Urceopolis (City): Difference between revisions

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|population_total        = 19,374,201

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'''Urceopolis''' is the {{wp|capital city|archcathedral}} city of [[Urcea]]. It is also the cathedral city of the [[Urceopolis (Archduchy)|Archduchy of Urceopolis]] and the largest city and largest metropolitan area in Urcea, both in terms of population and area. It sits at an intersection of the [[Urce River]] and Esquiline River.

Traditionally, the City of Urceopolis was under the control of the left-liberal faction of the [[National Democratic Party (Urcea)|National Democratic Party]] for most of the 20th century. The [[National Pact (Urcea)|National Pact]], which began its history as a Urceopolitan political club, often represented a large minority party. The Urcean left in various forms was often politically successful in poorer areas like Campori, but was usually more successful in the [[Concilium Daoni]] elections than municipal elections. Since the [[2015 Urcean elections|2015 realignment]], however, the [[National Pact (Urcea)|National Pact]] has been ascendant within the city, with the local party especially emphasizing its [[Crown Liberalism|Crown Liberal]] positions. The left wing [[Social Labor Party (Urcea)|Social Labor Party]] is the second most successful party since 2015, having the second largest number of seats on the Archcathedral Council as of 2026, although sitting in an extreme minority. The [[Solidarity Party (Urcea)|Solidarity Party]] has struggled to compete in Urceopolis as it has in other cities since the decline of its predecessor, the National Democratic Party, finishing in third in most elections since 2015. The politics of the city trend towards liberal centrism, favoring a form of cosmopolitanism with some limited traditional influences.

New City refers to land which was once an elevated hill known as the ''Caeline Hill'' or ''Collis Caelius'' which had a commanding view of the [[Urce River]], the Flats, and Old City of Urceopolis. It became a natural expansion of the early city and was the site of several fortifications and large homes during the early peak of the city under [[Great Levantia]]. As the city declined, the Caelian Hill/New City area became the site of the fortified mansion of the [[Julian dynasty]] known as the [[Julian Palace|Domus Julii]]. Gradually, the home of the Julians spread out across the hill and today encompasses much of New City as the [[Julian Palace]]. The Palace and New City are home to the [[Government of Urcea]], and accordingly the borough is mostly comprised of either the Palace, various chapels and churches, or ancillary government office buildings.

The Flats and Aricina, although now a single borough, consists of two areas of the city which existed during antiquity. Aricina was the port district of the Old City which largely had its own political apparatus during the era of [[Great Levantia]]. The adjacent area known as the Flats was originally the city's harbor on the Esquiline, sheltered from the [[Urce River]] to the west by New City, which was originally a peninsula. The existence of the Flats as a sheltered, usable harbor, is most likely the original reason for the city being established where it is. Changing climate lead to the Flats transitioning from useful harbor land to marshy swamplands around 350 BC, after which much of Aricina's usefulness as a port came to an end as most port operations moved to the areas adjoining the river, especially with the construction of the city of Ardotalia in around 150 AD. Aricina, which had its own system of walls within the city, became an isolated and poor area during most of the Great Levantine and medieval periods, occasionally being repurposed as a quarantine ward for disease outbreaks. The Flats were drained during the initial reign of [[House de Weluta]] ca. 1450 and became one of the most fashionable parts of the city, with land being available to build large and lavish structures, including theaters and opera houses as well as urban mansions. Aricina experienced significant growth following the Flats being drained, with the walls separating the two areas eventually coming down to be used as building materials. The two areas subsequently became closely associated since the 17th century, although Aricina's position as a prominent hill relative to the Flats made it a well sought after location. During the 19th century, much of the Flats were demolished in order to erect the [[Royal Green]], which now bisects the borough. It is a common misconception that the area of the borough to the north of the Green is "the Flats" while the area to its south is "Aricina", though this information is commonly taught abroad. Today, the borough is not only home to the Green, the city's major park, but also many museums and government buildings.  

[[File:Wien-Stubenring-04-Nr1-Regierungsgebaeude-2008-gje.jpg|A section of the Via Corona|thumb|left|250px]]

The ''Via Corona'' is a major thoroughfare which runs through the exterior of the Crescent and was the former site of the city's medieval walls, which replaced the ancient walls in the early 14th century. The Via Corona itself was constructed in the 1860s as the walls were demolished and was intended to provide cross-city linkage while creating open streets which would be difficult for insurgent revolutionaries to {{wp|barricade}}. The road, named ''Crown Street'' in Latin due to its somewhat circular shape, presently includes an inner "express" roadway and side roadways for local traffic with bike lanes and sidewalks in between. As with the Crescent, the Via Corona essentially surrounds the ancient portion of Urceopolis to the north. The Via Corona today serves as the major inner-city roadway, intersecting with several routes of the National Interprovincial Highway Service which run near and around the city. Many park and ride structures sit on the west side of the Via Corona, typically about a block or two behind the street itself in order to preserve the architectural continuity of its buildings. These park and rides allow for access to New City, where cars are not permitted, as well as other areas in New City, Crescent, and the Flats where parking may be difficult to find by way of Archducal Rapid Transit stations which sit all along the Via Corona. Accordingly, many of the back streets off Via Corona experience severe gridlock in rush hour periods during scheduled train stops.

Besides being a major roadway, the Via Corona is thought by many to be its own insular neighborhood area. Many major structures were built in the 19th century as the road was constructed, and the area is today a popular tourist destination.

Ardot was established as ''Ardotalia'' and was one of the first planned cities in [[Great Levantia]], built in around 150 AD.. Sitting to the northwest of the Crescent, Ardotalia served as a port city on the [[Urce River]] and its planning allowed for the city to function well, with goods flowing in and out of Urceopolis to the port at high levels of efficiency. The city's construction largely lead to the depreciation of the port of Aricina on the Esquiline and general decline of mercantile activity on that river. During the early medieval period, the city continued to be a thriving port and was incorporated into Urceopolis itself by the end of the 12th century. The port's infrastructure was not maintained, however, and significant silting issues in the Urce River lead to the area being mostly unsuitable for a port by 1300, and the area was functionally abandoned by 1400 as the main port had moved to [[#Kingswood|Kingswood]]. The easy availability of land meant that the area became a popular location for large country estates, and nobility began to buy up parts of what was now referred to as Ardot beginning in the 16th century. The large and luxurious homes here were gradually purchased by foreign governments for use as embassies as more fashionable options in the [[Ionian Plateau]] became available with the advent of the railroad.

Today, Ardot is considered the diplomatic quarter of Urceopolis, and a plurality of people and economic activity within the borough are either directly related to the embassies contained therein or are service-sector activities that serve the embassies and their personnel. Accordingly, the [[Ministry of State (Urcea)|Ministry of State]] is based out of the Leochán Palace based within the borough. Abroad, "Ardot" is used as a {{wp|metonym}} used to refer to the [[Ministry of State (Urcea)|Ministry of State]], whereas domestically it refers to diplomatic affairs generally.

Arelate was initially the site of a fortified manor house in the period between the fall of [[Great Levantia]] and the rise of the [[Holy Levantine Empire]], and accordingly was one of the few sites of economic activity to the east of Urceopolis. From these beginnings, it became a small town primarily based on mills along the creeks which ran east of the city. During the 19th century, rail lines were established running northeast of Urceopolis through Arelate and neighboring Flucirk, with a junction being established in Arelate in 1862. From there, the population of the area grew exponentially and the mills were replaced with larger industrial manufacturing plants taking advantage of the water power available in the region. It was annexed into the city as part of the [[Administrative Reorganization Act of 1892]].

Flucirk was established sometime during the medieval period as a small mill village which grew up around a small country [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] parish. Its name originates from the [[Lebhan]] word for "river church". Flucirk, like neighboring Arelate, became a fast growing area during the 19th century as railroad lines were erected through it running northest. Becoming a relatively major city in its own right, Flucirk was home to many tenement buildings with the rise of rapid transit in Urceopolis area in the latter half of the 19th century. It was annexed into the city as part of the [[Administrative Reorganization Act of 1892]].

 

Campori is one of the few [[Housing_in_Urcea#Public_housing|locations in Urcea]] where {{wp|tower blocks}} are still in widespread use in the 21st centuries. Much of the economy of the area is characterized by body shops - both legitimate and {{wp|Chop shop|those operating for criminal purposes}}, the occasional budget supermarket, {{wp|dollar store|dollar stores}}, {{wp|fast food restaurant}}s, and tobacco shops. Crime is higher than most other parts of the city, and it is a major source of controlled substances flowing into other parts of the city, including narcots and pornography. Efforts by national and city leadership to remediate the area - including potential urban development projects which would destroy the public housing projects - have generally been unsuccessful. It is considered to be the poorest part of the city according to most available economic and crime metrics.

Several competing rapid transit systems were constructed in Urceopolis during the 19th and early 20th century. The first {{wp|Elevated railway|elevated railway}} with service from Crescent to Arelate opened in 1871 in conjunction with the construction of a long distance rail hub erected in Arelate. This first elevated train saw significant use and lead to a population explosion in Arelate, and the successful concept saw the construction of several elevated rail lines throughout the 1870s and 1880s. Most of these lines were constructed by a new company known as the Interborough Rapid Transit (IRT) Company. Construction largely came to a half during the [[Red Interregnum]], though during this time of hiatus the government of [[Gréagóir FitzRex]] did give approval for the IRT to experiment with underground lines, and the first line - the Crescent Circulator, a now-defunct line running mostly in a straight line from Old City to New City with a stop along the [[Royal Green]] - opened in 1897. The increase of the city's land area with the [[Administrative Reorganization Act of 1892]] also created significant opportunities for rail developers The end of the Red Interregnum and restoration of [[Patrick III of Urcea|King Patrick III]] saw a major uptick in construction, in part with government funding. By 1910, the city was dominated with a largely tangled network of elevated rail lines operated by IRT and its primary competitor Citylines, both of whom were shifting new line construction underground. The primary tunnels for lines for these competitors were constructed in the period 1907-1909, and most are still in operation during the 21st century. The city government created a public rapid transit company known as Royal Transit in 1914 to try and build additional underground lines in order to put the problematic elevated lines out of business, and accordingly the city constructed additional tunnels from 1914 to 1920. The loss of revenue for elevated lines gradually lead Citylines to declare bankruptcy in 1927, and the company was purchased by the city and integrated within its systems. Interboro Rapid Transit would also struggle during this period, but a halt to major acquisitions as a result of the [[Second Great War]] lead to it receiving subsidies from the [[Government of Urcea]] until 1943, when the war ended. That year, the IRT was acquired by Royal Transit, which renamed itself Archcathedral Rapid Transit. Most of the elevated lines were closed during the war and their resources recycled for the war effort. Today, the three different types of lines are still recognized by their division indicators; the Interborough Rapid Transit lines in the IRT Division, the Royal Transit lines in the ROY Division, and the Citylines lines in the CLR (Citylines Railroad) division.

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