History of Eitoan

10,000 BC - 1174 AD: Early Eitoan tribes, practicing a variety of religions inhabit the area. Most numerous are the Eitoan-ra, ethnically and religiously related to the Ralkovians, followed by a variety of Celtic and Slavic tribes.

After 600 AD the Eitoan-ra exercise dominance over neighboring tribes, seizing captives, livestock and the best grazing lands. They are ruled by a council of tribal chiefs. By 900 AD most chieftanships were established on a semi-hereditary basis. The conclusion of the Revolt of Semo (1001-1049) with the Slaughter of the Zaboroshte saw an end to the independence of all not Eitoan-ra tribes.

1174 - 1302: First Eitoan Kingdom. With the dominance and expansion of Eitoan-ra power over other tribes, the territorial expanse of the tribes' holdings demanded an increasingly formalized means of governance. The chief of the Blue Cord Eitoans, Zachariah of Malin, as the most powerful Eitoan-ra chief, asserted his authority over other chief's in a series of battles from 1165 - 1174. With the defeat of his last remaining rival, Lustig of the Upper River Reaches in 1174, Zachariah forced all subservient chiefs to recognize him as King of the Eitoans on July 9, 1174.
1174 - 1182: Zachariah I crowned as first king, raising the Eitoan chiefs to noble status, and subject chiefs as minor nobles. All military put under command of the King. Royal mint established in Wakegan.
1182 - 1186: Regency by Zachariah I's wife, Zipporah, continued weak state as major and minor nobility erode the regal authority. Massive corruption at the royal Court and among provincial mandarins.
1186 - 1201: Reign of Queen Zahava I, continued decline of regal authority, as outlying tribes refues to recognize a female ruler.
1201 - 1228: Reign of Queen Sara I: After early Court reforms, a stronger military exerts control of the kingdom. Centralization throughout the kingdom is enhanced by construction of a rudimentary road system and establishment of the first University in Eitoan, now the Territorial University of Kelso. Jewish religious practice is standardized under the Council of the Wise.
1228 - 1239: Reign of King Eliazar I (Eliazar The Great and Just): Issuance of First Regal Ukase, establishing magistrates throughout the kingdom and codifing rules of evidence and sentencing during trials. Dredging at the mouth of the Ruzika opens harbor at Berwyn.
1239 - 1280: Reign of Queen Sara II: Agricultural improvements through irrigation and drainage projects increase life expectancy and expand land under cultivation. Taxation reform relieves the burden of indentured servitude, leading to a class of agricultural smallholders and independent artisans. Royal patents rationalize the mining and refining of tin, making it an important export commodity.
1280 - 1286: Reign of King Zachariah II: Widespread court corruption causes peasant revolts. The Beth-Din of Vladarsik condemns the worst cases of corruption in the countryside, establishing the first independent judiciary in Eitoan.
1286 - 1302: Reign of Queen Eileen I (Eileen the Stupid): Queen's mental retardation and King's greed cause further decline of the state.

1302 - 1394: First Kingdom devolves into warring states:
1302: Death of Queen Elieen causes outbreak of conflicting claims on the throne and dominance in major provinces as all 7 of her children raise armies in support of their claims.
1342: Truce in the civil war hands over control of most of Eitoan to a Council of Princes. Parts of Istlypu fall to Aurensia.
1352: Death of the last surviving child of Queen Eileen: Eitoan consolidates into four competing principalities: hostilities continue.
1375 Marriage of Princess Rivka (Evil Rivka) of Ralkovia to Prince Samuel Elgin, one of the competitors establishes Ralkovian interest in the Eitoan crown.

1394 - 1488: Second Eitoan Kingdom, established by Prince Louis Halvak after defeating combined opposition forces. Central authority reestablished under Louis I.
1394 - 1406: Reign of Louis I: Military control extended throughout all Eitoan. Istlypu recovered from Aurensia.
1406 - 1425: Reign of King Zachariah III: Nation descends into religious fanaticism.
1425 - 1429: Louis II, crowned at 4 years old; serves as figurehead under a regency council of nobles. Ralkovian colonization begins with the Lease of the Port of Dolton.
1429 - 1434: Reign of Joshua I. Relative stalemate with Ralkovia
1434 - 1468: Reign of Eliazar II (Eliazar the Old): Ralkovian advance continues and kingdom wracked by frequent famine.
1468 - 1471: Reign of Joshua II. Kingdom in vassalage to Ralkovia.
1471 - 1488: Reign of Jonah I. Continuing war and resistance. Jonah killed at the battle of Harvel, marking the end of the Kingdom of Eitoan.

1425 - 1488: Period of Ralkovian colonization, with final subjugation of Eitoan Kingdom in 1488. Bloody period of slavery as Ralkovia seeks to exploit Eitoan agriculture, and bountiful lead and tin resources.

1488 - 1901: Imperial Ralkovian colony. Weak overlordship in remote areas leads to rise in Gemesht (mestizo) rebellions and de-facto local autonomy. Native unrest in the early 1600's and religious turmoil lead to the Defenstration of Holon in 1619, followed by a brutal period of massacre against colonists followed by bloody reprisals, depopulating much of the northeast of the country into the early 1700's. The religious revival of the early 1700's among the Gemesht, by contrast, was viewed favorably by the viceroy at the time, as a means of returning the ruined lands to productivity, and harsh rule in the outlying areas was relaxed. The spread of literacy among the fledgling Gemesht artisan and merchant class, and vigorous illegal trade with Aurensia in the late 1700's and early 1800's inspired the spread of liberal ideals among the townspeople in the provinces, culminating in the Revolution of 1849, which was put down with great bloodshed. Nevertheless, as early industrialization demanded a minimally educated workforce, an Eitoan nationalist movement grew in the late 1800's, initially among exiles in Aurensia, and then in the mostly mestizo inland towns and cities.

1901: Declaration of Eitoan State, subsequent War of Independence against Ralkovia. Military and police in mountainous rural regions, usually Gemesht, led by non-commissioned officers withstand initial imperial attack, with many native troops deserting to the Eitoan side. Rebel activity spreads to other rural areas. Harsh response to suspected rebel activity by colonial police in major cities. Riots in major cities throughout the summer of 1902. Rebel capture of second largest city, Kelso, in January, 1903, establishing it as the capital of the Republic of Eitoan. Bloody Ralkovian campaign in the north in 1903. Bloody reprisals follow in 1903 as Eitoan patriots reclaim territory lost to Ralkovia. Major gains by rebels in the coastal plain in early 1904.

1904: Ralkovian evacuation of Eitoan; military rule follows. Evacuation of Ralkovian military, police and administrators completed by September 4. Slaughter and reprisal ensue against loyalists as Eitoan military assumes control of the largest city, Berwyn.

General Edward Anjek declared provisional president by national council. Military governors and mayors appointed to restore services and maintain order, which was completed by May, 1905. All schools and universities re-opened, with admission for all classes of citizens in November, 1905. Slavery abolished on December 31, 1905. National Reserve Bank of Eitoan established in 1906. All ports, railroads, and highways repaired to pre-war conditions by end of year 1906.

1907: Constitution drafted and approved. Elections for President and both houses of the Council of State, October 12, 1907.

Modern Period
Following radical victory in the 1912 Presidential election, sweeping reforms in education, industry and transportation, under state planning usher in the "First Great Period" of growth, as the Mestizo majority move into positions previously reserved for the Ralkoviak miniority. Pushback from the Ralkoviak minority led to "The Unpleasantness" of 1918-1919, with widespread rioting in cities and towns. This was also the first great period of industrialization, lasting from 1915 - 1933, ending when crop failures due to overplanting in unsuitable soil caused widespread unemployment in rural areas and villages. The crop failures led to a series of bank failures, which the government attempted to remedy through inflationary policies. This was known as the Great Time of Troubles, lasting until 1939. More capitalist oriented governments, encouraging private development restored the Eitoan economy to robust health, leading to the population and industrial boom of the 1950s. Falling commodity prices from 1962 to 1966 ushered in a series of leftist governments from 1967 to 1992, again imposing the heavy hand of central planning on business. Bad planning and overproduction in heavy industries caused the 1991 - 1994 recession, ending leftist rule and central planning.

Since 1992 Eitoan has been wary of extremist politics, government intervention in business and personal matters, and generally dedicated to civic nationalism and to steering a neutral course in foreign policy.

Annexation of Istlypu
In the chaotic days during and after the 1901 Eitoan Declaration of Independence from the Ralkovian Empire, the Istlypu transmontane province of the Empire, always restive, descended into further lawlessness. Ethnically Eitoan, yet isolated from the newly independent Republic, the territory languished under the administration of weak-willed colonial administrators, with imperial edicts sporadically enforced by a motley contingent of second-rate garrison forces. The main commercial activity was trading and basic foodstuff processing at Lva’ad, site of the railyard of the Imperial Ralkovian State Railroad (IRSRR). In the hinterland of the great Aurensian Plateau, life had not changed much in the last 200 years.

Even in it’s isolation, the winds of change blew harshly across the border in the early years of the Republic, as ethnic rioting blighted Eitoan in 1918-1920. A rumored invasion by the Empire along the IRSRR route in February, 1920 caused closure and reinforcement of the border, and an Eitoan railroad strike paralyzing to business on both sides of the border. As law and order broke down in Lva’ad, the Throne prepared to abandon the troublesome area to it’s own devices. Finally, in August, 1921, with a hastily prepared ceremony, the Imperial governor handed over control of Istlypu to an ad-hoc Directorate, consisting of representatives of the Lva’ad Advisory Council and several prominent landowners.

Istlypu was hardly ready for independence. While conditions improved in Lva’ad with a realtively open border with Eitoan, the new nation struggled with the basics of statecraft. Law enforcement was lax, tax revenue uncertain, and the Directorate swung wildly between exuberant spending on basic improvements and severe austerity. Imperial troops returned in 1925 to protect Ralkovian interests, and Istlypu was the beneficiary of Eitoan police actions in 1928-1930, 1943-1946, and briefly, in 1950, to collect debts, protect Eitoan interests, and collect debts respectively.

Meanwhile, relations between Ralkovia and Eitoan, strained for years after Eitoan independence, thawed somewhat after leftists lost the 1937 Eitoan presidential election. There was further rapprochement between the two states following the 1956 “Bloody Yom Kippur” incident, where mutineers from the Empire’s northern colonies commandeered two squadrons and headed out on the Northern Vanguat Sea. The Eitoan Navy, under Presidential order fired on the mutineers, sinking one cruiser and two destroyers. All mutineers captured by the Eitoan Navy were summarily extradited to Ralkovia. This, and further warming of ties led to the 1959 Ralkovia-Eitoan Non Aggression Treaty.

As relations between Eitoan and Ralkovia improved, Istlypu’s isolation and relative poverty led to serious doubts among the better educated about the viability of an independent state. Within Istlypu, the major Eitoan Irridentist and Ralkovian Restorationist parties gradually found themselves more and more in agreement about the day to day operations of the Directorate, and resistance to annexation by Eitoan faded. Once again though, faced with massive tax resistance by livestock owners, the Directorate responded with inflationary policies, leading to the June, 1959 collapse of the Istlypu Quada. In the face of this crisis, the Directorate appealed to Eitoan for annexation. After approval by the Legislature, Eitoan President Eric Nissan set out terms for annexation: The Directorate was to submit a Note of Acceptance of Terms to the Eitoan Department of Foreign Affairs, and a Plebiscite for Annexation was to be held no later than July 9, 1961. The Directorate voted unimously on August 12, 1960 to set a Plebiscite for Annexation on May 15, 1961. The result of the vote was 85% for annexation and 15% against. Following a transition planning period, Itlypu was absorbed into Eitoan on November 10, 1961.