Johannes Vandemeer

His Excellency General Sir. Johannes Vandemeer KG CLE
General Sir. Johannes Vandemeer in 1827
Governor of Cape Basel Colony
In office 21 August 1827 – 15 September 1843
Monarch	Georgius IV Willus IV
Preceded by	Captain Henry Morston
Succeeded by	Position Abolished
Governor of the Basel-Ebel Colony
In office 15 September 1843 – 21 August 1861
Monarch	Regis Lucis Caelum CVI
Preceded by	Position Established
Succeeded by	General Patrik Berg
Personal details
Born	Johannes Vandemeer 12 January 1785 Buchacurea, Aurucolia
Died	19 July 1887(1887-07-19) (aged 102) Insomnia, United Kingdom
Spouse	Victoria Fredrickssen
Children	Johannes Georg Vandemeer David John Vandemeer Albert Vandemeer Janseen Vandemeer
Military service
Allegiance	Sandoric Aurucolia (1803-1806) Lucis Empire (1806-1845) Cape Basel Colony
Branch/service	Lucis Army
Years of service	1804–1861
Rank	General
Battles/wars	Sandoric Wars Sikh and Aurucolian War
Awards	Order of the Garter Order of the Lucis Empire

General Sir. Johannes Vandemeer KG CLE (12 January 1785 - 19 July 1887) was an Aurucolian general who served in the Imperial Aurucolian Army during the Sandoric Wars, rising to the rank of Colonel at a young age of 20, before he defected to the Lucian side of the conflict following continuous Protestant discrimination. Vandemeer had long wanted to defect to the Lucis Empire because of the Aurucolian Government not granting privileges to Protestants in the Army. Despite being one of the most talented officers, he remained a stranger to his academy.

Following the victory of the Lucian forces at the Battle of Cape Basel during the Sandoric Wars, Johannes was ordered by his superior and mentor, General Flórián Székely de Kisbátor to act as a rear guard and buy his forces time to retreat. Instead, he and more than 20,000 men willingly surrendered the Cape Basel garrison to the Lucian forces under the command of General Albert Blair, who accepted his surrender and his oath of allegiance to the Lucian crown.

Vandemeer would go on to build the first Cape Basel Colonial Army, which mostly consisted of protestants, monarchists, and other groups against the rule of Sandor I. The force would number to more than 50,000 men by 1810. Vandemeer later distinguished himself during the Sikh and Aurucolian War, where he came to blows with his mentor, General Kisbátor until the last years of the war, where he captured his mentor during the Battle of Kandia in 1824.

Following the war, Vandemeer would return to Cape Basel Colony, in which he would later become the first Baselian governor of the colony. Vandemeer championed for the rights of blacks and abolished slavery. He granted equal rights to black workers and equal wages. Vandemeer would later command the Invasion of Ebel in 1843, in which Vandemeer would annex the region of Ebel for the Lucis Empire from the Free Aurucolian State. Later, he mapped the claims for the Lucis Empire during the South Africanna Gold Rush and the claim had reached up to the areas that now comprise modern-day Rhodeia. The first expeditions north of Basel-Ebel began in 1850 under Vandemeer's supervision. But settlement in these areas would not begin until in 1880.

He remained the colonial administrator of both Basel and Ebel until his retirement in 1861. He retired to Lucis where he was welcomed as a hero and was given a knighthood for his services to the Lucis Crown. He was given a large estate and lot and lived in retirement for the rest of his life. However, he did not retire entirely as he became a teacher for young children in his estate until his death in 1887.

Following his death, historians have analysed his legacy that Vandemeer was indeed the first man who united the entirety of Southern Africanna, which would eventually lead to the creation of the Union of Basel-Ebel. He is also credited with the establishment of the Basel-Ebelian identity. Today, He is honoured as Basel-Ebel and Rhodeia's national hero. The Port City of Vandemeersburg, the largest port in Africanna is named in honour of him.

Early Life

Vandemeer was born in 12 January 1785 in a small Aurucolian town of Buchacurea to Protestant parents during the time when Protestant prosecution prevailed in Aurucolia. In his early life, he was interested in military and grew up reading facts about Erebonian Emperor Friedrich the Great and was inspired by his battles to unite Erebonia from 1730 to 1750. This made him want to attend the Duzina Military Academy. Here, he distinguished himself to be a very bright man. His mentor, then-Colonel Flórián Székely de Kisbátor was interested on the young Vandemeer and thought that he was going to be a great leader someday.

Military Career

Service in the Aurucolian Army

He graduated in 1804 and found himself being employed as a Colonel in the Aurucolian Army. He remained under the tutelage of the newly-promoted General Flórián Székely de Kisbátor as an aide. He found himself serving in his first battle during the Aurucolian attempt to invade Calvard. Here, he distinguished himself to be an excellent infantry commander, often utilizing enemy positions to his advantage. It was seen that Vandemeer understood the nature and behaviour of infantry discipline and opted that infantry alone was the best weapon of the war, even superior than cavalry because he believed that infantry would continue to be an important resource at a time of war and in a battle.

Despite his talents outshining his peers, Vandemeer's efforts remained unrecognized because of his Protestant faith. Vandemeer was often snubbed by his commanding officer and his peers as a result. He felt like an outsider. He also received the lowest pay of his peers, even comparing his pay to a regular foot soldier, something which that Vandemeer would develop a hatred on the system that the army ran on.