Geography: Hayasdan commands a central position in the middle of three plateaus that link the east with the west. The Armenian plateau is powerfully positioned between the Anatolian and Iranian plateaus, to the west and east respectively, and rises to an average height of between 900 and 2,100 metres above sea level. From Lake Sevan, which sits at a height of 1,800 metres above sea level, and Yerevan, which rests comfortably at only 980 metres, the plateau's elevation varies sharply, something which has shaped and restricted the locations of the region's settlements. The mountains of Hayasdan are the dominant feature of landscape, the ranges reaching an average height of 3,000 metres above sea level, and the peaks often reaching 3,600 metres and more. But it is Mount Ararat, that most famous of mountains, that dominates the landscape not only of the Armenian plateau, but of all of western Asia. Standing at an awe-inspiring 5,100 metres above sea level, it has been, and continues to be, a focal point for the peoples of the Armenian plateau and beyond.
The Armenian plateau, then, is vastly different to the lands that surround it. Its height largely negates its location in the temperate zone, and the climate consists of harsh winters and short but sharp summer spells. The low average rainfall on the Armenian plateau has shaped the development of sophisticated and large-scale irrigation technologies, some of which, dating from the 8th Century BC, are still in use today. Without such intensive irrigation, the land would almost be untillable. Rather than rain, it is the mountain snow upon which the people of Hayasdan survive, the often heavy winter snowfall being stored and released throughout the spring, summer and autumn.
The province of Hayasdan, and the Armenian plateau in general, is hydrologically very complex. Famous for its lakes, it also contains the sources of many of the most important rivers in both Anatolia and Mesopotamia. Yet, of the six main rivers that begin in the mountain springs of the Armenian plateau, it is only the Araxes river that does not quickly leave the region. Travelling from west to east along the northern borders of the Hayasdan province, in sight of the Caucasian peaks, the Araxes river begins at a height of over 1,500 metres above sea level. Until it reaches the Plain of Ararat, several thousand feet below its source, the Araxes river is unnavigable and useless as a trade route. Much as Mount Ararat has taken a predominant role in the mythology of the region, so too has the Araxes river, commonly known as "Mother Araxes". Other than the Araxes, Hayasdan also contains the sources of both the Euphrates and the Tigris, though only water flowing through the Euphrates - its western branch in particular - will spend much time in the Armenian plateau at all.
But it is the lakes and the mountains that have defined the land of Hayasdan for centuries. Of the three major lakes in Hayasdan, none are alike. Lake Sevan, sitting at over 1,800 metres above sea level, is both the smallest and highest of the three. The importance of the second lake, Lake Van, cannot be understated. It was the birth-place of Urartu, the great northern enemy of Assyria, whose empire at times extended over much of the region, even to Syria, Mesopotamia and Media. Van is the deepest of the three Armenian lakes, and lies at a height of about 1,500 metres. The third lake, Urmia, is the largest of the three and the lowest-lying. Largely desiccated, it is far smaller than it used to be, but at 550 sq. metres it is still of great size.
The mountain ranges of Hayasdan both frame and intersect the large province. To the north are the Pontic Mountains that cut Hayasdan and Pokr Hayk from the southern shore of the Black Sea. To the south is the Taurus Range which separates the Armenian plateau from the lands of Syria and Mesopotamia. Within Hayasdan itself the Armenian mountain range cuts through the centre of the province before turning sharply south at Mount Ararat, and forming the Zagros mountains that separate Lake Van from Lake Urmia. Any approach into Hayasdan is long, arduous and steep. It is only when one has reached the pass over a mountain range that one finally realises that the descent into the valleys beyond is markedly less than the land behind them, and that one has reached a much higher plateau that overlooks much of Anatolia and the Mesopotamian lands below.
It is within these mountains that the true worth of Hayasdan is found. The most abundant of the metals to be found in Hayasdan is copper, whose use is varied and formed a large part of the economy of the Bronze Age and later Iron Age. Other minerals which can be found are iron, tin, gold and silver. These have not been worked in large quantities until now, and in antiquity mining operations in Hayasdan never reached the output of such mines as can be found in Makedonia and other areas where slaves were a more abundant resource.
The lands of Hayasdan were well known as an excellent hunting ground, with the asiatic lion, wild goat,sheep, deer, antelope, bear and wild boar all being hunted by the nobility from atop the excellent horses that are also to be found in the Armenian plateau. Large herds of these wild horses, shorter than the Nisean breed, but stout in battle, were cultivated for both trade and war: it is noted in Strabo's The Geography that 20,000 foals per year were offered as tribute to Persia in earlier times. Of the domesticated animals, it is the herds of sheep that are most common in the highlands. The lands of Hayasdan were at times split between the herdsmen of the foothills and the farmers of the valley floors; these different life-styles, one sedentary, one semi-nomadic, may often have led to large disputes over land, as noted in Xenophon's "Cyropaedia".
Alongside livestock, wheat and barley were also grown on the lower slopes of the mountainside. Lower in the valleys, where the land can be better irrigated, orchards and vineyards were also common. The fruit in Hayasdan was particularly famous for its taste and succulence. Of these, it was the apricot that Hayasdan was most famous for, and the Armenian plateau may be the original home of this delicious fruit: its colour is often associated with royalty in Hayasdan because of this.
History: The Province of Hayasdan first steps on to the world stage during a period of expansion by the Assyrian empire in the east. The tribes of the Nairi around Lake Van formed a loose coalition of petty kingdoms that became known as Urartu, or Ararat in the books of the Bible that recorded this part of history. Mentioned in Assyrian texts as early as 1250 B.C., Urartu were able to resist Assyrian aggression and expansion around the Zagros Mountains and Lake Urmia for several centuries. Their rise to power began in the 9th century B.C., and they were eventually able to launch several successful campaigns against Assyria and other powers in Syria and Mesopotamia. At their height, under Kings Argishti II and Rusa II, their empire stretched from the western branch of the Euphrates and the Mediterranean coast of Syria, to Lake Urmia and the surrounding lands.
However, their hegemony was short-lived and in 745 B.C. the Assyrian King Tiglath-Pileser III came to power and after several successful military campaigns against Urartu was able to end their control over much of their old land. After many wars between the two powers, it was Assyria which was to fall first in 612 B.C. as the Medes asserted their control from the East. Shortly afterwards, Urartu was toppled by the migrations of the Cimmerians from across the Caucasus mountains, an event which is recorded in the Bible. The Urartu kingdom could not recover from this assault, and the region fell under the control first of the Median Empire in 585 B.C. and then the Achaemenid Persians in 559 B.C., after Cyrus the Great conquered the Medes.
Hayasdan at this point was still a collection of tribes that, though once a unified political force, had never moved beyond their separate tribal identities to form a singular people. While his information on Achaemenid Persia has been fairly criticised, Herodotus offers some important evidence of Hayasdan's nature during this period of its history, and lists several tribes in the two satrapies that make up the lands of Hayasdan and Pokr Hayk. Xenophon later adds to this list, and even in Strabo's time a number of tribes and identities are listed amongst the people of Hayasdan.
During its time as an important satrapy of the Achaemenid Persian empire, the province of Hayasdan could provide an annual tribute which included 20,000 horses and 600 talents of silver. During this period, Hayasdan began to develop into the unified kingdom it would become under the Artaxiad dynasty. In 401 B.C., during the reign of the King of Kings Artaxerxes, part of Hayasdan was given to Yervand, a noble who was possibly of Baktrian descent. His influence at the royal court of the Persian kings was formidable, as evidenced by the reprieves that he was granted on two occasions after leading satrapal revolts against his overlord. After the second of these satrapal revolts in 366 B.C., Hayasdan was given to Codomannus, later Darius III, for some years before he was called upon to take the throne of Achaemenid Persia.
Under Darius III, Hayasdan was once again left in the hands of a Yervand II, the son of Yervand the Baktrian. It was Yervand II who heroically led the Armenian cavalry at the battle of Gaugamela in 331 B.C.. Some reports claim that Yervand II died on the battlefield, but others suggest that he returned to Hayasdan after Alexander's victory, and declared himself king of that land.
Alexander's campaign against Persia brought with it the full force of Hellenistic culture that flourished well throughout the East, and Hayasdan was no exception. The political role that the Hellenistic Kingdoms ["kingdoms", unless "Hellenistic Kingdoms" is an official term] played in Hayasdan is unclear, though there was certainly some attempt during the reign of Mithranes I to bring the land under the control of Alexander's successors. In 323 B.C. a Greek was established as a satrap or puppet king of Hayasdan; however, his reign was short-lived and Mithranes I was returned to power after only a year.
The extent of Hayasdan's independence during the early years of the Successor Kingdoms is not clear, but there is evidence to suggest that they were certainly bold enough to support the revolt of a Kappadokian king against the Seleukid Empire. For this they were chastised, and Seleukid Empire entered into a diplomatic relationship with the Kingdom of Iberia that lasted fifty years and included provisions that were designed to weaken the power of the Kingdom of Hayasdan in the region.
By 272 B.C., the province of Hayasdan was probably still under the nominal control of the Kingdom of Hayasdan as an independent nation, however the centralised control of the province was certainly not a reality and could not be for some decades to come. Hayasdan was a land that did not facilitate centralised control, but rather advised against it. The same reasons that made it so difficult to conquer and subjugate by foreign powers – the mountainous terrain and extreme weather that effectively made travel and the relay of messages impossible during the winter months – also limited any possible effective control by a central, Armenian government. It wasn't until the reign of King Artashes in 188 B.C., who campaigned successfully against the independent tribes of Hayasdan and united the land under one language, the Armenian language, that Hayasdan began to operate as a modern kingdom nation, capable of mounting successful military campaigns abroad and against the great powers of the day - the Hellenistic states of Syria, Parthia and even Rome herself.
Strategy: This building represents the individual characteristics of a province. From the cities and villages, to the culture; from the landscape and ground, to the unique artifacts of old and new civilisations each province has a unique character that a faction would do best to heed if it wishes to utilise the resources to their best advantage. This building can offer a faction unique units depending on the Recruitment Buildings present, or can offer extended bonuses to certain Infrastructure Buildings. Additionally some provinces served as Sub-Capitals in history due to their location and traditional importance, some were economically orientated, others militarily or religiously. These provinces give additional bonuses depending on the combination of Civic Buildings you decide to build there. Finally, there can often be some small Public Order bonuses from unique buildings, monuments and natural features detailed in the description above or as separate buildings.
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