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History of Urcea (1798-1902): Difference between revisions
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The various reforms of the Aedanicad had made Urcean society generally more open and prosperous, but Aedanicus's continued focus on the Army in the runup to the [[Third Caroline War]] left them a large number of rights and privileges that, over time, allowed the military to accrue power. These rights and privileges included By the 1880s, the military was led by a cadre of [[Social_class_in_Urcea#Privilegiata_2|privilegiata]] officers who had largely displaced the optimates among the general staff by the Third Caroline War. These individuals formed a relatively tight knit social circle in and around [[Urceopolis (City)|Urceopolis]], and by the 1880s the "military privilegiata" were viewed largely as an independent social class within Urcean society and government. Their connections over the preceding decades enabled the rights and privileges of the military to grow significantly. By [[1875]], a non-voting delegate from the armed forces was seated in the [[Concilium Daoni]], and by 1878 creation of a third chamber alongside the Daoni and [[Gildertach]]], a "military assembly" similar to the [[Military Assembly (Caphiria)|Caphirian institution]], was being discussed. The military assembly plan was largely unpopular but was viewed favorably by both leading political figures and by military figures, by the former as a way to contain the military's growing influence by means of legitimation and by the latter as a formalization of the military's power. The plan would become moot following the 1885 election, but has been pointed to by historians as an example of the newfound political power of the military during the late Aedanicad. | The various reforms of the Aedanicad had made Urcean society generally more open and prosperous, but Aedanicus's continued focus on the Army in the runup to the [[Third Caroline War]] left them a large number of rights and privileges that, over time, allowed the military to accrue power. These rights and privileges included By the 1880s, the military was led by a cadre of [[Social_class_in_Urcea#Privilegiata_2|privilegiata]] officers who had largely displaced the optimates among the general staff by the Third Caroline War. These individuals formed a relatively tight knit social circle in and around [[Urceopolis (City)|Urceopolis]], and by the 1880s the "military privilegiata" were viewed largely as an independent social class within Urcean society and government. Their connections over the preceding decades enabled the rights and privileges of the military to grow significantly. By [[1875]], a non-voting delegate from the armed forces was seated in the [[Concilium Daoni]], and by 1878 creation of a third chamber alongside the Daoni and [[Gildertach]]], a "military assembly" similar to the [[Military Assembly (Caphiria)|Caphirian institution]], was being discussed. The military assembly plan was largely unpopular but was viewed favorably by both leading political figures and by military figures, by the former as a way to contain the military's growing influence by means of legitimation and by the latter as a formalization of the military's power. The plan would become moot following the 1885 election, but has been pointed to by historians as an example of the newfound political power of the military during the late Aedanicad. | ||
During the 1880s, [[King Aedanicus VIII|King Aedanicus]], now in his 60s, was struggling with various illnesses and would be known to have long lapses of reason and consciousness. Beginning a tradition that remains through the present, the King decided to permanently relocate to [[Castle Welute]] to take in the "country airs" and to escape the looming political chaos in [[Urceopolis (City)|Urceopolis]]. Despite this retreat from public life, the King finalized publication of the ''[[Consolidated Laws of HMCM's Kingdom and State]]'', a sweeping legal reform and consolidation that considerably eased administrative and judicial burdens. The Election of 1885 threw the government into chaos, as dissenting factions within the [[National Pact (Urcea)|National Pact]] could not agree on a leader. King Aedanicus opted to appoint a leading General, [[Gréagóir FitzRex]], as [[Procurator]] in an attempt to co-opt the military and restoring order in the government. FitzRex received a very narrow approval from the [[Concilium Daoni]] and began to exercise increasing control over the government, appointing his own members to the Purpaidá despite that being under the Chancellor's purview. Despite the military's nascent political power, it was not immune from the growing sense of decay at the end of the long Aedanicad that struck every other part of the country and society. While the navy was falling behind technologically, the [[Royal and Imperial Army (Urcea)|Royal Army]] became imbued in a scandal known as the ''Eight Rifle Affair'', in which the Army ordered [[List_of_Urcean_service_weapons#Affair_Six|8 different standardized rifle designs]] between 1880 and 1887 due to a series of escalating favors and corruption within the Army and connected industries, with six of the rifles being used for less than a decade. The Eight Rifle Affair was supported by funds specifically appropriated for the conversion to use of {{wp|bolt action rifles}} as part of a modernization program, and the failure and controversy around it | During the 1880s, [[King Aedanicus VIII|King Aedanicus]], now in his 60s, was struggling with various illnesses and would be known to have long lapses of reason and consciousness. Beginning a tradition that remains through the present, the King decided to permanently relocate to [[Castle Welute]] to take in the "country airs" and to escape the looming political chaos in [[Urceopolis (City)|Urceopolis]]. Despite this retreat from public life, the King finalized publication of the ''[[Consolidated Laws of HMCM's Kingdom and State]]'', a sweeping legal reform and consolidation that considerably eased administrative and judicial burdens. The Election of 1885 threw the government into chaos, as dissenting factions within the [[National Pact (Urcea)|National Pact]] could not agree on a leader. King Aedanicus opted to appoint a leading General, [[Gréagóir FitzRex]], as [[Procurator]] in an attempt to co-opt the military and restoring order in the government. FitzRex received a very narrow approval from the [[Concilium Daoni]] and began to exercise increasing control over the government, appointing his own members to the Purpaidá despite that being under the Chancellor's purview. Despite the military's nascent political power, it was not immune from the growing sense of decay at the end of the long Aedanicad that struck every other part of the country and society. While the navy was falling behind technologically, the [[Royal and Imperial Army (Urcea)|Royal Army]] became imbued in a scandal known as the ''Eight Rifle Affair'', in which the Army ordered [[List_of_Urcean_service_weapons#Affair_Six|8 different standardized rifle designs]] between 1880 and 1887 due to a series of escalating favors and corruption within the Army and connected industries, with six of the rifles being used for less than a decade. The Eight Rifle Affair was supported by funds specifically appropriated for the conversion to use of {{wp|bolt action rifles}} as part of a modernization program, and the failure and controversy around it weakened both the Apostolic King and [[Concilium Daoni]]. The Eight Rifle Affair was extremely costly to the already-tight government budget, leading to a near-discrediting of the army and a hope for FitzRex's opposition. Army leadership eventually decided to license a foreign design from [[Veltorina]]. The adoption of the this semi-successful licensed rifle - dubbed the SR-8 - brought the affair to an end in 1887, finally giving the Royal Army a standardized bolt-action rifle for use for the next decade and a half. The Affair gave the late Aedanicad regime its popular nickname - the "Rifled State" - referring both to public corruption and the general influence of the armed forces. | ||
Now empowered, Procurator FitzRex convinced the elderly King to grant him the previously Royal title of [[Ranks in the Urcean Armed Forces|Magister Militum]], granting FitzRex total control over the [[Armed Forces of the Apostolic Kingdom of Urcea|armed forces]], subsequently inducing the Daoni to vote the powerless title Commander-in-Chief to the King instead. The Daoni remained without a [[Chancellor and Temporary President]] for the remainder of the 1886-1890 term, and Procurator FitzRex used this to push through a series of aggressive reforms intended at modernization, which were initially popular. | Now empowered, Procurator FitzRex convinced the elderly King to grant him the previously Royal title of [[Ranks in the Urcean Armed Forces|Magister Militum]], granting FitzRex total control over the [[Armed Forces of the Apostolic Kingdom of Urcea|armed forces]], subsequently inducing the Daoni to vote the powerless title Commander-in-Chief to the King instead. The Daoni remained without a [[Chancellor and Temporary President]] for the remainder of the 1886-1890 term, and Procurator FitzRex used this to push through a series of aggressive reforms intended at modernization, which were initially popular. On 1 November 1889, King Aedanicus VIII died, beginning a sequence of events that would result in Urcea transitioning to a Crown Regency led by FitzRex. | ||
== Crown Regency == | |||
===Coup of All Saints=== | ===Coup of All Saints=== | ||
King [[Aedanicus VIII]] died just before 8 AM [[Urceopolis (City)|Urceopolis]] time on 1 November 1889, surrounded by his immediate female relatives as well as a cadre of officers and soldiers personally loyal to [[Gréagóir FitzRex]] (to the exclusion of the [[Life Guard (Urcea)|Life Guard]]). Once the King died, news spread quickly throughout the [[Julian Palace]], but FitzRex ordered the building locked down and all staff and personnel to remain in place. The date was advantageous; it was the {{wp|All Saints' Day|Feast of All Saints}}, an important Catholic Holy Day, and most Urceans - including those in political office - would be in and out of mass most of the day. FitzRex's officers managed to round up some of the most loyal of his senior officers as well as important so-called "railroadocrats" (most notably [[Trasinor affair|Leo Trasinor]]) by 8:45 AM to determine how to proceed. After about a half hour of discussion, it was determined FitzRex would take power and establish a regime of reform inclined towards the privilegiata, which many of the railroadocrats and senior officers had worked for in the preceding decades. The degree to which this coup was planned ahead of time has been disputed, though FitzRex's decision to isolate the palace even prior to the King's death indicates that at least he, personally, had been planning to make a move. Many opponents of FitzRex at the time and since have accused him of orchestrating a poisoning of the King, though most scholars believe he died naturally. Whatever the case, the railroadocrats moved quickly, and by 10 AM almost all railroads throughout [[The Valley (Urcea)|the Valley]] were halted. All military trains were halted except those of the units known to be loyal to the coup, who now could move freely throughout the country. Though most people were still at mass, those who were not began to gather in large crowds in cities throughout the Valley in both confusion and discontent. FitzRex's units began to secure Urceopolis by 10:30 AM and other major cities in the vicinity by 11 AM. Most [[Concilium Purpaidá]] members were detained until their loyalty could be ascertained, and any officers of the [[Concilium Daoni]] around the Palace were also seized and detained. | |||
== | On hearing that his father was in a terminal condition at around 11 PM on 31 October, [[Patrick III of Urcea|Patrick, Prince of Halfway]] boarded a train at midnight from the southern edge of the [[Urcean frontier]]. His train was halted at 10 AM with no explanation. After about an hour, a contingent of Army forces boarded the train and took the Prince into custody. Their commander, Prafáti Adrian Newlinar, was ordered to take the Prince to [[Urceopolis (City)|Urceopolis]] to be detained. However, Newlinar discarded his orders; while he believed in a pro-military coup, he believed his superiors might execute the Prince, and his conscience would not allow it. Instead, Newlinar's men took the Prince to the nearby city of [[Sangran]], where he was forced aboard a boat for exile in [[Lariana]]. While Newlinar's superiors were furious that the legitimate claimant had escaped, the move actually suited FitzRex's purposes. Just after 1 PM, he made a public address from the Julian Palace, announcing that the King had died and that his heir had fled the country, functionally proroguing his claim. In his place, a Regency would be established with FitzRex at its head; a new King "would be found in time, one suited to the popular mood and the momentous occasion in which our country finds itself", and that a new era of reform was ahead. The first official act of FitzRex's regency was to hold a large, elaborate funeral for King Aedanicus which he featured prominently in. | ||
===Regency established=== | |||
{{Infobox former country | {{Infobox former country | ||
|native_name = ''Rìognum Urciona Abostolo'' | |native_name = ''Rìognum Urciona Abostolo'' | ||
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With the beginning of the 1901 campaign season, allied forces began several offensives as part of a two pronged effort to cut the nation in two and gain access to the [[The Valley (Urcea)|Urcean valley]]. In the spring, [[Burgundie]] and other Imperial allies began an invasion of Urcea in the newly formed province of [[Burgundiemarch]] in what would become known as the [[Overland Campaign]]. FitzRex had anticipated such a move and heavily fortified the province, leading to Burgoignesc forces being bogged down quickly and leading, ultimately, to operational failure. Burgoignesc and Legitimist forces defeated the Regal Navy and established a blockade of Cana, capturing the city in June in the decisive [[Fall of Cana]]. With the port city and most of [[Canaery]] under its control, the allies began the [[Antonine Campaign]], an effort to secure access into the Urcean valley by the few routes through the [[Urcean frontier]]. With the success of that effort by the end of 1901, allied forces could now enter the Urcean plain by land or by sea, as control of Cana gave a vital base from which to raid and land soldiers. Imperial forces began to stream into Cana and across the countryside, taking much of southern Urcea from the Crown Regency. By the end of 1901, the forces of the Crown Regency were reduced to an area approximately covering the [[Urceopolis (Archduchy)|Archduchy of Urceopolis]] and Eastglen, and most of the remaining navy had defected to the Legitimist cause or surrendered, leading to a blockade over the winter. The Antonine Campaign was considered a decisive blow against the military fortunes of the FitzRex regime, and from its base of operations in Meliferia and along the ''Via Antonia'' allied forces began to launch raids across the Archduchy over the winter, severely harming the agricultural output and logistics of the regime. | With the beginning of the 1901 campaign season, allied forces began several offensives as part of a two pronged effort to cut the nation in two and gain access to the [[The Valley (Urcea)|Urcean valley]]. In the spring, [[Burgundie]] and other Imperial allies began an invasion of Urcea in the newly formed province of [[Burgundiemarch]] in what would become known as the [[Overland Campaign]]. FitzRex had anticipated such a move and heavily fortified the province, leading to Burgoignesc forces being bogged down quickly and leading, ultimately, to operational failure. Burgoignesc and Legitimist forces defeated the Regal Navy and established a blockade of Cana, capturing the city in June in the decisive [[Fall of Cana]]. With the port city and most of [[Canaery]] under its control, the allies began the [[Antonine Campaign]], an effort to secure access into the Urcean valley by the few routes through the [[Urcean frontier]]. With the success of that effort by the end of 1901, allied forces could now enter the Urcean plain by land or by sea, as control of Cana gave a vital base from which to raid and land soldiers. Imperial forces began to stream into Cana and across the countryside, taking much of southern Urcea from the Crown Regency. By the end of 1901, the forces of the Crown Regency were reduced to an area approximately covering the [[Urceopolis (Archduchy)|Archduchy of Urceopolis]] and Eastglen, and most of the remaining navy had defected to the Legitimist cause or surrendered, leading to a blockade over the winter. The Antonine Campaign was considered a decisive blow against the military fortunes of the FitzRex regime, and from its base of operations in Meliferia and along the ''Via Antonia'' allied forces began to launch raids across the Archduchy over the winter, severely harming the agricultural output and logistics of the regime. | ||
The "Crowned republic" scandal would embroil FitzRex's government and largely serve to discredit the regency in the eyes of most moderates and especially moderate conservatives. Publicly, FitzRex continued to offer his guarantee that a new King might soon be found on schedule with Urcea's withdrawal from the Empire in 1905. Privately, however, FitzRex soured on the prospect of monarchy given the | The "Crowned republic" scandal would embroil FitzRex's government and largely serve to discredit the regency in the eyes of most moderates and especially moderate conservatives. Publicly, FitzRex continued to offer his guarantee that a new King might soon be found on schedule with Urcea's withdrawal from the Empire in 1905. Privately, however, FitzRex soured on the prospect of monarchy given the failure of the Mandt affair; though FitzRex would not pick someone as strong willed or capable, the position was a threat to him all the same. In August of 1901 the Crown-Regent privately began to draw up plans for reforming the Apostolic Kingdom into the "United Provinces of Urcea" with a strong executive Presidency, which he would fill, allowing FitzRex to exercise permanent legitimacy in office. Whether or not FitzRex thought the United Provinces plan would work is unclear, but historians believe he was planning on floating several "trial balloons", so to speak, in advance of revealing the full plan. Government officials leaked the plan at the end of August, outraging the public and forcing FitzRex to entirely disavow the plan. Despite his public disavowal, the Regency began to lose the support of committed constitutional monarchists, who had already been weary of working alongside socialists and professional military officers. | ||
The blockade led to rapidly deteriorating conditions inside the Regal lines, as food became scarce and most lower class [[Social class in Urcea|freemen]] were laid off and sent home due to the lack of available work. Widespread unrest gripped [[Urceopolis (City)|Urceopolis]] as the city approached starvation by the end of January. [[Gréagóir FitzRex|The Crown Regent]] diverted more of his power to the [[Concilium Daoni]] in order to reduce the unrest and began to re-purpose some of the Regal Army for night raids across the lines to take foodstores back to the city. The Crown Regent began a semi-effective food rationing system, and began to open the [[Julian Palace]] to the public, sharing the Palace's food stores with the masses. These measures were effective in restoring confidence for much of February 1902, but even the Palace's food stores began to run low by the end of the month. FitzRex had restored public confidence in his regime for a temporary time, but the effort became his undoing. On the night of March 2nd, 1902, a family of Urceopolitans were refused larger portions despite the state of their famished children, causing an argument between the family and the workers at the Palace. FitzRex attempted to mediate the discussion, but the argument escalated and the leader of the family stabbed the Crown Regent, leading to the Palace dining hall erupting in a massive riot. FitzRex, not fatally wounded, was trampled in the chaos and was pronounced dead in the Palace. The Daoni met in an emergency session into the early morning of the 3rd, and, following hours of debate, the socialist majority in the Daoni declared a republic which would continue the fight against the Legitimists. It voted to abolish itself and replace itself with a "National Assembly of the Republic". | The blockade led to rapidly deteriorating conditions inside the Regal lines, as food became scarce and most lower class [[Social class in Urcea|freemen]] were laid off and sent home due to the lack of available work. Widespread unrest gripped [[Urceopolis (City)|Urceopolis]] as the city approached starvation by the end of January. [[Gréagóir FitzRex|The Crown Regent]] diverted more of his power to the [[Concilium Daoni]] in order to reduce the unrest and began to re-purpose some of the Regal Army for night raids across the lines to take foodstores back to the city. The Crown Regent began a semi-effective food rationing system, and began to open the [[Julian Palace]] to the public, sharing the Palace's food stores with the masses. These measures were effective in restoring confidence for much of February 1902, but even the Palace's food stores began to run low by the end of the month. FitzRex had restored public confidence in his regime for a temporary time, but the effort became his undoing. On the night of March 2nd, 1902, a family of Urceopolitans were refused larger portions despite the state of their famished children, causing an argument between the family and the workers at the Palace. FitzRex attempted to mediate the discussion, but the argument escalated and the leader of the family stabbed the Crown Regent, leading to the Palace dining hall erupting in a massive riot. FitzRex, not fatally wounded, was trampled in the chaos and was pronounced dead in the Palace. The Daoni met in an emergency session into the early morning of the 3rd, and, following hours of debate, the socialist majority in the Daoni declared a republic which would continue the fight against the Legitimists. It voted to abolish itself and replace itself with a "National Assembly of the Republic". | ||