Old Empire of Ghis

The Ghiscari Empire was a vast empire in Essos mentioned in the A Song of Ice and Fire universe. Posthumously known as the Old Empire of Ghis, it is the oldest known civilization in human history. The Old Empire is still known today as an economic and military powerhouse with a very rich culture.

History
The Old Empire of Ghis held a large portion of the continent of Essos. The empire predated the old Valyrian Freehold by thousands of years, and still existed while the Valyrians were still growing in in power.

The Valyrians became rivals of the Ghiscari, and the Old Empire attempted to wipe out the new Freehold. However, it failed miserably; the Ghiscari lost five wars against the Valyrians, and during the fifth, most of the Ghiscari legions were burned alive by the Valyrians' dragons. After the Ghiscari military was crippled and the cities were vulnerable, the Valyrian army marches straight on to Ghis and sacked the city. Soon after, dragonriders were brought in to destroy the entire city.

With the Ghiscari capital destroyed and the octarchs dead, the empire was left in anarchy. The Valyrians returned to Valyria and let the rest of the empire destroy itself from the inside. Colonies started declaring independence, and the Dothraki of the Great Grass Sea began pillaging the northern colonies. Soon, the Ghiscari Empire became nothing but a memory. The ruins of the ancient cities of Essos served as a reminder to never wake the dragon. Until the Doom of Valyria, that was.

Government
Most of the maesters agree that the Old Empire of Ghis was ruled by an oligarchy of eight noblemen, known as the Octarchs. However, some maesters dispute this, claiming that the Octarchs were actually eight regional governors who answered to an emperor.

Slavery
The Ghiscari adopted slavery as part of their culture, and founded the region known as Slaver's Bay, where the Masters rule today as a shadow of the Old Empire. However, as a historical circumstance, the Masters and the rest of the population of Slaver's Bay speak Valyrian, and not Ghiscari.