Velkya

The Allied Union of Velkya is a representative democracy located on a small subcontinent in the northeastern reaches of Haven. It shares a mountainous border to the east with the Imperial Democracy of Whyatica and is surrounded by the Omz Strait to the south, Fyre Sea to the north and Barkozian island chain to the southeast, with several of the islands under the control of the Allied Union Defense Forces and used as naval bases and airfields.

The Allied Union has strong relations with other powers in the northeast of Haven, including a special relationship with Whyatica, with whom which it shares many free trade treaties and defense pacts. Outside of the northeast of the region, Velkya participates little in the affairs of the mainland, maintaining a few military installations in Allanean and Skinnian territory to safeguard Velkyan merchant traffic in the Hallad and Haven Straits.

Velkya enjoys particularly strong cultural, diplomatic, military, and economic ties with the Silver Sky, Czardas, Whyatica, the Space Union, Omz222, Praetonia, Willink, Aralonia, Questeria, Izistan, and Skinny87, and others through various alliances.

Origins

The origins of a unified Velkya can be traced to the Ice Ages, when much of the surrounding area was dry land, allowing myriad tribes of nomadic hunter gatherers to reach and eventually settle the south of the country in what is what the modern day state of Palasisa. The temperate, balanced climate encouraged the growing of crops, and by 9,300 B.C., early native settlements stretched across the future territories of Palaisia, Atlantia, Augusta, and Julios. The mountainous nature of the Velkyan subcontinent prevented widespread settling of the northern territories, and the populations of the south, boosted by seaborne migrants from southern and Western Europe, slowly confederated into two identifiable nations by the first millennium B.C. The first, centered on the port city that would eventually become Palais, named the Palaisian Empire by later historians, controlled much of the water traffic off the western coast of the southern Velkyan peninsula with its large navy. It also controlled limited settlements on the Atlantian coast, although these would later be absorbed into the Julian Republic, the second of the factions.

The annexation of these cities sparked a series of wars between the two opposing powers, called the Blue Coast Wars, which lasted almost three hundred years and ended with the Treaty of Lauraeis, signed between the Julian Grand Council and Emperor Lixivium III of Palaisia. The treaty was historic, ceding the north of the Palaisia Peninsula, including the city of Auron, to the Julian Republic. In return, the Julian Navy was limited in size to four hundred warships, and trade with the outside world was limited. While this force was still capable of suppressing the pirate activates around the northern Barkozian islands with which the two Velkyan powers traded, it could hardly stand against the might Palaisian Navy, which was the best trained and equipped in the region, forcing the rival Julians on the defensive for virtually the entire war. While on land, the opposite was true, the superiority over the Palaisian Strait that the Palaisian maintained prevented any large scale invasions by the massive Julian army on Palaisian home territory.

For the next two hundred years, the two spheres coexisted with relatively few skirmishes, slowly expanding their respective domains. In a series of naval actions, Palaisia gained control over the northern Barkozian islands, while colonists from Chronopolis landed on the future coast of Atlantia, founding the first cities and heading off Julian explorations into that area. By 340 B.C., the entire southern Velkya peninsula was under the Palaisian flag. On the Julian side of the border, the vast armies of the Republic smashed the barbarian resistance in the north, crossing the mountains that had long blocked expansion to the north, eventually founding the city of Ellrem. The prosperity of the Julian nation soared, but, despite their great expansion, the Palaisians began to suffer a decline. The ruling class had become decadent, growing more and more out of touch with the common man. Slowly but surely, the Palaisian juggernaut would collapse.

In 321 A.D., a popular revolution, incited partly by Julian intelligence (who has sensed the weakness in the ruling class of Palaisia), stormed the king's palace in Palais, killing both him and his court. The revolutionaries declared Palaisia a republic, and the portions of the military that were sympathetic to the rebellion rallied to their cause. The remainder of the nobles banded together, electing a puppet king to represent them. The Palaisian mainland soon fell under rebel control, forming the Republic de Palasium, while the nobles, retaining control of most of the navy, retreated to the colonies while blockading the mainland and Julios in the process. While Julian spies had incited the rebellion in part, the Julian Senate was slow to militarily support the insurrection, and the Republican mainland slowly went into economic decline under the pressure of the Palaisian navy, until a new Julian Consul, Patrius Jurivium was elected by the Julian populace.

He immediately mobilized the Republican Grand Army, an event that had not occurred in centuries and, in May 356, Julian heavy cavalry swept across the border. With a speed unknown to militaries at that time, they had overrun the Palaisian legions defending the colonies, and by the next year had taken Artisia, the seat of power for Royalist Palaisia, leaving only the major port city of Lauraeis in their hands. The combined navy of the two republics sailed into Lauraeis' harbor, and despite the Royalists' individual superiority, the sheer number of Republican ships quickly overran them. As the Royalist navy lay rotting at the bottom of the Palaisian Straits, large ships carrying siege towers and catapults assaulted the considerable anti-shipping defenses on the coast of Lauraeis while the Julian army, led by Consul Patrius himself, hammered away at the walls of the fortress city. The vast strategic reserves of the Royalists held out at first, and the siege lasted over three years. Unfortunately, no fortress is impregnable, and it was the creeping terror of the Black Death, not the thunder of Julian catapults, which brought the great city its doom. Pestilence ran rampant through the city, killing as much as 60% of the inhabitants. In a well documented act of mercy and necessity, Patrius ordered his lieutenants to load their siege weapons with flaming shot, setting the city ablaze in a massive inferno, which, while dooming the remaining denizens of the city to a fiery death, prevented the horrors inside from escaping to infect the rest of the region.

After his victory at Lauraeis, Patrius returned to Midian, capital of the Julian Republic, for victory celebrations. Hailed as a hero by both the Julians and Palaisians, he strongly influenced the Julian Republic, pushing it into a golden age. One of first achievements of this period was the unification of the two southern nations into what is today called the Courtainian League, after the word Courtius, which means unity in the Palaisian language. While keeping the same traditions, the two cultures, Palaisian and Julian, slowly fused, producing a language known as Courtainian, a fusion of Latin, Palaisian, and various Germanic languages which became the de facto language of the new union. This common spirit drove the Courtainians to new heights, and by 800 A.D. their empire stretched into present day Whyatica as well as the future site of Osea.

Unlike the Roman Empire, Courtainia never disintegrated, thus feudalism never developed in its borders, and the scientific backwardness of the Dark Ages never occurred. Instead, Courtainia flourished, with attention devoted to the arts and sciences. Colony and trade vessels crisscrossed the Eaglin Sea, strengthening the economy and establishing cities like Oured and Directus. Courtainian merchants traveled as far as Skinny87 and Omz222, bringing exotic goods back home, protected by the mighty Courtainian Navy, whose caravels and galleons sailed all across the seas. By 1300 A.D., their golden age had ended, and a steady period of limited growth replace the golden years of past. A steady flow of immigrants from Europe, including Englishmen, Frenchmen, Spaniards, Germans, and Italians, began to arrive by the boatload, seeking asylum in the free haven of Courtainia. Several people of Germanic descent settled in present day Sturmland, forming the Holy Kingdom of Aquilund, which emerged as a friendly but competitive rival to the Courtainian nation, a competition which strengthened both countries economies. By the sixteenth century A.D., the two nations were hurtling towards a second Golden Age. Courtainia, originally comprised of Latins, became a mixture of Spanish, French, and Italian while Aquilund was inhabited mainly by Englishmen and expatriated Germans. Smaller kingdoms formed by Slavic immigrants sprung up as well in pockets of present day Pacifica and Osea.

This Second Golden Age would last into the eighteenth century. By this time, a new breed of immigrant, the North American, would begin arriving in droves. Seeking out new territory to conquer, these former Americans and Canadians diffused their own culture into that of Aquilund and Courtainia, whilst forming their own nation, New Liberty, centered around the cold port of North Point and the ideals of equality and freedom. (Courtainia, while a republic, was a willing recipient of slavers and their charges)With these ideals, they began expanding their stranglehold on northern Velkya, they influenced the local Slavic kingdoms, eventually absorbing them and converting them to Protestantism. The myriad Eastern languages of these people were slowly absorbed into the English speaking dialogue, creating a dialect that to this day is uniquely Velkyan. By the 1800s, New Liberty had grown alongside the H.K.A. and Courtainia as a major player on the Velkyan political scene, expanding like bread in an oven until it pushed against the borders of both Courtainia and Aquilund. While the Courtainians welcomed a new neighbor, the Holy Aquilund Emperor, Marcus II, grew ever more suspicious of the new nation to the north, and the rumbles of war, such ones that had not been felt in centuries, resounded over the Eaglin Straits. It came to a head when the Aquilund High Seas Fleet under Admiral Bernard Von Capsilhoff began to conduct anti-merchantmen operations against New Liberty's merchant traffic in the inland sea while under the Courtainian flag. This ruse angered the New Liberty Senate, which authorized war against Courtainia, which vehemently denied allegations that it had began private ring operations even as it prepared for war. The New Libertarian Navy (including a few ironclads bought from Britain and the United States), met the much larger Courtainian force on near equal terms on the waters of the Eaglin. Constant naval battles between the two militaries forced merchantmen to sit in harbor for fear of coming under fire from the opposing forces.

The economies of the northern states were dependent on seaborne commerce (the vast mineral reserves of Eurusium and Osea had yet to be discovered in bulk), and the war stagnated the local economies. Although officially prohibited by both sides, fraternization between military personnel and vessels was common, and the war (which was welcomed in New Liberty's cities during the opening actions before any serious economic troubles had come to pass) began to draw fierce criticism from the free press of both New Liberty and Courtainia. Cities like North Point, Vladistock, Oured, Midian, and Palais became hotbeds for civil unrest, with frequent street fighting between police forces and the enraged populace. Under the pressure of open rebellion in the streets of their respective nations, Libertarian and Courtainian leaders met in secret in the then town of Lycium to discuss peace settlements. It was there discovered that Courtainia had not in fact sunk these vessels, and spies from both sides had confirmed an increase in military mobilization in Aquilund before and after the outbreak of war. After the evidence was weighed, it was clear who the real instigators were. A peace treaty was signed by President Gerald S. Harling and Grand Consul Juan Cortez several days after the negotiations, and both sides completely ceased hostilities by the following week.

Before action could be taken by the deceitful Aquilundians, said nation collapsed in a coup launched by democratic terrorists who had, much like the Palaisian rebels of old, grown tired of the oppressive Aquilundian royalty. With the military factionalized between the democratic White Alliance and the Loyalists, civil war raged throughout future Sturmland, as the two northern powers sat on the sidelines. After a year of watching Aquilundians murder each other, New Liberty and Courtainia voiced their support for the White Alliance and began to send troops to Accentium, where the revolution's headquarters were located. With the military support of the north on their side, the White Alliance declared their independence from the Holy Kingdom of Aquilund and formed the Union of Sturmland, a direct democracy. The day of the coup is still celebrated as Jalik Day, for the leader of the conspirators and first and only President of Sturmland. The shattered Aquilundian military could not hold its own against the combined might of the three democracies, and Kuzida, the capital of Aquilund, fell to New Libertarian storm troopers using revolutionary squad based tactics and repeating rifles in a fierce three month long battle. At the end of the brutal fighting, a blue flag bearing twelve white stars around a single large one flew over the Reichstag of Aquilund on December 3rd, 1894, a day that will be forever remembered as Unification Day. On that day, the separated histories of Palaisia, Julia, Courtainia, Sturmland, Aquilund, and New Liberty became united into Velkya, the Palaisian word for freedom. Soon after the dust has settled, leaders from the three victorious countries met in a railcar in New Jasik to discuss the postwar region, and came to the conclusion that a unified nation stood a better chance of standing the test of time than three separate bickering powers. A constitution was drafted granting the individual citizen the right to choose his own government and to protect his life, liberty, and whatever legal and righteous endeavor he choose to embark on in his life, a directive that present day Velkyans still cherish and enjoy.

System of Government

While rocky in the beginning, the newly minted Velkya was from the start a republic. Today, the government of Velkya is similar to the United States' system of legislative democracy, with a three tier government consisting of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches. Unlike the United States, however, the party system is no bipartisan, and there are usually four large parties or coalitions vying for dominance for seats in the executive and legislative branches. The legislative branch, formally known as the Grand Senate is divided into two houses, the Upper and Lower, and representatives from the houses are called Upper and Lower Senators, respectively. The Lower House votes on laws and bills presented to it from petitioning citizens or lower level administrators, who then, should the bill pass, move on to the Upper House. Should the Upper House pass the bill, the bill will be moved to the Grand Tribunal and then President and his Grand Cabinet, who form the head of the Executive Branch. If the vote from the Upper House is less than 2/3, the President has the option of sending the bill back down the totem poll to the Lower House for revision.

Senators in both houses are elected for four year terms, and may serve an unlimited number of terms. The Lower House is based primarily on population, with a single LHS representing ten million citizens, making it a body of currently roughly three hundred, while the Upper House is limited to four senators per state, making it a body of just less than fifty. However, unlike in a modern democracy, a populace that feels a senator is not representing them properly or effectively may petition their state governments to investigate a senator's career and determine if a reelection is necessary. If voted out of office before term, the newly elected candidate immediately replaces the senator for the rest of his term. This sort of mid-term reelection is not very common, but provides a unique incentive for senators to stay diligent.

The executive branch is headed by a President, whom is elected every six years along with a running mate that serves as his Vice President. Instead of an electoral college like that of the United States, votes are counted directly. The President, with Senate approval, chooses his own cabinet, one for each department. The cabinet is comprised of the heads of twelve different government departments dealing with issues from national defense to agriculture.

The judicial branch of the government, the Grand Tribunal, is a meritocratic organization, with the best provincial justices handpicked for service. It serves and is considered by law the highest court in the land, and the Grand Tribunal's decisions overrule any state law of the same nature. Laws passed by the Grand Senate are reviewed by the tribunal for any breach of the Right s Of The Union. Should a breach of the Rights be located in the law, it is sent back to the Senate for revision. If it passes inspection, it is sent to the executive branch for official signing.

Rights Of The Union

The Velkyan people live by five freedoms, outlined in the 1895 constitution.

Freedom To Assemble

All Velkyan citizens, whether native or foreign born, have the right to peacefully assemble for whatever reason they place forth, and to be protected by the proper authorizes.

Freedom To Speak

All Velkyan citizens, whether native or foreign born, have the right to put forth their opinion on any matter they choose, no matter how minor or major.

Freedom To Franchise

All Velkyan citizens, whether native or foreign born, have the right to elect their own leadership within the confines of the established Velkyan constitution.

Freedom To Prosper

All Velkyan citizens, whether native or foreign born, have the right to prosper in the infinite possibilities of free enterprise, and may seek whatever reasonable monetary adventure they wish.

Freedom To Judgement

All Velkyan citizens, whether native or foreign born, have the right to a a lawful and just trial by their peers. This does not mean, however, that any Velkyan is above the law, no matter who they claim to represent.

Culture and Pastimes

The culture of the Allied Union is highly unique, because, in effect, it has no unified culture. Cultural traditions from North America, Europe, and Asia blend together, creating an impressive mixture of all sorts of traditions. Many citizens enjoy an afternoon tea and coffee break during work, a holdover from the English immigrant populations of Sturmland and Palaisia, while Italian style bells ring throughout the city to announce meal times. As is common in the United States, Ole' Constellation, the nickname of the Allied Union's official flag, is held sacrosanct, and common practices such as flag burning in protest is highly illegal. Velkyan cuisine is very well known, as the blend of Italian, Spanish, Germanic, Afro-Caribbean and Asian cultures make it a culinary hot spot throughout most of Haven. However, the most popular luxury export of Velkya is its powerful filming and theatric industry, with movies and documentaries screening in cinemas all over the world, an interesting contrast with its eastern neighbor (and musical powerhouse) Whyatica.

International Relations

Velkya is a very active player in world politics, with political, economic, cultural, and military influences stretching throughout the globe. Her closests allies lie in Northern Strategic Allied Forces, a defensive and economic pact comprising Velkya, Whyatica, the Silver Sky and the Space Union, designed to protect them against foreign attack and invasion.