History of Urcea (1575-1798): Difference between revisions
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In May 1676, the Royal Army managed to deploy a significant force - 12,500 men - into Gassavelia. Since the approach to the country was totally secured by the enhanced Hortus Mountain pass garrisons, the Army was accompanied by a disproportionately large supply train. While such a train would be difficult to defend in open conflict, the region north of the Hortus was completely safe. From the arrival of this force in May, the main portion of fighting began. From then on, the northernmost portion of the country was considered to be the most loyalist and the major base of resupply and recruitment for the Royal Army, with the central part of the country having the most Arsesian support. Following storms and other difficulties, a second force of around 13,000 was landed in the coastal region of Gassavelia in October 1676. For the next three years, these armies would engage in a brutal campaign of attrition against Arsesian loyalist forces. In most battles, the Arsesians were able to better concentrate their forces and issue smaller tactical defeats to the Royal Army that nonetheless stymied its ability to project power into the Gassavelian interior. Supply issues remained constant, and much of the war was characterized by large scale raids by each side against the other's supply trains and farms loyal to each side, leading to strategic supply concerns and additional devastation to the civilian economy. Campaigns throughout 1677 and 1678 were largely unsuccessful before a major campaign in April 1679 saw the northern Royal Army forces sail up the Saianda River and sack Harzenon, the historic capital of the region and the major base of Arsesian support. The sack allowed the Royal Army to control the entire length of the Saianda River, linking up the northern and southern Royal Armies and sending most of the rebels into isolation. The conflict continued until August 1679 when the unified Royal Army destroyed the largest rebel army and captured the pretender Arses, who was subsequently sent back to [[Urceopolis (City)|Urceopolis]] in chains. | In May 1676, the Royal Army managed to deploy a significant force - 12,500 men - into Gassavelia. Since the approach to the country was totally secured by the enhanced Hortus Mountain pass garrisons, the Army was accompanied by a disproportionately large supply train. While such a train would be difficult to defend in open conflict, the region north of the Hortus was completely safe. From the arrival of this force in May, the main portion of fighting began. From then on, the northernmost portion of the country was considered to be the most loyalist and the major base of resupply and recruitment for the Royal Army, with the central part of the country having the most Arsesian support. Following storms and other difficulties, a second force of around 13,000 was landed in the coastal region of Gassavelia in October 1676. For the next three years, these armies would engage in a brutal campaign of attrition against Arsesian loyalist forces. In most battles, the Arsesians were able to better concentrate their forces and issue smaller tactical defeats to the Royal Army that nonetheless stymied its ability to project power into the Gassavelian interior. Supply issues remained constant, and much of the war was characterized by large scale raids by each side against the other's supply trains and farms loyal to each side, leading to strategic supply concerns and additional devastation to the civilian economy. Campaigns throughout 1677 and 1678 were largely unsuccessful before a major campaign in April 1679 saw the northern Royal Army forces sail up the Saianda River and sack Harzenon, the historic capital of the region and the major base of Arsesian support. The sack allowed the Royal Army to control the entire length of the Saianda River, linking up the northern and southern Royal Armies and sending most of the rebels into isolation. The conflict continued until August 1679 when the unified Royal Army destroyed the largest rebel army and captured the pretender Arses, who was subsequently sent back to [[Urceopolis (City)|Urceopolis]] in chains. | ||
Leaders in Urceopolis - especially King Patrick I (1672-1688) and his successor Aedanicus VI (1688-1702) - decided to use a conciliatory approach following the defeat of the final rebel army. Efforts would be made to incorporate Gassavelia and other periphery areas more closely into the Kingdom's legal apparatus, adding representation for the area in the [[Concilium Daoni]] in [[1685]]. In [[1690]], King Aedanicus issued a monopoly charter for Gassavelian fishing enterprises in the [[Sea of Canete]] off Urcea's southern coast, a decision which would significantly alleviate famine and economic depression in Gassavelia by 1700. Conciliation would continue for some time, culminating with the Southern Reform Act of 1755, which introduced large degrees of local control over the Gassavelian duchies and introduced some economic relief measures, including a significant reduction of internal tariffs in the area. | Leaders in Urceopolis - especially King Patrick I (1672-1688) and his successor Aedanicus VI (1688-1702) - decided to use a conciliatory approach following the defeat of the final rebel army. Efforts would be made to incorporate Gassavelia and other periphery areas more closely into the Kingdom's legal apparatus, adding representation for the area in the [[Concilium Daoni]] in [[1685]]. In [[1690]], King Aedanicus issued a monopoly charter for Gassavelian fishing enterprises in the [[Sea of Canete]] off Urcea's southern coast, a decision which would significantly alleviate famine and economic depression in Gassavelia by 1700. Conciliation would continue for some time, culminating with the Southern Reform Act of 1755, which introduced large degrees of local control over the Gassavelian duchies and introduced some economic relief measures, including a significant reduction of internal tariffs in the area. Symbolically, the most significant conciliatory symbol was the person of the mangate Arses, who had ruled Gassavelia in pretense as King Arses III and had sat in a Urceopolitan prison from 1679. King Patrick I was content to let the insurrectionist ruler die in prison, but upon his death in 1688 his successor Aedanicus VI had a different fate in mind. In what contemporaries noted to be an astonishing display of clemency, Aedanicus VI ordered Arses released on August 3 1689 after a decade in prison. Arses's release included the caveat that the King viewed him as too dangerous to the peace in [[Gassavelia]] to allow him to return there, and instead he was appointed the first [[New_Archduchy#Colonial_era|Rector of New Archduchy]] in early 1690. Giving Arses a position of power had the intended effect, greatly increasing Aedanicus's personal popularity within Gassavelia and easing tensions following the war. | ||
===Incorporation reform=== | ===Incorporation reform=== | ||