Okkamidur War of 1866
| Okkamidur War | |||||||
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 The Battle of Abronia, the largest battle of the war. | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 United States of Balion |
 Sultanate of Okkamidur | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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Hiram Barnett |
 Thomas Featherwick | ||||||
The Okkamidur War, often termed the Okkamidur War of 1866 to differentiate it from the later Okkamidur Affair, was a conflict fought between the Sultanate of Okkamidur and the United States of Balion. It was fought throughout the year of 1866 and followed slave unrest in the Balionic territory of South Salorka, a region of Prodava which had been annexed by Balion in 1848. A combination of Okkamiduri political interference, piracy operating out of Okkamidur and Essyria, and strong border tensions led to the breakout of war in February 1866. Though the steadily growing abolitionist movement fiercely opposed war and continued occupation of South Salorka was becoming unpopular, the economic benefits of Balionic-owned plantations in the territory skewed government thinking and there were serious allegations of corruption.
War was declared following the Battle of Karlania, in which Balionic troops fought off a Okkamiduri incursion into South Salorka. A second attempt at Fort Fairweather succeeded and Okkamiduri forces crossed the frontier into South Salorka and marched on Monroweville. The invasion was swift and a series of running battles at Point Silver, New Yellowburg, and Colewood Estate, saw the Balionic garrison forces pushed back towards Monroweville. When the two sides met at the Siege of Monroweville, a stubborn Balionic defense saw the invasion halted at the gates of the territory's capital.
Background
Okkamiduri Growth: 1822-1850
Okkamidur had been a nation for many centuries, appearing as a sultanate on Frankenlischian maps as early as 1080, and had established itself as a prominent power on the Prodavan coast in the mid 17th century in the War of the Four Sultans and the South Orion War. A series of jihads and counter-crusades between the Muslims of north-east Prodava and the Christian peoples of Frankenlisch and Vionna had seen this power wane in the late 18th century but by the mid-19th century said power was returning swiftly. Wide-reaching administrative reforms during the reign of Abdul the Wise from 1790 to 1822 had overhauled the inefficient Okkamiduri government structure, created a modern civil service, and put an end to corruption and widespread nepotism in the Okkamiduri standing army, the Mansures. The Ghilanis however, Okkamidur's conscript army raised during wartime, remained in the pocket of landowners, noblemen, and foreign adventurers.
Abdul the Wise was succeeded by Mehmet X who ruled from 1822 to 1831 and was himself succeeded by his son Mehmet XI who ruled from 1831 to 1850. These two sultans presided over a combined thirty-eight years of stability and economic growth for Okkamidur. A close relationship was established with Vionna-Frankenlisch, sealed in 1844 by the marriage of Mehmet XI's eldest daughter Haide to the Marquess of Cresswick, the third son of King Edward II. Vionna-Frankenlischian investment in Okkamidur contributed to a significant economic boom in the late 1840s and slavery was outlawed in the Sultanate in 1850. In spite of considerable Imperial pressure, Okkamidur retained its independence and became a Vionna-Frankenlischian ally in its own right rather than a protectorate. Relations with Balion were generally cordial and trade between Okkamidur and South Salorka was free-flowing.
Suleiman: 1850-1856
Mehmet XI was succeeded by his son Suleiman who had begun his reign by continuing the reforms of the previous sultans. A modern legal code was instituted in 1852 replacing much of the old religious law. Between 1850 and 1856, Safiri, the Okkamiduri capital, was significantly modernised and the royal palace expanded. Relations with Vionna-Frankenlisch were harmed by Suleiman's refusal to send Okkamiduri troops to the War of the Vionnan Coalition but King Edward accepted the reasoning that the Mansures were not numerous or well-equipped enough to be a significant force in the war. Suleiman did, unprompted, order the sending of gold bullion to Vionna-Frankenlisch in early 1852 when the Imperial government experienced a credit crisis which threatened their war efforts. This gold was eventually returned to Okkamidur; a significant shipment of captured war materiel went with it in a gesture of gratitude. This shipment, arriving in full in 1854, included over 30,000 muskets and rifles and around 100 pieces of artillery. The improvements made to the Okkamiduri military as a result of the Imperial shipment began Suleiman's interest in military affairs and over the next decade he invested significant time and money in improving the Mansures, reforming the Ghilanis, and forming the elite Sultanate Guard - his personal brigade.
Though the economic growth experienced during the reigns of the Sultan's father and grandfather had died down, Okkamidur was still developing and the country's GDP improved by almost double between 1855 and 1866. Foreigners, mostly from Vionna-Frankenlisch or the Wolfswood, were employed on short, lucrative contracts to serve in the Okkamiduri army or civil service, bringing improvements and reform with them. The first commander of the Sultanate Guard, serving from May 1856 to June 1857 was the veteran Marquess of Tevetdale, a famous commander during the War of the Vionnan Coalition. The reformed Okkamiduri forces had their first test in 1860 during the Jihad for Gestoria when jihadists moving north from Trezonia confronted a brigade of the Mansures at the Battle of El-Sriccia. Expecting to be helped on their journey north to fight in the invasion, the jihadists were surprised to be barred entry to Okkamidur and the resulting battle ended in their complete rout. When informed of the engagement, King Edward II of Vionna-Frankenlisch gifted Suleiman the former Imperial Navy steam-powered sloop-of-war HMNS Elephant, which was converted into a royal yacht with the aid of Imperial shipbuilders.
Okkamidur in 1866
By 1866, the Okkamiduri economy was still growing yearly. Improvements in food production and the founding of the Okkamiduri Board of Hospitals by Suleiman and the Viscountess of Strettin had led to the start of a population boom. Okkamiduri families were growing healthier and infant mortality declined significantly. Government spending was at its highest in sixty years and the standing army numbered 70,000 troops. The formation of a professional police force in 1865 led to a decrease in the crime rate and took policing out of the hands of the military. Without a standing navy, however, the Okkamiduri coast was a hotbed of piracy. Though military raids and patrols were conducted along the coast, they were ineffective at dealing with the situation and did not enjoy the support of the coastal villages which were unwilling to incur the wrath of the pirates by betraying their hideouts. The primary targets of these pirates were merchant ships from Vionna-Frankenlisch and Balion. Balionic traders, in particular, were attacked frequently as they were often less heavily armed than Imperial ships and the small Balionic squadron based in South Salorka did not have permission to operate in Okkamiduri waters. In January 1866, the piracy crisis reached its peak when the Union Navy sloop UNS Monroweville was captured by pirates operating out of northern Okkamidur. Though the ship was recaptured by an Imperial Navy frigate and returned to Balion, relations between Balion and Okkamidur were harmed significantly.
As the standing army of Okkamidur had grown significantly over the preceding decade, so had its need for facilities. The Sultanate Guard was based in Safiri but the Mansures were barred from the capital except on special occasions, with only certain units granted the honour of barracking in the city's suburbs. Militia cantonments in other major settlements were rebuilt into permanent barracks and border posts were expanded. Tensions with Essyria were avoided by the agreement of a fixed border and demilitarised areas were established. No such agreement was concluded with the Balionic authorities in South Salorka and the build-up of Okkamiduri forces on the frontier (an increase of 1,500 troops from 1864 to February 1866) was answered by Balionic strengthening in turn: Fort Fairweather was established in 1865 with a permanent garrison of 300 Balionic troops and was steadily expanded in response to each Okkamiduri increase in strength.
The main stumbling block in Okkamiduri-Balionic relations was related to the institution of slavery in South Salorka. Though Okkamidur had outlawed slavery in 1850, there was neither support nor opposition to the practice amongst the Okkamiduri population - the change had occurred mainly due to Vionna-Frankenlischian pressure. For the first several years of abolition, the Okkamiduri authorities were content to return escaped slaves from South Salorka to their masters as they would often be rewarded and it contributed to good relations with the Balionic territory. However, under the auspices of Imperial ambassador Sir James Archimbaud, the Imperial government began to offer payments for each escapee turned over to Vionna-Frankenlisch. These payments often outweighed the rewards offered by Balionic planters and between 1856 and 1862 nearly two-thousand fugitive slaves were transported to Frankenlisch. The Imperial Navy eventually posted two fast brigs to Safiri (with regular payments made to the Okkamiduri government for the privilege) to carry the fugitives back to Frankenlisch in regular shipments. Once in Frankenlisch, many of the freed peoples were re-settled in the Frankenlischian Empire and large coloured populations eventually grew in Oktobrisk and Lesser Aegea. Others entered military service or sailed with the merchant marine.
South Salorka
The Territory of South Salorka was a Balionic possession dating back to 1848. Formerly part of the Emirate of Salorka, South Salorka had been granted to Balion by treaty at the tail end of the Second East Prodavan War. The Emirate was totally absorbed in said war, with its northern half annexed by Ramubad and some minor western territories granted to the Emirate of Namarka. Balionic naval forces intervened in 1847 ostensibly to combat Salorkan piracy against Balionic trade with Okkamidur and Vionna-Frankenlisch but significant influence was exerted on the Balionic government by southern plantation owners to shift the focus of the war to become more expansionist. Eventually, an army of 4,000 troops led by young Colonel Isiah Buchanan was landed in Salorka and seized the country's main seaport at the Siege of Nakka. The capture of Nakka ended foreign support for Salorka (mostly from Caledonia and Assuria), essentially ending any hope of Salorkan victory. Successive victories for the combined armies of Ramubad and Namarka ended the war in a total defeat for Salorka and the country was split.
The Balionic annexation of South Salorka caused disquiet amongst both the major powers of Orion and the Southern Seas, and the other Prodavan states. It was the first (and only successful) Balionic foray into Orion and, particularly in Caledonia and Vionna-Frankenlisch, led to a significant hardening of opinion against Balion. Caledonia issued an official embargo against Balion when Buchanan's force landed in Salorka and then dismissed the Balionic embassy from Laeminster. A more amicable settlement was reached with Vionna-Frankenlisch when Balionic representatives promised no more territorial expansion into the region. Nonetheless, the annexation began tumultuously and only became more controversial from there.
James S. Davis, a southern senator from Jericho, was appointed South Salorka's first governor in late 1849 after a year of military government. Over the next four years, settlement by Balionic planters skyrocketed and the South Salorkan administration founded the Department of Property to handle slavery in the new territory, and the Department of Settlement to handle land grants to Balionic settlers. Initially, only slaves exported from Balion were allowed but a government decree issued in 1850 (nicknamed the Monstrous Edict by abolitionists) permitted the enslavement of Salorkans under certain conditions. Treated as second-class citizens by their new Balionic overlords, many deeply impoverished Salorkans chose to sell themselves into slavery and, by 1852, over 6,000 native Salorkans had become slaves either by choice or as a judicial punishment. Intense diplomatic pressure from Vionna-Frankenlisch, including outright threats of intervention, had little impact. With the Imperial Army stretched thin by the ongoing War of the Vionnan Coalition and the Imperial Navy desperately underfunded owing to war austerity (the War of the Vionnan Coalition was a solely land-based conflict), Frankenlisch had little available muscle to back up its threats. As a goodwill gesture, Governor Davis ordered the temporary suspension of judicial slavery, although this suspension was revoked after only six weeks.
Though South Salorka was marketed to settlers as a land to make their fortune free of government interference, the Territorial Administration actually levied higher taxes on planters than the state governments back in Balion. Unrest over this taxation was not widespread, with the only significant resistance being mounted by the planter community of Jessups' Springs in 1850. The planters of Jessups' Springs refused to pay any tax to the Territorial Administration and fired upon bailiffs sent to intimidate them. In a deeply unpopular act, Governor Davis ordered a squadron of dragoons from Monroweville to the community to extract the taxes by force, which they did after a short gunfight. There was no further resistance to the taxation but the situation stirred deep distrust in the Territorial Administration.
The Territorial Administration made large investments into the civilian infrastructure of the Territory. A railway from Monroweville to Nakka was constructed in 1852 and further extensions to the railway network were made from 1854 to 1858 with the construction of lines from Monroweville to Karlania on the Okkamiduri border and from Nakka to Forsterstown, South Salorka's northernmost town. Infrastructural developments were funded by taxation on Balionic settlers and from the Salorka Investment Fund, a sovereign wealth fund established by the Balionic Central Bank in the immediate aftermath of the annexation of 1848. Labour was provided partly from contracted professionals (many of which came from Caledonia or Vionna-Frankenlisch) and from enslaved peoples. Enslaved labour was used by the Territorial Administration in nearly every public project it undertook, sometimes by levying privately-owned slaves in return for tax breaks for their owners, or by using slaves owned directly by the Territory. The use of slave labour was often deeply unpopular amongst the Vionna-Frankenlischian and Caledonian workers who were hired, often at great cost, to supervise works. Conditions were poor for enslaved labourers and the anti-slavery contractors had to be coaxed to stay with higher and higher wages, representing a major drain on the Salorka Investment Fund. It was well-known that Vionna-Frankenlischian contractors who illegally broke their contracts and left South Salorka would face few, if any, consequences. Skilled workers from Balion itself were rare as the costs of emigrating to South Salorka were high and steady work in the industrialised and swiftly-expanding Balion was not scarce. An attempt was made in 1854 to reach an agreement with Okkamidur to allow the Territorial Administration to contract skilled Okkamiduri workers (who would be cheaper) - though Suleiman was receptive to the idea, especially given the lucrative financial incentives offered by the Territorial Administration, Imperial pressure kept him from agreeing and talks broke down. Eventually, a government decree established a system of guilds to develop local talent. Skilled artisans were imported from Balion and Caledonia (at significant cost to the Territorial Administration) to staff the new guilds and local Salorkans were permitted to become apprentices. The first local artisans created by the new system did not come through until 1860 and, until that time, skilled labour continued to be contracted from Vionna-Frankenlisch and Caledonia.
A significant bureaucracy developed around the Territorial Administration, mostly staffed by the family members of Balionic planters, as well as a few trusted locals from the old Salorkan administration. The elected legislature, the unicameral Chamber of Representatives, was also drawn almost entirely from the planters themselves. As a result, plantation interests became almost the singular focus of the Territorial Administration with the vast majority of government activity devoted to furthering those interests.