Cobalt Reconquista
The Piratical War of Indepdence
Sparked by the Empire of Keoland seeking to bring order to its holdings in the Cobalt Sea in 187 IA and ended by the 194 Treaty of Amaya, this seven-year war was fought between the Empire of Keoland and the Pirate Confederacy, with the Empire of the Silver Crown joining Keola in the final year of the war.
While the Confederacy was beaten back by Imperial powers, the Empire was forced to negotiate by the Confederacy due to heavy casualties and a number of pyrrhic victories, not to mention the Confederacy's ability to fight without land-based holdings; an invasion of Amaya was not going to stop the bloodshed, only make it more widespread. The war ended with the Confederacy being reorganized into the Hold of the Sea Princes and formally recognized by the humilated Empire of Keoland.
While the Confederacy was beaten back by Imperial powers, the Empire was forced to negotiate by the Confederacy due to heavy casualties and a number of pyrrhic victories, not to mention the Confederacy's ability to fight without land-based holdings; an invasion of Amaya was not going to stop the bloodshed, only make it more widespread. The war ended with the Confederacy being reorganized into the Hold of the Sea Princes and formally recognized by the humilated Empire of Keoland.
The Conflict
Prelude
At the eve of the Clergymen's Wars in 178 IA, the Privateer's Guild was reconstituted into the Pirate Confederacy. These privateers, rich from the war, utilized their pre-existing wealth and weaponry to extract more wealth from the Cobalt Sea and surrounding empires.
In 138 IA, the confederacy successfuly defeated weary Keoish defenses at Isla de Amaya in the the Battle of Amaya. Now controlling a large, defensible, and strategically important island the Pirate Confederacy raided dwarven ships and ports in the Cobalt Sea and Procan's Depths. The resulting illegal trade of spice and slaves enriched the pirates and enraged the empires - especially the Empire of Keoland - in equal measures.
Deployment
In 187 IA, the Keoish Navy was initially deployed against the Pirate Confederacy. That same year, the Confederacy deployed almost their entire forces against the Empire, ransacking the enire Cobalt Sea. In 192, Keoland redeployed her retrofitted navy, and in 193 the Empire of the Silver Crown deployed a small task force of reinforcements.
Battlefield
The war was primarily naval battles fought in and around the Cobalt Sea, with many boarding actions and a land battle on the Isla de Amaya in Bloodbath Bay.
The Engagement
- 183 IA: Battle of Amaya
- 187 IA: Keoish Invasion of the Cobalt Sea
- 188 IA: Battle of Saltmarsh
- 188 IA: Route at Seaton
- 189 IA: Sacking of the Styes
- 190 IA: Boarding of the Pig's Whistle
- 192 IA: Second battle of Saltmarsh
- 194 IA: Siege of Bloodbath Bay
Outcome
The 194 IA Treaty of Amaya, which ended the war, saw Keoish holdings returned to the Imperial Throne and the Pirate Confederacy reorganized into the Hold of the Sea Princes and formally recognized by the Empire of Keoland. In addition, it outlawed slavery in the Salmon Coast and replaced it and the encomienda system with the somewhat better repartmiento system.
Paired with the economic strain of war and the added weight of increased taxes, plus the resulting refugee crisis, the outlawing of slavery was a final nail in the coffin of many colonial cities' economies. By far the hardest hit was the Styes, though cities such as Seaton and Saltmarsh also struggled - though they both were able to recover much faster than their peninsular cousin.
In addition, the Feldren Family was placed in control of the Southern Coast Colonies as a reward for the elder Feldren brother's heroism in the war.
Paired with the economic strain of war and the added weight of increased taxes, plus the resulting refugee crisis, the outlawing of slavery was a final nail in the coffin of many colonial cities' economies. By far the hardest hit was the Styes, though cities such as Seaton and Saltmarsh also struggled - though they both were able to recover much faster than their peninsular cousin.
In addition, the Feldren Family was placed in control of the Southern Coast Colonies as a reward for the elder Feldren brother's heroism in the war.
Aftermath
In the following twenty years, the Sea Princes shifted from outright piracy against the Keoish - though not against the Silver Crown - to smuggling and privateering, as well as some legitimate trade. While slavery may have been made illegal in much of the Cobalt Sea, the same cannot be said for other parts of the Keoish Empire; nor other polities. As such, the slave trade has remained a cornerstone of the Hold's economy.
As mentioned above, the economy of the Empire of Keoland did not recover as quickly due to suffering greatly in the war and the entire labor system of the southern coast colonies being resturctured. While the heartland - especially the Raan Dynasty - prospered due to the production of new ships and creation of new weapons and armor, Keola's northern colonies struggled to rebuild. Some cities, such as the Styes, mired in industrial pollution and poor infrastructure. Others, like Seaton, took after southern cities and sought economic support in fortification and military expansion. What towns could maintain shipping through the war - such as Saltmarsh, in no small part due to Gellan Primewater bribing Sea Princes to leave his ships unmolested - were able to more quickly return to the usual buisness of exporting furs and lumber and importing manufactured goods.
By far, the most long-lasting consequences of the war were the resulting refugee crisis and outlawing of slavery. The latter turned the economic regime of the colonies upside down, while the former put great strain on infrastructure and resources. Polities that could weather the storm found themselves beset with a new workforce willing to be paid little, and those that could not collapsed under their own weight.
As mentioned above, the economy of the Empire of Keoland did not recover as quickly due to suffering greatly in the war and the entire labor system of the southern coast colonies being resturctured. While the heartland - especially the Raan Dynasty - prospered due to the production of new ships and creation of new weapons and armor, Keola's northern colonies struggled to rebuild. Some cities, such as the Styes, mired in industrial pollution and poor infrastructure. Others, like Seaton, took after southern cities and sought economic support in fortification and military expansion. What towns could maintain shipping through the war - such as Saltmarsh, in no small part due to Gellan Primewater bribing Sea Princes to leave his ships unmolested - were able to more quickly return to the usual buisness of exporting furs and lumber and importing manufactured goods.
By far, the most long-lasting consequences of the war were the resulting refugee crisis and outlawing of slavery. The latter turned the economic regime of the colonies upside down, while the former put great strain on infrastructure and resources. Polities that could weather the storm found themselves beset with a new workforce willing to be paid little, and those that could not collapsed under their own weight.
Historical Significance
After four years of piracy, the Empire of Keoland was forced to act. In 187 IA, partially motivated by pirates capturing colonists as slaves from the Southern Coast Colonies, the Empire of Keoland - having just retreated from loosing a war against the Chiefdom of the Bison - attempted to crack down on piracy in her waters.Unfortunately for Keola, initial efforts were far from fruitful. The Imperial Navy was neither as experinced or well developed as the Confederacy's, and the brutal winter of 188-189 IA saw the Empire lose more and more territory to the forces of Pirate-Governor Eero "Starsword" Danuwao. In the Month of Vanquishing of 189 IA, the Confederacy had penetrated as far east as The Styes, sacking the Island of Pleasures under the cover of Ringshadow.
The following three years saw the Empire desparetly try to modernize and hold the line, with desparate citizens from affected cities such as Styes, Seaton, and Saltmarsh join the Keoish navy en masse. Cities with large academic populations, like the Styes, suffered a brain drain as more and more wizards enlisted or were conspricted as Deck Wizards - a sort of officer the Empire had been thouroughly lacking throughout the first three years of the war. The Shipyards of Port Ountzos were greatly expanded to meet the new demand, and by 192 IA the Keoish Navy had been vastly improved.
The following two years of campaigning, aided by the Empire of the Silver Crown in 193-194 IA, yielded great imperial successes, with the Pirate Confederacy driven back to Isla de Amaya. By 194, the Treaty of Amaya was signed by dignitaries of both beligerints. A ceasefire was declared, and the Empire of Keoland was forced to recognize the Confederacy - now known as the Hold of the Sea Princes - as a legitimate state. Many imperial citizens, especially those in the Southern Coast Colonies, were enraged by this term. Despite protests, the empire had no choice; the Confederacy may have been pushed back to Amaya by now, but their ships were faster and could operate more flexibly; a long and drawn out conflict of pirate raids was untennible. If the Hold became a proper state, they could transition from piracy and smuggling to proper trade.
Legacy
The Cobalt Reconquista left scars of corruption, hatred, and war on many colonial societies. Most clearly can this be seen in Saltmarsh, where councilman Anders Solmor lost his father in the war, Captain Eliander Fireborn lost his wife and was estranged from his daughter Lt. Commander Ana Fireborn, and new problems such as the Sea Devil invasion of 214 IA were initially thought to be Sea Prince conspiracies.
In other regions, the war brought ruin - such as the Styes - and everywhere the war is remembered as a period of brutality not seen in the Cobalt Sea since the earlier decades of colonization. This caused a resurgence of loyalism in the colonies, leading some cities - such as Seaton - to heavily fortify out of paranoia.
In other regions, the war brought ruin - such as the Styes - and everywhere the war is remembered as a period of brutality not seen in the Cobalt Sea since the earlier decades of colonization. This caused a resurgence of loyalism in the colonies, leading some cities - such as Seaton - to heavily fortify out of paranoia.
Conflict Type
War
Battlefield Type
Naval
Start Date
187 IA
Ending Date
194 IA
Conflict Result
Borders returned to pre-war status, the Pirate Confederacy reorganized into the Hold of the Sea Princes, the Hold recognized by the Empire of Keoland as a legitimate state.
Location
Belligerents
Strength
- Nearly the entire population were former privateers
- Nearly 200 warships.
- Countless smaller vessels.
- At least one Deck Wizard for each ship.
- The Imperial Navy of Keoland
- Greatly expanded from 190-192 IA, inclduing the enlistment and conscription of over one hundred new Deck Wizards
- The Navy of Silver Foam (193-194)
Casualties
Objectives
- Repel Keoish invasions
- Solidify claims to pre-exisiting territory
- Ransack the Salmon Coast
- Take control of the slave trade in the Cobalt Sea
- Establish the Confederacy as a legitimate state
- Wipe out the Pirate Confederacy.
- Reclaime occupied territory.
- Rescue captured colonists.
- Protect colonial assets.
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