Westmoreland War
| Westmoreland War | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Mareyland | |||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| |||||||
The Westmoreland War was a conflict in the mid-19th century fought between the Vionna-Frankenlischian colony of New Columbia and the young Republic of Mareyland over border disputes. By far the largest in a series of short border wars between the two, the Westmoreland War finally ended the long-lasting border disputes centered around the Lannachee River mostly in New Columbia's favour at the Treaty of Sirenport.
Border Disputes
Diplomatic negotiations between the Imperial administration in New Columbia and the government of Mareyland over the Lannachee River and its surrounding areas had been held sporadically since the late 1820s, however, due to the negligible authority of New Columbian diplomats and the constantly-changing priorities of the Mareylander government, the talks were almost entirely fruitless. Talks broke down entirely with the election of expansionist George Clayton as Mareylander president in 1840 and the bubbling tension was escalated severely when the Clayton administration declared the incorporation of the entire Lannachee River region as the Westmoreland Territory at the end of the year. The declaration of the Westmoreland Territory Charter on 12th December 1840 was met with horror in New Adeleux. The proposed territory included all of the disputed region, even extending into the range of several New Columbian trapping posts. A complaint was lodged with the Mareylander State Department but no response was received. Governor-General the Earl of Casellaine requested instruction from the Colonial Office and was advised only to open fresh talks with the Mareylander government. The Imperial government did not consider the threat seriously and the number of Imperial forces in New Columbia actually declined over the course of the next month.
At the start of 1841, diplomatic overtures from the New Columbian administration were rebuffed by Clayton's government. Throughout January and February of that year, no less than seven settlement proposals from New Adeleux were rejected as unsuitable and the permanent colonial mission in Leesburg was recalled by Lord Casellaine on 28th February after Clayton refused to meet with the Imperial minister, Lady Adelaide Stracken. Popular opinion towards Clayton's government in Mareyland was sky-high and in March, his government went a step further by calling up militia forces in the counties neighboring the Westmoreland Territory, along with a small force of army pioneers, to construct a series of small forts in the new territory to assert Mareylander control over the region. This was considered a serious threat in New Adeleux and Lord Casellaine made an immediate request for Imperial troops and the intervention of the Foreign Ministry. With other threats closer to home, Frankenlisch was only willing to send a single battalion: 2nd Battalion, Hardying's Regiment. Lady Stracken returned to Leesburg along with experienced Imperial diplomat Sir Walter Wekkens to make a final attempt at a settlement but were so insulted in their brief meeting with President Clayton that they broke off talks on the first day. Lady Stracken's official report to the Colonial and Foreign offices recommended the launching of a punitive expedition against Mareyland to force them to the table but the lack of military force in New Columbia made an immediate expedition impossible.
While a parliamentary committee was formed in Frankenlisch to discuss the issue of the Westmoreland Territory, the Mareylander government moved to expand their influence even further. In addition to their network of outposts and redoubts that had been built in the Lannachee River region they built Fort Proud (named after its commander, Major Jonathon Proud) to act as the center of their military efforts in the region. Though consisting only of a timber palisade and a large blockhouse, the construction essentially finalised the expansion of Mareylander control over the region and they swiftly followed up the coup by expelling all New Columbian trapping posts from the Lannachee region and confiscating their goods. These actions were completed by the end of March 1841 and saw Mareyland complete their main goal entirely: the establishment of effective control over the Westmoreland Territory.
Royle Stream Incident
Main Article: Royle Stream Incident
One of the targets of the March expulsions had been Harvey Royle, a New Columbian trapper, and his family. Operating five miles south of the Lannachee River, Royle's post had been particularly prosperous due to a small stream which flowed from the Lannachee. The stream irrigated Royle's crops and was attractive to local wildlife, providing him with easy targets. When Mareylander militia had turned up at his post on 21st March, Royle refused to leave and forced the militia out at gunpoint. News of Royle's defiance spread amongst the other trappers and several expelled New Columbians travelled to Royle's post to seek shelter. Royle and his family took the refugees in and sent his eldest son to Sirenport with a letter about their situation. On 25th March a second, larger, band of militiamen from Fort Proud brought expulsion orders from Jonathon Proud but Royle again refused to leave. A fight nearly broke out but the militia were under strict orders to avoid violence and the refugees sheltering at Royle's post armed themselves and intimidated the militiamen into leaving. On the 27th, Mareylander army pioneers dammed the stream to try and force Royle to abandon his post but he destroyed the dam that night by setting it on fire. Royle's consistent defiance frustrated the Mareylander authorities in the region who were concerned that their target of expelling all New Columbian posts in the region by the end of March would not be reached.
Early in the morning of 27th March a party of militiamen and pioneers from Fort Proud surrounded Royle's post under cover of darkness. Supposedly without orders, this party attacked the post before dawn with rifles and axes. Harvey Royle was grievously injured and left for dead. Three of the refugees sheltering at Royle's post were killed and two others wounded. Royle's wife, two daughters, and youngest son were dragged back to Fort Proud as prisoners and his second son was killed. The massacre was not discovered until four days later when a party of volunteers arrived from Sirenport with Royle's eldest son led by Sir Lambert Sollin, a magistrate. Harvey Royle was found barely alive but miraculously survived his wounds and explained what had happened. Sir Lambert Sollin attempted to visit Fort Proud to discuss the situation with its commander but was barred access. The party took Harvey Royle and the refugees back to Sirenport to recover and petition the government.
Aftermath
The sudden shock and brutality of the Royle Stream Incident horrified the New Columbian population. The City of Sirenport awarded Harvey Royle with a sword and an annuity of 100 Lucans for his defiance and sent a formal complaint to Leesburg. This was swiftly followed by a petition from New Adeleux for the release of Harvey Royle's family and compensation. Without a significant military force to back up any demands, the New Columbian pleas fell on death ears. A fast steamship was chartered by the colonial administration to carry Royle and a delegation from Sirenport to Frankenlisch to explain the situation to the Imperial government and petition for reinforcments.
2nd Battalion, Hardying's Regiment, arrived in New Adeleux on 4th April and was sent a few days later via ship to Sirenport to strengthen the area's defences. The Mareylander government continued to avoid dialogue while they conducted their own investigation into the Royle Stream Incident. Sir Lambert Sollin, who refused the chance to travel to Frankenlisch with Royle, began forming the Sirenport Volunteers. The Volunteers were a force of militia from the city of Sirenport and the surrounding region intended initially as a defence force for the city in the case of war but it very quickly took a more provocative stance. Backed by several powerful and influential figures in Sirenport, the volunteers were armed at the city's expense and paraded in the main market square. By 12th April, the Sirenport Volunteers had 900 men under arms. When 2nd Battalion, Hardying's Regiment arrived in Sirenport on 14th April, Sir Lambert Sollin paraded the Sirenport Volunteers to welcome the battalion to the city and then marched out with his 900 men, intent on pressuring Jonathon Proud into releasing Harvey Royle's family.
Forces
Main article: Forces of the Westmoreland War