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| Dunden War | |
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| Years | 266 AC - 269 AC |
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The Dunden War was a conflict that raged from 266 AC to 269 AC in the tiny nation of Dunden, south of the Regalian Empire, in a continent known as Southwynd. Dunden was the last independent nation not subject to the Regalian Empire on the western half of Southwynd. Since the Kingdom of Myre was subjugated two years prior, the Empire felt confident that the much weaker Dunden would be easy to defeat. The Dunden War was, however, a dilemma for the Regalian Military as the Perrion War had only just concluded, and much of Regalia's military command was exhausted from that war. Veterans who had survived the Perrion War were re-deployed to Dunden, a poor and infertile land of rocky crags and mountains, where ships could not deliver supplies due to the many shallow outcrops of rock among the islands. The fighting was fierce in the mountains where the local Dunden used rockslides to kill Regalian patrols and soldiers. While the Regalian Empire had fought formal wars with pitched battlefields for centuries, the Dunden war was the first real guerilla war, something Regalia's military was not prepared to deal with - a problem that would haunt them later in the Ramon War. Dunden eventually surrendered when all their hillforts were captured and the war concluded in three years, which was still relatively short. With the conquest of Dunden, the Regalian Empire, for the first time, touched the borders of the Essa Empire to the south, and friction started almost immediately over a series of islands that were part of Essa but were claimed by the Dunden and, subsequently, Regalia. This would later inform much of the prelude to the Chrysant War.
Prelude
Following victories in the Perrion War and Myre Crisis, the Regalian Empire had proven its military capabilities against foreign powers. With this sense of supremacy filling the minds of the population, many looked to the final holdouts of the Southwynd continent as the next target for conquest. Following the conquest of the Myre Kingdom, the smaller nation of Dunden was the only independent nation on the continent, and fiercely resisted previous diplomatic overtures to join the Regalian Empire willingly. With the Regalian Army now returning from Perrion, Emperor Vilgemar believed that the time was right for a quick lightning campaign against the Dunden nation. By the time the Imperial Armies returned home to Corontium, new orders were given to sail to Dunden to complete the supposedly quick campaign.
Experience
Among Soldiers
Most soldiers who fought in the Dunden War had been veterans of the Perrion War and barely had time to enjoy a rest at home before being called up once again to fight in a new war. As a result, many soldiers who were already facing homesickness from the years-long sieges of Perrion were now trudging through the craggy landscape of Dunden, loathing every moment of it. Unlike the Perrion War, the Dunden locals did not engage in pitched battles or sieges and instead launched guerrilla attacks on the exhausted military camps at every opportunity. All of these setbacks set the tone of the war for the military, which performed far worse than ever expected. The Regalian Army was battle-fatigued, and the Dunden War only made the average soldier’s life even more tiresome.
Among Officers
Having fought with their soldiers for years in the Perrion War, the officers were likewise facing battle fatigue. Unlike the common soldier, however, it was the duty of the officers to ensure the troops under their command were ready for battle, a task that everyone on the front lines knew was untenable. Whispers of mutiny were a common topic in the officer tents, which prompted many of them to be far more lax with their soldiers than was expected from them. While this did endear many officers with their soldiers, it also exacerbated the issues regarding the performance of soldiers. Ultimately, there was little that could be done by the officers, who shared the sentiments of the soldiers to get this campaign over with as soon as possible.
Among Command
The commanders of the Dunden War were aware of the battle fatigue their armies endured and prepared the campaign with the anticipation of slow movements and low morale. However, the greater challenge posed to the generals was the tactics employed by the Dunden locals. Many commanders at the time assumed that Dunden was just a backwater region and that even a fatigued Regalian Army could best be the most capable of local fighters. While this was true for a pitched battle scenario, the generals did not account for unconventional tactics, such as ambushes and intentional rockslides. What was supposed to be a quick campaign ended up being a slog through the Dunden countryside as armies were harassed by local guerrilla fighters. Additionally, the craggy shorelines made it difficult for the Regalian Navy to resupply the soldiers in the field, creating additional delays in the campaign.
End & Aftermath
There was no decisive battle or great military victory that signaled the end of the Dunden War, as each town in Dunden surrendered whenever the local hillfort was captured by the army. One by one, each hillfort was taken and the population slowly accepted Regalian subjugation. No treaty was signed with Dunden as a whole, as the Empire had essentially taken de facto control of the territory, and proclaimed the nation subjugated with no resistance from the locals. Dunden had been captured, and the Regalian Army was more than happy to leave the area and finally enjoy a rest after over two decades of constant warfare.
Review
The Dunden War is used as a cautionary tale in military circles on the effects of military fatigue on the average soldier, as the immediate deployment following the 18-year Perrion War all but sapped the morale of the Regalian Army at the start of the campaign. Additionally, the unexpected guerrilla tactics used by the Dunden locals demonstrated a vulnerability in Regalian strategic thinking, as the common understanding at the time was that combatants would either meet for a pitched battle or engage in siege warfare. Ambushes were seen as dishonorable in Regalian circles, and as a result, the lack of preparations for these attacks cost hundreds of casualties. That said, the Dunden War did end the final holdout of resistance on the Southwynd continent, with the population generally in favor of the final results, despite the additional strain it left on the common soldier.
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