User blog:Aretain King/The Seven Kingdoms and War

Creating this blog post to cover an issue that has been raised lately concerning war and the seven kingdoms. So I want to take a moment to create this post, which will focusing on the actual canon lore of the game, and what is and is not true. So lets get started. For the record, all information on this blog post can be sourced from wow.gamepedia.com, which is the most up to date source of lore information for the world of warcraft. I will include references to the pages I used at the bottom of the blog.

So let's begin by stating an obvious point. There has been conflict between the seven kingdoms in the history of world of warcraft. Specifically there has been recorded conflict between the nations of Alterac and Stromgarde. According to official lore prior to the Second War, King Thoras Trollbane skirmished and warred with General Hath of Alterac on numerous occasions. This is an undeniable fact, and the keystone for which all 'there was war between the other kingdoms' arguments are based around.

But what about the other Kingdoms? Surely if two are fighting the others must also be fighting yes? There must have been a lot of conflict during the pre-second war period right?

No.

Having looked at the pages for each of the seven kingdoms and associated characters, there is no evidence to support the idea that there were wars between the other nations during this time period. Now I could end this blog post right here with that line, but I'm not going to do that, instead I am going to go into more detail with each Kingdom, starting with Lordaeron and ending with Stormwind.

Lordaeron
There is not much known about Lordaeron or its relationships prior to the Second War and the formation of the Alliance of Lordaeron, however information that could be found on King Terenas stated that during his reign there was peace and prosperity for the Kingdom.


 * "Terenas Menethil II was born in the court of the kingdom of Lordaeron, one of the strongest human nations, as a member of the royal Menethil family, which had ruled the kingdom for generations. An old friend of  Thoras Trollbane, Terenas grew up to become a wise and just ruler, greatly loved by his people. His long years of reign saw peace and brought prosperity for Lordaeron, but all this changed with the outset of the  Second War."

Terenas Menethil is credited to have ruled Lordaeron for 50 years. Prior to his reign information is even more sparse however it is noted that his grandfather successfully negotiated with the High Elves of Quel'thalas over the northern border which separated their lands.

(Opinion):'' Given the information that is present, it is safe to assume that Lordaeron was a peaceful Kingdom and did not war with any of its neighbours. Terenas's friendship with Thoras Trollbane implies that there was a strong alliance between Lordaeron and Stromgarde.''

Gilneas
Information on Gilneas is again fairly sparse prior to the Second War. What is known is that Gilneas had a powerful army and that it had a fairly strong industry and culture. During the reign of King Archibald Greymane, Gilneas was credited as being a thriving middle-power, capable of rivaling Kul Tiras or Stromgarde. However King Archibald was not a very welcoming man and believed that asking for help was a weakness. His ideals were passed on to his son Genn, who was the ruling monarch of Gilneas during the Second War.

As a result, Genn Greymane was a very prideful king and did not actively support the Alliance of Lordaeron. He argued that the armies of Gilneas could withstand any threat. He remained hesitant about joining the Alliance, but eventually heeded the words of his council, Lord Darius Crowley and Lord Vincent Godfrey, the latter of which stating that they should join to keep relations with their sister-kingdoms and for the benefit of trade and tariffs. Genn did eventually join the Alliance, but only offered a token force under the command of Vincent Godfrey.

Following the end of the Second War, Genn pulled his nations support from the Alliance. This was done for multiple reasons. Specifically, he believed that all the Alliance had given him were dead Gilneans and he chaffed at the idea of spending Gilnean taxes to build and maintain the Orc Internment camps and Nethergarde Keep. He along with Thoras Trollbane demanded that the surviving Orcs be executed, an act which Terenas Menethil would not commit to. With the assistance of Vincent Crowley, Genn drew up plans to build they Greymane Wall, and completely cut off Gilneas from the rest of the world. In doing so he effectively cut his own territory in half, as Silverpine Forest was the territory of Gilneas before the wall was built but afterward it was effectively ceded to Lordaeron, as there was no Gilnean presence in the region.

''(Opinion): Given that there is no recorded conflict between Gilneas and other human nations, it is a fair assumption to make that Gilneas was at peace with the other seven kingdoms. This is further supported by information that could be found on King Terenas, which stated that he had a peaceful reign. However in saying that, there is one particular nugget of information which others have been using as a keystone to claim that Genn Greymane hated Lordaeron, which is this passage:''


 * "Damn the  orcs, damn the  Alliance, and damn  you! The last thing Gilneas needs is sponges from other nations drawing from our resources,  Dalaran wizards meddling with our affairs, and someone else's enemies killing our soldiers! Gilneas is its own nation and it always will be. This is the last time I'll ever talk to you, Terenas, so I hope you were listening." 

'' That passage is found in the RPG book 'Lands of Conflict' which is non-canon as per Blizzards ruling. As a result, this particular speech never happened, and furthermore appears to clash with the new personality written for Genn which was refined in the Comic series which expanded on Gilneas, Genn and the Worgen. ''

Kul Tiras
Kul Tiras has a history of conflict, but not with the other human nations, at least not according to any concrete information. The nation of Kul Tiras thrived on trade and had one of the most powerful navies in the known world, but it did not use its navy aggressivly against the other nations.


 * "Always possessing a heavily armed and extremely powerful fleet, Kul Tiras only used their war vessels to protect shipping passages between the mainland and the island."

The point made here is a strong one, as there were many threats that Kul Tiras faced from the sea, including various pirate crews and the naga. Merchant ships that Kul Tiras relied on for their continued prosperity were at great risk from both threats and so a constant naval presence was needed to ensure that the trade to and from Kul Tiras remained operational.

''(Opinion): Given that Kul Tiras relied on trade with other nations to remain prosperous, it is highly unlikely that they were in any active conflicts with any of the human nations. While there may have been tense moments in the past, there is no record of any conflict occurring between Kul Tiras and any of the other six kingdoms.''

Dalaran
Dalaran has a rich and detailed history when compared to many of the other kingdoms. Given its history as the second city founded by the growing Arathor Empire. It was protected by magic-users and has been a haven for magical training and use since its foundation. During the Second War, Dalaran joined the Alliance and assisted in defeating the Horde, providing mages and sorcerors to unleash the arcane power on the Orcs.

Like with the other nations, there are no records which state that the Kingdom of Dalaran was in conflict with any of the other human kingdoms. There may have been many reasons behind this lack of conflict however the main reason may have been Dalaran's refusal to be involved in ordinary politics.


 * "Although Dalaran remained loyal to the fractured Alliance in the war's aftermath, it was noted for being politically aloof and secretive - magi of the Kirin Tor did not get involved in "ordinary" politics, and outsiders were rarely welcome in Dalaran, even visiting royalty."

'' (Opinion): As with the other human nations so far, there is no recorded information of any conflict between Dalaran and any of the other six nations. Dalaran, being a place of learning, appeared to accept all individuals capable of using magic. There are passages in the RPG which state that Dalaran considered all of the six human nations to be their allies, however due to the non-canon status of the RPG, that information cannot be considered accurate. ''

Alterac
The nation that turned on the Alliance and assisted the Horde, Alterac had a very tense relationship with the other nations of the Alliance. The constant wars with Stromgarde meant that when the leaders of the human nations met to form the Alliance of Lordaeron, there was visible tension between Aiden Perenolde and Thoras Trollbane. It is theorized that this tension contributed to Alterac's eventual betrayal of the Alliance.


 * "It is conceivable that this discord had alienated Alterac and its leader from the other Alliance nations who had positive relations with Trollbane. This alienation, in turn, would contribute to Perenolde's willingness to turn on those allies midway through the Second War."

''(Opinion): Nothing more needs to be said here. We know that Alterac and Stromgarde were in conflict, although the mention that other Alliance nations had positive relations with Trollbane implies that the other nations were at peace with Stromgarde. That being said, outside of the conflicts with Stromgarde, there is no recorded evidence that Alterac was engaged in any struggle with the other six kingdoms.''

Stromgarde
Considered to be the birthplace of human history. Stromgarde is what remains of the Arathorian Empire and its capital Strom. Stromgarde was led by King Thoras Trollbane prior to and during the Second War. It had known conflicts with the kingdom of Alterac, with Thoras engaging General Hath many times over the years. Stromgarde was one of the first human nations to pledge support to the Alliance, possibly due to the nations strong ties with Lordaeron given the strong friendship between Thoras Trollbane and Terenas Menethil.

''(Opinion): Nothing more needs to be said here. In context with the main goal of this blog post, we know that Stromgarde and Alterac had conflicts. However it should be noted that there are no other recorded conflicts with Stromgarde by any other nation.''

Stormwind
The Kingdom of Stormwind was the first Kingdom to feel the destruction wrath of the Orcs during the First War and the survivors of that conflict fought during the Second War to push the Horde back and reclaim their homes. They were far removed from any of the other human nations, being the only human nation in the south of the Eastern Kingdoms with the Dwarven Kingdom of Khaz Modan separating them from their fellow humans in the north.

As with many other nations, there are no records of conflict between Stormwind and any of the other six kingdoms.

''(Opinion): Given the location of Stormwind and its separation from the other human nations, the idea that Stormwind would need to declare war, or that other human nations would declare war on Stormwind is fairly weak. While there may have been internal conflict between nobles and other interest groups, there seems to be no indication of any bad relationships between Stormwind and the other six kingdoms.''

Conclusion
Having looked through all the related pages for the Kingdoms and their rulers, it seems fairly clear cut that there was no conflict between the nations outside of the isolated skirmishes and wars between Alterac and Stromgarde. Anyone is welcome to take a look at the referenced pages and try to spot anything I may have missed, but to the best of my knowledge there are no conflicts outside of those between Alterac and Stromgarde.

Does this mean that we, as roleplayers, cannot create wars?

No, it doesn't, anyone is free to roleplay or create whatever they wish, provided that they do not try to pass off their headcanon or fanon theories as official lore.

References
 * http://wow.gamepedia.com/Terenas_Menethil_II
 * http://wow.gamepedia.com/Lordaeron_(kingdom)
 * http://wow.gamepedia.com/Gilneas
 * http://wow.gamepedia.com/Genn_Greymane
 * http://wow.gamepedia.com/Kul_Tiras
 * http://wow.gamepedia.com/Dalaran
 * http://wow.gamepedia.com/Alterac
 * http://wow.gamepedia.com/Stromgarde
 * http://wow.gamepedia.com/Stormwind_(kingdom)