenous people. One persistent legend attributes Fort Mountain's stone piles to a race of moon-eyed people, said to predate the Cherokee. Such stories were picked up by historians and made their way into park histories, tourism brochures and markers.

 

      The moon-eyed people are a legendary group of short, bearded white skinned people who are said to have lived in Appalachia until the Cherokee expelled them. Stories about them, attributed to Cherokee tradition, are mentioned by early European settlers in America. In a 1797 book, Benjamin Smith Barton explains they are called "moon-eyed" because they saw poorly during the day. Some stories claim they created the area's pre-Columbian ruins, and they disappeared from the area.

 

      (from Wikipedia)

Wetumpka Crater

        The Wetumpka impact crater is the only confirmed impact crater in Alabama, United States. It is located east of downtown Wetumpka in Elmore County. The crater is 4.7 miles (7.6 km) in diameter, and its age is estimated to be about 85 million years (late Cretaceous),[1] based on fossils found in the youngest disturbed deposits, which belong to the Mooreville Chalk Formation.

       Thornton L. Neathery discovered the Wetumpka Crater in 1969–70 during regional geological mapping and published the first article on the subject in 1976. However, conclusive evidence of impact origin was lacking until 1998 when David T. King, Jr. and colleagues discovered shocked quartz in a core drilled near the center of the structure. In 2002, Auburn University researchers published evidence and established the site as an internationally recognized impact crater.


       (from Wikipedia)

The Crossroads

         As legends go, Robert Johnson is both a legend, a ghost story, and a cautionary tale when it comes to the supernatural, if his story is to be believed. A legend for how well he played, a ghost story for how he received his talent, and a cautionary tale as to the price for that talent.

       The story is pervasive in the Mississippi Delta area: where it is said the blues music genre was born. It was there, in the early 20th Century, that a young Black musician by the name of  Robert Johnson, would take his steps into history. Though, for the most part, it wasn't because of his music, for it was said that he had no talent at all, and was terrible.

       

      According to the legend, the young man disappeared for awhile. When he came back around, his talent with singing and playing the guitar had taken such a virtuoso turn that it would influence future blues players generations after his time. Some of his songs were haunting, almost mournful, as if he came upon his expertise at a price. That is when stories began to surface about the how.


       Robert Johnson died young and, some say, under mysterious circumstances, as if his debt came due. Most rational explanations claim he ran afoul of love and was poisoned, but those reasonings don't often hold with the public. He disappeared into obscurity not long after his death, and only after a few decades did his memory resurface. In his life, we was conscious of mind enough to record all of his songs for posterity, so that his music would influence and inspire blues singers for generations.


       As with any such supernatural or legendary story, the emphasis is put on where the event occurred. In this case, where were the legendary crossroads located?


       Many over the decades claimed to know what crossroads in the Delta area Johnson went to for his fateful meeting. Two have historical markers, of which one is extremely elaborate. As with such things, there are those who capitalize on the supernatural for fame or profit. The thing to remember about those kinds of places of power is that they often make themselves obscure for a reason. It could be that one of the two is the actual Crossroads of Robert Johnson,... though unlikely.


       Or perhaps it is the intersection of Lusk and Walker Roads, at the Lead Bayou, that he went to. A place that has remained obscure to this day.


       Whatever the truth may be, the Land of the Delta Blues seems to have decided to keep it to itself. Perhaps it is for the best. There are many things we can do. That's not the question. Whether or not we should, is.

Belle Terres

is ruled under an

Imperial

administration

An aerial view of downtown

Caer Linaendor,

former Royal Court of the Realm of Belle Terres

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