Republic of Aulienall
The Republic of Aulienall is a longstanding Elven state which has remained independent since the fall of the Empire of Oleandron, over 1000 years ago. Although Aulienall once controlled a rather wide band of lands, the nation has been through tough times in recent decades and much of its former territory is now under control of Erleting warlords, who are seen by Aulienall as squatters. The current year marks a low points in the many years of conflict between Aulienall and the Erelting.
History
The Republic of Aulienall's history dates back to just before the Great Calamity, when the elven general and namesake of the region, Aulienall Isileum led a military force west and claimed the land for Oleandron. This is known as Aulienall's Expedition, and was the catalyst for important events in Oleandron, including the overthrowal of the republic and rise of a monarchy. Rather ironic, then, that Aulienall itself is actually a republic- and has been for its entire existence. Aulienall was settled in moderate amounts by elves due to its moderate warm climate, similar to the city of Oleandron itself, as well as its hills making for productive vineyards.
The Aulienall region was situated in the western half of the Empire, and consequentially would become part of West Oleandron after the Partition of Oleandron. However, Aulienall was totally disconnected from the rest of West Oleandron due to Erleting raiding and pillaging going on in the highlands, and could only be reached reliably by sea. The region was also given no military aid by West Oleandron due to its primarily Elven population, as the human-centered government focused on the more populous urban cities along the coast for their strong points. This meant that, technically, Aulienall was governed as an independent nation since at the latest the establishment of West Oleandron in 774, but probably earlier. Still, it is not accurate to call the nation a country at this point, as various villages and rural communities continued to defend themselves from raids as best as they could.
At this point, elven villages ranged from the western slopes of the South Impir Mountains and the coastline to the northernmost point of the Gulf of Alcedina, which formed a roughly triangular region which remained under elven control, and which formed a defensible nucleus from which to form a nation. The first council of villages would form in 782, with 4 nearby villages pooling their resources for defense, and similar structures would begin popping up throughout the decade. While some villages focused on internal defense, others looked further afield, and backed an elven coup in East Oleandron, hoping an elven-controlled state would soon restore the Empire and rescue the region. Unfortunately for such villages, the failure of this coup meant that there would be no external help for Aulienall, though other communities of elves in a similar position were dotted throughout lands to their east. The failure of all villages to obtain any external aid whatsoever would lend legitimacy to the efforts of various villages seeking a larger union and common defense for the whole region. Indeed, the formal foundation of Aulienall would finally occur just after the turn of the decade, in fall of 790. A grand council composed of representatives of 57 villages of varying size met in the city of Lillidara, Aulienall's largest settlement at the time, in order to negotiate a permanent alliance and nation- The United Communes of Alianem. This agreement resulted in the formation of various villages and councils, each with varying numbers of representatives and political strength. All communities gained at least one representative in the national diet, while larger ones gained new delegates based on population, though the more delegates a city already had, the harder it was to gain new ones. This meant that smaller towns had disproportionate representation, but the larger cities were totally dominant economically, and concessions were necessary to get unity.
This new union was vigorously opposed by various towns and cities, with bias based not on size, but on fear of raiders. For example, significant parts of the south, far from the threat of raids, would abstain entirely, while various communities distrusted the large bureaucracy. A few communities in mutual defense pacts already rejected the new union, preferring their own local defenses. Over time, these communities and lesser alliances would inevitably be taken over- if not by Aulienall itself then by human invasion, or they would peacefully accede the the union for the economic benefits. However, early Aulienall was a patchwork of towns, cities, and communities with competing claims over one another as well as independent villages, and wasn't entirely contiguous either. This made things difficult, but thanks to effective defense methods the union survived its early years. Work on a federal capital was begun, as making Lillidara the capital was seen to give that city too much influence. This city, Alistara, would never become as large as other communities, but has become a major political center in its own right.
Aulienall would face major challenges from both Erleting and Blazennian raids, though the Blazennian raids would eventually cease after the conquest of the Blazennian coastline by Old Fraspika in the 1100s. A border treaty with Fraspika and later with the Blazennian Empire would see the east secured, but the north continued to be an issue, and Aulienall did lose critical defensive points several times, leaving the state vulnerable to attacks well into the 1900s. This vulnerability would prove to be a huge danger to Aulienall, as in 1950 the Erleting united under a warlord known as Dragan Ivar'. Ivar', a ruthless man who sought to conquer the rich Alcediner cities. Although Ivar' would fail in his assault on the Alcediner, this caused the outbreak of a massive war within the Erleting lands, leaving the political situation in turmoil. Following Ivar's death, his army was split into pieces by various warlords, all of whom attracted desperate refugees as the Alcediner began to push back. One of these generals, a man named Altsev Priven, set his sights on Aulienall.
The elves were unprepared for an attack. After all, recent years had been peaceful thanks Dragan's invasion levying forces from the tribes which had been harassing Aulienall, and indeed after hearing of his death the Elven armies marched north in 1961 to reclaim previously lost lands. This proved to be a massive mistake, as it presented the perfect opportunity for Altsev's forces to ambush the elven column as they marched. The battle was a horrific defeat for the elves (who usually inflicted far more casualties than they suffered) and due being routed their casualties had to be left, with thousands of elves being taken prisoner. Although some forces managed to escape onto boats of the Aulienall navy, this proved to be too few troops to successfully opposed the march of Altsev's column. Aulienall would only survive at all thanks to the Erleting force having to leave garrisons as they marched, thus depleting their forces, who began to suffer extensive attrition thanks to guerilla-style tactics implemented by Aulienall. The Erleting forces would ultimately fail to cross the [tbd] river in 1962, allowing the remnants of Aulienall to remain.
Low-intensity guerilla warfare would continue for the next few years, especially as elven refugees fled out of the lands conquered by Altsev and Erleting tribes and refugees who allied with him moved into the region. Aulienall would, however, be more focused on internal issues, as with over half the nation occupied the current government structure made little sense. Reformists, both progressive and conservative-minded, had long decried the structure of the government, which for years had failed to represent the people. Since delegate numbers were set based on towns and villages, younger communities or those who joined the republic via conquest but were now loyal citizens were unable to obtain representation because the majority of towns with representation would therefore see their voting power drop. Thanks to the failure of the government to successfully defend itself, the military general Iobar Vittono would take the reigns of power as regent, and his loyalists controlled the state as an emergency government for well over a decade before finally relinquishing power to a new caretaker government. This government would use the opportunity to reform the constitution, and in particular, fix the old electoral laws. Instead of the old system, communes would now make up a predefined sector of territories and granted representation entirely via proportionality to the elven population of the commune, which is assessed every decade. At the end of each decade, a new census is held, and new representatives will take their seats. The new constitution also contains provisions for the reintegration of their former lands and how delegates will be reproportioned following a presumptive reconquest. The new government has proven to be a significantly more popular method of ruling, though it has disenfranchised the old elitist cities to some extent, with elections being held in 1980 and 1990. In fact, the next election is set for mere months from the current date, and promises to have big repercussions on internal and external policy.
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