The Astrian Civil War 1986 - 1993

Astrian Civil War
Tanks rolling past ruins during the Siege of Doldister
Date 19th April 1986 - 15th October 1993 Location Astrian Isles Result Loyalist Victory
Loyalists-Revolutionaries
Loyalists The Kingdom of Astrium Governmentalists Monarchists	Revolutionaries The Communist Forces of Astrium Republican Freedom Fighters Anarchist Rebels
Commanders and leaders
King Alster I High Minister Lord Harold Fornson General Scott Garrett  † General Alexander Mitchel General George Bernard General Adrian Oscar  † Air Marshall Chester Marvin  † Air Commander Wayne Jackson Admiral Russel Troy	Commissar Jacob Harris  † Commander Adil Charles Commander Edward Marco  † Air Commander Maxim Herbert Willard Travis Marshall Maximillian Roosevelt Marshall Bryan Donald  † Layton Spencer  †
Strength
In 1986 Army 325,000 Air Force 95,000 Navy 165,000 Total 585,000 In 1993 Army 570,000 Air Force 185,000 Navy 310,000 Total 1,065,000	In 1986 Army 465,000 Air Force 35,000 Navy 0 Total 585,000 In 1993 Army 125,000 Air Force 17,000 Navy 0 Total 142,000
Casualties and losses
Dead 337,000 Injured 285,000	Dead 493,000 Injured 528,000
Civilian Dead 296,000 Civilian Injured 361,000
Total Dead 1,126,000 Total Injured 1,174,000 Displaced 6,000,000+

The Astrian Civil War was a conflict lasting from 1986 - 1993, revolving around multiple factions that sought both reform or revolution. The monarchy of Astrium had grown politically unpopular, as King Fredrick III's administration proved incapable of protecting the people from natural disasters, economic meltdown and terrorist attacks. His son, Fredrick IV, was initially viewed as a reformer, though these hopes were dashed, as the new King emulated his father in policy. Corruption spiralled, and nepotism in both government and corporations thrived openly. With reforms blocked by the King's officials, educated resistance began campaigns to spread awareness and seek popular consent for the abolition of monarchy. The nascent republican movement grew in tandem with more hard-left factions, including anarchists and Communists. In 1986, the Parliament, holding within the King and his High Minister Lord Adam Falstirm, was bombed successfully by revolutionaries. With the the government leaderless, the Kingdom fell into anarchy, with various cliques arranged broadly into loyalists and revolutionaries, though significant inter-factional rivalries also caused small scale conflicts. The loyalists ultimately emerged victorious following a brutal campaign, leaving hundreds of thousands dead in their wake.

Causes of the conflict

The Revolutionaries had been increasingly disturbed by Fredrick III and his son Fredrick IV for being useless on the world stage and at home. Fredrick III had consistently failed at assisting the people during famines, natural disasters and when terror attacks rocked the capital. Subjects all over the kingdom had begun to wish for a new dawn when Fredrick IV took the throne, but when they saw an identical reign of Fredrick IV's approaching, despair and hopelessness surrounded the kingdom. A new light had emerged from the darkness, a possibility of a new King for some, a new country for others.

During April of 1986 the communists and Republicans had grown to be more popular than the government therefore, protests, demonstrations, and riots fell upon major cities and population centres across the kingdom. On April 13th 1986 protests began in the centre of Doldister, Communists, Anarchists, and Republicans had gathered in their own sections of the city to start demonstrating against the King and his government. Slowly through the days and nights of the longest unrest the kingdom had seen, the protesters became more violent and unsatisfied with the stubbornness of the government. Therefore on the night of April 17th the protests had turned to riots, destruction of government institution buildings and surrounding areas prompted the King to send in the Armed Forces to quell riots. However, this only made the rioters more furious and progressed towards the parliament building, where King Fredrick IV and the High Minister, Adam Falstirm, were staying along with many delegates from across the kingdom.

Throughout the final day of riots on April 19th 1986, the rioters had gathered around the parliament building of Astrium, armed with Molotov cocktails, poles to beat people and police, and a few with explosives and guns. In the evening of that day rioters stormed the building and forced their way to the main room, where the most important leaders of the Kingdom were. While the rioters had burst in, one threw and detonated an explosive device that resulted the collapse of the celling, crushing many of those inside of the chamber, recorded inside of the building the deaths of the King, High Minister, and 127 Councillors were accounted. Soon after this explosion was noticed inside the parliament building, the police and Armed Forces opened fire into one of the crowds, therefore the protesters and rioters with weapons retaliated.

Protests around the city had also devolved into violence and with the news of the killing of the King, spiralled even further into armed combat between two sides. While the days moved on with no end to fighting in and around the capital, armed revolts had sprung up all over the country, with leaders taking their place and creating organised armies. Therefore by the 24th of April a full scale civil war had begun with Loyalists wishing to keep the monarchy in power and the Revolutionaries attempting to tear apart the old government of the Kingdom.

The explosion inside of the parliament building that killed King Fredrick IV, High Minister Lord Adam Falstirm, and many other councillors is seen as the starting event of the Astrian Civil War where from there the two sides organised themselves into armies and factions.

Factions

The Communist Forces of Astrium, led by Commissar Jacob Harris, had been growing in power since the start of the 1980s and were increasingly violent as their unrest was consistently ignored by the government. Their aims to force the kingdom to overthrow the monarchy and place in a communist dictatorship and leader, however the populous who supported Commissar J Harris were blinded by the need for a revolution, the freedom of the worker, and the equality of all individuals in the nation.

The Anarchist Rebels, this faction of the civil war had no clear leader or military organisation, simply fighting as groups of armed guerrillas who were prompted to fight against government due to the disruption that had been inflicted by the outbreak of the Revolutionaries. The intentions of this faction however were very clear, destroy the kingdom and become a state free from government tyranny, starting with the monarchy.

The Republican Freedom Fighters, the head of this faction was Willard Travis, elected by a large group of freedom fighters who saw him as a powerful leader who could manage the revolt against the monstrous and undemocratic government that had ruled over the country for centuries. There was a pure and simple aim for this faction, bring down the corrupt monarchy and install a republic, granting freedom, rights, and equality for all people of the nation. Unfortunately, the only way to achieve peace was through bloodshed and death, the fighters understood this was a way of life and that their sacrifice would be justified.

The Loyalists, there was only two parts of this side of the civil war, made up of Monarchists and Governmentalists, both led by the newly proclaimed King Alster I and his High Minister, Lord Harold Fornson. The two parts of this side had the same goals, restore the Kingdom, maintain the nation, and destroy the Revolutionaries.

Events

1987, the Revolutionary forces take advantage of the disarray in government due to the loss of structure and the kingdom's parliament. Advancements were seen in every section of the kingdom that had an uprising, particularly the island of Altney was caught of guard and by the start of the year had almost completely collapsed to revolutionary forces. With the Battle of Altney clear to be won by the Revolutionaries, they set it up as the main base of operations that would oversee the fighting all over the Astrian Isles. Around other sections of the Isles you could see the Siege of Doldister and the Revolutionary Advance in the East begin.

Foreign Intervention

Overseas, the Astrian Civil War was viewed as an open proxy war primarily between Celesterra, and the Great Zhi, with Celesterran support being vital the loyalist victory, while the Great Zhi opportunistically backed the Republicans. This caused significant political turmoil within the Imperial aristocracy, and tension between the Republicans and their benefactors. The government of the Anguang Emperor was heavily criticised by conservatives at home. The Celesterran regime achieved a diplomatic success by backing the loyalists, achieving huge economic benefits through assisting in Astrium's recovery.