The Drowned Kingdom

The Drowned Kingdom is home to a fierce seafaring people who call themselves the ironborn. While some say the archipelago is named after the abundant iron ore on the islands, the ironmen claim it is instead named after their own unyielding nature. Formerly known as the Iron Islands, these islands were once ruled by the King of the Seven Kingdoms, until King Euron Greyjoy declared the islands independent from greenlander rule. It is often said that every captain is a king aboard his own ship, so the islands are also called "the land of ten thousand kings." Bastards of noble origin from the Iron Islands recieve the surname Pyke.

The Drowned Kingdom is ruled by Queen Esred Greyjoy from her castle of Pyke.

Geography
The Drowned Kingdom is an archipelago in Ironman's Bay, located in the Sunset Sea off the western coast of Westeros. They are roughly west of the Rivelands, northwest of the Westerlands and south of the North.

The main grouping of islands numbers thirty-one, with the seven major islands being Pyke, Harlaw,  Great Wyk, Old Wyk, Saltcliffe, Blacktyde, and Orkmont. An eight day sail northwest of Great Wyk is a smaller grouping of thirteen islands around the Lonely Light. Some of the islands are used for sheep grazing or are unihabited.

The Islands are smal, barely-fertile rocks with few safe harbors. The seas around the isles are stormy, frequently wreaking havoc with their considerable force.

People
Main article: Ironborn

The inhabitants of these harsh isles are known as ironmen, especially by The Seven Kingdoms, but they also refer to themselves as the ironborn. The ironborn are a seafaring people, and some do not like to be far from the sea. The Drowned Priests of the ironborn seldom stray far from the sea. The ironborn are considered independent, fierce, and sometimes cruel. They live in a harsh land and hold no love for the peoples of Westeros, whom they consider green and weak.

The Faith of the Seven of the Andals and the Old Gods find small favor with the ironborn, as their allegiance is given to their native Drowned God. Because of the scarcity of the Faith, there are very few knights in the islands. Some ironmen believe in returning to the Old Way of reaving, and paying the Iron Price.

Economy
The islands are sparse and rocky with a thin, stony soil that makes it hard for the smallfolk to farm, often having to do without the animals that might make their job easier, such as oxen or horses. While their mines do not produce the precious metals of the Westerlands, iron is abundant on the isles. Lead and tin can also be obtained. Most ironborn feel the dangerous and backbreaking labour required to mine these metals is work suitable only for thralls.

Military strength
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