Wanyun of Saewan

The Wanyun of Saewan was one of the largest Wanyuns, only surpassed by the two most recent. Saewan was originally formed around a confederation of small villages opposed to the Kingdom of Bakatyeong. The nation participated in a revolt against Bakatyeong, and was successful in gaining its independence. Unlike the other rebels from Bakatyeong, however, Saewan managed to survive in the long term, rather than simply fading back into tribalism. Saewan would later join Bakatyeong, its old overlord, in fending off the advances of the Wanyun of Bailan. Although this represented an era of good relations with the Bakatyeong, it was not to last. With Bailan in decline, Bakatyeong's value as an ally of convenience was spent and Saewan destroyed the state in 18 SC. Though not taking all of Bakatyeong's land, what remained was little more than empty steppe and not worth their time to conquer. Following the collapse of Bailan, Saewan expanded its territory eastwards, coming into conflict with the Wanyun of Karaito. Karaito, however, did not last long as Saewan's well-trained armies shattered that state and established their own Wanyun. Saewan's conquests fueled the development of their eponymous collection of villages, which soon grew into a mighty city. To protect their capital, Saewan exanded both west and south, crushing the remnants of the Wanyun of Auwaejo and establishing a defensible river border. Saewan's immense size and vast resources meant that it had little in the way of natural rivals and thus it stood for almost 500 years. However, by the 400s SC it was little more than a shell, having been reduced by corruption and avarice. By 500 SC, Saewan was unable to even defend its borders, and was destroyed by a centaur invasion. With the core of Saewan occupied by centaurs and essentially burnt to the ground Saewan proper was totally abandoned and would never be resettled, though there are some small towns in the vicinity of the ruins today.