Lemovician War

Lemovician War
Animated map of the Lemovician War   Lemovician separatists   West Miersan forces   East Miersan forces
Date 21st November, 1979 - 22nd June, 1992 (13 years, 8 months, 2 weeks and 2 days) Location Lemovicia West Miersa Result Military stalemate Arciluco Agreement Lemovician control of eastern Malomiersa and the Corridor Security Zone
Belligerents
Lemovicia Supported by: East Miersa Champania TBD	West Miersa Episemialist militias Supported by: Soravia Tengaria
Commanders and leaders
Ociote Sasiambarena Nikola Lezana  † Suban Urtizverea Kintiliano Areiti	Tadeusz Wojdyla Maksymilian Trzeciak Bartosz Zborowski Marin Oldakowski
Strength
Lemovicia 130,298	West Miersa TBD
Casualties and losses
Lemovician 30,521 killed 38,696 wounded 14,696 missing and captured	West Miersan 15,359 killed 41,506 wounded 18,921 missing and captured
c. 300,000 civilians killed 2,171,631 internally displaced persons and refugees

The Lemovician War (Lemovician: Mendiluŕeko bijna, Miersan: Małomierska wojna), often known as the Little War (Lemovician: Bijna cikija, Miersan: Mała wojna) was a twelve-year long war of independence in Malomiersa (including present-day Lemovicia) and West Miersa, which lasted from 1979 until 1992.

Its origins can be traced back to the industrialisation of Malomiersa, as due to its mineral resources, and its status as part of the Soravian Empire, Miersans migrated from present-day West Miersa, which at that point in time was under Soravian rule, to Lemovicia, which would, by 1900, lead to them forming a majority in the northern regions of Lemovicia.

This was exacerbated by the decision in the Godfredson Plan to attach Malomiersa to the Miersan Sotirian Republic, over the opposition of ethnic Lemovicians who formed a plurality of the population at the time. Under West Miersan rule, the government consistently instituted a policy of Miersanisation, which forced Lemovicians to assimilate into the dominant Miersan culture. This led to tensions between the two communities, which were exacerbated by the closure of the coal and iron mines in the 1970s, leading to an upsurge in Lemovician nationalism.

With the outbreak of the Miersan War in 1979, the Lemovician Section of the Workers' International proclaimed Lemovicia's independence from West Miersa, with the support of East Miersa, thereby beginning the Lemovician War. While initially, the Lemovician Section of the Workers' International quickly took control of all of the voivodeship of Malomiersa, they began to face setbacks due to resistance from Episemialist militias and the Miersan National Army, which was only exacerbated after the Treaty of San Alessandro ended the Miersan War. Despite efforts from both sides to end the war militarily, by 1992, a stalemate had developed, forcing both sides to agree to a ceasefire in Arciluco.

Origins

The roots of the Lemovician War are believed to begin with the industrialisation of present-day Malomiersa and Lemovicia: due to the substantial coal and iron deposits present in the region, migrants, primarily from the Miersan Governorate of the Soravia Empire, which at the time, ruled over both present-day West Miersa and Lemovicia. This allowed substantial migration of Miersans to Lemovicia, ultimately forming a substantial majority in the northern regions of Malomiersa by 1900.

Following the implementation of the Godfredson Plan in 1936 which granted Miersa independence as West Miersa and East Miersa, Lemovicia was placed under the control of the Miersan Sotirian Republic, due to Lemovicia's long association with the Soravian Miersan Governate. Under West Miersan rule, the region underwent a policy of Miersanization, which had the effect of reducing the number of ethnic Lemovicians from 46% in 1936 to 34% in 1977.

In the 1970s, as coal and iron mines closed down in Malomiersa, tensions grew between Lemovicians and Miersans, as they competed for fewer and fewer jobs. This led to Lemovicians reasserting their identity against the Miersan majority, with two major organizations, Eztebe Tolaregain's Lemovician Cultural Alliance, and Nikola Lezana's Lemovician Section of the Workers' International become the two main Lemovician organizations. While the former primarily focused on a cultural revival, the latter sought a political solution to the plight of the Lemovician nation.

Prelude

From 1977 onward, terrorist attacks became a common feature of life in the region, with the first major one taking place in September of that year, when a bomb planted at a West Miersan government office in Sechia injured two people. While this was a lone wolf attack, in 1978, the Aranoak was founded, with the express purpose of launching a campaign of terrorism to "cripple northern rule [over Lemovicia]."

Between October 1978 and November 1979, Aranoak committed six terrorist attacks, killing 19 people and injuring 55 people. In response, the West Miersan government engaged in extensive crackdowns against Lemovicians, which led to growing opposition to West Miersan rule.

However, shortly after East Miersa invaded West Miersa, thus starting the Miersan War, the Lemovician Section of the Workers' International, led by Ociote Sasiambarena and Nikolas Lezana took it upon themselves to seize control of government buildings in Mistózburó (present-day Topagunea) and proclaimed their independence from West Miersa on 21 November, 1979.

Events

Early phases

Battle of Sechia, 1981

Upon their proclamation of independence from West Miersa, the nascent Lemovician state became aligned with East Miersa, with the Lemovician Section of the Workers' International establishing a paramilitary force that would form the nucleus of the modern-day Revolutionary Defence Forces.

This proclamation of independence from West Miersa meant that the Lemovician separatists were able to cooperate with the invading East Miersans, but also reduce the likelihood that the region would be a centre of partisan activity against the East Miersan People's Protection Forces. While initially, the Lemovician separatists only had control over Lemovician-majority areas of Malomiersa, their quick advance, aided by the East Miersan forces, meant that by the end of the year, the Lemovician separatists were able to seize control of the entirety of the voivodeship of Malomiersa.

At this time, Miersan militias began to rise, particularly in the northern regions of the Malomiersan voivodeship, which had a significant Miersan population, which proved to be a problem to the People's Protection Forces. Despite these challenges, the Lemovician separatists were able to institute a constitution at the Second Party Congress in 1980, which established Lemovicia as a socialist state, basing themselves off of the Kirenian and East Miersan models, although they took some influences from the Amathian Equalist Republic and the Socialist Republic of Champania.

Throughout 1980 and into 1981, resistance against Lemovician separatist control over Malomiersa was largely done by local Episemialist militias in the northern regions, which with the help of East Miersan forces, were able to be repulsed. However, in July 1981, the first battle of Sechia took place, which saw the Miersan-majority neighbourhoods of the city be freed by local militias, and return to West Miersan rule.

Despite this setback, the Lemovician Section of the Workers' International was able to maintain control over most of the voivodeship of Malomiersa well into 1982. However, with the signing of the Treaty of San Alessandro in 1982, which ended the Miersan War between West Miersa and East Miersa, East Miersan forces withdrew from Lemovicia, leading to the Revolutionary Defence Forces largely fighting on their own.

West Miersan attacks

Mostar after the Battle of Mostar, 1983

Following the end of the Miersan War in 1982, while the West Miersan Miersan National Army was battered by the war, it was now able to focus on fighting the Lemovician separatists, which due to their small size compared to the West Miersan military, combined with the size of the Episemialist militias, was seen as easy to defeat.

Thus, on 7 January, 1983, the Episemialist militias and the West Miersan military launched an offensive against the northwestern regions of Malomiersa, with the intention of securing West Miersan control over the powiat of Czarnoziem. This surprise offensive was a success, particularly as many Miersans, who chafed under Lemovician rule, rebelled against the Lemovician separatists, and by the end of January, Czarnoziem had fallen to West Miersan forces. However, the Revolutionary Defence Forces were able to secure the perimeter around the northwestern front line, which held the Miersans back.

As supplies from East Miersa became less reliable, it became urgent that a supply line be restored: thus, while Nikolas Lezana sought to have a "quick offensive to the nrothwest" to repel the West Miersans, Ociote Sasiambarena insisted on an attack to take the Południowy corridor in order to have a supply line from Checkpoint Gamma to the rest of Lemovician-controlled territory without having to rely on supply lines via Champania.

Thus, in May 1983, the Lemovician separatists abandoned the northwest in favour of an offense to take control of the Południowy corridor, as well as "as much of Zelaja Province as possible." While by July, the Południowy corridor was secured, including the town of Białewłosy, in Mostar, Lemovician defenders began fighting a vicious battle, lasting until October, when the city of Mostar fell to the West Miersans. In November 1983, the city of Loiola fell to West Miersan forces in the Battle of Loiola.

Encouraged by this victory, in January 1984, the West Miersans launched a strike at Mistózburó, thereby starting the first Battle of Topagunea. The battle lasted seventy-seven days, from 18 January to 4 April, during which time the West Miersans were able to secure some of the outlying northern neighbourhoods, but were unable to secure full control of the city centre, where the Lemovician government buildings were situated. The first Battle of Topagunea thus ended in a military stalemate between both forces, which spread across the front-line.

Stalemate and renewed offensive

Bailara after the Battle of Bailara, 1986

Throughout the rest of 1984, a stalemate hindered the ability of the Miersan National Army and associated episemialist militias from advancing further into separatist-controlled territory, while the Lemovician separatists were unable to advance into the northwest beyond sporadic hit-and-run attacks committed by the Aranoak.

However, as Soravia recovered from the Sostava War, it became more able to provide assistance to the West Miersans, which helped increase West Miersan confidence that they may be able to "end the rebellion in Malomiersa by the end of the decade." By December 1984, this led to the beginning of an aerial bombing campaign against separatist-controlled territory to cripple the Lemovician separatists.

While the bombings damaged infrastructure, it failed to weaken the Lemovician forces: thus, on 7 July, 1985, the Battle of Bailara began, with a surprise West Miersan attack on Bailara. While parts of the city were initially overrun, to the point that a pocket emerged within the city as the West Miersan forces encircled them, over several months, the West Miersans were gradually pushed back, until by December 1985, the West Miersans were forced to abandon the battle.

During the Battle of Bailara, the second Battle of Topagunea took place, which saw much of the southern neighbourhoods in the city of Topagunea be overrun by West Miersan forces, although Lemovician forces managed to maintain a control of a narrow corridor which allowed for supply lines to be maintained, helping prevent the city from falling to West Miersan forces.

The West Miersans, emboldened by their success in Topagunea, despite not being able to secure control of Bailara, went on the Zieljeznica offensive in May 1986, which saw West Miersan forces advance southward via the Zieljeznica River, with the intention of cutting off Ibaiak from the rest of separatist-controlled territory. At the Battle of Erdikozubija on 7 June, 1986, Nikolas Lezana was killed in the fighting, making Ociote Sasiambarena the acting First Secretary of the Lemovician Section of the Workers' International for the duration of the war. However, despite the death of Lezana, the Battle of Erdikozubija managed to halt the West Miersan advance down the Zieljeznica River, as a salient was created south of the town of Erdikozubija which made it difficult for West Miersans to resupply their forces in the area.

At the same time, West Miersan forces began making inroads into Ibaiak Province, with the first Battle of Hoikoćija in September 1986 ending with a pyrrhic victory for the separatists, as they were able to defend the city, and force a stalemate between West Miersan and separatist forces.

Fall of Sechia and Operation Zemsta

Hoikoćija after falling to West Miersan forces, 1988

With the end of the Miersan National Party's rule over West Miersa in October 1986, there was hope by many that a peaceful solution to the Lemovician War could be achieved. However, newly-elected President of West Miersa Maksymilian Trzeciak refused to entertain the notions, saying that "we will ensure that the East Miersans stick to the Treaty of San Alessandro, and withdraw all their forces [from Malomiersa]." Thus, for the rest of 1986 and well into 1987, apart from several skirmishes, particularly in Topagunea, a stalemate prevented the advancement of either the separatist forces or the Miersan National Army.

At the same time, the situation in the Lemovician enclaves in Sechia became more untenable, particularly as supplies between separatist-controlled neighbourhoods and the rest of separatist-controlled territory became harder to come by. Thus, on 4 May, 1987, the second Battle of Sechia began when West Miersan forces cut off all supply routes into the Lemovician-controlled neighbourhoods with the intention of besieging the city. Over the next several months, despite fierce resistance from the defenders in the eastern neighbourhoods, the blockade led to the weakening of Lemovician forces in Sechia, until by 10 November, the Lemovician defenders surrendered Sechia, thereby losing all control over the city.

Emboldened with this success, in February 1988, the Miersan National Army launched a full-on assault on Ibaiak Province in what was deemed Operation Zemsta. Despite several challenges, the Lemovician forces faced a devastating setback in March 1988 at the second Battle of Hoikoćija, which saw the Lemovician separatists be routed by the Miersan National Army, and the fall of Hoikoćija to the West Miersan forces. By July 1988, the West Miersans had taken control of the western Malomiersan border with Champania. By September 1988, after the Battle of Skończone in the village of Skończone on the Harizmendi River, the entirety of Ibaiak Province had fallen under West Miersan control, with the Upper Harizmendi Valley secured.

Following the fall of Hoikoćija, the West Miersan forces attempted to launch a second offensive to cut the Południowy corridor, as well as another offensive against Topagunea. While the Miersans made initial gains in the reconquest of the Południowy corridor, at one point retaking control of most of the powiat of Środkowa, at the second battle of Heŕibeŕija in June 1988, the Lemovicians were able to repulse the West Miersan forces, causing them to retreat from the area.

At the same time, the third Battle of Topagunea took place, which initially proved to be successful for the West Miersan forces, as they managed to cut off the supply lines leading into the city, causing Topagunea to become a pocket and undergo a siege. However, by October 1988, after the Revolutionary Defence Forces managed to restore the corridor, the battle ended with a slight loss, as the corridor was wider than it had been prior to the third battle.

Final phases

Ruins of the village of Spichlerz, 1991

These two defeats of the Miersan National Army by the Revolutionary Defence Forces halted Operation Zemsta, and led to a stalemate between the two sides. While the Lemovician separatists lost control of Ibaiak Province, resistance remained strong into 1989, with Aranoak engaging in hit-and-run attacks against West Miersan forces.

However, aside from several skirmishes between the two sides, terrorist attacks by Aranoak against West Miersan targets, and a campaign of aerial bombing by the West Miersans against Lemovician targets, there was relatively little fighting throughout 1989, 1990, and early 1991, as neither side was able to advance against the other.

In May 1991, the stalemate was broken when West Miersan forces launched a surprise attack to take "full control of the Równiny powiaty." The Równiny offensive caught the Revolutionary Defence Forces off guard, with the West Miersans being able to secure control of the area by June with little opposition, thereby cutting off the main road between Topagunea and the rest of the lowland provinces. However, on 29 June, the Lemovician separatists launched an offensive to retake the road: on 7 July, the Battle of Kocija took place in Kocija, which saw Lemovician separatists retake control of the town, and forcing West Miersan forces to abandon the road.

The Lemovicians advanced further, seeking to retake the province, but were halted in September at the Battle of Spichlerz, where West Miersans were able to maintain control of the town, and crippled the ability of Lemovician forces to advance further. They retreated to a safer position, where in October, at the Battle of Osara, the Lemovicians maintained control of the village of Osara, which halted the West Miersan advance.

By the time of the conclusion of the Battle of Osara, and the resulting stalemate, war-weariness became prevalent among both the Lemovician and Miersan populations, with protests in the West Miersan cities of Sechia and Krada, and the Lemovician city of Topagunea calling on the respective governments to negotiate a ceasefire to end the war. This ultimately forced the West Miersans and Lemovicians to call a ceasefire on 25 March, 1992, in order to negotiate an end to the conflict in the Amathian city of Arciluco.

Negotiations

File:LemovFront.png

The front line, as it stood at the end of the war

Main article: Arciluco Agreement

On 1 April, 1992, President Maksymilian Trzeciak met with Ociote Sasiambarena, First Secretary of the Lemovician Section of the Workers' International, in Arciluco to negotiate an agreement to end the war. From the start, there were doubts as to whether or not any agreement could come out of the conference at Arciluco, and for the first few days, it seemed possible that the talks would collapse, as Sasiambarena was unwilling to accept autonomy under West Miersa, citing the "ethnic displacement" as a result of the conflict, while Trzeciak was unwilling to accept an independent Lemovicia.

However, as months progressed, the details were hammered out, with both sides agreeing to allow a CN-based monitoring mission to operate on the front line as it stood at the time of the preliminary ceasefire, which would help prevent either side from attacking the other and continuing the war. As well, both the Lemovician and West Miersan governments agreed to allow the other side to govern territories controlled at the time of the preliminary ceasefire until a "permanent solution is reached," with the understanding that the agreement would neither "confirm nor reject the sovereignty of Lemovicia." This meant that the agreement was only a ceasefire which would remain in effect until such time that both sides can agree on a peace treaty to end the war.

With both sides agreeing to the document, Maksymilian Trzeciak and Ociote Sasiambarena signed the Arciluco Agreement on 22 June, 1992, ending the Lemovician War.

Aftermath

Ruins of a Topagunea neighbourhood, 1994

After the signing of the Arciluco Agreement which ended the Lemovician War, the historical region of Malomiersa was permanently partitioned between the West Miersan voivodeship of Malomiersa, and the partially recognised State of Lemovicia by the front line, which became a demilitarised zone.

In West Miersan-controlled territory, the West Miersan government invested substantial sums into the reconstruction of the region, partially to encourage defections from Lemovicia to Malomiersa, particularly in North Mistózburó, but also to restore Sechia's position as the "third city" in western Miersa. By 2002, few signs of the war were present, particularly in Sechia and North Mistózburó, and by 2010, "virtually all of the war damage had been repaired" in West Miersan-controlled territory.

In contrast, Lemovician-controlled territory lagged behind that of Malomiersa, due to its lack of widespread international recognition by most other countries. This has hindered economic growth in the region, which was exacerbated by Lemovicia needing to resettle refugees in its territory, and with Lemovicia's socialist economic system, which has hindered trade with many capitalist states. While it has a fairly decent quality of life, it has lower standards of living than any of its neighbours. While as of 2006, there were still many signs of the war, in 2018, war damage was "mostly repaired," excluding certain sites which have been preserved as memorials.

Since the conclusion of Lemovician War, rampant xenophobia has existed on both sides: in West Miersa, Lemovicians routinely report discrimination by both private businesses and by governmental entities, while in Lemovicia, Miersans tend to face societal discrimination, despite efforts by the Lemovician government to crack down on xenophobia against Miersans, with anti-Miersan sentiment spiking during times of crisis, as in the aftermath of the shootdown of Lemavia Flight 1 in 2003. In addition, despite some efforts of mediation and negotiation between West Miersa and Lemovicia to agree on a "final peace," most recently in 2011, these efforts have gone nowhere.

Impact

Demographic

In 1977, the population of the voivodeship of Malomiersa was at 3,257,447 people living within its borders, of which 63% (2,052,191 people) were Miersans, while 34% (1,107,532 people) were Lemovicians.

Over the course of the Lemovician War, about two-thirds of the Malomiersan population were either internally displaced within West Miersan-controlled or separatist-controlled territory, or else fled the country to neighbouring nations, as a result of ethnic cleansing by both sides of the war. Thus, when the war ended, virtually all Miersans in Malomiersa lived under West Miersan control, while most Lemovicians lived under separatist control. To this day, Lemovicia remains divided ethnically by the front line as it stood at the end of the war in 1992.

As well, it is believed that around 380,000 people were killed over the course of the war. Of those, around 300,000 people were civilians, while 78,037 were armed combatants from both sides. In addition to the dead, 98,870 combatants on both sides were wounded over the course of the war, and 46,105 were captured, and/or missing.

Economic

Economically, the Lemovician War devastated the already-faltering Malomiersan economy, partially due to the Lemovician Section of the Workers' International implementing socialist economic policies along the Kirenian and East Miersan lines, and partially due to the fighting between Lemovicia and West Miersa within Malomiersa.

In 1979, the nominal GDP per capita of the voivodeship of Malomiersa was at $1,570.21 ($5,529.41 adjusted for inflation in 2019), but by the end of the Lemovician War in 1992, the region's nominal GDP per capita was at $319.01 ($581.31 as of 2019). As well, by the time the Lemovician War ended, virtually all of Lemovicia's economic capacity had been destroyed. Since the end of the Lemovician War, the two sides have diverged: as of 2019, the nominal GDP of the voivodeship was at $5,182, while Lemovicia's nominal GDP was at $2,105. Combined, the area would have a nominal GDP per capita of $3,934.

These economic problems, combined with the separatist's dependence on East Miersa, meant that despite Lemovicia adopting the Lemovician denar, the East Miersan grosz is far more widely used.

Terrorism

During the Lemovician War, Aranoak engaged in acts of terrorism, bombing West Miersan government offices and businesses doing business with the West Miersan government, as well as shooting West Miersan soldiers. As Samorspi support increased for West Miersa, Aranoak expanded its range to include other Samorspi states, primarily Soravia, but with sporadic attacks in other states. According to the West Miersan government, 617 people were killed in terrorist attacks by Aranoak between 1978 and 1992, with around 2,107 injured by these attacks.

Lemovicia alleges that some of the Episemialist militias who fought against Lemovicia also committed acts of terror against the Lemovician population, most notably in the early 1980s, when Saint Hyacinth's Militia engaged in bombings against Lemovician-majority settlements "to weaken Lemovician resistance [to West Miersan rule]." However, these activities are disputed, given the militias and West Miersan government argue that they were done in accordance with the laws of war.

War crimes

Ethnic cleansing

A concentration camp near Mostar, c. 1988

Ethnic cleansing was widely practiced during the Lemovician War, primarily by the Miersan National Army, who sought to expel "the traitorous górale" from their lands, but also by the Revolutionary Defence Forces, who sought to expel Miersans for their "centuries-long process of colonisation" [of Malomiersa]."

This led to a network of West Miersan concentration camps (officially known as detention camps) being opened from 1984 onward to imprison Lemovician men in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions, leading to the deaths of between 700 and 3,000 men, while women and children were merely expelled from West Miersa to "separatist-controlled territory," leaving most Lemovician-majority settlements abandoned.

Lemovician separatists, in contrast, simply expelled Miersan-majority communities en masse, and prohibited the return of the "colonisers" to their communities. Clergy in the Miersan Episemialist Church were held in prison, and were either forced to renounce their faith, or else were deported from Lemovicia.

These policies had the effect of homogenizing the West Miersan and Lemovician controlled areas of Malomiersa: in 1977, Malomiersa was described as being a "checkerboard of Miersan and Lemovician majority villages" throughout most of its territory, but by 1997, there were only small ethnic enclaves of Lemovicians in Malomiersa and Miersans in Lemovicia.

Perfidy

Perfidy was widely practiced by the Episemialist militias during the Lemovician War, with various incidents of Episemialist militias pretending to surrender to Lemovician troops before opening fire on them, most notably during the first battle of Sechia, which initially helped the Episemialist militias make significant headway in the early days of the war, but drew the ire of many civilians.

This, in turn, led Lemovician forces to have an unofficial policy of giving no quarter to members of "any paramilitary force" who surrendered to Lemovician forces, with the result that captured paramilitary members were summarily executed. However, they took quarter to captured personnel of the Miersan National Armed Forces.