The Saunderian Chronicles

[Kelvyquayo]

August 2nd, 1694
P.K. Barracks #192
Zama, Utica District

My loving wife Indira,

These trying times find it hard for me to write to you about all that I have seen in these last months around the districts of Utica. Ever since these uprisings began we have been under the harshest prohibitions from the general. Our letters shall begin to be censored as well. Indeed many of our forts scattered around the Carthaginian countryside have become oases of order while the rest of the country is going mad. It seems that there have been new roundups of the locals from the Government of Carthage. The merchant-king of Utica has taken it upon himself to hire mercenaries to terrorize the countryside in order to make the people too afraid to give us any aid. It seems that an actual breaking point must be reached soon my love, and I want you to know that you need not fear for my safety or the welfare of our family. The 12th Cavalry is a collection of some of the finest men that I have ever known. Many of them I know from back when I was stationed in Cohokia those many years ago. How much has changed since then, and meeting you of course has been the greatest point of my life, save for the birth of our children. I pray God keep you safe and healthy. I shall write when I can. It seems that a great offensive is in the works.

Your love,
Major Saun A. Shankaars II

 

[Kelvyquayo]

November 13th, 1699
P.K. Barracks #423
Thabraca, Carthago District

Dearest Indira,

With every man that I see killed I feel that much more farther away from you. I do not know if you are getting these letters or not through the chaos of the War. I can only write and have faith. 2 months ago I began getting many of your letters at once, which had accumulated over several weeks. It gave my emotions a great strain to hear of your sisters illness and her apparent good health, only to be followed by her most unfortunate passing away. All of this I read within letters back to back. I do pray that this war end soon that I may be back with you and this madness be put behind us. Since I had been made General, I am one of the few whose letters do not get filtered, and the courier is of the most reliable. These passed few weeks however have been rough for all.
One can not blame the disposition of the peoples of Carthage. In the last 5 years we have over run their cities and put their people under the yoke. Oh my love, if I had the heart to tell you the ill deeds that came to pass on that day that I received those rotten orders to take my men into Utica. Oh Utica, Utica of the thousand songs, Utica of legend and beauty, Oh Utica how your streets ran as red rivers of the blood of your people hopelessly shrieking as they tried to fly through the narrow streets of that tanned, sun-baked city, engulfed in the thick mist of rifle-smoke the people ran like cattle through the narrow lanes. All of the soldiers came to panic. The city rulers had told the poor ignorant inhabitants that the Saunderians were there to slaughter them; told them that Nikidolph Hewler had returned from the grave with his armies to perform the most gruesome violations upon their families. The rulers of Carthage thought that this would make their people want to fight, instead it caused the most widespread panic in known history. As we marched in ordered columns toward the city walls of Utica we saw even miles away that the city was in chaos. As we approached and were greeted only by musket fire from some random street thugs then all Hell broke free. So help me God, I managed to keep control of my horsemen when the riots began. This was not the case with many of the other horse and rifle units that were crowding withing the city walls with much confusion. In my speech to my men before we marched I did my utmost to remind them to keep prepared and remember that those in the cities are not going to view us the same as those in the country who had grown used to used to our presence and tolerant of our ways after over a decade of occupation. The people in the cities were institutionally kept isolated and ignorant of what was happening beyond their walls. By that time all of the traders had sworn an oath and were bound to the merchant-kings. Our troops stopped seeing most traders years ago, as you may remember when I could not get hold of any paper to write on for those few weeks.
The only area in the entire Empire of Carthage with any kind of law and order at all is the City of Carthage, and that is reportedly only kept in line with the most ruthless of martial law by the merchant-kings. It is outside of this city wall that has been the home of me and 80,000 men under my command. We have recently restarted our morning routine of bombarding the poor bastards with cannon fire ever since our supply lines opened again. It has been 2 years of this siege and it has no sign of letting up. There is one general who is seeking approval for building a navy and attacking the city from the Bay of Carthage to the West, but I think that this would be a mistake and during the next war council I will see that that this does not come to pass. For one, fighting Carthage's famous navy would be demoralizing to my men no matter how antiquated it may me. Further more, most of our men have never set foot on a ship, save for in their earliest years carousing in the training camps of the Atlantic, and besides this, it would postpone ending this war several more years as it would take so long to build up a southern navy. I think that I shall propose a direct offensive before the turn of the century. This would be the perfect time as my men would have ample time to rest, to celebrate the holiday, and the symbolic quality of the turning of the 17th century will make it one for the history books I must declare. Think with delight my love that your name may go down through time after I bring this ridiculous war to an end. It saddens me to no end that when I ask my soldiers in the mess why we are fighting this war, they all give different answers; no one really knows. I am afraid that I do know, and however may be the reasoning of the lofty ideals of our government, I shall serve it to the utmost of my ability. Please give all of my love to the children and our family and I wish you the most blessed Hanukkah.

Your loving husband,
General Saun A. Shankaars II

 

[Kelvyquayo]

February 4th, 1700
Saunderian HQ
Carthage City, Carthage

Madam,

It is with great sadness and great distress that I must inform you of the news of the glorious death of your husband, the Great General Saun Shankaars , Supreme Commander of Forces of Western Saunderia, and Conqueror of Carthage. Although it is of no intention of mine to fruitlessly attempt to beguile you from the grief of so tragic a loss, I feel it my duty as a friend and compatriot of General Shankaars to report to you the gallant deeds displayed by your husband in his final hours upon this earth, though be both know that this would defy Saun in his modesty of glory. I do however know that he would understand our extollment.
I am certain that you have been informed of the constant news from the front of this 5-year long siege of the capitol city of the Empire of Carthage, indeed all that was remaining of the Empire of Carthage was within those walls. The people wretchedly being kept inside by their leaders like dogs were forever at the verge of starvation. Less help did the Carthaginians receive from the sea than they expected after the rest of their territory fell so quickly. They had made few friends with their greed and their treatment of the American people. Regardless of the mood of their commoner the merchant-kings had their elite guard which numbered in the thousands. They were not courageous enough to fight a pitched battle but insisted on waiting for us to lose the will to fight and simply leave. During the final month, as you may have read from rumour, our armies that were laying siege had gotten their supplies cut off from the rest of the country. This would explain to you the other letters that you will be receiving shortly after you receive this one. It has been arranged so that you did not get those letters that were queued until you received this letter from me. I can tell you the following for the following reason; I was there, I witnessed the final battle, I witnessed the defeat of the merchant-kings of Carthage. I witnessed the speech given by your husband before we attacked the city one last time. I shall not utter a word of it here because I do not wish to report the grim words with such a heavy heart, however I will say that the speech was greatly received and with deafening applause did the men who followed attack the city. The walls were taken and we had begun to battle through the city of Carthage street by narrow street. Our men were half starved due to our supply line being cut off by rebel fighters in the countryside. We had essentially become surrounded by the enemy. The only place that our armies had to go was into the city. For months now we had pulverized their outer defensed with cannon fire. Now all it seems that we had done was to create hiding places for their sharpshooters to pick off our men in the distance. Finally after it became apparent that the food supply would shortly run out the General put together the strategy for a final charge that would end the war once and for all. As we charged the city there was an outbreak of gunfire and cannon fire. As we penetrated our way deeper into the city we met fiercer resistance. We had stopped to camp as a major bridge had been destroyed and the main route to the city center was heavily guarded and barricaded. Beyond the broken bridge was the great palace of the merchant-kings of Carthage. The land beyond was so treacherous that our cavalry units were ordered by the General to dismount and go in on foot. If you husband led these men to the ends of the Earth they would have followed. As this happened we were found out just as we were entering the palace gates. You husband and a few others had gone on ahead. There was much protest from me and the men, but the General would not be argued with. He said that he trusted no other to do it, but it is my belief that he did not want to ask any man to risk his life as much as he would do, all in the name for his country. He was the greatest patriot I have ever known, madam.
After we had infiltrated the great palace it turned out that the General had gone himself with a few men and taken the Carthaginian merchant-Kings hostage and by morning brought them to the city square himself before the citizens and he proclaimed that the kings had been storing food for themselves, and that they were now being liberated b the Saunderians. Once the people and the remaining armies saw that all hope was lost before the face of Saun Shakaars. Then through the kings to the crowd who proceed to exact justice upon them for their mistreatment.
It was minutes after this time madam that a few soldiers loyal to Carthage made their way to the city center unnoticed and shot began to ring out. An hour long battle took place before the massive market square of the city. It was during this that the Great General Saun Shankaars fell with a wound to the chest. Seconds later the crew that was firing upon his position was run down by the cavalry. I tell you lady that with his dying breath he called out your name, 'Indira' and he uttered the Om Jay Jagadish Hare in the name of his entire family before his spirit passed on.

Madam, know that the deeds and words of your husband shall go down in Saunderian history as legend. We are all very proud to have known you and I am honoured to be writing you this letter.
Until we meet madam, may great God protect you and your family,
Sincerely, Field Marshall Layak Djannistein

Saun Ankari Shankaars II Supreme Commander
of Forces of Western Saunderia, and Conqueror
of Carthage
1652 ~ 1700
Photo of coffin portrait shown with permission of the Anthonian Church of Military Honours

Funeral Procession of General Shankaars, Feb, 1700.

 

[Kelvyquayo]

New Money

By the turn of the century the Saunderians had managed to expand and exploit their foothold drastically by taking advantage of their centralized location at the crux of East and West. With their conquering of the Carthaginians they had essentially made themselves a core component on the world economic stage due mainly to the power obtained by a great number of Saunderian war veterans who after (and many even during) the Carthaginian War had setup shop to take over the trade routes, the contracts, the deals, the power, and the wealth inherited by their military conquests. Further more this was backed by family members and business partners back in what would become known at this time as Heartland Saunderia, which meant all of the original Saunderian lands up to and excluding Russia, Carthage, and American lands.

This period marked the first time that the common soldiers would rise up through the ranks and give rise to new wealth and new financial gain and enterprises of which their fathers before never could have dreamt. Those who were once commanders of their units found multitudes of opportunities and potential as West met East and new contracts were drawn. Business will find a way and the people who remained in Carthaginian lands were not idle for long.

The Apostolic Palace for the first time found itself in an uphill struggle against this new economic force that was rising from the ashes of Carthage. Most of the ex-soldiers had all of their families back in Heartland Saunderia and the Palace found the common populace here more and more difficult to manipulate. The old corruption of the Palace had sewn the seed for its downfall as those who were in the highest reaches of the Saunderian government had actually carefully orchestrated the Carthaginian Wars simply for the economic gain and to line their own pockets. All of this was at the expense of influence of the Palace as the government in Saunderia would become increasingly able to distance itself from the Palace in the name of reform and equality. Much of this would come in the form of of public works and infrastructure; all financed from the business entities created from the settling dust of Carthage.

 

[nokmirt]

How to you zoom in so close for your screenshots saw how to do it someplace but did not keep it to memory. Thanks for your help

 

[nokmirt]

This is a well put together visual masterpiece. I have not read but briefly but I intend to. Good Work

 

[Kelvyquayo]

Thank you. and I hope that you found an answer to your question. If not you have to Enable Flying Camera in your INI file in your CIV folder. Then hit Ctrl-Alt-F in game.

AND as ya'll will see I'm kinda ginna fly through this next bit.. because I do want to get on with it

 

[Kelvyquayo]

1705 - Isabella, Christian Ruler of the Spanish Empire abolishes all slavery within her borders and adopts universal suffrage of all Spanish citizens; leads to calls of reform across the continent.

1710 - Saunderian Wars with Zulu continue. Many atrocities reported against Zulu people at this time. Zara Yaqob, Ruler of Ethiopia declares an international outcry against the Saunderians and the East.


1715 - As Zara Yaqob unveils the Statue of Liberty in the Ethiopian capital of Aksum, Celtic nationals are found attempting to plant explosives inside of the monument. Several hidden gunman in the crowd then open fire on the onlookers sparking a massive international incident. All prisoners found are executed. Great anti-Celtic sentiment runs rampant across Ethiopia. Ethiopia sends troops across the border in the name of national defense. They claim that the Celts are harboring the terrorists and the Celtic Nation declares war on Ethiopia.

 

[Kelvyquayo]

The Roaring Twenties!

By the dawn of the 1720s only one final stronghold remained of the wild North American tribes of the Atlantic, Los Angeles. When it finally fell to the superior Saunderian rifles in the winter of that year the backbone of North American resistance was broken once and for all. North American prisoners were all dispersed throughout all of the colonies of the Northern Atlantic that have so recently been subjugated in the recent decades. As little time passed and the Atlantic jungle plantations grew the power of their veteran overlords grew to immense proportions. It soon became obvious to the Apostolic Palace that it was reaching it's 13th hour as new provinces of wealth and prestige were formed between the ages veterans of the previous wars the same as many of their fore bearers did before them, only this time the military elites as well as the general populace who put their weight behind them recognized that the Palace could not longer withstand so complete of a breakdown of control and so utter of a loss of face and respect in the eye of the common people. It is only the result of a culture who's people were so oppressed by the military and yet freed by it so that they may take up arms themselves in order to commit themselves truly to their country and their leaders that a people who, even though they still looked to their religious leaders for guidance, no longer accepted the religious affairs meddling with political affairs. At this time, even as American slaves were being transported by the thousands in sailing vessels throughout the Atlantic, liberal activists were standing up for political freedom of the masses. These sentiments were, however, still directed toward the Palace in Anthonia who had no real power anyway. They were still yet blinded by their patriotism and loyalties to their war-hero governors to notice the missing donation money here and the broken oath there. Just as the flower must wither the general peace of the Saunderian localities would soon be disrupted by crime and scandal.



It began after the wars the the Americans and the Carthaginians had finally would down and the bringing to order of those conquered people was well under way that many of these veterans would decide not to stay and colonize and rebuild but many did prefer to return to their home locality, wherever that may be. As these soldiers returned to their old hometowns an immediate coldness developed between various factions of these locals. The separation of these gangs was usually across racial and religious lines. This should be attributed more to ingrained cultural elements rather and any specific religious or ethnic agenda. The wars had gone on for generations and many of these areas were simply overwhelmed by the influxes of returning veterans. It is perhaps due to the respect that Saunderian people in held toward the veterans and even the respect that the veterans held towards each other that violence was at a minimum in the beginning. Those veterans who were directly under the prime minister (who was probably illegally put there by the veterans) together held the most power. The face that they showed to the common people was one of generosity but if anyone overstepped their bounds and threatened the wealth that they held in anyway they were often brutal and merciless.

The local ethnic factions that sprang up all over Saunderia began calling themselves Ortas after the traditional Janissary title and forming factions amongst the local wealthy families and essentially most of Saunderia split into semi-autonomous districts which were each ruled by independent councils that were headed by locally elected spokesman. Each of these would then travel to Saunderia City in order to vote, discuss laws, though at this time no official functioning Federal government was in place beyond this council and the puppet prime-minister who was always a local of the Saunderian capital and bought by the veterans from that region. The danger of this state of affairs in the terms of national unity (or lack there of) was indeed apparent to all of the head officials of the time. The problem lie in the fact that most of those officials were being made rich off of the spoils of the new Atlantic and Carthaginian industries that they really had no desire to be bothered the the real affairs of the people who they were supposed to be representing, while those who were living under their local Ortas blindly cheered on their idle representatives never realizing all of the potential wealth and comfort that they could be enjoying the like of which they could never imagine. This however was not a simply matter of the crime-bosses of these so-called Ortas withholding some luxuries on their local populace. The local populace was fed and clothed and indeed it was customary for the brewing and importing of alcoholic beverages as well as the spreading of various intoxicating substances previous unavailable to these populations. These substances were actually highly encouraged by the local authorities throughout the decade in order that the people no be made ask why 3/4 of their food supply and income goes to their Ortas and their families. Rather than ask why the people instead turned on each other. Of all of the influences from the veterans returning from foreign lands brought to every backwater and every district of Saunderia and that influence was the modern firearm.

By 1721 each major city had its own crime-boss and various underlings out in the country levels. One of the problems was that these crime-bosses were nearly official in all but name. These crime lords that ruled the various districts throughout Saunderia did not live in hideouts. On the contrary they lived in the largest and most luxurious structures in their locales. They traveled around in great caravans and litters and were looked upon by the general populous with respect and with affection. These people were loved by those who were in there own district. As long as the citizenry kept within their strict bounds they were treated very well, as far as they knew in their impoverished awareness of the disproportionate standard of living being enjoyed by their higher-class brethren. It was when these groups began to war on each other that the true bloodbaths would begin. The justice system had completely broken down as 100% of those in a position of authority were corrupt. The highest positions of power in the national government were held by the oldest of generals and veterans who never really concerned themselves with any real social programs or law making. All that they were concerned with was that the national armies were fed and that the population was pacified. They did not care how this occurred, it could be said that they gave so little thought to such matters that to say that they even had regard enough to even not care them. The bottom line was that they would hold on fast to their power while their family members, officers, and sycophants in general generated into the network of corruption that spread through the country at this time.



The utter loss of influence of the Palace was also a great blow to the social structure in the Saunderian Nation. The the show of unity and political stability was held in uneasy balance between the Palace and those Generals under the guise of Politicians and their minions. The people in general were ignorant of the immense tempest that existed between the police state and the theocracy. As far as the people were concerned it all was a well oiled machine behind the scenes and everything was just working out fine. Cultural divisions were so violently indifferent toward one another that the only true unity of the country was its network of money laundering, and gun running, and drug smuggling. Indeed there was law enforcement amongst the common people. However the power of these was restricted to such a local level that they government that they rarely were allowed to pursue law-breakers beyond such a limited radius that it was seldom worth pursuit. The far traveled and wizened professional smugglers were undaunted by these petty local sheriffs who had rarely even traveled outside of his own district. If any if the local criminal activities came under the attention of a local crime-fighter he would find himself up against a virtual army of ruffians. Homes were often peppererd with gun fire, entire families assassinated in the streets, homes detonated. Small villages would often become battlefields as criminal elements and local vigilante groups battled it out. As these activities continued the metropolitan overseers enjoyed a swelling of the militia and man power of the cities as many refugees from the countries would be forced from their lands by violence.

 

[Kelvyquayo]

Beginning of Rail System 1723

Despite the violence and social disruptions that were happening around the country the scientists and great minds were not idle. In 1723, Novgorod native, Igor Chakrabarti was sanctioned by the Saunderian government to devise a new transportation system for the country which would aid in controlling the increasing violence and criminal activities as well as aid in trade and travel. This showed that ethnic backgrounds did not limit an individual at this time as it did a short time ago; Chakrabarti being a Russian Buddhist. He had complete access to records of the Palace which had become all but defunct in its authority. It was here where he discovered the blueprints that was filed away and forgotten back in the 1680s for the first steam engine on which he improved with a team of engineers and effectively designed and began the implementation of a national rail system. Further unity was underway.

 

[Kelvyquayo]

It must also be said that while the corrupt began to turn on each other like rats and the wool was pulled from the eyes of the general public, people began to step up their own local control of their communities. Gradually conduct was reformed once again and punishments were dished out in the name of justice. As those people who rose up demonstrated the proper form of ruling and the people then knew true personal freedom. It became well accepted at this time the people did indeed have certain inalienable rights as citizens of a nation. Of course it should also be recognized that not even to modern day have these ideas come to be accepted in total.

Nonetheless as the 1720s waned the more grassroots individuals and parties would come to power against the corruption of the status quo. This ushered in a new era of scientific innovations and discoveries. Where teachings under the Palace held that all motions should be explained with respect to various philosophical abstractions, the new generation of thinkers chose to describe universal motion with reference to a set of fundamental mathematical principles. They demonstrated that not only regularly observed paths, but all the future motions of any body could be deduced mathematically based on knowledge of their existing motion, their mass, and the forces acting upon them.

 

[Kelvyquayo]

1724
Excerpt from conservative propaganda of the time.

The Peoples Union of Yaqobs Republic!
News has arrived today from the former theocratic, capitalistic, and oligarchical government of Zara Yaqob of Ethiopia. As is well known throughout the civilized world that neigh on 5 years ago this opportunistic overlord had invaded the land of the Hindus, the Keltoia. While the barbarous actions of the Confucian people is surely nothing in which we would suggest raising an eyebrow about this particular action has now, undoubtedly because of gross mismanagement after all because our just and righteous influence has not arrived there in due force as of yet, now my fellow citizens a most troubling state has become of those dark folk of the West which may threaten to infect the fabric of our societies with its twisted intimations.

Shortly after this invasion their slave population which if indeed made up mostly of Hindus had begun uprisings of the most infamous proportions. Due to the inability to rule his people, Zara Yaqob has now followed the stead of his thoroughly daft neighboring queen of Spain, and free every single slave of his kingdom. Not only this has he decided but also that the general population shall come together in councils that are in for the good of their individual communities and all decided that they actually rule the entirety of their country, including the very property of their own citizens. That is correct. THE SLAVES ARE IN CONTROL OF THE WEST!

~ Daryaunderka, spokesman for the League of Virtuous Gentlemen

 

[Kelvyquayo]

1729
The Ramprakesh Trials and the Fall of the Judaic Commonwealth

Dravid Kadmiel Ramprakesh was chief treasury officer for the Saunderian government. In the summer of 1715 he traveled to Ethiopia on a diplomatic mission in order to attempt to help better regulate the trade tariffs; however as would be found out much later he was there with entirely different goals in mind. He was arrested by Ethiopian authorities and imprisoned on espionage charges but that was only the beginning. During this time the event of the terrorist attack during Zara Yaqob's unveiling of the Liberty Statue rocked the Confucian world and all other news was pushed aside. In the meantime the government of Saunderian negotiated for 4 years for the extradition of their treasury officer and finally obtained him only after a large trial that took place in Aksum where he was found guilty of stealing documents and consorting with enemies of the state. After he was handed over and was returned to Saunderian lands he was nearly freed when much to the shock of all Saunderians charges were brought against him and his entire governmental department.

At this time the government of Saunderians was still clutching onto the old ways of the police state, conservative unilateralism, and still practiced state sanctioned slavery. Taxes were still a heavy burden on society and was, as always, simply proclaimed to be "for the good will of the Palace and the Judaic people" when in truth it, like most other public money, lined the pockets of the politicians. There was, however, a glimmer of change known simply as The Reform Party. The Reform Party, founded by Haakon Nankivell, brought into focus fiscal issues such as national deficit and debt; government reform issues such as term limits, wealth distribution, and the religious donation reform; and issues on trade. A large part of the following was grounded in the belief the Reform Party was addressing vital problems largely ignored by those currently in power who merely persuaded the general public of the justness of their policies through extortion.

Haakon Nankivell, 1648-1721. Head of Reform Party and
Prime Prosecutor during the entirety of the Ramprakesh Trials.

The Reform Party, lead by Nankivell, had for years been in constant vigilance seeking for any kind of ammunition that it could use to being down the current dictatorial administration. With the white-washing of the activities of the head treasurer of the nation, Nakivell finally had all of the reason that he needed to put the ruling government under the spotlight. The reform party had not worry about violence backlashes from their opponents because since the downfall of the palace all had the same sized arsenals and nobody had the stomach for a civil war. The real problem that the Reform Party had to contend with was that a large portion of the general population was still sympathetic to the very government that bled them dry. There had been so many years of nationalist propaganda permeating the culture of all Saunderians in the name of world betterment and the perpetuation of civilization that not many people questioned any longer the doings of their rulers. It was simply assumed that whatever was happening and wherever the money was going: it must be for some good that they cannot understand.

In the Spring of 1729, with Nankivell himself as acting prosecutor, Dravid Ramprakesh testified against his fellow conspirators to not only laundering nearly 90% of the finances of the entire country but in fact more than anyone could imagine. As the implications spread throughout every edifice of the Saunderian every aspect of the trial was covered by the media of the time. It was a national sensation. There was complete transparency as piece by piece the corruption of the government was lain bare before the eyes of the people. Once again people had started to build in themselves and amongst each other a notion that they could make a difference and that there was a chance that the lives of their children could perhaps be a little bit better than theirs.

The events that were uncovered by the trial of Dravid Kadmiel Ramprakesh and the events that transpired grabbed the attention of the entire civilized world. Under the false guise of the Holy Apostolic International League of Judaic Goodwill every single member of the ruling government was implicated in a pan-continental crime-scheme. All of the ruling district magistrates who were supposed to be the link between all finances that existed in flux between the federal government and the international network of Judaism merely stole every thing. What this meant was that the economies of all of the nations who were once under the Judaic Commonwealth had all been under the yoke of the Saunderian politicians and a culture of corruption that existed without precedent.
As one by one mayors, governors, politicians turned on one another shamelessly in the courts and accused each other of all demonstrations of moral turpitude that could be strewn imagined. The courts became a carnival. The people stood and watched and waited for what kind of ridiculous absurdity would next be revealed.

The recent invention of the "Imager", an early form of camera, caught much of the arrests
of those who were once the most powerful and richest men in the country.

In the wake of these findings the international ramifications were paramount. In the West it was revealed that the current war between the Celts and the Ethiopians had been orchestrated by certain members of the Saunderian government who had actually gone as far as planting Celtic agents into Ethiopia to inflict terror . Celts at this time were one of the largest diaspora in the world and merely all of the largest cities in the world had a Celtic community. The despicable criminals exploited the uneducated Hindu Celts of their own lands and looked to incite contempt in the West toward the Hindus for no other purpose than to increase the influx of poor refugees for slave labour. At this time slavery was still legal in most parts of the world. It mostly was applicable to people who had not means by which to support themselves and thus become indebted to the government who essentially enslaves them to work with no other pay than food and water. All of this while those same politicians were supposed to be using the Commonwealth's funds to help end slavery. This is not to speak of the countless other accounts of blatant robbery in the East of the fellow nations of Commonwealth. At this time it was finally agreed among all of the Judaic nations that as the sanctity of the Apostolic Palace in Anthonia, the International Commonwealth of the East was dead.

An incarcerated Dravid Kadmiel Ramprakesh shown here in widely dispersed publicity images.
The trials went on for years after the Reforms in the first international media craze.

 

[Kelvyquayo]

1730 Reforms

It was only a matter of months until the fabric of the old government was completely uprooted and the seeds of the ideas of the next generations, for good or ill were planted. The illusion that the Palace had any authority in the day to day ruling of the country as a whole was finally put to rest, although a number of common public administrative functions were given to the synagogues throughout the land and taxes were still levied through the church, but on a basis of locality; not to mention that only the Judaic churches help any sway in the religious community. While the church took what it could get from this new Reform Government the local communities of Saunderian were once again obliged to take the reigns of their own governance and chose elected representatives who would meet in the capitol of Saunderia and decide where all of the newly wrested wealth would go to. This was done openly and within view of the people. Laws that were passed were now to be posted as well as financial reports. For the next several decades the blended cultures of the Saunderian society was reaching the form of something composite. The weapons that were once used to silence people were now used to police the streets of thugs rather than dissidents. People gave less heed to the divisions in their fellow countrymen and rather began celebrating them. It was alright to be a farmer and it was alright to be a soldier. After a few years the government had successfully cataloged the land and the population. People were cataloged by value and usefulness based on the work that their family did rather than how that family prayed to God or indeed whether they prayed to God or not. This is not to say that all people were necessarily free to pursue equal standards of life but rather simply that their view of their own selves as a nation among nations had undergone a paradigm shift and there were still many who were only too aware that inequalities still existed in the common belief that just there are those who are born into families to be sculptors or soldiers or even wise scholars and scientists; that there must be those who are born into servitude.

 

[Kelvyquayo]

1760s - Zulu Wars continue

1762 - Combustion Engine

1765 - Zulu fall under rule of Native Americans

1769 - Celts unveil Hindu Holy site Kashi Vishwanath

1770s - Expansion of Saunderian Political Power as the Zulu convert to Judaism in '71, Americans convert to Judaism in '73, and in '75 The Mayan Nation becomes a protectorate of Saunderia.

1780s - Spain declares war on Celts

1785 - French declare war on Byzantines. Peace talks are immediately demanded by the Saunderians which after 2 weeks are successful and pave way to many cultural exchanges with Byzantines and Saunderians.

1790 -Saunderian engineers successful flight tests.

1797 - Byzantines open Broadway.

 

[king lundmark]

That is a great stroy man! i look forward to the next part.

 

[AOS9001]

Now that's an epic tale if I've ever seen one.

 

[Kelvyquayo]

1806 - Byzantine scientists present electricity to the Saunderian heads of state. By the end of the year most of the the cities in Saunderia have public electric lighting; incidentally sparking many fires including the Great Fire of Durialia in 1808 resulting in the demonization of the technology for the next decade. Electricity in Saunderia, unlike the rest of the Judaic world, is limited to small scale uses like public lighting.

1812 - Funding of Saunderian universities leads to great advances in science, medicine and civil rights, also leading to some major changes in government policy, commonly known as the "Intellectual Revolution".
- The Saunderian government at this time outlaws all blatant state legal prejudices against any religion.
- War Ends between Celts and Ethiopians, Celts become Vassal of Ethiopia

1814 - Golden Age in Ethiopian culture as they celebrate the freedom and education of their people. Economic growth is great.

- Mayan musical style 'Pax' is the craze of the day amongst old and young alike throughout the nations of the commonwealth. Millions of phonograph recordings sold throughout the entire continent. 'Pax' combined elements of strong and heavy Mayan drums and brass rhythms but with French and Byzantine melodic influences. It is characterized by a walking bass line accented with rhythms on the upbeat.

1816 - First known motion picture film taken of volcanic eruption in Evora. Documented by Saunderian scientists in collaboration with German and French. Later films produced during this period were motion pictures containing scenes of vaudeville performers, notable persons, railway trains, scenic places, foreign views, fire and police workers, military exercises, parades, naval scenes, expositions, parades, and sporting events. A newly-invented mobile camera had made its way into the public psyche.

 

[Kelvyquayo]

The Populist Takeover

The Populist rise to power, otherwise known as the "Intellectual Revolution", though is commonly played down in the history books was in fact a real revolution. Leading up to this time the conservatives were not idle. They were simply powerless against the energy that was unleashed in the happenings of the day. Terms like "People's Uprising" and "Fall of the Elites" had become catch phrases. The reality of the situation, however, was as disturbing as the hype was unassuming.

The new ultra-liberal leaders of Saunderia now began to arrest the leaders of opposition. Dozens of Apostolic leaders and members of the Saunderian Conservative Assembly were imprisoned. These were to be followed by the arrests of leaders of parties who were not even conservative but simply a little bit less liberal then the ruling party. In 1812 all religious authority of the Judaic church was eradicated and the large scale land holding, good, and properties of all of those deemed "elites" were confiscated by the government under the notion that all of the wealth of the religious elite was improperly gained from the blood of the poor common folk and was to be redistributed to the people. This was the beginning of consolidation of power of the common people, of all religious faiths and of all walks of life.

The Decree on Property ratified the actions of the commoner who throughout Saunderia seized private property and redistributed it among themselves. The Populists viewed themselves as the voice and will of the workers and peasants who would put an end to the unfair treatment, prejudiced, and inequality that had always existed while the elites were in power. Much of this was allowed to happen by the intellectuals despite the notion of trading one folly for another. It was viewed that this state of affairs was only an inevitable economic event in the cycle of change that was initiated with the break up of the Commonwealth. The problem was, which was indeed recognized by the "intellectuals" in power and even openly debated and studied, was how to not let things go too far. In fact they had already gone too far, but there was no turning back now. The people had spoken, even if they didn't really know what they were saying..

Other decrees:

* All Saunderian banks were nationalized.
* Control of the factories was given to the Populists.
* Private bank accounts were confiscated.
* The Palace's properties (including bank accounts) were seized.
* Wages were fixed at higher rates and a shorter, eight-hour working day was introduced.
* All foreign debts were repudiated.

By this time the common people were so blinded by the fact that there were people in power who claimed to speak for them that they did not really care what it was that was said and done in their names. The rest of the Judaic world at this time took message from the fact that the majority private businesses were shut down and finances taken over by the Saunderian government and went their separate ways. The success of the Populist 'Intellectual Revolution' transformed the Saunderian government from parliamentarian to socialist in character. It would take several decades before the anti-populist pro-capitalist groups would gain momentum once again and bring things back into balance.

 

[Kelvyquayo]

The 1818 World's Fair in Iesolonon
(aka The World's Jamisionian Exposition)

As the first decades of the new century rolled on it seemed to have perpetuated a feeling hope some desire for peace and hope for unity. Tensions had even began to die down between East and West (slightly). The air was crackling with the the energy of potential as the next generations would expand intercontinental relations and ethnic biased would actually see a loosening in the wake of the social turmoils of the recent past as through the phenomenon of peace came the appreciation and fascination of all facets of the world. In recognition of this and as a show to the entire world of good faith several wealthy Saunderian families arranged an event which would unify all nations equally in awe and wonder; as well as help give birth to its next Golden Age.

Crowd on the opening day

The World's Jamisionian Exposition — also known as The Iesolonon World's Fair — was a World's Fair held on the shores of Lake Lisbon in 1818 to celebrate the 600th anniversary of Saunderia's first prime minister Jamision who's rule had sparked a golden age of culture known as the Renaissance of Reason. The fair had a profound effect on technology, the arts, architecture, and industrial optimism. In addition to commemorating the golden age of 1218, the fair also served to show the world that the East had risen from the ashes of the horrible culture of corruption that sent shock waves throughout the entire world. All nations of the Continent were invited to participate and all did including Japan and the Zulu. Millions of visitors from East and West attended, braving the elements, and the occasional pickpocket. They covered the 633 acres of Lake Lisbon Park in two to four days, some staying for a week or even more.

The first view inside the grounds was jaw-dropping. One of the major goal of the exposition was to provide to the public a blueprint for life in a modern and postmodern world. All of the main buildings were of a uniform cornice height, geometrically logical, and covered with glass windows and automatic elevators. The streets were spaced apart much wider no longer being used for carriages but for the ever improving horseless carts that were to catch on very soon. This is to say nothing of the wondrous demonstration of electricity. The small town that had been erected for the Fair was constantly alight as if the clearest of nights; only instead of being powered by starlight this illumination was powered by electricity.

Passing before the Great Pyramid as they headed north, fair goers were greeted by the enormous expanse of the Manufactures and Liberal Arts building. Manufactured goods were displayed, with price tags for comparative shopping. Goods pavilions, which contained everything from clothes to phonographs, were erected within the building by Saunderia, Germany, Spain, France, Japan, Ethiopia, Greece, and Harrapan. Furniture from the palace of the King of the Zulu was displayed, as was the manuscript of Ciaran Anthony's Inaugural address and a sword and armour set belonging to Japan's first Shogun. This was the most eclectic of exhibits, combining goods for sale with items of historical and artistic interest.

Then there was Technology Hall which was literally packed full of some of the most interesting and useless devices, gadgets, toys, weapons, and machines from across the face of the globe. The interior was generally one large room with high a massively high ceiling, crammed to the walls with exhibits. Technology not only contained exhibits such as a the automobiles that were powered by combustion engines, textile manufacturing machines, and the worlds first hand-held automatic machine-gun, but also the the expo's power plant, with 14 steam engines and 81 dynamos providing electricity for the fair.

Little did anyone suspect that these gigantic contraptions would be the doorstep to future technology

In addition to the science and arts building there were nearly 100 building contributed by 35 Saunderian districts and territories and 16 foreign countries. The exhibits were as unique and widely varied as the structures that contained them. Cordoba presented a 218 year-old tortoise, a waterfall of hot cocoa, and a giant replica of a 17th century ship made entirely of bananas; Germany boasted a the worlds first beer garden; Evora displayed pages written by the hand of Jorge Sankore along with one of his pens; and countless other exhibits of similar significance.

This was the first time in history that all known cultures of the world were represented in a just manner. Through it was mostly for novelty in th eyes of the East many other cultures still remember this event as a pinnacle of change and progress.

What this Fair came to represent was a direct challenge from the public consumer. The people who had put this Fair together were not those who were so close to those who had recently led the government take-over of the bureaucracy. These were the people who had businesses to run and products to deliver to the people. This Fair was a statement that trade cannot be stopped. The government can try as it will to put a chain over the need for people to consume goods people will still find a way to supply the demands. At the time being however, conventions like this were the only legal means to do that.