United Valleys

The Matriarchy of These United Valleys
Flag
Motto: "Mother Nature and Labor"
Anthem: "The Harder They Come"
Map of United Valleys
Capital	Crabapple Cove
Largest city	New Meddybemps
Official languages	Downwind Creole
Religion	State Atheism, officially "Natural Humanism"
Demonym(s)	Valleysian, Downwinder
Government	Devolved Socialist Partitarian Democracy
• The Matriarch of These United Valleys	Jeanne Freeman (disputed)
• General Secretary of the Revolutionary Congress of Industrial Unions	Rina Oatfield
• Fore of the Central Committee of the Red Triangle Party	Valerie Wellwater
• Supreme Attorney of the Red Triangle Party	Elise Owlworth
• General Executive Council Chairs of the Red Triangle Party (Gang of Six)	Reggie Bayside, Zelda Claret, Edith Greenriver, Pella Seres, Vera Steampot, Valerie Wellwater
Establishment
• Chiefdom of Seacrest	791
• Tribal Confederation of the Great Wave	1649
• United Cities of the Reef	1866
• United Free States of Plateria	1932
• Free State of Enterprise Bay	1976
• Free State of Enterprise Bay and Seacrest Valley	1989
• Free Lands Economic Union	2009
• Matriarchy of These United Valleys	2026
Population
• Census	71,000,000 (estimated)
GDP (nominal)	estimate
• Total	∆ 4.87 trillion
• Per capita	∆ 66,000 (estimated)
HDI (2026)	0.926 very high
Date format	yyyy/mm/dd
Driving side	left
Calling code	+207
Internet TLD	.muv

United Valleys, officially the Matriarchy of These United Valleys, is a socialist partitarian democracy located near the center of the Free Lands in Southeast Narushia, close to the Southern Circle. United Valleys covers large, ill-defined territory in the Free Lands area, and the privacy-concerned government has not yet released population statistics, but independent organizations estimate that there are about 71 million Valleysian citizens. The government is currently operated by a complex and devolved system of municipal councils, regional labor union offices, a centralized resource management apparatus, and an explicitly communist military. The country is notable for its implementation of "Street Officers," elected social workers who are expected to assist residents and visitors with issues, often mundane, such as providing directions to tourists, or assisting in filing a form. The officers are considered critical to the functioning of Valleysian society, and serve a secondary role as a reserve labor force. Notably, independent vehicular travel over land is extremely rare outside of bicycle use, which is abnormally high in United Valleys, given that personal automobiles have been made fully illegal. The nation's rise to prominence and international recognition in the Narushian Free Lands may fill a significant power vacuum on the continent if the young government can maintain stability and legitimacy.

History

Pre-History

The area comprising United Valleys has been settled by humans for at least 40,000 years, with strong evidence found as early as the 19th century of the "Green Rock Culture" within the Three River Basin, which built large pyramidal earthen mounds decorated by tourmaline gems as early as 14,000 years ago.

Chiefdom Era

Located downwind of the extreme Great Reef Current, and isolated on land by a series of treacherous mountain ranges, the people of the Valleys developed a distinct culture, notably inventing a printing press as early as the 9th century. Despite some major achievements, the people were largely backward, with the vast majority of inhabitants engaging in hunting, fishing, and agriculture. Overseas, the region was known in rare foreign texts for its abundance of food, and the willingness of local Valleysians to help lost ships navigate upwind of the Current.

Great Wave Era

The end of this prosperous period is known as The Great Wave Era of the 17th Century, wherein many extinct and extant colonial powers began settling the area. The "Great Wave" in question was an unexplained shift in the tides that came before the first attempted conqueror arrived.

Free Cities Era

The liberatory politics of the 19th century were extremely popular in the post-colonial Free Cities of the Reef government. Despite Valleysians never experiencing chattel slavery, this period saw one third of Valleysian men volunteering in wars against the practice throughout Telrova. The cultural aversion to servitude and bondage was further influenced by the introduction of Duckbillism, an explicitly class-concerned form of socialism. Valleysian philosopher Gabrielle Duckbill, the theory's namesake, collaborated frequently with Evangeline Freeman (cousin of Hiram Freeman, a wealthy industrialist, and first President and founder of the Free Cities of the Reef).

Free State Era

The frantic politics of the 20th century gave rise to "Free States," small upstart governments in the area that periodically attempted to consolidate power. The Free State period continued until 2009, when Evgeny von Patton set up "The Free Lands Economic Union" as a first step to federalize the area as a capital-friendly liberal democracy. After establishing himself as President of the Free Lands Economic Union, von Patton quickly passed the "Economic Security Fund Act," which budgeted the creation of a "security force" of privately-contracted paramilitary security. Within a year, this mercenary force numbered over 130,000. The following decade saw mass civil unrest, with thousands of inhabitants ultimately engaging in a prolonged armed struggle against von Patton, his mercenaries, and the police, which involved multiple illegal REDACTED weapons being used against civilian targets.

Valleysian Era

In March 2026, a small faction of young fighters known as The Red Triangle Party organized a revolutionary action, seizing many industries and government offices across the Valleys in a single night. After the legal trial and execution of von Patton, the Party established itself as a legitimate government body under the new Matriarchy of the United Valleys. By September, the country became the single internationally recognized state in the Free Lands.