Gundrumether (Total War)

Gundrumether, commonly known as Hyrule Castle Town, is the capital city of the Kingdom of Hyrule, in Hyrule Field along the Zora River approximately 10 miles to the southeast of Vigjaro. The home of the iconic Hyrule Castle and the Temple of Time, reliquary of the sacred Triforce, it is the second largest urban center in Hyrule.

Etymology
The name Gundrumether is derived from the Akkalan words gundru (order) and mether (high), thus the name can be roughly translated to "High Order."

History
Hyrule Castle and the surrounding settlement was first constructed during the reign of Rhoaban Gustaf I in 2999 BG following the defeat of Sulkaris, as a new royal citadel for a unified Kingdom of Akkala, and was completed in 2991 BG. Later the same year, Rhoaban was assassinated by Baolin Nohansen I and Yom Daltus I, sparking the Akkalan Civil War. Less than a year after Baolin declared himself king, Yom betrayed him in 2990 BG, forcing Baolin to flee and taking the throne for himself. The following year, in 2989 BG, two of the three Harkinian Princes, Luso and Raso Harkinian, stormed the city and executed Yom, declaring Luso King. However, displeased with only being titled a Duke, Raso assassinated his brother less than a month later, declaring himself King of Akkala.

A year later, in 2988 BG, Falus Rhoam lay siege to the city and executed Raso, declaring himself King of Akkala and marrying Seri Onkled to solidify his power, only for both to mysteriously die of a recorded venereal disease within weeks. This power vacuum sparked all out war, and in the following year, 2987 BG, Baolin managed to retake Hyrule Castle and the throne. The escalating civil war coincided with an invasion by the Moblins, secretly orchestrated by Baolin, which pushed to the very walls of Gundrumether before being turned back by his niece Hylia, whom had achieved apotheosis after being infused with the power of the Triforce.

The city saw peace until 2939 BG, when Duke Bal Onkled usurped the throne from Baolin's grandson Berrymark Harkinian I, killing the king and forcing his wife and children to flee to Harkinian holdings in Vigjaro. In 2841 BG Onkled was assassinated by Lord Kiro Muno, who married Berrymark's granddaughter Seldia Harkinian II and ushered in the transition of Akkala to Kingdom of Hyrule and the First Golden Age, during which Gundrumether would know no war for almost 3000 years.

Gundrumether first fell to an invading enemy in 1 BG, during the Rise of Ganon, when the Moblin King Ganon lay siege to the city with the aid of the Darknut Legion and traitorous Sheikah of the Yiga Clan. The force was the largest ever seen on the face of Hyrule, and broke the city's defenses, killing Prince Rodlin Nohansen Sil and butchering much of the capital's populace. King Sil Rhoam Bosphoramus was slain in his throne room and his daughter Nylin Nohansen Zelda I barely managed to escape execution with the aid of loyalist Sheikah of the Necluda Clan. The city remained occupied and ruined until the withdrawal of Moblin forces in 1 AG.

Nylin's reign saw massive efforts to reconstruct the capital and kingdom at large, and the city flourished back to its former glory during her reign and that of her daughter Yanera Nohansen Zelda II, during a brief period known as the Second Golden Age. In 99 AG, under the waning rule of Marhala Nohansen Zelda III, the city was again besieged by the Gerudo led by Emperor Ganondorf, and the Princess was killed after refusing to surrender. Despite heavy bloodshed, much of the city's population managed to escape through a secret tunnel to Vigjaro, and the city and its surviving inhabitants came under the rule of Agahnim's puppet government and an occupying force of Darknuts. The city remained under Darknut control for three years until a feinted surrender by Agahnim and Marhala's daughter, the ruling Princess Oraiya Nohansen Zelda IV, retook the city, resulting in Agahnim's death and the retreat of Gerudo and Legion forces from Hyrule. The city would again prosper under Oraiya's reign, being largely untouched by the Return of Sulkaris in 126 AG until the end of the war. Having survived the fall of the Oocca Sky City, the desperate and injured Fallen Sage was lured by the Sages to the Temple of Time, rampaging through the city center before being slain in 127 AG.

Gundrumether remains the cultural and economic capital of the Kingdom of Hyrule and indeed much of the known land, the second largest urban center in Hyrule after Lynna City, with a population of over ten thousand. In addition to serving as the political and economic capital of the Kingdom it is the heart of the Church of the Golden Goddesses, home of the Sacred Triforce sealed within the Temple of Time. Below the city lie royal vaults of three thousand years of Hylian monarchs, as well as a network of secret tunnels leading to the city of Vigjaro.