Excerpts From
On Griffon History And Culture by Profs. Pot Shard and Ionic Column
Chapter 2: Overview of the Clan System
Griffons are a heavily clan based society, governed by a council called the Interclan Senate, consisting of representatives from the various noble clans. Unlike we ponies, they place, not harmony, but honor and glory above all things. Their ideal is to do everything to further the prestige of their clan.
Glory is mostly achieved through activities such as athletic competition (races, hammer toss, jousting, etc), monster hunting (Grifinland is a dangerous place), and manual labor. There is some degree of political maneuvering, but the sort of duplicity normally associated with politics is considered extremely dishonorable. Make no mistake, Griffons are not without music, art, and literature, but they tend more towards anthems and pride banners rather than Sapphire Shores pop songs and PiLasso’s blue period.
The clan stems from the griffons’ biology. Griffon females will lay two or three clutches of eggs in their life, spaced about five to ten years apart. Each clutch will consist of (usually) four to six eggs, with the females hatching first, and the males hatching up to a month later. It may seem like this would result in a hugely expanding population, but overall number of births are somewhat offset but a fairly high mortality rate. (Again, Grifinland is a dangerous place.) This is an accepted fact, so the loss of a child or two is not usually seen as a huge tragedy. This may seem callous to ponies, who view every life as sacred, but one must remember cultural differences. After all, even earth ponies, unicorns, and pegasi have their differences.
These large families along with the earlier, and somewhat higher occurrence of female hatchings (while not as skewed as ponies, the gender ratio in griffons is about 60-70% female) result in the matriarchal clan system we know. Though clutches are laid at the same time, the order of hatching is considered analogous to a birth order, and thus, a line of succession. The first hatched of a matriarch is next in line to lead, and should anything happen to her, the second hatched, and so on down the line.
“But how is a clan formed?”, you may ask. If a griffon performs a particularly noteworthy feat, they may earn a Title. This is an honorific placed after their name that they can use for life to signify their greatness. If an individual proves themself truly outstanding, they may be awarded by the Senate the honor of splitting off and starting their own clan using a Title as a name.
To start, let’s look at a hypothetical example, and we’ll get into the more precise dynamics later in the chapter. Say there is a griffon hen named Frigg Sharpbeak. Frigg slays a huge hydra in a particularly glorious battle and is awarded a Title: “Hydrabane”. This would make her full name, Frigg Sharpbeak, Hydrabane. Now let’s go bigger and say that in slaying the hydra, she saved an entire town. In addition to the title, she may also be allowed to form her own new clan, separate from the Sharpbeaks. Now, she would be Frigg Hydrabane, First of Her Name, founder of the Hydrabane Clan.
Chapter 4: Origin Myths
Griffon legends say that in the beginning, the world was created by the Garuda, a giant flaming bird that lives in the heavens. They believe the Garuda descended from the heavens and formed the land, the sea, and all of the animals. When she was done, the Garuda, dirty and tired from her hard work, shook herself off and took flight to return to the sky. And when she did, some of her down and feathers fell from her and drifted down to the earth. When they landed, these feathers became the first griffons.
The Garuda watched the griffons and loved them. They were her favorite of all her creations. But the Garuda became sad. She saw the griffons falling in love and having children and she knew she could not do the same, because for all of the things she could create, she could not create another Garuda. She wanted desperately to have a child of her own, so she tried to lay an egg. And she succeeded. But the egg was lifeless and would not hatch. The Garuda placed the egg in the sky and shed a million million tears. This egg and these tears became the moon and stars.
When the griffons saw the Garuda cry, they were dismayed by their creators despair. They cried to her, “Oh great Garuda! Do not be sad! You are not alone, for you created US! Even if you have no chick, WE are your children!” They held a great hunt and a feast to bolster her spirit.
The Garuda was heartened and tried again to lay an egg and have a child of her own. This time, when she laid it, her egg was full of fire and life. This fiery egg she carries with her on her journey across the sky each day. This was the origin of the sun. The griffon's feast became a celebration in honor of the new egg. (This practice has evolved over time into their traditional Sun Hunt, which is held annually on the longest day of the year, roughly corresponding with our Summer Sun Celebration.)
One day, the sun will hatch and a chick will emerge, and until then, the Garuda waits patiently. Or so the griffons believe. We ponies, of course, know this all to be false. Even the youngest foal knows that the sun and moon are magical constructs controlled by the princess. But
Chapter 8: Introduction to the Imperial Dynasties
Long before the current nation of Grifinland, with its meritocratic council-based system was formed, the earliest form of a unified Griffon government was an empire. It was ruled over for centuries by a series of dynasties like the Egret Dynasty and the Crane Dynasty.
The very first empress was, of course, Promallardtheus, known as Duck I, first of her name, and originator of the Duck Dynasty. Her rule was cobbled together through military conquest of the disparate griffon clans neighboring her own, which led to larger forces, which led to more and further conquests. Her rule was solidified, however, by forcing blood oaths from the clan leaders, promising loyalty or else punishment no less than the extermination of their entire clan. The Duck Dynasty was short, consisting of only Duck I and her daughter, Yffad, or Duck II, but it was the crucial period that formed griffon territory into essentially the same shape it holds to this day.
The last dynasty was the Loon Dynasty. The Loons caused a collapse of the empire through mismanagement due to insanity brought on through generations of inbreeding. They even believed themselves too grand for the capital city of Aeriethans and had a new self-named city built in their honor to serve as a new capital. The final empress was Spero, or Loon VII, who was said to have watched and sang as fire spread and the city of Loon burned. Rumor had it that she may have even been the one to set the fire in order to gain the favor of the Garuda. But, of course, that remains rumor and hearsay. The truth of the matter remains one of history's mysteries.
Regardless of what really happened, the capital was returned to Aerithans, where it remains to this day. (Though, the name was changed to Aerie Peak during the subsequent revolution. The citizens changed the name back several hundred years later to honor their heritage). But more importantly, as mentioned, the Griffons decided they were unhappy with their leadership and began a revolution. The remaining Loons were arrested and executed and the Empire with them.
But of course, the longest and most prominent Dynasty was the Goose Dynasty. Many of the most storied events and customs that remain in griffon culture to this day hail from the years of the ancient Geese. For example, this period holds the origins of the griffon's annual sporting festival, the Owlympic Games.
But unfortunately, the most important events involve the Geese's protracted war. For years, the ancient Geese were at war with the neighboring pegasus country of Pegsia. Perhaps the the most famous story from that time is the Battle of Stormopylae, in which Lord Lionidas and his 300 Sparrowtans defended for three days and nights a pass known as the Trot Gates against ten thousand soldiers of the Pegsian army. We will get into a more in depth history later in the chapter.
But after the tale of the 300 Sparrowtans, perhaps most well known is the Battle of Marethon. This was a turning point in the war. The Pegsians invaded Geese at the border towns of Marethon and Thrushwood with an overwhelming force.
The Geese scrambled to assemble a force to counter the Pegsians, prevent them from reaching Thrushwood, and push them back to Marethon. But their main force was much further north and their numbers were few. The Pegsian army was great and the Geese could not hope to face this superior calvary head on. Luckily, for reasons still unclear, much of the Pegsian vanguard temporarily left the camp heading west.
The Geese general, Miltalon, took advantage of this. He ordered a general attack against the Pegsians. He reinforced his flanks, luring the Pegsians' best fighters into his center. The inward wheeling flanks enveloped the Pegsians, routing them. The Pegsian army broke in panic back towards Marethon, and large numbers were slaughtered. Miltalon parleyed this successful defense into an offensive victory. With the Pegsian forces in ruin, he took his army and marched on Marethon, claiming it for the Empire, where it still remains part of Grifinland to this day.
Upon claiming the city, Miltalon sent his fastest flier, Pheasantides, to act as messenger to deliver the news to Emperess Goose IV in Aeriethans. Pheasantides flew the full 262 miles at a breakneck speed nonstop to deliver the news. She informed the Empress and promptly collapsed. Upon her recovery, Pheasantides was granted the title of Swiftwing, the first of her name. Miltalon, for turning a sure defeat into a resounding victory, was granted the title of Bloodtalon. These were two of the earliest Griffon clans. To this day, the Bloodtalon and Swiftwing clans are among the oldest, most honored, and most powerful clans in Grifinland. (For more on the griffon clan system, see Chapter 2: Overview of the Clan System [page 42] and Chapter 16: History of the Clan System [page 415].) Also note, as a further honor for Swiftwing, the race known as the Marethon is named for