Highbridge

Overview

One of the major cities of The Riding, primarily known for its mammoth stone bridge that crosses the Green River.

Background

Location of Highbridge on the Green
River in the Riding Highbridge is located on the last major fork of the Green River.  It is the most diverse city in The Riding in many respects.  Its thriving barge industry supports the transportation of grain like many of the other river cities. Due to its location, it supports far greater amounts of traffic related to logging and livestock.  As the first major city on the trade route leading from Darkstone, it is also where iron, precious metals and forged weapons were traditionally traded into The Riding.  A substantial banking industry existed, second only to Greenmouth, in order to finance trade.  And, as raw materials such as timber and metals are cheaper here as compared elsewhere in The Riding, it is also the manufacturing and industrial hub for almost all goods other than cloth.

Recent events, most importantly the capture of the city by The Hate Incarnate and the reemergence of the Ancient Dominion of the Unending Lands, have ended all of the caravan traffic leading eastward into Orcish lands and much of the traffic moving westward into the remaining portions of The Riding controlled by the Empire of Polonia.

Population

The population of Highbridge is approximately 20,000 people.  The people of Highbridge are a fair mix of the races typically found in The Riding with equal representation of Humans, half-Orcs, and half-Elves.

Government

Current

The current government is subject to the whims of The Hate Incarnate. They seem to care little for ruling and are primarily interested only in their religious dictates being met. These dictates primarily are:

• No worship but that of Lathander or Amaunator.
• Everyone outside to prostrate themselves as sunrise. Bells ring and horns blow five minutes before sunrise. 
• Submission to the whims and desires of the Hate Incarnate members.

In the absence of many of the basic structures of traditional government, concerned citizenry, seeming with implicit permission of The Hate Incarnate has formed a city council consists of leading citizens including: Harbuck the Mayor (also the Head Constable),  Kelmen Longbottom (placed on the council due to the influence of his aunt), Yancey Figbottom, and Haelaeya (known be skilled in collecting and keeping secrets).

Formerly

Until 165 AFE, the city was administered by a Polonian governor supported by as many of two hundred legionnaires and a similar number of administrators.  The governor tended to be extremely strict in matters regarding discipline, lawfulness, and management of resources in order to support trade and industry within the city.  There was little need for a prison as the governor has instituted punishments for most crimes to be hanging, loss of limb, or lashes.  There was little tolerance for crime, although the majority of judgments seemed to hold native folk of the Riding responsible rather than Polonians when there were subjective decisions to be made.

Although taxation within the city is under the purview of the Governor, taxation and security in The Docks was often managed by the Southern Mercantile Company.  The Chancellor of the area containing Highbridge was particularly notorious for oppressive and arbitrarily enforced taxation policies as well as for encouraging brutality by the Company security throughout the taxation district.  

Prominent Citizens

Hate Incarnate

• Brother Pelliton
• Faldric the Archer

Polonians

Until 165 AFE, prominent Polonian citizens included:

• Governor Adelaide du Eagleroost - The Polonian Governor of Highbridge.  She is installed in the tower on Baron's isle and is responsible for the governance of the city.
• Chancellor Gascard de Gravenford - The Southern Mercantile Company's Chancellor in the Highbridge Administrative District, His quarters are located in the Docks.
• Master Nicolas du Ravenscroft, Gascard's chief lieutenant and heads up day-to-day operations on the Docks.
• Herbert de Harecove, Gascard's head clerk and responsible for handling most paperwork on the Docks.
• Captain Warrane du Houndstrail, oversees the City Constabulary and captains the Legionnaires installed in the city, stationed in the Baron's Grounds.
• Jacques de Lambfield, Exalted Priest of Tiamat and the Governor's primary advisor.

Riding Folk

• Constable Harbuck, the Riding Chief Constable, the City Constabulary is located in the Narrows adjacent to Top Butcher.
• High Priests Imdurr and Lymura, the head priests of Amaunator, located in Morningglow Temple in Temple Park.

Geography

The city itself is divided into a handful of different sections. =
Layout of the City of Highbridge

Baron's Isle and Baron's Grounds

Baron's Isle is a small, rocky island located in the Green River, about a hundred feet from shore.  The majority of the island is covered by a fortress with a large tower that overlooks the docks.  The fortress itself was the home of the former Baron of Highbridge and is now occupied by the Polonian Governor and much of his administrative staff.  The tower is almost one hundred feet high and serves as an excellent lookout for miles in all directions.  The fortress has stout walls and is easily defended by troops stationed within.  Some small siege equipment, particularly three large ballistas, are located on the walls of the fortress.

The Baron's Grounds primarily consists of barracks, a small parade ground, a courthouse, and a handful of support and administrative buildings for the soldiers stationed there.  At the current time, it also is occupied primarily by Polonian legionnaires that are stationed here in order to ensure stability in the region.  At any time, as many as 200 legionnaires are stationed here and on Baron's Isle.

The Farthing Yards

The Yards themselves serve as the common market and city center, as well as the location at which caravans load, unload and gather before and after journeys. Town criers typically shout their news here and posters and handbills are tacked throughout. None of the buildings in the Farthing Yards are allowed to be permanent although some of the stalls and shopfronts located in the Yards have occupied the same location for many years.  

The southernmost gates of the city, the ones that allow access to the Trade Road as it winds upriver are the dominant feature of the Farthing Yards.  Other gates lead out of the Yards, including a smaller gate that leads to the Merchant Quarter and a larger gate that allows access to the Trade Road as it continues northward, running under the high wall of the Old City and separating the Old City from the Docks.

The Farthing Yards got their name either because citizens looking for work would be hired for small jobs for farthings or because the farthing was the most typical coin used in transactions in the open markets located here rather than the higher priced transactions that took place in the Merchant's Quarter or elsewhere.

Now, the Farthing Yards is filled to oveflowing with huts and temporary housing for refugees from Overtown and points farther east.

The Old City

The Old City is surrounded by centuries-old, high, stone walls.  The primary gate into the Old City is the Iron Gate at the northeast corner.  Before the construction of the Farthing Yards and the Docks, the Trade Road passed in front of the walls of the Old City and the Iron Gate was the primary entrance.  Now, a newer, lower, outer, stone wall connects the Docks and the Farthing Yards to the city and a small postern gate connects the Merchant's Quarter to the Farthing Yards. To exit Highbridge from the Old City, people first exist via the Iron Gate or Postern Gate and then through either through the Farthing Gate or Baron's Gate.

Old City is divided into the Narrows and the Garden District sections by Devil's Street and Temple Park.

Temple Park

Roughly halfway down the length of Devil's Street is a small park known as Temple Park.  As expected, most temples border Temple Park. Temple Park is filled with the following statues.   .   
Statues in Temple Park

The Garden District

East of the park is upscale merchants and housing.  The area is named the Garden District because the city has planted trees, bushes and other flowers on either side of the streets or in stone planters on corners.  Many of the nicer homes have small lawns or gardens also.

The Narrows

The Narrows is west of the park and is further divided into the Merchant's Quarter, the Banking District, the Artificer's District, inns and taverns catering to these groups and caravans, as well as cheaper housing and two story tenements.  The Narrows is named for the extremely narrow streets that appear to haphazardly crisscross the area.

The Docks

The Docks were built long after the Old City.  The marsh along the river bank was filled with gravel and large stone blocks that extend out into the river.  After that, floating wooden piers were built.  The docks are designed to accommodate flat barges hauling grain or timber, fishing boats, and perhaps small ships with very shallow drafts.  The river tends to be less than 20 feet deep at this point, and closer to the docks it is less than ten feet.

The Docks are dominated by warehouses and shipping companies.  Inns and taverns that cater to the rougher elements working the river trade abound.  The single largest building in the Docks had been used by the Southern Mercantile Company to manage their trade in the area.  

Overtown

The former slum of Overtown, located across the High Bridge on the opposite bank of the Green River from Highbridge. It was destroyed during recent battles that concluded with the occupation of Highbridge by The Hate Incarnate. All that remains is rubble.

Landmarks

The High Bridge

View of the High Bridge from Overtown The High Bridge for which the city is named is a massive, iron construction that spans the Green River, connecting the walled city on the west bank with the village of Overtown on the east bank.  The bridge reaches as high as thirty feet above the water.  It is approximately 20 feet wide and almost a quarter mile long.

Although it appears to be made iron, it shows no signs of anything more that surface corrosion.  

Baron's Bridge

Baron's Isle is primarily reached by crossing Baron's Bridge, a narrow bridge that stretches from the Baron's Grounds to the island.  The water reaches a maximum depth of no more than 10 feet here.

The previous version of the bridge, made of wood and supported by stone pilings, was recently destroyed by an explosion rumored to have been set by The Resistance. The Polonians - the occupiers of the city at the time - built a newer, stronger bridge.