Dalemark Quartet
Encyclopedia
The Dalemark Quartet is a series of four fantasy books by Diana Wynne Jones
set in a rustic parallel universe with pre-industrial
or even medieval
civilization. Dalemark is a region by the sea divided into South Dalemark and North Dalemark, consisting of 15 earldoms (formerly called marks):
North Dalemark – 7 earldoms
South Dalemark - 8 earldoms
In addition to the 15 earldoms, Dalemark includes the so-called King's Lands (the Holy Islands, the Marshes, and the Shield of Oreth), although there has been no king in Dalemark for a long time.
The earls ruling South Dalemark are presented as much more tyrannical and cruel than the North Dalemark earls, who are described as being more liberal and with greater respect for human freedoms. As a result, there is constant tension between the North and the South, which often erupts in open war or rebellion. The Great Uprising was a countrywide revolution which led to the restoration of monarchy with Amil the Great ascending to the throne of united Dalemark. The Great Uprising took place about a year after the main events described in Drowned Ammet, the second book of the Dalemark Quartet.
The Dalemark Quartet titles are listed below in the order of publication, which is different from the order of internal chronology (shown by Arabic numerals in parentheses):
Diana Wynne Jones
Diana Wynne Jones was a British writer, principally of fantasy novels for children and adults, as well as a small amount of non-fiction...
set in a rustic parallel universe with pre-industrial
Pre-industrial society
Pre-industrial society refers to specific social attributes and forms of political and cultural organization that were prevalent before the advent of the Industrial Revolution. It is followed by the industrial society....
or even medieval
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
civilization. Dalemark is a region by the sea divided into South Dalemark and North Dalemark, consisting of 15 earldoms (formerly called marks):
North Dalemark – 7 earldoms
- Hannart
- Gardale
- Loviath
- Alberath
- Dropwater
- Kinnarth
- North Dales
South Dalemark - 8 earldoms
- Dermath
- Holand
- Waywold
- Canderack
- Andmark
- Carrowmark
- Fenmark
- South Dales
In addition to the 15 earldoms, Dalemark includes the so-called King's Lands (the Holy Islands, the Marshes, and the Shield of Oreth), although there has been no king in Dalemark for a long time.
The earls ruling South Dalemark are presented as much more tyrannical and cruel than the North Dalemark earls, who are described as being more liberal and with greater respect for human freedoms. As a result, there is constant tension between the North and the South, which often erupts in open war or rebellion. The Great Uprising was a countrywide revolution which led to the restoration of monarchy with Amil the Great ascending to the throne of united Dalemark. The Great Uprising took place about a year after the main events described in Drowned Ammet, the second book of the Dalemark Quartet.
The Dalemark Quartet titles are listed below in the order of publication, which is different from the order of internal chronology (shown by Arabic numerals in parentheses):
- Cart and CwidderCart and CwidderCart and Cwidder is a fantasy novel for young adults by the British author Diana Wynne Jones. It is the first book published in the Dalemark Quartet, although chronologically it is the third in the series, coming in time hundreds of years after The Spellcoats and a year or so after Drowned Ammet.-...
, 1975 (3) - Drowned AmmetDrowned AmmetDrowned Ammet is a fantasy novel for young adults by British author Diana Wynne Jones. It is the second book in the series Dalemark Quartet.- Plot :...
, 1977 (2) - The SpellcoatsThe SpellcoatsThe Spellcoats is the third published novel in Diana Wynne Jones's series Dalemark Quartet, but chronologically the first. The story takes place several thousand years before Cart and Cwidder and Drowned Ammet. The time period is referred to as "prehistoric Dalemark" because by the time of the...
, 1979 (1) - The Crown of DalemarkThe Crown of DalemarkThe Crown of Dalemark is a 1993 fantasy novel by Diana Wynne Jones. It is the fourth and last book of the Dalemark Quartet, and follows the adventures of a group of people trying to reunite North and South Dalemark under a new king.-Plot summary:...
, 1993 (4)