Equatannia

The Federal Republic of Equatannia
the eqautatannian flag Flag of Equatannia Coat of Arms
Motto: Blesciins i Peace en Lauv Blessings in Peace and Love
Anthem: "Hard Times Come Again No More"
Capital and largest city	Equaa
Official languages	Codex Staynish
Recognised regional languages	Equatannian Durakan Arkian
Ethnic groups (2019)	60% Human 20% Ursine 10% Dwarf 10% Other
Demonym(s)	Equatannian
Government	Constitutional presidential republic
• President	Melinde Roswuud
• Vice President	Jon Furrbanks
• Speaker of the People	Janice Smitte
Legislature	Congress
• Upper house	The People's Assembly
• Lower house	The Regional
Establishment
• The Great War Migration	1914-1918
• Chiefdom Formed	1920
• Internal Ambition	1927
• Annexation of The Isles	1933
• Government Formed	1936
• Constitution Ratified	1936
• Foreign Affairs Neutrality Resolution	1937
• Federal Reveal Act	2019
Population
• 2019 estimate	50 million
GDP (nominal)	2019 estimate
• Total	158,000,000,000
• Per capita	23,000‬
Currency	Equos (Eq)
Time zone	UTC-10
Date format	MM/DD/YYYY
Driving side	right
Calling code	404
ISO 3166 code	EQU
Internet TLD	.equ

The Federal Republic of Equatannia, commonly referred to as Equatannia, is a unitary constitutional presidential republic known for its stunning environment, compassionate citizens, and stringent health and safety legislation.

Equatannia's geopolitical borders make up the Starr Peninsula, nearly bordering Durakia to the north, and eight small islands to the south. The capital and most populous city is Equaa, situated on the eastern side of Equity Bay. Equatannia is currently governed by three regional boards under the direct rule of the federal government: Greater Equatannia, The Federal District of Equaa, and The Isles. Equatannia has an area of [] and a population of 500 million. Most Equatannians are Human, while there are communities of various other races.

The two most populous districts that make up the portion of modern Equatannia on the Starr Peninsula, Greater Equatannia and the Federal District, were once separate sovereign entities with the Chiefdom of Equaa to the south and six established independent villages in the north. The nations never exhibited political conflict or hostility with one another and eventually came to the agreement to unite as one sovereign state in 1927. This resolution was forged over the course of several years now known as The Internal Ambition by a committee formed of ambassadors from both nations. After a period of influence throughout the late 1920s and the approval of a referendum passed by the native inhabitants in 1933, the sparsely populated Isles situated south of the Starr Peninsula were annexed into the Chiefdom as the third governmental region. The modern Constitution was ratified by The People's Assembly on December 5, 1936 after being proposed by Cristofer Benyne, the second Speaker of the People.

A majority of Equatannia's recent history was spent in a period of isolation that was brought about through administrative policy by Olympia Starr, the nation's first and longest-serving Head of State (1918-1940). This policy was introduced as The Foreign Affairs Neutrality Resolution due to fear of conflict from surrounding nations during the foundational years of the fledgling federal state, and was in place from 1937 until 2019. The Foreign Affairs Neutrality Resolution forbid the Federal Government of Equatannia from directly interacting with any foreign national state, while allowing near-open immigration from all Urth nations. The policy was repealed after The Federal Reveal Act was passed by Congress and signed by current President Melinde Roswuud on December 21, 2019.

History

Pre-Migration (?-1914)

Little is known about the inhabitants of the Starr Peninsula and Isles prior to The Great War Migration. Archaeologists have come to the conclusion that the earliest settlements were founded by dwarven nomads whose descendants are still present in modern-day Equatannia located in small communities of dwarves throughout the nation. These settlements traded among each other, proven by tool and accessory fossils, but were ravaged by rival natives on the eastern side of Irnac in the decades leading up to the Migration.

The Great War Migration (1914-1918)

This migration of refugees and defectors arose from the violent beginnings of The Great War and began as a repetitive cycle of settlement and displacement for various groups fleeing from their home countries. These groups would flee invading armies into sovereign states that disallowed immigration, so they would be deported or detained. This cycle eventually led thousands of individuals from primarily the eastern continents of Urth to settle along the the southwestern coast of Irnac. A majority of these groups arrived using simple boats and rafts carved from local lumber, leading to many casualties during the trek.

It is believed that many of these caravans knew of the unclaimed native lands in the Equatannian area due to word of mouth transmission and ancient regional folk tales. Many groups set off on the journey with no solid evidence that the landmass even existed, yet the endeavor paid off. The first settlers arrived in the area of modern-day Equity Bay and quickly established the city that is the nation's capital today. Equaa quickly grew as hundreds of other transports arrived with those seeking asylum, and the citizens there welcomed them with open arms. Further north, smaller groups of settlers arrived quite later than those that had previously arrived in the southern portion of the peninsula. These groups populated throughout the area known as Freebelsta today, but quickly split off into six separate city-states due to ideological differences.

Tribal Beginnings (1918-1919)

Equaa flourished from internal trade among spread-out communities as well as exporting olives, grapes, figs, and various other produce that are native to the region's Mediterranean climate. The city's officials quickly established a form of chiefdom government after uniting all surrounding communities under one sovereign. The head's of multiple prominent families living in Equaa voted to appoint Olympia Starr, matriarch of the Starr family, as the first Chief of Equaa in 1918. This boost in stability allowed swift economic progress and assisted in unifying the peninsula as one diverse culture. Equaa's government learned of the villages established to the north during several peace-seeking expeditions in late 1918 and early 1919. Chief Olympia Starr established friendly relations with the communities and began delivering supplies to ease their hardship that was rampant throughout the beginnings of 1919.

The villages to the north all outspokenly agreed to work together and openly trade resources after a famine nearly wiped out the northeastern coast of the peninsula in January of 1919. Before then, the separate communities worked independently as cultural and ideological differences had forced them to separate from the area of Freebelsta originally. However, the area became a much more significant economical and industrial land after receiving funds and supplies from flourishing Equaa to the south. The villages worked in various government systems, but primarily operated in a more anarchy-based form of loose governments that lacked formidable structure and relied on citizen's arrests.

The Internal Ambition (1919-1927)

Map of Equaa, 1927

In 1919, Olympia Starr began contemplating the idea of proposing annexation to the northern villages and brought it to public discussion multiple times before announcing her campaign to do so in November of that same year. She traveled to Freebelsta herself throughout late November and announced her proposition to their citizens on November 26, 1919. The proposal immediately received great, vocal approval and praise from the locals that had gathered in Freebelsta Square. Citizen's spread Chief Starr's proposal through word-of-mouth and written pamphlets. In January and February of 1920, Starr traversed the densely forested north plains visiting all six established communities until she reached the eastern coast in March 1920. She then spent the next three years based in Freebelsta while working to establish an eastern port in the coastal area of previously established Nuuvari Nova, which was a dwarven settlement that endorsed the idea of becoming a much more industrialized city. Before focusing on the new port, she worked to establish a committee made up of representatives from all villages and Equaa that was focused on unification under one sovereign. In May 1923, this committee submitted its finalized proposal entitled The Internal Ambition that proposed guidelines the Chief and other government officials would have to abide by, as well as establishing The People's Assembly as an expanded form of representation aside from heads of families. The proposal also established multiple government agencies the people felt were in need of being established, such as the Department of Finance, Department of Education, and Department of Citizen Welfare. Olympia Starr enthusiastically approved of the thorough proposal and quickened the construction of the new port city. Later that summer, a caravan of over 1,000 Equaa citizens traveled up the eastern coast to officially establish the new integrated port city of Nuuvari as the official Northern Equaan capital, to much praise from local dwarves and humans alike. Chief Starr is quoted that "Nuuvari is a labor of [her] love for all the people of Equaa."

Despite this foundation of new hope, many city government personnel in the north realms felt as if the proposal was a play to blindside them in a hostile takeover by Equaa. The winters of 1923-1926 brought much less suffering than previous years known to the northern inhabitants. This confirmed the hopes of the citizens of the various cities that Equaa would continue their genuine assistance despite not immediately ratifying the annexation proposition. The heads of each city-state voted to approve the annexation on June 1, 1927 after many positive and enthusiastic public rallies.

Annexation of The Isles (1927-1933)

After receiving overwhelming support from the northern citizens of the peninsula, Chief Olympia Starr instructed her newly-formed government to focus on modernization and citizen welfare while she began a five year expedition to the Isles situated off of Equaa's southern coast in March 1928. Diplomatic relations had been previously established with the native inhabitants of the closest two isles as trade and expansion in the region made their presence known in the early 1920s; however, not much communication about the future of the area had been introduced.

The north's annexation brought improvements in the industry, education, and overall economy of the area due to benefits of shared tax revenue and use. Equaa's first representative elections for The People's Assembly were held on December 1, 1928 with a voter turnout of nearly 92%. The first People's Inauguration occurred on January 1, 1929 with fifty delegates being split among four political affiliate parties. These newly elected representatives were quickly put to work with writing some of the country's earliest legislation, such as the passing of The Citizen's Rights Resolution and The Tax Revenue Distribution Resolution, which became much of the foundation for Equatannia's modern Constitution.

Once situated on the most populous Isle, Canora, Chief Starr began her campaign to annex the Isles in May of 1928. From then until the official referendum in July 1933, Olympia Starr traversed between the Isles expressing her humanitarian reasons for annexation with much approval from the citizens of the anarchy-ridden region. She received criticism from the lower portion of the Isles, who felt as if the nation's ideologies went against their primarily-capitalistic way of life. After much deliberation that lasted from 1930 until 1932, the lower portion of the Isles were removed from all discussions of annexation. Chief Starr never returned to that portion of the Isles herself.

In the midst of the annexation campaign, Equaa faced their second vote for Representatives on December 2, 1932. This vote saw little change among the Assembly, except the electing of the second Speaker of the People, Representative Cristofer Benyne. Speaker Benyne endorsed several pieces of legislation during Chief Starr's continued absence, which continued to improve the livelihood of Equaa's citizens.

In July of 1933, Chief Starr formally proposed a referendum to the citizens of the Isles that would be managed by a reformed committee modeled after The Internal Ambition. On July 28 the referendum was passed with an 89% approval rating. Olympia Starr gave a speech the following morning declaring The Isles as the third governmental region, with Canora being named the region's capital. Following the referendum, Chief Starr remained in Corona to supervise the modernization of the new region. She closely worked with the new Equaan citizens to establish modern schools, hospitals, roads, and other infrastructure. Many of the citizens that originally criticized the annexation had a change of mind due to Starr's welcoming attitude and overall humanitarian personality after witnessing the great improvements with her assistance.

Modern Government Formation (1933-1936)

Olympia Starr, 1935

The Chief returned to Equaa in December of 1933 and began familiarizing herself with the agencies that had been primarily established during her absence. She then appointed the heads of each department from various representatives in The People's Assembly, thus creating the government's first Cabinet of Ministers. After endorsing several new pieces of legislation, Chief Starr was faced with the first legislation that had many citizens were weary of her reaction in April 1934. Representative Kayreen Jaran from Nothern Equaa proposed legislation that would fundamentally change the executive branch of government to an elected Presidency instead of an appointed Chiefdom. This proposal was based on the original constitution that had established the Chiefdom in 1920, but put the power of executive election in the hands of the citizens instead of the Representatives. Facing original backlash from many of his colleagues, Representative Jaran received Chief Olympia Starr's endorsement during a speech given in Equaa Center Square on May 3, 1934. Chief Starr, in her speech, endorsed the idea of greater political freedom for all citizens of Equaa and promised to help establish a committee that would work toward a more democratic form of government.

Jaran's legislation was defeated on May 6 with 68% of Representatives voting not in favor of the resolution. The Representatives voted on new legislation that established the Constitutional Reform Committee on May 12, proposed by Chief Starr. This committee was formed of sixteen Representatives, four from each party, and was headed by the second Speaker of the People, Cristofer Benyne. Chief Starr was the eighteenth member of the committee, representing the current executive administration. This committee met over 100 times over the course of two years before finalizing the new Constitution on May 24, 1936. The modern Constitution was read aloud multiple times in public speeches and over radio stations to Equaa's residents before the Representative elections later that year, with many campaigners focusing on their approval or rejection of the new Constitution. Elections on December 1, 1936 cemented Equaa's citizens belief in the new Constitution, and The People's Assembly convened on December 5 to ratify the new framework.

During the two years of committee sessions, Chief Starr's administrative government focused on increasing Equatannian exports with the advancement of refrigeration and transportation. This increase in GDP lead to a flourishing economy during the late 1930s.

The passing of the Constitution changed The Sovereign of Equaa into The Federal Republic of Equatannia, "The Land of Equals," as well as expanded the regional governments into having a separate congressional assembly, The Regional. The framework listed in the Constitution calls for Representative, Regional, and Presidential elections every four years, with direct representation from percentage of voters approving a political party or independent candidate. There are no term limits, as direct representation and separation of government branches disallows for the evolving of a dictator. It instates Olympia Starr as the nation's first President, with the first Presidential election planned to be held along with the regularly scheduled elections on December 5, 1940. This legislation also officially established the governments of the three regions that make up Equatannia today, while declaring the city of Equaa as the nation's federal capital and December 5 as Equatannia's Federal Holiday.