Unity

The Federal Empire of Unity (oftentimes shortened to the Unity)

History

Medieval Era

Unity's history began in 897 when Mitthrilusit the Elder was granted the castle of Zavalwe (which gave the dynasty its name) and the county of Brueln (inside the United Empire) by Emperor Karol II for services rendered in the Plain War. He and his descendants continued to serve the Imperial court faithfully and were rewarded for their service in 952 when the Duchy of Soltaline was created and granted to Jerusat the Ambitious. Emperor Boleslaw died just a few years later, leaving the throne of the United Empire open. Jerusat, a charismatic and persuasive speaker, was elected as Boleslaw's successor and immediately took about entrenching his position within the Empire. Royal marriages bound the Electorate of Lisenia and Plive to the Zavalwe dynasty while Tzopil fell under a personal union. Consistent diplomatic wheedling and further royal marriages extended the borders of Soltaline outwards as Jerusat undertook major centralizing reforms over the multiethnic decentralized empire. He died in 1001 in the midst of his centralization push after a long reign and power fell to his son, Hisedine, who was elected emperor. Hisedine continued the Zavalwe policy of marrying other political dynasties to establish Zavalwe heirs and close bonds with other monarchies but centralization was put on hold as Hisedine prepared for a grand campaign against the Empire's greatest enemy: Fanchia. Fanchia had absorbed several counties and duchies nominally still part of the United Empire so Hisedine demanded their return, an ultimatum which was rejected. Calling upon the Imperial princes to rally to his side, Hisedine marched into Fanchia and was routed in a series of battles that led to his humiliating retreat back into the Empire where he was confronted by a host of princes angered by their reduced privileges under the more centralized imperial regime. Thus began the Time of Turmoil where the Zavalwe dynasty and its allies tried asserting their dominance over the empire against both the decentralizer Noble League and Fanchia through war, diplomacy, guile, and politicking. The crisis erupted into open (but inconclusive) war several times before finally coming to a head in the battle of Miylika where Emperor Tribunan (Hisedine's great-grandson) was slain and Imperial forces scattered. The Count's Peace was signed in 1181, decentralizing the empire once more, but confirming Jerusat II's accession to the Imperial throne. The Zavalwe dynasty would spend the next three hundred years building up their strength and slowly rebuilding the influence they had within the empire.

Renaissance Era

In 1514, Cositic rose to the throne in what was to become a tumultuous reign. A convincing orator and able commander, he was able to greatly strengthen the imperial court within the empire along with directly enlarging the burgeoning Zavalwe Empire through the integration of Lisenia and Tzopil. The eastern flank of the Zavalwe Empire was shored up through a personal union with the crown of Saint Xiliang. However, the empire was again plunged into instability by the Protestant Reformation. Cositic, as a Catholic zealot, initiated harsh crackdowns on Protestant areas, attempting to prevent its spread. He was unsuccessful and only created a rift between the Catholic imperial court and the numerous Protestant princes. Meanwhile, Cositic's attention was distracted by the rise of Octavia to the north. Octavia was a relatively new empire that had rapidly conquered its neighbors and established itself as a strong Islamic power, perhaps the strongest power in the region. Its expansion had brought it to the borders of Saint Xiliang and unwilling to stop their expansion after they had come so far, they invaded in 1532. Border forts quickly fell as Octavian troops carved their way through Saint Xiliang. Cositic mobilized the Imperial army and marched to confront the primary Octavian army near Saint Xiliang's second largest city: Kunhe. The Battle of the Shuanglin (or the Battle of Two Forests in other languages) was a close-fought battle but the charge of the elite Octavian Firtina Askeri proved pivotal in forcing Cositic to concede the battle. The war would go on as a series of attritional sieges and inconclusive battles bled both sides dry of men and money. In 1537, the battered Imperial army marched to defend Saint Xiliang's capital city of Xijing for one final decisive battle of the war. This time, aware of Octavia's superiority in light cavalry, Cositic adopted a defensive strategy using earthworks to force combat onto a small section of the whole battlefield. This time, it seemed like the Imperial army would prevail thanks for a devastating frontal charge of the Imperial Knights led by Cositic himself but he was cut off and subsequently killed on the field through the timely deployment of Octavia's cavalry reserves. Imperial forces routed and Cositic's nephew and successor, Xangeria, was forced to sign a humiliating peace treaty that ceded half of Saint Xiliang to the Octavian Empire. The foundation for the Zavalwe-Octavian rivalry was set, a rivalry that persists to this day.