Cryria: Difference between revisions
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The 17th century also saw the Church's inquisitions loosed upon both Talvere and the newly formed Peninsular March, where the Clergy had historically acted with relative independence both in their politics and their religious interpretations or outright retained Mlythlaist practices. The Cinder Inquisition meant the end of the autonomous priesthood on the island, as well as the destruction of lingering Talveri shamanic practices. Notably, this destroyed the previously common depictions of a female Ademar on the island, a practice that had originated from efforts to subsume Ademarism into Mlythlaism. After the Cinder Inquisition, Talveri autonomy was no more, and the Crown's grasp in the area solidified.
With much of the isles firmly under Cryrian control, the Kingdom embarked on a wide variety of imperial ventures during this time, for power, prestige, and an easy means to dispatch troublesome nobility to the periphery. An attempt was made to invade and annex Varletia in the 17th century, though this ultimately failed. The pace of Cryrian ventures Älemsi Negdel also accelerated. In previous centuries, the Kingdom had sought to control nearby sea routes by first establishing Tynam and later setting up a network of suzerainty over coastal Älemsi tribes and townships in exchange for protection against raiding steppe nomads. During the Absolute Era, most of the southern Älemsi coast housed some level of Cryrian presence or influence, which allowed the Kingdom significant leverage over the island's external trade. Even so, Cryrian imperialism in Älemsi remained thin on the ground and relied mostly on economic ties and the continued cooperation of Älemsi factions. Few serious military expeditions were to take place on Älemsi, and those that did, such as the infamous Lost Inquisition, petered out in the face of the harsh environment and highly capable local opposition. Cryrian influence was also established along similar lines in [[Aikthudr'zhur]]. Further abroad, private Cryrian interests created the [[Ellesborg|Mandate of Ellesborg]] in Arcturia throughout the late 18th century.
The tail end of the Absolute Era was dominated by Cryria's industrialization. Rich sources of coal helped to fuel this revolution, which brought about many of the social changes that ultimately contributed to the movement away from absolutism. Rapid urbanization and the poor quality of life for the growing working class planted the seeds for the social upheavals of the Anarchy a century later.
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King Albert ascended to the throne after the passing of his mother, Queen Ulrika I. The Albertine Era was marked by close cooperation between the Crown and the Riksdag, propelled by the King's own past support for the signing of the constitution and his close relationship with Prime Minister Östberg. Even so, King Albert proved to be remarkably active within his new role and deliberately sought to keep the Crown in a leadership position - Though now with the Riksdag's support. Throughout his reign he actively courted the rising nationalist sentiments within the country and sought to solidify the Cryrian identity. Under his reign the National Service System was modernized and standardized throughout the Kingdom, and a truly national education system was put into place along with the roots of many modern day social services.
Albert also proved to be a powerful proponent of the early eugenics movement as well as ongoing efforts to eliminate regional dialects and force the adoption of a standard Cryrian language. As King he was considered to be the father of the Ministry for Tomorrow which enacted what he outlined as his Social Engineering Program. The program in many ways co-opted existing sentiments towards nonhumans and so-called "Social undesirables," and added a pseudoscientific layer that appealed to many proclaimed rationalists of this time. While the Ministry was initially founded to oversee the Government's language and cultural policies, it quickly expanded and became infamous for its systemic targeting of nonhumans, the mentally ill, and dissident movements. The century following Albert's coronation saw a marked collapse in nonhuman demographics as a result of forced sterilizations, lobotomies, and other atrocities that sought to dissolve elven and Vhydaszi communities. Much of Nekomimi culture was lost during this time, though coherent elven communities persisted in the Highlands. Albert reportedly summed up his own views in a speech to the Riksdag as early as 1867: {{quote|It is incumbent upon us as leaders and statesmen to understand that we now reside in a new age of science and reason. To wait for the unfit and undesirable to perish of nature's own accord is the way of animals and primitives who know no progress and thus have only patience. We however must now claim the tools our own intellect has given us and with them the responsibility to command not merely our own destinies but the destiny of the Cryrian nation. As we once moved from the caves and the wilderness to construct our own domains, so too shall we now engineer a society within which to reside that will withstand all tests of time and troubles. This obligation is neither to ourselves nor to God nor even to our children, but to the thousand nameless generations who will follow in our footsteps.}}Albert also inherited a Kingdom in a complicated geopolitical situation. The ability of the small Cryrian population's ability to sustain its historic great power aspirations in the industrial age was coming under increasing scrutiny from both within and without the Kingdom. The ambition to fully control the Northern Way had been all but abandoned as Cryrian influence failed to extend beyond eastern Älemsi, while other aspects of Cryrian power had entered a state of decline as the country struggled to maintain its goals of naval parity and power projection. Though the King firmly subscribed to longstanding concepts about Cryria's rightful sphere in the region, he simultaneously eschewed the Arcturian ventures that had previously been endorsed by the late Prime Minister Aberg as wasteful and impractical. The King instead turned his attentions towards shoring up the country's position within Novaris. He became the first to turn the networks of Cryrian outposts and concessions on Älemsi into a formal system of naval outposts and refueling stations to protect the Nordenfästningen's eastern flank and ensure the RCRN's dominance over the immediate area. The fleet itself was similarly reorganized around a new doctrine of short-ranged coastal battleships and shore installations that could provide for the defense of the Isles and its immediate interests. Efforts to consolidate Cryrian power led to conflict in Aikthudr'zhur and were a contributing factor to the Sack of Highdrilian.
This realignment was effectively an admission that the Kingdom lacked the economic and military means of achieving the full extent of its desired dominion in Novaris, and the King instead pursued other means of pursuing Cryrian national aims on the Mainland. This culminated in King Albert's marriage to Leonora Reitz, the younger daughter of the Duke of [[Charlottesborg]]. The marriage was considered to be highly unusual, as Cryrian monarchs had traditionally always married within the Kingdom in order to maintain their ties with the aristocracy. The marriage with Leonora not only marked a continuation of Albert's own ambitions to cement a pan-Cryrian identity but also a form of rapprochement with the Duchy and an indirect extension of the Kingdom's influence into Volscina. The implications of this backdrop were mollified only by the expectation that Leonora was unlikely to inherity the Duchy - That privilege belonged to her elder sister, Olivia, who had children of her own. However, Olivia passed away from typhus approximately a month before her father's own death, and Leonora successfully laid claim to the Duchy over the objections of Olivia's line. Thus, the Duchy of Charlottesborg effectively came under the rule of the House of Leidensen, a fact that inspired wariness among other Volscine powerbrokers that would later lead to the controversies of the Charlottesborg Succession.
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Cryria's foreign policy is handled by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, presently headed by Erland Maravel, the Count of Grimvik. This is not unusual, as the Foreign Ministry has a long history of being dominated by aristocratic families.
The country has operated on the uncodified principle of military non-alignment since the Great War and has thus distanced itself from many of the wider conflicts on Urth. It does however remain a significant arms exporter and has most notably supplied the [[Serramal|Republic of Serramal]]
The Kingdom also has warm economic and cultural relations with most of its immediate neighbors, including Volscina, Varletia, the Varentine League, and [[Endertopias]]. Its ties on the Mainland have further expanded to include trade relationships with [[Antora]]. Further ties with [[Mexregiona]] are maintained through both nations' membership in the [[Rotantic Congress]] and the [[Conference for Amity and Cooperation]]. Relations with syndicalist and communist powers on the Mainland have been more strained, with significant economic conflicts with [[Katyunon]], [[Durakia]], and [[Ekvatora]]. Cryria has also played a key role in facilitating a final peace accord between [[Astela]] and [[Celanora]], and it remains one of the few nations to maintain a relationship with Altarme.
Cryria further maintains a condominium with the [[Union of Free Cities]] in Arcturia in the form of the [[Ellesborg|Crown Mandate of Ellesborg]], and holds a seat on the Mandate Directory Council. Multilateral international cooperation has always been an important part of Cryrian foreign policy, and the Kingdom is a member of the [[League of Novaris]] after joining in 2020 and was a founder of the [[International Forum]]. More historically, the nation also took part in the [[Common Era calendar]] conference.
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=== Science and technology ===
18th century industrialization brought with it a scientific revolution. In modern Cryria, the traditional engineering industry remains an important source of new developments, but pharmaceuticals, electronics, and various high-tech industries have gained considerable ground. Honningfjord's "Cryptic Circle" has become home to rapidly growing blockchain-based enterprises, fueled by a supportive regulatory environment and strong financial and tech sectors in the country. The industry, which consists of mostly small enterprises, employs around 5,000 Cryrians across some 900 companies and has an estimated total value of over 200 billion SHD.
Cryria is an important player in both space technology and polar research, and important government organizations in this field include the [[Royal Cryrian Space Agency]] and the [[Royal Institute for Sempiternic Expeditions]].
=== Agriculture, Fishery, and Forestry ===
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