Esmir: Difference between revisions

Expanding commerce in Imperial Esmir gave rise to new Esmiri commercial and political elite throughout the country. having been forced into trade, the orcs, alongside Neo-Estamites and non-Ranonite Katharians became very wealthy. These elites enjoyed their own private armies and swathes of land which would slowly but surely take the forms of kingdoms. The Lapinumbians and Mirhaimians purchased ports along the coast and the strait, establishing overseas companies to look after the security of their newfound ports. In response, the Orthodox Church condemned the foreign powers and demanded that the emperor join the church in an incursion, which was promptly denied. Seeing the writing on the wall, the church arranged for its knightly orders to retreat to the countryside and the mountains to establish and consolidate kingdoms strictly loyal to the Orthodox Church. Operations still continued throughout Esmir while the church prepared for "the worst", which did indeed come. By the mid-1700s, Lapinumbians were able to ensure the loyalty of the various sympathetic kingdoms, outcompeting the Mirhamians.

A lack of leadership by the imperial dynasty led to warlords increasing their power and selling land to elites and the Lapinumbians, often helping to facilitate the extraction of resources by the Lapinumbian Esmir Company. Esmir continued to fracture even more thanks to rebelling princes who were bribed by Lapinumbians.

==== Orthodox resistance ====