Caldan Union

Caldan Union of the Resurgent Dream
Flag
Motto: Spem Reduxit
Anthem: "Caldas the Free"
Capital	Tarana
Largest	Narich
Official languages	English
Recognised regional languages	Amharic, Apatan, Arabic, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Inuktitut, Scots, Welsh, Yiddish
Demonym(s)	Caldan
Government	Federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy
• Queen	Gwendolyn
• Prime Minister	James Calvert
Legislature	Parliament
• Upper house	Senate
• Lower house	House of Representatives
Independent
• Coronation of Charles	31 January 1788
• Union	27 September 1839
Population
• 2024 estimate	411 million
• 2020 census	406 million
GDP (PPP)	estimate
• Per capita	264 772 (4 644th)
HDI	.97 very high (2 976th)
Currency	Caldan Sterling (CLS)
Time zone	UTC-3 to -8
• Summer (DST)	UTC-2 to -7
Date format	dd-mm-yyyy AD
Driving side	right
Calling code	+9
Internet TLD	.cu

The Caldan Union of the Resurgent Dream is a nation in the Western Atlantic. It consists of fourteen provinces. Ten are located in Vasconia, including the original six. These ten are known as historic or contiguous Caldas. The other four are located further south. The Gulf provinces became dominions in the 19th century and provinces in the 21st after dominion status was abolished. Two are located in Ambara and two in the Gulf of Vasconia. The capital of the Caldan Union is Tarana and its other major cities are Narich, Caer Gawen, Merotte, Marea, Fath, and St. Casimir. The northernmost regions of the Caldan Union contain sparsely populated expanses of tundra and forest while 81% of the Caldan population is concentrated in urban and suburban areas. The Caldan Union's climate varies significantly over its territory. Three Caldan provinces are arctic and sub-arctic, while two are tropical and two are comfortably in the southern hemisphere. The national capital is Tarana and the financial capital and largest city is Narich.

The earliest human inhabitants of what is now historic Caldas were the Apatan who arrived from the Sabari Steppes before 300 BCE. There is also evidence of some Germanic settlements in southern Tasat as early as 300 CE, related to the first Knootians. Camveni arrived in Tasat from Excalbia in 595 CE. Their ancestors had come from the British Isles. Their leader, Gwalchmai married Sorghaghtani, an Apatan princess and the daughter of Khabul, the local Apatan ruler. Inuit peoples first arrived in northern Caldas in the 11th century. English and Scottish settlement began in the 16th century. Around the same time, French-speaking traders and trappers from the Southern Low Countries began to establish permanent settlements along the shores of Lake Moldon in what is today Arcadia. After the Glorious Revolution in England and Scotland, most Caldans remained loyal to the Jacobite cause, leading to the Jacobite Wars in Vasconia. This led to conflict with Knootoss and to the newly emerging nation of Laneria to the south. A century later, Charles, a natural child of Charles III by Elizabeth Elwell, was the beneficiary of a deathbed legitimation which was accepted by the Parliaments of Anata and New Arundel as making him the rightful King of England and of Ireland and by the Parliament of Edina as making him the rightful King of Scotland. He was also invited to a royal title by the National Assembly of Arcadia and, by virtue of his marriage to Gwenhwyfar, Duchess of Tasat, the Prince Consort of Tasat. Lands west and north of the first Caldan provinces were brought into the Caldan orbit by the Treaty of Albalon and later incorporated as provinces. Caldas won control of Dana and Hipolis in the Caldan-Lanerian War. Finara was added through a dynastic union and Jagiella and Alekthos in the aftermath of the Third Ambaran War.

The Caldan Union is a parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy in the Westminster tradition as codified in the Constitution of the Caldan Union. The Head of State is the Queen and the Head of Government is the prime minister, who holds office by virtue of their ability to command the confidence of the elected House of Representatives. It is an ethnically diverse and multicultural nation, where pluralist values are strong. Its history, economy, and culture have been significantly influenced by its closest neighbours, Knootoss and Laneria.

The Caldan Union is a developed country with one of the largest economies in the region and a high nominal per capita income. The Caldan economy includes natural resources, extensive trade networks, as well as a strong service sector and significant manufacturing capability.

Etymology

The etymology of the name Caldas is uncertain. Some claim it was an ancient Apatan place name. Others say it is a shortened form of Caledonia, named for Scotland, or that it comes from the phrase "called us" in reference to the Jacobite cause. The Resurgent Dream originally referred to the Jacobite dream but it has since been read more broadly to refer to the dreams of all seemingly vanquished peoples who made a new destiny in the Caldan Union. The phrase features prominently in art and writings welcoming new immigrants to the country. This concept has sometimes been described as a deeply romantic element in Caldan national identity.

Early History

The first record of a human presence in what is now the Caldan Union comes from the Apatan, arriving from the Sabari Steppes sometime before 300 BCE. The early Apatan ruins at Kandalu and Ikhbalik are the oldest sites of human habitation in what is now the Caldan Union. The first Apatan were likely a few among many Sabari tribal groups. However, they consolidated into nine semi-nomadic tribes which ranged freely over most of what is now Vasconia. They had complex societal and trading networks. They were also known as fierce warriors, both among themselves and when directed at neighbouring peoples they felt had somehow insulted or cheated them. The Ogedit lived in what is now Cordelia. The Temudgit ruled Kingsland and Dara. The Kabur ruled what is now the Lanerian State of Arvana. The Kaidur were in what is now Sial and the Khulur throughout what is now Tasat and Cymsrijk in Knootoss. The Toluirr lived in what is now Arcadia. The Jebik lived in the current Lanerian State of Apatania. The northernmost tribe was the Bashinkhot in Anata and Edina. The southernmost was the Tumbinait in what is now the Lanerian State of Bellatierre.

Around 595, the first Camveni arrived from Excalbia in the lands of the Khulur. They were led by Gwalchmai and they settled at what is now Caer Gawen in Tasat. He met with Khabul, the local ruler. They forged an alliance sealed by Gwalchmai's marriage to Sorghaghtani, Khabul's oldest daughter. Gwalchmai took the title Duke of Tasat, which originally referred only to the small Camveni settlement. He served Khabul and fought alongside him against the Toluir to the north. After Khabul died, his nephew, Boroqul, claimed control. Gwalchmai looked increasingly to the Christian south for allies. His son, Rhodri married a Kartlian princess. Rhodri's relationship with Boroqul was uneasy. The Tasatians were growing their community and spreading their religion. Rhodri had two sons, Anarawd and Cystennin. Anarawd was Rhodri's eldest son but predeceased his father, being killed in one of many feuds between Rhodri and Boroqul. Rhodri rallied the Tasatian forces to destroy Boroqul. They met in open battle and broke Boroqul's forces, slaying both Boroqul himself and his son, Guyuk. However, Rhodri was also slain. Cystennin vowed revenge on those who had slain his father and brother. He is alleged to have chased two of Boroqul's young grandsons into a church where they requested sanctuary and slain them there. For this, Cystennin was vocally condemned by Bishop Cadell and priests preached against him through the kingdom. According to the histories and Bishop Cadell, Cystennin was overcome by repentance while journeying and forsook the crown to become an itinerant monk. Some speculate that he might have been murdered or simply succumbed to ceaseless political pressure. Cystennin's lawful heir was his eldest son, Brutus. However, he made his second son, Lleirwg the Lord of Caerglan, south of his capital. His third son, Padrig was made Lord of Bryngoch.

The first reference to Inuit in what is today the Caldan Union dates to 1204 in a manuscript written by the Tasatian monk Brother Arthur who gave a detailed account of the peoples of Vasconia in his Travels. Some scholars, such as Michaëlle Conille and Joanna Malliki, believe that they could not have come over from the Excalbian Isles more than a hundred years prior. However, others, such as Enrique Alcalde Uranga and Leona Tootoo claim that they are the descendants of proto-Inuit who might have been present for centuries and that there were only a few cultural borrowings from Excalbia. Ancient legends tell of both giants and dwarfs in the area, although it is unclear if those stories reference any particular ethnic group.

The Duchy of Tasat continued through the centuries, with title passing from father to son. As the centuries passed, the Lords of Caerglan and Bryngoch became increasingly distant from the ducal throne. When Corin, Duke of Tasat died in 1179, he had no sons to succeed him. He had wed his only daughter, Gwendolen to her distant cousin, Locryn, Lord of Bryngoch. Gwendolen thus inherited the dukedom but the authority belonged to Locryn. Corin's oldest surviving brother, Camber claimed to be the rightful heir. Camber was closely tied to Maddan, Lord of Caerglan. His son, Gerallt, was married to Maddan's daughter, Innogen, and his daughter, Habren, was married to Maddan's son, Membyr, Lord of Caerglan. Maddan was also worried that Bryngoch would be elevated about Caerglan. The succession crisis led to war. Locryn was victorious. Camber and Gerallt were executed and Maddan had to renew his fealty to Locryn. Membyr, however, resented his father's humiliation and Habren never forgave her father's death. Knowing they could not defeat Locryn and his heirs alone, they sought closer relations with neighbouring Chamavan. They married their own daughter, Morgên, to Rudolf IV, Duke of Chamaven. From then onwards, Caerglan was bound more and more to Chamaven and less and less to the Dukes of Tasat.