Eastvale

Eastvale, is a province in the eastern Apostolic Kingdom of Urcea. It comprises the most recently acquired territory in metropolitan Urcea, having been ceded to Urcea following the Third Caroline War. It holds the distinction of being the only territory held by Urcea prior to 1892 that never advanced beyond the stage of Rectory and additionally holds the distinction of having a self-identified population of Derian people ranging from 10% to 25%, making it the largest percentage population of Derians in Urcea.

Aedanicad period
The duchies and territories of Eastvale had coalesced into ten princely units of the Holy Levantine Empire by 1840, the chief of which was the Margraviate of Carsula which bordered Urcea's Ænglish territories and was considered the primary line of defense against Urcea and the primary entry-point for an invasion of the Ænglish duchies, as had been the case in the First and Second Caroline Wars. Consequently, Eastvale had become a territory of supreme strategic interest both to the states of the Kingdom of Dericania and to Urcea. The new King Aedanicus VIII, who ascended to the throne of Apostolic King of Urcea in 1841 - viewed the territories as being of considerable strategic utility to Urcea, establishing a system of rivers and mountains running from Gassavelia to the riverine northeastern border with Hollona and Diorisia. Many within the Armed Forces of the Apostolic Kingdom of Urcea considered these not only to be Urcea's "natural borders" but additionally a key strategic defense that would ensure the security of the Grand Duchy of Carolina if reacquired. Consequently, acquisition of Eastvale became a secondary priority to reacquiring Carolina in a prospective future war.

As had happened in the War of the Caroline Succession, Eastvale was quickly overrun by Urcea to begin the Third Caroline War in 1843. It remained occupied for the remainder of the war. The occupation - primarily by Garán militias redeployed from Carolina - was particularly devastating on the occupied territories. The militias, only tentatively within the Urcean military hierarchy, committed small-scale atrocities throughout the three years they garrisoned the area. A rebellion in 1846 lead to considerable fighting between the militias and locals, and most major settlements were burned. The Royal Army eventually assumed full occupation responsibilities by 1846, but the damage had been done. By 1850, the majority of the 1835 population had fled the territories, and the Army was forced to construct the equivalent of concentration camps for Derian people by 1847 to stop insurgent activity. The Treaty of Collendum in 1848 provided that all ten princely units would be annexed directly to Urcea and that the ten princes would be compensated elsewhere in the Holy Levantine Empire. It additionally provided that Eastvale would be transferred from the Kingdom of Dericania to the Imperial Kingdom of Urcea. It also provided that Urcea pay for population transfers of Derian people to other states of Dericania, which contributed to the population decline.

The Rectory for the Eastern Valley was established within the Government of Urcea on 1 January 1849. It merged the former ten units into one administrative apparatus centered around Fort St. Andrew, a city constructed in 1847 both to concentrate local rural populations and to control a key mountain pass. The Rectory government focused on integrating the economic institutions and infrastructure of the ten seperate units into a single governable area. Nearly immediately, however, the concentration of local Derian people and depopulated countryside lead to famine. The Rectory and Government of Urcea resolved the 1850 and 1851 famines at extreme cost, as the transporation cost of grain from beyond the Ionian Mountains proved considerable. Consequently, the Rectory petitioned the Concilium Daoni to expand the 1590 Leonine Land Decrees to the territory, which it did in 1852. Following this act, Ómestaderoi settlers began to flood into Eastvale to work the recently abandoned land. The Ómestaderoi and their descendants made up a majority of the population by the late 1870s, and by 1880 the Ómestaderoi program was canceled in Eastvale. Nonetheless, by that period Urcean people had become the majority population of Eastvale, making it practically unrecognizable from just fifty years prior. In the 1880s, the recently recovered economy of the Eastern Valley began to suffer the effects of the 1880s nationwide recession. The recession had the effect of continued Derian out-migration and requests from the Rectory for increased military presence in the territory to offset decreased economic activity. In 1888, the Royal Army drastically increased its deployment in Eastvale, and by 1890 a full fifteen divisions were stationed in the territory.

The rise of Gréagóir FitzRex as Crown-Regent and the end of the Aedanicad would have major repercussions for Eastvale. The 1892 Administrative Reorganization Act provided that the entire Rectory for the Eastern Valley would be incorporated as a single province, the new administrative form of the Kingdom. The Rectory was formally dissolved on 1 August 1892 and became the first provincial government to begin operation in Urcea. The first elections took place in 1895, but like elsewhere in the nation, were mired in accusations of intimidation, ballot stuffing, and fraud. Pro-Fitzrex independents took control of the provincial government and Concilium Daoni delegation from the province. The fifteen Regal Army divisions were reinforced to thirty divisions due to FitzRex's anti-Holy Levantine Empire foreign policy, and the Regal Army began to construct a line of fortifications facing Dericania. During the Red Interregnum, these fortifications were highly effective against Deric forces. However, Ionian Highlanders loyal to House de Weluta infiltrated the province with ease and launched a lengthy insurgent campaign with local assistance. News of the Overland Campaign required a concentration of forces in Burgundiemarch, leaving just five divisions to hold Eastvale. Ionian highlanders and local militias outnumbered Regal Army forces, and following a short campaign the Regal Army surrendered Fort St. Andrew on 15 July 1899. Eastvale was the third province to fall to Legitimist forces - South Ionia and North Ionia preceded it - and it provided an important supply route from Dericania to the Ionian provinces.

Demographics
Self-reported ethnic origin (2015):

Urcean (72.4%)

Derian (17.8%)

Ænglish (4.2%)

Gassavelian (2.2%)

Other (3.4%)