Mon Lon Dōrs

Mon Lon Dōrs /mɑn lɑn dɔːrs/ (c. 1585 - 1615 SR ) was a leader of the Gonne slave uprising of 1608-1611 SR. A former slave trader, Mon Lon Dōrs was the one of the few insurrection leaders of the era whose goal was to put an end to slavery. Although brief and ultimately unsuccessful, his rebellion became one of the most famous and his name is the symbol of freedom in Tarnaria to this day.

Notable for attacks during the night, he was eventually defeated by Moon King V.

Life

Mon Lon was born in Mantar into a family of a wealthy merchant who dealt in salt. Mon Lon began working at his father's enterprise, but then his father went out of favor with the court when the Angry King came to power. This was due to his father being part of a bizarre cult that was gaining ground in Mantar, whereas Nilma was a Xaewoon Blue purist and began religious cleansing which resulted in a number of cults being banned and their followers expelled, most notably Foft.

Mon Lon was not part of the cult, but seeing his father's standing losing ground, he took some of the family money and left for Delavire, where he used his funds to enter into slave trade. He began working the Delavire-Gonne slave trade corridor, but quickly became known for his underhanded tactics, like providing information to the Kippies on his competitors' travel timetables and routes. He was described as arrogant and difficult to work with. Eventually, he made many enemies, but managed to became a relatively successful and important figure at Delavire. He hired a whole unit of personal guards and was unafraid of the Kippies due to establishing a good relationship with a number of toors. However, in 1603 his slave caravan was attacked by one of the Kippie toors and he was taken prisoner and then sold as a slave at Delavire to his competitor. It turned out that his competitors sent out word to local Kippie toors that a reward was set for capturing Mon Lon and bringing him to Delavire alive.

For the next several years Mon Lon was utilized as a slave at his competitors' slave barracks. They sold him to one another in order to humiliate him. According to Mon Lon, he was frequently beaten and tortured. Eventually, however, his captors tired of denigrating their former enemy and decided to move him on and sell him off.

Mon Lon was sent to Gonne, but the caravan was attacked by Kippies and he was again captured by a Kippie toor, although a different one. He reached out to its chief and told his story: his previous standing, his cooperation with Kippies and his hardships as a slave. The chief was impressed by his life story and agreed to give him a chance to live as a free man in his toor, as long as he vows complete loyalty and allegiance to the toor. Mon Lon agreed. Over the next year he earned respect of the toor, by teaching them about slave traders' routes, ways of working and habits, which allowed the toor to rob several slave caravans. At some point in 1606 the toor was attacked by the guards of one of the slave traders that they had robbed and who was able to track them down. Most of the toor was killed, but some taken into slavery. Thus, a year later, Mon Lon was back on his way to Gonne where he was put on the market and bought by a Tref merchant named Done Darvis.

The uprising

Mon Lon was kept in the Gonne barracks, when he and several others managed to escape. One of those slaves was Uroh Soader who became Mon Lon's right hand man. Over the next weeks Mon Lon raided Gonne, while freeing slaves. He amassed a several thousand-strong army, which became a serious threat for Gonne. Reinforcements from Ernele faced Lon Mon and forced them to retreat, however the slaves successfully moved into the mountains of Maird, which slightly under a century ago created such difficulties for Maksag Oordar.

For the next several years, Mon Lon continued raids on Gonne and slave caravans, again taking advantage of his former life as a slave trader. Building a community of former slaves in Maird, he become known as the fighter against slavery, which was a very new and controversial idea at the time even among slaves.

Their life in the mountains, however, was rough and riddled with difficulties. Not only had they been regularly attacked on the Gonne side, but they were also attacked by the forces of Maird.

Mon Lon eventually marched on Delavire in 1611 SR. His 4000-strong army managed to defeat the city. In an astonishing turn of fate, he managed to find his former captors and executed them. Two months later he led his now 7500-strong slave army on Gonne and, as was usual to him, attacked the city at night. But the city was prepared, having secured the support of Moon King V. The slave army was decisively defeated, with many, including Uroh Soader, executed. Mon Lon Dōrs managed to flee.

Final years and death

His exact whereabouts after the defeat at Gonne are not known in too great a detail, but he seemed to have coasted between Maird in the north and Kippie toors in the south. Available evidence suggests that he attempted to revive his movement, but this time trying to unite the Kippie toors. Eventually, he and several of his companions were killed by unnamed Kippies in 1615 SR.

Legacy

Mon Lon Dōrs was quickly forgotten, since at the time of his death the Gonne-Delavire corridor was dissolved, making stories of the uprising less relevant. But they continued to propagate throughout Tarnaria, slowly mythologizing Mon Lon as the martyr for freedom. His name became especially relevant in Loodon during the Dark Era: reigns of Cyblys and Koreyal.