Halfway: Difference between revisions

=== Prehistory through Caphiric conquest ===

Archaeologists have uncovered significant early human activity on Halfway. While there is no consensus date for the rise of urbanization on the island, it is agreed that complicated urban centers based around fishing and trade developed very early on after the rise of agricultural civilization in Sarpedon. Traders from Halfway are attested to in Urlazic archaeological inscriptions as early as 1750 BC. By the time the [[Adonerii]] entered their peak, Halfway was considered to be an "old", respected trading island. The island's early political situation, which probably included semi-nomadic pastoral tribes in the interior, coalesced into six major cities by or before 1000 BC: [[Koureiros]], Elatia, Pertoulo, Damasa, Chasini, and Pedino, though all had earlier, non-Latinized names and other nicknames which appear common in the historical record. All six cities are among oldest continuously settled cities in the [[Occident]].

In the period 854-850 BC, the cities of Halfway were conquered by the [[Messisorian Kingdom]] based on nearby [[Herciana]]. The Messisorians had begun to exert more influence and authority over the cities of the island in the preceding century, falling in and out of the Messisorian orbit as clients. The emergent wealth and stability within that Kingdom led to a direct campaign against Halfway in the 850s. Koureiros led the defense and held for two and a half years before falling in a siege to the Mesissorians in June of 851 BC; most of the elites of the city were slaughtered or sold into slavery in mainland Sarpedon. Following the savaging of Koureiros, the remaining cities only put up half-hearted resistance, with many peace parties within those cities eventually gaining power by the end of 851 BC. In 850 BC, all of the cities of Halfway recognized the King of Messisoria as their overlord, ending the conflict on the island and beginning a half millennia of rule from Herciana. During the Messisorian period, the island was governed relatively loosely; a garrison of soldiers from Herciana was stationed on the island and paid for by the local cities in addition to a tax paid to the King, but otherwise the cities retained autonomy from one another. During the Messisorian Kingdom's peak, Halfway was a safe core part of the Kingdom, away from the conflicts on the mainland with Sarpic peoples and other Istroyan city-states. This period saw many men of Halfway serve in the Kingdom's armies on the mainland, having the practical effect of bringing mainland cultural innovations to the island. The island also served as a buffer for the capital in Taxades and Herciana itself against piracy, and by 600 BC a major Messisorian fleet was stationed on the island.