The Kingdom of Alpian

Location: Alpian is located in the northern segment of the Western Woods, in a small, heavily forested area. It consists of several dozen woodland villages scattered around an area of roughly 5,000 square miles (for reference, it's a little smaller than Connecticut). The territory is divided into four segments, and where the segments meet is the City of Alpian, a mighty white-walled place and the only real center of commerce in the city. The broad River Merrid runs through the southern portion of the kingdom.

Society:
Alpian is ruled by the Dowling family, as it had been for generations. Traditionally, the rulers of the realm are generous, kind souls who make up in compassion what they tend to lack in wisdom and savvy. The King and Queen view all the people of their small realm as their children, and exercise what wealth and power they have in making the lives of their citizens comfortable and safe. As a result, they are beloved by nearly the entirely population of the realm, who often take any criticism of their Royal Family by outsiders with barely-restrained hostility.

At the moment, the Kingdom is ruled by Gideon and Abigail Dowling, young newlyweds who look to be continuing the grand tradition of their outsiders in their blind pursuit of good for their people.

The Kingdom is divided into four segments, and each is granted to a Noble House to govern. Long ago, these families were chosen from among he peoples of the realm for their virtue, and their adherence to the morals of their king has not waned since then. They are:
House Strathon: The house of grim woodsmen, who watches over the northern portion of the kingdom.
House Treia: The house of peaceful farmers and deep thinkers, who watches over the western portion of the kingdom.
House Fletran: The house of friendly traders, who watches over the eastern portion of the kingdom.
House Merrid: The house of fishermen and sailors, who watches over the southern portion of the kingdom.

The people of the kingdom love their leaders and their country well. On the whole they live peaceful village lives, rarely straying too far from the place of their birth and taking up the trades of their ancestors. They bear a great respect for the woods and for each other, and so Gaia and Wyrim are the deities most often honored within Alpian's borders.

The kingdom is far from a powerhouse: owing to its isolationist tendencies and habit of spending funds on the public good, trade is limited and military strength is lacking. On the whole, the people of the kingdom are content to live simple lives, though this does leave them woefully unprepared in times of crisis.

The student of history may wonder why the kingdom of Alpian has endured so long, given that they appear to have neither the skill, funds, or stomach to defend themselves from invasion. The likely reason is twofold - first, they have barely anything worth having, given as they consist of a few dozen small forest villages and one large city in the center of the territory, with little in the way of natural bounty. The second reason is a superstition - it is a belief held by many that the woods around Alpian are enchanted, and the spirits of the forest love the land dearly. This is almost certainly untrue, but it's likely that a few prospective conquerors have been turned off from the meager land by the threat of an attack by fairies and goblins.

Unique Notes: The Kingdom of Alpian is notable in one respect - the king's court of knights known as the Alpian Brotherhood. This select band of warriors is said to consist of only the finest warriors in the land (admittedly, not a contested position), and are devout in their service of chivalry, justice, and the people of their nation. Legend holds that it is the Brotherhood's task to watch the rulers of the land closely, and remove them if they show signs of corruption - such intervention, however, had not been necessary for some time now. Rather uniquely, Alpian holds no requirement for noble birth in order to gain a knighthood: any man may be knighted, if he proves his skills and virtues worthy.