Lore:Broken Diamonds (holiday)
Broken Diamonds is a holiday observed on the 23rd of Frostfall, in the Glenpoint and Glenumbra Moors regions in western High Rock.[1][2] It is a day in remembrance of Empress Kintyra II, who was imprisoned in Glenpoint and executed by the orders of her aunt, Queen Potema of Solitude and her cousin; the usurper Emperor Uriel III.[1][3] It is named after the torn flags depicting the Red Diamond, which were trampled in the hunt for Kintyra II's killer.[1]
It consisted of silent prayer for the Septim family's wisdom and benevolence.[2] The locals believed they hold an ancient curse and regret for the death of the Empress and gather outside a ruined castle to sing the Old Bretic song called Sepharve. No one in the modern age knows the song's meaning, nor can they remotely translate it. They only know it because they were taught so by the previous generation.[1]
The tradition comes from the early-mid Third Era, when Tamriel was embroiled in the War of the Red Diamond. Kintyra II was present in Glenpoint to help Duke Mentin fight Potema's forces but was betrayed the night she arrived with him.[3] While the year she was executed is debatable,[Note 1] the Empress died on the 23rd of Frostfall. On the next morning, upon hearing the news, the people of Glenpoint and Glenumbra Moors such felt horror and regret, they hunted the perpetrators in every Imperial castle until they cornered them.[1]
Sepharve Translated[edit]
- The Sephavre Souls of our fathers, suffer deeply, For you have led us to the dark time, When our own souls, filled with air, Allowed ignorance and villainy to thrive In what used to be our land. Howl, ancestors, howl and bring us Memories of our conformance with evil. We do anything we can to survive, Giving up our minds and hearts and bodies We will not fight, and we will be torn And like flotsam in a whirling tide We will be forever the agents of injustice But we will mourn it forever.
Notes[edit]
See Also[edit]
Books[edit]
- Broken Diamonds by Ryston Baylor — A tale of a sorrowful holiday
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e Broken Diamonds — Ryston Baylor
- ^ a b Broken Diamonds holiday description in Daggerfall
- ^ a b The Wolf Queen, v6 — Waughin Jarth
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