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The fall of the Essa Empire, more commonly referred to as the Chrysant War, was a five-year conflict between the Essa Empire and the Regalian Empire, at the end of the Regalian Pessimism. The war is called the Chrysant War in Regalia as Regalians have always associated the Hadar Archipelago with the Chrysant Flower, a stunning blossom that only grows naturally in the waters of the southern continent. It later became a symbol of victory. The war started with Regalian fleets invading the Essa Empire in the spring of 286 AC with fighting lasting until the autumn of 291 AC. The war is more commonly remembered by Alorians for the destruction of the Allar’s second homeland, the establishment of Ailor populations in the far south, and a collapse of Slizzar fortunes following the official end of the war.
| Chrysant War | |
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| Historical Event | |
| Event Name | Chrysant War |
| Dates and Times | March 286 AC - April 291 AC |
| Location | Hadar |
| People Involved | Regalian Empire, Essa Empire |
Background
Starting in the late 260s, Regalia began to suffer a prolonged period of economic and moral declines, today referred to as the Regalian Pessimism. This period of two decades was dominated by a severe decrease in nationalist sentiment among Regalians, as well as the decline of the momentum of the Unionist faith. A series of weak Chancellors and Emperors brought the Empire into this steady decline, a far cry from the high days of Chancellor Vlaas Kade’s tenure. Politics and military decisions were largely overseen by the Regalian Senate, a bloated and corrupt body most came to rapidly dislike. The noble families themselves were severely politically fractured. Even the Kades weren’t on steady footing, only standing at a small minority in the Senate due to the rampant rise of the Iron Bulwark, a group lead by the heads of Houses Medavinci and Sangiovese. The Iron Bulwark more aggressively voiced their desire to wage holy wars on the lesser Races, believing the fervor for conflict would bring an end to the Regalian Pessimism and herald a new era of hegemony. Despite Regalia’s considerable wealth and power, its actual political power in Aloria was not that much larger than its contemporaries, like the Songaskian Masaya. Eventually, with enough Senators in support, the plan to wage war with external states was approved.
History
Choosing a Target
Some years before, in Hadar, the Essa Empire had been formed by Empress Mananya-Manya, a Slizzar who had united the various Chrysant Kingdoms into one large political entity. This nation was rapidly growing in geopolitical power, as well as in military means, thanks to this unification, particularly focusing on naval vessels carrying Allar troops, as well as combining alchemical knowledge with Slizzar diplomacy. Mananya-Manya was also reportedly beginning to build up this military force for an invasion of their own. The popular rumor at the time was that they planned to invade the Sendrassian Empire to the south of Hadar in order to help start the restoration of the Allar homeland they had been forced to leave over three centuries ago. It has never been determined whether Mananya had any designs beyond Sendras to invade other nations. The Regalians, acting on the information of military buildup and on the aggressive urges of the Iron Bulwark, chose to invade the Essa Empire, as the Sendrassian Empire was too far away and the Songaskian Masaya was in a period of thriving power. The many Altalar nations of Daen were also out of the question due to longstanding alliances with them and the influence of Ithanian values on the Regalian Senate. The fleets set sail for Hadaria without Essan forces even knowing, and the invasion began without a declaration of war to maintain the element of surprise and grant initiative.
Landfall of the Invasion
The Regalian Empire was geographic in their military planning, choosing targets one at a time in a hopping of the Hadarian islands down from the north, and further on. The northernmost Chrysant Kingdom was struck first, sitting in a cluster of islands of what is now the north of the Alvaan Kingdom. The majority of the Regalian battle fleets descended on the coastlines of the smaller state, shelling cities and waterworks to complete ruin. The tactic chosen for the war by the Iron Bulwark had been one of annihilation and repopulation, with the idea being to eradicate the local population and resettle the lands with Regalian citizens. Within a week, this goal had been met by the Regalians, save for some citizens escaping into the jungles or by fishing boats; all cities were razed to the ground, and thousands of Allar and Slizzar died in the opening of the war. Empress Mananya-Manya was caught by surprise and attempted to mediate with Regalia in order to save their empire from utter destruction. During this time of peace, the Senate refused to allow official attacks on Chrysant Kingdoms, which resulted in many skirmishes between the two sides as the Allar desperately tried to shore up their defenses and meet the Regalian intentions head on. By the spring of 287 AC, a truce was close to being reached between the Essa Empire and the Regalian Empire, as the Dragons Faction and the Red Faction in the Senate were in favor of such a deal. Yet the Iron Bulwark remained adamant that the only acceptable victory would be that of complete surrender. Ultimately, it was Empress Mananya-Manya who retracted the branch of peace first, reportedly enraged by reports of a recent slaughter in a seaside settlement that left none alive, and the island ravaged of its natural flora and fauna. It is also likely that her Slizzar spies in the Regalian Empire were telling them of the atrocities being committed against both the Allar and Slizzar, and how the Iron Bulwark was likely to force a conflict anyway. The terms from the Regalians were also extremely harsh, and so the war continued in a much more dramatic fashion, the Regalian ships sailing south once more.
The Fall of Kingdoms
The short period after the collapse of peace negotiations saw the loss of many cities and kingdoms like Uesston at the hands of the Regalian forces. Similar tactics as had been used in the north took place, but more direct resistance was offered by the more military centers of western Hadar. Regardless, these engagements were often brief, with the Regalians succeeding more often than not. In fact, the success of the Regalian Empire in their blazing campaign can be chalked up more to the failures of the Essa Empire. Their navy was made up of new but mostly rudimentary ships armed with bows and alchemy launchers, which were no match for Regalian cannons and ships that were years ahead in technology, despite much of the Regalian Navy being almost a decade old or more due to the stagnation of the Regalian Empire. Allar chemicals, while often devastating when deployed, were limited due to the complex methods of their creation. In addition, Regalian cannonballs could easily ignite and destroy vessels carrying these weapons into battle. On land, despite the huge size of the Essan military, Digmaan commanders typically surrendered without a single battle being fought in the hopes it would save the people considering the devastation Regalian bombardments could inflict. The Slizzar leadership were gradually considered dark manipulators as many Slizzar officers and advisors melted away, fleeing to the capital of Sassrakkand or further south, closer to Mananya-Manya. This would ultimately have dire consequences for the Slizzar. Another factor was the sudden emergence of the Maraya. While their existing territory in Hadar did not involve itself in the events of the Chrysant War, beating back a Regalian incursion in the conflict’s opening months only when the Empire violated the Tohn’s territorial claim, the Maraya Homefleet was of a different disposition. They reaved a swath of Hadarian land from the west into the south, devastating supplies and defensive works in a strange, sudden mission that ended as soon as it had started, their accumulated material bounty gone and leaving the Essa Empire reeling.
The Final Campaign
Regalia’s victory had been assured early on in the war and much of the outcome of the battles validated that prediction. Back in Regalia, the war had done what the Iron Bulwark had hoped. The Regalian Pessimism was rapidly coming to an end and was replaced by nationalist fervor for the war effort. Mothers gladly sent their sons off to war in the fleet, and the victors returned with crowds cheering. The economy went back into overdrive as mining output increased every year, resulting in more employment and rising earnings among the artisans and craftsmen. Meanwhile, the Essa Empire was close to collapse. Regalia had carved a wide sea of destruction and eradication as the main fleet moved to the east before swinging back to the south of the island chain, to the Essa Empire’s capital of Huallo. The capital was nestled at the core of Hadar in what is now the East Hadar Cluster. Various Chrysant Kingdoms in the region which had not yet been attacked already started to surrender to the Regalians while others declared neutrality to try and escape the onslaught. This did nothing to deter the Regalians from sending rear fleets their way to subjugate these groups, though it can be argued it saved many Allar lives when compared to the alternative. By that time, in the minds of most Allar, the Slizzar had brought about this apocalypse, which resulted in many attacks on the Slizzar populations in Allar and Regalian-held territories.
The final battle of the Chrysant War was the Battle of Huallo. The stage was set when the Regalians thought Mananya-Manya was gathering a large fleet in their capital to strike back at Regalia. In truth, however, the Empress was gathering a fleet to evacuate the city, loading the people onto as many civilian ships and fishing boats as they could find. When the Regalians arrived, they opened fire on these ships, believing them to be warships. The evacuees returned fire, as many of the ships had soldiers on them, in the hopes of sailing south and establishing a new base of operations beyond the new front line. There were hundreds of these ships in the harbors of Huallo, while a mere forty Regalians warships strafed from outside the harbors, railing fire down on the Essan vessels. Between the screams of terror, the horror of drowning Allar and Slizzar alike as harsh chemicals lashed their bodies, and fire consumed their surroundings, a few Allar war vessels raced forward to try and save their people by acting as a distraction for the civilian ships to get away, but to no avail. The ships were quickly dispatched and the slaughter continued. In a final act of power, Mananya-Manya and the cult they had fostered use of an ancient Magic to summon Deep Sea Serpents to the surface to aid their people. Four emerged and immediately descended on the Regalian war vessels. The first warship to shatter was the Calemberger Adler, followed by the Anglian Empress Crown and the Girobaldin Battaglia Girobalda and Claro Elessa. The sudden panic in the Regalian fleet caused the rear admirals to realign their ships around the Emperor’s flagship Julianus der Grosse and the Kade warship the Laridae II. The wall had no effect, as the largest of the snakes burst out from the sea below the Laridae II, ripping it in two and causing a huge gunpowder explosion that also killed the sea snake itself. The Regalian war vessels started shooting at random around themselves, somehow managing to kill the two smaller snakes before the last one broke straight through the Calemberger Köning Frislau and the Vixhallian Sacre Vert, but fell short when the Imperial flagship opened a full 120 cannon barrage on the beast.
Only after the battle did Regalia fully realize they had destroyed a civilian fleet, a fact that was later well hidden from the Regalian population and quietly sanctified as a holy act of purging. When Regalian troops entered Huallo, Mananya-Manya was nowhere to be seen and the remaining inhabitants of Hualla faced the wrath of the Regalian Empire. The city was sacked, the cult of the Empress was culled, and thousands died. In the aftermath, the remaining Digmaan of the Essa Empire met with the representatives of the Regalian Empire and accepted their crushing peace deal. However, no Slizzar were present. Instead, as the deal was signed, Allar communities most harmed by the conflict turned on former allies, killing many Slizzar in wider Hadar before the Regalian Empire restored order, and cooler heads among the Allar prevailed. The Empire then turned away and the Chrysant War formally came to an end.
Effects
One of the big events that Regalia did not foresee resulting from their conquest was the revenge of some Slizzar on the Empire. Simultaneously and with deadly force, Slizzar killers descended on the noble houses of Regalia when they were celebrating their victory, killing many noble families of the Iron Bulwark and the leadership who participated in the military. Overnight, Regalia lost a sizable chunk of its nobility and it is said to this day that nearly every family lost someone important, including the Kades and the Ivraes. Despite this loss, however, the fire of Regalian nationalism had been rekindled and the state’s aggressive foreign policy was back in full swing. The political implications in Regalia turned against the Iron Bulwark, however, as the events of the war spelled an end to the bad reputation the Kade family possessed. Within a year following the war, the Kade family-backed Dragon Faction would gain ground in the Imperial Senate until it had enough influence to give the Emperor his absolute power back, after which he dissolved the Senate, thus officially bringing an end to the Regalian Pessimism in the eyes of many. In contrast, to the Allar the Chrysant War was both destruction and a wake-up call. Allar alchemists and leaders who were held captive by Regalia for their scholarly knowledge and political power worked hard to show the Empire the value of the Allar as allies. Ultimately, this would succeed, and the Digmaan became unique for regaining control of much of their homeland years after the conquest. That homeland will largely remain scarred for decades as Regalian bombardment had deeply lashed the land while in the water, chemical pollutants from sunken Essan boats killed or corrupted certain wildlife. For the Slizzar, the war marked the lowest point in their history ever and proved to them that openness was a difficult tightrope to walk. The Slizzar have tried to move on from the conflict, as have many Allar and Regalians, and while it is often discussed as an event so long in the past, it is far more recent than most like to remember.
Trivia
- The Sendrassian Empire briefly considered invading Hadar near the end of the Chrysant War, though when Regalian closed in on Huallo, the Void-worshiping group opted to avoid a conflict, to conserve their power.
- Many question how the invasion of the Essa Empire even took place considering how many Slizzar were within the Regalian Empire who likely would have warned their homeland of the attack. The most popular theory is that the hostile and secretive xenophobia of those noble families involved in much of the planning for the opening wave of attack prevented Slizzar operatives from understanding the true scale of the event until it was too late.
- There are many who question why the city of Sassrakkand was never attacked by the Regalian Empire. It is theorized that secret communications from the city’s leadership made their city-state’s position of neutrality clear, or that perhaps the Regalians feared attacking the city would see all Slizzar, across all of Aloria, turn against the Empire, while using every tool at their disposal as punishment.
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