History of Phaidros

Clan Period
The City of Naphon was founded in what would become the Polis of Phaidros under Hymacros the Forger, who settled the three clans of the Phaidron river 214 years before the first Decom. The three clans built the city together under the watch of Hymacros and Lemacles the Planner, who helped organize and plot the city.

The three clans constructed a council house atop a hill where they would meet to discuss problems and make laws. The council was run by the lesser clans, each of which would appoint a council member. The council was headed by the Three Clans' leaders.

43 years after the city's founding the last of the Three Leaders died. This marked the first step in the decline of the Clan Period. Other clans joined the city, making there be now five Great Clans as well as twenty-seven lesser clans. The Three motioned to stop accepting new lesser clans onto the council, a motion that was passed to the chagrin of certain lesser clans. This was a time of great civil unrest, as the lesser clans began to feel cheated and not represented on the council. The two new Great Clans agreed to help the lesser clans.

The lesser clans banded together, divesting themselves of all loyalty to the Three Clans and coalescing into what were three new Great Clans. So instead of Twenty-seven lesser clans and Five Great Clans, there were now Eight Great Clans. This helped further the Three Clans' slide into irrelevance, as now the council was balanced, with each council-man having equal power.

The alliance between the former lesser clans and the two new clans was not fated to last. Soon, all alliances were torn apart and each Councilman acted independantly. As the Clans began to co-mingle and all sense of Clanship and ethnicity was muddied, Council members decided to stop the process of electing clan-members based on which of the Eight they were from, and rather have all citizens vote on who to elect regardless of Clan. This was a concerted effort by the Five, who knew that since their Clans' people were less co-mingled with the rest of the city than the former lesser clans then they would more often have members from their Clans chosen.

It worked, and though still there were eight Councilmen, the lesser clans began again to become disenfranchised. This move cemented the end of what began to be called the Clan Period of Phadrian History. The Clan Period was followed by the Council Period, which was followed by the Judicial Period.

Council Period
The Council Period of Phaidros began 120 years before the first Decom. The people of this period were far more homogenized, though distinct cultures and people groups still stood out. The ending of Clan-based elections promoted a greater sense of unity, and soon the citizens of Naphon began to call themselves Naphites. Phaidros was still little more than the name of a river, leaving Naphon one of the few vestiges of modern civilization in the area. Trade flourished with the surrounding Poleis and the town cemented its status as an urban hub.

With the changes in council also came the federalization of the military. Young men were required to spend two years in the military from ages 17-19. The first formalized use of the military was in the year -116, when a small army was sent to subdue an unruly clan who had been causing trouble nearby. This was thought to have been the first step towards the founding of Phaidros.

Changes came to the Council in this time. In order to better represent a flourishing population, the Council added two members. Eight years later in the year -99, they added two more.

In the year -91 the Polis of Phaidros was founded. The Polis grew in side with every passing year, as clans and smaller cities quickly joined or were conquered. In -88 the city of the city of Aleton, member of the Desponian Polis, decided to abdicate in favor of joining Phaidros. The town was considered to be Desponia's window to the east due to it's position at the end of the Phaidron river. Aleton hoped to be better represented in the Council of Naphon. Aleton's abdication would start what would come to be called the Aleton War and began the start of the Council Period's decline.

The Council moved quickly to secure the town, sending the bulk of their military there. The military held fast against the more seasoned Desponian army, proving Phaidros' might. Seeing an opportunity, the northern Polis of Zotikos mobilized, setting out over-sea to capture Naphos. The Phaidran army in Aleton quickly abandoned the city in favor of saving Naphon, leaving only a small contingent behind, which was ultimately proved too little to hold Aleton. This chain of events was the cause and effect of what would come to be called the Crisis of the Thirteenth.

At this time the council came to a standstill. The decision of whether to withdraw their troops to Naphon or to hold Naphon with what soldiers they had split the council. Six council-members wanted one way, six the other. Their indecision went on for so long that they decided to appoint a thirteenth council member. The councilman's name was Xanthos, and unknown to anybody, he was an uncommonly ambitious man. He gained power among the council, who were quick to give him what he wanted due to the nature of the decision at hand. The people of Naphon were greatly in favor of removing the troops to protect Naphon, and since if Aleton wasn't a part of their country their opinion wouldn't matter, he chose to curry favor among the citizens by pandering to them. This helped him to gain the support of all the people, ensuring that he would always be voted for.

The siege was broken, and Phaidros went on much as before in regards to the country's borders. But the political landscape had been vastly altered. The people now had a hero in Xanthos, and what he said became law amongst the populace. The council-members knew that to move against him would cause them to lose their vote, and if not that, then to start riots. Soon he began to use known friends of his to publicly endorse people who would be loyal to him (public endorsement by a council-member was against the law), until most of the council were his.

He began to build a palace bigger even than the council-house, which became known as the Palace of the Thirteenth. In the year -85 Xanthos led a motion to create a second branch of the government. He would retain his title as the Thirteenth Judge in case of a standstill, but would gain a new title: King of Phaidros. He would have the power to veto new laws as well as propose new ones. He would control the military and trade, as well as agriculture. The Council's job was to take care of the law, choosing whether his actions were lawful or not and acting as judges. The Councilmen were renamed the Judges, and this marked the beginning of the Judicial Period.

Judicial Period
The Judicial period is the final period so far in the history of Naphon and is marked by the beginning of the Monarchy. It is the longest period in the town's history, having lasted from 85 years prior to the first Decom through to the 22nd Decom. Naphon soon rivaled even Desponia City in size, though Desponia still remained larger.

Xanthian Dynasty (-75 to -26)
Xanthos consolidated power up until his untimely death in the year -75. His son, Xanthos II, took the mantle of King over from him and continued much of what his father started. But during his rule the Judges began to be more independant, and through his reign the judicial system slowly slipped from under the thumb of the King. He was well liked, if not as popular as his father. He had three sons. Of these three the first died of natural causes. As to the second's death it is uncertain whether the same could be said. A well-renowned doctor of the time famously supported the idea of poison up until his death. This served to wrest away public affection from the Xanthian line. Xanthos III had only one son, whom he named Makarios. The change in name further disenchanted the public, despite Makarios' reputed kindness and wisdom. With him the line of Xanthos ended as he was found to be infertile. Such a problem would go on to be known as the Curse of Makarios.

Caiphon Dynasty (-26 to 5D 5)
In his place the Judges appointed Makarios' closest relative, a man named Caiphon. By this point the Monarchy became a regular way of life, losing the magic and intrigue of the Xanthian Dynasty. The Judges began to take a heightened interest into unnatural deaths. Caiphon, in order to keep any offspring of his from killing each-other, proposed a law that would automatically end that particular line if any ruler was found to have killed a family member for the throne. He also, in conjuction with the Judges, worked to set up a process of investigation in any such matter. The Dynasty ended with Caiphon's great-great-great-great grandson when it was found that he killed a brother for the throne. The would-be-King was widely ridiculed and held up as an example of what can come of those who forget their history.

Interim Period (5D 5)
The law had moved away from strict familial descent by this point. Caiphon had, in his restructuring, agreed with the Judges that the primary line of descent fell victim to a bout of murder and if there were no more sons to be had, then rather than choose a cousin or uncle, the Judges would have the power to elect somebody to the position. Of the candidates they considered, only one was of the family, the person being Damokles, Uncle of the disgraced would-be-King. Their only reason for considering him was that he was a man to be feared. Even though he was perhaps more unfit even than his murdering nephew, they listed him among the contenders to placate him. It didn't work. As the decision narrowed, the council became increasingly divided on who to pick. A majority could not be reached, and since they had no Thirteenth to choose for them, they came to a stand-still. This lasted for so long that the Damokles began to get upset. The Judges feared that he would start an insurrection, turning the town into nothing more than a Tyranny. With this in mind, eight of the council members (the decided upon majority required for electing a new King) elected Alecto. Their decision took away weight from the accusation that the Judges were trying to do away with the Monarchy, and Damokles faded into obscurity.

Alecti Dynasty (5D 6 to 7D 8)
The Alecti Dynasty lasted only two generations. A war broke out in his time between them and the nation of Akryio. In this war Zotikos was their ally, though their history was not entirely forgotten. Alecto was old by the time of the war, though still in control of his faculties. One day he suffered a stroke. The next day he was dead. His first son was leading the army overseas and received the news that he was now King while planning for a battle in the field. It's said that he spent all night in his tent mourning, and that come the battle his eyes for so puffy from tears that his carriage hit large stone, throwing him from where he stood. He died only minutes later and the army was forced to retreat. His brother, meanwhile, returned home at the news. Having never had children (unlike his brother, whose son was not yet old enough to be in line for the throne), he was under suspicion of infertility. He boldly stepped forth and proclaimed the statement to be false. That day he was tested and found to be infertile. It was at this time that the first records were of historians calling infertility the "Curse of Makarios".

Hermian Dynasty (7D 8 to Present)
Embroiled in a war and with no firm leadership, Phaidros seemed on the brink of destruction. The Judges quickly decided upon a man named Hermios, a general and one of the smartest men in the Polis. When he received the message notifying him that he had been selected it was right after one of the most important battles in the history of Phaidros. His soldiers had joined with the recently defeated army of Alecto II and, commandeering them, Hermios used their combined forces to crush an army that held an important river crossing. That battle was the first step towards winning the war. In the war's final battle, Hermios was the man who came up with the plan that gained Zotikos control of Akryio's capital. King Hermios immediately withdrew troops from the area, leaving the land to Zotikos. He took a large amount of money, goods, and slaves, and from then on Phaidros was the richest Polis of the west. Naphon and Phaidros enjoyed a period of prosperity greater than any of their history, and the Polis' glory surpassed even that of the Xanthian Dynasty. Hermios was hailed as Xanthos reborn. Some even went so far as to call him Hermios Xanthakos or Xanthios the Second. What he thought of it nobody knew.

Hermios' son, Hermios II, evidently looked favorably upon the comparison, naming his son Xanthos. Hermios II was much like his father, if a little less humble. His son Xanthos was said to have been even more boastful than his father, but in every other way a nice, amiable man. His great grandson was named Hypatakos. Hypatakos was notoriously a stern man, ruling his house with an iron fist while leaving much else to the judges. The time being peaceful and prosperous not much else was expected of him. He sired King Straton.