Arona

Republic of Arona Your Country in Another Language (Your language)
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Capital and largest city	Toucari
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Demonym(s)	Aronan (noun) Aronese (adjective) Aronese (plural)
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Arona, officially the Republic of Arona, is a country in Vallos. It is neighbored by Equatorial Ostiecia and Caphiria.

Arona is a protectorate of Urcea.

Etymology

"Arona" originated as a term in antiquity as the Latinized form of the word "hairouna", or "land of the blessed", in ancient language of the Tainean people. The meaning behind its appellation is unclear, although it seems to be a term related to the weather or sea conditions enjoyed by the residents of the land rather than any particular characteristic of its people.

History

Arona shares most of its history with the rest of Vallos, only assuming a distinct identity within the context of the formation of the Kingdom of Oustec, the most prominent of the so-called piratocracies. The kingdom was established in the 16th century and divided itself into provinces largely based around several key coastal cities which served as maritime hubs. Arona was established as the Harounan Province in 1598, encompassing Oustec's then-recent conquest in what would become its southwestern border territory.

Provincial history

From 1598 to the 19th century, the Harounan Province existed as a relatively peripheral portion of the Oustec Kingdom and was governed according to typical Oustec fashion, with the King appointing a General Proprietor to govern the province who served at the King's pleasure. Unlike most of the other provinces, Arona was not well designed to serve as a pirate port due to its westward orientation. Instead, it was relatively conventional in its purpose, serving as a strategic land buffer for the more prosperous and valuable northern port cities against the polities of the central third of Vallos. Its position as a strategic buffer meant that, unusually for Oustec, an army general was typically invested as General Proprietor. Its position also meant that Arona's interior received investments from the provincial government, forming one of the best road systems away from the coast in all of Oustec. As part of its mandate, the Harounan Province was given special privilege which would prevent the King from sapping land soldiers from the province for use as sailors, marines, or northern city garrisons.

Arona's position necessitated the development of a land army and militia culture not present or needed in the rest of the Kingdom. In the written record, the notable differences between Arona and the rest of the Kingdom were already noted as of 1702, when the Bergendii traveler Josèp Magal noted that "its people look for glory on the land, not on the sea...in stone castles, rather than aftcastles, will you find the people of Harounan." Due to its southward military orientation and remoteness from the sea lanes of St. Brendan's Strait, Arona saw little Levantine intervention and Bergendii military action relative to the rest of the Kingdom during the 18th and early 19th century.

King Abey II of the Oustec attempted a major series of reforms to the Kingdom in the face of continued Bergendii encroachment beginning in 1812, intending to transform the piratocracy into an Occidental style monarchy. As part of these reforms, Abey II intended to use the land forces of the Harounan Province as the relatively elite core of a new professional army for Oustec, ending the monopoly of state attention received by the navy and privateers. Two successive General Proprietors objected and were removed by Abey, before an archipelago leader from the privateer service was appointed. This appointment led to riots in Arona, and the militia refused to swear an oath of allegiance to the new General Proprietor. Additionally, the militia refused a direct order from the King to redeploy to the northern coast in order to ward off a potential Bergendii armed landing that year. The prospect of civil war loomed before Abey ultimately backed down, reappointing the previous General Proprietor and leaving the privilege in place. The incident greatly embarrassed the royal government and strained relations between Arona and the rest of Oustec from then on.

Oustec collapse and Urcean intervention

Main article: Archipelago War

First Great War

The rise of the Crown Regency in Urcea in 1889 sparked signficant uncertainty in Arona. By the fourth decade of the protectorate's existence in the 1890s, Urcea's Royal Navy was viewed abroad to be outdated, and this disparity was noted by the Aronese. on 4 March 1891, an armored cruiser of Burgundie made a refueling stop in Toucari. In port next to several Royal Navy vessels, the advanced Burgoignesc ship towered over the antiquated broadside ironclads, sparking significant unrest among the populace. King Akule tried and failed to receive reassurances from Gréagóir FitzRex that more advanced warships would be deployed to reinforce the Polynesian Squadron. Unknown to the populace, officials within the Concilium Purpaidá informed Akule in confidential messages that no more advanced warships were available. This news gave Akule great anxiety and inaugurated a period of domestic military buildup from 1892 through 1895. The increasing military expenditure led many to question the necessity of the protectorate agreement. In 1897, forces loyal to House de Weluta launched the '97 Rising in Urcea. The Polynesian Squadron and its commander declared neutrality in the conflict, professing loyalty "to Urcea independent of its regent or ruler." Until the restoration in 1902, the Polynesian Squadron became the de facto navy of Arona.

Arona's position of separation from Urcea put it in an extremely precarious position with the beginning of the First Great War. Protected only by its small army and the outdated Polynesian Squadron and bordered by Caphiria and Burgundie, it appeared likely that either or both would take advantage of Urcea's weakness and invade the small Kingdom. Fortunately for Arona, Burgundie announced its recognition of the claims of Patrick III and Caphiria that of the authority of the regent FitzRex. As both of these nations feared weakening the authority of their chosen faction within Urcea by seizing one of the nation's overseas territories, both respected the neutrality of Arona and Urcea's nominal claims of protection. Regardless, from 1897 through 1902, the protectorate was largely defunct, but Urcean influence remained with the presence of the Polynesian Squadron.

Protectorate restored

With the restoration of Patrick III as Apostolic King of Urcea in 1902, the new regime sought to restore some ties and repair others abroad. Urcea's western possessions were in a state of disarray; New Archduchy had declared independence, Arona was left virtually on its own, and New Harren had experienced significant trouble. Patrick III recognized New Archduchy's independence and set to work immediately restoring conditions in Urcea's other two possessions. Employing the same armored cruiser that arrived in 1891, now purchased from Burgundie and sailing for the Royal Navy as HMCMS Wonder, a new flotilla arrived in Toucari on 2 January 1903 to relieve the Polynesian Squadron. The symbolic arrival of a modern steel warship under Urcean colors symbolically heralded the return of the protectorate. Although it had never formally lapsed, Urcea had been viewed as failing in its responsibilities to protect Arona in the 1890s, and the display reassured both King Akule and the populace of Urcea's ability to protect the Kingdom.

With military protection restored, Urcean investment and new economic interests began to flow into the Kingdom in 1907. From the time of the restoration until 1920, Arona grew dramatically. An economic revolution occurred functionally overnight with the construction of Arona's first four factories, transforming the largely agrarian realm into an industrializing one. Prudently, the Government of Urcea decided to retain a light hand on its Vallosi protectorate, relying largely on economic and military incentives to keep it loyal to Urcea. This program had its effect, but the sudden economic transformation inaugurated a social transformation that King Akule was unable to properly grapple with. By his death in 1917, he was deeply unpopular, particularly due to his failure to pursue social policies to alleviate the hardships endured by the decade-old industrial working class.

Culture

The people of Arona are part of the Tainean culture. Unlike other parts of Vallos, the Aronese retain many traditional aspects of medieval Tainean culture; sitting on Vallos's western coast, it was not subject to large scale Adonerii colonization during antiquity, and the subsequent historical focus on the interior part of the country during the early modern period precluded major Occidental colonization. Accordingly, many Aronese refer to themselves as "Pure Tainean." Nevertheless, many regional variations of the Tainean culture except within Arona.

Demographics

Linguistic Demographics

The vast majority of Aronese speak Reform Tainean, an Occidental standardization of Tainean languages and dialects from the early 20th century. The remnant primarily speak Julian Ænglish as a first language, with a small number still speaking old Tainean dialects. Julian Ænglish is known as a first or second language by more than 90% of Aronese people.