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In Esquarium, the Volatile Century, also known as the Century of Miseries (French: le Siècle des Misères) in Ainin, was a time period characterised by frequent armed conflict, political instability and reduction of international trade on a global scale. As its name implied, the Volatile Century persisted for roughly a century, with its start date traditionally marked by unification of Luziyca under Huswa Varanken in 1860, and its end date either the end of the Great Republican Uprising in 1969, the resolution of the Daeconese Civil War in 1970 or the Fjølden War in 1974.

The Volatile Century saw the formation of multiple nation states and democracies across the globe, many of which founding on the principles of popular sovereignty and nationalism. Subsequent reorganisation of governing systems, reduction of international trade due to rising tension, as well as armed conflicts between countries major and minor alike significantly upset the existing power of balance in many regions, ultimately resulting in the outbreak of lengthy and costly wars between the major powers of the time. However, the increase in government efficiency as well as surge in demand for advantages over rivalling powers also lead to the application of many modern technologies invented during this period, including aircraft, machine guns, tanks, radar, nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles.

Being one of, if not the most turbulent and deadly periods in the history of Esquarium, the Volatile Century has led to a tremendous and lasting legacy over Esquarium that lasts until this day. The threat of global thermonuclear war during the latter half of the Volatile Century, hypothesised by many as the end of civilisation, has lead to the formation of the Organisation of Esquarian Nations, an organisation that is dedicated to world peace. At the same time, the break down of existing spheres of influence of major powers also heralded the formation of new geopolitical factions and alliances, starting the Esquarian Cold War that lasts to this day.

Background

Multiple causes of the Volatile Century have been proposed since before its onset in the 1860s, each with varying degree of support among historians.

Nationalism

The most common cause attributed to the Volatile Century is the rise of nationalism and republicanism. Seeking either the formation of a nation state uniting population identifying with a common heritage, or uniting population of the state through a common heritage, the emphasis on nationhood as well as civic participation was commonly deemed the antithesis of monarchies, particularly absolute monarchies ruled by nobility without input from the general population, who, due to the nature of absolute monarchies, had no politcal respresentation whatsoever. As discontent with the monarchical systems in the region grew, more and more existing polities were either overthrown in favour of a government based on nationalist and republican ideals, or had to reform to counteract the increasing influence of these ideas.

Apart from conflicts sparked by this ideological impasse, triumphs of nationalism also resulted in political fever against other nations that were deemed historical or ideological enemies by many new-found nation states, and vice versa. Combined with reorganisation of governing systems into several political systems that lead to the centralisation of state power to the national government, tension between many countries and their neighbours soon resulted in armed conflicts and open wars, occasionally spilling over to neighbouring realms due to disruption of trade and the triggering of complex alliances and defence treaties.

The unification of Luziyca in 1863, the Independence Revolution of 1861-63, the Vjaarlandic Revolution of 1877-79, the Arkiasian Revolution of 1894-95 and the Daeconese Civil War between 1960 and 1970 were considered to be archetypal conflicts stemming from rise of nationalism and republicanism. In particular, the unification of Luziyca in 1863 was usually considered the beginning of the Volatile Century, both as its first major conflict and as catalyst of multiple future wars in Velkia. Despite the steep cost, the Great Republican Uprising in Tuthina was an example of a existing absolute monarchy successfully suppressing a sizeable nationalist and republican uprising within its territorial borders.

Industrialisation and Mercantilism

Although the industrial revolution had begun a century prior, it was not until the Volatile Century that multiple powers had undergone significant industrialisation. Sometimes dubbed the "Rise of the Machines", the advent of mechanical machines and faster production lines significantly increased production output of major powers, but at the same time leading to a drastic rise in demand for both raw material and market to support its soaring production base.

At the same time, mercantilism was adopted by many governments in face of radical change to existing economy caused by widespread industrialisation. Focusing on the use of exclusive trade within spheres of influence and trade wars against other spheres to compete for more natural resources, mercantilism was commonly cited as the root cause of many wars during the Volatile Century, as well as the major reduction in international trade during this time. This resulted in both societal and political instability due to massive and critical resource shortages, as well as decreased reliance on foreign trade in several cases, which were suggested to make wars more likely due to drop in opportunity cost.

Archetypal wars fuelled by competition for sphere of influence and trade include the First Namo-Luziycan War and the Great Northern War, both of which having a significant influence on participants for decades to come, sometimes leading to future wars.

List of Major Conflicts during the Volatile Century

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