Background file #2 by Simon Beckford & Arne Dam


Bergsburg Time Line

512

Records in Talabheim tell of a huge host of beastmen dwelling in the foothills of the Middle Mountains, lead by a warlord called Huagar the Ferocious. He is killed by an unnamed Priest of Sigmar in single combat.

743

Baron Friedrich von Brunckhorst establishes Hochland as a separate province under Talabecland.

c1000

Bergsdorf mentioned in annals

1111

Plague sweeps the Empire. Hochland is thought to have been hit hard, with many inhabitants buried in mass graves in the hills. The effect on Bergsdorf specifically is not known.

c1500

The first stone of Castle Bergsburg is laid by Baron Roland von Hochen.

1507

A temporary Shrine of Shallya's Falls is consecrated, as the building of the grand temple starts to take form.

1522

Baron Roland von Hochen founds the Council of Five to lead the growing town, now called Bergsburg. Over the next half dozen years, the east town wall including a fortified gate facing Talabheim and Roland's Bridge is built.

1538

The construction of a wall surrounding the growing settlements west of the Drakwasser is begun. (See Historical Map)

1547

The magnificent Temple of Shallya's Falls is completed and consecrated by the Shallyan High Priest from Altdorf.

1579

Temple of Verena consecrated.

1611

The construction of the Temple of Sigmar and St Franz is initiated 250 years after St Franz' martyrdom.

1618

Scores are killed as most buildings north of Grossplatz burn to the ground. After the fire, the richest families in Hochland erect mansions in the area which will later be known as Harzel.

1681

The Night Of The Restless Dead. Undead rise up throughout the Empire and attack settlements. According to the Temple of Verena's Annals, the citizens of Bergsburg were terrified by zombies and skeletons "scratching at the walls with dead fingers", and many are wracked by hideous nightmares. But by morning there is no sign whatsoever of an assault on the city.

1717

A number of pigrims are cured of illnesses. The following years see an influx of hopeful supplicants, forcing the priests at the temple to restrict the numbers of faithful having access to the waters.

1756

The Bretonnian priest of Shallya, Gilles de Laval, is executed at Bergsburg by garroting and burning for murdering several scores of children. He is also convicted on charges of heresy, sacrilege and violation of clerical immunity. Relations with the cult in Bretonnia are notably strained for centuries, and never truly recovered.

1850

The decomposing body of a giant is washed down the Drakwasser and becomes lodged beneath the castle. Teams of men spend days removing the corpse piece by piece. Bathing in the falls is not permitted, but after a meeting of the Council, the Head Priestess of Shallya blesses the falls and restores the confidence of the faithful.

1939

The sickly Talabheim 'Emperor' Eckhardt I journeys to Bergsburg to take the waters. He spends several months in the town, and returns each winter for the rest of his life.

1979

As the Wizard's War begins in Middenheim, many fugitive sorcerors are believed to have fled to Bergsburg incognito to escape the attentions of witch hunters.

c2020

Gold is found in the Middle Mountains, initiating the Big Rush.

2150

Beastmen activity in the hills around Bergsburg. Punitive excursions by the Baron and his army seem to eliminate the threat.

2187

Torrential rains lash northern Hochland and the Middle Mountains. The Drakwasser bursts its banks and floods parts of Helmsberg, Sudentor and Harzel. The Temple of Shallya's Falls is also partially flooded, leading to the construction of an elaborate flood-outlet channels north of the castle for use in similar situations in the future.

2200

Temple of Ulric founded

2214

The town wall is enlarged, enclosing the districts Helmsberg, Sudentor and the eastern parts of Viehstadt and Osttor within Bergsburg proper. St Skulda's bridge is constructed at the site of the old river gate, and Osttor is constructed as a proper gate. Helmsburg barracks is partially demolished, but the work is not finished. (See Historical Map)

2253

The Osttor riots break out after a period of growing tension between the Dwarven community and some human labour guilds. Priests of Verena and Shallya manage to pacify a mob attempting to burn down the Dwarf Engineers' Guild.

2301

Yuri of Praag arrives in Bergsburg and starts writing his Chronicles

2303

A regiment of Hochland soldiers and militia-men under the command of Count Bernhard Ludenhof join forces with Magnus the Pious in Talabheim en route to Kislev. The following month, the Council of Five leave Bergsburg without explanation, returning 10 days later. Numerous theories on their mission, each one more ridiculous than the next, spread all over town.

2306

Wizards' Guild of Hochland 'founded'

2316

Tiegel Theater completed

2375

The scandal of Gerhard Totenlas. The necromancer flees towards Wolfenburg, but is discovered in the mountains by witch hunters and executed.

2401

Baroness Ericha von Hochen marries Count Frederik Tussen (great grandson of the legendary Grand Duke Gunthar von Bildhofen), thus founding the Tussen-Hochen dynasty.

2430

Barony of Hochland transferred to Talabheim. The deeply religious Baron Erik von Tussen-Hochen rides to Talabheim in sackcloth and ashes.

2502

A small but fanatical cult of Shallya, known as The Weeping Chalice flourishes briefly in the city. The Temple voices disapproval of the tenets of the cult, but within the year all known members are dead as a result of a suicide pact.


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