Lordanian Federal District

The first efforts to colonise the planet of Lordania began in the early 22nd Century, alongside the major colonial efforts of the Terran Commonwealth. The majority of Lordania’s first colonists were Aresians and Lunarians, and settled the cities of Quhon and New Ares. By 2205, it had become very clear that the Colony of Lordania had reached a level of development that meant a provisional government was no longer enough to manage the expanding regions. A government based on traditional republican ideals was seen as a noble and righteous thing, and was inspired by the governments of Mars and Earth that they had left. While the government was elected, and all Lordanians were extended the right to vote, the luxury of an office was only granted to those who had contributed to the state, and thus, they created an aristocratic republic in which only the powerful could run for office. The newly formed planetary government favoured a unitary system of powerful city states, and the Lordanian Unitary Republic, founded in 2205, served the needs of the city states, as opposed to the people. The planet of Lordania did not require much terraforming, and contained abundant resources, which made certain city states extremely rich. This acquisition of wealth was not truly proportional, and both a wealth and class divide grew between the privileged oligarchs and the common folk. While in its early years, the classist divide had yet to truly manifest, it was here that the seeds were sown. The planet’s economic output was almost entirely privatised into the hands of large corporations and key players. These people and their descendents became the upper class of the Lordanian system, living in luxury, and known today as the Upper Lordanians. Soon enough, democratic institutions became proportional to one’s wealth. While Lordania became exceedingly wealthy and influential, that wealth was concentrated at the top, and it did not trickle down.   As big as Lordania was, the oligarchs of the Republic needed more. Comprehensive trade agreements between its nearby stellar neighbors resulted in the founding of the First Lordanian Republic, a united republic by which to administer the various nations of the Lordanian Cluster. Meanwhile, further inland on the planet, the large working class population found itself in a difficult position. General overcrowding of Lordania, and rising housing prices across the planet led a large chunk of this population to migrate to nearby Kingston, a waterworld previously used as rural farming agriculture. This massive migration led to Kingston becoming an important player in regional Lordanian politics overnight, and the two planets maintained a careful balance of economic trade and worker support, an economic union that would soon grow to tie all nations to the Lordanian economy.   In the early 30s, economic inaction and unpopular foreign policy led to increasing resentment across the Cluster, including Lordania. Following the resignation of President Richard Lovettica of New Ares from the Lordanian Senate, the President of the Lordanian Republic, Zachariah Khan, enacted a series of widespread reforms and crackdowns. The planet of Pimascimate (Modern Day Tersten) became a penal colony to house violent protesters and relieve overcrowded jails. On Lordania, the dissent of several city states, including New Ares and Xutong led to decreased city state authority and the increase of central power into the Senate and the Presidency. The Lordanian Unitary Republic was brought into the control of the First Lordanian Republic, as opposed to the traditional other way around. Though the economic crisis of the 30s had come to a close, the Aresians had strong memories, having already lost their influence on Mars and become an isolationist relic of the past, they were determined here to remain the dominant culture of Lordania.   The 40s on Lordania were seen as a period of economic recovery and increased polarisation. The oligarchic city states had lost the support of the people, who were increasingly calling for democratic reform, and had the backing of the First Lordanian Republic’s other member states. With popular support for the government failing, many Corporate entities began pulling their support. With the Unitary Republic only staying afloat due to significant corporate influence, the President, using executive power, passed the Dynamic Economy Act. This gave the State complete power to nationalise the economy, and appropriate the accounts and assets from private entities to save the Unitary Republic. This made the Government the enemy of the People, the Oligarchs, and the Military. True to their nature, the corrupt senators siphoned away the funds intended on fixing the economy into their own pockets. What they failed to realise was that the Corporations they pillaged also had influence in the other member states of the Republic. With these Corporations effectively destroyed, the economy of many other nations, dependent on the free trade coming from Lordania due to the nature of the First Republic. The First Republic itself was unable to handle the oncoming depression, which first hit Cinu in 2251, and then the rest of the Cluster in ‘53.   The Lordanian Economic Collapse of ‘53 triggered, across the whole Cluster, a myriad of civil events. Wars, Famines, and Revolutions followed in the Six Years of Suffering (2254-2260). On Lordania, the people banded under the Unitarian Party. It found a middle ground between the capitalists and the people, calling it the ‘third position’ between military rule and socialist uprising. The people, fearing the takeover of the military, supported the Unitarian’s claims of fixing the economy and ‘making Lordania great again’. On the other, the capitalists, fearful of a people’s revolution, funded and supported the Unitarian’s promise of stability and economic success. It blamed the failure of the First Republic not only on the greed of man, but on the failures of democracy itself. It has since been considered Aresianism, or Martian Fascism, and advocates for ultranationalist policies, a command economy, and socially liberal values. To the Unitarians, all who considered themselves Lordanian were welcome, but there could be no pluralism. The state was ruled for, and by, the Lordanian People. The Unitarian Party won the election, not only on Lordania, but across the cluster. Winning a majority of seats, the Unitarian Party voted to give emergency powers to the Consul, Leonard Percy, who announced a great victory for the Lordanian People.  

The Banality of Evil

  The People's Republic of Lordania was considered the unitary ruler of Lordania, and all power flowed downwards from the Consul and Senate. The first few years saw the degrading of human rights and strong continued nationalisation. On Lordania specifically, society was heavily militarised according to Aresian tradition. New Ares became the political capital of the People’s Republic, and the former Lordanian Senate was transformed into the National United Congress. The NUC governed both the planets of Lordania and Kingston, largely denying Kingston of any independence or self-governance. As a one-party totalitarian state, the state controlled all aspects of society, and enforced a campaign of “Lordaniafication'', targeting pluralists and ethnic non-Lordanians. The Unitarian Party placed the failures of the state on the fault of the Kleptocrats - individuals of status who had abused the trust of the people to defraud the state and fund their allies. Antikleptism was considered the state policy. It would root out traitors who worked against the state. Anybody who was not loyal to the state was treated as an enemy. Though the Consul likely intended to use this as a means of encouraging loyalty to the state, in practice this resulted in a cutthroat political game of snakes and ladders. Anybody whose loyalty - first to the state, and increasingly in later years to the Consul directly - was called into question could have any and all rights violated by the state secret police, the People’s Protectors (PPs).   On Lordania, there was very little armed protest owing to the PRL’s firm control over the planet. Though many Upper Lordanians did not appreciate the harshness of the regime, they mostly kept quiet for fear of being targeted. The Purge of ‘66 targeted a large number of Senators and political figures on Lordania and beyond. Finishing what had been started by the Dynamic Economy Act, the Unitarians nationalised planetary infrastructure and social care. Few Lordanian corporations were spared, save those that had aligned themselves with the People’s Republic. Those that worked with the PRL were able to remain functional, and were nationally funded to continue operating.   The interplanetary resistance known as The Brotherhood was not able to organise on Lordania, as it had on other planets. Its ideals were largely incompatible with the capitalist views of Lordania, who worked to form a democratic movement. The Democratic Reformers of Lordania (DRL) became a militant group, secretly funded by Lordanian capitalists and by the Vidento Eight. With the start of the Lordanian Revolution in 2277, the DRL made major gains in the liberal cities of Mallane, Waterpool, and Gabokane. Coordinating with the Vidento and the Brotherhood, the DRL focused on disrupting Unitarian supply lines and sabotaging political institutions. The 2279 Destruction of the Lordanian Senate building marked the major turning point in the war. Using the chaos of the Revolution, the Brotherhood flew a captured cruiser into the Senate building, having coordinated with loyalist members of the Vidento to set a trap for the Consul. The resulting damage not only leveled the building, but a large part of the urban sprawl around the Senate. The ensuing fires, combined with radiation from the ship’s reactor, caused an extremely high loss of life. Many claim the action was not worth the result, but with the Consul and his cabal dead, this single action brought the end of the war. Unable to continue the fight, the People’s Republic shatters into numerous factions across the planet, competing with themselves and the Brotherhood-aligned forces. The collapse of the People’s Republic triggers the start of the Lordanian Interregnum Period.  

Reconstruction Era

  Surviving political figures of the PRL secured themselves in New Ares, while the DRL secured Waterpool. In response, the surviving Unitarians figures gather to negotiate a surrender. Across the planet, the governments of Quhon, Saladone, and Gabokane join the DRL in declaring independence. With the Brotherhood attempting to influence the terms of surrender, and demanding that surviving political leaders be transferred to their custody, the Unitarians quickly surrender to the DRL, who refuse to work with the Brotherhood, and joins Yuklid V in petitioning the United Systems of Sol for aid.   Sol, having already called for an investigation into the PRL and imposing sanctions, immediately accepted the request and moved to Lordania as a peacekeeping force. Finding the situation to be far worse than they had expected, Sol moves quickly and decisively to unite the Cluster under a democratically elected government. By doing this, they allowed individuals with ties to the PRL back into positions of power, now working for the democratic government. These pardons were one of many reasons that the Confederate Systems of Lordania chose to break away. Under Sol, the Second Lordanian Republic was founded on Yuklid.   Back on Lordania, the decision as to how to organise the planet once again returned. With Waterpool serving as the Capital of the SLR, and a heavy Sol presence, the days of oligarchic city states is a thing of the past. In place of the Lordanian Unitary Republic came the Lordanian Federal District. Each State of Lordania would be granted significant autonomy, with the power to determine their own democratic future within the SLR. The Lordanian’s authoritarian streak has not fully been removed, but it has been lessened.   The people of New Ares have been significantly humbled. With conflict brought to their very doorstep, this has triggered a change that has redefined the very concept of an Aresian. No longer would the people seek to establish their superiority through war and oppression, for under Sol, they had found a new means of demonstrating it: the Media. New Aresians are considered by many to be obsessed with culture. Lordania’s greatest Actors, Musicians, Supermodels, and other talented people emphasise their talent comes from their status as a New Aresian. They are haughty people, whose arrogance rivals any Selenian.   Between 2287 and 2295, Lordania underwent de-Unitarianification, in which elements of Unitarian teachings were completely scrapped and replaced with pro-Sol rhetoric. Today’s Lordanians are proud members of the SCG and commit strongly to its Armed Forces. Lordanians are rarely seen amongst the rank and file, but already make up a reasonable portion of the officer pool. Claims that Sol ‘poached’ Unitarian veterans to boost their rank during the Gaia Conflict remains a point of contention amongst the left-leaning Lordanians. While critics remain outspoken against the Republic's Authoritarian government, it has proven itself to be an efficient and mostly benevolent government with no hostile intentions. A new age of politics has arrived in Lordania, with a policy of Paternal Conservatism. William Harrow, the Supreme Chancellor of the Second Republic, is considered the ideological head of the Lordanian conservative movement. Despite the many gains of left-wing policies in the past 20 years, the Lordanian people remain a conservative one. As a member of the Sol Government, it has enjoyed numerous privileges and benefits, something it does not intend to throw away.