Sumi (Het)

Part of the Sanjak of Cumana, the Sumi Het is an extension of the sanjak only 3 hexes in size. It is located between Zaporozhian Severia on the west and Moscovite Kursk on the east. A 13-mile wide corridor connects it with Cumana.

The hex containing Sumi is mixed cropland and hinterland; the remaining two hexes are arable. The population of Sumi Het is 59,072, making it the most densely inhabited area of the four regions of Cumana Sanjak.

History

It is said that when the Mongols were destroying Europe, a Sharukan tribesman named Zarich was so beloved of the general Beta Khan that he was kept as an 'honored friend,' forced to sit for a thousand nights at the Mongol's right hand. One night, while Batu slept, Zarich slipped into the general's clothes and, using magics to disguise himself, gave an order to Batu's men to create a sanctuary for the wisest men upon the Psel River, where Zarich had spent his childhood.

However, the ruse was discovered and Batu had Zarich placed in manacles that had been heated red by a fire. When the Sharukan failed to scream or plead for his life, Batu's heart softene. "It will be easier for me to make your city than to receive again your friendship," the Mongol predicted. Upon hearing this, Zarich broke his silence and said, "A city is worth a friendship." At this point, however, the mage was well past recovery and died. Batu then founded the city of Sumi, in 1246, having Zarich buried in the tomb that is still there.

Since that time, Sumi has been a center of learning and knowledge, as well as a significant processing center for foodstuffs and textiles. The city also serves as a military post defending Cumana and Zaporozhia from predations by the Grand Duchy of Moscovy.

Population

Production

Goods produced in the Donbass Het are traded in Mutrakan. References for these are as follows:

See sheet map D 04 - Don & Volga Rivers.

World

Itossia (Het)

Part of the Sanjak of Cumana, the Itossia Het is a separated enclave located between Krivassa and Kherson of the Ottoman Empire and the Zaporozhian Sich. The region was formerly part of Zaporozhia, but became occupied by the Yetabeshi tribe in the 1580s. It has good relations with Zaporozhia.

The Ottoman border is kept by a treaty formulated from an agreement that river pirates operating north of Balki on the Dneiper river curtail their infringement of Ottoman trade (having proved themselves most troublesome).

The het covers 7.8 hexes, all of them arable. Itoskhan is the only city in the het, but both Balki and Vesoi are notable towns. Mikhai is a military outpost consisting of 145 permanent residents and twice that many temporary. The het's population numbers 27,102.

History

Since it's creation in 1597, far from being a hazard, Itossia has served to enforce defenses against the Ottoman Empire for both Zaporozhia and Cumana (with monetary support from both treasuries). Strong fortifications at all four centres in the het have withstood raids and sieges repeatedly since 1620, enabling cossacks from Zaporozhia to launch attacks into Kherson into the Crimea. This has helped stabilize the border and make incursions more difficult for less equipped raiders.

Population

Production

Goods produced in the Itossia Het are traded in Mutrakan. References for these are as follows:

Vegetation

See sheet map D 04 - Don & Volga Rivers.

World

Donbass (Het)

Part of the Sanjak of Cumana, the Het of Donbass serves as a narrow, thinly settled borderland against raids originating from the land of the Don Cossacks. Most of the population is clustered southeast of Kamut in the wealth-producing Donets Hills, occupied largely by the Dworka tribe.

The het covers 50.7 hexes, all of which are arable. Donbass Het is bordered on the south by the Sanjak of Azov (Ottoman) and Zaliv Bay; on the west by Zaporozhia, Ltava and Cumana; on the north by Kursk and Voronezh (Moskovy); and on the east by the land of the Don Cossacks. The population is 22,567, making Donbass the least populated of the four Cumana hets.

History

For most of its history, Donbass Het has been largely rural. Apart from Kamut, which was founded in 1336, substantial settlements were not founded until after 1400. Even so, most of the centers are small villages. Kamut alone has reached town status.

The het has been repeatedly raided by cossacks, most recently in 1648. This has made development on the open plains, particularly north of the Donets, extremely limited. Nevertheless, the het is the richest in the Cumana Sanjak, due to mining, metalsmithing stonework and available timber in the region. More than half of Cumana's income derives from these things.

Population

Production

Goods produced in the Donbass Het are traded in Mutrakan. References for these are as follows:

Vegetation

See sheet map D 04 - Don & Volga Rivers.

World

Cumana (Het)

Part of the Sanjak of Cumana, the Cumana Het is the most populated of the sanjak's four regions. The north part of the het, particularly between Mutrakan and Valki, also represents the best growing land in Cumana.

The het covers an area of 37 hexes, 1 of which is pure cropland and 14 are mixed cropland and hinterland. There are 22 arable hexes. Cumana Het is bordered on the south east by the Donbass; on the southwest and west by three hets of Zaporozhia (the Zaporizhian Sich, Ltava and Severia); and on the north by Sumi and Kursk (part of the Grand Duchy of Moscovy). It has a population of 229,041.

History

Cumana Het expanded chiefly in the 13th and 14th centuries. Peace was brought to the region by the Mongols, who established themselves by founding the city of Mutrakan on upper Donets valley in 1241. Mutrakan quickly became the center of Mongol power throughout the steppe between the Dneiper and Don rivers, becoming both a military and religious center throughout the 1300s.

Following the collapse of the Tatars in the 1490s, the Zolozi tribe began to consolidate the six existing tribes of Cumana at that time (the Yetabeshi would appear later), forming the Cumana Sanjak. As an entity, the Cumana Het suffered heavily from raids originating from Crimea, where the surviving Tatars north of the Black Sea were allowed to settle, inside lands occupied by the Ottoman Empire. The organization of the Zaporozhians has largely put an end to this threat, though small groups of raiders still use the hills in south Cumana in the summer season.

Mutrakan withstood a seige in 1648 from Don Cossacks, who also attacked Moscovy and Polish lands to the east.

Population

Production

References for goods produced in Cumana Het are as follows:

Vegetation

See sheet map D 04 - Don & Volga Rivers

World