History of Arcerion: Difference between revisions

This period also saw the establishment of the first major roads in Arcerion, connecting Chester-on-Moore and Kurst, as well as the expansion of inland towns and cities into the foothills of the Aileach Mountains. Kurst had a fort established, and the Arcer Army was born out of a nascent militia. This also coincided with a second expedition to establish [[Kinnaird]], which would grow to become Arcerion's second biggest city. The peace treaties and armistice with native tribes proved to be ab equal diplomatic feat. As warring bands of natives and leadership changed with such regularity, Arcer diplomats and representatives of the Ardmori Crown came to the conclusion that there was to be no true peace in the land, as what worked for one Chieftain may not for the next.  

The Ardmori Crown sponsored another expedition further into the Malentine, finding the Southern of Foxhey's two islands. This was followed with the reaction of the "Gibson Settlement" in 1822, which was eventually renamed Port Gibson, and with the town reaching a population of 2,500 less than two years later, it had ratified the early Arco constitutional documents, the Crown recognizing it as a Governorate in 1824. Bellings was quick to appoint Frederick Gibson as the Governorate's first Lieutenant-Governor. Port Gibson would become a major fishing, whaling, and shipbuilding town, and one of Arcerion's most important Western ports. By the mid-1820s, Dunborough had established into a large frontier town. A permanent garrison of several hundred regular and Arcer soldiers, as well as thousands of farmers, settlers, and traders had created a trading town that was a junction between Indigenous and Occidental. This was similar to Dalfearn, which was at the foremost border of the inland Arco territory. Dalfearn itself was still growing and being industrialized, and with only a small dirt road that was easily washed out, was removed from most Arco garrisons and assistance from the Ardmori Crown.  

During this time Arcerion's population reached over fifteen million. The economy had already outstripped the native Indigenous states, and was rivalled only in South Crona by other Occidental nations such as Alstin and Paulastra. Major exports of wheat, soft and hardwood timber, rye, and spirits helped flood foreign markets with increasing numbers of Arco goods. Discussions even began surrounding the creation of a new Arcer currency.  

This period was mostly known for the settlement of the [[Arcer Heartland]]. Caravans in 1864 and 1870 moved inland along the Leigh and Innis Rivers, pushing forward from Oakham (established in 1839) and Dalfearn. By 1878, the largest Arcer settlement in the Heartland, Presdale, had been established by a group of Gaels resettled from North Ardmore, and Arcerion's footprint in the Heartland was established. By 1888, a caravan from Oakham had Pushed along the North Innis, establishing contact formally for the first time with the Kel-kon'e tribe, who now had been forced to share lands with the Chaxhan tribesemen who ahd continued their withdrawal Northwards each successive generation. Arcer culture had also taken major leaps with the establishment of a nascent national identity, later formalized as Arco Determinism. Folk music, newspapers, parades, and national holidays had begun to take root, and Ængle and Gael traditions mixed with those of the established Arcer citizenry to create a blended national identity. Even the Ænglish language had begun to change with regional dialects in Foxhey and Moorden giving a different accent that was distinctly different from Levantine Ængles.  

With the introduction of the [[Arco National Railway Service]] (ANRS) the pace of industrialization in Arcerion increased rapidly. The first rail line was set from Port Hughes in the South to Dunborough in the North, with a new line set up to Easthampton to help ship the vast quantities of iron ore and steel products being manufactured in the town. It was during this time of rapid economic expansion and mass emigration that Crown Governor Sir William Walter James requested permission on Arcerion's centennial birthday to have a special status as a semi-sovereign state. Granted by the Crown Regent in Ardmore, this gave Arcerion control over its own international relations, diplomatic presence, its own sovereign coat of arms, and control over its economic policy. This petition formed the second of three documents that formed the basis for the Arcer constitution.  

With semi-governance also came the withdrawal of much of the regular Ardmori forces. Multiple regiments of infantry, cavalry, and batteries of artillery were withdrawn, as well as the offices and officers of the Ardmori Crown such as the Crown Treasurer to Arcerion, the Tariff Office, and the Attorney General for Arcerion. In the wake of the Ardmori withdrawal in 1890, Arcer Crown Governor Sir James relinquished his role in a ceremony to Henry Faulkner, a Lord and shipbuilding magnate from Foxhey, a born citizen of Arcerion. James' reasoning was Arcerion now must be ruled by its own people, and Faulkner was the first Crown Governor from Foxhey, and the second naturally-born Arcer to hold the office.  

The Confederate Parliament by this time had expanded into a full legislature, and provisions to move the Arcer Senate into a new wing of the building had coincided with planned improvements and upgrades for the building. Rosmore Station in Kurst, the largest railway station and trainyard was seeing daily regular traffic in the thousands, and major corporations from [[Arcerion Steel Corporation|Arco Steel]] to Foxhey Shipyards were quickly competing at an international level and establishing Arceiron as the dominant Malentine economic power. Proto-states in [[Kelekona]], [[Titechaxha]], and [[Istrenya]] were increasingly becoming reliant on Arco trade, and the wharfs and dockyards of Chester-on-Moore and Kurst were overflowing with Levantine ships, especially those of Burgundie, transporting Arcer goods to the Occidental world. However relations with Paulastra, especially concerning the Washakaran Basin, were beginning to cloud over. Diplomatic negotiations over the administration of the small native reserve was increasingly declining, and the strained diplomatic relationship was further damaged with the introduction of the Arcer Pound in 1890, which quickly flooded the Washakaran market, devaluing Paulastran currency and further bringing Washakara closer to Arcerion.  

Industrialization in Arcerion varied greatly by Governorate and type. In Moorden, developed factories, manufacturing plants, and raw mineral and mining industries (especially in Easthampton) were the largest shares of the market. Conversely, Northlea and Norham remained mostly agrarian in nature, with grain, rye, and maize increasing in production due to advances in new crop rotation methods, advanced farming machinery, and the creation of grain coops where farmers pooled resources and financed grain elevators and shipping techniques via rail. Foxhey remained largely reliant on maritime sources of economic prosperity such as fishing and ship building, however the federal contracts for the [[Royal Arcerion Naval Service]] meant that hundreds of jobs were created with the plans to construct new frigates, ships of the line, and the planned introduction of steam vessels.