Luttenried
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The Holy Dukedom of Luttenried Heiliges Herzogtum Luttenried | |
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 Flag
 Coat of arms
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| Motto: "Gott, Treue, Reich!" "God, Faith, Empire!" | |
Anthem: Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott | |
 Map location of Luttenried in the region of Kali Yuga. | |
| Status | Duchy |
| Location | Located in the central-south of the Far-East of Kali Yuga. |
| Capital and | Wilhelmshaven |
| Official languages | German |
| Recognised national languages | English, German |
| Ethnic groups | Caucasian (75%) Native/Asian (20%) Black/Middle Eastern (4%) Other (6%) |
| Religion | Kirche der Königlich ("Church of the Royal") |
| Demonym(s) | Lutten(rieden), Commoner |
| Government | Theocratic Feudal Monarchy, Absolute Monarchy |
• Emperor | Emperor JC |
| Friedhelm von Luttenried | |
| Kunibert Wörner | |
| Legislature | Luttenried Diet |
| House of Lords | |
| House of Commons | |
| Colonial Duchy of TECT. | |
• Establishment of "Schwenke" Settlement by Imperial authorities and adventurer-colonist Arne Schwenke. | 1402 |
• The Luttenried Order is awarded authority over the Schwenke Colonial Effort after Arne Schwenke is presumed dead. Luttenried Oberbefehlshaber Burchard Bleier Luttenried is granted title of Earl by Emperor Whilhelm XII, creating the "Earldom of Luttenried" at home while the Order referred to itself now as the "Luttenried Crusader State." | 1404 |
• The Luttenried Earldom/Crusader State expands the settlement's control to modern day Capital District boundries. | 1410 |
• Luttenried Earldom/Crusader State declares a "Holy Crusade" against the "Luttenried Island" Ohanzee Confederation natives after several raids against Luttenried satellite settlements. | 1412 |
• Luttenreid Earldom/Crusader State achieves victory over Ohanzee natives, consolidating signifigant portions of Luttenried Island under Crusader control. | 1414 |
• Total victory over remaining Ohanzee Confederation and other remaining native groups brings Luttenried Island under total control of the Luttenried Earldom/Crusader State. Luttenried Oberbefehlshaber & Earl Burchard Falkenrath Luttenried is awarded title of Duke by Emperor Whilhelm XII, transforming the "Luttenried Earldom" into the "Luttenried Duchy." | 1431 |
• Luttenried Dukedom achieves its modern borders, Luttenried Oberbefehlshaber & Duke Burchard Luttenreid III proclaims the "Holy Dukedom of Luttenried." | 1521 |
• The Republican Movement reaches the Holy Luttenried Dukedom, forcing Holy Duke Gottschalk to enact republican reforms and creating the Luttenreid Diet. | 1892 |
| Area | |
• Total | 7,856,487 km2 (3,033,407 sq mi) |
• Water (%) | 9.25 |
| Population | |
• 2022 census | 29,454,883 |
• Density | 9.56/km2 (24.8/sq mi) |
| GDP (PPP) | 2020 estimate |
• Total | 11.567 Trillion NSD |
• Per capita | 35,498 NSD |
| GDP (nominal) | 2021 estimate |
• Total | 32,516 NSD |
| Gini | 36 medium |
| HDI |  0.994very high |
| Currency | Imperial Dollar (TECT) ($) |
| Time zone | Luttenried Time |
| Driving side | right |
| Calling code | 120 |
| Internet TLD | .tct |
Luttenried, or properly known as the Holy Dukedom of Luttenried (also Holy Duchy of Luttenried), is a Colonial Stem Dukedom within The Empire of Common Territories (TECT) located in the Kali Yuga Region. It is comprised of mainland Luttenried (continent), seven major islands off the mainland's southern coast, and thirty-one other islands scattered around the mainland's vast coastline. With an area of 7,856,487 km2, the Holy Duchy is the largest landmass between the continents of Musgorocia and Oriea - Luttenried itself is the sixth largest continent in the region. Luttenried is a largely flat, megadiverse country with a broad variety of landscapes and climates due to its large size; tropical rainforests, savannas, dense forests, mountain ranges, and expansive deserts are all found on the continent of Luttenried.
Luttenried's population of over twenty-nine million people is primarily made up of Commoners (Luttenried natives and newer migrants) and the mixed race decendents of native peoples (Ohanzee people), the remainder are primarily regional immigrants or Christian pilgrims. The Holy Duchy's population steadily rose during its founding in the 15th century, immigration exploded in the 16th century during the Holy Duchy's "crusader" period and continued rising after the post-crusader period. Luttenried is a highly developed country with a largely urbanized population surrounding several major cities including the capital (and largest city) Wilhelmshaven; a signifigant portion of the population is located in rural areas, however. Although starting off as a command economy while a Crusader State, the Holy Duchy opened its economy further after the Luttenried Crusade in order to better recover from the economic devistation proceeding the crusade. Today, as a mostly free-market economy, Luttenried enjoys less regulations and fewer financial burdens while still reigning controls it sees as vital infrastructure for keeping the Holy Duchy economically secure. Agriculture, aquaculture, mining, manufacturing, and services (in that order) are Luttenried's largest income sources with the Empire being the Holy Dukedom's leading importer of goods/services. As a former crusader state and now "Holy" Duchy, Luttenried is a deeply conservative and religious country with the overwhelming majority of citizens practicing Christianity, the Holy Duchy's state religion. Religion plays a central role in every day life within Luttenried with most holidays, tourist destinations, historical locations, and major events centered around Christianity or the church; schools, governments, businesses, and communities are tightly interlocked with the local churches and average Luttenrieden's faith.
Politically, the Holy Duchy is a Theocratic Feudal Monarchy, comprising of fourteen provincial territories governed by Stem Holy Baronies along with several other territories governed by lower ranking Luttenried Noble Houses. The Holy Dukedom itself is a Colonial Stem Duchy under TECT, which is an Absolute Monarchy. Largely unchanged since their creation prior to the Luttenried Crusade, the Holy Barons of Luttenried traditionally held large authority over their lands in exchange for total fielty to the Holy Duke and a universal national identity; a pledge tracing its roots to the Luttenried Order's existance before the Luttenried Crusader State era. Holy Barons today are domestically powerful governors but are submissive to the Holy Duke otherwise, lacking independent powers such as raising actual militiaries or conducting international diplomacy even with the Empire directly. Although unequal compared to the Holy Duke, Holy Barons are largely left to their own devices when enacting domestic policies so long as they're within the Holy Duke's authority. While historically governed from top-to-bottom (like Luttenried itself historically), most Holy Barons have operated some form of legislature or federalist system to meet the demands of the Holy Duchy's Republican Reform effort during the waning years of the 19th century; each Holy Baron governs differently, but most Holy Barons entrust their lands to lower ranking nobles in county level fiefdoms to govern or represent them. Nationally, the Holy Duke is the absolute governor (not ruler, technically) of the Holy Dukedom - their ruler is technically the TECT Emperor. The Luttenried Diet, a parliament comprising of the Lords (governing nobles or their acting representatives) and elected Representatives of each Barony/lower holding, is tasked with enacting laws/policies, representing the people in governance, and settling disputes of national interest. Although Luttenried possesses a legal system like most nations, Holy Barony or lower courts vary in design/scope and Holy Duchy Courts are largely for criminal cases or legal disputes that don't fall under the Diet's prerogative. As the actual governing force of the Holy Duchy, the Holy Duke is the absolute manager of his lands as granted to him under the Crown, thus making the Holy Duke superior to their own government and even most of the Imperial Government/TECT Nobility.
History
As a nation and people, Luttenried's story begins with the Luttenried Order. The Luttenried Order was founded by Arndt Luttenried in 1354 in response to the joint declaration by Reichsstadt Pope Wendelin III "The Peacemaker" and Emperor Whilhelm XI, declaring a "Holy Crusade" against the central pagan tribal nations located in modern day Zentral State. Arndt Luttenried was a fairly wealthy merchant who was a devout member of the Kirche der Königlich. Although never serving on a single battlefield, Arndt founded a religious order originally with the purpose of recruiting fellow merchants to help supply and tend to crusader forces. After serving in the First Central Pagan Crusade, Arndt underwent a drastic lifestyle change due to what he claimed to have seen the pagans do to his fellow Christians; Arndt sold most of his personal possessions for capital, took up the sword and shield, and converted his religious order into a religious military order. In the following years, Arndt lead his Order up until the Third Central Pagan Crusade where he was cut down during the Battle of Veremund Forest. Urs Bleier, Arndt's Unterkommandant (Sub-Commander, second-in-command) and sworn brother, became the Luttenried Order's second Oberbefehlshaber (Supreme Commander). Urs took up his sworn bother's name, becoming Urs Luttenried, and served as the Order's leader until his own death in 1395. His son, Burchard Bleier Luttenried, would become Oberbefehlshaber of the Luttenried Order that same year and take part in the Sixth Central Pagan Crusade where the Luttenried Order earned a noteworthy repuation back home for its devout followers, excellent resource management, and feirce military prowess. In 1404, Burchard and the Luttenried Order were recognized for their achievements during the Crusades and were awarded for their accomplishments. The Luttenried House had been promoted from the title of Knight to the title of Earl by Whilhelm XII. As for the Luttenried Order, it was awarded several honors by both the Empire and Kirche. Emperor Whilhelm XII granted the Order (and Burchard) a territory to "govern, convert, and expand" in the newly discovered Kali Yuga Region. From there, Burchard and the Luttenreid Order completed establishing the Schwenke Settlement in Luttenried; Schwenke was formally renammed to "Wilhelmshaven" and the continent formally recognized as "Luttenried." Thus began the Luttenried Crusader State ("Luttenried Deutschordensstaat"), or formally the Holy Earldom of Luttenried.
Although inhabited primarily by Commoners and decendents of native peoples, the continent's previouse dominant civilization, the Ohanzee people, were said to have settled Luttenried over a million years ago; they are speculated to have arrived from Musgorocia using makeshift rafts and boats, island hopping until settling in Luttenried. The Ohanzee Confederation, a confederation of over thirty tribal nations, dominated the continent by the time Commoners arrived in 1402. As the continent's first governing force, the Ohanzee Confederation was said to have been created by the actual Ohanzee tribes who hail from the northeastern part of the continent. Four Ohanzee tribes total unified so they could cooperate and direct all future warfare against its competitors; competiton namely included other Ohanzee speakers - Ohanzee tribes who were independent - and unknown, possible prior natives, that are believed to have been wiped out by the Ohanzee in the past. Oral tradition states that "the four nations brought together eight other Ohanzee tribes/speakers and defeated eighteen other peoples." In 1412, a full decade after TECT colonists establish their first settlement on the continent, and eight years after the Luttenried Order established their Crusader State, the two sides officially went to war. After almost two decades of conflict, the Luttenried Crusader State/Holy Earldom achieved total domination over the continent in 1431. As recognition for its grand achievements, the Luttenried Earldom was hansomly rewarded by both the Empire and Kirche for its victory in yet another crusade. To cement the state's authority in the region and its position within the Empire, Whilhelm XII awarded Holy Earl Burchard Bleier Luttenried the title of Duke, transforming him into a Duke his realm into a Colonial Stem Dukedom.
The Holy Dukedom of Luttenried exploded economically and experienced a signifigant population boom after the Ohanzee Crusade. The combination of religious and imperial fevor, knowledge of vast untapped resources, and expansive land for settlers to claim attracted immigrants, pilgrims, and businesses to the continent in what historians refer to as the "Luttenried Settler Rush." Holy Duke Burchard and the Luttenried Order spent the next three decades consolidating their position in the region; time was spent developing the Duchy's infrastructure, attracting new residents from home, and learning more about regional neighborhood. After his death in 1492, Holy Duke Burchard's eldest son, Theudemar Luttenried, inherits his father's title and becomes the next Oberbefehlshaber of the Luttenried Order. Holy Duke Theudemar "The Crusader" was a devout believer like his predocessors before him and his loyalty to the Emperor was second only to God. Theudemar's self-proclaimed mission as his father's successor was to build upon what Holy Duke Burchard had established, and to do that, Holy Duke Theudemar spent nearly two decades preparing for war. In 1510, Holy Duke Theudemar and the Luttenried Order proclaimed "Holy Crusade" against several island nations and territories surrounding Luttenried, kicking off the Luttenried Crusade. Over the next decade, the Holy Dukedom of Luttenried, with the Empire's assistance, conquered dozens of islands near and far from the continent. By 1521, the Holy Duchy had achieved its modern day borders and continued its march until reaching its territorial height in 1528. Luttenried's defeat at the Battle of Werdheri Bay in 1528 turned the tides against the Luttenried Crusaiders, marking the downfall of the Holy Crusade.
Luttenried, reeling from its untimely defeat during the nearly two-decade long Luttenried Crusade, turned its focus on restablishing itself into a proper state within the Empire. Although Holy Duke Theudemar focused his reforms on establishing an official military and fortifying the Holy Duchy's remaining holdings, his death in 1531 ended all aspirations of continuing the Holy Crusade in the immediate future. Holy Duke Theudemar's successor, his second son Raginmund Luttenried, would be remembered in history as the "Raginmund The Reformer." Under Holy Duke Raginmund's reign as Holy Duke, the Holy Dukedom of Luttenried underwent extensive reforms from top to bottom. Although devout and loyal to both God and the Empire like his predecessors, Raginmund was not nearly as militaristicly centered in his policy making; rather, Raginmund is remembered more as "Father Raginmund" than as "Crusader Raginmund." Historians credit "Raginmund's Reformation" period as the turning point in Luttenried's history, transforming Luttenried the "Crusader State" it was founded as into Luttenreid the "Holy Dukedom." Rather than acting as a polity, Holy Duke Raginmund realized Luttenried needed to properly intigrate into the Empire and reform itself into a proper national entity if it were to thrive in the long term. Raginmund was the first Holy Duke to decline the title of Oberbefehlshaber in the Luttenried Order, instead leaving the Order to decide whom the position suited best; Hariman Luttenried, the Holy Duke's younger brother, was unanimously elected as Oberbefehlshaber in Raginmund's stead. Before his passing in 1588, Holy Duke Raginmund solidified his father's efforts in establishing a proper military force which didn't belong to nor rely on the Luttenried Order. Holy Duke Raginmund also formed a proper government structure by creating the "Stem Holy Baron" system to properly govern the Holy Duchy's territories. Rather than overseeing the entirety of the Holy Dukedom personally, vassals overseeing their respective territories increased efficiency and freed up the Holy Duke for other activities. Smaller territories, such as distant islands, were governed by lower nobles such as Holy Lords as well if they fell outside a Holy Baron's domain. Vassals of the Holy Duke were then selected by the Holy Duke to become ministers (often with promotions in noble rank), ministers being tasked with operating ministries and other segments of the Holy Duke's government. As Holy Duke Raginmund's political and military reforms were enacted, so too were his economic reforms. Knowing the Empire's favor primarily derived from Luttenried's ability to export foodstuffs/food home, Holy Duke Raginmund established policies that would direct Luttenried into specializing in agriculture economically; these policies included tax incentives for farmers, special land development expansion projects, and production level incentives for agricultural producers (percentile tax return based on product weight and gold weight, for example). Vegetables, fish, animal products, and fruits became the highest paying exports Luttenried shipped back home. Although not to fall short, Holy Duke Raginmund was keen on exploiting Luttenried's other resources, such as gold, lumber, and numerous mineral deposits his vassals had discovered. Shipbuilding, a trade Luttenried was in desparate need of, also saw large growth under Holy Duke Raginmund.
At the end of the nineteenth century, the Holy Dukedom of Luttenried began experiencing what historians describe as the "Republican Movement" within the Empire. The Republican Movement was a political/cultural shift within the Empire, primarily in the Mainland, that called for the redistribution of governmental authority to the citizens in order to achieve better representation and improved quality of life. This namely translated to eliminating the noble class' iron grip over governance, and reshaping nearly two millennias of governance within the Empire itself. In the Empire, this resulted in the "Federal Reformation," which transferred most noble authority away from their direct rule over provinces and fiefs into civilian elected State Governments; a dangerous period in Imperial history as the citizens fought to achieve recognized liberties and most nobles fighting to retain their authority within the Empire's governance. This period was also marked by civil war, as several nobles took up arms against the Empire which was attempting to please the two sides by compromising with the "Republican Federalists" and satisfying the nobles through other incentives; although brief, the 1891 Nobleman Insurrection was followed up with cold war style political strife after the noble's decisive defeat. In Luttenried, the affects of the Republican Movement were tame but heard. Since the Imperial Government's reformation affected holdings it directly controlled in the mainland, Luttenried itself was not obligated to follow such reforms unless it desired to. Although legal experts of the time expressed colonial stem noble realms fell within the reformation's scope, Emperor Vinzent II decreed (even over the Supreme Court of the Empire) that such colonial holdings held an independent position within the Empire and that their statuses "are all but decided by themselves, as Federalism would rightfully call for." Although the people of Luttenried did not identify completely with the new Republican Movement, it was ever apparent that the Holy Duchy's citizens did wish for liberties its Imperial siblings were receiving and the idea of better representation was all too inticing. Holy Duke Gottschalk took action immedietly before the situation could possibly develop into instibility. Among his first acts, Holy Duke Gottschalk established reforms that changed how vassals operated their domains; all fiefs were required to better document necessary events and statistics in order to better oversee their activities and take action against those violating their oaths. Holy Duke Gottschalk's second action was replacing his Minister Council with the establishment of the Luttenried Diet, a multi-level legislature comprised of the governing nobles and represntatives of their land's peoples. The Luttenried Diet's main function at the time was offering better representation for the Holy Duchy's people and conducting policy making absent of the Holy Duke's direct contribution - although the Holy Duke was still required to approve all matters the Diet processed. Although these and other Republican/Federalist reforms didn't necessairly meet Republican Movement demands on paper, the results however did. Luttenried Nobles, now fearing their power being totally stripped like their Imperial counterparts, were encouraged to provide better liberties to their people, such as more free speech and representation through elected governance. While not changing all too much, the Holy Duchy survived the Republican Movement as a fully entact Theocratic Feudal Monarchy where most other nobles of the Empire either lost their governing positions or were reduced to meerly empty titles.
Geography & Environment
Culture & Demographics
Government & Kirche
The Holy Dukedom of Luttenried is a Theocratic Feudal Monarchy comprising of fourteen provincial territories and several other smaller county-level island domains. Luttenried is a Colonial Stem Duchy under The Empire of Common Territories, which is an Absolute Federal Monarchy. At the Holy Dukedom's head is the "Holy Duke," an Imperial Duke who's House has historically been aligned with the Kirche der Königlich, hence the title of "Holy." While the Holy Duke has supreme authority over his realm (as granted to them by the Crown), a national government comprised of a national legislature and court system are in place. Local governance is maintained by lower seated Luttenried nobles and their local governments, most of whom are Holy Barons or Holy Marquess. Historically, Luttenried existed as a "Crusader State" between 1412 and 1531 until it formally adopted traditional medieval-styled noble rule; the Luttenried House itself was granted the colonial territory to govern originally as a Earldom by Emperor Whilhelm XII. Although it has not fundimentally altered its governing system since 1531, Holy Duke Gottschalk formally created the Luttenried Diet along with enacting other Republican reforms in 1892 that either federalized or incentivised federalization of Luttenried's governing apparatus. In this case, "federalizing" was done more in spirit and was defined literally as "a system of central governance built from decentralized local governance." In practice Luttenried does utilize republicanism in its government system, but like TECT it is at heart ruled by an absolute ruler as well as the Imperial Throne.
From top down there are three branches of governance within Luttenried: The Holy Duke (executive), the Luttenried Diet (legislature), and the Luttenried Judicial System (justice system). Although these are all branches of governance technically, they are not equal by any means. The Holy Duke's authority rests above the Diet and courts because the Holy Duke's authority over their territory is absolute. This is because the Holy Duke was appointed by the Emperor (Emperor Whilhelm XII originally) to serve as governor of the land on behalf of the Empire, thus a duke enjoys the privilege of ruling his domain as he sees fit because they posses the Emperor's blessings.
The Luttenried Diet, the youngest of the branches, was created by Holy Duke Gottschalk both as a means to settle Republican sentiments and to better manage government/national affairs; the Diet replaced the "Lord's Council" which was entirely made up of land-owning/ruling nobility that advised the Holy Duke on national affairs and managed The Holy Dukedom's Ministries. Luttenried's Diet is made up of two chambers: the "House of Lords" and the "House of Commons." The House of Lords is the upper chamber of the Diet and consists of all title holding nobility (or their representatives) and officials from Luttenreid's branch of the Kirche der Königlich (of whom are elected by the branch); at heart the Holy Duke holds supreme authority over whom joins the Chamber, but traditionally the territory holding nobles and highest ranking nobles are guaranteed a seat. It is rare, for example, to not have a Minister from the Holy Duke's executive branch as member of the House of Lords because most Ministers are high-ranking nobles the Holy Duke appointed themself. In the opposite manner, the House of Commons is the lower chamber of the Diet and entirely consists of elected representatives. The lower realms by Decree must sanction the election of two representatives every four years to the House of Commons where even leadership in the Chamber is elected by the members, including the House's top official, the Speaker of the House of Commons. While the House of Lords typically varies in number of members, the Chamber typically seats between twenty-one to thirty members. The lower house in contrast has remained the same since the 1987 Bourgougian Blitz when Luttenried seized the island of Klingewalde in an effort to retake territory lost centuries ago. Since 1987, the House of Commons has had forty-two Representatives, two representatives per lower realm. In this design, the upper house represents the noble class and the governments formed in their realms while the lower house represents the citizens of those noble realms in government. While not above the Holy Duke, the Diet acts as the main mechanism of law-making and judicial enforcement of the law. Judicially speaking, the Luttenried Judicial System is the Holy Dukedom's national justice system made up of courts that serve in enforcing the Holy Dukedom's laws domestically. There are eight judicial districts in Luttenried whom each posses lower, upper, appellate, and supreme courts among other courts within the upper/lower sub-types. Luttenried itself lacks a supreme court because the Diet is responsible for the Holy Dukedom's highest possible judicial cases. If the matter is not settled by the Holy Duke or his authority, the Luttenried Diet is tasked with handling cases concerning the highest probable national consequences. Lastly, ignoring the Holy Duke for the time being, the executive branch consists of the Ministerial offices serving directly under the Holy Duke. Prior to the Republican Reforms in 1892, the Lord's Council, serving as the Holy Duke's closest advisors, also served as his Ministers. Before that the Holy Barons that were granted land to govern by the Holy Duke served as his Ministers. Today's Ministers are typically high ranking nobles (by heredity or appointment), often times within the Luttenried House itself, or high ranking officials within the Kirche. It is not rare to see multiple overlaps in titles and offices as a Luttenried can hold a Ministerial office, govern land and thus be a member of the House of Lords, and serve in the Kirche officially all at the same time.
Lower Realms
Lower Realms of the Holy Dukedom of Luttenried first emerged prior to 1500 as a way for Holy Duke Theudemar and his predecessor to properly manage their Duchy after fully bringing the Luttenried Continent under their control. Holy Duke Theudemar and prior Holy Dukes utilized vassals they appointed to manage territories the Holy Duchy had to administrate and by 1500 these appointies were eventually all given the title of "Holy Baron." During the 1510 Luttenried Crusade, Holy Duke Theudemar solidified the Holy Baron position as an administrative system and appointed new Holy Barons and Holy Marquess' to govern lands the Holy Duchy conquered. After the Crusade's turning point in 1528, almost all of these newer Holy Barons and Marquess' (among other lower title holders) were wiped out by the retaliating muslim and Musgorocia forces, many of the title holders themselves making their last stands in their territories before dying in battle. The only time a former domain was retaken after the Crusade was in 1987 during the Bourgougian Blitz; although House Klingewalde fell alongside its island in 1530, the new Holy Marquess of Klingewalde is said to be a descendant of the island's survivors, governing the islands where barons once stood.
Today there are twenty-one lower realms of the Holy Dukedom of Luttenried. Although not all are Baronies, the vast majority are. Each lower realm acts as an administrative division of the Holy Dukedom and the realm itself enjoys a high level of autonomy in return for absolute loyalty to the Holy Duke and Emperor. Each realm ruler has absolute rule over their realm similar to Luttenried's situation within the Empire. Each ruler decides their governance, laws, and other domestic policies so long as they are within Holy Dukedom law. A realm ruler at heart, however, is tasked with governing their realm and protecting it from threats whether they're domestic or external. Although this is not entirely the case in some situations as edicts from the Holy Duke have made permenant policy choices that to this day affect individual realms - the same being said for the Luttenried Diet too. For example, Marches like the Holy March of Hachborn for example (the last remaining Luttenried territory bordering the muslim realm to the west) are permitted by edict to retain military forces because they act as border territories and require additional protection thusly.
Kirche der Königlich
The "Kirche der Königlich" or "Church of the Royal" in english, is the dominant religion in both the Empire and Luttenried. While other denominations of Christianity began to spread in the Empire during the late nineth century, Emperor Alexander Aþanareiks Fromm became the first Emperor to adopt the faith in the early 10th century. Not only did Emperor Alexander adopt the faith, he saw to it that a new denomination was founded in order to incorporate the pagan faiths still dominating the Empire so that the Empire could properly convert one day. Emperor Alexander's incorporations of the Angels as heavenly angels, and Bösepenst as demons became widely popular within the Empire to the point that only two decades after his death, the new Kirche named in his honor became the fastest growing religious faith in the Empire. While holdouts of the pagan cults still exist to this day, the Kirche or other Christian faiths eventually converted the overwhelming majority of Commoners into the Christian faith by the twelfth century. Fashioned on the structure of the Catholic Church, the Kirche was built around a clergy headed by the "Papst" or "Pope" in english. Cardinals and Bishops, among other lower ranking individuals, made up the structure of the Kirche, allowing the Kirche to organize its members around the Empire with great success. Unlike the Catholic Church, however, KdK is often compared to Protestantism due to its traditional adherence to the Bible as the sole infallible source of authority for the Christian faith and practice; for example while the Pope is seen as the highest authority among man on behalf of God in the Catholic faith, the Papst acts as the direct manifestation and will of God among man on God's will. Although these differences have lead to fighting between the faiths, KdK eventually came out on top as the most influencial religious body in the Empire.
KdK's influence with Luttenried begins long before Commoners ever set foot on the continent. Not only did Luttenried's first ruler, Holy Duke Burchard Bleier Luttenried belong to the faith, he was Oberbefehlshaber of the Luttenried Order, a prominent and highly prestigious order of crusader knights serving the Kirche during the late Pagan Crusades. Once the Luttenried Order took full control of Wilhelmshaven in Luttenried the continent, governance fell onto the Order and thus by default the Kirche as well. As a crusader order serving the Kirche, naturally the Kirche had a lot of sway in how the territory was governed. In stark contrast, while not openly opposed to the Kirche's influence, the Empire staked its place in the dirt to remind the Kirche and Order for whom held the highest power in their complicated relationship. As such, Luttenried was forced to placate the Empire all while still serving in the Kirche's best interests; this tug-of-war between the Empire and Kirche wasn't uncommon, but the internal struggles highlighted the divide the Empire would eventually erect between Kirche and State. Meanwhile the Kirche continued to press its influence on nobles around the Empire, and Luttenried was among those realms most in-bed with the Kirche given its position and history. Luttenried's identity was so fixated on religion that it operated under two distinct identities during this period. While the Empire widely knew Luttenried as the "Earldom of Luttenried," or "Dukedom of Luttenried" shortly after, Luttenried itself along with the faithful operated under the name of "Luttenried Order" or the "Crusader State of Luttenried" until 1531.
Between 1404 and 1531, the "Crusader State Era" as it's known, governance of Luttenried was entirely theocratic and dictitorial. After the establishment of total continental control in 1431, Luttenried began reforms in an effort to consolidate control of the continent and begin thriving as a territory within the Empire and region. Up until his death in 1492, Holy Duke Burchard enacted many economic and political reforms to bring order and success to Luttenried. To help govern over the newly booming Holy Dukedom, Holy Duke Burchard created a system of governance based on a provincial system managed by vassals, an inner council that advised the Holy Duke and enacted his will, and a Duchy-wide governing body consisting of Kirche officials. The Holy Duke's vassals would manage the territories of the Holy Duchy while a select few trusted vassals would serve the Holy Duke as advisors and enforcers. Holy Duke Burchard's most important political reform however was the creation of a new Kirche body within Luttenried that acted as the Kirche's own vassal. Often referred to as the "Kirche der Luttenried," it served two purposes. First, the Luttenried Kirche consolidated all Kirche assets and operations into one body headquartered in the capital Wilhelmshaven; this move put everything into one local entity which proved to be a cost saving measure that also gave the regional authorities better autonomy. Second, Holy Duke Burchard used this new Kirche system to establish the "Pontifical Diet for Wilhelmshaven," Luttenried's first national governing body with legislative and policy making powers. Although the Luttenried Kirche didn't (and still doesn't) have a Papst, rather it observed(s) the Kirche's Papst as the highest clergy official, they did/do have a " Between 1404 and 1531, the "Crusader State Era" as it's known, governance of Luttenried was entirely theocratic and dictitorial. After the establishment of total continental control in 1431, Luttenried began reforms in an effort to consolidate control of the continent and begin thriving as a territory within the Empire and region. Up until his death in 1492, Holy Duke Burchard enacted many economic and political reforms to bring order and success to Luttenried. To help govern over the newly booming Holy Dukedom, Holy Duke Burchard created a system of governance based on a provincial system managed by vassals, an inner council that advised the Holy Duke and enacted his will, and a Duchy-wide governing body consisting of Kirche officials. The Holy Duke's vassals would manage the territories of the Holy Duchy while a select few trusted vassals would serve the Holy Duke as advisors and enforcers. Holy Duke Burchard's most important political reform however was the creation of a new Kirche body within Luttenried that acted as the Kirche's own vassal. Often referred to as the "Kirche der Luttenried," it served two purposes. First, the Luttenried Kirche consolidated all Kirche assets and operations into one body headquartered in the capital Wilhelmshaven; this move put everything into one local entity which proved to be a cost saving measure that also gave the regional authorities better autonomy. Second, Holy Duke Burchard used this new Kirche system to establish the "Pontifical Diet for Wilhelmshaven," Luttenried's first national governing body with legislative and policy making powers. Although the Luttenried Kirche didn't (and still doesn't) have a Papst, rather it observed(s) the Kirche's Papst as the highest clergy official, they did/do have a "Papst Kardinal" which is translated into english as "Pontiff Cardinal." Similar to the Papst, the Papst Kardinal is the highest clergy member of the Luttenried Kirche that serves directly under the Kirche's Papst, acting as the Papst's chief executive in Luttenried.
The "Crusader State Era" ended in 1531 with the death of Holy Duke Theudemar. His death was marked as being the loss of all hope in attempting a second Luttenried Crusade primarily due to the losses suffered during his Crusade. Although the Luttenried Crusade ended with net positive land taken for the Holy Dukedom, the stark contrast in lives and resources lost, including many of Theudenar's own offspring, cut deeply into the Holy Duchy's psyche, many of those wounds being made during the weigning and bloodiest days of the Crusade; his second son, Holy Duke Raginmund,
Military
The Holy Luttenried Armed Forces ("Luttenried Armed Forces", "Holy Duchy Armed Forces") or "Heilig Lüttenried Bundeswehr" are the armed forces and organizations of the Holy Dukedom of Luttenried. The Holy Duchy's Armed Forces are comprised by the Holy Duchy Marine Forces, Holy Duchy Navy, Holy Duchy Air Force, Holy Duchy Cyber Warfare Forces, Holy Duchy Home Guard, and the Holy Order of the Luttenried Knights. Currently, the Holy Duchy Armed Forces number over 1,200,000 men and women, not including volunteers within Luttenried's Militia Command and the Luttenried Knight Order. Among The Empire of Common Territories' Colonial Duchies, Luttenried boasts not only the largest military force within the Empire's colonial holdings but is also the most well equipped colonial holding within the Empire; the Holy Duchy's Armed Forces are widely regarded as being only second to the Empire's military forces within the Empire. Rather than having an official anthem, much like the Holy Duchy itself, the Holy Duchy Armed Forces have an official hymn/chant ("Media vita in morte sumus") that is often chanted before military actions such as deployments.
Equipped largely with Wolf Armaments equipment, the Holy Duchy Armed Forces are among the few Colonial entities that equips themselves rather than relying on the Empire for its wares. Although foreign purchases must be approved by the Empire, thus most purchases from foreign companies will be handled through Imperial Authorities, domestic purchases (like with Wolf Armaments) don't require Imperial approval. Wolf Armaments itself has several major facilities and a few dozen smaller operations within Luttenried, but most maintenance and upgrades are done by companies located within Luttenried. It is well known that the Luttenried Armed Forces utilizes standard equipment, vehicles, ships, and aircraft that're tailor made or modified to suit their needs; often times these item models will include an "L" to signify they're Luttenried Models. Among other entities Luttenried has acquired equipment from internationally, Consortia SA from Etoile Arcture, Schwerpunkt Arms from Nachmere, and several companies within the Empire of Greater Nifon have seen purchases.
Economy
Luttenried is a highly developed market driven economy. When compared to other colonial holdings within the Empire, the Holy Duchy is by far the largest economy due in part to its sheer geological size; the Holy Duchy's GDP is compounded when Luttenried's regional trade ties comes into play. Luttenried's economy is so large that it often competes with the better developed Imperial States on the Mainland in terms of both size and influence. The Holy Duchy has enjoyed mostly uninterrupted economic growth since the late sixteenth century, owing its successes and higher than average HDI to several factors including having an economy made up of durable/robust industry sectors, careful government interventions if any, and Luttenried's strategic location within the Kali Yuga Region. Trade between the Empire and the Holy Duchy has long been attributed to the Holy Duchy as its primary source of economic prosperity; the Empire is Luttenried's largest trade partner, which imports almost two hundred billion Imperial Dollars worth of agricultural products every year alone.
Dominated by the agricultural sector, Luttenried has been a "bread basket" for the Empire since the 17th century. All manners of agricultural products from basic food crops to furs make up a huge segment of the Luttenried economy. Historically this is due to the Empire's desperate importing of such goods from its colonies; colonies like Luttenried simply followed the money, many of which (like Luttenried) continue to focus on agricultural industries in order to earn high profits and favor from the Empire. Aquaculture, the second largest sector of the Luttenried economy, has been a more locally focused sector in terms of trade. The Empire does buy in large quantities products not locally found near the Mainland (such as fish and other ingredients not native to the Royal Oceans), but overall the Mainland is over overabundant in most aquaculture based products - most imports cannot compete against the entrenched local industries. Mining is the next largest sector within the Holy Duchy. Both resources and fuel material are the primary income bringers for Luttenried's mining industries. Resources such as iron and aluminum are mined in great quantities for both local use and exports. Precious metals, such as gold and silver for example, are largely exported for net profits; although small, Luttenried's jewelry sector has made a name for itself in terms of quality and religious themed style. Fuel, such as coal and uranium, are largely sold to the Luttenried Ministry of Energy for distribution to the Holy Duchy's energy monopolies; coal is, however, exported at a high rate due to the Holy Duchy's significant reliance on nuclear energy. Manufacturing and services are two sectors Luttenried has historically neglected with few exceptions. These exceptions are namely the Luttenried branche of Wolf Armaments and other native arms/equipment manufacturing companies, and Luttenried's lucrative tourism industry. Up until the 20th century, Luttenried has largely relied on the Empire to fulfill most manufacturing needs. Things like plastic wrapping or other packaging material for example would be sold or provided by customers in the Empire to handle the goods companies in Luttenried would produce. Simply put, Luttenried succeeded best in producing the final product, but lacked in production goods related to that final product; if lettuce is used as an example, Luttenried grew excellent heads of lettuce, but it couldn't possibly plastic wrap every head needed to make a profit. Or using cars as an example, Luttenried companies would excel at building cars but not all of their components. Unlike most modern economies, Luttenried's services sector was largely devoid outside tourism based industries and vital infrastructure needs. Tourism has long been Luttenried's most lucrative service sector industry, which is largely due to Christian pilgrims and Imperial citizens vacationing in the numerous tourist areas of the Holy Duchy. Since the early 90's, Luttenried has begun investing extra capital into developing both the manufacturing and services sectors. Holy Duke Friedhelm von Luttenried launched the "Economic Modernization Initiative" or "EMI" to target economic sectors within Luttenried for specific modernization programs in order to begin properly competing with not only its neighbors in the region, but against the Empire itself. "This is not a matter of loyalty or profits to us in the Holy Duchy. Our success is a matter of national security and strengthening ourselves for the Empire's sake." Continuing into the current year, the EMI has worked to invest in startup technology companies, manufacturing companies, and lure Imperial companies into investing/expanding into Luttenried in order to help develop the Holy Duchy's economy further.
Agriculture
Dominated by agriculture since its inception, Luttenried's agricultural sector remains as the Holy Duchy's primary source of income. Agriculture accounts for forty-eight percent of the Luttenried economy according to the Holy Duchy's Interior Ministry. This trend was created in 1588 by Holy Duke Raginmund during the "Raginmund Reformation." Holy Duke Raginmund knew the Empire invested in Luttenreid largely in part due to the Holy Duchy's ability to produce food for the Empire; this was largely the case under Raginmund's predecessors as well who focused on food exports to the Empire in exchange for goods and services unavailable in Luttenried from the Empire. Many of Raginmund's economic reforms and initiatives focused on developing Luttenried's agricultural sector, including incentives for farmers, land development projects, and investments into agricultural programs throughout the Holy Dukedom. As a result, the Holy Duchy's economy became in large part centered around food and raw resource production. Luttenried's agricultural sector includes farming industries, the forestry industry, and animal husbandry industries to name a few. Aquaculture, the economic sector which focuses on fishing and other aquatic cultivating industries, is separated from agriculture by the Treasury and Interior Ministry. Both sectors accounted for sixty-eight percent of Luttenried's GDP in 2020, or $7.8 Trillion NSD; agriculture accounted for forty-eight percent of Luttenried's GDP alone in 2020, or $5.5 Trillion NSD. There are over 472,375 agricultural workers employeed throughout the farming, forestry, and animal husbandry industries within Luttenried. These workers and businesses account for sixty-five percent of Luttenried's landmass, which are spread over 156,034 farms/pens and associated facilities; eighty-eight percent of these farms/facilities are still family owned.
As a landmass with large swaths of arid land, Luttenried is well known for its practices of irrigation and dryland farming. Other areas, notably the northern and southern peaks, are dominated by tropical climates and support more intensive farming practices. In general, Luttenried's agricultural sector is dominated by mechanization of farming where possible, including the use of large harvesting equipment and support tools for manual labourers. In terms of food production, Luttenried has three primary product groups: Vegetables/fruits/nuts, cash crops (such as sugar cane or coffee beans), and husbandry products (such as meats and wool). Fruit is especially profitable in Luttenried as most of the Empire's mainland lacks any tropical climates suitable for most favord fruit crops, making them rarer or entirely imported. Although not as profitable as many fruits, raw vegetables and meats make up huge segments of Luttenried's exports to the Empire; their value when sold in bulk quantities is what makes these products as profitable as they are. Meanwhile, many cash crops such as sugar cane and coffee beans (Luttenried's most abundant cash crops) are mostly sold domestically to local businesses who then turn those products into bulk exportable products. Aside from coffee, which is Luttenried's largest cash crop export for the Empire, only excess cash crops are exported (typically to regional trade partners or the Empire).
Husbandry is the largest segment of Luttenried's agricultural sector behind its farming industries. The beef industry in particular is the largest segment of Luttenried's husbandry operations. Cattle operations cover almost two-hundred and twenty million hectares of land in Luttenried, accounting for almost two million heads of cattle within the Holy Duchy and around thirteen billion litres of milk in 2020. Around seventy percent of the beef produced in Luttenried is exported - mainly to the Empire - while around eighty percent of the milk produced in Luttenried is consumed domestically. Leather, a product produced alongside beef, accounts for most of Luttenried's leather production and earns around sixty million NSD yearly.