Gerk
The Shire of Gerk is older than the Great Kingdom itself. It has always been ruled by a Grand Lady of Gerk, who is the youngest daughter of the last Grand Lady. The heiress is known as “The Damsel of Gerk” and at age 18 is married to a knight from out of the shire and ruling line who wins a great tournament. The Grand Lady is always a priestess of Beorry and her husband becomes the Marshal of the Shire. The sons of Grand Ladies or their sisters can never rule the shire and typically become knights-errant.
The current Grand Lady is Hertrude IV. The current Damsel is named Rosemund and is nearing the time of her betrowthal tournament. Her elder brother, the knight-errant Sir John has made himself scarce from the shire for quite some time.
The capital of the shire is an open-air stone circle of immense age, with a small, fortified manor house nearby. There are 6 villages that make up the shire: Old Gerk, New Gerk, Vista, Gerkburg, Downley, and Upley. The population is around 1600, with 16 knights, 64 soldiers and 320 militia of various quality. There are 12 members of the Beorry priestess sisterhood at a time.
The Gerk villagers are famous for their knowledge of herbalism.