Clocktower Uprising

If you expect the Havenvernian Governors to bend to your so-called authority, you are truly delusional. We have the people behind us and a tradition much older than Vinato to uphold. Press the matter further, and you'll wish you'd stumbled into a Wisvolvic den instead.

— Dovren Loshkva

The Clocktower Uprising was a rebellion on Havenvern Island in response to Vinato's interest in regulating some of the island's inhumane practices. Vinato had traditionally remained hands-off with Havenvern so long as it received taxes on time, but a push for reforms across the province led to what many on the island considered an attack on their way of life.

Background

The Culture of Havenvern

Havenvern has been inhabited by descendants of the Livsenkro since the middle of the queendom period. While not an inherently violent people, the Livsenkro traditionally saw the world in black and white and acted accordingly. Crimes of any kind, no matter how petty, were dealt with harshly and swiftly. Even being accused of a crime meant one carried a kind of darkness with them that led the gods to allow such accusations to be made in the first place. If exonerated, an individual might still be exiled because of that darkness. They would be branded so that they could not merely move to another settlement and would be forced to leave the island or try their hand surviving in the darkness of Moshkyan.
Self-sufficiency and working for the common good are both virtues for the Livsenkro. Those unable to care for themselves or contribute to society were pariahs and often left to die or forcibly exiled in a way similar to criminals.
Despite openly trading with the mainland, Havenvern was largely left alone for most of its history. When the Leland Confederacy came into being, all that changed for residents of the island was who was receiving the taxes they paid. They remained isolated from reforms that were sweeping across the mainland and continued certain inhumane practices like the use of Vneshksokai to deal with both criminals and those who were deemed to be a burden to society.

Vinatian Reforms of the 1030s

The culture of mainland Vinato has traditionally been far more humane than on Havenvern Island, but theories about justice and criminal rehabilitation in the early 1000s led to calls for reforms. Havenvern might have escaped scrutiny if a coalition of exiled Livsenkro hadn't petitioned authorities in Marrah to investigate practices on the island.
In spring of 1037 a delegation was sent to the island to assess the state of things. Members of the delegation investigated primarily in Dovala, since it was the de facto capital of the island, but also the other major settlements. The delegation would eventually conclude that the entire governmental structure of Havenvern would need to be abolished and rebuilt before any other changes could occur. This, of course, was not well received by the Havenvernian Governors, nor the majority of those living on the island who felt like they were being attacked by foreign party that didn't know anything about their culture.

The Uprising

While most of the Vinatian delegation returned to the mainland for the winter of 1038, a small group remained to begin the process of transitioning power away from the Havenvernian Governors. In response, the Governors conspired to conduct fake trials and sentenced them to Vneshsokai. Mainland authorities were unable to react fast enough to save the group, but Vinato military was deployed to the island by the spring to forcefully take control of the island. The military was first able to seize control of Dovala, but Dovren Loshkva, Dovala's governor, was able to avoid capture. The other governors on the island were caught, arrested, and taken to Marrah to be tried for treason following the taking of their cities.
Dovala's residents refused to cooperate with the new leadership, treating soldiers with open hostility and engaging in calculated violence. Many were spurred by the fact that Loshkva was the only governor still not captured, taking it as a sign from the gods that they're resistance would be rewarded. Meanwhile, Loshkva had created a hideout for himself in Kyakan Tower so that he could watch the city from above. He was also able to manipulate the ornate face of the clock from behind to send signals to allies below. This is why the rebellion would come to be known as the Clocktower Uprising.
In 1039, as the violent summer of revolts was coming to an end, Loshkva was able to negotiate a deal that kept him from being arrested, pointing out that doing so would merely encourage more violence in Dovala. He gave a speech from the balcony of Kyakan Tower to announce the end of the uprising. While some saw his surrender as a betrayal, others understood his speech to mean the Livsenkro should pull back to fight another day. In reality, he had seen the writing on the wall and knew the uprising was going to be squashed eventually, even if it meant Vinatian forces completely levelled Dovala in the process. His goal in negotiations was to position himself in a way to consolidate the power he had gained during the uprising.

A New Havenvern

On the surface, the biggest change on Havenvern following the uprising was the installation of a Vinato-appointed island government responsible for rebuilding and reforming. The council initially struggled to gain the respect of Havenvernians, but Loshkva was able to grant them legitimacy by working with them during the process. While punishments for criminals were still high by mainland standards, the use of Vneshsokai was banned and the exiling of the exonerated was abolished. The council also began to set up more efficient social safety nets to care for those who would be abandoned.
While all seemed to be going well from the view of those in Marrah, Loshkva continued to gather his power behind the scenes. The council itself leaned too heavily on his influence to accomplish its goals while he was also peddling his influence to other powerful Havenvernians who wanted laws created to benefit them. While only Dovren Loshkva would have such an overt relationship with those in power, his descendants would continue to utilize what he had created in order to covertly wield political, economic, and social power for the benefit of the Loshkva family.

Conflict Type

Rebellion

Start Date

1038

Ending Date

1039