History of Kernansquillec
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| Part of the series on Kernansquillec history | |
| Updated: 2070 | |
Kernansquillec has a long history that spans over 4500 thousand years from the first human settlements up to present day. The history of this land has been littered with cycles of war and peace, prosperity and crisis. From the first real Kernansquillecan nation founded by Kernak over a thousand years ago, to the founding of modern day Kernansquillec after the Second Kernansquillecan War a few hundred years ago, not forgetting the tragic events of the Great War that almost tore the nation apart, Kernansquillec has been constantly evolving to make the country that we know today.
Contents
Prehistory (cerca. 2500BT - 0PT)
The Prehistory Period is defined as the period that precedes the start of the construction of a true Kernansquillecan state. As such it spans over a period of roughtly 2500 years from the first human settlements in the region now known as Kernansquillec up until "year zero" which is defined as the year when Kernansquillecan man first kept a written trace of time. This is why all dates before zero are known as BT - Before Time. All dates since are Post Time (PT), though this is rarely mentioned for all periods post-prehistory.
The first traces of man settling in Kernansquillec date back to around 2500BT with the oldest traces, wall paintings in a cave, being found close to Lac Oranga in Northern Kernansquillec. The lake is believed to have been an important settlement site for prehistoric man by historians, with further traces of settlements being found in the area. The first nomads to cross into Kernansquillec are believed to have come from further north from the Vermark and Northern Wasteland regions along the river Orgk. They are believed to have been forced further south due to a particularly cold winter.
Recent research conducted by the historical department of Binic University shows that these small groups quickly evolved to include a certain form of primitive governance, mainly by the "alpha-male" of each settlement and many soon continued south down Le Faisan river. Some evidences suggests that this "southern push" was caused by conflicts between growing settlements for food and shelter, forcing the smaller, weaker groups south. However, a number of groups are understood to have headed south of their own accord where the climate was much more pleasant and rich in food ressources. By 1600BT experts believe that most of Kernansquillec's south coast had human settlements that had started to farm and build huts.
Tribes started to settle down and claim territories, nomadic behaviour disappeared within a few hundred years and the population began to grow and agricultural skills improved. A number of animals were tamed, including the now symbolic Kernansquillecan Horse that was the first animal to be used not just for its meat and fur, but also for its horse power for ploughing. Tools were also being made and had evolved from the primitive hunting tools of the original Lac Oranga settlements.
Progress was being made fast by these first Kernansquillecans. Estimate put the population of Kernansquillec around 750BT at about 80 000 individuals. The end of the prehistoric period is marked by the development of written and spoken language. The Kernansquillecan language evolved from primitive grunts to audible words and even phrases by 750BT and by 200BT a rich vocabulary had evolved and the first written words even started to emerge. Some evidence shows that a form of schooling had even evolved in certain tribes to the west of Kernansquillec by 150BT.
Man's development was rapid and the Prehistoric Era was ended when man started to count time. Amazingly the time system still in use in modern day Kernansquillec was created during this Prehistoric Era, with man using the stars and seasons to create a 24 hour day with years of 365 days each.
The Building of a Nation (0 - 1030)
Kings and Queens during this period
- Multiple houses
- House of Kernak
- Kernak I (814-844) (did not rule a united Kernansquillec)
- Kernak II (844-871)
- Kernak III (871-880)
- Julios I (880-881)
- Karnanik I (881-916)
- Kevin I (916-925)
- Julios II (925-950)
- Augustinas I (950-977)
- Katherina I (977-988)
- Henry I (988-1001)
- Kernak IV (1001-1022)
- Francis I (1022-1030)
L'Avènement (0 - 814)
L'Avènement is a period of Kernansquillec's history which sees the birth of social-political structures that have a true form of governance as well as the implantation of the idea of uniting all of "the Green lands", an area roughly corresponding to modern-day Kernansquillec and Uzekia.
Man's incredible growth in the Prehistoric Era continued past Year Zero with important leaps forward being in terms of knowledge. Agriculture, construction, metal work, the sciences all saw great leaps forward, helped by the multiplication of villages and trade routes, mainly around Lac Oranga, on the South Coast near modern day Kernansquillec City, as well as all along Le Faisan river. Villages and tribes soon started to group around major points of economic interest that would often develop into early political strongholds. The fourth century saw the first conflicts between the early city-states, which took place as a result of trade routes and economic disputes.
By the beginning of the fifth century most of Kernansquillec was organised into city-states, each one with its own form of governance. The city-state of Mont Kate was at the time the largest and most powerful of them all. Ruled by an absolute monarch since 391 the city was seen as untakable thanks to its mountain defences and had started to create a large area of influence based around the Gingère river.
During the sixth and seventh centuries were marked by the expansion of the domains of these city-states, leading to multiple localised conflicts. By the mid-700 these domains had settled into fifteen main regions: the Katines Empire, the Kingdom of the North, the Southern Empire, the République de l'Isle Bleu, the Kingdom of East Soton, Roarzhon, Gwengamp, Kernàn, Kaetstrom, the Queendom of Johanna, the Democracy of Loupiurn, Djocostine, the Firelands, Uzekia and the Wild lands of the West.
By the eighth century Mont Kate's ruler, King Julios III, was aiming to complete the unification of Kernansquillec. Most leaders of the time had ambitions to achieve such a feat, but it was considered to be somewhat impossible and as the such, the Green land had settled into a somewhat stable division between the different factions since the early 700s following the end of the Katines Empire-Southern Empire war of 721.
The first step of King Julios III's strategy was to create an alliance with the powerful Kingdom of the North so that his forces could concentrate on conquering the Firelands, Kernàn and an important part of the Southern Empire, while his ally would focus on vanquishing the tribes of the Wild lands - an area once considered as off limits by Mont Kate. The alliance was concluded in secret in October 775 with the war to begin in Spring 776.
The first weeks of the war went well for the Katines Empire with inroads being made on all fronts, namely in the Southern Empire where the banks of the Le Faisan river had been breached. However their forces soon became bogged down, namely in central Firelands and along the numerous riverbanks in Kernàn. Despite strong opposition, King Julios III's army forced its way to the gates of Kernàn itself and eventually overpowered its defences, leading to the massacre of almost all of the cities inhabitants. Such an act was unprecedented in central and eastern Kernansquillec with only the barbarian forces of the Wild lands and Uzekia known to have committed such acts before. The news and horror soon spread to the neutral states of Djocostine and Gwengamp who felt obliged to act quickly to stop the spread of the Katines Empire.
Even with opening of an eastern front Mont Kate held its own for quite some time, mainly thanks to the mountainous terrain along the eastern front and a favorable peace treaty signed by the end of 776 with the Firelands. But come summer 777 and over a year of war peace talks were held and a deal reached that saw the Katines Empire forced into conceding most of Kernàn as well as some of their eastern territories. Kernàn was however not given independence and was incorporated into the Southern Empire.
The attempt to stride towards a united Kernansquillec had once again failed, however the series of events started by King Julios III's actions led onto the future uniting of the country under King Kernak II with the war that broke out in 843. King Kernak I was the only son of King Karak of Kernàn, killed in the battle of Kernàn, and was one of the survivors who managed to flee the sacking of the city. Over the years, under the rule of the Southern Empire, Kernak I began to gain support with his fellow countrymen which led to an uprising in 814. Kernàn was refounded once again and a small nation was born from within the Southern Empire. Kernak I's forces immediately began to build up, with their leader looking for revenge against the Katines Empire.
The Unification of Kernansquillec (814 - 853)
With the refondation of Kernàn with the success of the 814 rebellion, Kernak began to rebuild his father's kingdom for the bottom up. Due to his past where he had had to work the fields like a commoner and the reputation he had built for himself of being a strong and just leader he was respected by most of the inhabitants of Kernàn who appreciated the security and prosperity of his kingdom. Even beyond his kingdom, word was spreading of him and a sort of legend began to arise from the stories, making him very popular, namely in the Southern Empire which was suffering from food shortages at the time.
Fueled by his desire for revenge against the Katines Empire Kernak I began to develop his armed forces. By the arrival of 820 the old king had a well organised army. Kernak's plan was to begin by taking control of the entire east of the Green lands before turning his attention towards Mont Kate. At the death of winter in 821 the offensive against the Southern Empire began. Emperor Iop II had never been able to step up to the level of his father and his demoralized forces were disorganized. Many surrendered before fighting could event start. Before summer had arrived Fort Marie was already under siege and the Empire surrendered in exchange of a guarantee of the Emperor and his family's safety. Summer saw Kernak's forces, joined by the forces of the Southern Empire who joined their new leader, push north. The target was now Djocostine, a Federation of Tribal states. Once united under Karl Gron, the Federation had already begun to crumble following his death in 806. Progress met some stern resistance from certain groups and a fierce battle raged over control of the capital of the federation Corlay. With winter looming Kernak needed to secure the city and ensure victory. And he achieve his aim for the most part with the city falling in late October and only a few pockets of resistance remaining in the west. The majority of the population was not nearly as welcoming as those of the Southern Empire, but began to be won over as Kernak organised trade routes ensuring a supply of food over the winter.
Come 822 Kernak I ruled over the largest domain in the Green lands, uniting the whole east of the country. A short period of peace followed with the King reinforcing his military capabilities while seeking to strengthen his hold on the conquered regions by eliminating remaining opponents and putting in place the first ever large scale social policies in the region. But Kernak's strategy to defeat Mont Kate was far from other and the last remaining eastern kingdom of Gwengamp was within his sights. By 830, Kernak's son, the future Kernak II, was one of the bright young generals of his army. Kernak's army lauched their offensive in the summer of 830, hitting Gwengamp from the south and the east, on both sides of the river Le Faisan which had until then provided a last line of defence in case of attack from either the west or east. With Gwengamp - present day Guingamp - totally surrounded within three weeks terms of surrender were agreed.
With the only domain bordering Kernàn now the Katines Empire itself, it seemed only one direction of attack remained for Kernak. However, Kernak was aware that a frontal assault along the Le Gingère river and the Katines mountains would lead to a bloody and drawn out conflict that he was unlikely to win all-out. So his attention turned towards the Kingdom of the North. Only a small stretch of territory separated his forces in Djocostine from their eastern flank along the Le Faisan river. In 831 secret negotiations began separately with both the Kingdom of the North and Uzekia. Kernak proposed an alliance with the North in which they would split the Green lands into two halves, making out that his only goal was to defeat the Katines. However, he had no such intention of holding that promise. Indeed, at the same time negotiations with Uzekia in which they would receive military support if they were to attack the Kingdom of the North in the north. Kernak's gamble was that Uzekia's offensive and his pact with the North would see the eastern defensive drained of their capabilities, allowing for a walkover. Uzekia were promised as much of the Northern Kingdom as they could conquer and full independence from Kernak's green lands.
Secret pacts were signed with both in 833. And in Spring 834 Uzekia launched it's offensive against the Kingdom of the North. Five weeks later, Kernak's forces, under the command of his son, crossed Le Faisan and hastily pushed west towards their capital Mur-du-Roy - modern day Mur-de-Kernansquillec - as well as along the southern border with the Katines Empire. Shocked by the treachery of Kernak the North put up a strong fight. But with their forces split and with two fronts open it was a losing battle. Even before Kernak's forces could reach the Mur-du-Roy Uzekia's forces had stormed the city and burnt the most part of it to the ground. Total defeat awaited the remaining survivors, most of whom actually fled to Kernak's side of the conquered territories to avoid the brutality of the Uzekians.
Another brief spell of peace would follow. After an opportunistic land grab in the south-west of the Kingdom of the North as they fell from the Katines Empire, their forces focused their efforts on finally taking over the ressource rich Firelands as well as major parts of the Wild lands. An alliance was made with Roazhon and a swift victory saw the Firelands wiped off the map, while the wild lands of the west were reduced to just a sliver.
The great offensive by Kernàn's forces was set for Spring 843. Divisions would attack from the north, east and south with the primary objective to isolate Mont Kate and Julios Castle. Defensive positions set up by the Empire provided strong resistance despite being outnumbers in most places. The march towards the mountains took almost all year. But important gains were made in the south and in the west. Winter of 843 brought some respite for Katines, but their Spring offensive was countered and the sieges of Mont Kate and Julios Castle began. The sieges would last the best part of a year in total as the war effort was plagued by a wet summer and pockets of resistance arriving from further west. Mont Kate fell early in 844 following a revolt within the city itself. Julios Castle would carry on fighting however, right up until their food reserves ran out at the start of the summer. Conquering the remaining territory wasn't a given, namely with the logistics of moving the bulk of the army around the Katines mountain range to the south were the fighting was taking place. Despite heavy losses, the Katines Empire were totally conquered by the start of 845 when the last opposition stronghold of Gwensfield fell.
King Kernak I wouldn't live long enough to see the Katines Empire totally defeated. He passed away during the winter of 844 at the old age of 70. His son and general of the army was crowed not far from Gwensfield where his army was camped. Only Kernak II would bring about his father's dream of defeating the Katines Empire and creating a unified green land. Rebuilding his forces, imposing his authority upon the conquered Empire and dealing with the economic fallout of the war kept Kernak II at bay for a number of years. But in Spring 853 the final series of wars was launched. The democracy of Loupiurn was welcomed into the Kingdom as a self-governing region under the authority of the King, while Roazhon attempted to put up strong resistance to the hegemony of Kernàn before crumbling. Terms were agreed during the early months of autumn with Kernak's army at the gates of Rennes. The Wild lands, who's days were already numbered were also conquered during the autumn. By the end of 853, almost all of mainland Kernansquillec was unified into a single state. The green lands had taken form. A new name was devised for this kingdom that went beyond simple Kernàn. And in honor of his father (and himself), King Kernak II proclaimed the birth of the first Kernansquillecan state Kernakàn on the 23rd November 853.
The Kernak Era (853 - 1030)
Uniting all of Kernakàn may have been successful but it hadn't been easy. Many divisions remained within the country and while the elites may now have had a sense of being part of a single unified country, few of the common people felt as such, remaining closely attached to their local community rather than anything larger. King Kernak II would rule 18 years before dying of old age. He made attempts to put in place regional lords and codify a basic legal system, but struggled to complete his projects in the face of strong opposition from local lords and ill health. His son would push ahead with the reforms and succeed in creating an administrative division of the country with local lords in charge of collecting taxes and maintaining law and order. However, the restricted number of lordships angered many who were left aside, leading to a revolt in 880 that ended with the King's execution. Lord Julios, the King's youngest brother who led the revolt, was crowned soon after. But a counter revolt against the new regime was launched by lords loyal to the previous king. Led by the older brother of Julios, Kernanik, a two year war followed and ended with Julios fleeing Kernakàn. Kernanik was crowned king and would rule for 35 years, creating a much more stable regime based upon compromise with local lords.
Her rule would begin a period of the Royal family consolidating their control of the land as further powers were taken away from local lords. The economic situation stabilized but tensions remained strong under the surface as repression against rebels continued. Henry I, her son, would continue down the same path. Initially King Kernak IV would also continue down the same path, but as a new economic slowdown hit his kingdom in 1020 following a poor harvest, he was forced to find solutions. He decided the best way to proceeded was to attempt to annex resource rich territories in the East. His campaign made small gains but the crisis was far from resolved by the time of his death in 1022. His cousin, Francis I, would take over as regent for a brief period, before having Kernak IV's children assassinated. He ordered the army further into Eastern territories and began to withdraw some of the few rights citizens had (free hunting, use of the King's roads), while also increasing taxes to finance his conquests. His drain on manpower began to strongly affect northern territories that were already struggling with agricultural output.
As his military conquests began to turn sour and retreats became more and more common place along the Eastern front, lords in the North met in secret and began to organize a breakaway movement. Uniting with the commanders of northern military regiments, the northern uprising took place in the autumn of 1029 and made rapid progress. While Francis I attempted to quash the rebellion against the "oranges", his army and lords in the south also began to turn on him. In the early months of 1030, a uprising took place in Kernansquillec City and led to the King being captured by local lords. He would be executed on the 14th February 1030, officially bringing to an end the House of Kernak.
