Forum:Gilnean Geography Before The First War

About how far North would the Gilnean territory have stretched prior to the construction of the Greymane Wall?

From what I've been able to piece together, the territory of Gilneas extended about 1/3 of the way North into what is now Silverpine Forest: It is noted that both Ambermill and Pyrewood Village had previously been a part of Gilneas --an important fact, without which there would have been no Northgate Rebellion, or consequent Gilnean Civil War following the Greymane Wall's construction. As Shadowfang Keep is referenced as having been part of the Alliance before the Archmage Arugal killed Baron Silverlaine to take it over, I have to assume that, because of its proximity to Gilneas, it, too, was a part of the Pre-Wall territory.

This allocation of land was sometime after the Seven Kingdoms period (about 1,200 years before the First War and the events of the Dark Portal), and changed only after the Second War (about year 20, or 612 by the King's Calendar), when Genn Greymane constructed the Greymane Wall, forever altering the territory considered to be part of Gilneas. As anything beyond the wall was no longer a part of the kingdom proper, Pyrewood became a much disputed territory ultimately claimed and incinerated by the Forsaken (as well as previously tainted by Shadowfang Keep and its Worgen Curse), and Ambermill was claimed by the Kirin Tor.

Would the borders of Gilneas have extended much further North than Ambermill in the years preceding the construction of the Greymane Wall? Or would it be safe to assume that this was the geographical transition between Gilneas and Lordaeron?

--Mordrae (talk) 09:57, 2 December 2011 (UTC)


 * I admit to being a tad curious about that myself. To me, Gilneas was everything behind the wall, and Gilneas' only connection to Shadowfang and the border towns in Silverpine was their proximity TO that wall. Ambermill, I was always led to believe, was a part of Dalaran from the start, and I associated both Pyrewood and Shadowfang with Lordaeron - until they connected the worgen (and Arugal himself, as a result) to Gilneas, and made the major rebuild of Pyrewood in Cataclysm to resemble the Gilnean architecture.


 * Ultimately, I think, the decision to build the Greymane Wall where it is - or rather, where what's left of it is - is a matter of terrain. The region around Crowley's lands is rocky and steep (Shadowfang's sitting on top of a hill, after all), so Greymane no doubt decided the flatlands - which are now something of a swamp, thanks to the Cataclysm...at least, I don't think the swamp was there BEFORE the Cataclysm - would be a better place to build his wall. Oh, Crowley would be put out, his lands locked on the other side, but Greymane probably took a "meh, what can you do" approach. --[[Image:IconSmall_Deathwing.gif]] Joshmaul, Loremaster of Chaos (Leave a Message) 12:14, 8 December 2011 (UTC)