Patraja: Difference between revisions

Patraja was originally settled as a Latin-Slavic warground after the collapse of the short-lived Kingdom of Patraea. In this melting pot of aggressive warring areas and mixing tribes, the unique Latinic-Slavic culture of Patraja first emerged in peace during the Zanaeslav Agreements, or the Union of Peace, which lasted from 312 BC to 289 BC. This tribal agreement of union and confederacy was a general peace and customs agreement and began the first sightings of a unique Patrajan culture, with an increase in migration and intermixing between the native Slavic and immigrating Latin peoples. The northern sections of Patraja in particular, though sharing a distinctly-Latin lean, were the first to unify into what was considered a true Patrajan nation. This area, perhaps in accordance to this, also partook very little in the chaos that followed after the collapse of the Agreements. Through various Latin, or perhaps Slavic, provocations unknown to historians at this time, the Agreements collapsed into tribal anarchy once more, lasting from 289 BC to 260 BC. Not much is known about the early history of the Latins and Slavs within the southern Sarpedonian continent, and even less is known about the various details leading up to the first signs of organization, but after 260 BC, more clear signs of both Patrajan culture and governance emerge.

[[File:FirstSecondKingdoms.png|thumb|Reconstruction of the banner of the First and Second Kingdoms of Patraja. The original monarchical flag was used in the Kennonia monarchy for the purposes of legitimacy.]]

===The First Kingdom and Republic of Peoples [260 BC - 70 BC]===

In 260 BC, the Patrajan tribal anarchy seemed to have come to a halt for the last time in history. A tribal chief, likely from a northern section of the region, named Anaeron, managed to gain control over the former-Union tribal lands through a mixture of bribery and war. Many attribute this seemingly-quick and absurdly-large endeavor to the man's cutthroat political strategies, though not much is known. After the conquest of most of the preliminary areas of what is considered Patraja minor today, Anaeron formed the Kingdom of Patarija, which he ruled from 260 BC until his death in 235 BC. This period of time began what is generally referred to as the First Golden Age of Patraja, where the actual culture of classical Patrajan as many know it today was formed. With a rudimentary-but-secure border preventing further Latin migrations from disorganizing local Slavic groups, King Anaeoron promoted a vast amount of cultural interludes between the populations. Many historians today consider this to be one of the earliest observations of intentional eugenic actions and laws. Indeed, at the height of the push for cultural integration in 245 BC, a new set of decrees generally referred to by historians as the Marriages of Culture Laws, King Anaeron passed orders of a minimum number of inter-cultural marriages to be reached per year. At the height of these demands, an inter-cultural marriage rate of 15% was often demanded. Many historians accuse this action, along with other strange acts of tyranny, such as the ill-funded Anaeoronic Walls, as proof of a declining mental state in the first King in his later years. King Anaeron from old age and passed on his Kingdom in the first peaceful transition of power in Patraja towards his son, Maxin.

In 70 BC, a rogue Konsal named Patrinus was elected and declared the new continuation of the first Kingdom of Patarija. Though not much is known about the strangely-swift and smooth process of this action, many scholars argue that a rudimentary system of legal proofs was used by Patrinus to declare the Kingdom a non-dead entity. Whether this was through the production of a newly-deceased heir or some obscure transitional document from the First Kingdom to the Republic of Peoples is unknown. In whatever direction this supposed proof took form, the Konsal's actions flew by the antiquated enforcement systems in an easy manner. Some reports of the time indicate a pro-republican rebellion or two, but all were put down quite easily. The new King Patrinus had redeclared the Kingdom of Patarija successfully - for the sake of simplification and de-facto notation, however, this kingdom shall be referred to as the Second Kingdom of Patarija. King Patrinus had declared himself king at only the age of 35.

With a new kingdom thoroughly secured by 69 BC, King Patrinus made himself known as one of the greater late-pagan medieval kings quite quickly. With a quickly-centralizing rank of loyal Konsals (still called so for the sake of both continuity and tradition), Patrinus was quick to preserve some precedent of the Republic of Peoples through a religious manner. Forming the office of ''Repraesentativic Deoricom'', or the "Representative of the Gods", Patrinus effectively tied local Patrajan religiosity to the state and monarchy itself through an essentially-decorative title bestowed upon one of the Konsals through an elected assembly of all nobles. Despite the relatively-small impact the actual title had on politics, however, it strengthened the pagan character of the nation immensely, and found itself as a useful office that transitioned even past the christianization of the nation.

The second and perhaps most-vital order of affairs for the new kingdom was the Christianization of Patraja. Though nearly all major cities and towns were vastly Christian by this point, whether through force or genuine mass conversion, the countryside remained a staunch pagan area of resistance. The temptation to King Paul I was, once more, presented as an easy religious war of persecution. However, a softer approach was taken. The newly-refurbished tax system was put to work; pagans were taxed at higher rates, for more actions, and across more areas. The deployment of standing minor armies were used; pagans were often drafted into low-level positions, possibly to simply die in battle if needed, but constantly surrounded by pastors. A campaign of effortless propaganda was also put into place; Patraja had Christian conversion missions be sent into its own territory. This strategy of the use of soft power rather than military persecution paid off in dividends, but not entirely in Paul I's life. This new formation of soft power was observed by Paul's descendants, Paul II and Constian I, until the eventual conversion of Patraja ended in about 92 AC. This "soft conversion," with seemingly no true beginning or end, was brought to end by King Constian I at his deathbed in 103 AC, where most laws against paganism were allowed to be conveniently forgotten, and all missions of conversion slowly defunded and stopped by his successor, his nephew, Paul III. Anti-pagan persecution and missions still occurred, naturally, and the practice of Patrajan pagan religion itself continued even to this day, but by the start of the 2nd Century, the religious conflict of Patraja was allowed to be quietly forgotten and shelved to history in what was then often called "The times before God."

''Did your country ever have a period of significant decline or internal struggle?''

===Fifth era===