Qustantistan

Islamic Caliphate according to the Sacred Qustanti Tradition in Suristan al-Khilāfat aq-Qustantiniyyah
Flag
Motto: "There is no God but God, Muhammad is His Prophet, and the line of Ali continues His guidance"
Anthem: Ummat-i Qanat la Tardu al-Wahan
Capital	Qustantiniyyah
Official languages	???
Recognised regional languages	Aramaïc, Dardic, Madavani, Parthavi, Coscivian
Ethnic groups	70% Adonero-Sarpic?, 20% Istroyan?, 8% Coscivian?
Demonym(s)	Qustanti, Qustantistani
Government	Caliphate
• Caliph	Nidal abd' al-Rumel
Legislature	Majlis
Revolution
• Overthrow of the United Islamic Federation	May 1, 2022
Population
• Census	75,276,926

The Islamic Caliphate according to the Sacred Qustanti Tradition in Suristan, also known as the Caliphate of Qustantistan, is an insular Islamic state located off eastern Sarpedon.

History

Pre-Islamic

Bust of Mecistes of Tylossos held in the Qustanti Ethnographic Museum

The area covered by modern Qustantistan was first substantially settled by Istroyans around 715 BC. These settlers were exiles from the city state of Tylossos and were led by a man named Mecistes. Mecistes and his followers had attempted a coup to topple the tyrant ruling Tylossos on behalf of Messisoria. The attempt failed as it had little public support and Mecistes and his group were given the choice of being put to death or leaving the city. Vowing to forever oppose Messisorian domination, Mecistes and the majority of his followers chose to go into exile. From Tylossos they sailed southeast to the island of Lissene, then only very lightly populated and outside of Messisorian influence. On Lissene they founded a settlement on the island's west coast that they named Elateia after the godess of currents and the sea worshipped in Tylossos.

The Elateians wasted no time in subjugating the small hamlets in the island, places such as Thebypes and Salussae were quickly inducted into the enlightened orbit of the new polis willingly or otherwise. The exiles set up a system of governance very similar to that which existed in Tylossos before its domination by Messisoria, that is to say they instituted a form of participative democracy. Each citizen theoretically had an equal voice and vote on the assembly of the city and decisions were taken by majority vote. Mecistes by virtue of being their original leader was awarded the title of First Speaker, a position that enabled him to be the first to speak in any debate. In this early period Mecistes was unchallenged and could always sway the majority to his view, thus basically dictating the city's policies. He advocated for Elateia to remain aloof from the troubles of neighboring cities, reasoning that Elateia was neither strong or wealthy enough to affect political events.

There was however some discontent with the leadership and arrogant manner of Mecistes, and the perception that he had given up too easily and too quickly back on Tylossos. Chief among these malcontents was a man named Timasion, who became a fierce rival of Mecistes and a critic of all his positions. After a debate on the navy that descended into with personal attacks, Mecistes was set upon with knives on the street by Timasion's allies and killed. With the death of Mecistes, his isolationist faction fragmented and Timasion's militarist faction took over power until 732 BC. Under Timasion and his allies, Elateia built a large fleet and became a significant naval power. Elateian policy during this period favored always placing itself in the anti-Messisorian camp and lending the power of its ships to those that opposed it such as the city of Telios during the Pikralic War. The combined fleets of Elateia and Telios under admiral Posides defeated a large Messisorian fleet during that conflict, cementing the city's reputation for sea power.

Early Islam

Elateia managed to maintain its independence from other istroyan states well into the 8th century. The unexpected arrival of a new threat from the east caught the leaders of the city flat footed. Crossing the Sea of Istroya, Oduniyyad invaders espousing a new faith bore down on the island. The Elateians mustered their fleet to see off the invasion of their shores without realizing the size of the enemy fleets. Winning an engagement against an Oduniyyad scouting force, the emboldened Elateian fleet sailed further east pursuing the survivors only to find themselves enveloped by the enemy. At the Battle of Katerion, the Elateian fleet was decisively smashed by the Oduniyyads. Of three hundred ships that had sailed mere weeks before, only fifteen escaped the disaster to limp back home with the news.

News of the defeat at sea sent shockwaves through the Elateian political and military establishment. At a single stroke the city had lost thousands of experienced sailors and navigators and the bulk of its expensive fleet. A debate in the assembly ensued on whether to surrender or fight on, with the surrender party being decisively outvoted. An officer named Hipponax was placed in charge of organizing the defense of the city. Hipponax levied every available men for the defense, teenagers and old men included, had the city walls repaired and ordered all the crops secreted inside to deny food to the enemy. He also sent envoys to Greektown hoping to convince them to send some support but on this they were not successful. As the Muslim fleet approached the island a last ditch attempt to stop them from landing troops was made. Several ships equipped with spigots that expelled a combustible liquid attacked the enemy fleet, burning a dozen ships before being rammed and succumbing to the waves. Fireships had been used in other battles by Elateia but only in very small numbers, probably due to the difficulty of procuring the combustion agent. Forty thousand muslim warriors under general Ahmed Ben Ghazi stormed the island, quickly overrunning every village and hamlet in their way. The swiftness of the attack prevented Hipponax from razing the surrounding area to deprive the invaders of supplies.

Crusades

During the Crusades, the emergent Qustanti religious minority made contact with western Crusaders about a potential alliance against the Oduniyyad Caliphate. The group successfully received Crusader support in an uprising which coincided with the Third Crusade in 1144, establishing independent control over the islands. The capture of the Melian Islands by the Crusaders and the establishment of an independent Qustanti realm in the islands to its south created an island barrier separating Sarpedon from the Oduniyyad Caliphate, permanently severing Caliphal authority on the continent.

Government

The Qustanti Caliphate is a theocratic monarchy. Though it is often described as an absolute monarchy, most scholars consider this a mischaracterisation, as the Caliph is subject to Sharia, and the Qur'an and Ummatic Tradition act as a body of constitutional law. Accordingly, the state is considered by many scholars to be a bureaucratic dicatorship under the guidance of Qustanti Muslim scholar-clerics under general supervision of the Caliph.

The Caliphate regards itself as a sovereign entity that governs Qustantistan as a nation-state, but also rightfully claims religious and (in certain periods of history) civil authority over Qustanti Muslims outside of its territorial jurisdiction. Qustanti Muslims are required to pay tithes to the Caliphate through their congregations, and are obliged to participate in jihad if deemed called upon by the Caliph to defend the faith. All Qustantis, regardless of legal nationality, are considered subjects of the Caliph, and as such are automatically considered Qustanti nationals when in Qustantistan.

Foreign Policy

Qustantistan has an active foreign policy. Aside from national self-preservation, is main foreign policy interests are promoting Qustanti Islam and protecting Qustanti and other Shi'a minorities abroad, and seeking trade contacts to promote economic development. Qustantistan has good relations with Caphiria, which is the critical trading partner and source of foreign investment. The Caliphate's energy reserves and fair treatment of its Coscivian population have engendered good relations with the Kiravian Federacy.

Society & Culture

Qustantistan is a multiethnic, multilingual nation united by religion. Although the lowland Rumelavi of mixt Perso-Arabic and Græco-Roman heritage constitute the "mainstream" national culture of Qustantistan, a variety of smaller Iranic, Semitic, Hellenic, and Coscivian groups comprise the majority of the population.

The Islamic calendar is used for both civil and religious purposes in Qustantistan, except in Coscivian communities, which use a different lunar calendar.

Religion

Main article: Qustanti Islam

Religious Affiliation
Group			Percentage
Qustanti Islam			67.2%
Sunni Muslim			22.8%
Christianity			6.4%
Mandæanism			2.1%
Zoroastrianism			1.2%
Other			0.3%

Religion is central to Qustanti life. Qustanti Islam is the state's raison d'être. Over sixty-seven (67%) percent of Qustantistanis adhere to Qustanti Islam, which has been criticized by many Sunni and Shia clerics as a syncretic adoption of Catholic traditions, influenced by Hekuvia.

Qustantistan does not provide for absolute, categorical freedom of religion. Rather, in accordance with Koranic law, the Caliphate extends religious toleration to other monotheists. Outside of Islam, the state accords official protection to Judaïsm, Mandæanism, Christianity, and Zoroastrianism. Adherents of these religions must pay a jizya tax, but are alotted special representation in the Majlis and are autonomous with regard to religious affairs and marital and family law. The public practice of non-monotheistic religions is prohibited, and Qustantistani nationals are forbidden from belonging to them. Foreign expatriates are permitted to practice other religions in private. Apostasy from Islam is illegal and punishable by death, as is public proclamation of atheism.

Language

The two official and most widely-spoken languages in Qustantistan are Umardi and Arabic. Umardi is the primary language of governmental affairs and business, though Arabic, the official liturgical language understood at a basic level by 90% of adult Qustantis, is more frequently used for inter-ethnic communication. Most urban dwellers are natively bilingual, switching fluidly between Arabic and Umardi.

Economy

Qustantistan can be characterised as an emerging market economy.

-Oil, natty gas, and uranium; fish -Manufacturing -Agriculture