History of the Castadillaan monarchy

The history of the Castadillaan monarchy has a history that dates back to the early days of human civilisation in Vallos all the way to the present. The exact date in which monarchy was established on what is now Castadillaan soil is up for debate. Indeed, some historians have argued that the Castadillaan monarchy was established in 1852 with the end of the short-lived Delepasian Kingdom and the establishment of its immediate successor state the Delepasian Confederation. Other historians, however, have disagreed with the 1852 hypothesis and instead have suggested that monarchy in Castadilla was established in 1497 with the establishment of the Viceroyalty of Los Rumas when Captain Mauricio Delepas made a land claim in the name of King Jeronimo I of Pelaxia. There is a third camp of historians who suggest that monarchy in Castadilla was in fact established much earlier than 1497; they have suggested that monarchy in Castadilla was established in 702 AD when the First Caphiric Imperium established the Undecimvirate which was a group of eleven vassal kingdoms that covered the entirety of Vallos. Delepasians have historically referred to indigenous polities as separate monarchies; this can still be seen today with the still-extant high chiefdom system in Samalosi as well as the Loa-majority states of Kalanatoa and Na'aturie which are considered constitutional monarcho-theocracies.

Regardless of the historical debate, the historical consensus is that the modern Castadillaan monarchy as it is under the House de Bruce can be traced back to the Gaelic Celts of Levantia who have latinised after the arrival of the Adonerum before becoming a part of the nobility and [[Estates of Urcea|estate system] of Urcea. Monarchs which have reigned over Castadillaan territory have included those of the eastern vassal kingdoms of the Undecimvirate (up to 1172), those of Pelaxia (up to King Luciano II in 1852), those of Delepasia (up to Emperor Maximilian I in 1997), and those of Castadilla (up to Emperor Maximilian I to this day). Initially a hereditary monarchy, the history of the Castadillaan monarchy shows how it transitioned from a hereditary form of monarchy to an elective form of monarchy until finally settling on a semi-elective and semi-hereditary form of monarchy as of 1997.

The first Occidental monarch over modern-day Castadilla had largely funded and explored colonial ventures into Vallos, starting with the islands of what is now Puertego in the 1480s. The overall success and prosperity of the Rumian colonies on mainland Vallos had allowed for the nascent Viceroyalty of Los Rumas to effectively govern themselves under the principles of "descuido saludable" (healthy carelessness). This meant that governance of the Viceroyalty was largely independent from the Pelaxian Crown which instead became more of a symbol of Occidental rule over Vallos rather than an active authority figure; the principles of "descuido saludable" would prove to be an inspiration behind Delepasian emperors being ceremonial monarchs for over a century throughout the foralist and Estado Social eras. Even today, the Emperor is a still a de jure ceremonial figure, but with the advent of the Velvet Revolution the Emperor has become the nation's de facto most powerful person after Emperor Maximilian I was elected as commander-in-chief in 1994; the ability of the Emperor to appoint a new commander-in-chief during his coronation would be enshrined into the current Constitution of Castadilla.

Early monarchies

A Tainean kasike.

The earliest civilisations in Vallos were not strictly monarchies in the modern sense, although one title that has still found use even to this day is kasike which is used to refer to the chief of a Tainean tribe as well as in the official Reform Tainean term for the Castadillaan Emperor; kasikes were chosen on a semi-hereditary and elective basis which has often been cited as an inspiration behind the current form of succession for the Emeperor. However, it would not be until the arrival of the Latins at around 600 BC that Occidental forms of government would emerge across much of the subcontinent with various flavours of what would arguably be considered monarchy, often in conjunction with the more semi-democratic forms of government that the Glaistic and Taiean polities would take on, coming into existence. Indeed, many of the initial Latinic polities on the west coast were led by powerful figures known as a "dux", meaning "leader" and is the etymological ancestor of the modern term "duke", whose rules were often been compared to that of absolute monarchies. Larger Latinic polities, as well as early non-Latinic polities in general, were often more likely to embrace a semi-democratic form of government in which the head of a given polity would have his powers limited by an oligarchic council. These same polities would also use alternative titles to refer to their leaders, either "princeps" ("prince") or "rex" ("king").

During the First Warring States period, many of the Latinic and Tainean polities in Vallos began to veer towards a stronger form of pseudo-monarchical government as their leaders were increasingly expected to take on the role of warrior-kings who were expected to defend their realm from external threats. Some, in an effort to ensure victory, began to resort to making alliances with neighbouring non-hostile polities and some would go even further and began seeking alliances with the more powerful realms on mainland Sarpedon as a form of deterrence against their enemies.

Undecimvirate

Beginning in the year 600 AD, the First Caphiric Imperium began to take an interest in Vallos and thus sent over diplomats to visit a multitude of polities in Vallos. These diplomats promised that the Imperium would be interested in making an alliance so long as the given polity gave regular tribute to the Imperator. These new alliances would prove to be especially lucrative for Caphiria to the point that roughly a century later the Imperium began to embark on a series of interventions into Vallos with the express purpose of subjugating the small polities and to reshape Vallos into a group of effective tributary states which would guarantee a steady influx of tributes from these western realms. These campaigns of intervention are noted for being immensely violent, with all casualties coming from opposing Vallosi polities due to their ineptitude against the seemingly-invincible Imperial Army.

The result of these Caphiric interventions would be known as the Undecimvirate, so-called because there were eleven polities in Vallos during this period of time, all divided based on geographical features instead of cultural commonalities. The Undecimvirate era would introduce the conventional form of Occidental-style monarchy to the subcontinent, particularly the feudal form of monarchy wherein a realm is ruled by a king who in turn entrusts the administration of his realm to the dukes, who generally administered the heartlands of their realm, and the marquesses, who generally administered the borderlands of their realm. The kings of these eleven polities, upon enthronement, were to pledge loyalty to the Imperator before they were considered legitimate, and in return for the Imperator's continued support the kings were obligated to send an annual tribute to the Imperium, that being a quarter of their total yearly revenue, with failure to do so resulting in a Caphiric intervention to overthrow the negligent king. Thus, a king was soon expected to use underhanded tactics, that being raiding his neighbouring kingdoms, just so he could make a successful tribute; raiding would becoming even more prevalent once the tributes to the Imperator became a flat rate. Yet, despite the raids, the overall stability of Vallos during the Undecimvirate era was rather high, and especially in comparison to the constant instability of the First and Second Warring States periods.

The Undecimvirate era lasted for about four centuries and would only meet its demise once the Second Caphiric Imperium collapsed, thus reverting the political structure of Vallos back to its pre-Undecimvirate situation with multiple miniscule polities that were small and governed by warrior-kings. Larger polities that have somehow managed to survive would often not last long as vassals would often declare their fiefdoms independent; all polities were limited to lands under the direct rule of their monarch. During the latter years of the Second Warring States period and with the rise in international trade in the wake of Aster's expedition, certain polities along the west coast of Vallos began to sponsor privateers in hopes of making quick money from raiding trade ships that passed through St. Brendan's Strait, with the most notable of them, at least in Castadillaan history, being a group of three Cartadanian privateers known as Captain Antonio Moseisley, Captain Henrique Aviz, and Captain Alberto de Sousa. Their immense success in privateering would allow them to overthrow their Tainean sponsor and establish the port city of Porto Natal which would go on the become basis for the state of Portas Gemeas, now a constituent monarchy under the reign of the direct descendants of the most prominent Cartadanian privateers.

Colonial era

The arrival of the Isurian Captain Mauricio Delepas on what is now the coast of Bahia in 1497 was a major turning point for the history of monarchy in Castadilla. Not only was the Viceroyalty of Los Rumas, which includes the city of Los Rumas, established in the name of King Jeronimo I the establishment of this new colony on mainland Vallos introduced direct Occidental rule over the subcontinent. This period of direct Pelaxian rule over the viceroyalty was rather short-lived once the territory and economy of Los Rumas grew at a seemingly exponential rate. As a result, the Pelaxian Crown would grant Los Rumas with the Charter of San Lina, so-called as it was signed in San Lina which was on the neighbouring Viceroyalty of Puerto Negro (now Puertego), which gave Los Rumas wide-reaching autonomy while effectively vesting almost all royal authority in the person of the Viceroy of Los Rumas. This wide-reaching authority and lack of direct royal control over the viceroyalty was known as "descuido saludable" (healthy carelessness); by being careless with the amount of autonomy and authority granted to the viceroyalty and viceroy, the Pelaxian Crown would see a healthy and prosperous viceroyalty which would in turn justify said carelessness. Overall, this principle of highly indirect rule would effectively make the Pelaxian monarch more akin to a ceremonial monarch; a symbol of Occidental rule rather than an active authority figure like in Pelaxia.

To be continued

See also

• King in Vallos
• Castadillaan Imperial Family