Timeline

This the timeline mentioned through given dates throughout Thief. Some of it seems to be a mix of new material and references to the old series in some fashion.

Background

BR appears to be a reference to Baron Bresling's Rule/Reign as well as possibly House Black (both houses existed in history), and NR is a reference to the start of the Northcrest's Rule/Reign. 'y' seems to simply designate 'year'. Another way of saying this is in the year of Northcrest "#". The listing of the Baron's initial appears to be optional, but in most cases is given (where its not given may also indicate a split between rules of the Northcrest dynasty such as House Marlham rule).

Since the first Baron Laurence Black The City has been ruled by various Barons from the Great Family Houses including Black, Eydark, Flevanter, Bresling, Marlham, and Northcrest. Dynasties were not always consecutive as the Northcrests have apparently ruled in two separate eras.

The timeline represents a single timeline going from 'y' (year) 1 to 'y' 842 with designation of the rulers at the time (in which case its not clear when the Northcrests first began to rule). It covers a period of over 800 years of history when the new calendar began..

A major theme around this timeline and the world's background (going by the developers statements) is the question of what if all the major religions and magical sects had been outlawed not long after the historical period of the original game series, and have been gone for centuries (assuming there is a parallel world were the the sects continued). In game only the Clockwise and Project Pendulum even touches on concepts of time travel and parallel universes idea (albeit in largely unconnected way other than being tied to Keepers somehow), however.

Ancient History

Before the coming of man The island and the mainland's coastline were but virgin countryside. Found in and below the earth lay the Primal a fundamental energy as old as the universe. Be it power, natural order, the magic of the gods or spirituality no one knows for sure. Primal was everyone but it cannot be sensed by most people. This Primal energy was the source of all life, and possibly even gave rise to the old and new gods, and future civilization.

The Old City

• The founders began colonization of the island and mainland as a small colony as a trading outpost, and the outpost quickly grew into a large trading city.
• According to various founding myths The City had been built by the old gods including Trickster and The Master Builder, formed with magical forces and mysterious energies and secretly controlled by a powerful hidden sect (Keepers).

Timeline

BRy1

The first Baron, Lord Laurence of House Black second of his generation takes the Baron's Chair ushering in the age of Barons, and the calendar is reset.

Unknown Dates.

History records that there have been several city-wide catastrophes and terrible periods of total destruction that have wiped The City from the map, but it has always risen from the ruins to be reborn stronger than before. The bizarre destruction would spell the end of the Ruling House and pave way for change as The City recovered.

The Great Plague occurs. Likely ending one dynasty and beginning the next.

House Flavanter dynasty begins.

House Flavanter dynasty ends (another disaster occurs).

House Eydark dynasty begins.

The Bresling Dynasty begins rule of the City.

BRy412

The Crippled Burrick Tavern is established in its Original Location.

Unknown Dates

Carlysle's Mill is built.

BRy459

Widow Edwina Moira's Dream is brought to life by Baron Bresling, and the Moira Asylum is constructed as a place for treating anumber of ailments including the problems of the Sneak Thief. The master Sneak Thief was attributed to the times of woe. He was a man sorely tempted by that which, to him, did not belong -- a misplacement of desire, to see the world in an order which it must not deviate from...

Unknown Dates

Family Carlysle loses most of its land holdings, except for Carlysle's Mill.

Unknown Date

Ulysses Northcrest becomes the first Northcrest Baron. He outlaws worship of the old gods.

The Hammerite, and Pagan religions are effectively banned, and begin to weaken and disappear.

Baron Ulysses turns the Moira Asylum into a prison to house The City's degenerates and make it into something that the Sneak Thief cannot escape from.

While imprisoned, the legendary master Sneak Thief Garrett manages to hide a hidden treasure cache including coins as old as The City, and a strange painting. He lost his mechanical eye in the prison (although its not known if he escaped or died there)..

Ulysses cedes his rule over to Isaiah Northcrest who is assassinated on his first day of rule.

y521

The Great City Riots occur. House Castinet mysteriously vanishes and the butterfly brooches are lost.

The may have lead to the rise of House Marlham.

c. MRy542

The Great Storm causes huge landslides and a portion of The City collapsed.

The storm sees the end of House Marlham, and the Northcrests (again?) take power.

NRy598

The Siren's Rest is established in Riverside as a Safe Berth from the South Seas.

y624

The Great Tempest hits the city. Only a portion of the Customs House Bridge's Original Structure survived.

NRy662

The great fires burn and rage through the city. The original Crippled Burrick Pub was moved from its Original Location (Wayside) to its new location in Stonemarket between Clock Tower Plaza and the Mourningside.

NRy689

Barnabus Northcrest the Boy Baron wishes that the Moira Asylum become a source of great Creativity and Income for the people he serves.

History of Moira Asylum is written.

NRy710

The Dayport Wall is raised by Order of Baron Oliver Northcrest.

NRy764

Elias Northcrest is born.

NRy772

Samias Northcrest begins the Northcrest's persuit of the Primal.

Baron Samias Northcrest dies in battle at Morendrum.

Harland Northcrest becomes the ninth baron.

NRy781

Harland Northcrest rapes Elspeth Hucks and a child is conceived.

Aldous Northcrest-Hucks is born.

NRY789

The long neck silver label is bottled.

c. NRy802

The baby who would later be known as the Thief-Taker General is born.

NRy806

Elias begins researching into the Primal, as his father isn't doing much with it.

c. Young Garrett is born

NRy808

Harland Northcrest cedes his power over to Elias Northcrest. Elias is coronated, and becomes the tenth Baron Northcrest.

Summersday wine by Wyder of the Vine is produced.

NRy812

Harland Northcrest confesses to having had a child with Elspeth Hucks shortly before he dies.

The Collector is born.

NRy814

Elias Northcrest creates The Awakened.

c. NRy822

Erin is born.

NRy827

The Stonemarket Clock Tower breaks down for the second time, while still under restoration.

NRy830

Elias Northcrest begins preparation for the age of industry in The City. He has erected new buildings on top of the old, and laid the foundations of a progressive future. Elias begins to think the old gods get in the way of progress, bring the city to stagnation.

For the third time in many years work to restore the Clock Tower stops due to tragedy, when a child worker fell to his death in the plaza. Following the event workers refused to climb the scaffolds again following the accident believing the place may be haunted or cursed (it was rumored than the chief engineer was crushed in his own gears when it was first constructed).

c. An eight year old Erin comes to the City.

NRy831

Elias Northcrest, Cornelius and Bloumount discover a an ancient tome in one of the areas below ground from an earlier age. It was believe to be hundreds of years old. It was filled with primitive symbols and explained a ritual or procedure on how to harness the Primal energy inside of an empty vessel.

NRy834

Baron Northcrest begins work on the City's power solution pipes are installed in much of the city.

Baron Elias Northcrest outlaws the worship of the old gods for the third time since The City was ruled by a Northcrest. The chapels around the city are demolished.

Baron Northcrest tours the demolished chapels in Dayport, in preparation to be replaced by pipe-houses.

The Keep is built (roughly where Angelwatch once stood).

NRy838

The father of the collector passes his possessions onto his son.

NRy839

Elias Northcrest is reunited with Aldous his brother, and convinced him to join The Awakened.

Medical Act of NRy839 enforces confidentiality act and secrecy of experimental treatments.

NRy840

Vivian and Elias Northcrest attend a banquet at Lord Shipton manor. Vivian acknowledges religious sympathy when answering Mayhew about the Primal energy angering Elias.

NRy841

Elias Northcrest learns he is sterile and will be the last of his line. The Primal energy had prematurely aged him, and caused his sterility.

Garrett and Erin attempt to rob Northcrest Manor in Auldale.

Erin is admitted into the Moira Asylum.

White Sails loses some cargo near the Shoals of the coast of the Throvian Mainland.

NRy842

Garrett returns to the city with no memory of the previous year.

Notes

• The original series occurred under the Bresling dynasty.
• The old religions being banned had to have first occurred at least ten generations before present times, and it appears it wasn't consecutively. The current Lord Northcrest is already an old man (and has ruled for decades), but his outlaw decree and destruction of the churches only occurred in the last decade. His ancestor Ulysses was the first Northcrest to ban the old gods.
• The Shalebridge fire (possible reference to the Shalebridge Cradle fire) occurred 2-3 generations before based on the references (the guards suggest that their older relatives or some older person they knew had experienced events of the fires. It's unlikely that the Shalebridge fire is related to the fires of 662. However based on certain other details it could just be another fire that's occurred in Shalebridge.
  • Technically The City has seen many fires between the fires mentioned in the old and new series. The fires of the Catastrophe that burned out portions of the Old Quarter, the Shalebridge Cradle fire, the fires that burned through much of the city (662). So having another fire in Shalebridge in the middle of the 700 or early 800s wouldn't be out of the ordinary.
• The Blackbrook war is something recorded in history books, one of the guards 'read about' it in a history book).
• There is mention of other plagues in The City's historic past, not to be confused with the gloom. This may be a nod to a number of different plagues including the plague of undead during the Catastrophe and the Great Plague.
• The Great Tempest and the Great Storm may be intended to be same event. But if not, there are a couple of points that must be discussed.
  • The dates for the two events do not match up with one occurring over 200 years before, and the other happening over 100 years before.
  • It is known that House Marlham at least ruled after Bresling (but history of Moira Asylum would suggest that at least the first two Northcrests ruled not long after Bresling as well as Sneak Thief apparently was still alive by the time of Ulysses after the prison was built).
  • If Great Tempest is the same as the Great Storm then there would have to be a divide between the early Northcrests and the later Northcrests.
  • If Great Storm happened earlier than the Great Tempest, depending on where it is located there could still be a divide between Northcrest dynasty (if it occurred at around 200 years before), or possible room for a Marlham or two to have ruled briefly between Bresling and the first Northcrest (if Marlham's rule ended closer to 250+ years before).
  • The Great Storm sounds a lot like the Great Tempest, but the Companion App appears to suggest that Northcrests came after Marlham (with no indication of a split between early and later Northcrests).