Arendelle

The Kingdom of Arendelle.

Arendelle is a kingdom based near a fjord, nestled among the mountains in the far north. The kingdom is ruled by Queen Elsa, who ascended to the throne after her parents, Agdar and Idun, perished at sea. Agdar and Idun were also survived by their younger daughter, Princess Anna.

History

After ascending to the throne, King Agdar proved himself to be a wise and generous ruler. During Agdar's reign, the royal family was comprised of himself, Queen Idun, and their daughters, Elsa and Anna. Elsa was born with the power to produce and control ice and snow; one night, she accidentally injured Anna with her magic. Though Anna recovered, Agdar decided to close the castle to keep Elsa's magic hidden from everyone. For the next thirteen years, the rest of the kingdom and other lands were denied access to the castle. Ten years into this period, Agdar and Idun died during a voyage at sea, leaving Arendelle without a monarch.

Three years after Agdar and Idun's deaths, Elsa was old enough to ascend to Arendelle's throne. To honor the occasion, the gates to the castle were to be open for the day; many representatives from other lands, such as the Duke of Weselton and the dignitaries, came to Arendelle to witness Elsa's coronation. However, following her inauguration, Elsa exposed her magic and fled Arendelle, unintentionally triggering severe winter weather conditions that froze the entire kingdom. Volunteering to retrieve her sister, Anna left Hans in charge of the kingdom during her absence. Unbeknownst to Anna, Hans planned to usurp Arendelle's throne and came close to realizing his goals by purporting that Elsa had killed the princess. But ultimately, Hans' schemes were stopped by Anna, and after understanding how to control her powers, Elsa undid the spell of eternal winter plaguing Arendelle. With the kingdom restored to peace, Elsa resumed her duties as queen.

Official crest

The official crest of Arendelle is the crocus, which has a ubiquitous presence on banners, capes, uniforms, wallpaper, and jewelry. The crest features the colors green, purple, and yellow. Official designs usually have a golden-yellow crocus with three petals and two leaves emblazoned upon a split background with purple on the left and green on the right.

Geography

Arendelle is located near a fjord, making it a viable trading center. Its human population is densely concentrated within the castle perimeter, although there is minor human activity in the forest areas outside of Arendelle.

There are also non-human populations, such as wolves in the forest and trolls in the Valley of the Living Rock. In addition to the fjord and forest area, Arendelle is also surrounded by a vast mountain range that includes the North Mountain.

The kingdom is subject to the succession of the seasons, having both warm summers and frigid winters. In the winter, there is a noticeable decrease in plant life and animal activity. However, in the summer, Arendelle's ecosystems flourish, with lush vegetation covering the cliff sides and flowers growing plentifully. Birds are also highly active around this time of year.

Arendelle is also in a position that is conducive for observing the aurora borealis.

Government

Elsa succeeded Agdar as Arendelle's monarch.

Government System: Monarchy

Head of State: Monarch

Religious Authority: Bishop

Arendelle is a small kingdom ruled by a monarch. At the time of her twenty-first birthday, Elsa was coronated as Queen of Arendelle, succeeding her father, King Agdar, as the ruler of the kingdom. Following her sister's flight from the kingdom, Anna assumed control and was capable of placing Hans in charge when she departed to retrieve Elsa.

Arendelle's monarch possesses significant political power across Arendelle and is able to almost unilaterally make decisions regarding the kingdom. The reigning monarch has full control over diplomatic affairs, and is also able to appoint officials and create new positions.

Though the bishop does not appear to hold any direct political power, he is responsible for heading the coronation ceremony and thus bears the responsibility of bestowing the right to rule upon an individual. The coronation ceremony is a symbolic event in which the prospective monarch must grasp Arendelle's regalia and face their subjects while the bishop ordains the new monarch in Old Norse.

Trivia

• Arendelle's appearance was based on the Norwegian villages of Balestrand and Bergen.
• Arendelle's crest can be seen during the credits. It appears during the "Cast" section.
• The decorative designs emblazoned throughout the architecture in Arendelle was based on the actual Norwegian concept of rosemaling. Rosemaling is a Norwegian folk art that focuses on using stylized flower ornamentation. This flower motif also presents itself on clothing (i.e. Anna and Elsa's coronation attire) and even extends to Elsa's magic.