The Duchy of Blue Grasses is a Kithain Fief in the Kingdom of Willows corresponding to the state of Kentucky.
Overview[]
Ruled by Duke Araby, the Duchy of Blue Grasses comprises all of Kentucky except for the mountainous southeastern region incorporated into the Duchy of Appalachia. The nobles and many of the commoners hobnob with the "horsy" set; some raise their own faerie steeds and hounds, holding their hunts and races in freeholds. The majority of commoners, though, eke out a hardscrabble existence on the dreams of rural and working-class poor.
Physical Geography[]
Two major and one minor river frame the Duchy of Blue Grasses on three sides. The Ohio River forms the duchy's north and northeastern borders (and beyond it the Kingdom of Grass), while the Mississippi sweeps past its westernmost edge. To the east, the Big Sandy River marks the boundary between Blue Grasses and the disputed Duchy of Winterthorn, while in the southeast, the Cumberland and Allegheny Mountains form the border of the Duchy of Appalachia. South of Blue Grasses lies the Duchy of Graceland.
While the eastern part of the state is famous as coal country, the central and western regions of Blue Grasses contain fertile farmland and pasturage, making it ideal for raising horses and other livestock, as well as cash crops like tobacco.
Major Cities & Landmarks[]
Louisville[]
The home of the Kentucky Derby, Louisville lies along the Ohio River, just across from the Kingdom of Grass. Louisville serves as the commercial and industrial center of the Duchy of Blue Grasses. Founded by George Rogers Clark (the brother of William Clark of the Lewis and Clark expedition), the city contains numerous historic sites, including Old Louisville and the Butchertown Historic District (home to a long-standing German community and many nockers and trolls). Changeling scotty's "horsy" set hosts an annual gathering at Churchill Downs, while the Old Town Sluggers (a group of Kithain baseball enthusiasts) hold regular meetings at the Louisville Slugger Company, the most famous manufacturer of baseball bats headquartered in downtown Louisville
Lexington & Surroundings[]
The largest city in the centra region of Blue Grasses, Lexington lies just beyond the foothills of the Cumberlands in the midst of rich, grassy pastureland and farmland. The city contains many splendid examples of 19th century houses, including the homes of Mary Todd Lincoln and Henry Clay. A number of these houses serve as freeholds for the city's changeling nobility. Thoroughbred Park, a favorite center of pooka activity, commemorates the elegant horses for which the state is famous.
Much of the land surrounding Lexington is devoted to the business of horse breeding. Numerous stud farms, several of them owned by the regions's Kithain, produce new crops of colts and fillies, including faeries steeds, each year to bolster the sport of horse racing. Near Lexington, the Kentucky Horse Park, which includes the Hall of Champions, the International Museum of the Horse, and the grave of Man O'War (the worlds most famous Thoroughbred), provides a memorial to the "sport of kings." The steam-driven Kentucky Central Railway, a favorite of the region's nockers and trolls and frequented by a few of the sidhe, operates in the summer between Paris and Maysville, Kentucky.
Between Lexington and Louisville, the state capital of Frankfort contains the Kentucky Military Museum and the Frankfort Cemetery, which contains the graves of Daniel and Rebecca Boone. Troll and redcap childlings sometimes stage mock warfare using the museum's displays as inspiration for creating chimerical battles.
Western Blue Grasses[]
The western part of the duchy contains a number of small cities and towns, including Fort Knox (home of the the U.S. gold depository). Periodically, plans surface among the less honest nockers and their redcap allies to rob Fort Knox using faerie arts. Such plots usually die aborting as the would-be thieves run up against the overwhelming bureaucratic Banality surrounding their tempting target. Bowling Green, the home of Western Kentucky University, contains the world's only GM Corvette Plant. Two sidhe of House Dougal compete to receive the first car off the assembly line each year and stage Corvette races throughout the summer. Hopkinsville, Kentucky, is the birthplace of both Confederate President Jefferson Davis and psychic Edgar Cayce. Native-born Charisma Jones, a particularly convincing and inventive pooka, plays on the Cayce connection to offer her psychic services to a worldwide clientele. South of Hopkinsville, the Cherokee Trail of Tears Commemorative Park hosts the annual Trail of Tears International Powwow, and event attended by many Nunnehi of Cherokee descent.
Natural Places[]
Blue Grasses contains many picturesque natural sites, including the Falls of the Ohio, a series of rapid descents that begin not far from Louisville (a favorite among daredevil wilders who white water raft along the falls using chimerical conveyances), and Big Bone Lick State Park, which contains prehistoric salt licks and the calcified bones of ancient Ice Age creatures. Herds of bison now roam the park (brought here in an attempt to increase the species' numbers). Several lodges of secretive Nunnehi are rumored to exist in the park area. Near Hodgenville, Mammoth Cave National Park provides some of the world's most spectacular underground rock formations and natural cave phenomena and serves as a freehold for a motley of sluagh.
Enchanted Places[]
Dramatis Peronae[]
References[]
- CTD. Kingdom of Willows, pp. 66-67.