Hezikian Isles: Difference between revisions

The Hezikian Isles is a volcanic island archipelago located in the southern Levantine Ocean owned by the Commonwealth of Fiannria. The islands are named after Hezekiah, a biblical king of Judah. Historically the islands have been a crusader kingdom, a trading post to Audonia, a smuggling and pirate den, an island prison for exiles, a naval base, and more tourism hub. It has also been the inspiration for the fictional island location for ''IxCount of Monte Cristo''. Consisting of 37 islands, 15 of which are settled, with the largest three being Perassa, Seko, and Malona. It has recently seen immense new development projects by the Fiannria government.

Around 700 BC is the estimated time that Punic settlers first came to the islands from among the Semitic tribes, taking the settlement from the bronze age residents that lived among some of the islands prior. This colony would become a major site for early iron age trade through Audonia and would be an outpost for trade with Istroyan city-states. However, amidst political infighting prone to the trade empires of the Punics, Istroyan settlers invaded and founded their own colony in the peninsula. Leading to centuries of intermittent warfare between the settlements that would be key outposts for trade access to goods across Audonia and beyond.  This persisted until the mid 200s AD, where the Istroyan’s amongst the islands became tributaries to the Adonerii. Interestingly, records seem to show mention of both the Caphiric Adoneric Empire and also the Great Levantia Adoneric Empire as the target of tribute. The influence of the Adonerics on the Istroyan colonies gave an edge to the Istroyan colonies that would lead to most of the Punic settlements captured or burned.  

However, with the rise of the Oduniyyads, the Punics sought their support that eventually led to the conquest of the islands completely by the Caliphate in the late 600s. Caliphate control over the islands was generally lax, maintaining Jizyah taxes over the isles large non-islamic populations as it promoted slow islamization and arabization of the islands. Control over the islands would be unopposed until 1084 when a contingent of Culfran and Deric crusaders, seeking resupply and a place to further fund their armies in its mission south to Istroya invaded the archipelago. Under the leadership of William Baran, a Culfran lord, led an invasion of the Hezikian islands in order to support the resupply and funding of the northern Levantine forces in its expedition to fight in the Crusade for Istroya.  The island-hopping and naval campaign seriously delayed and weakened the northern contingent in the Crusade in the south. Finally capturing the archipelago, William Baran and some allied lords declared rulership over the islands, Baran being named the Prince of Ezechia, those forces now tied up in control over the islands, only a portion of the remaining northern Crusaders arrived in the Istroyan islands in 1085 to support the first Crusade.  

In 1529, the Prince-Elector of Bridhavn, having been among the most influential northern Princes of the Holy Levantine Empire, amongst the network of marriage and military alliances the family of O’Rourke had developed, the Princedom of Ezechia was inherited by the Prince-Elector. The O’Rourke’s would consolidate control of the islands and became a lifeline of needed funds, soldiers, and supplies to support the Northern Holy League’s war during the Reformation.