Grand Duchy of Barloem
The Grand Duchy of Barloem is a centralized nation bordering both the Blazefollk Empire and the Kingdom of Fraspika. Using shrewd diplomacy and acting as a buffer state, the Dukes of Barloem have managed to remain independent of most of their history, excluding the period from 1836 to 1930 S.C..
History
The modern nation of Barloem is an offshoot of the long-since eliminated country of South Fraspika. South Fraspika was ruled over by the Carlois dynasty, as in both North and West Fraspika, and due to the vast amount of land controlled by the Fraspikan monarchs, the land was very decentralized. In South Fraspika, one of the constituent Duchies was for many years the Duchy of Barloem. When South Fraspika was crushed by the Khanate of Clesentia in 1210 S.C., Barloem was sacked, with its major towns completely destroyed. The failure of the Carlois dynasty to prevent the destruction of their holdings and deaths of many people was keenly felt in South Fraspika, as it was completely occupied by Centaurs and also served as the staging place for the invasions of West Fraspika and the Blazennian Confederation. However, the Duchy of Barloem, due to its peripheral location in the east, was less harmed by the invasion than the rest of the Kingdom. With the centaurs busy raiding and pillaging in the south and west, Barloem was able to build up a semblance of prosperity again as they only had to pay a small tithe. With the implosion of Clesnetia, Barloem became de facto independent, and unlike in North Fraspika, when the Khanate was destroyed the people of Barloem did not recognize the authority of the sole surviving Carlois, Jacq I. Barloem instead declared itself an independent nation and the surviving nobility of the duchy elected Phillip I Augellion, a prominent local lord, as their leader. Several small lords on their borders also chose to throw in their lot with Barloem, seeing it as a safe bet as opposed to the unknown nature of the North Fraspikan state, itself a remnant in the mountains at this point.
Their refusal to accept the lone Carlois led to some imperial loyalists leaving for North Fraspika, which would soon declare itself as merely Fraspika. As a peripheral to the mighty old Fraspika, Barloem was of lesser concern to the new Fraspika, which had other, more prosperous duchies to integrate. When the Blazennian-Fraspikan war erupted in 1252, Barloem declared itself neutral in the conflict. Following Fraspika's defeat in this conflict, the Fraspikans would also no longer be ruled by the Carlois dynasty and so relinquished their claims to West Fraspika and most of Central Fraspika, meaning the Barloem's independence was no longer merely de facto but now also de jure. However, the status of Barloem was once more placed into question due to the vague wording of the Treaty of Lorrelais, which legalized the secession of the dukes which refused to regonize the new Fraspika on the condition they join the Blazennian Empire. All the independent Dukes had previously agreed to do so and had aided Blazennia during the war, aside from Barloem. As Barloem was not present during the treaty due to their neutrality, this oversight was not corrected for several years. The people of Barloem (especially Phillip I) had grown attached to their independence at this point and therefore did not wish to join the Empire, so Phillip would travel to meet with Varimar I of the Blazennian Empire to discuss the status of Barloem. Because the other Dukes of the Blazennian Empire wanted to keep their own status by not expanding the number of dukes, Varimar was heavily lobbied to allow Barloem to remain independent. In the end, the two would manage to agree on a treaty in 1261 whereby Barloem would be acknowledged as an independent nation, elevated to the status of Grand Duchy, as well as formally renouncing any claims to South Fraspika the Grand Duke of Barloem might possess, though they had none.
For Barloem, this treaty was extremely beneficial as it gave them a powerful new ally in Blazennia. On top of this, with most of Fraspika devastated by war, Barloem had little to fear in the manner of invasion. However, due to a diplomatic feud with the Duchy of Schielderras, Barloem was forced to intervene and fight them in 1268. This invasion was extremely successful and neutralized and secured Schielderras as a more solid ally. Finally able to rest on its laurels, Barloem would spend the next couple decades recovering their lost population from the Clesentian invasion, and by the early 1300s S.C. had surpassed where they stood in 1210 S.C. However, several lost war against the Kingdom of Fraspika between 1350 and 1400 S.C. would cost them small, though important territories and damaged their demographics. Thankfully for Barloem, the Fraspikan failure to invade Wellenia in 1399-1400 would give them vital breathing room and allow them to continue their growth. By 1450 S.C., Barloem was firmly able to say it was more populated and better developed than in 1210 S.C. once again. From there, the Grand Dukes would continue to improve the Duchy's institutions, becoming major patrons of art and learning and establishing a number of new business ventures. All of this was underlined by the cooperation of Barloem's nobility with a series of Grand Dukes who allowed them their autonomy, meaning that unlike in neighboring Fraspika there was no struggle between royal and local authority. The minor nobility of Barloem, however, would slowly be weakened as new laws and cities sprung up across the country, but the process was gradual enough that the country never suffered any major revolts. Part of this is that the nobility recognized that they had to stand with the central authority of Barloem lest they be subsumed into Fraspika.
The 1700s saw Barloem resting on 300 years of peace, and it was fat and prosperous. Though Barloem did not immediately begin colonizing and were in fact several years behind the Fraspikans, due to their large and concentrated population they were able to surpass the Fraspikan efforts and form the largest of Telgren's colonies in Ifyrial. Their large colony would bring in a major amount of wealth and power to Barloem, allowing it to stand on nearer-to-equal footing with Fraspika by the late 1700s. Though much smaller in size and population, their cutting edge maritime and military forces allowed Barloem to field large numbers of well trained troops, warding of Fraspikan invasion for several decades.
Unfortunately, in 1810 S.C., an event that would change Barloem forever occurred. Cosmo IV, king of Barloem, would die without an heir, ending the dynasty of Barloem. Due to the Ellice family having married into both the royal family of Barloem and Fraspika, this would end up actually leaving the king of Fraspika, Roland I, as legal king of Barloem. The nobility of Barloem refused to accept this and so Roland marched into their country. This would be the first war bewteen two nations of Telgren to feature colonial conflict in Ifyrial alongside the war in Telgren. Despite advances in Ifyrial, the forces of Barloem were no match for the armies of Fraspika in Telgren as they fell into disorganization and confusion after the death of the duke. Despite this, they fought bravely after the initial setback, using the navy to ferry forces around and prevent Fraspika from securing the countryside. However, in 1836 S.C., Barloem's nobility was forced to concede their defeat, and the crown of Barloem would be placed under the King of Fraspika's control. Barloem continued the spirit of resistance, however, and never truly accept that they were under Fraspika (legally speaking, of course, they were not, merely in a personal union). Their colonies were troublesome and tended to avoid paying taxes, while the nobility did everything they could to obstruct their hated rival from entrenching themselves in the country. There would be several abortive revolts in Barloem in the late 1800s S.C. and early 1900s S.C., but none that seriously challenged Fraspika. However, when the Fraspikans fell into civil war in 1930 S.C., the people of Barloem would seize their chance. Taking advantage of the chaos, Barloem would elect a new Grand Duke and secede from its union with Fraspika, taking its colonial possessions in Ifyrial with it. They would cite an obscure passage from the treaty with the Blazennian Empire which legitimized the election of Phillip I, interpreting this as applying it to all future kings. Of course, this means that since 1930 S.C., Barloem's kings can legally be deposed at any point, but the nation is stable enough that this has yet to have applied.
Barloem, despite remaining intact during their rebellion, would lose their colonial possessions, which were not part of the revolt and ended up declaring independence on their own. This has severed a major source of their revenue and left them slightly poorer than before, but the nation is certainly on an upwards trajectory once again. Still the hunger for new colonies is present, and Barloem has been active in sponsoring expedition to look for lucrative locations, though they have yet to find any.
Their refusal to accept the lone Carlois led to some imperial loyalists leaving for North Fraspika, which would soon declare itself as merely Fraspika. As a peripheral to the mighty old Fraspika, Barloem was of lesser concern to the new Fraspika, which had other, more prosperous duchies to integrate. When the Blazennian-Fraspikan war erupted in 1252, Barloem declared itself neutral in the conflict. Following Fraspika's defeat in this conflict, the Fraspikans would also no longer be ruled by the Carlois dynasty and so relinquished their claims to West Fraspika and most of Central Fraspika, meaning the Barloem's independence was no longer merely de facto but now also de jure. However, the status of Barloem was once more placed into question due to the vague wording of the Treaty of Lorrelais, which legalized the secession of the dukes which refused to regonize the new Fraspika on the condition they join the Blazennian Empire. All the independent Dukes had previously agreed to do so and had aided Blazennia during the war, aside from Barloem. As Barloem was not present during the treaty due to their neutrality, this oversight was not corrected for several years. The people of Barloem (especially Phillip I) had grown attached to their independence at this point and therefore did not wish to join the Empire, so Phillip would travel to meet with Varimar I of the Blazennian Empire to discuss the status of Barloem. Because the other Dukes of the Blazennian Empire wanted to keep their own status by not expanding the number of dukes, Varimar was heavily lobbied to allow Barloem to remain independent. In the end, the two would manage to agree on a treaty in 1261 whereby Barloem would be acknowledged as an independent nation, elevated to the status of Grand Duchy, as well as formally renouncing any claims to South Fraspika the Grand Duke of Barloem might possess, though they had none.
For Barloem, this treaty was extremely beneficial as it gave them a powerful new ally in Blazennia. On top of this, with most of Fraspika devastated by war, Barloem had little to fear in the manner of invasion. However, due to a diplomatic feud with the Duchy of Schielderras, Barloem was forced to intervene and fight them in 1268. This invasion was extremely successful and neutralized and secured Schielderras as a more solid ally. Finally able to rest on its laurels, Barloem would spend the next couple decades recovering their lost population from the Clesentian invasion, and by the early 1300s S.C. had surpassed where they stood in 1210 S.C. However, several lost war against the Kingdom of Fraspika between 1350 and 1400 S.C. would cost them small, though important territories and damaged their demographics. Thankfully for Barloem, the Fraspikan failure to invade Wellenia in 1399-1400 would give them vital breathing room and allow them to continue their growth. By 1450 S.C., Barloem was firmly able to say it was more populated and better developed than in 1210 S.C. once again. From there, the Grand Dukes would continue to improve the Duchy's institutions, becoming major patrons of art and learning and establishing a number of new business ventures. All of this was underlined by the cooperation of Barloem's nobility with a series of Grand Dukes who allowed them their autonomy, meaning that unlike in neighboring Fraspika there was no struggle between royal and local authority. The minor nobility of Barloem, however, would slowly be weakened as new laws and cities sprung up across the country, but the process was gradual enough that the country never suffered any major revolts. Part of this is that the nobility recognized that they had to stand with the central authority of Barloem lest they be subsumed into Fraspika.
The 1700s saw Barloem resting on 300 years of peace, and it was fat and prosperous. Though Barloem did not immediately begin colonizing and were in fact several years behind the Fraspikans, due to their large and concentrated population they were able to surpass the Fraspikan efforts and form the largest of Telgren's colonies in Ifyrial. Their large colony would bring in a major amount of wealth and power to Barloem, allowing it to stand on nearer-to-equal footing with Fraspika by the late 1700s. Though much smaller in size and population, their cutting edge maritime and military forces allowed Barloem to field large numbers of well trained troops, warding of Fraspikan invasion for several decades.
Unfortunately, in 1810 S.C., an event that would change Barloem forever occurred. Cosmo IV, king of Barloem, would die without an heir, ending the dynasty of Barloem. Due to the Ellice family having married into both the royal family of Barloem and Fraspika, this would end up actually leaving the king of Fraspika, Roland I, as legal king of Barloem. The nobility of Barloem refused to accept this and so Roland marched into their country. This would be the first war bewteen two nations of Telgren to feature colonial conflict in Ifyrial alongside the war in Telgren. Despite advances in Ifyrial, the forces of Barloem were no match for the armies of Fraspika in Telgren as they fell into disorganization and confusion after the death of the duke. Despite this, they fought bravely after the initial setback, using the navy to ferry forces around and prevent Fraspika from securing the countryside. However, in 1836 S.C., Barloem's nobility was forced to concede their defeat, and the crown of Barloem would be placed under the King of Fraspika's control. Barloem continued the spirit of resistance, however, and never truly accept that they were under Fraspika (legally speaking, of course, they were not, merely in a personal union). Their colonies were troublesome and tended to avoid paying taxes, while the nobility did everything they could to obstruct their hated rival from entrenching themselves in the country. There would be several abortive revolts in Barloem in the late 1800s S.C. and early 1900s S.C., but none that seriously challenged Fraspika. However, when the Fraspikans fell into civil war in 1930 S.C., the people of Barloem would seize their chance. Taking advantage of the chaos, Barloem would elect a new Grand Duke and secede from its union with Fraspika, taking its colonial possessions in Ifyrial with it. They would cite an obscure passage from the treaty with the Blazennian Empire which legitimized the election of Phillip I, interpreting this as applying it to all future kings. Of course, this means that since 1930 S.C., Barloem's kings can legally be deposed at any point, but the nation is stable enough that this has yet to have applied.
Barloem, despite remaining intact during their rebellion, would lose their colonial possessions, which were not part of the revolt and ended up declaring independence on their own. This has severed a major source of their revenue and left them slightly poorer than before, but the nation is certainly on an upwards trajectory once again. Still the hunger for new colonies is present, and Barloem has been active in sponsoring expedition to look for lucrative locations, though they have yet to find any.
Demography and Population
Barloem has a population of roughly 5,000,000 people, of which 95%, or 4,750,000 are Fremedhians. The rest is split evently between Cloriadmen humans, elves, halflings, and gnomes, with no more than 50,000 of each.
Founding Date
1225 S.C.
Type
Geopolitical, Duchy
Predecessor Organization
Demonym
Barloemer
Leader Title
Official State Religion
Neighboring Nations
Related Species
Related Ethnicities
62,000 sq. miles (approx)
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