conquest of the last city state
With the conquest of the last city-state still independent in Dercia, what began as a small and thought to be an isolated conflict between Pearlhal and the surrounding city-states would 778 years later finally come to an end.
The city-state of Pashire had been allowed to keep its independence as long as tribute was paid to Pearlhal yearly, but after some years the tensions began to rise and with the tribute not being paid two years in a row the patience of the king in Pearlhal grew thin It was the murder of a messenger from the royal court that finally broke the peace and the 7th army under the legendary general Cyna Astalles were given the order to finally put an end to the city-state's independence.
The Conflict
Prelude
In the weeks leading up to the siege the city-state and the Kingdom of Dercia had clashed many times, most of these clashes had been in the form of ambushes by the Pashire forces on the army from the kingdom that had finally crossed the border.
Deployment
The army under command of Cyna Astalles would take positions along all roads leading into Pashire with scouts posted in between to make sure no one tried to sneak out or more importantly in.
Battlefield
The main battlefield would be the walls and streets of the city, with some preliminary fighting taking place in the area surrounding the city to reduce the Dercian army's number of troops.
Conditions
The conditions for the siege were harsh for both sides, the dry seasons were extra long the roughly two years the siege lasted which was a considerable drain on the resources of the besieging army while the army could get resupplied and had access to mages that could create small amounts of resources. The people in Pashire were utterly cut off from any help from the outside, and it was only because the city had stocked up on resources ever since the threat of invasion had become real that the siege lasted as long as it did.
The Engagement
Just before dawn on the 23rd of Selik Cyna Astalles gave the order to finally put an end to the siege and the last city-state to defy the might of Pearlhal
Siege engines were made ready and began the slow march towards the city walls while sections of the army began to march towards the holes in the wall that the trebuchets had made the days before and had continued to bombard to prevent the enemy from stopping the gabs.
Fighting on the walls was deadly and it was here that most of the casualties from the assault on the Dercian side would occur, since both sides knew of the importance of having control of the walls they both send their best troops and it was this fight between elite troops in a narrow space that resulted in the large number of deaths seen on both sides. After several hours of fighting on the walls, the Dercians finally managed to create a foothold and began pushing the defenders back.
Having taken control over the walls, the Dercian general Cyna ordered her men to move off the walls and down into the city itself with the intent of flanking the large number of defenders that were at the time fighting the attackers that poured through the holes in the wall and had managed to break down the gate as well.
Having lost control of large sections of the wall and with the danger of being outflanked rising the defenders decided to pull pack and turn it into a deadly streetfight with fighting from street to street and house to house.
The city garrison would finally surrender late in the afternoon, having lost almost half their men the commander decided that enough was enough and surrendered the city to prevent more bloodshed.
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Outcome
The short-term effects of the fall of Pashire were that for a short time it looked like the fight might break out again when a group from the 7th army were caught plundering and harming the civilian population and it was only with the execution of the entire group that peace was maintained.
After the peace was created, the Dercian army began counting how many soldiers were alive and discovered that 200 soldiers were missing, their bodies nowhere to be found the prevailing theory is that they saw their way to getting out of the army early by running away during the fighting.
Aftermath
The long-term effects of the fall were more peaceful except for the uprising that would locally be known as the student rebellion 14 years later that was put down almost the same day. After the war and full control over the area had been established the kingdom began to implement their laws in the city and while many felt resentment towards the government in Pearlhal they soon were able to enjoy the benefits of being part of a larger kingdom with things such as more trade flowing into the city.
Historical Significance
Legacy
The fall of Pashire and the campaign leading up to it made the legend that had already begun to grow around the 7th army commander, Cyna Astalles even stronger and she would stay the most accomplished Dercian general until The war of Western expansion and The Decade of 5 Emperors were some of the emperors rose to equal or higher renown.
Included under Conflict
Conflict Type
Siege
Battlefield Type
Urban
Start Date
12th of Aquil 840 I.C
Ending Date
23rd of Selik 842 I.C
Conflict Result
The kingdom is able to claim complete control over the Dercian region
Belligerents
Strength
- 50.000
- 20.000-25.000
Casualties
- 5000-7000 killed
- 200 missing
- 30 executed
- 9000-11000 killed
- 1300 executed
Objectives
The objective was to conquer the last city-state, not under the rule of the kingdom.
Make the siege so bloody for the kingdom that a peace deal could be made.
Maps
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Mirateia
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