Seven Kingdoms

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The Seven Kingdoms, From top-left to bottom-right:
The North, Iron Islands, Riverlands, Riverlands, Vale, The Westerlands, Crownlands, The Reach, Stormlands, Dorne

The Seven Kingdoms is a nation comprised of seven formerly independent kingdoms on the continent of Westeros. It is ruled by a king who sits on the Iron Throne in the capital city, King's Landing.


Origins

The Seven Kingdoms are named for the seven individually ruled kingdoms that existed on Westeros, at the time when Aegon the Conqueror set out to invade Westeros. These were:

Initially Aegon conquered six of the seven kingdoms, consolidating them under the rule of his House on the Iron Throne. With Dorne, joining only two centuries later by marriage pact, after few hurdles on the way.

Aegon established his new nation's capital on the spot of his landing, for which it was known as Kings landing. The surrounding area became known as the Crownlands.

Regions and Territory

The Seven Kingdoms are divided into nine administrative regions, seven of which were former independent kingdoms before the Targaryen Conquest and two that were created after. The Crownlands, which Aegon took for his own house and The Riverlands, which gained independence after the defeat of Harren the Black, during the conquest.

The nation's territory includes all but the northernmost tip of the continent, where the Wall defines its northern border. The nation also controls the many islands off the coast of Westeros, such as Tarth and the Iron Islands. It is occasionally drawn into conflicts over the Stepstones off its southeastern coast, but it has rarely controlled a significant portion of them.

Cities of Seven kingdoms

The seven kingdoms, has many large townships, but only five settlements are officially classified as "cities". Listed in decreasing order of size, they are:

The rest of the seven kingdoms is primarily rural, with the rare exception of port towns because of their economic importance.

Culture

The people of the Seven Kingdoms are a mixture of several ethnic groups which have migrated to the continent over the centuries and intermarried. As such these Original ethnicities are more of a blurred trend than firm political units. Today they are mostly identified through their place of residence, where each kingdom retains its unique flavor. The influence of the Andals is strongest in the south, while the North still follows many customs of the First Men. Dorne is heavily influenced by the mass immigration of the Rhoynar. Small groups, such as the Ironmen and the mountain clans, maintain very different cultures from the rest of the nation.

Its feudal society is based on the model of the old kingdoms on which the Targaryen dynasty was built with each principality retaining some sovereign rights and ruled by a high lord that answers only to the King.

Commerce and Currency

Seven Kingdoms use several types of coins, Golden Dragons, Silver Stags and copper Stars. Golden Dragons are worth the most and have a dragon stamped on one side and a Kings face on the other.[1].

Religion

The Faith of the Seven is the official religion of the nation, the only regions where it is not practiced are the Iron Islands, where worship of the Drowned God holds sway, and the North, where worship of the Old Gods of the Forest remains strong.