Heialdyn Stratocracy: Difference between revisions
Full rewrite after review |
Uisla |
||
| Line 60: | Line 60: | ||
The largest cities are Baddaen (about 320,000), Fenu (140,000), [[Ciero]] (90,000) and Urbala (75,000). | The largest cities are Baddaen (about 320,000), Fenu (140,000), [[Ciero]] (90,000) and Urbala (75,000). | ||
Most inhabitants are Gostaldi who speak Heiosdyn. The Yeparchist branch of [[Tefar]] is the faith of most of them. | Most inhabitants are Gostaldi who speak Heiosdyn. The Yeparchist branch of [[Tefar]] is the faith of most of them. [[Uisla]] is the second largest religion, centered in [[Enis]] and the [[South Coast (Heialdyn)|South Coast]]. | ||
|Culture=Southern Gosterra is the heartland of Heiosdyn-speaking Gostaldi culture. As the site of the first landing, Baddaen holds a central place in the history of the human peoples of Méniail. | |Culture=Southern Gosterra is the heartland of Heiosdyn-speaking Gostaldi culture. As the site of the first landing, Baddaen holds a central place in the history of the human peoples of Méniail. | ||
|Native Spirits=[[Emerioa]], the [[Ascendant Spirit]] of emotions, lives in the [[House of Emerioa]] beside Lake Mona in the Mona Forest in Enis. It is a place of pilgrimage and the center where followers of the [[Path of Emerioa]] train. The forest around it is dense with spirits of emotion. | |Native Spirits=[[Emerioa]], the [[Ascendant Spirit]] of emotions, lives in the [[House of Emerioa]] beside Lake Mona in the Mona Forest in Enis. It is a place of pilgrimage and the center where followers of the [[Path of Emerioa]] train. The forest around it is dense with spirits of emotion. | ||
Latest revision as of 23:19, 21 October 2026
| Heialdyn Stratocracy | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Image |  Photograph of the Heialdyn Army | ||||||
| Coat of Arms |  | ||||||
| Location |   | ||||||
| Size | 103,760 mi² (268,737 km²) | ||||||
| Founded | 645 ME | ||||||
| Capital and Largest City | Baddaen | ||||||
| Goverment |
| ||||||
| Regions | Southern Gosterra • Central Gosterra | ||||||
| Native Races | Gostaldi | ||||||
| Population | 2,400,000 | ||||||
| Administrative Divisions | Baddaen • Enis • South Coast | ||||||
Introduction
The Heialdyn Stratocracy is a state in southern Gosterra, on the northwestern coast of Méniail, governed by its army, the Free People's Army. It holds the whole of Southern Gosterra and the part of Central Gosterra between the Eals and Glanuf rivers. It was founded in 645 ME, when the southern duchies of the Kingdom of Bóinbile broke away at the end of the War of the Southern Duchies. Its capital, Baddaen, is the largest city in Gosterra. Its head of state is the Supreme General, currently Golas Hes. It has about 2,400,000 inhabitants, most of them Gostaldi who speak Heiosdyn.
History
Before the Stratocracy
The Méniail armada of the Great Migration landed at Baddaen in 0 ME, and Baddaen was founded as the first city in Gosterra in 45 ME. In 151 ME the south became part of the Kingdom of Bóinbile, which governed it as two duchies, Baddaen and Fenu. By the 400s ME the speech of the south had become a separate language, Heiosdyn, and Baddaen grew into the largest and wealthiest city in Gosterra.
War of the Southern Duchies
In the 600s ME a republican movement seeking a parliamentary government grew in the Kingdom. It was strongest in the southern duchies, and the power of Baddaen, which rivaled that of the capital, deepened the divide. In 640 ME the southern duchies rose in revolt and the Free People's Army was formed. The war stalled, the republican parties divided over whether to make peace or fight on, and the army took control. The peace treaty of 645 ME set the border on the Eals River and founded the Heialdyn Stratocracy.
Since 645 ME
The army has kept control of the government without a break since 645 ME. The new state divided the former Duchy of Fenu, whose last duke had been particularly cruel, into two provinces: Enis inland and the South Coast, which kept the name by which the coast had long been known, as it lies at the southern end of Gosterra. The city of Fenu kept its name, though proposals to change it have been made.
Trade agreements and agreements on border crossings with the Kingdom followed the treaty. The first railway in Gosterra opened between Baddaen and Urbala in 848 ME; it was joined to the Kingdom's lines in 863 ME, and branches to Fenu and Gorin followed in the 870s ME.
Geography
The Stratocracy covers 103,760 mi² (268,737 km²). It runs from the Eals River in the north to the Mazissage Mountains in the south, which separate it from Balúrail. To the east the Bogh Mountains separate it from Khamria, and the sea lies to the west.
North of the Glanuf River lie the Baddaen Hills, the Ardor Forest and Lake Felm. South of it the country is hillier, more forested and wilder: lake country along the Allso in the west, farmland around Urbala and Lakes Esbing, Bred and Esga in the center, and the Enis Hills in the southeast. The large forests include the Crosbar, Rhyche, Mona and Mineineo forests.
Climate
The climate is oceanic, with frequent rain and fog on the coast. Winters are colder toward the mountains.
Goverment and Politics
The Heialdyn Stratocracy is governed by the Free People's Army, which is the whole of its military, with three branches: the army, the cavalry and the navy. The commander of each branch runs one province: the General of the Army runs Baddaen, the general of the cavalry runs Enis from Urbala, and the admiral of the navy runs the South Coast from Fenu. All three report to the Supreme General, who governs in consultation with them.
When the office of Supreme General falls vacant, each of the three commanders puts forward the name of a general other than himself, and the remaining generals of the army vote among the three. Golas Hes has held the office since 870 ME.
There is no elected national body. Town councils are elected under military oversight, and the language of the republican cause survives in the army's name and in official speech. A republican movement continues, but it is illegal.
All men serve a term in the army. The press is watched but not tightly censored. The Stratocracy has no state religion; the Yeparchist clergy sided with the Crown in the war and have been kept at a distance since.
Relations with the Kingdom of Bóinbile rest on the peace treaty of 645 ME and the trade and border agreements that followed it. The two states are rivals, but the border between them is open. The Stratocracy trades with the Kingdom, with the League of Balúrail by sea and with the Aráinian Republic, and has little contact with Khamria.
Economy
The Stratocracy is the wealthier and more industrial of the states of Gosterra. Baddaen is the commercial and banking center of the region. Fenu is the main naval port and a center of shipbuilding. Enis is farmland, supporting cattle, sheep and grain, and wool is a major product. Fishing and sea trade are major industries.
Demographics
The Stratocracy has about 2,400,000 inhabitants, about 23 per square mile (9 per km²): about 900,000 in Enis, 800,000 in Baddaen and 700,000 in the South Coast.
The largest cities are Baddaen (about 320,000), Fenu (140,000), Ciero (90,000) and Urbala (75,000).
Most inhabitants are Gostaldi who speak Heiosdyn. The Yeparchist branch of Tefar is the faith of most of them. Uisla is the second largest religion, centered in Enis and the South Coast.
Culture
Southern Gosterra is the heartland of Heiosdyn-speaking Gostaldi culture. As the site of the first landing, Baddaen holds a central place in the history of the human peoples of Méniail.
Native Spirits
Emerioa, the Ascendant Spirit of emotions, lives in the House of Emerioa beside Lake Mona in the Mona Forest in Enis. It is a place of pilgrimage and the center where followers of the Path of Emerioa train. The forest around it is dense with spirits of emotion.
See also