Axdel: Difference between revisions

'''Axdel''' (Axdelian: ''Ax̂delii''), officially known as '''The Federation of Axdel''', is a sovereign federal state consisting of three constituent countries; [[Korstazia]], [[Lyrevale]], and [[Quartz Fern Coast]]. It is situated on the [[Axdelian peninsula]] of South-West [[Aurora]], and borders the nations of [[Emberwood Coast]], [[Great Morstaybishlia]], [[Oceansend]], and [[Qayam]]. It is the second largest nation by land area on the continent. The capital city of Axdel is [[Andel]] in Korstazia with 11 million people, followed by Fenrir in Lyrevale with 9 million.

The land on which Axdel sits has been inhabited by sapient species' for potentially up to a million years, with the arrival of the first anatomically modern [[Cava]] in the area. The first civilisation in the area was Laqytia, a collection of agricultural city states. From the iron age the region was conquered by the influential Kormistazic empire and its numerous satellite states. The empire collapsed and was re-established two times under dozens of imperial dynasties. The Third Kormistazic Empire established and administered colonial territories on [[Arcturia]] for several centuries. After a five decade long series of invasions by Morstaybishlia in the 16th century, mainland Kormistazm surrendered and was incorporated into the empire as the province of Axdelia. After the end of the first [[Posolic Wars|Posolic war]] in 1810 the region was granted principality status, and during democratic reforms after the end of the [[Great War]] in 1917 it became a semi-independent Dominion. Axdel gained full independence after a socialist-led coup and short conflict in 1966, forming the independent nation of [[Noroist Axdel]]. Lyrevale and Quartz Fern Coast seceded at the close of the [[Auroran Imperial War]] and the signing of the Weyrcliff pact, with Lyrevale re-joining Axdel as a federation after the its [[Lyrevale Civil War|civil]] and [[Lyrevale Continuation War|continuation]] wars. The Noroist government collapsed in 1996 after a slow, bitter two year [[Axdel civil war|civil war]], with the present democratic government succeeding it after a short transition. The majority of Quartz Fern Coast was incorporated into the federation in 2003 after a referendum following the collapse of its authoritarian government in the years prior.

Axdel is a developed nation and is considered a major regional power with the 2rd largest GDP and [[List of countries by military expenditure|miltary budget]] on Aurora. It is also one of the largest countries by surface area on Urth, possessing the the 5th largest territory on land and having the 10th largest population as of early 2021. It also ranks highly in metrics of civil rights, education rates, income equality, and general quality of life. Axdel has a highly diverse economy and generates income from various sources, the largest sectors being energy, manufacturing, mining, and agricultural exports. Other notable contributors are international education, tourism, and information technology. Almost all of the nations infrastructure and a significant fraction of its industry is worker owned and operated. Management of this sector of the economy is aided by a distributed network of mainframe computers which coordinate activity on both local and national levels. They also run economic simulation models to formulate and forecast the outcome of decisions, providing the Axdelian economy with a great deal of flexibility and responsiveness to economic stimuli.

Axdel is a predominantly temperate nation with significant deciduous forest coverage and wide tracts of fertile land which are extensively cultivated for agriculture. The climate ranges from humid subtropical along the north coast, a continental climate in the interior regions and temperate oceanic along the southern coast, as well as cold alpine climates at high altitude. The nation is very mountainous, with the [[Zycannes|Zycannes mountains]] terminating along the Eastern border, the weathered yet expansive [[Teba Mountains]] dominating the interior and forming the nation's backbone, the [[Okrani mountains]] forming a notable ridge in the south, and the volcanic [[Auric mountains]] flanking the west coast. An active hotspot is also present in the eastern side of Lyrevale, creating a unique volcanic landscape rich in hydrothermal vents. These mountains are rich in natural resources, and have been mined throughout history.

In 25,000BCE the Cavan Chomlec culture emerged on the North coast of the Axdelian peninsula. Chomlec society flourished for at least ten thousand years, later fracturing as populations migrated across the rest of the peninsula. The Neolithic era began in approximately 8,000BCE after the redevelopment of agriculture and spurred the establishment of the first permanent settlements. Metallurgy was independently developed in the foothills of the Auric Mountains in 4000BCE, with basic copper, silver and gold metalworking spreading rapidly across the region and driving a period of productivity increases and early urbanisation. Bronze working would later be introduced into the region, likely from the far east where the first advanced Auroran civilisations were developing, namely the [[Nelokhvi Empire]], or by proxy through nomads roaming the Staynish region who regularly interacted with them. [[File:Lapytian Fortress.jpg|thumb|251x251px|The restored walls of Aeqa, a Laqytian city abandoned in the 1400's BCE]]

Over the next half a century, efforts to pacify the population and accustom them to Morst rule were violent, involving sieges of rebellious cities and the destruction of crops and property. Many soldiers and civilians were brutalised and summarily executed. Human settlers in the North Lyr valley and South Corstania often fell victim to raids from cavan guerrilla forces, resulting in gruesome retributive attacks and collective punishments on cavan settlements in the area. Approximately 10-20% of the peninsula's total population perished by the turn of the century, primarily as a result of war-related famine, displacement and disease, and is considered a genocide against the Cava species. Organised, violent resistance to imperial rule never truly subsided until the death of king Lambertus V in 1621 and the ascension of Queen [[Florence I]]. The Queen set out to consolidate imperial control of the peninsula by uprooting most of the remaining Kormistazic Cavan nobility, quashing the autonomy of integrated provinces and bringing all persisting satellite regions to heel as loyal client states, usually with promises of legal and financial protection. After this former Kormistazm was solely administered by the Morstaybishlian sovereign and a select ascendency of Lords and governors under their direct purview as a wholly subservient polity of the empire collectively known as Axdelia. Power below the level of the lords remained largely in local hands, as even for Morstaybishlia the territory was far too large to govern directly, but the system was rigidly set up such that authority came top-down from loyal governors.

After conquering Kormistazm and consolidating control over its vast mainland, Morstaybishlia began looking increasingly outwards from Aurora with the goal of overseas exploration, expanding trade and establishing new colonies. This was largely borne out of competition with other Auroran powers, who were also pursuing similar goals in Arcturia and the [[Cerenerian Ocean|Cerenarian ocean]]. the MBE was uniquely experienced amongst its competitors with its numerous developed ports, large presence on the east Arcturian seaboard and its successful domination of Kormistazm. The lessons already learned from its enterprises in the previous centuries and its vast labour force it could draw from gave it an immense advantage, and lead to the empire becoming a powerful influence across the globe. Long term economic downturn from the collapse of the Kormistazic empire alongside its rapidly growing cities meant the majority Cavan labour from the area was amongst the cheapest and often the most willing for the difficult work of establishing colonies overseas. Whilst Cava were legally protected against slavery, transportation to penal colonies was a common punishment for minor crimes such as theft or vagrancy until the late 19th century, providing a bountiful supply of workers. This was reinforced and justified by the emerging culture of human supremacist speciesm, where Cava quickly became seen as 'tamed savages' by the broader population of the empire. Many Cava, including those outside the Axdelian peninsula, emigrated voluntarily as a result of the pressures on them, travelling in large numbers to any more accepting country or colony. The vast majority would travel to other Cava majority countries such as [[Qayam]] and [[Quariin]], but also to other welcoming destinations like [[Antora]].

Internally, the integration of Axdelia was endorsed by the Thaerist church, which had heavily emphasised the theological aspect of the west Aurora crusades. Many of the politically and economically active population (largely local and municipal governors) converted relatively quickly to avoid harsh penalties imposed on non-Thaerists. However, the drive to proselytise was also concerned with the population at large, as it was by far the largest concentration of non-Thaerists in the empire and there were questions about how it would affect their loyalty. As well as converting Kozamists and Aqlanists, building temples and removing other religious icons, church missionaries riled up fervour against non-thaerists which escalated into attacks and riots. After a monastic Kozam school in Koliqon was burned down by militant Thaerist partisans in 1643, monks across the peninsular protested in what would become known as the [[Revolt of the monks|Revolt of the Monks]]. The protests were largely nonviolent, but earned a great deal of sympathy from both Aqlani imams and a significant amount of the public. In Koliqon, the monks and their followers walked en-masse into the residence of the governor and occupied it for several days, and refused to leave unless demands for religious protection and top-level political representation were met. Tragedy was averted when the Morstaybishlian government conceded to their primary demand of protecting followers and buildings of non-Thaerist religions. Many Kozam schools and monasteries that had been shut down were able to reopen and resume their practice as a result. An act enfranchising the local aristocracy and allowing them to serve as lords was also considered but it was vetoed by [[Florence I]], believing that granting such a privilege would cause similar demands from other conquered territories. Thaerist missions and proselytes continued to convert the population, however with Aqlani Mosques and Kozam schools continuing to operate and with their reputation besmirched, their success was limited compared to other regions and colonies of the empire.

After the revolt of the Monks, incidents of organised resistance reduced significantly across the region and the next century and a half was considered relatively peaceful. During this time the population rose tremendously and the empire was enriched by its network of colonies and burgeoning competition against other powers to monopolise global trade. Axdelia was not seen as a core territory of the empire, and was affected by several acts affecting sea trade with [[Staynes]] and [[Kaltariezh]] which imposed tariffs on goods exported but exempted imports, which worked to keep Axdelian peasant workers impoverished. Axdelia's convenient position on the periphery of the empires core made it infamous as a place where dissident Morstaybishlian academics would convene to discuss controversial or outlawed ideas in politics and science. Such intellectuals usually met in the well established Qayami style coffeehouses in major towns and cities, using the stimulant in the drink to excite thought, which quickly became popular as centers of conversation. They were also notable in that Cavan intellectuals were also welcomed into such spaces, many of which would subsequently spur on a domestic scientific movement, reinvigorating old universities and founding new ones that would host the conception of the modern scientific method and produce numerous advances in technology over the years. Many principles of the Auroran democratic, republican movements were developed in Axdelian coffeehouses, as well as several influential theories of economics. Whilst certain products of academia were embraced by the empire, the right of the Morstaybishlian monarchy to absolute rule was keenly defended. Generally, throughout the 17th and 18th century, all attempts to reform the overall structure of society were resisted. Even reforms being increasingly accepted by other monarchies such as an independent legislature were considered seditious. Regardless of the political tension, as academia became centralised and institutional, Axdelia was now cemented as a center of science and engineering.

===== Early Industrialisation =====

Axdelia's mountains had become an important source of metal and minerals for Morstaybishlia, particularly iron and coal, as Axdelian ore was noted as being very rich. As the manufacturing boom in the prelude of the industrial revolution continued to drive up demand, devising an efficient means of draining waterlogged mines became a far more pressing issue, which spurred engineers in Anyuur to develop various steam-powered pumps for the purposes of reducing the time and labour cost of drainage. This culminated in 1710 with the 'Vacuum engine' which utilised the partial vacuum pressure produced by condensing steam to pull a piston, the first of its kind and a design used in mines across the Teban mountains. An automatically operated and far more thermodynamically efficient version would invented by the polymath Aeuwe K. Qital in the 1770's, a design which would quickly spread across Aurora and soon find its way to other continents. For his achievements in chemistry and further developments of the Qital engines efficiency, he would become the first Cava to be accepted as a fellow in the Staynish royal society in Sani Bursil, although he would cause later controversy after his death when it was revealed he was biologically female. With the turn of the 19th century, the high pressure steam engine would be invented by Axdelian mine engineers for use in first steam locomotives for drawing carriages along iron tramways. High pressure steam engines and the locomotives powered by them would soon come to revolutionise the Morstaybishlian economy.

(also industrial age, a lot of cool science And radical intellectuals like Freidrik Noros exist)

====Dominion of Axdel (1917-1966)====

===Noroist Axdel (1966-1996)===

==== NPLP Coup ====

(With a crisis in central aurora diverting the MBE's attention, the NPLP launches its coup and successfully takes much of the Axdelian peninsula)

(Skirmish with the MBE ending in stalemate and unrecognition. Axdel enters war economy mode and arms itself for future conflict)

(War is fairly successful initially, taking much of Valeria and west Staynes, before gains begin to be lost as the central fronts stagnate)