Belisan Freeport

The city of Belisan [beh-li-SAN], known internationally as Belisan Freeport, is a port city surrounding Belisan Bay, at the mouth of the River Minnd in southeast Anret.

Belisan is actually two cities divided by the river. Belisan City lies on the west of the river, with its Royal Docks subject to normal customs tariffs. East of the river is the “Free Port”, where trade flourishes with no taxation and little regulation. The two cities have separate government and are rivals for prestige and trade.

The city's name is disputed, either coming from bel-y-san, meaning “salty lagoon”, or ancient Aralsic meaning “pleasant island”.

The two halves of the city are locally known by various names. Belisan City and Belisan Freeport are the official names, though they are commonly called the King's City and the Prince's City, referring to the former Prince Ralam of Besoaplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigKing Ralam of Besoa

Ralam Kenor Berill (1075- ME) is the first king of the newly forged United Kingdom of Besoa, declared in 1115 ME after a combined patriot exile force reclaimd the island from Hartheran occupation. For most of his life he was Crown Prince of the Sann'ali court-in-exile.

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This is in a series of articles on whose Sann'ali Merchant Fleetplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigSann'ali Merchant Fleet

The Sann'ali Merchant Fleet is a maritime consortium of merchants and captains loyal to the Sann'ali Court-in-Exile. The fleet itself consists of former ships of the Sannalese Royal Navy, Sannali merchant ships who were at sea or in distant ports at the time of the Hartheran Conquest, as well as newer vessels purchased or constructed since that time. effectively controlled the Freeport.

Sailors most commonly talk of the Freeport and Kingsport. Dismissive residents of the more orderly and cultured Belisan City refer to their twin as “Fisher's Bay”, the original name, or more often “The Swamp” or “The Stink”. Sailors also use a variety of more colourful expressions to refer to the rival Belisan City and its rulers.

Belisan Bay sits at the mouth of the River Minnd. With its half-moon natural deepwater harbour, Belisan is the largest and busiest port in the Anrel Isles, a nexus for trade goods flowing between Anrelplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigAnrel Isles

Anrel [ANN-rel], or the Anrel Isles, is the most northerly island group in the Natorn Archipelago. It consists of three major islands and numerous smaller ones. The largest, colloquially if infrequently called Mainland, is divided between the kingdoms of Trésard and Narette. The island and the rest of the world. The original city was founded around King's Hill, its walls being the boundary of the original city. The bay below is unusually deep, serving as an excellent harbour for large ships. In ancient times the city flourished with the shipping of ores and lumber from the city of Oracil.

The eastern side of the river has a larger bay, but its sloping sandy shore and swampy soil made it prone to inundation during storm tides and unsuitable for larger ships. Consequently it was mainly used by poorer fishermen to land their catch. The shoreline bristled with driftwood fishermen's huts which often got washed away. Fisher's Bay was redeveloped as a port by dredging the shoreline, building sea walls, and constructing stone piers and floating docks extending deep into the harbour. This tripled the capacity of the city, but merchants were still more inclined to use the Royal Docks. Consequently the local government petitioned the King to declare the city a Free Port, in an attempt to boost trade.

Belisan and the Freeport function as separate cities, subject to different rulership and taxation, though they comprise one continuous conurbation, divided by the River Minnd. Since most foreign trade takes place in the eastern docks, the entire city is often referred to internationally as Belisan Freeport, though in fact it is only the eastern half.

Belisan City, in the west, is under the authority of the Margrave of Belisan, but the port itself is in practice run by a Burgomaster appointed as the king's administrator.

The Freeport is administered by the Portreeve, who is nominally appointed by and responsible to the Anretian king. The Freeport area is subject to Anretian law but exempt from any taxes and customs checks, apart from nominal docking fees. Trade can therefore take place freely. Goods are subject to taxation upon leaving the city by the landward gates, but most trade comes into the Freeport from international shipping, and leaves on the ships of Anrelian merchants who ship to other ports in the islands.

The two cities have a great deal of rivalry, local politics consisting of constant intrigue between the Burgomaster, whose position has more status but less income and prestige, and the Reeve, in charge of a thriving and affluent city, but whose loyalties are divided between the demands of the king, and satisfying the Sann'ali court who have de facto control over his city.

After the Bizoan War the exiled court of the Crown Prince of Sann'al were allowed by the King to settle in the run-down eastern city of Belisan, taking residence in the tumbledown former royal fortress. The Prince's chancellor and former merchant, Besileo Abel, negotiated the status of Freeport. so that today the Freeport is dominated by Sann'ali trading interests. The Anretian government permits this concession to the Sann'ali, partly because of old loyalties, but mainly because of the great revenue accrued by Sann'ali trade. This dominance means that though the Burgomaster is appointed by the King, in practice the Freeport is almost entirely controlled by the Prince of Sann'al.