City of Yskiloikrav

Yskiloikrav, also referred to as Uzkiloikrav, is the capital of Smontanya, and is located in the south of the country. The city is said to have been founded by the Sorillian warrior Uzkiloi in 517 when he created Uzkiloya. The city was almost entirely destroyed in 1689 due to a fire during the siege and occupation by the Zorrizto army. It has always been the capital of Uzkiloya, Zorrztonia and currently Smontanya.

History
In 517, The Sorillian warrior Uzkiloi split up from the horde to Create his kingdom (Uzkiloya), whcih is current day Smontanya. Uzkiloi founded the settlement that is now Yskiloikrav and it quickly became the capital.

Uzkiloi dynasty
During the Uzkiloi dynasty, Yskiloikrav grew steadily. Uzkiloi's original palace was expanded and reinforced, slowly forming the complex that is known as the royal fortress. This original royal fortress is also referred to as "Uzkiloi's castle".

Uzkiloi's burial place is unknown, but we know for certain that his descendents were already being buried within the walls of the castle. The bodies were probably lost after 1689, but scripture marking the graves has survived.

The city was made up of traditional wooden houses built in the sorillian style. The stone base of the old walls was found in a 1976 excavation, which shows that the walls were partially made of stone, but mostly of wood as well. The overall layout of the royal fortress at this time is well documented, which allows illustrators to depict it faithfully.

Zorrizto presence and 200 year crisis
After the fall of the Uzkiloi dynasty, the country fell into 200 years of internal fighting. The zorrizto, who had been incorporated into Uzkiloya under Uzkiloi IV, started gaining prominence and influencing the sorillians, setting the start of Uzkiloyan culture and tradition. At one point, a Zorrzto king even sat on the throne at Yskiloikrav. The city kept growing during these times of crisis, but it was burdened by poverty. The fortifications were benefitted though, as the many leaders who occupied the city strenghthened the walls every time to defend themeselves form their rivals.

In 1163, Garvon besieged the city for six month until he finally breached the walls. It took two more weeks to occupy the royal fortress. The rise of the Garvon dynasty marked the end of the crisis.

Garvon dynasty


Garvon's heir, Eugnon, determined that Uzkiloi's castle was in a deficient state, and that it was becoming too small and obsolete for the ever growing power of the royal family. When he became king, aside from infamously ordering all Zorrizto in Uzkiloya killed, he also ordered for the old castle to be demolished and a new, bigger and more imposing royal fortress to be built.

The city's slums were also replaced with decent houses and new streets were made. This forced many people to move to new houses, but that wasn't a problem as the city's entire Zorrizto population was gone, and their houses empty.

Notable locations also started appearing in the city, like th enorthern and southern squares and the royal field, which served an isolated sector of the city for the nobility and also as barracks for the military.

Eugnon dynasty
The Garvon dynasty was replaced with the Eugnon dynasty in 1497. The following decline of Uzkiloya was reflected in the city's appearance. Slums started appearing once again, and meanwhile, the often corrupt nobility lived an opulent lifestyle within the safety of the ever expanding royal fortress' walls. The fortress was constantly reinforced and improved to protect the king and his circle from any uprising.

Potential dissidents were also vanished form the city, and others left willingly. For the first time in the city's history, the population was decreasing dramatically.

In 1671, a decades long civil war broke out throughout Uzkiloya. The first to revolt were the miners, who used their large numbers to march thorugh the kingdom, until they reached Yskiloikrav. The city had remained loyal to the crown at first, but when the giant mob of miners arrived, many peasants in the city took up arms. The attempts to open the gates for the miners failed, and in the end, they were all captured and (literally) thrown off the walls. Eventually, the miners and other peasants were forced to retire, and their faction would lose importance through the rest of the civil war. In 1678, the prince of Beoria, a region which had seceded in 1672, besieged Yskiloikrav with the intention of taking the city and eventually unifying Uzkiloya under his leadership. The city walls, which were in a deficient state, fell with ease. King Eugnon V was forced ot retreat to the royal fortress with his guard and survive until reinforcements arrived to retake the city. The prince of Beoria knew that this was a race against time, but due to the incredible protection of the fortress walls, he had no other choice than to surround the castle and hopefully starve everyone inside. At last, the royal forces broke the lines and arrived at Yskiloikrav to take back the city, which they did successfully. Despite the victory, Eugnon only kept losing control over the kingdom, and even if he didn't know yet, the end of Uzkiloya was near.

1689 siege and total destruction
After a practically unchallenged advance through all of Uzkiloya, Mendeku IX arrived at Yskiloikrav with his giant zorrizto army, made up of zorrizto warriors, mercenaries, other Uzkiloyan rebels and support forces from neighboring countries. Eugnon V, who had retreated to the walls of Yskiloikrav after the defeat at Garvongrat, had already prepared for a weeks, or even months long siege. Despite the deficient state f the walls, Eugnon was confident that they would hold the attack, and he reinforced and partially repaired them. This siege was to be either the turn of the tide in his favor, or his last stand before Uzkiloya fell. Three days in, a fire started within Yskiloikrav, and it quickly spread through the wooden city. The fire was desperately contained, while the walls were more vulnerable. One week after the siege had begun, a breach was opened in the east thanks to the cannons provided by the foreign forces. Mendeku himself led the charge into the city. The Eugnon soldiers haistily retreated through the burning buildings while the Zorrizto chased them just as slowly. At this point, the fire was uncontrolled, and the neglected firewalls proved to be useless. While the city was turning into ash, the fight went on. In that hellscape, most of the citizens who weren't able to evacuate beofre the siege all died in agonizing ways. Eugnon V decided to assist his soldiers in the front, but was terribly wounded. Luckily for Mendeku, Eugnon was found alive, captured, and sent to the zorrizto camp outside the city where the zorrizto prince was. Many Uzkiloyans assumed the Eugnon had died, and others didn't even get the news through the thick cloud of smoke that covered the entire city. The Uzkiloyans retreated to the royal field, the most fortified section of the city adn the only one where the fire hadn't reached. They were chased by Mendeku's army who transported the cannons all the way there, and managed to open another breach. This time, the surviving warriors locked themselves in the safety of the royal fotress. The ones who didn't make it were brutally slaughtered by the vengeful Zorrizto. The royal enclosure was surrounded with siege engines, though many of these caught fire along the way as they were made of wood. It was determined that the only way to break into the royal frotress at once was to set it ablaze, like the rest of the city. This was achieved with the use of incendiary devices, and the plan worked. The Uzkiloyans were still determined ot make their last stand, even as they made their way through the tight underground passages and rooms which were collapsing on them. It is said that none of them sirvived. This concluded the siege of Yskiloikrav with an overwhelming Zorrizto victory. The day after the siege, all the soldiers and surviving citizens were called into what remained of the north square. Eugonon V of Uzkiloya bowed down and kissed the hand of prince Mendeku. This made the disolution of Uzkiloya official, and right after that, Mendeku proclaimed himself as kinng of Zorriztonia. Eugnon was tried for the Uzkiloyan royalty's treatement of the Zorrizto and was then executed.

Inmediate consequences and reconstruction


After the siege, the capital was in shambles. It was all burnt bouldings and empty walls. A zorrizto general famously said:

"Building a new city from nothing would take less."

Regardless, Mendeku had plans for a new and improved Yskiloikrav, but he still had many matters pending. The great debt drove him to pillage Ozpetrovi settlements to the north, and he also ordered all of the Uzkiloyan kings' mausoleums, most of which had survived the fire thanks to their underground location, to be stripped of all valuables. The royal fortress couldn't be saved, as even the foundations had crumbled, and Mendeku didn't have the intention to rebuild it either, as, after all, it had been built by the very man who committed genocide on his people. Instead, Mendeku had plans to build an opulent royal palace inside an intricate complex, surrounded by a well planned city. Craftsmen, workers, and builders were brought from the native zorrizto land to build a zorrizto city, fitting for the new zorrizto king. That is why, to this day, Yskiloikrav has a majority Zorrizto population, although decreasing due to recent uzkiloyan inmigration from the countryside. The royal fortress and surroundings were demolished to make way for the new royal palace, built in the zorrizto style, and the surrounding complex, which included the mansions of important nobles and government officials, and other buildings used to service the inhabitants of said complex. All of it would've been surrounded by a moat, a wooden wall and watchtowers, which are absent today. The old streets were mostly respected, but a better use of space was made. The north and south square were also rebuilt. The north square now had a square shape and all was surrounded by a uniform facade with columns, allowing for a shelter from the rain and for businesses ot be opened there. All the city walls were torn down, as they were deemed ot be obsolete, and instead were replaced by another moat. The city barracks were also built to house the new standing army of Zorriztonia, whcih would defend the city from attacks.

Zorriztonian period
The city thrived in the following centuries. To improve trade, better roads were built and a canal was also built leading ot the capital, which took 30 years. New buildings also appeared such as the royal theatre and other recreational buildings. The royal complex also saw many expansions and a square was built in front of the entrance ot the complex for people to gather when the king gave a speech.

Years of isolation
The city remained almost the same for centuries following the isolationist policy put in place upon the creation of Smontanya. The economy stagnated and the entire country slowly became a backwards place. In the 1920s, many people emigrated to Yskiloikrav from the region of Zorriztonian Ozpetrovia, which had been handed over to Ozpereovina and haistily evacuated. Most of these inmigrants were Zorrizto nobles and aristocrats, but many ozpetrovi peasants also came in search for bette ropportunities. Eventually, many of them resorted to contraband and crime, which resulted in an organized Ozpetrovi gang emeriging during the 30s and 40s. The criminal activity ceased in the late 40s and as Smontanya opened up, the gang disbanded. Many former gangsters and their sons still have influence over many companies to this day.

Economic growth and expansion
Smontanya started opening up to the world in the 50s. From there on, nothing would be the same. Factories were openend all at once, and people came form the countryside in masses. The government decided that this had to be regulated. Zoning laws and affordable public housing were intoduced to avoid factories near the city and slums. The citizens gained more acquisitive power and the ability to buy new consumer products. In the same decade, the first concrete building in Smontanya, the national stadium at Yskiloikrav, was built. The airport wa salso erected in the 60s, but was expanded in 1980. Many other notable buildings, such as the national museum and the royal hotel were built. The royal complex also saw many changes, as some of the old structures were removed or relocated to make way for government offices. The parliament building was finished in 1979, designed in a very modern style to signify Smontanya's transition to modernaity. In short, the city went from a town taken straight form medieval times to a modern capital in just the span of 30 years.