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‘MENACE TO MASTER-AT-ARMS: THE ORCISH INTEGRATION INTO THE LATE THIRD-ERA IMPERIAL LEGION’

BY MORVEN ASHWING [1]

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How to cite this article: Morven Ashwing (2018) ‘Menace to Master-at-Arms: The Orcish Integration into the Late Third-Era Imperial Legion’, The Journal of Tamrielic Studies, 1:1, pp.3-8.
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No one -- not the oldest Dark Elf of Mount Dagoth-Ur or the Ancient Sage of Solitude himself -- can recall a time when the Orc did not ravage our fair Tamriel. Whatever foul and pestilent Daedra of Oblivion conjured them up could scarcely have created a more constant threat to the well-being of the civilized races of Tamriel than the obnoxious Orc. [2]

These words, prefacing a pamphlet written by Tyston Bane in condemnation of the Orcish race, were ones that had been echoed through the eras and across the breadth of Tamriel, evermore so in the years leading up to the ‘Warp in the West’. [3] Orc raiding parties continued to heavily harasses the subjects of the Empire right up to the phenomena, and such subjects thusly reacted with the long-held hostile attitude of slaying the invaders first and asking questions later. After the event, the perception of the Orcs changed from savage, sadistic raiders, to that of sophisticated, proud and loyal barbarians. From a widespread menace to serving as troopers and armourers, the rapid social upheaval of perception surely baffles the mind, common and scholarly.

So, when the north-western provinces of High Rock and Hammerfell became peaceful and loyal to the Empire, what manifested this change in attitude towards the Orcs? This study aims to analysis the many factors that contributed to this rapid social, cultural and psychological development, on an increasing scale from transparency of the Imperial motives to the apparent opaqueness of the Orcish motives for integration.

IMPERIAL MOTIVES

The most transparent reason for the integration of the Orcish peoples into the Legion is initiative and pragmatism. Before the Warp in the West, the lack of diplomacy between the Empire and the Orcs meant that the levels of hostility could not be subsided. In fact, any form of civil mediation with such a race, seen as savage and barbarous was rendered impossible by the politically unstable situation in High Rock and Hammerfell in the aftermath of the War of Betony of 3E 402-3E 403. [4] Any civil discussion with the race, that had caused the two provinces to form a previous coalition in 1E 950 to “hold at bay the wicked Orcs in their Orsinium fastness…and burn aught in cleansing flame”, would have emphasised the manifest rebelliousness, pushing it to the forefront of court discussion. [5] After the Warp in the West and with the harmonization of the troublesome provinces, this great barrier to Orcish-Imperial diplomacy was overcome. Under the visionary Gortwog gro-Nagorm, the Orcs not only obtained a negotiated Imperial citizenship, but a whole-hearted acceptance for his people, that the Imperial Legion itself fully embraced.

This can be fully seen on the Isle of Vvardenfell, Morrowind Province, in the decade after the Warp in the West, after it had been opened to settlement in 3E 414. By 3E 427, Orcs made up 19 per cent of the Legion force stationed in Vvardenfell, with the highest concentration being stationed at Fort Darius just outside the town of Gnisis. [6] When this is compared to the distribution of the Orcish populace on the Isle - 6 per cent of the total population - the prominence of this statistic becomes ever clearer. [7] However, the influx of the Orcish presence in the Legion was not simply valued for its increase in provincial manpower, but also due to the innate specialist skills that the Orcish tribal society imposed on its members. The Orcish ‘Code of Mauloch’, especially its emphasis on forging, endurance and courage, bred a society primed and ready for the Legion. [8] In the case of Vvardenfell, the Legion effectively exploited this fact, for approximately 60 per cent of the smiths and half of the drillmasters on the island were Orcs, honing their well-practiced craft and strengthening the Empire’s presence in the East. [9]

The true extent of Imperial pragmatism is also highlighted in this study, for the distrust of the Orcs did not dissipate overnight. The posting the new Orc legionnaires in a distant province, far away from the immediate sources of anti-Orc agitation, allowed the Empire to keep track of their performance in the absence of an overwhelming number of compounding variables. Furthermore, it integrated the Orcs with the non-Orc legionaries by the comradery of combat and the severe hostility to all Imperial troops by the more conservative Dunmer – a feeling that had survived and festered in Morrowind since the Tiber Wars. [10] The concept of the Orcs being faced with hostility that was not solely directed on them increased the efficiency of the integration greatly for it increased social cohesion within the Legion superstructure, in a successful attempt to ease any remaining tensions between the Orcish and non-Orcish troopers.

But why was it in the Imperials interest to integrate the Orcs in the first place, besides the spontaneous initiative and pragmatism? There is very much a strong argument for the Imperial motives having been heavily calculated. With the north-western provinces at peace, Uriel Septim VII, very much like his ancestor Tiber Septim, turned his gaze to the east, and knowing full well of his ancestor’s difficulties, possessed the means to garrison the East while maintaining peace in the West. [11] Not only did an Orcish presence in the east perform the dual tasks of integrating them into the Legion and harnessing their skills with the anvil and the blade, but it maintained the stability of the north-western provinces by decreasing the number of Orcs there to cause both material and ideological damage to both the Emperor’s property and the judgement of his council. Nor would the racial reputation of the Orcs, that the Empire had with great effort attempted to boost, be allowed to be tarnished to its pre-Warp in the West state.


ORCISH MOTIVES

However, it would be reductionist to assume that the Imperial were the sole party with hopes, expectations and motives for change after the Warp in the West. The Orcs, too, had equally important means and motives to analyse. One explanation, and one that I assume would be the first that manifests itself in the mind of a student on the subject, would be that the motives and means rested entirely upon the person of Gortwog, leader of Nova Orsinium. [12] However, the flaws and limitation of this argument shall be discussed later in this study. Another argument is that a large majority of the Orcish populace of Orsinium, after centuries of homelessness and hostility from the Imperials, demanded recognition at all costs, to further the advancement of their race.

The former argument, in resting upon the warlord Gortwog, retains some objective validity despite its flaws. His genius diplomatic mind, even before the Warp in the West, allowed for a minimal reduction of tensions of Imperial-Orcish relations. His willingness to “swear… I shall not attempt to hold sway beyond the borders of Orsinium” shatters the pre-held perception of absolute hostility of Orcs to non-Orcs. [13] Indeed, the personification of the Orcish people in the person of Gortwog held considerable sway in the immediate aftermath of The Warp in the West, with the removal of its hostile neighbours through the territorial gains from the phenomena and the alliance with Wayrest. [14] The theology of Gortwog’s rule also contributed to this positive image of the Orcs. Gortwog’s leadership re-established the priesthood of Nova Orsinium to worship the Aedroth Trinimac, as opposed to the traditional Daedroth Malacath, patron-father of the Orcs. [15] The adoption of, and association with, an aedric deity allowed the Orcs to be associated closer to the worshippers of the Nine Divines and thus felt more ideologically integrated with the other provinces and included into the Empire.

However, the flaws in this train of argument persist nevertheless. The shift in theology was most probably not intentioned for the purpose that it contributed in causing but was in-fact a convenient by-product. It should also be noted that Gortwog did not create the Trinimac Cult, but merely adopted it, leading us to suspect that such an adoption was with god-like initiative and foresight. Furthermore, the sole focus on Gortwog ungraceful ignores the influence of his subordinate shamans in this venture, and of the acceptance of the cult by the populace of the large majority of Orsinium. Even after the Warp in the West, the fact that a minority inside Orsinium and a majority outside thought Gortwog’s ideas heretical, further brings this argument into doubt. [16]

Due to this, the latter argument has played a part in explaining Orcish motives as a collective expectation. It should be noted that Gortwog’s Orsinium, unique in his mind’s image as it was, did not, nor could it, bend to his will alone. Despite his anti-Malacath ideology, Nova Orsinium was “[g]raced by statues of Orc heroes such as Mauloch and Torug…”. [17] This is but one manifestation that represents the dominance of enduring structures over the individual mortal – how could he rule if he wanted to pursue an agenda that the majority did not want to follow? Orcish society, being savage but not tyrannical, would not have allowed him to retain his kingship had they themselves not wanted to pursue such a course of action with all their hearts.

Desire for acceptance and integration was not restricted to the kingdom of Orsinium – it is evident that, after the Warp of the West, Orcs from strongholds from the length and breadth of Tamriel flocked to join the Legion. Besides being advantageous to the Imperials in the maintenance of the Empire, it allowed all Orcs to sate their violent urges in a socially acceptable manner, while dually influencing the discipline of Imperial forging and tactics contributing in replacing their reputation as “consistently belligerent, morally grotesque, intellectually moronic, and unclean.” [18] The Orcs needed not to turn to banditry when they faced adversity or could not tolerate the stronghold life. After they had finished their service to the Emperor, they returned to either their tribes, or civilian lives as ‘city Orcs’ – not to be feared as brigands but welcomed as heroes.

CONCLUSION

The integration of the Orcish people into the Imperial Legion in the aftermath of the Warp of the West cannot be thus solely attributed to the means of the Imperials, sparked by the catalyst of the metaphysical phenomenon. For without the collective interests to gain recognition and the impact of Gortwog willing to enter in civil talks with the Empire, nothing would have been accomplished, as hostility could not have been subsided, nor could relations improve. Without the catalyst, not only would the Empire be unable to purely focus its sights on the east, but any attempts to integrate the Orcs into the Legion in such proximity to Hammerfell and High Rock where agitation still maintained high levels, would have hindered the rapid reputation rise to the Orcs, for the historical grudges of Bretons and Redguards against the Orcish race festered and simmered over the centuries. [19]


NOTES


BIBLIOGRAPHY:

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