Arcél 3480

From Almeopedia

Arcél 3400

Arcél Languages

1 Fananak in disarray
2 In the south
3 In the north
4 Characteristic figure

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Fananak in disarray

The devolution of Fananak has continued. In 3420 the Ōkmisan mounted a campaign against the military despotate of Alešpim which ended in the destruction of the city and the collapse of the despotate (3425). The victorious Ōkmisan continued southward, only to be defeated in turn by the remnants of the aŋgot’s armies.

For more than a decade the central Itseʔ was in chaos. There were attempts to form states based on ethnicity (Tžuro, Itsenic, Dnetic, Kleʔmet’), religion (Jippirasti or not), or personal charisma, and of course there was the division between horsemen and peasants. Nor were all these divisions binary. By this time there were few who could claim pure Tžuro blood, and those mostly lived on the western coast, in Fananak proper. There was a rather larger community which adhered to Jippirasti, but many mixed it with indigenous beliefs, openly or not.

Around 3438 the Ičeki Tej was proclaimed (Iček is Fananaki for Itseʔ), based on the coastal town of Ičekali. Its ruling class identified as Tžuro— thus the gray color on the map— though most of the people were Itsenic. This class communicated in a creolized version of Fananaki (more convenient than any native dialect, but barbaric-sounding to pure Tžuro). Its self-designation as a tej proclaimed its commitment to religious orthodoxy— even Fananak simply called itself a kingdom (jos). Under the circumstances this was a surer basis for a state than military rule, but it also set up conflicts both with religious minorities and with other states: e.g. it fought aggressive wars with both Fananak (pursuing an argument that all the Jippirasti of Arcél owed allegiance to the tej even if the latter was self-proclaimed) and the ‘pagan’ Kleʔmet’. It also attempted several times to recapture Alešpim— which largely lay in ruins— but the Ōkmisan were still too strong.

Jippirasti had made little progress on the middle Itseʔ. A native Itsenic dynasty established its independence here in the 3450s— Wasanmadbi, whose name meant ‘they are recovering the heritage they lost’. Wasanmadbi set to persecuting its local Jippirasti, and Iček to harrassing its pagans, with the result that many people migrated to the country which was friendlier to their beliefs; this caused quite a bit of mixing of ethnic groups.

Meanwhile the Ōkmisan divided (by 3440), largely because they had conflicting goals: the westerners were preoccupied with fighting Iček, the easterners with Uytai. Neither side had much to show for their efforts. The westerners lost control of the middle Nyan peninsula, and the easterners were unable to retake the tea highlands. As some compensation, they strengthened their position in southeastern Belesao (mostly by slow defoliation of the nearby jungle) and along the upper Suntso (pushing back the Ȟatiŋga).

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In the south

Restoration forces under the emperor Nonpau conquered Uykhrai in 3414, and in 3420 his son Nonsaut finally took Srethun, ending the little Patriot enclave. This seemed to validate the Restoration’s claims to be the true empire of Uytai; still, the capital wasn’t moved from Twot to Srethun till 3435, after the conquest of the coast from the Siadese.

Phetai was attacked by the Ōkmisan in the 3440s, giving Nonsaut a pretext to occupy the country and push back the barbarians. However, he was content to allow Phetai local autonomy, including the continuance of its own legislature.

Uytai prospers from its control over the first leg of the tea routes; but technologically and culturally it is rather stagnant. It’s found little of interest in the Ereláean nations, besides some intriguing toys. In 3461 Nonsaut, who had no surviving sons, was succeeded by his nephew Nrewnsyu; the upper Ħomtso seized upon this as a pretext for secession, under the name Nontai. Nrewnsyu later negotiated a recognition of his authority de jure but, since his armies weren’t allowed in, Nontai was effectively independent.

Nyandai has done much better in understanding and integrating Ereláean knowledge. It’s the only nation in the south which has embraced the printing press, and it established an institute to study and translate Verdurian and Kebreni books— though these lean heavily toward those which sea captains happen to have on hand: works on medicine, navigation, or maritime law, plus religious works and novels.

Relations with the Ereláeans are not always smooth. Both Verduria and Kebri insist on extraterritoriality for their traders and sailors, and despite solemn agreements signed in Krantet, encounters far from home may degenerate into piracy. Nyandai’s attempt to maintain a base at Jebruk caused friction with Verduria, which used the island as a stopping point on the way to Téllinor; this was eventually ‘solved’ by making the island independent and its ports free to all comers (3438). The only satisfaction for the Nyanese was that Jebruk wasn’t yet a formal Verdurian colony.

In 3456 the Ȟlum conquered the rump of Ťrim— only they were not really the Ȟlum any longer. Though they continued to think of themselves as separate from the commoners, with a glorious heritage as nomadic warriors, they spoke Ťrimese and had largely assimilated to Ťrimese customs. They were thus known as Hlüim, Ȟlum in Ťrimese. (At the same time they imported hundreds of Ȟlum words into Ťrimese, which thus becomes the most divergent of the Uyseʔic languages.)

The Ȟatiŋga divided from the Ȟtana back in the Nikrit valley; this allowed the Smë rift valley to reestablish its independence.

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In the north

The Beic states are in general a good deal less complacent about Ereláe. In part this is due to more openness, or less self-importance, compared to Uytai. But there’s also the fact that Kebri has already taken over one nation, and that its traders, bankers, and sailors are ubiquitous and arrogant. The native cloth industry is nearly destroyed, the Kebreni keep trying to eliminate Arcélian middlemen in the tea trade, and most of the Beic states are in debt to Kebreni banks. Sexual mores are a constant sticking point— gangsters stepped forward to provide suitable women for Kebreni sailors, but even Kebreni diplomats can’t hide their condescension.

Understanding of Ereláean science and technology is spotty. Some inventions have been fully understood: telescopes, eyeglasses, printing presses, the pendulum clock, glassmaking. Savants in the large cities experiment with chemistry and electricity. But large industrial equipment and the steam engine are not understood, mainly because they’re not exactly suitable for intercontinental trade.

On the other hand, there is one technology where the Bé are arguably superior: gunpowder weapons. There hasn’t been a major war in Eretald for two centuries, but there have been recent wars in the Bé: between Łeisau and Mauraŋ (3406-9), Mauraŋ and Belesao (3425-29), Mɔłɔsɔu and Rimasača (3433-35, 56-58), Belesao and Ânhɛ̀ (3460-62). The Bé started with cannons, learned how to make them smaller, and now have something similar to the terrestrial musket. (It may also be a factor that the Bé have no sentimental attachment to the sword; they prefer ranged weapons anyway.)

The Bé had long known about male-dominated societies (e.g. the Nyanese), but the Ereláeans were somewhat more disturbing, as they were obviously masters of technology. On the other hand, they were considered to be spiritually backwards; they knew nothing about the nɔŋǎ, the spirit world; and their scientists even, ridiculously, denied that it existed.

During its second war with Mɔlɔsɔu, Rimasača recovered the Sunča valley; they were helped by an alliance with Ânhɛ̀. Rimasača was now accepted as a peer of the Beic states; naturally its diplomats, traders, and aristocrats spoke Mɔłɔ. (By contrast Ayalampa was still considered a barbarian state.)

In the 3440s Praȟmai conquered Čimlai, the southern half of Ȟaibalai. The eastern half had thrown out the Neinuoians around 3435.

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