Jashnagar

Transcendent Kingdom of Jashnagar Yam'gonra Ilo'lona Mai
Flag
Motto: "Tasi B'u" "Stay the course."
Anthem: Sevar's Farewell to Sevratan
Nickname: Jewel of the Sea
Capital and	Yuram
Official languages	Lorian
Recognised national languages	Jash, Mahkeen, Pa'ea
Ethnic groups	Jash, Mahkeen, Pa'ea
Demonym(s)	Jashnagari
Government	Theocratic-Ecclesiocracy
• Bas'Kan	Rastan II
• Prime Minister	Enri Tale'va
Legislature	Clerical Council
• Upper house	House of Warriors
• Lower house	House of Fathers
Establishment
• Establishment of Kingdom of Jashnagar	1728
• End of Monarchy	June 6th, 1913
• Declaration of Modern Jashnagar	September 21st, 1945
Area
•	473,902 km2 (182,975 sq mi)
Population
• 2019 estimate	60,789,542 (11)
• Density	128/km2 (331.5/sq mi)
GDP (nominal)	2019 estimate
• Total	604.426 Billion (XX)
• Per capita	9943
Currency	Sei (JSI)
Date format	mm/dd/yyyy (CE)
Driving side	right
Calling code	+8
ISO 3166 code	JN
Internet TLD	.lv

Jashnagar, officially the Transcendent Kingdom of Jashnagar, is a country in Greater Olympus. Located in Southeast Nori, Jashnagar shares maritime borders with Sepura and Tauke Manuye. An exclusively island nation, Jashnagar is composed of thousands of islands that make up the Jashnagari Archipelago, and is located completely in the Magnostrium and Muroan oceans.

The sovereign state is a Theocratic-Ecclesiocracy ruled by current or former members of the Anomai clergy, with an elected legislature. It is notable as a nation combining religious and secular law into its framework, and on top of being an independent country, also wields Ecclesiastical jurisdiction over the Anomai faith worldwide. The Bas'kan is considered not only the formal leader of Jashnagar, but also of the Anomai church.

Jashnagar has notable natural resources in the forms of tin and oil. The nation's economy is built primarily on agriculture, where crops such as rice, coffee, tea, palm oil, spices, copra, tropical fruits, and ornamental flowers are the main exports of the economy. Jashnagar has a GDP of 604 billion and hosts the XXth largest economy in the world. Tourism plays a large part in the national economy, where historical, religious, cultural, eco, and resort tourism is growing in size.

The Jashnagari archipelago has a long history of feuding states and kingdoms, and is tied closely to the history of southeast Nori and the Oceanus Magnostrium. Jashnagari sailors mastered the art of wayfinding navigation and out-rigger construction, allowing travel of far distances and used these inventions for trade and settlement both west and eastward. In the 11th and 12th centuries, the Anomai faith had become widespread and drastically influenced political and cultural life. The later medieval period saw the expansion of larger states and foreign crusades launched against neighboring lands, with conflict arising against the newly arrived Liran powers. The archipelago was politically unified in the early 18th century by King Ilo'gnara, formerly bringing the nation under a religiously sanctioned monarchy till the late 19th century. The modern state emerged in the 1920s, ruling an instability racked country till the 1980s.

Etymology

The name Jashnagar is the Lorianized term for the Produese name Jaixnágar, given to the archipelago when Produzland became the first Liran power to discover it. The Produese name stems from combining Jash, the name of the dominant ethnic group in the archipelago and the Jash term nagar meaning "whole" or "mass". The original term was likely used locally in reference to the entirety of Jash polities, separating them from those of other local cultures.

The native name, an admixture of native languages, translates into "The Great Gate that Ilo'lo built for God" (Lit: "Great Gate of Ilo'lo God"). This name came to be applied when Jashnagar became a united country under the Ilo'lo dynasty in the 18th century. With the Bas'kan guiding the Ilo'lo kings in matters of religion and the Anomai faith becoming incorporated into law, the country was seen as divinely inspired and sanctioned.

The nation is often referred to as just Yam'gonra or "Great Gate" by native inhabitants.

History

Early History (Prehistory-9th century CE)

Map of culture group migrations into SE Nori. Ofraxan (Orange), Norese (Yellow), and Muroan (Pink).

A Mahkeen out-rigger carved at Chanaguta

Evidence suggests modern Humans first arrived in the Jashnagari archipelago 40,000 years ago as part of the first expansion of Homo Sapiens into the south-east region of Nori. The first group of the modern populations in the archipelago were the Norese, followed by the Muroans who settled on the eastern most islands. Ofraxan peoples migrated from Belshik around 500 BCE, an event recorded in Jashnagari mythological history, and settled on Samratan as the Jash ethnic group. Before the arrival of the Jash, several cultures from the previous two groups existed. Among these were the Norese Sava culture of northern Samratan, the Aukhine culture of Lambou, and pre-Pa'ea Muroans. The arrival of these migrations brought changes to the ecological landscape, as the Norese introduced rice cultivation and the Muroans brought new forms of tuber and coconuts with them.

Damic religion had spread into the archipelago, and by 300 BCE, various temples to both Damic and indigenous faiths had become prominent in power. Between this period and 140 BCE, Anomai began, likely a result of consolidation between several temple traditions, but attributed to abbot of Kauloon Temple Gana Rashin

Gana Rashin

This marked a turning point in early Jashnagari history, as for the next several centuries, Maism would continue to spread through coastal settlements across the archipelago, and by 200 CE had begun to gain considerable political power within the courts of local rulers. By this period, Maism had begun to fully compete with other Damic religious in neighboring areas outside of the archipelago, and by 600 CE had become the dominant faith inside the archipelago.

Middle Ages (9th century-14th century)

The political influence the Maist faith began to wield saw many small polities grow in size to encompass greater areas of influence, splitting much of the northern and central archipelago into rival feudal states. One notable example of such was the Yuram Maharan, whose growing trade wealth from their capital, Yuram, set it on the course of dominating the Jash polities and eventually influencing the entire archipelago. Rajan Yaragupta of the Yuram Maharan constructed Yuram Temple in the early 10th century, founding a competing center of Maist authority.

Artist depiction of a crusade in Monsia

The rivalry between Kauloon and Yuram temples would come to a head during the War of Flames, an archipelago-wide religious conflict between Anomai and other religions. This conflict represented the first time the Jashnagari polities had any semblance of coordination, as well as set a unified standard for Maist temples to operate together in matters of religious conflict. During this war, Yuram temple's abbot, the Bas'kan, would be the primary organizer and commander of Maist forces, solidifying the temples position as the ultimate authority in the faith of founding temple Kauloon. In 1366 Bas'kan Naramel I organized the religious canon of the Maist faith, linking the Jai schools of the north and Kali schools of the south together, and giving clearer credence to proselytizing monks.

Ruins of Inzali on Lambou

The War of Flames rid Jashnagar of competing faiths, and while the various rajans, princes, and kahles sought domination over their neighbors, the abbots turned their attention outward to foreign lands as outlets for spreading the faith. Maist monks began traveling to foreign soil as teachers. In addition, the new found cooperative power established in the War of Flames saw the Bas'kan of Yuram launch many crusades against outside powers to push out competing religions.

Age of Exploration (14th century-17th century)

Bas'kan Mahkzen lead the Jashnagari coalition in the Conquest of Jashnagar

By the 14th century, the northern and central islands had been brought under the control of a few strong kingdoms, particularly the Yuram Maharan and Inzali (Mahk). The Pa'ea island chains had remained fractured among various Loa, but had experienced various states of unity in the previous centuries where powerful rulers would conquer large swathes of territory. There, O'kahle had become a kind of de-facto capital where trade was conducted from places as far away as Magnostria and Taveteaux.

In 1543 Produes explorer Jorge Adão da Coutinho landed on the coast of Mitta, becoming the first Liran to set foot in Jashnagar. The following decades saw a flock of Liran explorers and merchants arriving in southeast Nori, where the Produese primarily used Yuram as a trade node, raising the wealth of the city. Meanwhile, increasing military expeditions in the Pa'ea island chains saw Produzland forcibly acquiring colonies. After the death of King Philip I and IV, Meronnia entered the colonial game in SE Nori, taking an approach of trade and concessions where they would diplomatically gain influence or control of coastal cities around the Jashnagari archipelago such as Sa'pua. These cities and others in SE Nori would form Meronnia's Pearl Necklace Cities.

The vast amounts of wealth gained from the acquisition of Jashnagari spices and teas further tempted the military-minded Produese who had already desired to conquer and convert the natives of the archipelago. By 1610, they had already subjugated the islands of Mitta and Ulelu, as well as several smaller islands in Maharaba. They had also created outposts on Namoa, O'kahle, and Lambou.

In 1614, a coalition of Pa'ea Loa and Kahle formed the Pa'ea Confederation to resist Produese colonization. After several intense military conflicts, they appealed to the Bas'kan in Yuram for aid, and he in turn called for a gathering of Maist leaders. This council had decided to resist the foreign invaders and the Conquest of Jashnagar began in proper when the Jashnagari Coalition was formed under the leadership of Bas'kan Mahkzen.

The war was the bloodiest in Jashnagari history to that point and featured many large, notable battles such as the Battle for O'kahle, Battle of Harjayana, and the failed Produese Invasion of Mae. Initially, the Produese had the upper hand, where upon increasing their military manpower and invading multiple points across the archipelago consecutively created a situation where even Yuram was at threat of conquest, however, involvement in Lira with the 20 Years War drained and sapped at the resources Produzland could sink into war with Jashnagar. Additionally, the distance between Lira and SE Nori was great and created massive logistics problems for the Produese in the face of an organized enemy. Gradually, the Jashnagari pushed their enemy back to the islands of Mitta and Ulelu, but were unable to dislodge the Produese who had reverted to primarily defensive tactics. By 1620, the conflict had dwindled and the Produese would retain possession of the islands they still occupied, creating the permanent borders of the Viceroyalty of Anacleto.

In 1644, Bas'kan Rastan I would launch a crusade against Sepura. While the Maist forces enjoyed initial success, conquering many Sepuran cities, they were defeated in the Battle of Senengka in 1647, marking the end of the last great crusade. The era of crusading ended with Rastan's death in 1653.

Early Kingdom (18th century-1844)

"Peacemaker" portrays Ilo'gnara, pencil on paper (unfinished), Dos Santos, c. 1740

The ages of the crusades and colonization left the archipelago politically fractured. Though the Sepuran crusade and the Conquest of Jashnagar saw the archipelago unified, the heavy economic and life tolls of these conflicts left many states in ruin. The former large powers such as the Yuram Maharan were split and fractured by feudal chieftains consistently fighting for resources.

King Ilo'Kaili by Francois Duere

In 1710, the young Loa  Ilo'gnara of Ilo'lo on Namoa began military subjugation of his neighboring chieftains, becoming Kahle of Namoa in 1715. His ambitions did not stop at just his native island, and he began campaigns against nearby Pa'ea chiefdom, culminating in the conquest of O'kahle in 1721. Having united the eastern Pa'ea islands, Ilo'gnara then sent envoys to threaten the western Pa'ea islands, where his threats were rebuked. Instead of risking a fleet campaign against the western islands, Ilo'gnara turned his attention to the nearby Mahkeen islands where he began conquests in early 1722. By 1724 he had conquered most of Lambou and many remaining Mahkeen rulers joined his fledgling kingdom. His expansion and ownership of nearly half of Jashnagar turned the attention of the northern polities against him, where they formed a coalition to resist his invasion of Samratan.

Ilo'gnara's military success came as a result of effectively mixing gunpowder troops with phalanx-style spear armies, which performed outstandingly well against his less-cohesive Pa'ea opponents and the Mahkeen princedoms. The coalition formed against him eventually halted his expanse in central Samratan, and by 1726 his campaign had ground to a halt. Growing older, Ilo'gnara had tempered over the years, and instead of military might turned to diplomacy to achieve his goals. He successfully and shrewdly convinced many of his enemies to turn to his side, playing on memories of de-facto unification to squash cultural rivalries. In late 1727, the western Pa'ea islands willingly joined his kingdom, and finally in 1728 the gates of Yuram were bloodlessly opened to his army. In return, Ilo'gnara affirmed the Bas'kan's position as head of the Anomai faith and was crowned king of Jashnagar, founding the Kingdom of Jashnagar. Ilo'gnara abdicated as king in 1737 in favor of his son, Ilo'Kaili, setting a tradition of abdication among the Jashnagari monarchs. During his reign, he officially abolished slavery and serfdom, as well as used his military to defend against piracy and banditry, creating an early form of police.

Banishment of rebel Pouk Jaya by Anecletan officials in Maharaba

With the country unified, several successive monarchs ruled Jashnagar and made their impact on the country. The Produese Viceroyalty of Anacleto provided a particular nuisance to Jashnagar, as it occupied two main Pa'ea islands and several smaller ones through the island chains. Foreign policy began to shift in response to this, seeking contact and alliances that could allow Jashnagar to oust the Produese.

In 1796 King Muro died and appointed his son-in-law, Rashin Ranaman as his heir, ending the Ilo Dynasty and establishing the Ranaman kings. Rashin's son, Sevar I increased contact with Liran powers, particularly that of Meronnia, sending diplomats to the court of Augustin Calvert in hopes that alignment with the Merons would possibly allow Jashnagar to reclaim Anacleto. Many Jashnagari from around the Pearl Necklace Cities even fought in Calvert's army during the Great Continental Wars, but Sevar was never able to turn the tumultuous political landscape in a direction that would allow them to oust the Produese.

Late Kingdom (1844-1913)

With the death of Sevar I and the ascension of King Tavu II, the Jashnagari monarchy began a trend of modernization that would last throughout the remaining years of the kingdom. Tavu began wearing Liran dress and sought to make Jashnagar recognized by foreign powers in strength and prestige. In 1866, Tavu abdicated to his younger brother, King Aren who built a new royal palace in Yuram for the royal family.

Ranaman Palace built by King Aren

Aren's short reign lasted only three years and ended with his untimely death by accident. His eldest daughter and heir, Imae became the second ruling queen in Jashnagari history. Unfortunately for her, the Ranaman dynasty had begun to experience high degrees of factionalism within the royal court, and machinations between various members towards the throne had already begun under the reign of her father. The strongest of these was from her younger brother, Naram, who had managed to gain the support of several Liran business men who had come in a recent wave of renewed interest in Jashnagar's economic value. So it was that within the same year of her ascension, 1869, she was forced to abdicate in favor of her brother when the palace was stormed by an armed guard.

Sevar II, last king of Jashnagar

Naram began the strongest bout of modernization of the nation, which had been a major selling point for support in overthrowing his sister. He greatly looked toward the east for influence in reforming his nation's society, and in particular, he sought to fully modernize the Jashnagari education system. To this end, he founded Naram University and built early forms of primary schools across the archipelago. He also invited and encouraged foreigners to immigrate and create business in the largest influx of such in the nations history, even handing out land freely to anyone with technical knowledge. Naram married a Liran queen to further tie his country to the east. He was a major proponent of secularism, inspired by Meronnian, Wintonian, and Carelian philosophy which earned him the ire of the Maist establishment. In 1884, King Naram was assassinated.

Naram's only child, Sevar II became king after him. Sevar continued his father's reform program and saw Jashnagar's potential reach that of the eastern nations. Unlike previous Jashnagari monarchs, Sevar did not lean towards Meronnia, but instead aligned himself with Produzland, often visitng the Viceroyalty of Anacleto to study the latest eastern inventions and ideas. Taking a grand tour from 1905 till 1907, Sevar was by far the most renown Jashnagari monarch to the outside world. His pale complexion and eastern dress made him less alien to Liran audiences, and his refined dignity brought the existence of his kingdom to the minds of the masses in far off nations. In Jashnagar, his fatherly approach to government made him a beloved ruler and inspired great support for his reign, though his personal life was unhappy and fraught with misery. In 1913, a group of military generals repeated the events of 1869 and stormed the palace in Yuram, overthrowing the government. Sevar had instructed his guardsmen to not fire upon his assailants and so the coup was bloodless.

Olympic War (1913-1922)

Ferdinand Juteau in his uniform, c. 1916

The coup clique, known as the Shan Government, moved quickly to establish control over the country. Through intimidation and military force, they tenuously held onto the capital and the surrounding area. Meanwhile, supporters of the monarchy began to gather around the country. One such supporter, the Carelian Ferdinand Juteau, began forming his own militia in response to the military crackdowns. Juteau had immigrated to Jashnagar in the 1890s to start his own plantation. His crop of choice was pineapple followed by copra and coffee, where he made initially only mild success shipping to west Nori and Mu-kal. Something of an adventurer, Juteau explored the Jashnagari archipelago in the first years of his residency and came to appreciate it deeply. Converting to Maism, Juteau was a minor advisor to the king's government. The militia Juteau created was initially staffed by fellow foreign plantation owners and business men Juteau had contact with, many of them converts to Maism and supporters of the king. Quickly, this militia grew to include many of the foreign advisors in the government of King Sevar, and soon began to attract not just resident foreigners, but adventurers and guns for hire as well, forming the beginning of the Jashnagari Foreign Legion.

Immediately the Shan junta moved against Juteau, and a war between the two factions erupted. At first fighting was restricted to central and northern Samratan as royalist forces moved to push towards Yuram, but a pincer movement by Shan forces from the south forced the royalists to consider the conflict an nation-spanning one. In summer 1913, a detachment of the JFL landed in Lanu harbor on O'kahle and raised the royal flag without opposition, much to the cheering of the locals. Likewise similar actions took place on Namoa, Mae, and the Bajabar isles. These quick events marked the beginning of the end of the Shan, as by late 1915 royalist ranks had been strengthened vastly by native recruits and the only remaining areas in Shan control were those were their own forces could keep martial law. In spring 1916, Juteau's victorious army marched into Yuram with the JFL in the lead. The remaining Shan leaders either fled or committed suicide, and the conflict was seemingly over.

JFL Engineering party crossing the Puaga river, 1917

Juteau immediately set about restoring order. His first action was to invite King Sevar to return to the throne, but the king declined and passed away not long after. This left Juteau in a strange position, as not only did Sevar not return to the throne, but he also renounced his relatives rights to the throne as well, leaving the monarchy with no legitimate heir. To maintain order, Juteau remained in his key position as temporary ruler and appointed his four closest compatriots into key leadership positions. Juteau and his junta became known as the Yuram Five, as they directed from the capital of Yuram.

During the conflict with the Shan government, Juteau had organized and equipped a modern army, spending considerable resources and time training not only the JFL but also the native Jashnagari troops he had amassed. Furthermore, his army had collected actual combat experience, and even though it was against an eventually inferior enemy, it was still more than many armies of other nations could claim. Ever ambitious, Juteau pondered on how to use this new model army, and decided that it would best work as a tool to achieve what the monarchs of Jashnagar had desired to do from the beginning: unite the entire archipelago. To do that, all foreign concessions would need to be returned to Jashnagar, starting with the largest, that of Anacleto. Near the end of 1916, the Juteau government issued first an ultimatum to the government of Produzland to return Anacleto to Jashnagar and then an official declaration of war between the two powers. This marked the official entrance into the Olympic War for Jashnagar.

Bombardment of Yuram Harbor, 1919

Like elsewhere, the combat against Produzland was bloody with high casualty rates on both sides. Produese forces found themselves at the advantage when engage in conventional warfare, and while under the monarchy Jashnagar had begun building a strong navy, Produese ships based in Anacleto had no difficulty achieving control of the sealanes. The Jashnagari turned to guerrilla tactics in the tropical environment, which all but the most seasoned Anacletan light troops were unfamiliar with. After an extensive four year war, in 1920, the Produese government negotiated a peace with the Treaty of Cojazeira, where Anacleto would be returned to Jashnagar in order for resources and effort to be turned towards the war in Lira.

Reconstruction (1922-1946)

Destruction wrought by the Shan coup and the Olympic War was devastating across Jashnagar. Immediately, the Yuram Five moved to retain power, using reconstruction as the basis for their continued leadership and military loyalty to enforce it. Though Juteau had originally intended to turn his military against the Pearl Necklace Cities, the war against Produzland cost too heavily in lives and resources, and so he decided against war with another eastern power. Instead, Meronnia's colonial possessions became important import and scholarly assets.

The Sambak Tower in 2009, Yuram's first vertically large building built in 1923

The Yuram Five had as early as 1914 discussed rebuilding Jashnagar into a fully modern nation, with the capital of Yuram being the crowning jewel of such a product. While Juteau was a business man and adventurer, he had in his council of four highly skilled reformers. Most notably was Arkadiy Sergeev Vishnegradskiy, a Tanayan engineer, and XXXX an infrastructure pioneer.

The damage caused by the wars had given a cleaner slate to work with and the next two decades were fit with large-scale construction that spanned the nation. Yuram became the center-ground of the most innovative ideas, where great care was placed into updating the city while leaving its historic landmarks. The Juteau administration built upon the framework of the late monarchy by deeply expanding the amount of public schooling available across the nation. In 1925, primary schooling (ages 7-16 in period) became mandatory, with heavy fines brought upon parents who did not take their children to school. Juteau also continued supporting foreign innovators to come into the country, but instead planned to use this as base work for future Jashnagari to reversely study abroad rather than a permanent solution.

Politically, the Yuram Five struck an uneasy balance among the factions within the administration. They reaffirmed the Bas'kan's position of spiritual power, but Juteau used secular Meronnian and Carelian models to reform Jashnagar's court systems. Meanwhile, more radical schools of thought took root in the population as a result of the wars. Socialist and democratic ideas in particular began to hold sway over much of the population. Authoritarian philosophies also sprouted in some areas, and a return to cliques started to form in regional administrations across the country. Juteau's administration held the loyalty of the main military, and he very carefully sought to appease both the religious and democratic camps while holding onto power.

Despite the rapid and successful modernization and rebuilding projects across the country, the balance of power juggle became an untenable situation. In 1945, Juteau had come to a conclusion regarding the future of the nation, and had the rest of his junta sign a shadow-pact promising to continue that vision after his death. Publicly, Juteau announced on September 21st, 1945, that his administration would continue until the death of three of it's original five members, and then afterwords a peaceful shift of power would see the Bas'kan and a semi-democratic regime rise. In this proclamation, he outlined his plans for continued prosperity and how political changes would gradual move the nation towards his end goals. On December 4th, the anarchist radical Yambai Gorudin shot Juteau pointblank with a handgun as he approached him in public. Miraculously, the aging Juteau survived and even walked a majority of the distance to the hospital. The bullet could not be safely extracted, and the health complications involved with the shooting would lower his lifespan drastically.

Civil War (1946-1968)

Following the assassination attempt on Juteau, the Yuram city police enforced a lockdown the nights of December 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th. No announcement as to the leader's health was given until the 8th, and elderly but sprite Vishnegradskiy has temporarily taken of the government. On December 7th, a bombing took place in Lanu on O'kahle leading to a lockdown of that island issued by the local government. Protests erupted in support and against the Juteau government throughout December, and by middle January 1946, a state of emergency was declared and the military geared for security.

JFL Troops firing a mortar against socialist positions, 1947.

On February 15th, a bomb went off in the middle of a democratic protest in Yuram, killing 40 people and later that afternoon, the 6th Infantry Regiment based on Ulelu stormed the island's capital building and overthrew the local government. Han O'leaku, a renown Jashnagari Socialist writer declared the creation of the People's Republic of Jashnagar from the governor's house, marking the beginning of the Jashnagari Civil War.

In late February, Juteau's health had not improved enough to allow a direct response from him on the developing situation with the socialists. Vishnegradskiy vehemently attacked and denied the separatist movement, and issued orders for the military to remove the rebels on Ulelu, but violent combat had already broken out on the island. Within days, several large groups of soldiers and officers deserted the army, and on February 20th, the garrison at Paranaka island in Bajabar province declared their own splinter state. Several more divisions followed, with factions breaking away from the central government in rapid succession. By March 1st, firefights in the streets of Yuram had broken out between police and insurgents.

Meron General and Mahkeen Prince, 1958

Fighting continued into 1947 between Centralist and separatist forces, but the central government was unable to dislodge rebel positions and instead began to slowly loose ground. This trend continued into the 1950s, when the worst of the fighting began in earnest. In 1953, the Prudhomme government of Meronnia signed the Treaty of X and returned the Pearl Necklace Cities to Jashnagar, marking an end to nearly 360 years of colonial rule in those locations as well as lending further international legitimacy to the central government . By now, the growing conflict in Jashnagar began to receive international attention, especially as the weakening Juteau campaigned towards foreign audiences for his government, promising "Peace and Stability" to the nation and denouncing his opponents.

In 1954, Ferdinand Juteau's health continued to rapidly decline amid his international campaigning and he collapsed while viewing the frontline near Masaba on April 23rd. He clung onto life long enough to be brought to Ranaman Palace in Yuram but passed the night of April 25th. With Juteau's passing the already 86 year old Vishnegradskiy took control of the government. Due to his advanced health, the Tanayan had to delegate much of the decision making to his staff, but continued to involve himself daily in reports and summaries of the war effort, as well as meeting with foreign diplomats.

In 1955, the Meronnian Crevier government came to power and began to dedicate larger amounts of military and material support unofficially to the central government, which continued until 1959 election. Meanwhile, the Tanaya Soviet People's Republic began to intervene in favor of O'leaku and the People's Republic of Jashnagar. While TSPR was unable to provide ground support due to recovering from the Second Tanayan Revolution, several ships and air units provided bombardment and covering fire for the socialists forces and routinely attacked centralist positions on the coast.

In 1959 the administration of Jean-Philippe Lahaye officially involved Meronnia in the civil war by unilateral intervention. The arrival of MFL and Meron troops was done without central government permission and several high-tension incidents arose between Vishnegradskiy and Lahaye's administrations, culminating in an overwhelming Meron military presence in the former Pearl Necklace Cities. While the influx of nominal support helped start to drastically turn the tide against the rebels, especially the smaller cliques and outer island factions, the price for Meron aid increasingly became questioned, with Vishnegradskiy remarking whether the "Merons had come to help or to occupy".

In 1963 Meronnia saw Carine Cortot elected First Deputy and a easing of tensions between the Meron intervention and Vishnegradskiy junta occurred. Meron support slowly started to withdraw while providing the centralist forces with continued aid and resources, and by July 1967 only the socialists remained with outposts of smaller islands and inlets. In 1969 Vishnegradskiy passed away at 101, being the oldest Head of State in history. In February 1970 the People's Republic of Jashnagar officially surrender to centralist forces, marking the end of the Jashnagari Civil War. The conflict had lasted 24 years. Though officially over, pockets of resistance continued to wage a guerrilla war against the government, mostly on tiny islands or deep within the jungle. These rebels were urged on by Han O'leaku who had fled Jashnagar to avoid persecution.

Golden Decades (1970-1990)

While the Jashnagari Civil War had brought deep destruction to the country, the capable leadership of the Yuram Five had already begun rebuilding operations during the war. The second Jashnagari reconstruction was slated to last a decade, but the worst of the damage had already been under-repair since 1963. For the average Jashnagari family, excluding the cost in lives, the civil war had stopped being felt as early as 1961. Jashnagar also benefited from the international economic upturn of the 70s, and as the country finally began to feel a sense of stability, a sudden explosion of Jashnagari culture erupted and the average citizen began to be flooded with foreign and domestic music, dress, technology, and culture.

The average quality of life rose dramatically and the government continued its programs of modernizing infrastructure. With Vishnegradskiy's passing, X took over the administration and began planning for his eventual death and the shift of political power. Juteau had compromised by promising the Maist clergy the top of administration in return for a devolution to democratic lower ministries. X kicked off this process in 1973 with Jashnagar's first democratic election to the newly formed Clerical Council which acted as an official legislature. That same year, Han O'leaku was captured trying to re-enter Jashnagar, tried, and executed, causing diplomatic strain with other socialist nations in Olympus.

In 1975 the very last pocket of rebel resistance was destroyed and the defense budget was slashed heavily in favor of civilian spending. Throughout the decade, Jashnagari students began to travel abroad for study, most notably to Meronnia, signalling that Juteau's goal of forming Jashnagar's own core of domestic intellectuals had come to fruition.

Jashnagari Representatives in the first Clerical Council, 1973

The economy continued to boon, with Jashnagar exporting more agricultural product than at any point in it's history. The literacy rate had jumped to 90% and climbing, with universal primary education achieved. X passed away in 1978, bringing an end to the Yuram Five junta and shifting power to the Bas'kan. Juteau's secret outline was revealed, and the following year universal elections were held for all provincial government positions as well for the Clerical Council, bringing into action Jashnagar's contemporary system.

Geography

A black sand beach in Jashnagar

Jashnagar is one of the largest archipelagic countries in the world, and is part of the Southeast Nori region of the Nori continent. It extends 16,696 kilometers (10,374 miles) kilometers at its furthest points from east to west, and 11,370 kilometers (7,065 miles) from north to south. It has a total of 6,432 islands and atolls, with nearly 4,000 of them inhabited in some capacity. All of these islands lie below the equator. The archipelago is made up of the seven primary islands of Samratan, Lambou, O'kahle, Namoa, Mitta, Ulelu, Mae and four recognized island chains of Jash, Mahk, Pa'ea, and Mae.

The nations land measurement is 275,185 km2 (106,250 sq mi). It shares no land borders with any other nation, but shares maritime borders with Kiteahu, Tauke Manuye, Sepura, and Yannoue.

The longest river in Jashnagar is the Puaga. Most of the large rivers flow on Samratan, but sizeable rivers exists on the Pa'ea and Mahk island chains.

Climate

Jashnagar lies below the equator, and its climate remains relatively stable year-round. Most of Jashnagar has a consistent year-long wet season, with a dry season

Typical Jashnagari rainforest found throughout the archipelago

appearing in the southern most islands. Where applicable, the dry season lasts typically from May till September and the wet from October to April.

Köppen-Geiger climate classification for Jashnagar

Jashnagar's climate is entirely tropical, with a tropical wet climate dominating a majority of the nation. The southern most islands are home to a tropical wet and dry climate providing the drier seasons in those areas.

Geology

Tectonically, Jashnagar is unstable with many volcanoes and seismic activity frequent. It lies in a ring of fire generated by the Magnostrian plate being pushed under the Muroan plate. Volcanic ash has made agricultural conditions unpredictable in some areas, but it has also resulted in unusually fertile soils, historically allowing high population densities in the Jash and Mahkeen islands.

Many of Jashnagar's islands are formed by coral reefs, especially smaller ones in the south and western most areas of the country. Much like how black sand beaches can be found across Jashnagar's volcanic islands, white sand beaches formed out of calcium from ancient corals and sea organism are a main beach type across the archipelago. Though rare, some pink colored beaches can be found throughout Jashnagar, caused by crushed corals much like the more common white-sanded beaches. Jashnagar is home to one of the only green sand beaches on the globe, Meamata, formed by volcanic rock high in Olivine that has been eroded from mount Lanu

Biodiversity and Environment

Species endemic to Jashnagar. Clockwise from top: Samratan tiger, Hibiscus sevratanii, Muroan kingfisher, and table coral.

Jashnagar's tropical climate and archipelagic geography lends itself to a high level of biodiversity. Large species such as the Samratan tiger, Norinese elephant, pongo, rhinoceros, and leopard were once abundant on all islands north of Lambou, but have since dwindled due habitat loss brought about by human development. Jashnagar is divided between the Muroan Line which separates the species of Nori and those of the Muroan and Magnostrian island chains. Jashnagar shares species with nearby Meniti as well as the mainland of Nori. Tropical seas surround the nations coastline, creating a range of sea and coastal ecosystems that include beaches, dunes, estuaries, mangroves, coral reefs, seagrass beds, mudflats, tidal flats, algae beds, and small island ecosystems. Jashnagar is part of the SE Nori coral triangle, hosting an immense biodiversity in coral and coral reef species as a result.

Human development posses serious threats to the state of the Jashnagari environment. Destruction of habitat brought about by expanding urbanization and economic development has threatened and endangered many of the species native to the archipelago. Palm oil plantations stand as an example of economic development that while generating wealth for local communities, changes the native ecosystems drastically. Over-exploitation of marine resources, waste management, and oil drilling also contribute to the degradation of the environment. Global warming is a considerable problem for the future of Jashnagar. Rising global temperatures will drastically increase the number of scorching days in Jashnagar's already tropical environment, affect the seasonal weather cycles that fuels the agricultural economy, increase wildfires that destroy rainforest, and raise the number of droughts and food shortages. Climate change will also affect the marine resources of the nation, impacting directly the coral and shallow water habitats of the coast. Rising sea levels risk submerging large portions of the coastal country. Impoverished communities are likely to be the most affected by climate change.

Government and Politics

Jashnagar is a theocratic-ecclesiocracy, with the current government established in 1970. Before the unification of Jashnagar, the various polities throughout the archipelago often cooperated under the leadership of the Yuram clergy, be it in religious crusade or political crisis. This cooperation formed the basis to a united Jashnagar and became a precursor to the modern governmental system. When King Ilo'gnara united Jashnagar in 1728, he affirmed the Bas'kan of Yuram temples leadership over the Maist faith. After the overthrow of King Sevar II in 1913, the country underwent a period of political turmoil and civil war that lasted until the 1980s. The foundation for the modern government was created by the Yuram Five a pro-monarchy junta founded by Ferdinand Juteau, which lead governmental forces from 1914 till 1970.

The government is spearheaded by two individuals in the form of the Bas'kan and Prime Minister. The two have separate, but complimentary duties. The Bas'kan is considered the head of government, being the official leader of not just Jashnagar, but the Maist faith in total. He is responsible for the ecclesiastical components of the Jashnagari government and the Maist clergy internationally. The Bas'kan is chosen by a council in a secret process. The head of state, the Prime Minister, is responsible for the more secular affairs of the government and is elected by the Clerical council. Both must be in agreement before policy can be enacted, though the Bas'kan nominally has the ultimate say.

Jashnagar has a bicameral legislature, with an upper and lower house, each with their own requirements before election eligibility. the Council of Elders is the lower and larger of the two houses. the Council of Warriors is the upper and smaller house. The members of the Clerical Council are elected from the Jashnagari provinces, by universal general election. All legislative members must have served a five year stint as a Maist monk, with members in the House of Warriors additionally requiring to have served a full term of military service. The legislature is not only responsible for the creation, review, and passing of laws, but is also responsible for electing a group of five High Ministers that head ministries aiding the Prime Minister.

The Supreme Court of Jashnagar is the nation's highest judicial body, typically dealing with cases involving provinces, national administrative bodies, or high appeals. The judicial system is unique in that is was created completely separate of the religious bodies. A result of Juteau's administration, the courts were based off of democratic models. Though Jashnagari courts may enforce and rule on laws with direct religious foundations, they are, by oath, to take a secular approach to judgement and review.

Parties and Elections

Parties in Jashnagar are influenced by the ecclesiastical nature of the government. While traditional political parties do exist such as those found in other countries, candidates more commonly list and are elected on the monastic orders they belong to. As a results, candidates belonging to legal, but deeply unpopular political parties, such as the Socialist Union of Jashnagar (SUJ) are able to be generally blocked from governmental seats. No party or monastic order has been able to hold a majority of the seats, however, members belonging to monastic orders of the Jai school of Maism are more numerous than those of other schools. As of 2019, Incumbent Bas'kan Rastan II is a member of the Avalaran order of the Jai school, and incumbent Prime Minister Enri Tale'va is a member of the Suramaya order of the Kali school. Both men and women can run and hold offices, with term limits set at 2 years. In 2017, voter turnout was 87%. While seats for the House of Elders were mixed, they followed historical provincial trends. Likewise, a Kali dominated House of Warriors was also selected, possibly leading to the resulting election for Prime Minister in 2019.

Administrative Divisions

Jashnagar has several levels of divisions. The first level and highest level is -Placeholder-, which are representative divisions with their own elected councils that operate with large autonomy from the government. The second and most relevant level are the provinces, each with their own legislature and an elected governor. The Special Capital Region of Yuram is treated as a full province. Thirdly, provinces are split up into districts, each with their own court. Fourthly is municipalities, usually cities or towns and their subsidiary settlements. Finally, the fifth and lowest division are administrative villages. In Pa'ea cultural areas, a type of administrative village called a faloa exists, following traditional chiefly lands.

Following de-centralization efforts beginning in 1980, the municipality and district governments have become the most influential administrations on the average citizen's daily life.

Foreign Relations

-placeholder-