Talk:History of Urcea (1902-1955)

King Niall VI as Emperor of the Levantines, photographed in 1924.

Emperor Niall II's first act was to enter into negotiations with Anivania in order to reestablish Imperial supremacy in exchange for recognition of the Republic, an effort that would end in failure. Despite the efforts he and his father had been working on for nearly two decades, the Emperor still felt that the Royal and Imperial Army - which had just gained its Imperial designation - was not ready for a major armed conflict. Instead, he convinced the princes of Dericania to eject Anivania from the free trade area of the Holy Levantine Empire, totally isolating the country economically and diplomatically. The Emperor's move had the intended effect - the government of the Serene Republic of Anivania collapsed by June 1920 and the Duke of Anivania was restored the same month. Unfortunately for the Emperor, the starvation conditions in Anivania had the effect of radicalizing the Derian nationalists, who were soon dispersed throughout the Kingdom of Dericania. Though history has recorded agitating groups in the Kingdom of Dericania as "Derian nationalists", in truth there were many different groups with entirely different ideologies and motives united by the belief of a united Deric republic. Among these groups were socialists agitating for the abolition of monarchy and independence of the Derian people, many of whom were involved in the government of Anivania. Many of these individuals fled to the Electorate of Aescarata, which erupted in a socialist revolt in 1921. From the perspective of Urcea, the Electorate falling to rebel groups was an entirely different proposition than Anivania as the Electorate sat on Urcea's border. On August 1st, 1921, the National Democratic Party-controlled Concilium Daoni gave its overwhelming support to Emperor Niall II for a military intervention. The Royal and Imperial Army, which had not fought in a real battle since the Red Interregnum, invaded Aescarata on August 15th. The reformed Royal and Imperial Army quickly subdued the rebellion and occupied the country by the end of August. Seeking not to repeat the failures in Anivania, the Emperor traveled to Corcra to put the matter before the Imperial Diet. Following weeks of debate, the Diet finally returned a solution. Aescarata was not strictly Derian like its neighbors, having Urcean, Gassavelian, and Bergendii influences besides a unique local culture. Consequently, the Diet decided that removing Aescarata from the Kingdom of Dericania and reassigning it to the legal fiction of the Imperial Kingdom of Urcea, putting the Electorate under the Emperor's direct supervision. The Diet also offered the Emperor, if the Concilium Daoni approved, the right to garrison the Royal and Imperial Army in the country for a period of ten years in order to restore order. The Daoni approved, and the Imperial Charter was officially changed on March 1st, 1922. Derian nationalists, far from placated by the removal of a marginally Derian country from Dericania, considered this an insult to the dignity of the Derian people and a repeat of the First Fratricide, where the proposition of a united Deric state was fractured. Derian nationalists, socialists, and independence-minded liberals began agitating at a level unseen, and during this period Caphiria made formal contact with these subversive groups via a series of agents. Despite the unrest, most considered the Emperor's interventions in Anivania and Aescarata to be a success, and for the time being the geopolitical situation in the Kingdom of Dericania was stable. The Emperor was aware things were not what they seemed; that unrest, plans for revolt, and Caphirian ties were bubbling under the surface, but Emperor Niall II felt his hands were tied; the Aescarata situation had been a risk, and further provocations in the Kingdom of Dericania could make it appear as if Urcea was planning to dominate the Empire, not restore it to stability.

As the Apostolic Kingdom prepared to focus on its external affairs and the duties of the Emperor of the Levantines, a decade and a half of instability and political turmoil came to a close. Following about fifteen years of unsuccessful efforts to restore the Urcean Republic, the National Republican Army decided to disband in 1924. As a consequence, the Republican Party was legalized and became a legitimate political party, though in the upcoming 1925 Concilium Daoni election it would fail to gain seats. Improving economic conditions in Urcea in addition to effective techniques employed by the Agency for the Preservation of the Restoration lead to the NRA's significant decline by 1919. The negotiated end to the NRA lead to increased public scrutiny against the Agency for the Preservation of the Restoration, which was viewed as an unnecessary. Although the nation's secret police was used sparingly between 1924 and 1927, it continued operations until its final abolition in 1927.

Early in 1925, an election in the Republic of Lutsana - a state in the Kingdom of Dericania - returned the Lutsana Worker’s Party in the government. The LWP appointed an openly communist Prime Minister. The Emperor was compelled by the princes to suppress the results of the election and adopt an Empire-wide policy of rollback in order to combat revolutionary threats. The Diet and Emperor issued a joint proclamation demanding a new election, but the government of Lutsana refused. The conservative-minded Army of Lutsana viewed this proclamation as delegitimizing the new LWP-lead government, and consequently the Army launched a coup, but were soon defeated by an army of workers and peasants. The Emperor sought to intervene, but the 1925 Concilium Daoni was considered close and, as Apostolic King of Urcea, Niall did not want to take any drastic moves to interfere with the normal functioning of government. This, combined with the attention the King was increasingly showing towards the growing crisis in the Kingdom of Dericania, lead to a further strengthening of the precedent of Royal withdrawal within the Constitution of Urcea. The 1925 election saw a resurgent National Pact threatening the now two-decades long control of the National Democratic Party. The National Pact was sympathetic towards the liberals in the Kingdom of Dericania and was concerned with the growing power the King was accumulating as Emperor. The National Democratic Party, on the other hand, viewed themselves as fierce defenders of the existing Constitutional settlement and champions of stability and order in Levantia; the NDP held that the existence of the Holy Levantine Empire was absolutely necessary to ensure stability and prevent open war, a position it had dramatically reversed on since the party's founding during the FitzRex era. It additionally campaigned on the notion that a challenge to Niall as Emperor was a challenge to Urcea and an insult to national pride. This attitude was increasingly being felt throughout Urcean society, and the refusal of Lutsana to comply with the Emperor and eject its radical socialist party - one that many Urceans associated with the horrors and excesses of the Urcean Republic two decades earlier - resonated with the people. The National Democratic Party won a commanding majority in the Concilium Daoni in 1925 and the government consequently created a series of temporary laws - collectively known as the Regional Stability Acts of 1926 - allowing the Apostolic King of Urcea absolute carte blanche control of the Armed Forces of the Apostolic Kingdom of Urcea for use in Levantia. The government issued a statement of support for the King's reign as Emperor. These policies were collectively referred to by a phrase used in a speech made by then-Chancellor Seán Virius: "The Emperor's word is Urcea's word", or in other words, that the will of the Emperor was the will of the Government of Urcea, and to refuse the lawful demands of the Emperor was an insult of Urcea's national pride. Though the situation in the Kingdom of Dericania was rapidly declining by January 1926, the supreme confidence invested in him by the Government of Urcea gave him renewed confidence to impose the will of the Empire in the Kingdom of Dericania.

In February of 1926, another imperial state, Geneseo, elected a syndicalist government and the election results were confirmed by the Duke of Geneseo before he fled the Duchy. The Emperor issued another proclamation demanding the election be reconsidered, and like in the Lutsana case it was refused. Unlike in the case of Lutsana, the Emperor sent an expeditionary force of the Royal and Imperial Army through Dericania to subdue the government of Geneseo. The Royal and Imperial Army was stopped at the border of the Margraviate of Novaustramark, which refused entry to the Royal and Imperial Army. Following three days of tense standoff, the Derian nationalist-filled Novaustramark army began firing on the expeditionary force, causing a major international incident. The Emperor appeared in person before the Imperial Diet and demanded the Duke of Novaustramark be censured and asserted that the Imperial Army could enter any territory within the Holy Levantine Empire in order to execute the business of the Empire. The princes of Dericania, though appreciative of the Emperor's efforts, chafed severely under this assertion and refused to censure Novaustramark. The Concilium Daoni was outraged and demanded the King take action. Seeing no other option, on March 3rd, 1926, King Niall VI began the full mobilization of the Armed Forces of the Apostolic Kingdom of Urcea. The mobilization was enough to break the will of Novaustramark and compel the Diet into censuring the Duke; the mobilization was partially canceled although the Army was now on permanent elevated alertness. The Army quickly restored the Duke in Geneseo and crushed the rebellion. After the incident, the Royal and Imperial Army pulled out but established heavy garrisoning on Urcea's eastern border as well as positions in Burgundie. The Emperor's garrisoning of Burgundie was intended to be a vote of support for Burgundie against the increasing pressure it was put under from neighboring Derian nationalists. Derian nationalists and the princes alike viewed this as an insult and implicit threat, and the entire Novaustramark incident had severely polarized the Imperial Diet. The Emperor decreed at the end of March that Novaustramark, Aescarata, and Geneseo would be responsible for footing the cost of the bases in Burgundie, yet another severe insult to the Derian national consciousness.

Despite the fact he himself was a constitutional monarch, Niall himself deeply believed in the rights of the princes of the Kingdom of Dericania and the principle that Urcea ought not and, legally, could not be concerned with the internal affairs of other members of the Holy Levantine Empire. Following the conclusion of the Novaustramark incident, a faction within the National Democratic Party met with the Emperor and tried to steer a change of national course. It was suggested that the Emperor should force the princes to attempt reforms, aligning the institution of the Empire with the various reform-minded liberals and the majority of the Derian people rather than with the princes. This course of action was secretly endorsed by Prince Brian of Halfway, though his involvement in organizing the conference was not revealed until the 1950s. The meeting was a failure as the Emperor rejected the course of action as cowardly and an illegal intervention in Latin affairs. Despite this, the Concilium Daoni continued to support the Emperor and applauded his successful intervention in Novaustramark and Geneseo. The Urcean people also generally approved of the Emperor's actions and felt that the national honor had been avenged. The remainder of spring and early summer were peaceful and stable, though the Imperial Diet was now a contentious place where, on June 3rd, fist fights broke out between the members. In July, the peace was disrupted in multiple states as Imperial Tax Collectors meant for Novaustramark were viciously assaulted, branches of the Imperial bank were robbed and destroyed, and the residents of several Imperial princes were violently attacked. The Emperor again announced the mobilization of the whole Army; this time, there would be cancellation. Fifteen states were in some kind of conflagration by the middle of fall, and the Emperor was hesitant to fully use the might of the Royal and Imperial Army lest the Imperial Diet begin to turn against him.

2nd Great War Domestic bits (salved from main)
1929 was a momentous year for the Empire and for Urcea. In February, Emperor James III announced that his son, Brian, the Prince of Halfway would be assuming the role of Crown Regent of Urcea so that the Emperor could fully devote his attention to the affairs of the Empire. Early in the year, the King decided to reform the Royal Air Fleet into the Royal Air Force given the growing importance in heavier-than-air airplanes in emergent modern warfare. The Royal Air Force was comprised of air corps units from the Royal and Imperial Army as well as other independent agencies within the Government of Urcea devoted to airplane research and development.

On October 2nd, 1929, the 70-year old Emperor James III - King James VI of Urcea - died. In Urcea, the ascension of King Brian IV was met with considerable optimism, as the new King was very popular and well-liked during his eight months as regent. The members of the Collegial Electorate and Imperial Diet - both of which were now meeting in Urceopolis - were sharply divided on the prospect of electing another Urcean to sit as Emperor of the Levantines. Given the emergency environment, the Electorate was convened the same day as the Emperor's death. Following hours of debate and rounds of voting, King Brian IV was eventually elected Emperor by a plurality of 12 votes. The next day, October 3rd, he received a dual coronation from the Pope in St. Peter's Archbasilica, receiving the traditional coronations due the Apostolic King of Urcea and Emperor of the Levantines. The campaign season ended soon after, but the new Emperor - Brian VIII in Levantine numbering - took steps to put Urcea on a total war footing, bringing the entire industrial base of the country into the war effort with approval of the Concilium Daoni. His predecessor, Emperor James III, had been of the opinion that the rebellion in Dericania could be subdued with expeditionary forces and Urcea's current supply system, but Brian recognized that, even if that were true, war with Caphiria was probably inevitable. The Concilium Daoni, on the King's request, also introduced a limited conscription program.

With the war devolving into a static boundaries, enthusiasm for the National Democratic Party and its handling of the war began to fall, while Urcean public support for the war was still high. Also during the summer of 1930, Urcea agreed to support Burgundie in its ongoing war in Audonia, which soon became the eastern theater of the expanding Second Great War; Urcea and Burgundie agreed upon a Kingdom of Dericania-first strategy, prioritizing the existential threat to Burgundie and the Empire over what Urceopolis considered a "colonial squabble". In November of 1930, the National Pact won a majority in the Concilium Daoni and elected a Procurator, allowing it to form its first government since the national unity government of King Patrick III prior to the 1905 election. The National Pact renounced the policy of "The Emperor's Word is Urcea's Word", but nonetheless promised King Brian IV that his emergency war powers were safe for the time being. Instead, the King had a new popular mandate from the National Pact government: preservation of the Holy Levantine Empire was important for regional stability and should be a priority, but the first priority for the Emperor was to attain an honorable end of the war. A secret conference between the King and the incoming National Pact leaders held on December 11th, 1930, set forth the nation's policy.

In addition to the developments in the Second Great War, 1938 was also a momentous year for the Constitution of Urcea. Public opinion had changed considerably during the war years as popular input was growing increasingly valued given the contributions of the Urcean people to the war effort. No major democratic movements formed, but across the political spectrum there had existed both ideological and practical concerns with the 83-member Procuratorial College system to elect the Procurator. While there was democratic input in the system, many believed that a more direct election system - namely, a nation-wide popular vote - would be the best way to select a Procurator. This impulse was not only based on a desire to increase popular input, but also due to complaints from the members of the College themselves that selecting a Procurator was a major distraction from their primary responsibilities as Governor or member of the Concilium Daoni. Consequently, on 7 May 1938, King Brian IV gave his assent to a measure abolishing the Procuratorial College and replacing it with a nation-wide vote for Procurator beginning with the 1945 Election. This system would retain some provincial input as the party primary process for Procuratorial candidates was still to proceed on a province-by-province basis. This change was the most recent major change to the Constitution of Urcea and governs how the Government of Urcea presently functions. It marked the final step on the transformation of the Procurator from a Royal functionary to a true pseudo-chief executive, and also elevated the mandate of the Procurator above that of the Chancellor and Temporary President.

Lucás IV entered his fifth year as Apostolic King of Urcea in 1952; as a reversal of his earlier posture, the King began working with the National Pact-led government in order to try and bring the fighting to a peaceful settlement, an effort with which he met considerable resistance. Particularly, the Minister of State wielded particular influence within the government, and his view - that a negotiated peace was essentially a zero sum proposition - meant that most within the Pact would not accept anything besides the total defeat of Caphiria, a goal that looked increasingly unachievable despite victories in the Valcenian Theater of the war. Specifically, the government's stance was that of "no peace without Veltorina", or in other words, Urcea would not accept an end to the war that did not include the full sovereignty of Veltorina being respected, a stance that the King and opposing National Democratic Party viewed as unreasonable and as an unnecessary waste of men and resources. Although the King had the authority to contradict the government and bring an end to hostilities through his own authority - a power the Apostolic King of Urcea still retains - the King was unwilling to push the boundaries of the Constitution of Urcea. Consequently, he began a whistle-stop campaign throughout the country by meeting with governors, local officials, and members of the Concilium Daoni in their districts rather than in Urceopolis. His intention was to bring awareness to how unlikely an outright victory in the war was and to implore officials to begin calls for an end to the war that the King himself could join later. On July 30th, 1952, this campaign took him to Fort St. Andrew in Eastvale to meet with the Governor of the province. At the Fort St. Andrew Station, a car bomb detonated, and though the explosion did not directly harm King Lucás IV, the force of the explosion tipped the King's car on him as he was about to enter it. The King, crushed under the car, was still alive though unconscious when a group of armed men stormed the area. The King was not shot by the men, but the desperate attempts by the outnumbered Life Guard to hold the perimeter meant that the King could not be given help in time. King Lucás IV, 32 years old, died later that night in the Hospital of St. James. He was the first Apostolic King of Urcea to be assassinated. The next day, Derian extremists claimed responsibility for the assassination, claiming that House de Weluta was responsible for the misery and bloodshed of the ongoing Third Fratricide.

What King Lucás IV could not achieve in life, he achieved in death. Lucás's brother, the new King Patrick IV, was informed by the Procurator on August 2nd, 1952, that the government intended to try and achieve a "peace with honor" on Sarpedon so as to focus on the Third Fratricide, as links had been decisively established between the extremist cell and the Derian Liberation League. Popular support for the Second Great War in the 1940s had turned to resigned apathy by the 1950s; popular focus now began to shift in favor of war in Dericania to avenge the fallen King, as the Rally 'round the flag effect came into full effect in the weeks following the King's assassination. In response, the Government of Urcea began arms shipments to the Dericania National Congress beginning on August 10th, though no full military response could be mustered without removing significant forces from the Second Great War. Popular opinion had begun to grow to anger by October, as polls indicated that most Urceans believed the National Pact government had "not sufficiently responded to the assassination" and that the assassination was a "grievous insult to Urcean nationality and the pride of the Kingdom". On his part, King Patrick IV associated himself with the views of the people and began to urge the Government - in private and in public - to reach some kind of accord with Caphiria to end the conflict.