The History of Solentia is something convoluted and confusing. Such is the nature of Solentia in the current day that its radical masters have distorted its history and erased much of the certainty about past events for their own political purposes. It is one of the few nations where knowledge about historical events has become less certain as time goes on. Nonetheless, a great deal of information has been preserve outside of the nation well before the coming the many totalitarian regimes. Most of the early historical sources is available from the ancient libraries of neighbouring nations like Kalopia, Kafuristan and Istalia and then in distant nations where many Solentians found refuge and from which many of their descendants came back, nations like Dorvik and Rildanor. The issues concerning the legitimization of primary sources is a major topic of its own, known as Solentian Ortho-Citation. However, we can begin with the very earliest history in 50,000 BCE.
The Prehistoric Era: 50,000-6,000 BCE[]
The Kal'Nai Cultures: 50,000-20,000 BCE[]
In Kal'Nai river basin in Fuwan, a race of peoples spread forth at some point around 50,000 BCE. The earliest Archaeological records show that these peoples were the first to inhabit Solentia. Spreading North from Fuwan, the Kal'Nai culture flourished for some 30,000 years. Their life was comprised mainly of hunting, gathering, and a strange series of religious rituals known by modern historians as "hiera" (after the Kalopian "ἱερα" for "holy rites"). These rites were depicted on numerous cave paintings from Fuwan to Teshuen to Orame. The only clear part of the rites is that it involved the sacrifice of some sort of cattle to a river god; cattle of some kind are shown thrown into a raging river that often has symbols indicating divinity. Apart from this trivia, the Kal'Nai cultures are very much a mystery to the modern world. They inexplicably died out around 20,000 BCE.
Archaic Era: 6,000-1500 BCE[]
Proto-Agricultural Civilizations 6,000-3500 BCE[]
With coming of a cooling period in 15,000 BCE, traces of human habitation in Solentia dwindle. They reemerge in 6,000 BCE with the return of a warmer, more prosperous era. In Orame in the North and Teshuen in the South, proto-agricultural societies emerge prominently. They seem to have been most involved in cattle-herding and a semi-nomadic life style. The records are found in various rock inscriptions that are a combination of illustration and an enigmatic alphabet of some sort that has not yet been deciphered. The existence of a written language at this time is remarkable and a testament to the relative advancement of the peoples of this period. Through the fragments of text that have been translated, scholars have shown that there is some ancestral memory of the Kal'Nai, and perhaps even an older culture than that.
Early Agricultural Period: 3500-1500 BCE[]
Around 3500 BCE the cultures in Solentia and Kalopia grew in complexity and established a unitary cosmopolitan culture, characterized by including sumptuous palaces, elaborate frescoes, and widespread use of writing. Solentia and Kalopia were the site of a sophisticated urban trading civilization focused on the worship of a number of chthonic gods and enjoying close trade relations with the entire Majatran continent. Bull-jumping seems to have been a popular sport.
Archaeologists found a number of agricultural settlements from this period that were markedly different from their pastoral nomadic predecessors. For one, there seemed to be a centralized governing system: life must have been centered around the estate of the ruling lord or king. While the King controlled trade and market life, farmers and peasants lived in a decentralized manner, settling broadly around the fortified estates of the King. The crops were generally wheat and olives, with sheep and goats still playing a prominent role in agriculture ever since the proto-agricultural cultures.
There was no centralized state during this era, and the only unifying factor among the various palace-based polities in Solentia and Kalopia was their culture.
Classical Era: 1500-205 BCE[]
Archaic Period: 1500-1150 BCE[]
The pre-Enetric civilization in Kalopia and Solentia collapsed around 1500 BCE for unknown reasons, traditionally assumed to have come about as a result of the Enetric Migrations. However pre-Enetric cities show no evidence of sacking or violent conquest, and newer theories speculate that the collapse may have been a result of a combination of environmental and political-military factors, coming about as a result of drought, crop failure, famine, and the Enetric migration or invasion.
The collapse of the palatial civilization led to an end of urbanization and literacy, and society reverted to an agricultural structure. The newly-settled Enetrics, the ancestors of the Kalopians, were organized into independent regions organized by kinship groups and oikoi or households, which later led to the emergence of the poleis or independent city-states. Around 1150 BCE the region experienced an economic recovery and the gradual rebirth of civilization. The Kalopian alphabet was introduced, used to write not only the languages of the settled Kalopians but the other languages in the region as well.
Similarly to the the situation in Kalopia, the small household units began to merge into city-states through a process called "synoecism". The main civilizations at the time were the Maenemoi, centered in Teshuan, and the Urghu, centered in Nukeya. The former were more focused on peace and technological advancement while the latter were more war-like and brutal. While the Maenemoi appear to have gained some political stability by 1200 BCE, the Urghu were still in constant war throughout this era. Both civilizations were non-Kalopian and spoke distinct languages with no known relatives, but they were heavily influenced by the emerging Kalopian civilization.
The rapid and marked rise of the Maenemoi ended the Archaic era and launched Solentia into a period of growth and prominence that would drive the course of the next 2000 years. The Meanemoi had taken on a level of advancement and sophistication by 1500 BCE that was comparable to that of the Kalopians. Through trade and learning they had grown past the simple decentralized system and had begun the development of genuine cities. Although the cities were ruled by Kings for this entire period, the wealth and prosperity of the upper classes drove the development of the Republics of the middle Classical Era. Civilization excelled to a point at which their ideas and knowledge imprinted itself on all Solentian culture and ideas. The Maenomian model of city-states was the status quo in most of the land by 1350, and the previous Urghu cultures were wiped away in the ensuing changes. Military might had partly to do with it, but colonization and the spread of ideas played a larger role in the permeation of these ideas across Solentia.
A major advancement of the Maenoman period was in literature. A number of the cities engaged in brilliant oratory and political spectacles that have been immortalized in their poetic oratory. Each line took the form of six measures, each one of which could have a long syllable followed by two short syllables or two long syllables in a row.
Post-Maenomian Period: 1150-1100 BCE[]
During the rise of Maenomian city-states, certain regions in Northern Nukeya developed a rival culture directly descendant from the nearly-forgotten Urghu. These peoples profited from the military knowledge of the Southern cities, but retained a more barbaric life-style. In 1500 BCE they swept South under the leadership of their brilliant leader Alkaias and overthrew the stability of the last 350 years. The Maenomians collectively united and fought against their ancient foes. But with the coming of war came the rapid political coalescence of the city-states around the powerful metropolei of Teshuen; something of a united Maenomian nation emerged after the first ten years of fighting. So powerful was this force that the invaders from Nukeya were beaten back and then invaded themselves. The region was subjected to heavy taxation and tributary obligations for the next 200 years.
Kalopian Period: 1100-205 BCE[]
The economic prosperity and blossoming trade resulting from urbanization allowed the neighboring Kalopians to experience new heights in economic growth for their time, which resulted in previously unmatched cultural feats in architecture, drama, science, philosophy, and democracy. Owing to this growing prosperity the Kalopian city-states began colonizing much of Solentia, gradually overshadowing and eventually assimilating the Manomian civilization, either peacefully or, more often than not, by force of arms.
A foreign observer, Ili-Shamid of Qolshamih, commented in these terms the Kalopian colonization of Solentia around 1000 BCE on its jornal of voyages:
"The rise of the Kalopians in the recent era has been driven in part by the Republican policies of the conquerors and the appeal of these policies to the aristocrats in the other cities of Maenomia. It is not peculiar for cities to throw open their gates to the coming armies in hope that the Monarchs would be overthrown. In almost all cases, this will occur, and the nobility rules through a Republic centered around a Council of Elders. In cities where the nobility are loyal to the Monarch, the conquerors will remove both parties and install a democratic government. Thus, the pressure is on the nobles to surrender, and, being powerful in this age of trade and commerce, the nobility often do succeed."
Between 957 and 953, Solentia was involved in a war that broke down between two sides: the Kalopian cities and the loyal regions, and a Grand Alliance of non-Kalopian powers. In the course of the war Solentia was briefly unified under the leadership of a polity in Orame known as Rwerso. Rwerso however was defeated and colonization continued for the next few centuries.
Post-Classical Era: 205 BCE-489 CE[]
Cildanian rule: 205-95 BCE[]
As a result of the Selucian-Cildanian Wars (398-280 BCE) the Cildanian Hegemony emerged as the largest empire in Majatra. During the wars Kalopian colonies in what is today Deltaria were also brought under Cildanian rule and thereafter were ruled by native tyrants, nominated by the Cildanian governor in Leucopolis. Dissatisfied with the rule of the Cildanian-appointed tyrants, the Kalopian city-states in modern day Deltaria initiated a revolt in 229 BCE. Lasting until 221, the revolt received substantial assistance from the city-states on the Kalopian mainland, particularly Helios. After the revolt was crushed by the Cildanians in 221, the Cildanian Republic decided to punish Helios and its allies for their support of the revolt. Moreover, seeing that the many Kalopian city-states in Kalopia and Solentia possessed a constant threat to the stability of the Cildanian Empire, the Cildanians decided to conquer the whole region. In 215 BCE the first Cildanian invasion of Kalopia began. During the war with the Cildanians many Kalopian city-states banded together, and managed to win a number of significant victories. However, the general disunity of the poleis allowed the Cildanians to fight them one by one, and eventually most of Kalopia and Solentia were brought under Cildanian rule by 205 BCE.
Under the Hegemony the previous trend of Kalopianization continued, and by the end of Cildanian rule the old Maenomian language was fully replaced by Kalopian in day-to-day speech. Economic prosperity led to a revival in construction and urban development, and temples and palaces were built throughout the region, as well as paved roads that linked the main cities.
The Jelbo-Tukaric invasion and the Colsamian rule: 47 BCE-464 CE[]
Starting with the middle of the 1st century BCE the Cildanian Hegemony entered a prolonged period of decline and instability, mainly prompted by the defeats into the Cildanian-Colsamian Wars, the uprising of the Cildanian city-states against Qart Qildar and the Great Plague. After the victory of Colsamia against the Hegemony, whole Solentia and Kafuristan fell under the control of the Colsamian Empire under which the solentian city-states enjoyed an high degree of authonomy while their elites were invited to join the Colsamian ones. However, the Great Plague hit particularly violently Solentia in 32, leaving whole cities deserted, but it was the Jelbo-Tukaric invasion and the war against Colsamia that ravaged so much the country that half of the population was dead or had left.
Under the rule of Timur, whose tribe, the Yelb, reunited the Jelbo-Tukaric people ruling over much of Solentia and Kafuristan between 28 and 44, the largely depopuated country was progressively settled by Majatrans, allied to the Jelbo-Tukaric and who at the time were leaving their overpopulated original place of origin, the island of Badara. This progressive migration of Majatrans continued even after the defeat of the Yelb Khanate by part of Colsamia and the chasing of the Jelbo-Tukaric people further westward. The war, which lasted ten years, had left devastated much of Solentia and Kafuristan: these lands had become depopulated, cities were deserted and failing in ruins, lands were no more cultivated, infrastructures were totally destroyed, etc... Meryad I needed people to populate these lands and given the fact that the among the Colsamian armies fought also several heavy cavalry divisions formed by Majatrans defecting from the rule of Timur Khan, he offered them and their relatives and kins to repopulate those lands becoming loyal subjects of the Colsamian Kings. The Majatrans too, in fact, had suffered a lot the devastating Colsamian-Jelbic Wars, most of their cities and lands were destroyed, many of their warriors had died, but from the still overpopulated Badara people continue to arrive and Colsamia, trying to exploit this huge population and at the same time aimed to make revive the lands of Solentia and Kafuristan, took them as its subjects redeploying directly or allowing thousands and thousands of Majatrans to spread across the rest of east Majatra.
The Majatrans merged progressively with the previous kelopian or kalopianized population still alive, and under the rule of Colsamia Solentia came back once again to be a country highly urbanized, crossed by merchants from all over Majatra, and now the Selucized Colsamian elements began to influence too the local culture. And if in the future Istalian lands the Selucian elements became dominant and in Kafuristan was the Majatran one, Solentia became a melting pot of culture where Kalopian, Majatran, Selucian, Jelbo-Tukaric and Cildanian elements lived alongside and merged between them over the centuries. Also linguistically the several part of the Colsamian Empire began to diverge and in Solentia the Kalopian dialects that were somewhat unified and mutually intelligible developed into several local dialect where the Kalopian mixed with Selucian, Majatran, Cildanian and Jelbo-Tukaric tongues.
Under the Colsamian rule west of Solentia fom time to time was interested by the wars that the Empire fought against both the Enetric League and the Jelbo-Tukaric Warlords and Khanates who ruled over southern Solentia, Jakania and most of Deltaria. The relationship between the Enetric League and the Kalopiana and Selucian city-states in Solentia and Kafuristan was often exploited by the League to destabilize the Empire and push back the Colsamian influence. However, the Kalopian element in Solentia was leaving the space to new ethnic groups and it didn't charaterized no more the majority of the population and this actually prevented large rebelions or revolts like under the last years of the Cildanian Hegemony. Also the clever politics of the Colsamian Kings to assimilate the local elites to the Colsamite ruling class developed an high degree of loyalty to the Empire.
Augustan Era: 464-1250[]
Early Augustan period: 464-640[]
The Colsamian Empire eventually had to face the rising of the Augustan Empire in expansion eastward around the end of the 4th century. Four wars were fought against the Augustan Empire but in the end the Emperors from Leucopolis prevailed and the Colsamian Empire was conquered in 464, when the Augustan armies entered in Colsamia. Under the rule of the Augustan Empire the Kalopian language experienced a veritable revival in whole Solentia, being the tongue of the Kingdom of Leucopoliswhile Hosianism began to spread also in east Majatra and like in other part of the continent it became quickly the dominant faith. During this period in Solentia the Augustan art met the eclectic style that had developed in the melting pot that was Solentia until the Colsamian Empire and indeed the Augustan art was influenced there creating a style that in the following century influenced even the neighbouring Estalian lands. Solentia was organized like Kafuristan and Istalia in several Provinces by the Augustan. When the Augustan Empire adopted the Hosianism as state religion in 509, Solentia was quickly Hosianized and there it emerged the Bishopric of Metapontum as most prominent church on the Solentian lands.
Seven Kingdoms: 640-880[]
Augustan rule lasted until the 7th century when, given the weakening of the Augustan Empire due the Deltarian invasion, the most periferic dominions became increasingly difficult to control and the Augustan were forced to compromises, leaving some Deltarians tribes who fought for the Empire against the Tokundians to set in areas in Solentia and Istalia and administrate them in name of the Emperor. Already around the end of eighth century in the territories once under the Colsamian Empire the statal authority had collpased in favor of the local lords, comprising of both barons and ecclesiastical lords, who recognized just a nominal sovereignty to the Augustan Emperors. Augustan rule lasted until the eighth century when, as a result of the weakening of the Augustan Empire due the Tokundian invasion, the periferic dominions began to assume more and more power and already in the seventh century seven kingdoms, founded by the traditional dynastic ruler of the previous seven Augustan provinces, became autonomous as vassals of the Augustans. The Augustan Emperors, therefore, with the bulk of the forces deployed to contain the Deltarians and also dedicated to expanding in the west of Majatra, deemed it convenient to delegate the government of the eastern provinces, relocating entire Dorons tribes to the east of the continent, entrusting them with the management of vast portions of the territory in its place, while maintaining direct control over the richest areas: Alaria, the south of the Sarrentina Peninsula and the cities in Solentia.
Over the following centuries both the local elites and the Doron Lords progressively managed to shake off Augustan control and began to clash with each other to expand and increase their power in search of hegemony in the area. Around 800 on the area of Solentia and Istalia those who went down in history as The Seven Kingdoms had formed, led by lords who still formally recognized the nominal sovereignty of the Augustan Emperor but whichwere to all intents and purposes independent entities, formed through wars and marriages between the several rising lords and were the Doron elements emerged almost everywhere as the dominant elite. The Seven Kingdoms were: the Kingdom of Heraklia cetered into the Heraklian plateau in the northwestern Solentia; the Kingdom of Therak, extended in modern day north Istalian Trivendito and Solentian south-eastern areas, but which around the middle of 8th century conquered the territory which had fell under the control of the three cites today known as Villaneddìa, Padua, and Veddilurmu which together for a period were known as The three cities of the sales, from which comes the modern name of the region Trivendito; the Kingdoms of Palsikon and the Kingdom of Marratu respectively in the southern and eastern plains of Solentia; the Kingdoms of Tulino in Ferano; the Kingdom of Accaria and the Kingdom of Neapulia respectively in west Fidelia and east Fidelia. Among the Seven Kingdoms, only Neapulia was not led by Doron elites and, in fact, the area won't suffer the same degree of political fragmentation of the Peninsula in the following centuries.
However, the Dorons settlers, like in Istalia, never achieved to establish veritable deltarian lordships or kingdoms, numerically and above all culturally they were in fact "overwhelmed" by the native population, on which they managed to impose themselves only because in the Augustan society, as well as in Colsamite one, only the armies of the Emperor or the King carried arms. So millions of former Colsamites, mostly defenseless peasants, were easily kept at bay by not even a few hundred thousand warriors, from tribes where every man was a warrior, who thus questioned the power of the local elites. On the one hand the new Doron warrior elites were interested in consolidating their power in the area not only through the use of the violence, on the other hand the original elites, allied with the Church, aware of the military superiority of the Dorons, wanted to keep their positions, thus being pushed to adopt the same warrior mentality of the new elites and to allied to them. At the same time the Dorons in that area very quickly abandoned the use of their own language in favor of that of the local population and were certainly among the first Deltarians to convert to the Hosian faith, thus ensuring the collaboration of ecclesiastical hierarchies. The Doron elements went to enrich furthermore the already multiethnic society of Solentia.
Attempted Augustan recapture (871 - 880)[]
In 871, once the Augustan Empire had recovered from the prolonged Civil War last from 789 to 821 and after recent victories against the Deltarians, Emperor Lysander III launched a military campaign to bring back the Colsamian provinces under full control of the Empire. The increasing political fragmentation that both Solentia and the Sarrentina Peninsula were experiencing initially facilitated the advance of the Augustan armies but then, thanks to the intervention of the Kingdom of Nicoma, which had already become independent during the Augustan Civil War, thanks to the intervention of Majatra tribes from Kafuristan came to rescue their kindred in Solentia and therefore thanks to raids from the west by Deltarians allied to the Dorons elites who had settled in the east, the tide of the war turned upside down and in the end the Augustan armies had to retreat to the 880. The military campaign lasted for nine years and despite the victory it left the Colsamian provinces totally devastated and also depopulated.
Solentian Pentarchy: 880-1250[]
Towards the 9th century, unlike what was happeing in the Sarrentina Peninsula, the Solentian kingdoms experienced a period of gradual centralization led by the Kalopian and Kalopianized Majatran elites of the cities, having the Dorons elites in Solentia suffered a lot more the Augustan campaign to the east. By 900 the kingdoms turned into what was known as the Pentarchy, the "rule of five", composed of five domains which were independent in all but name. Each domain was centralized and secure, but ruled by its own Pentarch. Each Pentarch would have a powerful court and a large standing army, at the "Augustan manner", as thay said at the time. Wars, however would occasionally occur between the states, but often alliances were formed to fight against the Estalians beyond the Nayaers. The Pentarchy's cultural was dominated by the Kalopian elements, which resumed their furtune under the Augustan dominion, but Solentia at the time was indeed a melting pot of people and civilization where the Majatran element was becoming prevalent. However, the situation was going to homogenize, developing into a society that will be swept away by the arrival of the Ahmadi Caliphate, and with which the particular post-Selucian creole language strongly influenced by the Majatran and Kalopian that was developing in those lands will also disappear. After the retirement of the Augustan Empire the power of the Augustan Church weakened, and the secular leaders gained an increasingly prominent place of power and independence. The populace was given no new rights and the power of the Pentarchs was undisputed. The Kingdoms and then Penterchies of the south until 12th century fought several wars against the Istalian Kingdoms as said, expanding their area of influence over north of the Sarrentina Peninsula but then, around 1100, the Estalian Kingdom of Tulino, which was bacoming hegemonic over the Peninsula, achieved to won several wars that pushed back the Solentians and that defined the modern day borders between Istalia and Solentia. The Pentarchy of Palsikom became even a tributary of the Kingdom of Tulino for a period.
In 1156, the Pentarch Aldrinost I of Heraklia began a series of military campaigns that would begin the re-unification of Solentia. His brilliant military genius was matched by no other in the pentarchy. But he died in 1163 with only 3 of the 5 domains united. His successor was weak and powerless. He lost one of the captured kingdoms before being deposed and replaced by Aldrinost III in 1187, a military man of prowess surpassing his uncle Aldrinost I. It took 41 years, but the great Pentarch succeeded in his task. In 1228, he conquered the last remaining independent domain, uniting Solentia as a single political entity for the first time in its history.
But Aldrinost's prolonged military campaign drained the treasury and made unified Solentia vulnerable to foreign threats, and in only three decades all of Solentia would be conquered by the rising Ahmadi Caliphate.
Ahmadi Era: 1250-1486[]
Qanzar Empire: 1486-1934[]
The first records of the House of Kansar, as House of Qanzar then Quanzar, are from the late 16th century CE, when the various Majatran tribes living in Solentia since the days of the Ahmadi Caliphate were united by Karim Ibn Bener Al Qanzar, who established its dominion in Solentia and south Kafuristan, founding the Qanzar Emirate when the last Caliphs recognized them this title as their vassals. The successors of Karim Ibn Bener started to profit of the definitive dissolution of the Caliphate establishing an Empire that at its height encompassed Solentia, Kafuristan, Wantuni, and the Sarrentina Peninsula.
Before the rise of the Empire however Qanzar was just one of the many petty Emirates emerging from the collapsing Caliphate, struggling with internal and external competition for most of its early existence. The Emirate of Quanzar was the one that had the most furtune. When the Caliphate fell in 1486, Ziyadat I, grandson of Karim Ibn Bener, his indipendence and officially founded the Emirate of Great Quanzar establishin his capital in Solentia, where would be raisen the modern Metapontum. His successors greatly extended the Empire which reached to comprise all Solentia, territories in Kafuristan and Kalopia, prompted by the establishment of more advanced system of government to govern more efficiently the new Empire.
In 1565, however, the economy went sour due to excessive rainfall, flooding, famine, and disease. The nobility withdrew into their fortified manners and administration crumbled for some 5-7 years. When the disaster was finally over, there was further political in-fighting: the Emir Ziyadat Akhim II ibn Isma'il and its family, in fact, was decimated by two plagues in 1573 and 1579, the latter killing also the Emir. His last heirs fought for the succession. Not helping matters, the nobility chose one heir while the powerful clergy chose another. Initially the candidate supported by the nobility, Karim II ibn Isma'il, was the one which reached to assume the power, reigning until 1584 on an Emirate in turmoil with his brother Shayban I ibn Isma'il continuing to fight backed up by his supporters. War would have broken out had not Karim died from a bout of epilepsy. The new Emir Shayban was crowned in Metapontum and war only narrowly averted. The Shura however, had consolidated power in the absence of the Emir, and the army now answered to the Minister of War, not to the Emir. By the beginning of 17th century the Emir's powers were greatly eaten away.
But, with the death of Shayban I in 1605, his was suceeded by Ziyadat II ibn Ahmad, grandson of the Emirs, crowned when child but which, when reached the age to reign alone, quickly reversed the tide of aristocratic power. His policies and daring regained him all of the unwritten privileges that had changed hands to the ministers over the last century. Ziyadat set about a 77 year era of effectively absolute monarchy. The power of the Shura reverted to an advisory status while the army pledged allegiance to the Emir and only to the Emir. But while the Emir held political power, the populace was growing ever more affluent and economically influential. Ziyadat was a man in the right place at the right time and at his death in 1682 he left a powerful and stable Emirate to his son Shayban II ibn Ziyadat. Shayaban was remembered for his numberous wars against the other feudal powers arose in the area after the Caliphate, but also for his kind soul and artistic sensibility and his court, in fact, was renowed to be a "sanctuary" for the artists. Shayban was also remembered for the love he has for his son, Harun. The death of Harun during a military campaign depressed heavily the Emir which died in grieves after two years.
The Emirate under his grandson and successor, Ziyadat III ibn Harun, risked to definitively fall instead due to the fact that at the time it had become impossible to maintain an absolute monarchy: the populace wanted rights and they wanted freedom.
The fact, furthermore, that he was very effeminate and totally disinteressed by the other sex (he refuse to get married) and also by the state affairs, worsened the situation by strengthening the position of the people.
Ziyadat was thus forcively removed by the power by his brother Akram I ibn Harun, who ascended to the throne in 1705 facing with a burning call for reform. Despite the opulence and stability of the Emirate, under Shayban II and his successors, immense amounts of the treasury had squandered in order to strengthen the army and carry out foreign wars. This was a good strategy in the short run, as it consolidated power and unity, but financially it was a disaster. With no money left in the state's coffers, Akram could neither pay his troops nor feed his citizens. The cries for reform grew louder. But the new Emir was a rigid supporters of the royal absolutism and instead of trying to bargain with the people, he assumed that he could simply crush them, and with little foresight he used his under-payed troops to put down protests and slaughter dissidents on the streets.
For a decades this strategy reduced the empire into a police state firmly under the control of the Emir, but the crisis reached a head on September 8, 1720, when the Emir's troops carelessly stormed into the Anleitya Masjid, the most holy mosque in the Capital, and arrested a clergyman for preaching treason. It was rumored that they had also destroyed a sacred relic of Prophet Ahmad beloved by the people. The rumor was treated as truth, and within days riots broke out in Metapontum, the people uprising against the authocratic monarchs. Soon they spread to Halion, Akran, Gylsa, Bouthrotum, and more, each bringing chaos and bloodshed. The Emir fled to Nukeya, where the rebellion was more limited, but he could not restore order, not with his under-payed troops, and not with his uninspiring character.
On October 10, 1720, after nearly a month of chaos and disorder, the rebels took power in Metapontum. They preached of equality, spiritualism, and a return to the romanticized early days of the Caliphate. Yet in Halion, a different government was declared as well by the landed gentry and supporters of the aristocracy. A war was taking shape from the ubiquitous chaos, one that would decide the future of Solentia. Wasim was not involved in this conflict; he was not invited by the nobles, who had chosen their own candidate for the throne, nor was he given refuge by the rebels, of course. But the war was not to last long. The nobles were too held back by petty concerns of aristocratic niceties while the rebels were driven by a patriotic, religious, and revolutionary fervor. In only a year, the victory was decisive for the rebels.
Radicals, feeding off of fears of a counter-revolution, took control of the Emirate and began to lay out purge after purge. Thousands were brutally executed daily around the country; the spiritualist component of the revolution was ignored and shunned as religious leaders and the devout were slaughtered without concern. After two years of blood baths, the Grand Vizier, Ahmad ibn Akram al-Qanzar, son of Akhram, seized State control dethroning his father and proclaimed himself Emir. Things quieted down and prosperity once again returned to the Empire.
The new Emir then proceeded to consolidate his power, and under his rule and that of his successors the Qanzar Emirate emerged as the new hegemon of East Majatra, beginning the conquest of the neighboring Emirates and petty kingdoms. Between the 16th and 18th centuries all of Solentia and Kafuristan, as well as the northern region of the Istalian Peninsula, progressively had fallen under Quanzari control. In the next century the Empire expanded its rule over the Kalopian territories then ruled by the Wantuni dynasty, taking advantage of Deltarian domination in the region. In 1750, Abd al-Aziz ibn Abu Hafs al-Wantuni, a descendant of a separate line of the Watuni dynasty living in exile in Solentia, raised a rebel force and, with the aid of the Quanzar Emirs, succeeded in driving out the Deltarian colonials, to the joy of much of the native populace. Celebrations of independence were short-lived, however, because Abd al-Aziz soon declared his allegiance to the Qanzar Empire, who appointed him the Wali (Governor) of its new Wilayah (Province) of Wantuni.
A few years later, when the Hosian monarchy of the Istalians started a hard anti-Ahmadi campaign, the Emirs used this event as an excuse to attack the Istalians kingdoms and to take even more land. In the 18th century, the Qanzar Emirate came into conflict with the Estalian kingdoms of in the south, and this contact initiated a prolonged power struggle that ended in the subjugation of all of modern day Quanzar under a single dynasty. By 1771, control of the entire peninsula was cemented by the great Qanzar emir Harun I ibn Ahmad's victory at the Battle of Reggio Ingris. In the aftermath of this battle the Qanzari Emirate stretched across all of modern Istalia, minus the island of Alaria, ruled by the Kingdom of Istalia. The Qanzars initiated a campaign of forceful Majatranization of the Istalian and Wantuni lands, although under the Qanzars Wantuni enjoyed relative autonomy and saw a period of calm and economic growth. Various local nobles, many of them members of junior branches of the House of Qanzar, ruled portions of the territories in a quasi-feudal system. Culture and science flourished under the patronage of the Qanzari lords, who styled themselves as "Emirs of Therak and Pheykran, Lords of Greater Quanzar," and political stability cultivated a robust mercantile economy.
Since the 17th century, however, Artanian powers started to establish several outposts and colonies in Majatra, causing discomfort to the local powers and starting a conflitual relationship especially in Kafuristan with the Quanzar Emirate. The Artanians reached to assume the control of most part of the marittime commerce and also started to undermine the authority of the local powers helping dissidents and subjugated ethnic groups and, about Quanzar, Deltarians and Istalians were highly supported by the foreign powers.
In 1875 the Emir was forced to recognize large authonomy to Kafuristan which, also if formally remained a vassal of the Emirate, actually it became largely indipendent, while the Emirate continue its inexorable decadence. The collapse of the Empire came about as a result of a series of revolutions in Wantuni and Solentia around the first half of the 20th century. In Wantuni the native Wantuni and Kalopian people became hateful of the harsh tributes in currency and human capital that the Qanzars demanded and, allying with one another, the two groups rebelled against the Qanzars and declared Wantuni an independent republic in 1930, and a few years later a revolt in Solentia proclaimed its independence and established a Dominate, thus wiping out the Quanzars who fled in Istalia, the only territory still under their control and where the Emirate was moved.
Modern History: 1934-present[]
Dominate era: 1934-2000[]
In 1934, business leaders from around Solentia conspired with the Army. The generals arranged their soldiers to march on Metapontum. The Emir was ousted, but kept as a figurehead, and the new leader, the "General Minister" was given control of the State. Within several years, the Fascists strengthened their hold, and they no longer even pretended that the Emirate was alive. The nation was known as "The Dominate of Solentia," and it was ruled by the iron-fisted General Minister. Soon the business interests were forgotten, and all power was focused on the dominance of the State. Closed off from the rest of the world, Solentia grew into a brutal despotic nation devoid of any amenities and friendliness. But all of these qualities were dependent on the brilliance, insanity, and motivation of one leader: the General Minister Alier Troud. Upon his death in 1998, the government became a Republic after a brief period of civil conflict. The population had watched secretly in horror as the rest of the world moved forward while they lay in the sweltering oppression of a tyrant. And so, upon gaining freedom, the people of Solentia set about catching up for lost time.
First Republic: 1998-2279[]
With the tides of instability at an end, Solentia set out on a path for a bright future. The age was initially one of prosperity, much like the early Dominate was. Conflict was minimized and there was a general love of democracy and the political situation was calm compared to many other nations at the time. Some notable events included Solentian involvement in the Deltarian-Quanzari Conflict during the 22nd century, and militarist attacks on Kafuristan in 2207 and beyond due to that nation's support of slavery. Other than these events, relatively little conflict occurred in Solentia until 2279, with the coming the radical right parties.
Totalitarianism - 2400-4245[]
The Vanioka-Nuncirist Empire: 2279-2324[]
First emerging in 2279, the new fascist parties immediately seized power by passing a new cabinet and passing State of Emergency laws that modified the foundations of the State and removed basic civil liberties. It is still not clear to this day how the Fascists took over from the relatively stable Republic, but it is clear that they were masters of Machiavellian realpolitik. They cared not for how they voted or what they did: so long as they gained seats and gained power. In the first decade of the new century, some of these Fascist parties arranged a disastrous invasion of Kazulia that ended in chaos and instability on the home-front. Indeed, within only several years, liberal movements were back in partial power and former Fascists were fighting each other while trying to hold on to their old offices and influence.
The Transitional Polity: 2324-2344[]
This state of ideological limbo existed more or less for 10 years. The liberals gained their most strength early on, but all the while neither side could fully control the nation. The totalitarians, those being the Nuncirists and the Panterrans, were opposing each other while they vied for the support of the weak liberals in cabinet coalitions. But in 2344, a break through occurred: the last liberal party fell out of use and the Totalitarians made not only a truce, but a powerful alliance.
The Archonic Era: 2344-[]
The Nunciro-Panterran Empire: 2344-2357[]
At this point, the united Totalitarians set about locking the nation from new comers and new ideas. Ever since `44, no new party or movement has appeared in Solentia save some token resistance that is powerless to affect any change. The ideas of Panterranism matured fully and the two ideologies merged somewhat and became inter-dependent. An attempted conquest of Wantuni was attempted, but it failed for the most part. But back in Solentia, a new ideology, that of Archonism, took hold. A fusion of Panterranism and Nuncirism, Archonism promotes the arrogance and unbridled exploitation of power that must be undertaken by the rulers.
The Archonic Imperium: 2357-[]
And so in 2357, the rulers passed reforms that embraced the Archonic doctrine as Solentia's doctrine. A new wave of patriotic fervor swept through the nation and soon a new invasion of Wantuni was arranged.
Historiographic difficulties in Solentia[]
Solentia history, especially the modern one, has always been quite confused and uncertain, mainly due to the works of the totalitarian regimes which charaterized Solentia during the 23rd and 24th centuries. The Nuncirist, Panterranist and Archonic totalitarian regimes were known as some of the most pervasive totalitarian regimes in human history, renowned for the level of sophistication achieved by the regime propaganda, which went so far as to deny and therefore modify the entire history of Solentia, by altering or destroying any document that was not in line with the guidelines of the regime. The nuncirist regime is also remembered for the regime's intranet network, known as Solentian Information Transfer Protocol, the only permitted method of Internet access available to the Solentians, strictly controlled and manipulated by the government. These totalitarian regimes, to consolidate their power and to achieve their goal of totalitarian organization of the society, arrived to perpetuate what was considered a veritable collective brainwashing which lasted for generations. The damage for the Solentian culture was catastrophic, so much that the solentian lost their ethnic, cultural and social identity and even their original languages, which were largely replaced by the Luthorian, at the time the most spoken language around the world and considered the perfect "neutral" replacement for the several languages used before the totalitarian era (among them a language related to Qildari and Kalopian languages and the Majatran), another expedient to further destroy the past identity of the Solentians.
Obviously, the previous and past history of the nation was among the main objectives of this cultural destructive process and the losses were irreparable. The Nuncirists, to make full understand the amplitude of their methods, arrived to totally change the past history of the nation declaring that the regime ideology had influenced the nation and the world for centuries, at least since 19th century, and that the ideological basis of the ideology went back to the classic kalopian era.
The hostility for foreign intromissions and ideas probably derives by the totalitarian ideologies as well: the nuncirism, in fact, didn't arise in Solentia but it developed and was founded originally in Aloria where failed an attempt to establish a first nuncirist state while the Panterranism was idealized in Kanjor and spread in Alduria before to reach Solentia like a plague, a foreign plague. Despite this tendency to support far-right parties in search of traditions and cultural stabilty, and despite the long lasting rule by part of such parties during the history of Soletnia, until today no one was able to definite clearly a cultural identity of Solentia and of the solentians and this often pushed particularly ethnic groups to organize themself in political parties, rise to power and establish their own culture as leading of the nation (this can explain under the recent "Autonean era", for example, why the nation was charaterized by a Kazulian-like cultural appearances or why the fascist party which arise at the power around the 4350's has a Dundorfian name and is led mainly by solentian with dundorfian origins).
Luthoran Era 2401-4693[]
From the mid 3rd millennium to the mid-fifth millennium Solentia was largely dominated by Luthorian speaking urban elites. The native and largely rural majority were largely ignored due to their backwardness.
The Rise of Austonean Social Democracy 4245-4350[]
"The Austonean Social Democrats" (ASD) originally named The Austonean Democratic Socialist Party was founded on October 01, 4263 by Dorvik and Kazulian immigrants in Solentia and was the influence of modern day Solentia. The northern Kazulian (Scandinavian) and Dorvish (German) settlers created a left wing party in hopes to combact the previous fascist regime in Solentia. In September of 4263 the ASD had 63.41% of the votes and awarded 62% of the seats in The Solentian Congress. The ASD transformed the facist Solentia into a leading progressive nation, ending the fascist era and initiating a new Social Democratic movement.The Solentian culture under the ASD leadership shifted. As time progressed more and more Kazulian,Dorvish, and Dundorfian settler influence filled Solenia. The people of Solentia voted to change the National Motto to "Fred och Välstånd" (Peace and Prosperity) along with the flag and the name of the states due to the influence of Solentians newly founded Scandinavian roots. Life in Solentia had changed dramatically in contrast with the last regime. Healthcare and education was free and provided by the government along with many treaties like "The Medication Accessibility Act", "Protection of the LGBT Act", "The Solentian Climate Agreement" and most notably The "Majatran Education Opportunity Pact" that was monumental for diplomatic relations. The ASD was not the only left wing party in the nation. Solentia seen a dramatic increase of left wing parties rise and fall throught the decades with little to no right wing representation at the time.
The Fascist Rise Again 4350-4524[]
The original fascist protestors that dethroned the republic
The Fascists took power and kept it for decades. They were tyrannical and one of the worst things that has happened to Solentia.
The "Faschistische Nationalbewegung Party" (FNB) attempted to make return Solentia to the Fascist Era, but despite the large control of the party and the support of other far-right parties, the democratic opposition managed to contrast the most extreme policies of the rightist parties which continued to leading the nation still in the framework of a democracy. The"Faschistische Nationalbewegung Party continued to try to take complete control by pushing out the First Conservative League and Konservative nasjonalister av Solentia out. With these parties exiled in other countries the Fascists could take complete control of Solentia. The Renamed Faschistische Union (VR) attempted to create a One Party System but eventually failed due to pressure from more progressive Parties and worldwide backlash from the Solentian-Istalian border crisis.
The Rise of Conservatism- 4524-4574[]
The Hosian Democratic Alliance and other parties took control and lead Solentia to a more freedom-driven future. Relations with Istalia were improving as well. The Republican Party and Order Party took the helm and drove Solentia to becoming a right wing conservative. State. The return of Konservative nasjonalister av Solentia and the Republican Party are indeed leading Solentia to a more conservative path. During this time, a Socialist Party known as the New Democratic Party gained power but they were bravely stomped out by The Order Party, The Konservative Nasionalister and The Conservative Coalition before a rumored Civil War could start. in 4577, all parties within Solentia unanimously voted to rename the nation to "United Solentia".
The Rise of Right-Wing Nationalism- 4574-4580[]
During this time, The Order Party Establishment was fighting Right-Wing Nationalism. During this time, John McSane became President of United Solentia which seemed to calm things down until the end of his Presidency when he had a meeting in Istalia. After that meeting, he had some choice words that were misinterpreted by the Istalian Government and tensions were created, though McSane issued a public apology and tensions calmed with help from the Right-Wing Nationalist Party. Due to this, John McSane lost his bid for reelection in 4576 and was shunned out of The Order Party by Order Party President (and future Solentian President), Donald Mump. During this time, The Military-Nationalist Party gained power and there was a fight between The Order Party (who were backed by Right-Wing Nationalists) and The Conservative Democrats (who were backed by The Order Party's establishment) for The Vice Presidency, which led to The Order Party gaining the Vice Presidency once again. In the 7580 election, Donald Mump won the Presidency. During his Presidency, he attempted to build a fence on the border of Istalia and tried to cut off trade with Luthori, almost starting a war in the process. During this time, new elections were held due to the fall of the CDA party and Donald Mump lost his bid for reelection, stomping out the Right-Wing Nationalist movement in the process.
The Rise and Fall of Socialist Libertarians- 4594-4610[]
During the 4580s and 4590s, the Order Party had rebranded itself to the "New Order Party" and started going towards the center-left of the political spectrum. During this time, a Left-Wing Anarchist faction had grown within the party and started expanding quickly in 4593. They expanded so much that in 4594, they challenged every single New Order Party Senator in the primaries and won, not only that but they even managed to take seats from the Conservative Democrats and Military-Nationalist Party, leading to them taking the majority in the Solentian Senate. They rebranded "The New Order Party" into the "Socialist Libertarian Party" and started to introduce bills that would increase civil liberties while also trying to implement better Government healthcare services. Several members of the Government's Cabinet resigned in protest, including Vice President Dylan Thomas.Eventually, the party died and disappeared for over 50 years.
The Return of Authoritarianism: 4647-4660[]
During this era, the National Liberal Party gained control and were backed by the National Capitalists'. Both parties introduced more Authoritarian bills, Capitalist and Theocratic bills which were strongly opposed by the Socialist Libertarian Party, which accused the parties of being fascist which lead to the National Capitalists failing to pass a bill that would make it illegal to call them the term "fascist". Eventually, Authoritarian Parties lost control in 4660.
The Revival Of The Left: 4660-September, 4693[]
During this time period, the Solentian Labour gained control and eventually the National Solentian Workers Party and The Green Party of Solentia did as well. However, it was later clear that that this was the last gasp of the era of Luthorian dominance in Solentia. It was time for the native Majatrans to re-assert their cultural identity.
Majatran and Ahmadi Era[]
Reassertion of Majatran Identity 4693-4868[]
Tayyib al-Kaba, elected as Head of State in 4693 occupies a special place in modern Solentian history as the first openly ethnic Majatran to be Head of State. For the first time in millenia the dominance of Luthori speaking elites had been thrown off and this signalled the beginning of the Majatranisation of Solentia. Until 4868 Solentia was usually governed by parties led by ethnic Majatrans adhering to Ahmadi religious beliefs, sidelining the once dominant Artanian Luthorian speaking community.
The Anarchy 4868-5005[]
However over the next few centuries there were periodic periods of largely one party rule, often led by dictators from the Artanian community. The period 4868 - 4977 saw three dictatorships, firstly that of the left-wing United Workers Party (4868-4893), secondly by the right-wing Fascist Party (4893-4959) and finally by the left-wing National Communist Party (4959-4977). All periods of one party rule saw armed opposition from Tribal and Ahmadi elements in society. In the 4970's many of these Ahmadi groups united in the Eastern Alliance, eventually overthrowing the National Communists after seizing the capital Oda in 4976. This was followed by a further period of civil war that lasted through the the 4980's. This period is often referred to as the anarchy. It saw economic collapse, continued bouts of civil war and the large scale emigration of many of the remaining Luthorian and Dundorfian speakers. Urbanisation went into reverse as many Solentians opted to live in the countryside. However this turmoil allowed Ahmadi religious figures to gain greater respect within the population, converting many back to the old religion. Additionally the reverse urbanisation and emigration of Luthorian elites saw Majatran re-emerge as the most commonly spoken language in Solentia.
Majatran Democracy and Little Anarchy 5005 - 5078[]
The 51st century saw the first period of stability in Solentia since before the start of the Anarchy. The Coalition for the Future was the first truly democratic party to govern since the late 49th century. Led by Majatran Ahmadi leaders, it aimed to unite all Solentians under a tolerant and progressive democratic banner. However, although democratic, it was led by Husam Al-Adili for 73 years in what was effectively a one party state. During his time Solentia experienced immigration for the first time in hundreds of years as the economy was steadily rebuilt. Immigrants from Malivia and Indrala came in large numbers eventually numbering several million.
Little Anarchy, General Tauqi, Abadi Insurgency and Kafuristan Intervention and the Establishment of the Emirate 5078 - Present Day[]
After the collapse of the Coalition for the Future a second shorter period of anarchy returned to Solentia until General Tauqi gained controlled of the capital in 5109. After the progressive politics of the Coalition of the Future, General Tauqi moved the country in a conservative direction, introducing Ahmadi religious law and decentralizing power to the tribes in order to reduce violence across the country. However as the 5110's developed Abadi tribes in northern Solentia began an armed insurrection against General Tauqi, supported by Kafuristan.
This eventually led to the Kafuri Intervention in northern Solentia in 5126, with Kafuri soldiers rolling across the border to support Abadi insurgents. General Tauqi was killed in 5127. With the collapse of the central state under the Kafuri onslaught, the United Ahmadi Salvation Front (UASF) was formed by hardline Ahmadists to restore central authority, seizing the capital Oda in 5137 and eventually agreeing a peace deal with Kafuristan and the Abadi tribes in 5138. While Solentia remained highly conservative, economic reforms were introduced to revitalise the Solentian economy and to encourage investment and manufacturing as Solentia became a source of cheap deregulated labour.
The UASF continued to govern, introducing an elected Emir in 5142. Solentia became significantly more stable and eventually the Emirate became hereditary in 5198, restoring the first hereditary Ahmadi Head of State to Solentia since the collapse of the Empire of Quanzar in 1934.