Long Peace

Long Peace
1855–1913
The Mor Embankment in Morwall, Estmere in 1892
Location	Estmere
Including	Estmerish Empire Realism
Monarch(s)	Edward III, Richard XII, Edward IV
Leader(s)	Earl of Longwood, Baron Burke, Marquess Rhisling, Seymour Parnell, Earl of Tanqueray, Viscount Maraleigh, Marquess Ebrington, Baron Gorhambury, John Harris
← Preceded by Viridian Reaction Followed by → Great Collapse

The Long Peace was an era of Estmerish history generally agreed to have lasted from the end of the War of the Triple Alliance in 1855 to the Great Collapse in 1913, though some historians extend the period until the beginning of the Kirenian-Estmerish War in 1916. The period was named retrospectively for the unprecedented peace which citizens of the Estmerish metropole enjoyed at the time.

In this period, Estmere experienced relative internal political stability, which contrasted with the uncertainty of the Euclean Spring which came before and the Great War which came after, while also seeing the worst of the Viridian Reaction reversed as parliament achieved ascendency over the monarchy and suffrage gradually expanded. Economically, the period was characterised by slow but steady economic growth, while culturally the Romanticists were eclipsed by new movements such as the Realists, with Morwall emerging as a cultural as well as industrial centre. Science and technology was seen to be advancing, and there was a sense of wonder and optimism at these advancements, as innovations such as motion pictures, automobiles and telephones emerged, while railways were rapidly expanded.

Characterised by optimism, relative prosperity, innovation, peace at home and expansion abroad, the Long Peace is retrospectively seen as a Golden Age, especially in contrast to the Great Collapse which followed. The Long Peace largely coincided with the Prachtvolle Epoche in Werania, the Âge des Gens Heureux in Gaullica, the Anni di Serenità in Etruria, Olsovian rule in Soravia, and the Xiyong era in Shangea.

Terminology and periodisation

The Long Peace strictly speaking is agreed to start with the conclusion of the War of the Triple Alliance in 1855. There is some debate among historians as to whether the end of the period should come in 1913 with the Great Collapse, which marked a sharp decline in the standard of living and the end of political stability, or in 1916 with the start of the Kirenian-Estmerish War, which saw the end of Estmere's peace at home. Most historians support the former interpretation.

The term Long Peace is an anachronistic term which has been applied to the era retrospectively, contrasting the peace and prosperity of the era with the political turmoil, economic deprivation and conflict of the Great Collapse and the Great War.

The Long Peace has been divided into distinct periods; the High Peace until the 1890s and the Low Peace from the 1890s onward. The High Peace is characterised by liberalism, political reform and suffrage, economic growth and Realism, while the Low Peace is characterised by increasing factionalism, imperialism, economic slowdown and Modernism. It is sometimes said that the lordly, liberal reformer the Earl of Longwood epitomises the High Peace, while the common, populist radical John Harris epitomises the Low Peace. The era spans across the reigns of three monarchs; Edward III (who reigned from 1851 to 1871), Richard XII (1871 to 1898) and Edward IV (1898 to 1916). Royalists therefore split the era into the Third Edwardian, the Twelfth Ricardian and the Fourth Edwardian.

Politics

The Earl of Longwood (top left) epitomises the politics of the early period, while John Harris (top right) epitomises that of the later period. Baron Burke (bottom left) led the Unionist Party for much of the period, and had a fierce rivalry with his Constitutionalist counterpart the Marquess Rhisling (bottom right).

The politics of the Long Peace were characterised by a turn toward political liberalism, in a repudiation of the reactionary conservatism of the Viridian Reaction which had followed the Euclean Spring. The period ultimately saw the triumph of constutional monarchy and parliamentarianism over absolute monarchy and centralist republicanism, both of which had been attempted within Estmere, with Parliament gaining ascendency over the monarchy.

The period began with the Earl of Longwood transforming the informal Borough Party into the Constitutionalist Party, ushering modern political parties into Estmerish politics. Longwood overturned many of the conservative laws that the Viridians has instituted during their ascendency, extending the franchise and lifting political restrictions, such as those placed on the freedom of the press. At the same time, restrictions on social activities increased, with prohibition and other moral issues becoming topical political issues. This set the tone for the rest of the period, with liberal-leaning governments expanding the franchise and lifting political restrictions set by the Viridians, while conducting moral crusades of their own against perceived social ills ranging from alcoholism to prostitution, culminating in the implementation of prohibition at the end of the period.

When the Viridians reestablished themselves as the Unionist Party under Baron Burke, they generally accepted the changes to the political system and worked to establish an alliance between the working and upper classes to oppose the liberal excess of the middle class and prevent the radicalism represented by the Socialist Party of Estmere. The rivalry between Burke and his counterpart the Marquess Rhisling would become legendary.

In the later period of the Low Peace, the political system began to chafe under increasing populism, characterised by John Harris and his Radical Liberal Party. Harris' splintering of the Constitutionalists into radical and moderate wings created a political opening which led to the rise of the Socialist Party of Estmere. During the period, other major players in Estmerish politics emerged, such as the Sotirian People's Party and the Prohibition Party.

Rise of political parties

The period was notable for the emergence of modern political parties in Estmere. Historically, members of Parliament could be organised into loose factions which were often called parties, but they lacked many of the characteristics of modern political parties. These were the monarchist Viridians, the parliamentarian Borough Party and the republican Chartists. The Chartists had been banned in 1801 following the Weranian Revolutionary Wars. The Viridian faction was dominant after the wars, but in 1846 this changed. Sir Richard Hope reorganised the Borough faction into the Constitutionalist Party, a modern political party with whips and party discipline.

Hope's creation of the Constitutionalist Party changed the Estmerish political landscape, as it created a party machine which succeeded in displacing the Viridians, beginning a period of liberal dominance and making formal political parties the norm in Estmerish politics. Additionally, the introduction of political parties shifted Estmerish politics from what Baron Burke described as a "collegiate, gentlemanly affair" to a "battle for the soul of the nation" every half-decade. This was also influenced by the increasing number of commoners active in politics, and the rise of more coherent political ideologies such as socialism, liberalism and conservatism. In the latter half of the period, the advent of modern political campaigning accentuated this, increasing the levels of political factionalism and eventually helping give rise to populism.

The creation of the Constitutionalists spurred on the creation of other modern political parties. The Viridians reestablished themselves as the Unionist Party, the temperance movement organised itself as the Prohibition Party, the Sotirian right eventually emerged as the Sotirian People's Party, the labour movement organised into the Socialist Party of Estmere, and later the radicals split from the Constitutionalists to form the Radical Liberal Party.

Liberalism and political reforms

The Viridian Reaction delayed the expansion of suffrage in Estmere, but gave a raison d'etre to groups such as the Radicals who later organised to expand suffrage.

The Earl of Longwood's first two ministries focused largely on the War of the Triple Alliance and the crises which preceded it, but in the third and fourth ministries Hope and his Constitutionalist Party embarked on a series of widespread political reforms. These reforms aimed to overturn the reactionary conservative consensus that had been established during the ascendency of the Viridians. Hope himself was a firm believer in a liberal democracy, but he gained support for his efforts by arguing that they were the best solution to sate popular demand for political reform enough to prevent militant revolution. This militancy had become clearer after the conclusion of the war, with protests in favour of suffrage having been organised by the Radicals. Longwood used these as both a show of popular support for his progamme, and as a subtle threat to other aristocrats.

The crowning achievement of Hope's political reforms was the Representation of the People Act 1857, which abolished rotten boroughs, expanded suffrage to all male heads of households, ended the royal vetting of candidates and standardised the electoral system into the block vote with two to four member constituencies. The act tripled the size of the electorate, and made the upper echelons of the working class a key voter bloc.

A number of political restrictions were rolled back and the political repression common to the Reaction came to an end. This started with Hope's removal of press censorship in 1859, and continued on to other reforms. Spy networks used to suppress unrest were dismantled, the secret police was abolished, bans on trade unions and collective bargaining were lifted, as were restrictions on most political parties and on public meetings beyond three or four people. Internment, exile and deporation of suspects without trial was gradually phased out and more independence was given to higher education as academic freedom was restored. The Constitutionalists were usually the most enthused about these reforms, but they were not alone in progressing them. The Unionists also advanced political liberalism to an extent during the period, seeing it as the only way to stave off revolution.

At the end of the period, political reforms were still sought after, but there was less optimism for them among the ruling class. Women's suffrage and truly universal suffrage were ongoing political issues, which were only resolved near the end of the era; women of means were granted the vote in 1886, and universal suffrage for all adults over 21 was achieved in 1891.

Moral crusades and prohibition

Alcohol being discarded as part of the prohibition in Estmere.

Art

Cinema and photography

A still from the Longwood Garden Scene, a motion picture filmed in 1888, considered one of the world's first home videos.

Science and technology

James Douglass, one of the last gentleman scientists, is best known for his invention of the first practical telephone.

The Long Peace saw great advances in the fields of science and technology, including the emergence of new disciplines and the proliferation of new inventions. The era is retrospectively seen as a period of technological wonder, innovation and enlightenment, in contrast to the depravation, austerity and civil stagnation of the Great Collapse and the Great War which followed. During the peace, science became a more professional affair, higher education was expanded massively, a number of new technologies were invented and a number of new theories propogated, and new fields of science were established. Morwall became known as a city of research on the cutting edge of technology, with the University of Morwall attracting scientists and researchers from across the empire.

Professionalisation of science

It also saw the professionalisation of science. The gentleman scientist became synonymous with the early period, but by the end of the epoch they had been outpaced by institutions as funding increased. Learned and professional societies such as the Estmerish Psychological Association and the Society of Estmerish Chemists began to emerge as well, with the aim of furthering academic disciplines and generally professionalising the sciences. Estmere's national academy of science, the then-Royal Scientific Society, also shifted toward a view of professionalism, and began to disavow gentlemanly amateurs in favour of professional scientists. A number of gentleman scientists did resist the changing tides, most notably James Douglass, who continued to self-fund his research and eschew membership of a professional society until after the end of the Long Peace.

Communication and transportation

The automobile emerged near the end of the era, and became a status symbol for the upper and middle classes. A number of Estmerish manufacturers began to emerge in the latter half of the period, most notably Marcus Anton and Sheaford Automotive.

The first railways opened in Estmere just before the Peace began, but the period did see their rapid expansion as they were used to connect the emerging industrial areas with major ports such as Dunwich and Bouley, which helped to facilitate an even more rapid growth of industry.

James Douglass invented the first practical telephone, which revolutionised communication.

powered flight?

naval?

Higher education

The construction of Alwoodley Court, the first building of the University of Harbrough, was funded entirely by public donations.

The expansion of higher education during the period was also notable. The Molbridge triangle had prevented the foundation of any new universities since the creation of the University of Morwall in 1298, and had ensured that university remained the domain of the wealthy and high status, but this began to change. The first major change was the loosening of entry requirements at the existing universities; while Tolbury and Damesbridge remained exclusive, Morwall began to widen participation by dropping it's heft tuition fees on more than one occasion, began grants for working class students, and began admitting women starting in 1888. The Molbridge universities nevertheless remained prestigious insitutions, and the University of Morwall in particular became a major intellectual centre not just for Estmere but for wider Euclea.

The second major change was the creation of new institutions. Morwall pioneered this, establishing the first collegiate institutes such as the Academy of the Natural Sciences, and these offered a new home for academic specialists and students who wanted to specialise into certain subjects. The more prominent change came in the 1890s, however. Throughout the period, pressure for new universities to cover the industrialised urban areas steadily grew, and by the 1890s it had reached fever pitch. In 1895, when the citizens of Harbrough funded the construction of Alwoodley Court through public donations, the crown was convinced to grant the first university charter in centuries, and the University of Harbrough was founded. It was quickly followed by sister institutions at St Richards and Sheaford, and the triopoly that Molbridge held came to an end.

The emerging trade union movement also began to offer support to working class students in this period. The Congress of Estmerish Trade Unions and individual trade unions would begin establishing a number of scholarships, most notably the Sidney Bell Proletarian Fund, which would help fund the degrees of trade unionists who showed academic promise.

Emergence of new fields and disciplines

Albrecht Döuer (left) is seen as the father of psychology, while Luther Valentine (right) pioneered sexology.

The period saw the rise of new academic disciplines. Albrecht Döuer and others gave rise to the field of psychology, particularly the branch of social psychology, as researchers began to take interest in human behaviour and the workings of the brain. The establishment of the Döuer Institute of Social Science at the end of the period showcased the rise of the social sciences as a respected field.

At the end of the era, there was the first attempts to understand sexuality and gender from a scientific perspective. Luther Valentine founded the Institute for Sexology and Gender Research in Morwall in 1897, intending to better the understanding of homosexuality, bisexuality and transgender people, and to provide a rational basis for the legal rights of homosexual, bisexual, and transgender people. Valentine and the Institute repeatedly worked to this end, including the completion of what is widely-regarded as the first modern gender affirmation surgeries just before the end of the era. Marie-Thérèse Gavreau, who worked at the insitute, is believed to have given the first psychiatric definition of gender dysphoria.