Urcea: Difference between revisions

Coming up from the chaotic period following the destruction of [[Great Levantia]], power began to slowly accumulate in the Duchy and later Archduchy of Urceopolis, accelerated by the initial formation of the [[Holy Levantine Empire]], which elevated Urceopolis to a duchy. Following the accumulation of Urceopolis, Yustona, and some other lands, Urcea was elevated to a Kingdom in [[Golden Bull of 1098|1098]] by the [[Emperor of the Levantines]]. After its consolidation, several hundred years of dynastic turmoil would follow before [[House de Weluta]] solidified its reign at the end of the [[Great Confessional War]] and Protestant reformation. The de Weluta dynasty would rule over the [[Holy Levantine Empire]] intermittently until the beginning of the 19th century, after which time a period of increasing liberalization and reform changed Urcea from an amalgamation of personal territories and holdings to a unified and powerful nation-state. After a brief period of deposition before and during the [[Red Interregnum]], the de Welutas reestablished control and continued the shift of the country in a more [[Constitution of Urcea|constitutional]] direction. Urcea, a Constitutional Monarchy, participated in both [[Great Wars]] and the downfall of the [[Holy Levantine Empire]], and has been an important world power in the period since. Throughout its entire history, [[Levantine Catholic Church|Catholicism]] has played a critical political and social role in Urcea, and the association between Catholicism and Urcea is known throughout the world as one of the country's defining characteristics.

As an Archduchy, Urceopolis sometimes feuded with the Emperor, and found itself a part of the [[Southern Kingdom of the Levantines]] following the division of the Empire in 917. During the period of the divided Empire, the main line of St. Julius died out and was inherited by descendants of his brother Aedanicus, the [[Grand Duchy of Yustona|Grand Dukes of Yustona]], who merged the lines together by marrying a female descendant of the Urceopolitan line. This established the House of Julio-Yustona which ruled both realms, and eventually the unified Kingdom, until 1153. During this period, the [[Eastern Kingdom of the Levantines|Eastern King of the Levantines]] conquered the Southern Kingdom, reforging the [[Holy Levantine Empire]], and soon after it became an elective monarchy, with the first Urceopolitan Emperor elected in 1014.

During the first decades of the Kingdom's existence, the Julio-Yustonas reigned in relative peace and prosperity, and King Niall I managed to acquire the long-sought Electorate of [[Canaery]], becoming the first King-Elector of Urcea. The Kingdom's focus lay to the west during his reign and beyond, as successive Kings attempted to incorporate the [[Creagmer republics]] while attempting to unify [[The Valley (Urcea)|the Valley]] under the [[Julian dynasty]]. Niall's two surviving sons both ascended to the throne and both reigned for a combined seven years before the second, Niall II, died as a boy, throwing the country into a succession crisis. Seán Aleckán, a descendant from St. Julius I in the female line who had no ancestors who were King, dispatched several other claimants and became King Seán I, founding the Aleckán dynasty. Seán I's reign mostly involved strengthening his own regime by marginalizing other claimants, and he was succeeded by his son Seán II without incident. The following King, Niall III, was the first King of Urcea elected as [[Emperor of the Levantines]]. Niall's death lead to a revolt of the magnates, installing Cónn of Holmfilth, who descended distantly from one of the Julio-Harrenic Kings, as King Constantine I. Emperor Niall's son, meanwhile, was passed over, beginning the [[Saint's War]].