Caemlyn

Author: Estyrien al'Halien

Kaym-lihn

The City

Caemlyn is the capital city of Andor and is situated in eastern Andor.

The northern road out of Caemlyn goes through Braem Wood and leads to Tar Valon and the southern road is to Far Madding. The western road leaves the city via the Whitebridge gate and leads to Four Kings while the western road leads to Aringill.

There are three distinct parts to Caemlyn; the Inner City, the New City and Low Caemlyn. The Inner City lies on the highest hills of the city and is surrounded by a wall of gleaming white stone streaked with silver. The main gate to the Inner City is the Origan Gate. Many of the buildings here are Ogier-built, including the Royal Palace, and are surrounded by many beautiful thin white towers capped by golden domes. The roads in the Inner City follow the curves of the hills and all lead to the Royal Palace. Dotted among the buildings in this part of the city are beautiful parks with monuments. The Inner City is designed to look good from any angle, especially when seen from above.

The New City encircles the Inner City and is bordered by a fifty feet high, gray stone wall, which has many white towers along its length. Gates into the New City are flanked by even taller white towers. It was built long after the Inner City, it is less than two thousand years old, and has no Ogier stonework as the Ogier had returned to their stedding when it was built. Most of the buildings have red-tiled roofs. Wide boulevards thread through the New City towards the Inner City and are divided in to two by a row of trees and grass.

Low Caemlyn lies outside of the city's walls; the buildings here are made of gray stone, red brick and have white-plastered walls and are, more often that not, three or four stories tall. This part is a sprawling mass of houses, inns and warehouses.

The Queen's Guard keeps the peace in Caemlyn and most areas of Andor. The guards wear red undercoats and cloaks and gleaming white collars and cuffs. They are commanded by the Captain-General; high ranking officers wear lion-head spurs and have knots of rank on their shoulders. The Queen's Guard recruits are trained by the Master of the Sword. Recently the Queen's Guard has started recruiting women into its ranks under the command of Captain-General Birgitte.

There are typically few beggars in Caemlyn because of the Queen's Bounty. It is available to anyone and on High Days the current Queen will distribute it herself. No man can be arrested while he is taking the Queen's Bounty.

There was once an Ogier grove and Waygate in Caemlyn, made by the Ogier when they built the city to remind them of the stedding. Since then the expanding city has destroyed the grove and the Waygate now lies in the cellar of a house in the New City.

While Elayne is out of the city with most of the armed forces, it is discoverd that a Trolloc army is marching through the Ways with the intent on destroying Caemlyn. The Band of the Red Hand, under the command of Talmanes Delovinde are one of the few forces with the potential to prevent this (TGS, Epilogue). Years later, as seen in Aviendha's visions in the Glass Columns in Rhuidean, Caemlyn is a prosperous city (ToM, Ch. 50).

Roads and Streets

• Queen's Walk
• Candle Street
• Needle Street
• Pearman's Lane
• Full Moon Street

Buildings in Caemlyn

• The Royal Palace- see The Royal Palace
• Academy of the Rose- a school set up by Rand al'Thor but taken over by Elayne Trakand upon her return to Caemlyn. It is in memory of Morgase Trakand.
• The Crown of Roses - the finest inn in the New City; owned by Mistress Cinchonine
• The Queen's Blessing- an inn in the New City; owned by Basel Gill
• Culain's Hound- an inn in the New City; owned by Master Dilham
• The Red Bull- an inn in the New City
• The Silver Swan- an inn in the New City
• The Crown and Lion- an inn
• The Ball and Hoop- an inn

The Royal Palace

Main article: Royal Palace

The Royal Palace is home to the Queen of Andor and her family and from here she governs the country. The palace sits on top of the highest hill in the Inner City of Caemlyn. It is a perfect example of Ogier stonework and, like much of the Inner City, is made of white stone. The Palace has many tall, white spires topped by golden domes and stonework that looks as intricate as lacework; balconies provide views of the city. The main entrance to the palace is through the Queen's Plaza, an oval shaped plaza flanked by tall, gilded gates.

Other Facts

When the Inner City was built the city was known as Hai Caemlyn and was part of Coremanda, one of the Ten Nations. This was before the Trolloc Wars.

All the towers in Caemlyn fly banners showing the Andoran White Lion on a red background.

Caemlyn is only surpassed in beauty by Tar Valon, though some inhabitants of Caemlyn may claim that it is even more beautiful than the latter.

Many high quality books are printed in Caemlyn.