Aguara Kingdom

"Where Sea and Sky Meet, We Shall Thrive." ~ Motto of Aguara

Aguara is a kingdom that sits along the Eastern coastline of the Western Continent. Ruled from the Capital City of Carran, it stretches from the northern Plains that border with the Kingdom of Sholesen to the southern green sea that acts as the border line with the Pryma Commonwealth. To the East lies the Elder Ocean and on the West are the Morendra mountains, only partial claimed by Aguara.

Structure

Monarchy

The current Aguarian Monarchy was established in 1608 CE, when the last of the Kings of Carran, Tarquin Carran, was killed in a coup by his cousin Lucius Caeles.
A new Monarchy/Republic began with his bloodline, as well as a system based on biennial elected magistrates was established. The most important magistrates were the two Consuls, who together exercise authority over the military and were the Kings closest advisers. The Consuls have to work with the senate, which is an advisory council of the ranking nobility.
Lucius also set forth a constitution with a series of checks and balances, and a separation of powers. The constitution was a constantly-evolving, unwritten set of guidelines and principles passed down mainly through precedent, by which the government and its politics operated. Changes to the constitution were driven by conflicts of interest between the aristocracy and ordinary citizens.

Senate

The Senators are appointed by the Consuls. The appointment was for life, although the Consuls could remove or punish any senator. Possible reasons for punishing a Senator included corruption, abuse of capital punishment, or the disregard of a colleague's veto. Senators who failed to obey various laws could also be punished. While punishment could include impeachment (expulsion) from the Senate, often a punishment was less severe than outright expulsion.
While they hold no real power, their authority is derived from the esteem and prestige of the senators which is based on precedent and custom, as well as the reputation of the senators. The senate passed decrees, which were officially "advice" from the senate to a King. While technically these decrees did not have to be obeyed, in practice, they usually were. The focus of the senate was usually directed towards foreign policy, and though it technically had no official role in the management of military conflict, the senate ultimately was the force that oversaw such affairs.
The ethical and legal requirements of senators were significant. Senators could not engage in banking or any form of public contract. They could not own a ship that was large enough to participate in foreign commerce (trade or shipping) and they could not leave Aguara without permission from the Senate. In addition, since they were not paid, individuals usually sought to become a senator only if they were independently wealthy. A Senator could not be appointed if they were previously committed of crime.

Magistrates

Each magistrate was assigned a province by the Senate. This was the scope of that particular office holder's authority. It could apply to a geographic area or to a particular responsibility or task. They carried broad authority in the public spheres such as diplomacy, the justice system, and limited military use. All magistrates have the power to maintain public order by imposing punishment for crimes. Magistrates also had both the power and the duty to look for omens (see Religion). This power would often be used to obstruct political opponents.
One check on a magistrate's power was that each magisterial office would be held concurrently by at two people. Another such check was that all citizens were protected from punishments for crimes by appealing the decision of the magistrate to a tribune of magistrates. In addition, once a magistrate's two-year term of office expired, he would have to wait ten years before serving in that office again. This created problems for some remote regions, and these magistrates would occasionally have their term extended or the time between terms reduced.

Cities and Towns

The senate decided if a town could become a city, and it was not always based on size.
The citizens of a City would hold full citizenship and their rights included the right to vote and a sure sign of full rights.
The towns were important centres but residents of these did not become full citizens (although their magistrates could become so after retirement). They were given the duties of full citizens in terms of liability to taxes and military service, but not all of the rights: most significantly, they had no right to vote.
Executive power in a city or town was held by biennial elected officials, composed of two Prefects and two Officers. Advisory powers were held by the Assembly (the local equivalent to the senate), local members appointed by the officials or, as is common in most places, local members who have been on the assembly for many years often with hereditary positions. There is no hard rule on the number of assembly members but traditional it is capped at 12.
Elections were tricky in towns where no one was allowed to vote, since the nominees would have to petition nearby Cities or the commonly the Capital for their seats, and that often came with promises to those cities that didn't always benefit the town.

Assets

Natural Resources

Mining is one of the most prosperous activities in Aguara. The Kingdom is rich in resources such as copper, gold, iron, lead, salt, silver, and Vollonite, materials in high demand in throughout the western continent.
There is a large area of agricultural and grazing land through the central part of the kingdom, and the large coastline provides plenty of fish as a standard part of the diet.

History

The Carran Kings

Much of the origins of the Carran Kings are shrouded in mystery and sources are unreliable at best. What most scholars agree on is that there were at least 30 Carran Kings, with a reign of almost 1200 years with an average of 35 years each. What started as a small tribe grew to a larger city size kingdom by around 1500 CE.
The last 6 kings of Carran are the most documented. They began the expansion of from the City of Carran to the Kingdom now named Aguara. At the time of the last king of Carran, Tarquin Carran, Aguara had expanded from the coast line to the base of the mountains, and north to the plains where it's current border remains relatively unchanged. However, the much of what is now considered central and southern Aguara was still Morendi Territory.

Caeles Reign

In 1608 CE the coup by Lucius Caeles, ended in the death of the Tarquin Carran and his immediate family. As a relative of the crown he had a much easier time convincing traditionalists of his right to rule. He had also gathered much support for his coup through his promises of reforms to the ruling structure of the kingdom.
There have been Five Caeles kings, though it was the first two Kings who greatly expanded the Kingdom to its current state, including subjugating the Morendra mountains where the lucrative Vollonite mines are, and subsuming the southern Morendi tribal lands that buffered Aguara from the Prymese Commonwealth. These tribal lands were used sporadically by the Morendi and the occupation of them by Aguara forced the now isolated and food starved Morendra to agree to terms.

Dukana Empire

Aguara knew of the Empire across the Elder Ocean but it was not a priority as it was laborious to establish trade due to the distance involved. However, the Empire was not one to pass up a trade opportunity, especially for Blue Vollonite (which was rare in the Empire). Under Emperor Bo a settlement was created on the coastal shore south of Carran and named Iridan. This gave the city a direct river route for the transport of Vollonite from the mountain mines.
King Lucius Caeles The II was not impressed and in 1691 CE, sent soldiers to burn the permanent structures telling the Dukana that if they wanted to trade they would have to stay as visitors only.
The next ships to arrive were battle ships from Dukana and the ensuing battle was short lived. As the Empire was formidable on Sea and the Kingdom keeping them from the land. If Dukana had not been able to take and hold the islands off the coast of Carran, the Empire would have been repelled.
Negotiations were held in 1699, an agreement was made that held the leaders of Dukana and Aguara as equal partners and sealed in a royal marriage alliance - A unnamed Dukana Princess and Prince Regulus Caeles, who was in line for the throne. In this agreement, Dukana was allowed a permanent port on Aguara land to facilitate trade and Dukana would regularly send tribute items such as silk clothes, money, and Red Vollonite to the King of Aguara.
The princess from Dukana was found after the marriage to be unable to carry a child to term and while it was not in the agreement the King felt cheated. The woman sent to Aguara was a cousin of Emperor Bo, who had no intention of giving up his only daughter. There are no further mentions of her in historical text. Most assume she died in child birth. Prince Regulus remarried and was given the throne upon the birth of his first living son, Gallus (who has since been banished).
The Prymese Commonwealth was not pleased with the new agreement since the far side of the commonwealth had been rebuffing advances from the Empire for decades. As the size of Iridan grew, as well as the number of Empire ships courting their shores, increased tensions. In 1770 CE, fueled mostly by misinformation from Iridan, a border dispute was initiated with Pryma. These border skirmishes are still ongoing.

Demography and Population

Education

Education begins at the age of six, and in the next six to seven years, boys and girls were expected to learn the basics of reading, writing and counting.
For upper class citizens, at the age of twelve they would be learning not only the grammar and literature of their own culture but basic language knowledge of Darin (Language of the Empire) and Canta (Language of the Belalto), followed by training for public speaking. Effective oratory and good reading and writing were highly valued among the elite, and were essential to a career in law or politics. Girls were also allowed in these classes however instead of oratory skills they would focus on the arts.
Poorer citizens would not continue on past age 12 and would instead apprentice under family or local trades workers.

Military

An army formation of around 5,000 men (of both heavy and light infantry) was known as a legion. The manipular army was based upon social class, age and military experience. Maniples were units of 120 men each drawn from a single infantry class.
The maniples were typically deployed into three discrete lines based on the three heavy infantry types:

1. Each first line maniple were leather-armoured infantry soldiers who wore a bronze breastplate and a bronze helmet with no adornment, and carried an iron-clad wooden shield. They were armed with a sword and two throwing spears, as well as Vollonite crystals for Agility or Strength.
2. The second infantry line was armed and armoured in the same manner as was the first infantry line. The second infantry line, however, wore a lighter coat of mail rather than a solid brass breastplate.
3. The third infantry line was the last remnant of the hoplite-style troops. They were armed and armoured in the same manner as were the soldiers in the second line, with the exception that they carried a lighter spear.

The three infantry classes were based upon age and experience rather than social class. Young, unproven men would serve in the first line, older men with some military experience would serve in the second line, and veteran troops of advanced age and experience would serve in the third line. Inborns who elected to serve in the military would be placed in the second or third line regardless of their experience.

Current King:

Lynus Celeas

Current Consuls:

Junius Alba and Sulla Priscus

Current Senate:

12 Elected Senators

Current Provinces:

11 held by 22 Magistrates

Special Magistrates:

2 Border Magistrates

by Tina Hunter

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Type

Geopolitical, Kingdom

Capital

Carran (Capital City of Aguara)

Demonym

Aguarian

Government System

Monarchy, Crowned Republic

Power Structure

Feudal state

Economic System

Market economy

Currency

1 Cobb - $0.50
1 Crown - $1
1 Doublet - $2
Typical Costs:
A horse = 4,400–4,500 Crowns.
A labourer earnings = 200 Crowns a month
A merchant earnings = 2,500 Crowns a month.

Location

Western Continent

Controlled Territories

• Carran (Capital City of Aguara)

Neighboring Nations

• Dukana Empire

Notable Members

• King Lynus Caeles

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Current Year
1780 CE

Religions of Aguara
Oracles of Aacahin
Donassi

Caeles Reigns

1. King Lucius Caeles: 1608 - 1637 (Death)
2. King Marcus Caeles: 1637 - 1675 (Abdication)
3. King Lucius Caeles The II: 1675 - 1707 (Abdication)
4. King Regulus Caeles: 1707 - 1744 (Death)
5. King Lynus Caeles: 1744 - Current

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Carran - Capital of Aguara and Home of Royal Family and the Senate