Tikal (Ajax)

Free State of Tikal Ti Ak'bal
Flag
Motto: "All Achieving"
Anthem: I Vow To Thee
Location of Tikal in the Western Thalassian Ocean Location of Tikal in the Western Thalassian Ocean
Capital and largest city	Tikal City
Official languages	Arthuristan Anglic
Recognised regional languages	Mutli, Ibernian, Rezese
Ethnic groups (2013)	49% Hiberian ancestry 48% Oxidentalese ancestry 1% other
Religion	= 18.8% Church of Arthurista 15% Fabrian Catholic 51.2% White Path 15% Irreligious or other
Demonym(s)	Tikalese
Government	Parliamentary republic
• Governor-General	David Beverley
• Prime Minister of Tikal	None
Legislature	Parliament of Tikal
• Upper house	Senate of Tikal
• Lower house	House of Representatives
Establishment
• Conquest from Ayeli	TBD
• Independence	1957
Area
•	440 km2 (170 sq mi)
Population
• 2017 estimate	250,000
• 2012 census	248,660
• Density	636/km2 (1,647.2/sq mi)
GDP (PPP)	2017 estimate
• Total	8 billions USD
• Per capita	$32,000
Currency	£ (LST)
Date format	dd/mm/yyyy (AD)
Driving side	left

The Free State of Tikal is an island country located in the Norumbian region of the Western Thalassian Sea. Its location is roughly equidistant between Mutul, Belfras, and Kustakuna. It is roughly 439km2 in size and 250,000 in population. Hilly/misty in the interior, but densely populated along the coasts. Its economy once depended on sugar cane and coffee plantations but now is almost entirely geared towards tourism. In more secretive and sinister circles around the First World's financial centres, it also has a reputation for being a major tax haven for the rich and unscrupulous.

Archaeological records suggest that successive colonisation waves had been arriving in Tikal since ancient times, only to leave or to die out, almost certainly because of disease. 'Discovered' in the early-18th century by an Arthuristan merchant ship, it was swiftly developed into a plantation colony after the small native population 'disappeared' in due course. At first, indentured labour from Hibernia, Arthurista's Celtic dominion, was imported. Labour remained short, and slaves were imported from Ayeli. Even after slavery was abolished in the early-19th century, Mutulese labourers were imported en masse as they were cheap and relatively adapted to tropical conditions.

Tikal became an independent state in 1957 following a referendum, although the Lord Protector of Arthurista remains the ceremonial head of state, represented locally by a Governor-General. On 31 June 2017, the left-wing Tikal Workers' Party, under the leadership of, Edward Smoking Frog, a middle class Mayan but one who could appeal to the underclass, was elected Premier. He was elected on a platform of ethnic reconciliation, of the nation's classes and cultures uniting to build a better future. He also adopted a 'near-abroad' diplomatic re-orientation, reaching out and strenghtheing political and economic ties with nearby Norumbrian and Oxidentalean nations. He was killed, along with most of his cabinet and half of the parliament, in a terrorist attack on December 2nd, 2017, starting a period of instability for the island known as the "Tikal Crisis."

Etymology

The name Tikal may be derived from ti ak'al in the Xumanec Language; meaning "at the waterhole". The name was apparently used in various sailors slang of the region to design the island, as it's central position, protected harbors, and natural sources of clean water made it an important stop for all fleet in the region.

History

After the Arthuristans recruited remnants of the old Rezese guilds' war fleets to strengthen their own navy, a movement appeared among the elites to use this influx of veterans sailors and military experts to expand their dominion over new territories.

At the time, the Latin Empire was profiting massively from their possessions in Norumbia and it was decided that Arthurista was in a perfect position to enjoy a share of these profits. The Imperial State of Ayeli had been described many time as the so-called "Sick Man of Oxidentale" and would be an easy target for expansion.

The following Ayelo-Arthuristan War of 1720 ended with a clear defeat of the Imperial State, who were then forced to abandon Tikal to the Commonwealth and the island was then swiftly transformed into a protected harbor for Arthuristan merchants, but also into a collective plantation of sorts for the culture of various cash crops, such as tobacco, cane sugar, and coffee.

The Arthuristan dominion proved to be brutal. Natives from the islands soon died by the hundreds, and were replaced by Hiberian indentured servants. But these new waves of workers proved to be not docile enough, and while they continued to be used in urban centers and ports, plantations were soon filled with Wutagawi slaves from Ayeli. Death rate among the slaves was extremely high and a permanent influx of slaves was required from Ayeli.

However, Ayeli's supply of slave was finite and soon it became harder and harder to find willing or unwilling workers for the plantations. Slavery was finally abolished in the early 19th century. In the wake of the Sajalob War, the colonial government of the island allowed and even favored for an influx of Xumanec workers, who quickly replaced the last communities of Ayelians left in Tikal.

Despite obtaining independence in 1957, Tikal remains to this day a member of the Shield with a Governor-General serving as Head of State and representative of the Lord Protector's authority.