Eres
Eres (Olg. ‘rock’, possibly clipped from a longer form; see below) is a town and major settlement in southern Orinion located east of the Delves at the north-eastern tip of the Harking Hills. The southern terminus of the Imperial Niom III Aran, it is the main administrative and commercial centre of the northern Harkings and particularly local tin mines.
Geography and Layout
Eres is nestled in the stony heights on the edge of the Harking Hills, due east of the Delves and north-east of the Hills of Eres and the Elmoor, at the northernmost extent of the Harking Hills. The foundations of the town were laid on an extended rocky flat easily accessible from the Orinian heath but equally in close proximity to the surrounding mines.
The only fully fortified settlement of the area, Eres is surrounded by a ring of wooden palisades set upon a cobblestone wall. Its town temple is consecrated to the god Käron in his role as patron of tillers and miners and located on a knoll on the western side of the town. The town's main road is set in cobblestone, extending from the temple eastward and connecting to the Niom Aran through the easern gate.
History
Habitation upon the fringes of the Harking Hills can be traced back at least to the spread of the Brethanian Olgs, possibly even the older Noldorinian migrations, especially upon the Delves, where tin has been mined since near the earliest years of Olgish metallurgy. Early settlements tended to cluster around or near mining operations, and the area of Eres is a comparatively late development. The town was founded on the instigation of King Erester the Tireless in the late second century E.B. to provide a central hub for the transfer of ores and equipment between the far-flung tin mines and the established settlement at Narn Aran. The foundation may have initially been named after Erester, likely as *Bwén-Eresteren or *Erester-Bwén ‘Erester’s Addition’ similar to other new settlements of the era, which was later clipped to yield the shorter Eres. Alternatively, the name may simply refer to the rocky patch of land the town was constructed on, possibly itself a shortening of a longer term referring to a particular kind of rock.
Initially mainly an administrative centre and palestown, the town saw significant growth during the urban rush of the High Kingdom, drawing population from the surrounding villages and establishing itself as the main regional settlement by the end of the fifth century. Eres was granted a town charter in 625, at which time there already seem to have been wooden fortifications similar to the later palisades. Its strategic location and relative safety gained the town the favour of many merchants, commanding all northward trade from the Harking Hills to Eres and markets further afield and serving as a common waystation for travellers southbound to the pales of the Harkings. The Old Aran Road, a precursor to the later Imperial Niom III Aran, connected the town to Narn Aran and the kingdom at large. With the flourishing of trade, Eres also became a centre for mercenaries offering their protection to traders braving the road north as well as rangers and pathfinders active in the wilderness of the Harking Hills.
The town was connected to the Imperial road network during its first phase of construction through the expansion of the old Aran Road into the Niom Aran. While retaining its local importance as a hub of trade and regional power, Eres remained a relatively minor town on the grand scale of the Empire, in the shadow of the larger and more significant Narn Aran.