Fictian Empire

"For the country before 1899, see Kingdom of Fictia"The Fictian Empire is a modern Imperial Absolute Monarchy based from the island of Occidentalis. The Empire is composed of multiple territories in the Occidental and Oriental Oceans connected by ship and the central government, including most of Occidentalis, some surrounding minor islands, and the Exarchate of Australis. The current de facto Emperor is George I.

Originally founded in January of 1889, the Fictian Empire was a continuation of the much older Kingdom of Fictia that existed on the northern half of Occidentalis Island. The modern Empire was originally founded in response to when colonial expeditions from various countries East re-discovered the island and Kingdom, which had been in a state of isolation for decades. King George LXXVI, to prevent his state from becoming another colonial territory, proclaimed the Fictian Empire and made himself into Emperor George I. Adopting a rapid modernization policy, the nascent Empire rapidly militarized and became somewhat powerful and advanced thanks to foreign gifts. After participating in a few wars on the side of the winning coalitions and sending out expeditions to colonize new land, the Empire began to rapidly strengthen in both population and military strength and was in position to become a major power-until the Scourge came around.

Except for Australis, which is a hot desert, much of the Fictian Empire is in a tropical wet climate. The Empire is a prodigious producer of zinc, timber, hydrogen and fish, although crop production is also relatively high.

Etymology
The Fictian Empire's name is based off of the common regional name of Fictia given to the northern half of Occidentalis, which itself comes from the Ficts who have dominated the land since 200. The origin of the term "Ficts" for the settlers of northern Occidentalis at that time is unknown, but may have originated from neighboring peoples as originally labeling them as unimportant enough to be "fictitious".

History

 * See also: Kingdom of Fictia

Fictia first appeared as a separate, distinct region around 200, when a group of tribes modernly known as the Ficts migrated from modernly-unknown northern regions by boat and conquered Occidentalis and neighboring isles, in addition to most of the Okhostian Isles. They also invaded The Empire in what is today Mediterrae, but were quickly defeated and driven out of the continent. Relegated to their island conquests, the Ficts quickly became a divided people ruled by thousands of tiny, independent chiefdoms strewn across Occidentalis and Okhostia. Although multiple attempts to centralize the different Fictian polities by confederating the chiefdoms were proposed, and some larger states attempted large-scale conquest, all unification attempts failed.

In 399, however, The Empire collapsed with the defeat and death of Emperor Chungumagne, the state's final ruler. During the once-vast Empire's collapse and destruction, Chungumagne's sons and the entire government, along with some refugees and soldiers, fled using the former state's extensive navy and sailed out into the Occidental Ocean, where they "discovered" Occidentalis and promptly conquered the independent chiefdoms there to found the Kingdom of Fictia, a unified Fictian state (albeit under foreign leadership). Due to the complicated nature of the Kingdom's founding, there is a dispute as to whether it was a new state with a refugee upper-class or a continuation of the Empire.

Under the Chungulingian Dynasty, Capital City (Fictia) was constructed and the Kingdom expanded to islands beyond Occidentalis and even some enclaves on the modern RCM and Basza. After the wicked King Malus drained the state's people of their wealth and belongings, however, the dynasty was quickly overthrown and the Kingship auctioned by the army, who gave the position to a nobleman named Justinian. The Basilean Dynasty that followed would go on to bring the Kingdom to a golden age in which it conquered the entire disputed continent of Canciona and parts of Mediterrae and Okhostia, and significantly prospered intellectually and economically for over two centuries.

Foreign Relations
The Fictian Empire is a formal member of Socii Mundial, but externally also has a unique foreign policy system inspired by that used by the W.C.C., in which all countries are assigned a number relating to how good their relations are. As of 1908, these numbers are:

See Also:

 * List of Fictian Emperors