Transionia

Transionia is a term referring to the corridor-like region of Urcea east of the Ionian Mountains and west of the border of Dericania bounded on the south by Gassavelia and in the north by Ænglasmarch, consisting of the provinces of Eastvale and Burgundiemarch. During the rule of Great Levantia, this area made up a significant transportation corridor between Urceopolis and Nova Istroya and the rest of what would become Dericania via the Northgate. These areas were historically outside the boundaries of Urcea and were considered integral parts of Dericania with small portions of this territory belonging to both Anglei and Gassavelia. Historically making up Dericania's western border with Urcea, the emergence of Urcea as the victor in the Third Caroline War lead to its annexation of these territories. The annexation was followed by waves of Ómestaderoi settling in the area, displacing large numbers of Derian people. Derian displacement was both state policy and incidental to war and conquest, creating large numbers of refugees who fled from Urcean rule. Consequently, the two provinces which make up Transionia today are largely populated by Urcean people and are relatively lightly populated compared to the rest of the country, but Eastvale does have the nation's largest minority of Derian people. The annexation of these territories by Urcea lead to a political crisis in the Kingdom of Dericania known as "le crise della dix" which precipitated the First Fratricide and establishment of Burgundie as an independent nation.

Geography

Transionia is a region defined by its relation to the Ionian Mountains, being a relatively narrow valley region east of those mountains which had historically made up Urcea's eastern border. Unlike the gentle upward slope of the western Ionians that results in the Ionian Plateau, the eastern end of the Ionians drop off sharply. Accordingly, the Transionia is bordered by a dramatic Ionian escarpment to the west and the Urcean border to the east, which is defined primarily by a series of rivers. To the north, Transionia is bordered by Ænglasmarch and to the south by Gassavelia; the borders between these regions and Transionia are mostly historical and traditional rather than anchored by any specific geographic feature. Transionia has no one center of population; unlike Urcea's other regions, it exhibits relatively uniform population density. In terms of climate, northern Transionia has a humid continental climate similar to Carolina and Ænglasmarch, whereas southern Transionia is dry and semiarid similar to the Urcean frontier.

History

Main article: History of Dericania

For most of the post-antiquity history of Levantia, Transionia was the western edge of the Kingdom of Dericania as well as territories attached to the Kingdom of Gassavelia. Accordingly, the history of the area can be divided roughly into two - northern and southern Transionia.

Pre-provincial era

Northern Transionia

The duchies and territories of the region had coalesced into ten princely units of the Holy Levantine Empire by 1840, the chief of which was the Margraviate of Carsula which bordered Urcea's Ænglish territories and was considered the primary line of defense against Urcea and the primary entry-point for an invasion of the Ænglish duchies, as had been the case in the First and Second Caroline Wars. Consequently, Transionia had become a territory of supreme strategic interest both to the states of the Kingdom of Dericania and to Urcea. The new King Aedanicus VIII, who ascended to the throne of Apostolic King of Urcea in 1841 - viewed the territories as being of considerable strategic utility to Urcea, establishing a system of rivers and mountains running from Gassavelia to the riverine northeastern border with Hollona and Diorisia. Many within the Armed Forces of the Apostolic Kingdom of Urcea considered these not only to be Urcea's "natural borders" but additionally a key strategic defense that would ensure the security of the Grand Duchy of Carolina if reacquired. Consequently, acquisition of the Transionian region became a secondary priority to reacquiring Carolina in a prospective future war.

As had happened in the War of the Caroline Succession, Transionia was quickly overrun by Urcea to begin the Third Caroline War in 1843. It remained occupied for the remainder of the war. The occupation - primarily by Garán militias redeployed from Carolina - was particularly devastating on the occupied territories. The militias, only tentatively within the Urcean military hierarchy, committed small-scale atrocities throughout the three years they garrisoned the area. A rebellion in 1846 lead to considerable fighting between the militias and locals, and most major settlements were burned. The Royal Army eventually assumed full occupation responsibilities by 1846, but the damage had been done. By 1850, the majority of the 1835 population had fled the territories, and the Army was forced to construct the equivalent of concentration camps for Derian people by 1847 to stop insurgent activity. The Treaty of Collendum in 1848 provided that all ten princely units would be annexed directly to Urcea and that the ten princes would be compensated elsewhere in the Holy Levantine Empire. It additionally provided that Transionia would be transferred from the Kingdom of Dericania to the Imperial Kingdom of Urcea. It also provided that Urcea pay for population transfers of Derian people to other states of Dericania, which contributed to the population decline.

The Rectory for the Eastern Valley was established within the Government of Urcea on 1 January 1849. It merged the former ten units into one administrative apparatus centered around Fort St. Andrew, a city constructed in 1847 both to concentrate local rural populations and to control a key mountain pass. The Rectory government focused on integrating the economic institutions and infrastructure of the ten seperate units into a single governable area. Nearly immediately, however, the concentration of local Derian people and depopulated countryside lead to famine. The Rectory and Government of Urcea resolved the 1850 and 1851 famines at extreme cost, as the transporation cost of grain from beyond the Ionian Mountains proved considerable. Consequently, the Rectory petitioned the Concilium Daoni to expand the 1590 Leonine Land Decrees to the territory, which it did in 1852. Following this act, Ómestaderoi settlers began to flood into Transionia to work the recently abandoned land. The Ómestaderoi and their descendants made up a majority of the population by the late 1870s, and by 1880 the Ómestaderoi program was canceled in Transionia. Nonetheless, by that period Urcean people had become the majority population of Transionia, making it practically unrecognizable from just fifty years prior. In the 1880s, the recently recovered economy of the Eastern Valley began to suffer the effects of the 1880s nationwide recession. The recession had the effect of continued Derian out-migration and requests from the Rectory for increased military presence in the territory to offset decreased economic activity. In 1888, the Royal Army drastically increased its deployment in what would become the province of Eastvale, and by 1890 a full fifteen divisions were stationed in the territory. Like the rest of Urcea, the area was reorganized by the Administrative Reorganization Act of 1892. The former Deric regions were mostly consolidated within the new province of Eastvale, though the southernmost territories were added to the new province of Burgundiemarch.

Southern Transionia

The southern portion of modern Transionia was traditionally part of the Kingdom of Gassavelia and comprised approximately the southern two-thirds of modern Burgundiemarch. Unlike the northern portions of the region, southern Transionia was lightly populated much like the Urcean frontier and was much of the region was unsuitable for human habitation due to the semiarid and arid climates. The region was annexed into Urcea following the Great Confessional War but was separated from the rest of the country by the Hortus Mountains and Ionian Mountains. The region was governed by an unusual form of governance within Urcea's history; it was divided into four Rector-Captaincies, with the Rector-Captain having an unusually high degree of autonomy. The eastern Rector-Captains also had authority to issue and carry out sentences beyond the usual scope of Urcean law. The region remained relatively peaceful during the Caroline Wars, as much of it had no strategic value beyond access to the Magnag. This route of attack was not utilized by any Levantine forces until the area was reorganized as Burgundiemarch and was subject to the Overland Campaign. In 1892, Southern Transionia was incorporated as the province of Burgundiemarch as a consequence of the Administrative Reorganization Act of 1892. Some former Deric territory was added to what was the traditional territorial boundaries of the Rector-Captaincies to form the new province.

Culture

Transionia has the strongest Derian character of any region of Urcea. It contains the largest number of Rhotian speakers of any part of Urcea.