Zion:
“Zion is a land of mystery. The Griffon Empire's gift to Equestria, Zion's land is harsh; ripe with snow covered mountains, very few farmlands, great cities, and scorching deserts. The inhabitants of this land have learned to cope with the rough environment and the exotic creatures that roamed the lands. When The Princesses made the pact with the Griffon Empire is ranged to be around four to five hundred years ago and the combined efforts of both the ponies and griffons have helped create sprawling cities, both, on the flat lands and deserts, as well as cities that perch on the nearby Jagged Claw mountains that border the nation from the neighboring Zebra Republic to the east. South of Zion lies the Land of The Griffons, separated only by The Emerald Canal.
“The land of Zion was discovered by griffon explorer Vauquelin who trekked across the grand Emerald Canal roughly five hundred years ago, shortly after returning from his journey to Equestria. At that time, the leaders of the Griffon Empire had attempted to craft an alliance of some sort with the ponies of Equestria, and with the discovery of Zion, the newly formed empire not only saw a chance to expand, but a chance to further improve relations with the Equestrians. When proposed with the promise of land and improved relations with the griffons, Princess Celestia accepted on the terms that her ponies can live in Zion, but live under griffon laws.
“The influx of ponies and griffon workers made helped to expand the Griffon Empire, numerous towns and cities were erected wherever they could be with the combined help of the two races. When everything had been completely established, the Griffon Empire began bombarding the civilians with taxes, and the ponies of Zion were treated as 2nd class citizens. Soon, revolts because of how harsh the Griffon Empire had been and how Equestria had little to no say in any activities in Zion spread throughout the land, eventually causing the Princess and an Ambassador of the Griffon Empire ao grant Zion independence after years of violence.
“With Zion an independent land free of the shackles of the Griffon Empire, the inhabitants were able to establish a government that became a mix of Imperial and Equestrian authority. A council of the most powerful political families from each city was created to ensure both, ponies and griffons, had a say in political affairs. Eventually, the tensions between the independent nation of Zion and the Griffon Empire eased and the two nations relied on each other and benefitted from trade. Connections to Equestria have grown distant to the point that the two nations barely have any contact with each other.....”-A Pony’s Guide To The Known World