Pont Caprilieu
Pont Caprilieu, formally Pont Caprilieu Ground Forces School, is a Laeralian military academy located in the town of Brissemer, Neidong. The academy educates and trains officers of the Laeralian National Security Force, enrolling roughly 300 cadets annually for four years of study. Pont Caprilieu dates to the early years of the Laeralian state, and is one of the oldest universities in Laeral. It produces the majority of the top officers of the LNSF, historically known as the Laeralian Army, and educated leading generals and statesmen in Laeralian history, including former president J.P. Salaun as well as Alain Mette, who sought to overthrow the Republic of Laeral alongside other conspirators during the Bloody Summer.
History
In 1865, the Laeralian government ordered the creation of an academy to educate army officers, setting aside funding for the academy's construction, which began in 1866. Pont Caprilieu was chosen as the site for its location easily accessible by the Zhongshui river, as well as the influence of political power broker Henri Laval, a Neidong native. The first class of 63 cadets was accepted in 1869, and by 1880, following the War of the Seven Provinces, Pont Caprilieu graduated over 100 cadets annually.
With the outbreak of the First Fellsian War in 1911, Pont Caprilieu graduates made up much of the Laeralian army's officer corps. During the subsequent Laeralian Civil War, a faction of pro-Republican cadets at Pont Caprilieu seized control of the academy and turned it over to academy alumnus J.P. Salaun's forces in 1921.
The academy survived relatively unmolested with the establishment of the Laeralian Republic, continuing as a major training academy for officers of the Laeralian Armed Forces. It remained loyal to the Laeralsford government during the Bloody Summer under its first Rén commandant, Matthieu Hsiao. In one infamous incident during that conflict, 16 unarmed Pont Caprilieu cadets were executed by Laeralian Front forces.
Facilities and Curriculum
Pont Caprilieu sits on a bluff overlooking the Zhongshui river, on nearly eight square kilometers of land. The complex itself is entered via 1954 Memorial Gate, dedicated to the memory of the cadets killed during the Bloody Summer.