Scheveningen

Scheveningen, nicknamed the Invisible City, and pejoratively known -- primarily by residents of Ouwestad -- as the Anthill, is the capital and largest city of Vaalsebossen freehold.

A former Dwaerkar fort, Scheveningen grew rapidly following the Ascendance of the Dwaerkar, and secured independence from Ouwestad. Scheveningen quickly became the home of many dissidents and heretics, who found a haven in the city because of its close proximity to Ouwestad and its values of liberty and freedom.

History
Scheveningen was initially established as a fort, a bastion to overlook the western approach to Ouwestad.

Following the war, the fort drew a large number of Dwaerkar settlers and explorers, who elected to temporarily establish their housing in the fort. This arrangement gradually became a more permanent affair; by +400, Scheveningen was a powerful and bustling city. At this point, it unilaterally declared itself independent, and was recognized as such by most of the other freeholds.

Politics
Scheveningen is infamously known as a safe haven for many political and religious dissidents and rattle-rousers, especially from Ouwestad. The "Long Hand" of Ouwestad has yet to reach into the Iron Gate, and a significant portion of Scheveningen's inhabitants are outlaws and heretics who have opted to voluntarily go into exile.