Difference between revisions of "Nation/Weremark"

Revision as of 14:56, 27 August 2017

The Kingdom of Weremark Weremark
Motto: "Andaláus Ihre, Magnem Liuda." "Endless Honor, Great Prosperity."
Anthem: "Hostages of Circumstance."
Capital and largest city		Hailia
Official languages		Werman
Recognised regional languages		Gothic, Low Prussian, Norse
Ethnic groups (1999)		Werman (95.65%), Heimarn (4.26%), Vand (0.09%)
Demonym		Werman
Government		Feudal Kingdom
-	King	Dagmund Altberg
-	Duke of Altberg	Magnus Altberg
-	Duchess of Scarin	Brynhild Hermann
Legislature		House of Lords and Ladies
Independence
-	Consolidation of Weremark	1041 CE
-	Werman War of Succession	1337 CE
-	Ratification of the Kuningsjesazen	1398 CE
-	Water (%)	17%
Population
-	2014 estimate	77 million
HDI (2013)		0.944 very high
Currency		Eagle (WME)
Time zone		Eastern Standard Time (EST)
Date format		DD/MM/YYYY
Calling code		+82
Internet TLD		.wm

The Kingdom of Weremark (pronounced /wɛrmark/) or Wærmark in Wereman is a developed nation of approximately 77 million inhabitants in the TEMPLATE LOCATION. The nation of TEMPLATE lies to the west and southwest, respectively. <INSERT SPECIFIC LOCATION DETAILS HERE>

Originally a conglomeration of Germanic tribes collectively referred to as the Weres, the Kingdom of Weremark was consolidated by Ragnar Altberg in 1339, after which feudal traditions gradually entrenched themselves in the nation's sociopolitical sphere. The Kingdom expanded throughout the first millennium, resulting in various tributary states and vassals, including Wahland. It is governed as an absolute monarchy with varying degrees of vassal control and popular input. It is considered to be a highly decentralized state, with defence, economics, and energy often relegated to the sole responsibility of regional vassals. There are over 150 bannermen sworn to the King of Weremark, among them Dukes, Counts, Margraves, and Jarls. Weremark holds a strong aristocratic tradition and is noted for its enduring sense of chivalry, a fact marking it as one of the few clear-cut feudal states remaining in the modern world. Culturally, it shares links to neighbors Heimar and Vandinium, as well as Artstotszka.

Weremark holds considerable natural and energy resources but has neglected to access them since the onset of the 21st century, for various geopolitical reasons. Weremark has come to be known for its furniture, automobile, and defence industries. The country is one of the five recognized nuclear weapons states and around seventeen weapons of mass destruction. Weremark has been recognized as both a great power and a regional power since its civil war, however, the nation was characterized as a superpower for a large portion of the early 2000s. <INSERT GEOPOLITICAL ORGANIZATIONS HERE>

Etymology

The etymology of the word Weremark is a subject which occasionally attracts debate. Most sources derive the first part of the word, and by extension the name of the people, from the general Germanic root for "man", related to English Werewolf. The -mark is believed to mean borderland, with probable references to the southern border with Vandinium.

The first recorded use of the word Weremark within Weremark itself is found on the baptismal Writ of Weremark, which declared Weremark's official existence in 1041 CE. The word is written in the form of nominative ᚹᛖᚱᛖᛗᚨᚱᚲ, a form still used today. The inhabitants of Weremark are there called "Wæren" ([wɛren]), or "Weres", in the accusative.

History

Prehistory

Weremark's history begins at the southwestern base of the Kørpergroße mountains, located along Weremark's modern borders with Heimar and Artstotszka.This period was characterised by small bands of hunter-gatherer-fishers using flint technology. Agriculture developed independently around 11,500 BCE, with Germanic tribes in the area consolidating and forming economies based on the cultivation of wheat and potatoes.

Germanic tribes living in what was to become Weremark are first mentioned by EXTERNAL HISTORIAN in 120 BCE. In CLASSICAL WORK OF HISTORY, he mentions the Goths (Goteas) as a powerful tribe specializing in bronze mining, and the Jylls (Jillanis) as great warriors and sailors. Though the exact history of these early tribes is not exactly known, Germanic mythology mentions several mythical and semi-mythical kings as having ruled both tribes at the time. As for literacy in Weremark, evidence of a Proto-Runic system exists from as far back as 300 BCE. Artifacts recovered from Oltbjorgvilke reveal that, when transliterated correctly, the Proto-Werman language was much more mutually-intelligible with modern Werman compared to other languages of the time.

Around 49 CE, EXTERNAL HISTORIAN #2 describes the Goteans and Jyllans as being of the same stock and the tallest of people. He also mentions various Germanic tribes as having gained in the territory, including the fledgeling Vareans. The Vareans return in later histories of the era, noted for their strong and organized society and iron metalworking.

Depiction of Germanic intermingling. The Classical Era marked large shifts in proto-Werman cultures.

Feudal Age and Reformation

Sudrogothic historian Schaonric mentions around 321 CE that the Varans had begun a conquest of neighbouring Germanic tribes, but had been repelled by the hosts of Redoric Theordicing and Jarkin von Nikberg, of Hailia and Jylmark, respectively. External sources at the time falsely describe the whole region as having belonged to the Varans, and, in the next centuries, the whole region and its peoples came to gradually be referred to as belonging to the 'Weres', a phenomenon accelerated by the near-identical languages of the Varans and Jylls, and the shared Germanic religion of all the tribes.

By 940 CE, the Varans had successfully annexed the lands of the Jylls, and created the first legitimate governmental structure in Weremark, the Grand Duchy of Jylmark. In 1041 CE, Jylmen under the command of Otto Altberg, 'The Werewolf', successfully conquered the Gothic lands of Sigisland and Stiurberg, enabling the creation of the modern title of King of Weremark, and stabilizing the region under one ruler for the first time in recorded history. The Grand Duchy of Jylland passed onto cadet branches of the Altberg family, while those who had submitted peacefully were allowed to keep their lands and titles as vassals to the crown. In Weremark subsequently developed Feudalism in a modified form, known as Lahnschaft. Lahnschaft Feudalism excludes the clergy from owning land, instead granting the First Estate to merchants and the middle class.

While thralldom had been common in Weremark, indentured servitude developed as the basis for hard labour, supplanting serfdom and thralldom. Eventually, both slavery and serfdom were abolished altogether by a decree of King Magnus Beartooth in 1244. Former thralls and serfs tended to be absorbed into the peasantry, and some became labourers in the towns. However, aside from the important port city of Hailia, Weremark remained a largely backwards country, with most rural communities operating on barter-based systems until the consolidation of the Banking Orders in 1299. In the early 1300s, Weremark expanded north into Aurora, conquering Vipura and Blackhorn from the local Kitari cultures.

In 1337, King Rikard Altberg of Weremark died prematurely, leaving his teenage daughter Jorva in command of Weremark. Rikard's bastard, Ragnar the Hawk, recently returned from Aurora, raised questions about Jorva's illegitimacy, given Rikard's record of adultery and his own birth. Ragnar argued unsuccessfully before Weremark's vassals that he should be the rightful ruler of Weremark, as he had tangible proof that he had been born within Weremark's castle walls to a noblewoman, while Jorva had no such guarantee. After being sternly rejected by Gunther Horenhelm, Grand Duke of Jylmark and Designated Regent, he declared open rebellion against Jorva's supporters in the Werman War of Succession, securing a victory in 1339 and legitimizing himself as King Ragnar Altberg.

Early Modern History (1400–1849)

Geopolitical Relevance (1849–present)

In 1971, Vandinium, then helmed by Emperor Treven Von Stein formally declared war on Weremark after the Vandiniumite Senate reached consensus regarding a War of Conquest. The First Nevthronian War formally began on 9 April 1973, in a surprise attack. As surprise strikes are largely considered to be dishonourable in Werman culture, the event is often referred to as the Blackguardly War, especially in Southern Weremark. Though the war quickly devolved into a stalemate near Weremark's southern border, it is perhaps best remembered as having popularized many figures in pop culture and politics, including Johannes Jensen von Rokir and TV personality Hinrich Reinhart. During the war, the Altberg Disaster occurred when a stray cluster bomb launched by Wereman aircraft struck the Altberg North Nuclear Power Plant, inducing a meltdown that displaced 1.21 million people, including the King of Altberg, and resulted in the construction of New Altberg.

Weremark's successful defence of their borders led to sporadic border conflicts with Vandinium forces for the next two decades, culminating in the Second Nevthronian War in 1991 and Wereman interventions in Vandiniumite Civil Wars, in 1995 and 2012. The latter intervention proved particularly disastrous when the Karthspire Incident resulted in the deaths of several members of the Wereman military mobility, and a largely successful invasion of southern Weremark by Vandiniumite forces then under the control of the Blackwatch Regime. The event called into question the political legitimacy of the House of Altberg, and prompted several western Lords under the command of Karl Narheim, Grand Duke of Jylmark, to rebel against the Werman term. Existing political movements in the east materialized into the anarcho-socialist National Freedom Assembly and fascist National Socialist Werman Worker's Party, both of which mobilized sizable militia forces against the royalist factions. Though the NFA were initially able to secure the support of Heimar, the Royalist victory against Vandiniumite invaders in the south, and new Heimarn leadership in Markus Albrecht led to Heimarn forces joining the royalist faction and helping to reunite Weremark under the status quo.

Geography

Demographics

Urbanization

Culture

Religion

Government

Military