Vedotī Imperial Palace
| Vedotī Imperial Palace | |
|---|---|
 The Vedotī Imperial Palace after having reparations done in 2011. | |
| Location | Vedotī, Flatstone |
| Built | 1236-1243 |
| Visitors | 89,500 (in 2018) |
| Governing body | Northern Ivili Clan |
| Website | www.vedotipalace.rock |
The Vedotī Imperial Palace is a historical site located in Vedotī, Flatstone. The palace began initial construction in 1236 just a year before the death of Andesen Von Stone and just a year after the conclusion of the Second Stonish War of Unification. Since then, the palace has undergone several reoperations throughout the 20th century due to damages caused by negligent tourists and an overall lack of care by the republican government that ruled the nation throughout the 60's until the start of the 21st century.
History
Construction
Design
The imperial palace's design was intended to be conservatory, conservatory of the space available specifically. Because of this, the palace is relatively small in size, only being comprised of five separate buildings in total, each of which were two stories and of varying sizes. The first is the main building, intended to serve as the residency of the royal family, and thus the first building has four to five separate master bedrooms, up to three bathrooms, a dining room, and a sizeable kitchen. The main building also includes a number of storage closets and utility rooms, however these are not operated by the royal family. The second building was intended to serve as a dining hall for the use of any visitors, the staff, and even the royal family if the need were to arise. The third, fourth, and fifth buildings are not for the use of the royal family, but rather it's guards, staff, and whomever else it may need to service. These buildings are identical in design, shape, and size. They each have two bathrooms, one on each floor, that is shared collectively by all of the occupants of the floor. Each floor additionally has one storage closet/utility room that occupies the furthest corner from the entrance. The rest of the space on each floor is occupied by three different rooms, each of which have four beds, meaning that each building is capable of housing 24 occupants at one time.
Slave Labour
Throughout the seven years that it took to construct the imperial palace, a variety of methods were used to compensate for the lack of sufficient human labour. The most notable of these methods was slavery, a practice that has been universally frowned upon within the nation of Flatstone since it's creation in the 1230's. However, this was an exception, as completing the construction of the palace was deemed urgent by Ejek Von Stone, the King of Flatstone at the time of the palace's construction, and at the time there was an abundance of Taverkny and Ou soldiers that had been captured by the Northern Ivili army during the reunification wars. Ejek Von Stone finalized the decision to use slave labour to speed up the process of construction, enlisting upwards of three-hundred prisoners of war to participate in the palace's construction in 1238, two years into the palace's construction. The sacrifice of these men is honored with a memorial that was placed outside of the entrance of the imperial palace for all to see.
During Republican Rule
The imperial palace entered into a period of neglect and disrepair following the instatement of the Stonish republican government after the expulsion of the Stonish royal family in the 60's. For roughly fifty years, the imperial palace was left unoccupied and was reserviced as a museum of which, for a small amount of time, it received a staggering amount of visitors, previously having been off-limits to the public. However, these five seconds of fame wouldn't last, as a lack of funding by the government meant that the palace began to decay. This was also partly due to the fact that the palace was severely understaffed, running off of a volunteer program that meant that all of those who looked after the palace were volunteers who never actually showed up to their scheduled shifts. This state of the palace wouldn't change until the start of the twentieth century, when the Stonish royal family returned to power and reclaimed the ruined palace in 2008.
During the Stonish Civil War
The museum was closed by the federal government in 2003, just weeks before the outbreak of the Stonish Civil War. This was because the museum had become a sight of activism and routine demonstrations carried out by the loyalists who supported the crown. Vandalism became so much of an issue that Stonish military police had to be stationed at the palace to deter rioters from breaking into the palace and looting any valuables that remained. However, by 2003, the palace had already been picked clean by scavengers prior to the political unrest in the capital. When the war broke out, the palace remained relatively untouched by both federal agents and looters, at least for the first half of the war. This would change when the city of Vedotī became the scene of intense fighting between federal and loyalist forces, and the palace was caught in the crossfire. Those who participated in the fighting claim that the palace was fought over for five days before being won over by loyalist forces. Subsequently, the palace suffered extreme structural damage, with two of the five structures that make up the properties complex having collapsed due to the heavy amounts of artillery bombardments that were conducted by federal forces in the region. The main buildings second floor had become exposed to the sun, as the roof had caved in and it's outer walls virtually non-existent. As the fighting moved elsewhere, the palace was left a graveyard. The lawn that surrounded each of the buildings was turned to mud, with craters littering the ground in and around the building complex. The tree line surrounding the palace was blown away, being replaced by a long trench spanning the boundaries of the palaces property. The palace had become virtually unrecognizable following the conclusion of the fighting in Vedotī. Reparations began immediately after the end of the war in 2008, and would be completed in 2011.
Post-Civil War and Reconstruction
Reconstruction of the palace wasn't prioritized by the crown, as the nation itself was in ruins after the civil war had ended. Reparations did begin, however it would take four years for the palace to be restored to its original state that it had possessed prior to the war. This is largely due to the fact that the state lacked the proper manpower, funding, and resources that were required to repair the palace. This, and the fact that the palace would need to be entirely reconstructed after the damage that it sustained during the battle for Vedotī. Demolishing the ruins of the original palace and clearing the leftover debris alone would take the construction crews responsible for the reconstruction of the palace over a year to accomplish. Reconstructing the palace to look as close as possible to the original with limited available resources would take another three. During this four year period, the Stonish royal family would take refuge in the bomb shelter of the palace, which had been built as an addition to the palace in the 50's and restocked after the end of the Stonish war for the royal family's use.
Cultural Significance
Symbolism
The Vedoti imperial palace is seen by many as an icon representing not only the government and the royal family, but also strength, perseverance, and even national pride. The perseverance part of the palaces reputation comes from the battle that the palace was involved in during the Stonish Civil War, where many young men lost their lives during a struggle for the national monument of which their comrades would go on to win over. The two war memorials that are dedicated to the veterans who gave their lives defending and fighting for the palace, and the third memorial that was erected in honor of those who partook in the palaces construction give it a darker, more serious tone. The palace is also often associated with religion, serving as a symbol of Geology due to the fact that it's hosts (the Stonish royal family) are nationally seen as the defenders of the Geologist faith.
The House of Von Stone
The House of Von Stone is responsible for the palaces construction and existence. The palace legally belongs to the state, however it is primarily operated and occupied by the members of the Stonish royal family, their servants, and other staff who are responsible for the maintenance of the palace. Vedotī city law forbids the palaces occupancy by anybody other than a member of the Von Stone dynasty (or their accomplices). Even just setting foot on the property uninvited can result in capital punishment. A large section of lawn is reserved for usage as a graveyard, where every Stonish king to date has been buried. Presidents representing the republican government were not allowed to be buried at the Vedotī palace graveyard unless they were members of the Von Stone dynasty. However, none of those who served terms as presidents in Flatstone were of the Von Stone dynasty, and thus burying a republican at the Von Stone residence would be seen as not only heresy but a matter of national treason. It is believed that if the body of Stonish prophet Ejek Vedotin were to ever be located, the prophet would be granted a burial at the Vedotī Imperial palace despite lacking Von Stone ancestry.