Map of Valentia
Valentia (バレンシア Barenshia, Valentia) is a continent situated to the west (erroneously drawn to the east in some materials) of Archanea, and is the setting of Fire Emblem Gaiden and its remake, Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia.
History
The Dark Age of Valentia
The long strife between the gods
Originally co-ruled by the sibling gods Mila and Duma, over three thousand years early in Valentia's history, they came into violent dispute over their ideologies, with Duma believing mankind should strive for power and Mila believing that mankind should be led towards peace and pleasure. This dispute eventually led to a pact that divided the continent between then: The lands of the north were to be ruled by Duma and the lands to the south would be ruled by Mila. This would be registered as a Divine Accord.
Founding
For the next two thousand years the era of gods continued, with small pockets of human civilization occasionally sprouting, only to disappear due to their influence, while temples were constructed as central places of worship for them, and the faiths began to spread. As time passed on, their strength began to wane, and during this period of time, a pirate nation began to emerge that posed a threat to the Valentian mainland, along with Archanea's west coast, leading Duma and Mila to resist against the foreign threat. As the fighter Rigel from Duma’s domain and the hero Zofia from Mila’s domain kept leading the charge against the pirate nation, both were bequeathed holy blood from their respective gods, with the spell Ragnarok given to Zofia and the sword Falchion given to Rigel, with the latter returned to to Duma Temple after the war.
Eventually two kingdoms rose from the namesake heroes: Rigel in the north and Zofia in the south. At first, the kingdoms shared a harmonious relationship, as by operating the sluice gate, each country became more fertile, with Rigel in particular reaping the most benefits. However, the heavy involvement of the gods in the nations they came to rule led to a contrast between them. The Rigelians became a mighty empire ruled by strength, but lost much kindness in exchange. The Zofians live prosperous, bountiful lives filled with pleasure but became slothful and blind to strife.
End of the Age of Gods
After centuries of this rule, in the year 400 in the Valentian calendar, Zofia was subjected to a coup d'etat by its chancellor Desaix and in 401, Rigel launched an invasion by Emperor Rudolf in order to rid the world of the influence of both gods; in response, the heroes Alm and Celica led their respective armies to drive back Rigel and find the missing Mila, ultimately ending in the defeat of Duma at Alm's hands and the disappearance of both gods from the world.
Aftermath
The largest nations unified.
Alm and Celica, as the surviving royals of both nations, eventually married and united Valentia into a single nation in 402 with Alm as its first King, Celica as the first queen, and several members of both armies as part of the kingdom's Brotherhood of Knights or its overall structure. Alm in particular became known as "The Saint-King".
Awakening
By the time of Fire Emblem Awakening, both the kingdom and the continent had its name changed from Valentia to Valm, in honor of Alm's legacy. However, the kingdom suffered a schism and broke up into numerous smaller nations, remaining so until forcefully reunited as an Empire by Walhart.
Calendar system
- See also: Seasons
Sage Matthaus, with knowledge of the celestial bodies’ motions introduced the notion of a calendar system to Mila, who acknowledged it, as that year was chosen as the first year of the Valentian Calendar. The main differences from the Archanean calendar, aside from starting two centuries after it, is that it follows a seasonal division, divided between Flostym, Avistym, Pegastym, and Wyrmstym.
Countries
Rigel
The northern nation of Valentia, Rigel was founded by the War Father Duma. The nation is largely militaristic, valuing strength, valor, and order. The western half of Rigel is cold and mountainous with Castle Rigel stationed on the northern most point. Crop yields are low, making the people hardy and enduring but also cold and war-happy. The Eastern Half houses a slightly warmer climate and houses the Duma Tower.
Zofia
The southern nation of Valentia, Zofia was founded by the Earth Mother Mila. Zofia is known to be a peaceful nation blessed by the bounty of Mila. Its people are often overindulged with the luxuries the Earth Mother provides them, causing some to become slothful and rely heavily on her bounties to live.
Family Tree
 Zofia I
| Unknown
| Rigel I
| Unknown
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Lima III
| Unknown
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Unknown
| Unknown
| Unknown
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Locations
.svg)
Trivia
- While in both Gaiden and in the remake, Valentia has heavy religious following, in Shadows of Valentia, it is implied that it suffered a shift of traditions akin to early Christianity, as the altars for the overclasses supposedly represent the “old gods” once worshiped in Valentia prior to the coming of Mila and Duma, as well as the legendary warriors who once followed them, with the director of Shadows of Valentia referring to them as "pagan gods".
- This is the only continent in the Fire Emblem series that does not have a Fire Emblem mentioned or involved.
- In Fire Emblem Gaiden, the opening prologue calls Valentia a remote island.
Gallery
