Maverican Wars

The Maverican Wars (日南之役, njit-nem-tje-liak) are two conflicts between Themiclesia and various forces around the Halu'an Sea over rights to what is today Norfeld, Maverica. The first conflict occurred in 1768–69, seeing Maverican rebellion after egregrious misgovernment by Themiclesian authorities and colonists, and the second, 1791–96, which ended in Norfeld's exit from Themiclesia power and joining the Maverican Unions.

Themiclesian governance of Norfeld

In the 1400s, Themiclesia enjoyed a prolonged peace with the powerful Galvisti Empire, whose population and wealth then exceeded that of Themiclesia, in modern-day Maverica, backed by flourishing commerce cross the border. To prevent conflict, the two states agreed to a treaty of friendship that established a permanent border between them. Cadets of Ostlandic noble houses, who were disinherited in their native country, gradually came to led companies of men in search of a new territory in Hemithea and settled in the land between Themiclesia and the Galvisti Empire. In [1608], the cadets led a rebellion against the Galvisti Empire; Themiclesia mobilized her forces to aid the Galvisti Empire to crush the rebellion. As a result, the Galvisti Empire offered condominium over the Ostlandic-settled areas and half of commercial revenues there collected to Themiclesia. Yet when the Ostlandic settlers rebelled again in [1680], they forged a secret agreement with the Themiclesian court, that if Themiclesia refrained from deploying to assist the Galvist Empire, Norfeld would be ceded to Themiclesia in toto. To this the Themiclesians assented and watched as the Galvisti Empire succumbed to Ostlandic insurrection, gaining the other half of revenues collected in Norfeld immediately.

Across the Halu'an Sea, Themiclesia's colony of Camia grew restless over mouting military expenditure and the imposition of regular taxes to the metropole, both to be defrayed by the local populace. In 1678, a rebellion by a combination of Anglian and Themiclesian militias had barely been suppressed, by the Colonial Army, and in 1680 it was doubled in size in anticipation of intensifying Hallian aggression from both the north and west. Finally, in 1693, one half of the Colonial Army mutinied in sympathy with the local populace, beginning the Camian Rebellion (昭昌之亂) that led to its independence. Meanwhile, the other half of the Colonial Army and a significant number of counties and prominent clans remained loyal to Themiclesia. The war resulted in a stalemate roughly with the southern half of the colony in rebel hands and the northern half in the loyalists'. The rebels proceeded to declare a general boycott and exclusion of all Themiclesian merchant activity, which almost turned Camia into a revenue-negative area (previous to this, Camia remitted revenue towards Kien-k'ang). In 1703, the Themiclesian court, financing another war in Meridia, had no resources to reinforce the loyalists for a decisive victory and decided to concede with several conditions: Camia could not use the title of "emperor", impose duties on Themiclesian goods in transit, or bar Themiclesian civilians from entering and exiting its territories. The negotiators concurred in 1703.

The final condition proved a difficult one for both Camia and Themiclesia. Immediately after the war, the loyalist portion of the Colonial Army and a large amount of civilians petitioned the Themiclesian court to return to the metropole; though emotionally soothing for the Themiclesians, finding land to settle them proved a challenge. Thus, it was decided to settle the loyalists in the newly-acquired territory of Norfeld, which had been remitting taxes to Themiclesia but was otherwise not subject to Themiclesian administration. These 20 years of autonomous government would become a motive for Norfeld independence later. While the intentions of the Themiclesian government may not have been such, the loyalists interpreted that Norfeld, including anything and anyone on it, was granted for their enjoyment by court. This is reflected in literature from Camian Loyalists, asserting that Norfeld was a reward for their loyalty to the Themiclesia. The ties between the Camian Loyalists, who became a political faction in Themiclesia, and the Colonial Army were firm and bilateral, as Camia had become highly integrated into its military forces, to serve the metropolitan desire to stem Hallian and Tyrannian influence converging on what remained of Themiclesia's possessions in the continent. The Colonial Army therefore behaved both as a military and a government in Norfeld, using force to back the Loyalists' settlement and activity of every kind. Discriminatory policies were imposed against both Ostlandic and Gramuchan locals, against existing customs and, in many cases, Themiclesian law. Nevertheless, settlement continued, and by 1750 about 400,000 Loyalists lived in Norfeld.

First Maverican War

First Maverican War
Part of Maverican Wars
Date Jun. 1768 – Dec. 1769 Location Norfeld, Maverica Result Themiclesian victory Themiclesian defeat Territorial changes Status quo ante bellum
Belligerents
Norfeld rebels and Camia	Themiclesia	Themiclesia
Commanders and leaders
John Doe	General Haw Mrei-mjuk	Admiral Yup Kih
Units involved
Ostlandic and Gramuchan militias	Loyalist Colonial Army	Themiclesian Navy
Strength
c. 30,000	c. 14,000	178 ships

Second Maverican War

Second Maverican War
Part of Maverican Wars
Date Nov. 2, 1791 – Jan. 21st, 1796 Location Norfeld, Maverica Result Themiclesian victory Themiclesian defeat Territorial changes Status quo ante bellum
Belligerents
Norfeld rebels and Camia	Themiclesia
Commanders and leaders
John Doe	General Haw Mrei-mjuk
Units involved
Ostlandic and Gramuchan militias	Themiclesian Army Loyalist Colonial Army Themiclesian Navy
Themiclesian Navy
Strength
c. 650,000	c. 142,000 25 ships

Capture of Yen-k'ang

As more than three quarters of the Themiclesian Navy had been burnt to the waterline by the Anglian Royal Navy, when the Second Maverican War broke out, Themiclesia could not blockade the Camians from sending troops to aid in the Mavericans' effort to expel the Themiclesian forces. The Camians not only built their own navy and ferried the Colonial Army across to reinforce the Maverican war for independence, but also raised militia units outside of the regular army. The Camians proved formidable opponents for the unmotivated and fatigued Themiclesian home militia, who generally objected to be sent on expedition for an entire year. That landed gentry in the Themiclesian countryside pestered the government to return the militias for the 1792 harvest did not assist in the units' antipathy towards the war. On the contrary, the Themiclesian Marines, who had recently quadrupled in size with parts of the (nominally dissolved) Colonial Army augmenting them, stayed in 'wen-lang Prefecture, assisting the West Woods Department, the naval shipyard, in moving timbers and recovering artillery pieces that had fallen into the seawater during the Raid on Rad. These went towards the Navy's efforts, when the Second Maverican War was a more urgent call on the public purse.

The Foreign Secretary decided to apply diplomatic pressure on Camia to withdraw its troops, commandeering civilian (mostly merchant) ships to ferry the marines to Liang-la Island, for an invasion of Camia's coastal capital. The Navy Secretary protested that, with most of its usable hulls still lacking guns, an invasion would be pernicious. The Naval Engineers, who were the year before diverted to forge cannons for the home militia, were returned to the Navy to its resolution. The War Secretary, short on artillery, also protested vehemently, but the Foreign Secretary argued that, if the Camians could be pressured to withdraw, there would not be such a great demand for artillery. Having received artillery pieces in March 1793, six regiments of marines (including four originally in the Colonial Army) were transported on civilian ships to the Camian coast. During the ensuing battles, most of the ships were rendered unusable, engendering resentment amongst merchants in Themiclesia. They rioted in Kien-k'ang and burnt down the offices and archives of the Captain-General, destroying about 400 years of records and artifacts. The Camians were taken by surprise and could not repulse the invasion, resulting in a bloody but straightforward capture of Yen-k'ang and nearby, vacant fortifications.

During the course of the battle, the most motivated troops appeared to be the former units of the Colonial Army. Though the Camian Rebellion (and the split of the Colonial Army) occurred almost 100 years ago, the Loyalists apparently harboured a deep hatred of Camia for seceding from Themiclesia and constantly petitioned the government for a campaign to retake it. For diplomatic reasons, Themiclesia did not respond, since a completely hostile Camia was one allied with Anglia or Hallia. Yet the Loyalists believed this was their opportunity to reconquer Camia, despite the Foreign Secretary's less ambitious objectives. The Camian government, though arrested by the invaders, firmly rejected the Foreign Secretary's demands. In a heavily mythologized assault, a grammar school teacher rallied her students, aged 12 to 16, to take their families' muskets, sabres, and even scythes, rakes, and shovels and charge an encampment on a small hill. Though the manoeuvre disintegrated almost instantly, with as many as one person killed, the Mayor of Yen-k'ang called a public assembly and declared that "the time has come, for all and sundry, soldier or not, to rise up against a great tyranny that, abandoning all humanity, delights to prey upon our young, and all valour, to avoid manly battle" and that "Camians parents are not ones to cower behind their children or to become an obstacle to their fighting men abroad".

Themiclesian troops were soon in attendance, blocking off exit from the town square where the mayor's speech was delivered. After the speech, the mayor was imprisoned. Camian sources, with authorship during the military government in the 1880s, state he was brutally tortured until he died, though Themiclesian ones provide he went on a hunger strike and died of an "existing" illness. The lack of any effective naval blockade (as the Navy's ships were under repair at a ploddling pace), unlike in the First Maverican War, meant the Camian government was able to smuggle out a message to their troops, advising them not to sail back to Camia, despite the presence of Themiclesian soldiers there. According to "Address to Our Soldiers", one of Camia's most-printed documents, "the Themiclesians contrive to turn your love for your country to detach you from a worthy cause and ally, and after then, to defeat you, one after another. As you bleed for a kindred nation to become free, we shall bleed so that your home may remain free. We are fighting together." Not noticing any withdrawal after six months, the Foreign Secretary instructed the invasion to progress from the coast inland, whereupon they encountered scattered resistance of armed women and children who fought frantically but without much success. In Nov. 1793, they defeated a more organized defensive line at Tok-yang (淂陽) but ran low on provisions.

The Tok-yang militias having been routed, local leaders again resorted to arming civilians. Before long, the organizer of the irregular militia was apprehended and interrogated. He told the commander of the invading force that Camia will "arm every last woman, even those pregnant, and child to the age of 11, if that is what must be done to expel" the invaders. Reportedly, a number of Themiclesian troops could not hold back tears and were thoroughly dispirited for some days. This psychological tactic was unexplained for years until 1954, when it was connected with the way the Themiclesian Marines recruited during the 18th century: children as young as 12 were impressed in the Navy's desperation for soldiers that would voluntarily suffer low salaries and abysmal living conditions. This was in contravention of Themiclesia's own militia regulations, which stated that militiamen must be 20 at enlistment. Thus, that Camians would arm children down to the age of 11 asserted their will to resist to be stronger than Themiclesia's already-drastic measures. Even though 12-year-old recruits were uncommon at any time (preference was for 17- to 19-year-olds) and definitely not amongst those fighting in 1793 (since it was stopped in the 1780s), it had an emotional effect on those who may have been recruited at that age or knew someone who perished well before majority. Furthermore, it cast doubt on Themiclesian ethics.