Narnia (world)

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For other uses of "Narnia", see Narnia (disambiguation).

Narnia is a fantasy world created by C. S. Lewis as the primary location for his series of seven fantasy novels for children, The Chronicles of Narnia.

In Narnia, some animals can talk, mythical beasts abound, and magic is common. The series tracks the story of Narnia when humans, usually children, enter the land from 'our world', or Earth.

Contents 1 Geography 1.1 Narnia 1.2 Archenland 1.3 Calormen 1.4 Eastern Ocean 1.5 Other lands 1.6 Inspiration 2 Inhabitants 2.1 Humans from our World 2.2 Dwarfs 2.3 Talking animals 2.4 Witches 2.5 Mythological creatures 2.6 Other creatures and inhabitants 3 Cosmology 3.1 General characteristics 3.2 Multiverse 3.3 Time 4 History 4.1 Creation of Narnia 4.2 Rule of the White Witch 4.3 Golden Age 4.4 Invasion of the Telmarines 4.5 King Caspian X's Rule 4.6 Destruction 4.7 Contact with our world 4.8 Monarchial history 4.8.1 Titles 5 See also 6 References 7 External links

[edit] Geography

See also: List of places in The Chronicles of Narnia

[edit] Narnia

The country of Narnia is where most of the action of the series is set. According to the mythology of the series, Narnia was created by the great lion, Aslan, and is filled with talking animals and mythical creatures. C. S. Lewis may have taken the name from the Italian town of Narni, whose Latin name was in fact Narnia. Narnia's geography features rolling hills rising into low mountains to the south, and is predominantly forested except for marshlands in the north. The region is bordered on the east by the Eastern Ocean, on the west by a great mountain range, on the north by the River Shribble, and on the south by a continental divide.

The economic heart of the country is the Great River of Narnia, which enters the country from the northwest on an east-southeasterly course to the Eastern Ocean. The seat of government is Cair Paravel, at the mouth of the Great River. Other communities along the river include, from east to west, Beruna, Beaversdam, and Chippingford.

[edit] Archenland

Archenland is a mountainous country to the south of Narnia. It is bordered on the north by a continental divide and on the south by the Winding Arrow river. The seat of government is at Anvard, in the heart of the country. Anvard is both the capital city and the name of the castle within the city. Archenland appears to be very sparsely populated, with no other towns or villages mentioned in the Chronicles. Archenland is allied with Narnia, as is shown in The Horse and His Boy.

[edit] Calormen

Calormen is an empire in the south of the world of Narnia. Most of the country has a semi-arid climate, and its most notable geographic features are a volcano known as the Flaming Mountain of Lagour, and the Great Desert. The Great Desert is in the northern part of the country, and the difficulty of crossing this desert prevented aggressive Calormene governments from invading Archenland and Narnia for centuries.

The cultural centre of Calormen is the River of Calormen, which flows from west to east along the south side of the Great Desert. The capital city is Tashbaan, located on an island in the river's delta. River of Calormen is bordered for much of its length by farmland and wealthy communities. The city of Azim Balda, located at a crossroads in the heart of the country, is a major hub for travel and communications.

[edit] Eastern Ocean

Numerous islands and archipelagoes dot the Eastern Ocean. Most notable among these are Galma, the Seven Isles, and the Lone Islands; all subjects of the Narnian crown, and Terebinthia, an independent island. At the far end of the Eastern Ocean the geography becomes completely fantastic (as a result of the Narnian world being flat) where the sky meets the surface of the earth; in addition, it is implied that a passage to Aslan's country is located there. The Easternmost Ocean is described as having "sweet" water, capable of preventing both hunger and thirst, and is completely covered by large lilies. The sea becomes progressively more shallow the further East one travels, eventually terminating in a gigantic standing wave. Beyond the wave can be seen the "impossibly tall" mountains of Aslan's Country.

[edit] Other lands

To the north of Narnia lie Ettinsmoor and the Wild Lands of the North, both inhabited by giants. The most prominent settlement is the House of Harfang, a community of giants that is apparently the remnant of a much larger city which was abandoned generations ago and fell into ruin. The land west of Narnia is an uninhabited region of rugged mountains known as the Western Wild. The land of Telmar lies somewhere beyond this region, but its exact location was never documented, and beyond it are the western islands. Underland is located in great caverns deep beneath the ground of Narnia. The land of Bism lies far below Underland.

[edit] Inspiration

The landscape of Lewis' native Northern Ireland played a large part in the creation of the Narnian landscape. In his essay On Stories, Lewis wrote "I have seen landscapes, notably in the Mourne Mountains and southwards which under a particular light made me feel that at any moment a giant might raise his head over the next ridge". In a letter to his brother, Lewis would later confide "that part of Rostrevor which overlooks Carlingford Lough is my idea of Narnia". Although in adult life Lewis lived in England, he returned to Northern Ireland often and retained fond memories of the Irish scenery, saying "I yearn to see County Down in the snow; one almost expects to see a march of dwarfs dashing past. How I long to break into a world where such things were true."

[edit] Inhabitants

see also: Narnia Creatures and Narnia Characters

[edit] Humans from our World

A total of eleven named humans from our world have entered Narnia, four boys, two men, four girls, and a woman.

The four Pevensie children are the best known: Peter Pevensie – The High King Peter the Magnificent; Susan Pevensie – Queen Susan the Gentle; Edmund Pevensie – King Edmund the Just; and Lucy Pevensie – Queen Lucy the Valiant. All of them appear in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and in Prince Caspian. Edmund and Lucy appear in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and all of them appear as adults in The Horse and his Boy.

Others from our world include King Frank (who had been a cabman in London) and his wife Queen Helen, who were the first king and queen of Narnia and whose descendants lived in Narnia for many generations. They, together with Uncle Andrew Ketterley, Digory Kirke, and Polly Plummer appear in The Magician's Nephew. Eustace Scrubb, a cousin of the Pevensies, appears in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and The Silver Chair, and Jill Pole, a schoolmate of Scrubb's, also appears in The Silver Chair. All of these except for Susan Pevensie and Uncle Andrew appear in The Last Battle.

There were also about a dozen unnamed humans from our world (six pirates and their women) who repopulated the unpeopled land of Telmar and founded the race of the Telmarines. As Aslan says in Prince Caspian, they accidentally found in a cave "one of the chinks or chasms between that world and this" (i.e. between our world and Narnia), and he adds, "There were many chinks or chasms between worlds in old times, but they have grown rarer. This was one of the last: I do not say the last." So quite possibly others came to Narnia from our world as well, but Lewis did not record their histories for us.

Although he is not a human, Strawberry, the cabman's horse also entered Narnia from our world and there was chosen to be a talking beast and transformed into the winged horse Fledge.

[edit] Dwarfs

Dwarfs are a race native to Narnia. They are called Sons of Earth by Aslan, as opposed to humans, who are called Sons of Adam or Daughters of Eve. Dwarfs exist in at least two (and presumably more) varieties: Black Dwarfs and Red Dwarfs; the only significant physical difference between the two is the colour of their hair. While many Red Dwarfs are kind and loyal to Aslan, Black Dwarfs appear to be more selfish and warlike. All documented dwarfs are male and live together in communities, although it is known for them to mingle with and reproduce with humans. Consequently, it is possible for there to be females of dwarfish descent despite the lack of (or non-appearance in the books of) female dwarfs. For example, Prince Caspian's Tutor Cornelius is a half-dwarf, and Caspian's old nurse is described as "a little old woman who looked as if she had dwarf blood in her".

Dwarfs, like fauns, satyrs, the river god and his Naiad daughters and the tree people (deities of the woods) stepped forth when Aslan (in The Magician's Nephew) called for Narnia to "Awake. Love. Think. Speak. Be walking trees. Be talking beasts. Be divine waters." As the name "sons of Earth" implies, the dwarfs were presumably born of the earth as the Dryads were of the trees and the Naiads of the waters. When Aslan called the first council when the land was "not yet five hours old", he called the chief Dwarf to present himself. Dwarfs appear as the King's train-bearers at the coronation of King Frank. (Naiads — river nymphs — held Queen Helen's robes; ibid. ch. 14.) In keeping with their character as sons of Earth, the dwarfs are skilled and prolific smiths, miners, and carpenters. In battle they are renowned as deadly archers. According to Prince Caspian, chapter 8, a Dwarf can walk all day and night.

[edit] Talking animals

Many of the animals found in our world can also be found in Narnia. In addition, there are numerous sorts of talking versions of these animals. When Aslan breathed upon the first animal pairs, some not only gained thought and speech, but changed in size as well. Smaller animals (rodents, birds and small mammals) are larger than their non-talking relatives and larger animals are slightly smaller. Talking Beasts can be divided into four main categories: Avian, Hoofed, Mammal, and Reptile. There are no talking fish or insects, though there are aquatic Beasts.

[edit] Witches

There are two witches mentioned in the Narnian books, the "White Witch" (a.k.a. Jadis, empress of Charn, also called the "White Lady" by a hag and a werewolf who visit Caspian X in Prince Caspian) and the "Lady of the Green Kirtle" (a.k.a. the Green Lady).

Jadis (French, 'formerly', 'in the past'; also Turkish, 'witch', spelled cadı) is the last scion of the royal house of Charn; she is also said (in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe) to be descended from Adam's first wife, Lilith, and to have both Jinn and Giant blood in her veins. According to the Beavers, she has no human blood at all, although she has the appearance of a very tall human woman. When Jadis first entered Narnia on its creation she was banished to the north by Aslan where she spent one thousand years in exile. By the time she had taken over Narnia she had an army of followers that she had obtained during her time in the north.

The Green Lady is able to transform herself into a snake (variously referred to as a worm — also written "orm"` — in keeping with archaic or poetic English usage), and does so twice in The Silver Chair, once when she kills Rilian's mother, and once when she tries to kill Rilian himself and his companions. Most of her other powers seem to be related to seduction and enslavement; she has bewitched and enslaved Rilian and an army of underground gnomes, and almost succeeds in bewitching Jill, Eustace, and Puddleglum. Her origins are unknown; it is only mentioned that she is thought to be one of the "same crew of Northern witches" as Jadis. Some questions arose among fans debating whether Jadis and the Green Lady were related, or even the same person. Though not explicitly stated in the books, it is presumed that Aslan killed Jadis at the conclusion of the Battle of Beruna Ford (even though The Magician's Nephew established that Jadis was immortal). However, the Green Lady isn't likely to be a descendent of Jadis, as Jadis once told Edmund that she had no children, though this may have been a lie. It is possible that during her exile in the north Jadis set up this cult of "Northern witches."

There are also much less attractive forms of witches: hags, such as the ones that appear in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe in Jadis' army, and the one Nikabrik brought to council in Aslan's How in Prince Caspian, and other evil beings which might be classified as witches by an out-of-universe definition. They are clearly much less powerful than the other witches.

[edit] Mythological creatures

Other inhabitants of the Narnian world based on known mythological or folkloric creatures include Boggles, Centaurs, Cruels, Dragons, Dryads, Earthmen or gnomes, Efreets, Ettins, Fauns, Giants, Ghouls, Hags, Hamadryads, Horrors, Incubi, Maenads, Minotaurs, Monopods, Naiads, Ogres, Orknies, Winged Horses, People of the Toadstools, Phoenix, Satyrs, Sea People (mermen), Sea Serpents, Silvans, Spectres, Sprites, Star People, Unicorns, Werewolves, Wooses, and Wraiths. These are a free mix of creatures from Greco-Roman sources and others from native British tradition.^[1]

The author says in one scene in the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe that the evil creatures cannot be described, since the book must be suitable for children.

[edit] Other creatures and inhabitants

Narnia is inhabited by Marsh-wiggles (creatures of Lewis' own invention), and Dufflepuds (adapted from Pliny's Monopods) live on a distant island. And there are singular personages who frequent or inhabit Narnia and its surrounding countries including: the River god, Bacchus, Father Christmas, Father Time, Pomona, Silenus, and Tash. It should also be noted that the Stars themselves are sentient beings within Narnia. Coriakin, the Wizard, who rules over the Dufflepuds/Monopods, and Ramandu, whose daughter marries Caspian X, are both stars who, for various reasons, are earth-bound. Both of these individuals were encountered in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.

[edit] Cosmology

[edit] General characteristics

The world of Narnia is a flat world in a geocentric universe. Its sky is a dome that mortal creatures cannot penetrate.

Narnia's stars are burning humanoid beings. Its constellations are the result of a mystical dance upon the sky, performed by the stars to announce the works and comings of Aslan, Narnia's creator. The stars also arrange themselves to allow seers to fortell certain future events.

The Narnian sun is a flaming disc that revolves around the world once daily. The sun has its own ecosystem, and is thought to be inhabited by great white birds, which appear in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Some of the vegetation on the sun is known to contain healing properties. For example, the extract of a certain fire-flower found in the mountains can heal any wound or sickness, and a fire-berry that grows in its valleys, when eaten by a fallen star named Ramandu, works to reverse the effects of age.

Suggested by several of the books, the ground of Narnia may be a living organism. In The Silver Chair, the main characters find a land named Bism many miles below Narnia, in which diamonds and other jewels provide juice when crushed or squeezed. They find the idea unbelievable until a gnome explains that the precious stones found in Bism are real, not dead like the ones found in the "shallow" mines made by dwarfs and others who live on the surface.

[edit] Multiverse

The Narnian world is part of a multiverse of countless worlds including our own world and the world of Charn. These are connected by a meta-world or linking room known as the Wood between the Worlds. Not much is known about this wood, but it appears to be an empty space occurring as a side effect of the multiverse's underlying structure. This space takes the form of a dense forest with pools of water. With appropriate magic (or a device such as rings made from the soil), each pool leads to a different world. The Wood Between the Worlds seems to have an effect on the magic/strength of evil people — both Uncle Andrew and the White Witch become weak/ill when taken there.

[edit] Time

British visitors to Narnia observe that the passage of time while they are away is unpredictable (although someone who enters Narnia will always arrive earlier than someone who enters later). The tendency is for time to pass faster in Narnia than at home, but this is not universally true. As Aslan is able to summon gateways between Earth and Narnia, it is quite probable that all portals exist at his pleasure and he is able to control where they lead, both in space and time. This would mean that time, from the perspective of those travelling between the worlds, would pass in each world entirely independent of the other.

There is some confusion concerning the intersections of the timelines between this world and Narnia. The Telmarines were descended from pirates from our world, who had stumbled through a door between the worlds they discovered on an island in the South Seas. Some believe this references the men involved in the famous Mutiny on the Bounty in the late 18th century who eventually settled on Pitcairn Island in the southern Pacific Ocean. If true, this would put their arrival before the first visit to Narnia, in the late 19th century of our world. On that occasion, the visitors witnessed the creation of Narnia, which would mean that the pirates, leaving much earlier, would arrive much later.

However, the books do not say that the pirates were pre-industrial. They could easily be from a later post-industrial era and so no confusion may be necessary, even without assuming the theory of independent time mentioned above.

At the time Prince Caspian was written, however, Lewis may not have supposed that Narnia was created so recently; if so, he would not have had any time constraints upon his "pirates". The wording of the story of the Telmarines is vague enough, however, that it could be placed in many different time periods.

[edit] History

See also: Narnian timeline

[edit] Creation of Narnia

The Creation of Narnia was witnessed by six creatures: Jadis, Empress of Charn; Digory Kirke; Polly Plummer; Andrew Ketterley; Frank, a cabby; and Strawberry, his cabhorse. During a failed attempt by Digory to transfer Jadis from London in our world back to her own world of Charn, the group arrived in the Unmade darkness of Narnia just prior to Aslan calling it into being.

Aslan began the creation soon after they arrived, and with his song called forth the stars, sun, and eventually all landforms, plants, and animals as well. When he was finished, Aslan selected certain animals from these to be Talking Animals, giving to them, and all other magical creatures, Narnia as their new home, to own and rule it with wisdom and caring.

Aslan next appointed its first rulers, the cab driver and his wife (the latter having been called to Narnia by Aslan), as King Frank I and his wife Queen Helen, and commanded them to rule peacefully over the talking beasts. Aware that the evil Witch-Queen Jadis had entered his new land, Aslan sent Digory to retrieve a magic apple from a garden located in the Western Wild beyond Narnia. When he returned, the apple was planted by the river where it immediately grew into a tree which, as Aslan explained, would protect Narnia from Jadis for many years.

Aslan allowed Digory to take one of the apples from the new tree back with him to our world for his ill mother. After she had eaten it, Digory planted the core in his garden where it grew into a great apple tree. Many years later the tree was blown down in a storm and the now Professor Kirke had its wood made into the wardrobe which figures in the title of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and became the entrance by which future children discovered Narnia.

A possible oversight in the overall plotline that has been noted by readers is that by the time of "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe", there are no humans to be seen in Narnia, but it is known that King Frank and Queen Helen had children. Some of them settled in Archenland, and presumably King Lune and his courtiers in Archenland (contemporary with the Pevensies' Narnian reign, as recorded in The Horse and His Boy) were of that stock. Possible explanations range from a simple oversight (or lack of foresight) by Lewis, to humanity being insignificant or in exile (perhaps in Archenland), to an implied genocide by Jadis when she becomes the White Witch. Also, the children of King Frank and Queen Helen married nymphs and other Narnian beings, so one might possibly suppose that their human offspring were assimilated into other Narnian species. Whatever answer one chooses, it must be noted that the four children are unique enough when they appear in Narnia that they attract attention to themselves. A book titled Is Man a Myth? is observed in a Narnian home, implying some Narnians had come to question whether humans had ever existed at all.

[edit] Rule of the White Witch

The land of Narnia was in peace for hundreds of years after its creation. This peace lasted until, eventually, Jadis the Witch-Queen returned. Known then as the White Witch, she reigned as a tyrant, turning anyone who disobeyed her into stone with her wand. She did, however, favour the dwarfs and evil beasts of Narnia. Using magic, she covered the land in ice and snow for one hundred years, making it "always winter and never Christmas." Although Jadis claimed to be Queen of Narnia and Chatelaine of Cair Paravel, she had her own fortress in the north where her halls were full of the statues of Narnians she had turned to stone. But she watched out for a prophecy that might come true: "when Adam's flesh and Adam's bone sit at Cair Paravel in throne, the evil time will be over and done." To make sure no humans came into Narnia she set up spies to watch out for humans. Thankfully for the good Narnians, one of her spies, the faun Tumnus, befriended Lucy when she came into Narnia, and she and her siblings managed to reach Aslan before she could kill them. Jadis' reign officially ended when Aslan returned to Narnia and the ice and snow melted, but the Witch shamelessly and stubbornly still insisted she was Queen. That only lasted a matter of days before she was killed by Aslan at the Battle of Beruna.

[edit] Golden Age

Four children named Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie, playing in Professor Kirke's house stumbled upon the secret of the wardrobe, and discovered it led to a snowy waste full of trees. They arrived at a time when rumours were beginning to spread that the great Lion Aslan had returned, and the hundred years of winter were on the verge of ending. Becoming part of his court, they fought in the first great Battle of Beruna Ford and defeated the White Witch. Aslan then fulfilled an ancient Narnian prophecy and made the children Kings and Queens of Narnia. Because of the great prosperity Narnia experienced under their reign, this period of Narnian history is known as its Golden Age. While the evil Queen Jadis ruled Narnia, other countries were too afraid of her power to attack. However after her reign had ended the new Kings and Queens had these other countries to contend with. During their time as rulers they had to drive back the northern giants and defeat the army of Calormen, a harsh desert land south of Narnia ruled by the Tisroc who wished to conquer Narnia. However the two Kings and two Queens were always triumphant and when they ruled, Narnia was a safe and happy land.

[edit] Invasion of the Telmarines

Some hundred years after the return of the four Pevensie children to our world, Narnia was invaded by a people to the West called the Telmarines. Of the time between the childrens' return and the invasion, little is known. The Telmarines, descendants of pirates from our world, had experienced a great famine, and, crossing through a pass in the mountains to the south near Calormen, they reached Narnia. After years of Telmarine rule, many native Narnians died out or decreased in number, many going into hiding, and humans became the dominant species. By the time of the birth of Caspian the Tenth, the old days of Narnia were often regarded as legend.

[edit] King Caspian X's Rule

The High King and his siblings returned to Narnia, 1288 Narnian years after their departure. The current king there, named Miraz, was an evil man who had murdered his brother and usurped the throne, and who also planned to murder the true heir, his nephew Caspian X. Despite the subject being forbidden, Caspian had been illicitly taught about the magical history and creatures of Narnia prior to the arrival of the Telmarines by his old nurse maid and his tutor, a half-dwarf named Cornelius, and had become sympathetic to their plight. The four children helped Caspian defeat Miraz at the second Battle of Beruna, set him on the throne, and under his rule humans and talking beasts lived in Narnia together happily for years. It was in a way a repeat of the Golden Age.

Lucy and Edmund reached Narnia once more three years later with their spoiled cousin Eustace, and sailed with Caspian X (now King of Narnia and older) on a legendary voyage aboard the ship Dawn Treader. Caspian had undertaken this journey in order to keep a promise he made, to find the seven lords of Narnia who had been banished by his uncle Miraz to the far Eastern Seas beyond the Lone Islands and had never returned. On this voyage Caspian reinstated Narnian control over the Lone Islands (which had lapsed under Telmarine rule) and explored the unknown eastern islands to the very edge of the world. The explorers had many adventures amongst these islands which included fighting a sea serpent, encountering a wizard and his invisible subjects, and (in the case of Eustace) being turned into a dragon for a time before being returned to human form by Aslan.

Caspian married a beautiful woman (the daughter of a star named Ramandu) he met on that voyage, and she became a great Queen of Narnia. They had a son named Rilian, but the Queen was killed by a witch in the form of a serpent and Rilian, by then a young man, soon disappeared searching for her. Eustace was drawn back to Narnia along with his school friend Jill Pole, to find that the passage of time meant Caspian was now an old man, and setting off on one final voyage. The children, along with a Marsh-wiggle named Puddleglum, were sent by Aslan to find the lost Prince, a journey which took them to the Wild Lands of the North, inhabited by giants, and to the underworld where an evil Queen had bewitched Rilian into doing her bidding. Freeing him after ten years' imprisonment and destroying the Queen in her evil serpent-form, the two children returned to their world.

[edit] Destruction

The world of Narnia was finally destroyed some two hundred years later during the reign of King Tirian, son of King Erlian and seventh in descent from Rilian.

The events that culminated in its destruction were, on the surface, begun by a talking ape named Shift who had constructed an elaborate conspiracy in a selfish attempt to change the kingdom of Narnia to his liking. By dressing a donkey named Puzzle in a lion's skin and claiming him to be Aslan, Shift began surreptitiously gaining control of the western portion of the country, forcing the inhabitants to do his bidding in the lion's name. He then made contact with the current Calormen rulers, inviting them to take advantage of the situation and fulfil their centuries-old goal of conquering Narnia to their mutual advantage. A small group of soldiers under command of Captain Rishda Tarkaan was soon sent and by the time King Tirian learned of the ape's traitorous plans they were well on the way to completion.

With the help of Eustace and Jill (who arrived in time to rescue the king from capture), Tirian attempted to rally Narnia and drive out the invaders, but thanks to the dividing effect the false Aslan had had on the populace, and the simultaneous capture of Cair Paravel by a Calormen fleet, his efforts were unsuccessful. Tirian and his remaining supporters were eventually forced into a last stand against Rishda's army in the Battle of Stable Hill, which ended in the Narnian army's defeat. However, in the course of this final stand, the defenders were forced back into a stable, and found within it to their surprise, Aslan's country, described as all that the real Narnia ever had that was good, a Narnia-within-Narnia. This defeat of the Narnian culture and country signalled the final part of the story of Narnia which could be told, and Aslan the Lion, waiting for them, told them that it was time for the End.

Opening the Stable door, the children and other survivors witnessed the end of Narnia, the inrushing of the sea, the destruction of sun and moon, the coming home of the stars and ultimately the end of all that existed on the world. Aslan called all of its inhabitants to him in the process. Those who had been faithful were taken with him into his own land where they met previous people who had lived in Narnia and died. Those who had been unfaithful were turned away at the entrance to the new land. Aslan's land was bigger and better than the old Narnia, those who had died were found alive in it, because it was the "real" one, whereas the old Narnia had been just a copy of Aslan's land. "That was the dream, this is reality." It is also indicated that Aslan's country connected "further up and further in" to the "real" England, where Lucy Pevensie was able to see her parents, who died in the same train wreck that killed all the other Pevensie siblings, except Susan, as well as Digory, Polly, Eustace, and Jill.

[edit] Contact with our world

There are seven documented events of contact between the world of men and the world of Narnia. Dates are taken from a timeline provided in the book Past Watchful Dragons by Walter Hooper (ISBN 0-02-051970-2).

• In The Magician's Nephew, four humans, Frank (last name unknown), Andrew Ketterley, and children Digory Kirke and Polly Plummer, were present at the creation of Narnia, having been brought there by a series of unfortunate events. The same day, Aslan called Frank's wife, Helen, from England, and the two remained in Narnia as King and Queen. The children and Andrew returned to London.
• In Narnian Year 460, as alluded to in Prince Caspian, six human pirates and their wives from the South Sea entered the land of Telmar through a magic cave. They remained in Telmar and their descendants formed the Telmarine civilization.
• In The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, in Narnian Year 1000, four siblings, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie, entered Narnia through a wardrobe Digory had built from the wood of a magical Narnian tree. Aslan returned to Narnia at the same time, defeated the foreign ruler Jadis, now known as the White Witch, and set up the four children as kings and queens. They ruled for fifteen years before returning to England back in the state of their childhood.
• In Prince Caspian, in Narnian Year 2303, the Pevensie children were summoned to Narnia by magic to help remove a Telmarine usurper King Miraz from the Narnian throne and establish the teenage Prince Caspian as king. After this, Aslan allowed the Telmarines, descendants of the pirates who had arrived long ago, to go back to an island in the South Sea if they so wished.
• In The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, in Narnian Year 2306, Edmund and Lucy Pevensie and Eustace Scrubb entered Narnia through a magic painting, and took part in Caspian's voyage to the edge of the world.
• In The Silver Chair, in Narnian Year 2376, Aslan brought Eustace Scrubb and Jill Pole to Narnia, where they rescued Rilian, son of the now elderly Caspian, from his enchanted captivity. Caspian died, but was resurrected in Aslan's country. Aslan briefly allowed him to cross over into the children's world (England, 1942) to help them in return, which resulted in the removal of a corrupt school administrator.
• In The Last Battle, in 1949, King Tirian of Narnia appeared to the friends of Narnia in England, and Aslan brought Eustace and Jill to Narnia in Narnian Year 2575 to assist Tirian at the end of his reign.

It is possible that there were other visits. Given that the darker-skinned Calormenes differed in appearance from northern peoples (like Telmarines and Archenlanders), it is possible that they are descended from another group from the world of men; however, this is not stated in the books.

[edit] Monarchial history

While only some kings and queens are named in the book, the custom of Narnians to name sons after fathers, as well as a timeline that Lewis wrote outside of the series proper, helps create a fairly complete list of monarchs in the world of Narnia.

Years	Monarch	Notes
1-?	Frank I and Helen
Before 180	Five descendents of Frank and Helen	All named Frank. Their second son was the first King of Archenland.
Before 302	Gale	First Emperor of the Lone Islands
Before 900	Swanwhite	Date mentioned in The Last Battle. Contradicts Lewis' timeline, which says 1502.
900-1000	Jadis (the White Witch)	Ruled during the Hundred-Year Winter.
1000-1015	Peter the Magnificent (High King) Susan the Gentle Edmund the Just Lucy the Valiant	Rule concurrently as siblings.
1998-?	Caspian I the Conqueror	First King after Telmarine invasion.
?-2290	Eight descendents of Caspian	All named Caspian.
2290-2303	Miraz the Usurper and Prunaprismia	Son of Caspian VIII; stole the throne from Caspian IX.
2303-2356	Caspian X the Seafarer, the Navigator, and Ramandu's daughter
2356-?	Rilian the Disenchanted	First descendent in the line of Caspians not to be named Caspian.
?	Four descendents of Rilian
?	Erlian	Father of Tirian; last year of rule was Tirian's first.
?-2555	Tirian	Last King of Narnia before its destruction.

[edit] Titles

When a monarch is installed in the throne of Narnia, they receive the following titles:

• King/Queen of Narnia,
• King/Queen of Terebinthia (first acquired by Caspian X),
• Emperor/Empress of the Lone Islands (bestowed upon Gale of Narnia) & Dragon Island,
• Lord/Lady of Cair Paravel,
• Lord/Lady of Telmar (from Caspian I to Tirian),
• Baron/Baroness of Ettinsmoor (acquired by Caspian's conquest).

At one point Caspian X is referred to as Caspian, Son of Caspian IX, King of Narnia, Emperor of the Lone Islands, Lord of Cair Paravel, Lord of Telmar, Baron of Ettinsmoor, Tisroc of Calormen, King of Archenland, Duke of Lantern Waste, Duke of the Seven Isles, Duke of Galma, Count of the Western March, Emperor of Dragon Island and King of Terebinthia.

They may also receive the following titles:

• Knighthood of the Order of the Lion,
• Duke/Duchess of the Lantern Waste,
• Duke/Duchess of Galma and the Seven Isles,
• Count/Countess of the Western Marches

The rulers of other surrounding countries have different titles:

• King of Archenland
• Tisroc of Calormen
• Tarkaan/Tarkheena of Calormen

[edit] See also

• Pauline Baynes, original illustrator for the Narnia books and maps; also drew the maps of Middle-earth in The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien
• The Chronicles of Narnia (film series) — for details on the films

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official site of the books
• Official site of the movies
• Aslan — An Irish rock band taking their name from Aslan the lion
• Following Aslan children's devotional connecting Narnia and everyday life
• Narnia.it Narnia and Narni From the History to the Fantasy Discover the land of Narni(a)in Italy.