Bit M'ang
Bit M′ang | |
|---|---|
 Bit in 1904 | |
| Native name | 柲慌, bit-m′ang |
| Born | January 2, 1885 |
| Died | March 3, 1936 (aged 51) |
| Buried | Krat County |
| Allegiance | Themiclesia |
| Service/ | Consolidated Army |
| Years of service | 1914 – 1936 |
| Rank | Colonel |
| Unit | 38th Foot Regiment |
Bit M′ang (Shinasthana: 柲慌, bit-m′ang; Jan. 2, 1885 – Mar. 3, 1936), known by his pen name Capt. Bit, was a Themiclesian military officer and political columnist. He was noted for his unabashed republican views that was expressed through public denigration of ceremonies involving royalty and the newspaper column he writes on The Globe, "The Future Republic". While his final military rank was colonel, he was always published as Captain Bit and so known to the public. He died in eastern Themiclesia on campaign, during the Pan-Septentrion War.
Early life
Education
Military career
Following graduation as Master of Letters from the Army Academy, Bit was unable to secure a forthcoming active military office as he had hoped with the Capital Defence Force. For a few months he retreated to his country home and was vouched for by his uncle as Under-Secretary of State for Shipbuilding to accept a captaincy in the Themiclesian Marines, beginning in November 1914. It was during this time that he was contracted as a political columnist by The Globe.
Bit was presented with his Outstanding Service Medal on Jan. 1, 1918. The medal was automatically issued to every officer in the Marines in their third year under commission and, in fact, was then the only medal available at all. The Navy Secretary had specifically arranged for the Emperor Goi to attend the award ceremony and dinner, but during the ceremony Bit refused to wish a myriad years on the throne for the Emperor. He entered a brief argument with his superior, stating that his commission did not require this. The event was reported widely in the newspaper, with a number of authors criticizing his lack of respect for the monarchy; he responded on his column that he did not believe Themiclesia's laws required any of its citizens to embrace it. He "won" this argument after his opponents conceded they could not find a law that did.
During the following years, Bit participated in several forums held for Marines officers to discuss foreign developments in naval armaments and coastal defences. Bit added his voice in procuring a new kind of grenade for the Marines. However, his activities were not notable according to colleagues and contemporaries.
In 1927, Bit wrote for 40 consecutive weeks on his weekly column, "The Future Republic", why Themiclesia should not fight Dzhungestan. While he was a card-carrying member of the Liberal Party, which advocated for an aggressive response to Dzhungestan's provocative raids on Tsjêngh-′an, he believed warfare strengthened monarchy and disparaged republicanism. Stirring up controversy, the Captain-general reminded him that the Marine Corps had no official role or view on this matter; Bit replied, "But Bit does." When prompted that he should consider not naming himself "Captain" Bit, he instead closed his column on Nov. 12 with "Major Bit, Commissioned in the Themiclesian Marines" instead. When the War Ministry became annoyed with his criticism, a "Captain Grap", allegedly on campaign in Dzhungestan, started an opposing column, also on The Globe, explaining why Themiclesian should be fighting. Through his connections in the Consolidated Army, Bit discovered that there was in fact no "Captain Grap", who was an invention by the War Ministry to discredit him. Forced to respond, the War Ministry fired the civil servant responsible for running the fake column, but Bit was also compelled to present him with a $60,000 cheque so that he would not sue out of spite.
In 1929, Bit brought the Marine Corps to the Supreme Court for trespass. Before pleading began, both parties settled out of court for an undisclosed amount; as such, there is no surviving documentation on the defendant's side on the substance of the dispute. Bit did not describe this lawsuit on any public writing, but according to the Marines' gossip, this is because a building collapsed on his very prized car, imported from Kerenevoi. The same year, he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel.
The course of the Prairie War took a dramatic turn in early 1933, with Menghe sending forces to aid the Dzhungestani in consequence of the massacre of fascist and nationalist sympathizers in the Nationalist Revolt of 1932. In "The Future Republic", Bit said that invasion had triggered a surge in uncontrolled nationalism, which "culminated in an unsightly, base flourish of naked greed and desire to dominate, which required an equally unsavoury amount of casualty to quell." He also asserted that monarchy was an accessory to the problem of nationalism, in that it "naturalizes domestic inequality and seeks to naturalize that between nations." Uncharacteristically, Bit chose not to sign his name as "Captain Bit" this time, but "Bit the Concerned Citizen". It is unknown if the Marines had pressured him to do so, or if he wished to distance himself from his public office.
In 1935, the 2nd Regiment of Marines in which Bit served was renumbered under the Special Conscription Act as the 38th Regiment of Foot, joining the East Expedition Force. In the ensuing chaos, Bit criticized the War Ministry for poor preparations.
Death
On Mar. 3, 1936, Bit was killed by a shrapnel from an exploding Menghean cannonball while standing in the field to direct his troops. The shrapnel punctured his left lung, and he quickly died of this wound. In a customary letter by the War Secretary to his family, he wrote that though "Colonel Bit has expressed views which are not always in agreement with those of the Government or War Ministry, the Court and Civil Service are nevertheless are touched by his selfless sacrifice in this distressful war that none of us, Colonel Bit included, could have foresaw in such horrible detail." His remains were restored to his family, who interred him in Krat County. While his acerbic column has been controversial, a number of editors and keen readers visited his family and hoped to pay respect at his tumulus.
Honours
When Bit died in 1936, Themiclesia's military was medal-poor compared to many other states. While many old regiments possessed the authority to grant medals, Bit's regiment was technically new and thus did not have an established honours system. At his death, his only medal was still the Outstanding Service Medal issued by the Marines, which was somewhat ironic as he did almost nothing to earn it, while he fought 22 engagements in the last three years of his life and was not given a single honour for it.
According to accounts by his men, Bit was found nearly dead with his Electrum Chain (白攣) in hand, held close to his heart. The Electrum Chain was a piece of jewelry consisting of two entwined chains, which are called "electrum" because one is silver and the other, gold. The silver chain bore the emblem of the House of Commons, and the gold, that of the House of Lords. Since the Consolidated Army did not have an emblem at that point, and at the same time carrying a flag was too bulky, officers used this chain as a kind of memento of their emotional attachment to Themiclesia. The Electrum Chain was engraved in 1947 on his tombstone with the text
In the 10th Parliament of the reigning emperor, the Clerk of the House has in Order of the House of Commons to acquaint to the late Bit M′ang, gentleman of Pek Prefecture, colonel in the Consolidated Army, of money drawn against Themiclesia, to engrave in his headstone the Silver Chain first granted to him by the House in 1914, that the memory of his services to the House of Commons and all the Commons shall live for all time and generations to come...
Media career
Friendship with Yutaka Ueda
Bit was a friend to Yutaka Ueda during their studies at the Army Academy. Bit respected Yutaka's bright mind and his proficiency in questioning traditional structures of authority. He believed that Ueda's acumen to authority stems from his experience in Dayashina, where authority is more frequently used to shape opinions, rather than in Themiclesia, where authority is used in a more discreet way. Notably, Bit did not believe that warfare was the sole solution to any problem in the world and held a dismissive view about Dayashina, believing it was a failed state in terms of liberal politics; some authors have commented that this indicatd a highly teleological bent to Bit's beliefs, that all constitutions tend towards republics, and all forms of government towards liberal democracy.