SE Alephonicum
SE Alephonicum Soçaelesto Estato de Alefoneco | |
|---|---|
| Socialist State of Alephonicum | |
 Flag | |
 Location of SE Alephonicum in New Illyricum | |
| Country |  New Illyricum |
| Incorporation | 1867 |
| Capital | Alephonia |
| Government | |
| • Body | Alephonicum State Government |
| • Marshall | Johano Filipo (AP) |
| Population (2022) | |
| • Total | 2,104,565 |
| Time zone | Italian Standard Time |
| ISO 3166 code | NE-ALE |
SE Alephonicum, officially the Socialist State of Alephonicum (Illyrian Iberic: Soçaelesto Estato de Alefoneco, [ʃoɪsaɪʟeʃ'to uni'to eʃta'to də aʟefone'xo]), is a state of the United Socialist States of New Illyricum. SE Alephonicum lies in northern New Illyricum, bordering SE Pensulia to the south and Terranihil to the north. SE Alephonicum has a population of 2,104,565 people, and 55% of them live in either the capital city of Alephonia, Kavardan City, or Roro Monte. SE Alephonicum is divided into five departments and fifty four municipalities. It is governed by a Senatorial Council, which is elected via popular proportional voting, and by a Popular Assembly, which is elected via direct voting. Johano Filipo of the Vanguardist Party (AP) is the current Marshall of Alephonicum following the 2024 congressional election and, while the Senatorial Council is split between the AP and the Democratic Party (DP), the AP control the Popular Assembly by 124 seats.
SE Alephonicum is New Illyricum's twelfth most populous state and is the seventh most urbanized, with almost all of the population living in or near Alephonia and Roro Monte. The majority of the Alephonian economy is based in primary industry, mostly gold, iron, titanium, and copper mining in the Andaluzian Mountains, which is administrated by state-run AleMine, the largest mining corporation in New Illyricum. The rest of the Alephonian economy is mostly agriculture and farming in the western half of the state around the Senola River, as Alephonicum is New Illyricum's largest agricultural sector. SE Alephonicum has four designated cities, Alephonia, the largest and the state capital, Kavardan City, which is almost entirely inhabited by Kavardan refugees, Planurbe, and Roro Monte. Alephonicum has a nominal GDP of D76,916,719,636 (₵45,245,129,198), ranked ninth amongst New Illyrian states, and the GDP per capita is about D36,549 (₵21,499).
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Etymology
There are several competing theories as to the origin of "Alephonicum" (Alefoneco), including that the region was named after the Alvun tribe who inhabited the region prior to its invasion by Romanya and the term continued to be used even through the Romanyan occupation and was reinstated as the name for the region during the Umayyad Caliphate. The other major theory is that it comes from the Hebrew "Aleph" (Jackian: "A") and the region was mistakenly named this by Islamic invaders who believed the region was inhabited by Pavuturiloris.
History
Ancient history
The first recorded human habitation in SE Alephonicum was in the Andaluzian Mountains and has been dated back to around 50,000 BC. Most early inhabitants of the region were farmers who utilized the plentiful crop fields in the western half of the region and inhabited settlements on the Senola River. Several small civilizations would emerge on the river, the most major of which was the Zanabar Empire. The Zanabar Empire emerged around 2700 BC and would control most of the Senola River, allowing it to dominate agriculture and trade in the region. At its greatest extent around 2250 BC the empire stretched deep into modern day SE Pensulia. However in 1900 BC the empire collapsed due to a variety of factors, chiefly continued famines and pressure from local tribes.
Following the collapse of the Zanabar Empire, continued droughts prevented more civilizations from forming and the region was dominated by various warring tribes. However after a millennia of disarray in the region, the Mouxussuun Kingdom formed on the Senola River around the city of Mouxussus, and soon grew to dominate the region. By 750 BC, Mouxussuun had grown to about the size of the Zanabar Empire at its height and flourished with advanced technology and an established writing system. However weak leadership under the Zosuxuon dynasty in the sixth century led to infighting amongst nobility and Mouxussuun collapsed in 456 BC into several warring city states. Eventually after several decades of fighting Vuonuxo III reunified the Kingdom, however Mouxussuun was unable to recover from the years of fighting and in 296 BC Mouxussus was sacked by the Alvun tribe, destroying the Kingdom.
Romanyan Parlas
Beginning in 198 BC with the Romanyan conquest of Illyricum, the Romanyan Republic began to expand throughout Southern Ecros. The Romanyan expansion moved northeast under the leadership of Gaius Sejanus Brutellus and Gaius Servilius Magnus and in 170 was met with its first major opposition in Morgantorix. The Morgantorian War was the first, and only, major resistance to Romanyan expansion into the region, and Morgantorix was eventually defeated by Servilius Magnus at the Battle of Luperconia in 167. The defeat of Morgantorix allowed Romanyan forces to quickly sweep through the region, eventually conquering the Senola River and the remnants of Mouxussus in 159, establishing Romanyan Parlas, which included modern day SE Alephonicum, SE Tuscinum, and SE Pensulia.
Under Romanyan rule Alephonicum itself was a highly militarized region, due to it being the furthest exterior province of Romanya, and often saw military action between local tribes and Romanyan forces. Starting in 45 AD, Romanyan Emperor Claudius ordered a series of construction projects to improve the region, which included the construction of the Claudian Aqueduct, which is the third largest Romanyan Aqueduct ever constructed. Proconsul of Parlas, Marcus Didius Harmonius, established in 203 the first major mines in the Andaluzian Mountains and constructed the settlement that is now modern day Roro Monte. Gold, copper, and iron were heavily exported out from Alephonicum into the surrounding regions, and Romanyan trade caravans soon became targets for local raiders in the region.
In 306 the large Trevenii tribe led by chieftain Mernus crossed into Romanyan Parlas and defeated Gnaeus Marcellus Dactyllus at the First Battle of the Senola River and raided large swaths of Alephonicum into southern Parlas. Mernus was eventually bribed and the Romanyans surrendered control of all land west of the Senola River to the Trevenii tribe, which destabilized Romanyan control in the region. During the reign of Diocletian from 264 to 285 the Trevenii led several more incursions into Romanyan Parlas, effectively controlling the western and northern sections of Alephonicum which were officially ceded to them in 306 by Proconsul Marcus Aemullius Peccellus. Romanyan grasp over the region continued to wane over the following years, and eventually in 499 chief Pennonnus crushed the Romanyan forces at the Battle of Turno, killing Northern Romanyan Emperor Parthenius and forcing Romanyan forces to withdraw out of Alephonicum.
Islamic Control
Local tribes dominated the region following the withdrawal of the Romanyans, and the Trevenii continued to push south, eventually conquering all of Parlas in 621 as Romanya began to lose control over many of its territories. In the east the rising Islamic caliphates began expanding in the wake of the Romanyan collapse, and in 753 Caliph as-Saffah of the Abbasid Caliphate ordered the invasion of Alephonicum. Islamic forces quickly conquered the region and the first Islamic governor of the region, Ali Bakr, rebuilt the Romanyan mines and worked to reestablish Alephonicum as a major metal producer. Under Ali Bakr in 767 the construction of the city of Alephonia began and would eventually be completed in 804. Alephonia served as the new capital of the region and the focus of the governors of the region remained wholly on the mines in the eastern half of Alephonia. The western half and the Senola River was left mostly untouched, and the Senola River served as the western border of the Caliphate against the Kingdom of Illyricum.
King Livius I of the Kingdom of Illyricum came to power in 863 and immediately set his sights on the resource rich Alephonia. Livius led a force into the southwestern section of the region in 867, beginning the Abbasid-Illyrian War. Livius campaigned in the western half of the region for several years, but was defeated by Caliph al-Mu'tamid at the Siege of Alephonia and withdrew westward past the Senola River. Regrouping with a large force in 875, Livius led another assault against al-Mu'tamid and defeated him at the Second Battle of the Senola River, capturing his three children and forcing the Abbasid Caliphate to negotiate. The Abbasid Caliphate ceded direct control over the region and most of western Alephonia, instead establishing the vassal state of the Emirate of Alephonia under the leadership of Emir Mahmoud Ibn Raffa.
Emirate of Alephonia
The Emirate of Alephonia was initially heavily dependent on the Abbasid Caliphate, utilizing its soldiers for defense and almost exclusively dealing with Abbasid traders. However under the leadership of Ibn Raffa's grandnephew Youcef Ibn Musa al-Raffa from 918 to 956 the Emirate grew in strength, establishing several trading routes with the coastal Haltemid Caliphate on the Andaluzian Sea. The rising Terranilian Empire under the leadership of Navaktan I posed a threat to Alephonian trade routes and threatened the relative stability of the region.
In 991 Emir Brahim al-Raffa led a attack on the Terranilian capital of Iftramen, and though the force was repelled at the city itself in 992, Brahim al-Raffa managed to secure trading routes in the southern reaches of the Terranilian desert. In 1004 Caliph Abdul Rahman ibn Badri of the Haltemids died, and a crisis of succession erupted between Muhammad Abu Sayf and Hasik ibn Abdul Rahman. Brahim al-Raffa supported Hasik Ibn Abdul Rahman and sent military aid, however the Hasikis were defeated and Muhammad Abu Sayf, the next Caliph, closed trading routes with Alephonia. With the routes to the Vaktrian coast closed, Brahim al-Raffa's successor Mukhtar ibn Brahim al-Raffa established trading routes to the east with the Emirate of Mestaga. In 1011 Mukhtar ibn Brahim al-Raffa defeated Islam Hassan and a force of the Abbasid Caliphate at the Battle of Mahamouti, which forced the Abbasid Caliphate to officially cede influence in Alephonia and allowed Mukhtar to establish trade routes with Illyricum.
The emirate maintained stability for about two centuries, maintaining trade routes and in 1183 established large trade routes to Pinaria with Queen Ilsamia of Terranihil, which allowed Alephonia to become a wealthy seat of power at the crossroads of Terranihil, Illyricum, and the Abbasids. In 1201 the Alephonian–Illyrian War began after Illyrian soldiers pillaged several Alephonian trading outposts, and Emir Rida Ajam attacked Illyrian forces at the Battle of al-Rafi and defeated them. The war ended in 1204 and Illyricum was forced to pay heavy reparations, and as a result of the war, Rida Ajam curtailed all trading with Illyricum, crippling Illyricum's military which relied heavily on Alephonian iron and copper.
In 1229 Livius II of Illyricum established the Claudian dynasty and reopened trade routes with Alephonia. Following the death of Junaid ibn Nejem al-Ajam in 1245 the Emirate fell into a succession crisis, between the Illyrian-backed Sayfullah Karimi and Terranilian-backed Saud Muhammad. At the Battle of Sadr Sayfullah Karimi was defeated and killed, leading to Saud Muhammad being named Emir. Immediately upon being named Emir, Saud Muhammad ended all trade with Illyricum and increased heavily trade to Terranihil. In response in 1254, Honorius II of Illyricum organized the assassination of Saud Muhammad with the Order of Assassins, a Hasiki Imrani select group of assassins, who believed the Emirate of Alephonicum was anti-Imranist. Saud Muhammad was killed and Honorius invaded Alephonicum in 1255, conquering Alephonia soon after, killing Sulaiman ibn Saud al Muhammad the final Emir of Alephonia.
Illyrian control
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Immediately upon conquering the region, Honorius named Marcellus Adrianus, his nephew, as the first Earl of Alephonia. Earl Donsus set out to remove all Islamic influence from the Earldom, destroying the Islamic university in the city and ordering the execution of all the city's scholars and men. The event would become known as the "Greatest Injustice" amongst the Islamic population in the city, most of whom fled to Mestaga or Terranihil. Estimates range between 50,000 and 300,000 for total deaths, and amongst the dead was prominent mathematician Gawdat El-Amin and cartographer Jabr Karim who was the first person to fully map the eastern coast of Ecros. Illyrian leaders fully ended almost all foreign trade of the metals, instead using them entirely domestically to fund their army and began again the process of irrigating the Senola River, which provided food to much of the northern reaches of Illyricum.
Illyrian rule stayed strong throughout the following centuries until in 1552 when Earl Marcus Flaccius died and was succeeded by his daughter who would become Countess Maria Lucia, the first female leader of the region. When the Illyrian War of Succession erupted three years later between Julia II and Severus Alexander, Countess Lucia publicly declared her support of Julia II as rightful Queen, which caused much unrest amongst the Alephonian nobility, who were mostly atheist and in favor of Severus Alexander. In 1557 noblemen Marcus Aurenius organized a coup in Alephonia and captured Countess Lucia in the name of the Severan cause. Lucia was executed shortly after on July 11, 1557, and Alephonia fell into full Severan control. Following the Battle of Hadrianicum the Severans won and Severus I assumed the throne after marrying Julia II in 1561, however Illyricum struggled to maintain balance as it continued to be rocked by religious and political conflict.
During the Carrentian Massacres in 1624, Alephonia was the sight of the Alephonian Massacre, where several hundred Catholic women and children were burned alive on orders of Appius Carrentus who had demanded to "Kill all who worship" (Illyrian Iberic: "Interfecete omnes qui adorant"). Following the massacre the region has remained almost entirely atheist aside from Kavardan Christian immigrants. In 1644 due to continued oppression by the upper class, which had become incredibly rich off of slave labor and mining exports, a series of riots began throughout Alephonia. These riots continued for several months before in June they finally culminated with a full scale joint slave-labor class revolt led by Usius Reremius, a freed slave. Reremius' Revolt would last for several months before the overextended and unmotivated Illyrian troops under the leadership of Earl Julius Aurenius surrendered after the Skirmish at Podor.
Republic of Pensulia
Reremius announced the establishment of the Republic of Pensulia[note 1] on January 18, 1645, and was elected President of Pensulia as the leader of the Pensulian Liberation Party (LPP). The Republic of Pensulia annexed the city of Pensulia in May 1645 from Illyricum, which was at the time in the midst of a political crisis and unable to address the rising Pensulian Republic. Reremius helped establish Pensulia on the international stage by forging a strong bond with the Marcellan dynasty and King Damen of Terranihil in the mid 1650s, which ensured Pensulian freedom from the recovering Illyricum. In 1660 Montcrabe invaded Illyricum and began the War of the Trout, which eventually completely destroyed Illyricum and the Kingdom of Ferunia and Trurnia by 1666, replacing it instead with the vassal Viceroyalty of Ilírica. The Viceroyalty fully recognized Pensulian independence and established trade routes though the region, which allowed Alephonia to once again grow in wealth as it had done under the rule of the Emirate in the Medieval era.
The Pensulian economy flourished over the next century and the Republic remained mostly stable, partially due to its political alliances with Terranihil and Ilírica, but also due to its relatively isolated location in the Andaluzian Mountains which made any attack extremely difficult. However in 1758 a series of famines struck the nation, crippling its food supply and in turn forcing the shutdown of many mines in the mountains, which led to much protesting from Terranihil and Ilírica who each heavily relied on Pensulian iron and gold for their militaries. In a 1759 letter to President Armenius Thraxus of Pensulia, Viceroy of Ilírica Manoel Santiago threatened a "full scale invasion with fire and weapons," and the new Palern dynasty of Terranihil had withdrawn much support of Pensulia. Thraxus managed to restart the mining facilities, however it drove Pensulia into debt and the nation began to become unstable with the rival Nationalist Party (NP) and the LPP jostling for control over the Pensulian Legislative Assembly throughout the 1760s and 1770s.
In the 1779 Pensulian presidential election, NP candidate Julius Jonius defeated LPP Maxentius Carpethius by less than 500 votes, which led to rioting in the streets and civil unrest, with Carpethius claiming the election was "so obviously rigged that even a baby in the womb could tell." Jonius decided to leverage his position and requested aid from Viceroy of Ilírica Jacó Monte in exchange for sole access to Pensulian materials, and Monte accepted, sending several divisions into Alephonia. Carpethius was eventually captured, tried, and executed on June 29, 1780, and Jonius ended all trade with Terranihil shortly thereafter, only dealing with the Viceroyalty of Ilírica. However the Viceroyalty itself would collapse in 1784 with the Execution of Jacó Monte and Illyricum would fall into the Illyric Revolution, which would eventually rage for over a decade and a half.
King Astera VII of Terranihil was unwilling to reopen trade with Pensulia, and the Republic began to fall into disarray with few trade partners and continued famines throughout the region. In 1786 Pensulia opened trade routes to the east with the Kingdom of Pavulturilor, however this trade proved to be less lucrative due to a reluctance amongst Pavulturilori elite to trade with westerners. In 1798 President Tullius Vesterius saw a chance to reopen trade with Terranihil after several serf revolts broke out against unpopular Astera VII. Vesterius met with more popular half-sister of Astera and heir apparent Cecilia and she agreed to reopen trade if Pensulia supported her bid for the crown. In the Revolution of 1801 Cecilia and her husband, the governor of Kavarda, along with the Neorten populist faction took power, crowing Cecilia Queen in September 1801 and reopening trade between Pensulia and Terranihil.
With trade reopened with Terranihil, Pensulia managed to recover from previous debt, however another problem soon arose in the First Republic of Illyricum, which had emerged from the Illyric Revolution led by President Lucio Lento and demanded reinstitution of pre-revolution trade. Tullius Vesterius refused due to the aggression of the Illyrian demands and instead called for aid from Queen Cecilia, who sent several battalions of Terranilian infantry to Alephonia under the command of Radagast Arkaster. Illyricum, who needed to secure Pensulian iron to help supply their army, sent out a 40,000 men strong army under the command of Marco Dotelo to Etruricum and local began massing near the border of Pensulia in June 1803. On December 11, 1803, Dotelo sent out one final demand to the Pensulians, to which Vesterius responded with "For your faults, you fall." ("Por vois faletas, voes tumanaetes") Illyrian forces invaded immediately thereafter beginning what has been alternatively known as the Pensulian War or more commonly Queen Cecilia's War. Terranilian forces under Arkaster moved to intercept Dotelo and the invading force in the mountains, and at the Battle of Polonian Fork Terranilian troops defeated the overextended and un-equipped Illyrian troops, forcing them back southwest. Terranilian troops in Vaktria also began to prepare for an assault into Andrafoliam and Perfuliam which heavily threatened Illyrian sovereignty. Illyricum sued for peace after the 1805 Illyrian presidential election of Gregorio Hadrianus, ending the war and paying heavy reparations. Vesterius' successor, Marcellus Andreus, opened trade in 1810 with Illyricum, which served to stabilize the relationship between Illyricum and Pensulia.
Gradually over the following years Illyricum began to supplant Terranihil as Pensulia's primary trade partner, especially following the death of Queen Cecilia and after Romulonysyos Anyastynaxos took power in 1819 and established the Second Republic of Illyricum. Pensulia was a major ally of Romulonysyos Anyastynaxos in the Illyrian Communist Revolution which raged throughout the nation from 1820 to 1848, supplying Republican troops. In August 1848, Tito Moçeo defeated and killed Romulonysyos Anyastynaxos at the Battle of Armorolaus to end the long revolution and Pensulia immediately negotiated for peace with the new United Socialist States of New Illyricum. Moçeo and New Illyricum would expand eastward over the next decade, annexing numerous smaller city states which had arisen in the wake of the fall of the Second Republic. Conflict would spark in 1858 between New Illyricum and the Pavulturilor following the annexation of SE Italia Oest. King Ariel Melekh VII of Pavulturilor would invade Italus and begin the Second Călăneasan War in 1859. The war raged for about two years until November 15, 1860, when Pavulturilori and New Illyrian leaders signed the November Agreement, which marked the border of New Illyrian expansion.
New Illyrian troops advanced eastward, annexing the SE Italia Est in 1860 and the Third Republic of Uralis in 1862. Meanwhile in Terranihil, the power of the current monarch, six year old Ragas, was being usurped by Uvran who promoted religious tensions by establishing Paitestanism as the chief denomination and excommunicating Thanists and Hadrianists. This led to extreme political unrest in the nation and eventually the Terranilian Civil War, which deprived Pensulia of a major ally against the New Illyrian expansion. In August 1864, New Illyrian troops under the leadership of Adriano Faeo marched into the city of Pensulia, the Pensulian capital, and captured President Marcus Andredi. Andredi was forced to sign the Treaty of Pensulia, which officially surrender the Republic of Pensulia to New Illyricum.
New Illyrian control
With New Illyrian control firmly established, the former territory of the Republic of Pensulia was divided in SE Pensulia and SE Alephonicum, and the first Marshall of Alephonicum was placed in as Marco Doneno by Grand Marshall of the Union Moçeo. Very quickly after the communist takeover large resistance groups began to form, including the United Alephonian Liberation Front (ULFA), the Free Pensulian Legion (LLP), and the Nationalist Pensulian Republican Army (NRAP). These groups operated mostly in the northwestern region of the state, especially around the city of Planurbe, which in 1867 was deemed by the Chamber of Domestic Affairs of New Illyricum to be the most dangerous city in the nation. However, while extremist anti-governmental militias had formed, much of Alephonia's native population became heavily in favor of Pensulian integration, the political plan to integrate Pensulians and Illyrians in the workforce, and supported the Reformist Party (RP).
When the New Illyrian depression struck much of the western half of the nation in 1883, putting thousands out of work, many Illyrians began to move eastward especially to SE Alephonicum, where an estimated 75,000 settled in the western, more agricultural, area around the city of Planurbe. In response to the massive influx of Illyrian entering the area, the ULFA, the final militia still operating in the region, planned the June 18 Revolt in 1885. The revolt was intended to oust New Illyrian troops in western SE Alephonicum and drive out the Illyrians, however the revolt would only last for six days before the ULFA was entirely eliminated by several local pro-communist militias and two divisions of the New Illyrian Army. Following the failed revolt almost all anti-communist sentiment in the region was suppressed.
In the 1897 New Illyrian marshall election, SE Alephonicum voted almost entirely pro-RP candidate Publio Çarçeo which proved to be the deciding factor in his victory, which would eventually lead to the end of the depression and full Pensulian integration by 1900. Following the rise of the Vanguardist Party (AP) in the early 1900s and its eventual complete take over after the 1908 New Illyrian marshall election, Alephonicum was one of the last states to become fully pro-AP, with the RP winning seats in the Popular Assembly of Alephonicum until 1928.
Alephonia would serve as the main base of the New Illyrian Aviation Force from 1916 to 1958 and was the main launching point for hundreds of aircraft during the Călăneasan Offensive in the South Ecros War. Following the 1952 Progressive Revolution in Terranihil, when the Revolutionary Command Committee was overthrown by the National Progressive Party (PPF), and the beginning of widespread ethnic and religious violence in the nation, Alephonicum began to receive thousands of refugee Vaktrians and Kavardans. However in 1964 much of SE Alephonicum had become overwhelmed by the stream of refugees and the Popular Assembly voted in the Refugee Exclusionary Act which officially prevented any refugees from crossing the Terranilian border into New Illyricum and expelled several hundred refugees who were being processed at the time. This led to a massive increase in refugees to SE Pensulia, which passed a similar act in 1968.
In 1991, Marshall of Alephonicum Luçeo Çapitolo ran the corruption investigation of Grand Marshall Luçeo Çaresi and in 1992 officially found him guilty which led to his impeachment shortly thereafter. Newly elected Grand Marshall Julio Faeo in 1992 aimed to open up New Illyricum economically and culturally to the world, and issued an official decree in 1994 which allowed refugees to once again enter Alephonicum and Pensulia. However by 2002 over 250,000 refugees had come into northern Alephonicum and had even begun to congregate around what soon became known as Kavardan City. Kavardan City was one of the most impoverished cities in the world, with the nominal GDP per capita being just around D3,400 (₵2,000) and 98% of the city living in extreme poverty. In July 2003 disaster struck the city when the Senola River became heavily infected and a massive cholera outbreak ravaged the city, killing an estimated 30,000 over the course of the next two years. Terraconserva Council of Nations health officials described the situation as "a terrible disaster stemming from poor infrastructure and a lack of strong planning by the New Illyrian government." Despite the lack of sanitation, the disease, and the poverty, Kavardan City is still receiving a massive stream of refugees to this day, almost all fleeing the recent Kavardan ethnic cleansing which has been only the latest stage of violence in The Troubles.
Administration
SE Alephonicum is divided into five departments; Planurbe, Alephonicum Interior, Alephonicum Exterior, Alephonicum Superior, and Alephonicum Inferior. The most populated department is Alephonicum Superior, which also holds the state capital of Alephonia, and has a population of 878,298 people according to the 2022 census. Alephonicum Interior is the largest by size however it is largely mountainous or heavily rural, leading to it having the second lowest population, just above Planurbe which only holds 309,043 people.
As outlined by the 2018 redrawing, the state is divided in fifty four municipalities which are mostly divided according to the local ethnic groups and population. There are four designated cities in Alephonicum, including Alephonia, Roro Monte, Planurbe, and Kavardan City. The state is also one of the most urbanized in the nation, with 63.6% of its population living in designated cities or major towns.
Government
The Alephonicum State Government is divided into two major branches the Senatorial Council and the Popular Assembly. Alephonicum has full relative autonomy as a state and creates its own separate state laws according to the Constitution of SE Alephonicum. Alephonicum however does not maintain a state-run military or police force, instead law enforcement is run by state sanctioned local militias and the Alephonian State Guard.
Senatorial Council
The current Senatorial Council consists of ten senators, five members of the Vanguardist Party (AP), and five members of the Democratic Party (DP). The council is led by State Marshall Johano Filipo (AP) who has been under investigation by the Alephonicum State Court for corruption since April 20, 2024. The current Senatorial Council was elected in the 2024 congressional election, in which the AP won the state with 555,277 votes to the DP's 528,980.
Popular Assembly
SE Alephonicum is one of five states in New Illyricum to have a Popular Assembly as well as a Senatorial Council, and the Alephonicum Popular Assembly includes 1,029 delegates as of the 2024 election, in which the AP won 422 seats, the DP won 304, and the Free Kavardan Party (LCP) won 303. The Popular Assembly is headed by AP delegate Pelleo Iano of Vaso Municipality in Alephonia Exterior. The Popular Assembly is able to propose laws, governing, and public works, however all proposals of the Popular Assembly must be approved by the Senatorial Council unless previously reaching over 75% approval in the Popular Assembly.
Economy
The economy of Alephonicum is the ninth largest state economy in New Illyricum, totaling D76,916,719,636 (₵45,245,129,198), however wealth gaps in Alephonicum have been identified by Alephonian and New Illyrian government officials as "a major problem needing to be addressed immediately." Alephonicum is the only state in New Illyricum with major wealth gaps, and while the average income of a Pensulian family is about D57,955 (₵34,091) while amongst Kavardans and Vaktrians it is just D14,344 (₵8,432). This wealth disparity has been attributed to the massive number of Kavardan and Vaktrian immigrants, who mostly come to New Illyricum with little to no money and are forced in grueling, low paying jobs. The Alephonian economy is administrated by the Alephonian Commerce Commission, a Popular Assembly elected group of officials who delegate jobs, assess pay, and ensure healthy and safe work environments.
Mining
Since their establishment during the Romanyan Empire, mines in the Andaluzian Mountains have been the primary source of income for Alephonicum. Following the Treaty of Pensulia in 1864 and the establishment of SE Alephonicum, the Alephonicum State Government established AleMine in 1878, a mining corporation based in Roro Monte which accounts for 100% of all mining projects and exports from SE Alephonicum. AleMine is the largest mining corporation in New Illyricum and one of the largest in the world, and it also operates in SE Pensulia, SE Tuscinum, SE Uralis, SE Secundicum, and SE Etruricum. Historically AleMine has received heavy criticism for its unhealthy work conditions, usage of toxic elements in gold extraction, its heavy usage of cheap refugee labor, and alleged usage of child labor. AleMine has also been said to be the cause for a surge in mercury poisoning deaths throughout Alephonicum in the last decade, as despite the 2010 Alephonicum Environment Protection Act AleMine has continued to use mercury in the gold extraction process. AleMine is the world's largest extractor of titanium and a leading iron and copper exporter as well. The company accounts for 67% of jobs in the Alephonian workforce and 94% of jobs amongst Kavardan and Vaktrian migrants.
Agriculture
The agricultural industry is SE Alephonicum' second largest economic sector, accounting for 16% of the total workforce. Alephonicum has New Illyricum's largest agricultural sector and has been described as the "breadbasket of New Illyricum." Most agricultural development is centered around Ponturbe in western Alephonicum and uses the Senola River, which has become highly toxic due to the long usage of various phosphorus heavy fertilizers which runoff into the river. Worker allocation is mostly administrated by the Alephonian Agricultural Commerce Commission, a branch of the Alephonian Commerce Commission. Historically the Alephonian agricultural sector helped to end the New Illyrian depression in the 1890s and supplied The Eisley with food and supplies for much of the twentieth century.
Demographics
SE Alephonicum is primarily inhabited by four major ethnic groups, Pensulians, Vaktrians, Kavardans, and Illyrians.
| Ethnic Group | Country of Birth | Population | Percent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pensulians | New Illyricum |
951,263 | 45.2 | |
| Kavardans |  Terranihil |
324,456 | 15.4 | |
| Vaktrians | New Illyricum |
267,643 | 12.6 | |
| Illyrians | New Illyricum |
237,816 | 11.3 | |
| Vaktrians | Terranihil |
165,897 | 8.0 | |
| Kavardans | New Illyricum |
10,170 | 0.5 | |
| Others | 147,320 | 7.0 | ||
| Total | 2,104,565 | 100.0 | ||
Pensulians and Illyrians
Pensulians are the native group to the region and make up 45.2% of the population, 951,263 people, and mostly inhabit the eastern region and the cities of Alephonia and Roro Monte. Pensulians also lead Alephonicum in average income, lifespan, and take up 787 of the 1,053 seats in the Popular Assembly. While Pensulians are related to Illyrians and live in states as far west in New Illyricum as SE Turisicum they are more closely related to Kavardans and Acillians from the Terranilian desert who moved into Alephonicum following the fall of the Northern Romanyan Empire.
Illyrians make up 11.3% of the population of SE Alephonicum and total 237,816 people, and, while not as high as the Pensulian population, Illyrians have a relatively average income of D45,310 (₵26,653). Illyrians mostly entered the region in the 1880s searching for work during the New Illyrian depression and settled in large communities near Planurbe on the Senola Riber where most found work in agriculture and farming. Throughout the 1880s and 1890s Illyrians were subject to large amounts of ethnic violence and racism from the local Pensulian community, which included the June 18 Revolt which targeted many Illyrian civilians and would later be the subject of the critically acclaimed movie, Open Eyed in the Fields of Gold. Recently minimal violence has broken out between the more DP leaning Illyrian population and the Kavardan and Vaktrian populations in Planurbe following the 2024 Congressional and Marshall elections.
Vaktrians and Kavardans
Vaktrians make up around 23% of the Alephonian population, totaling 433,540 people. Vaktrians come from Vaktria on the Andaluzian coast in western Terranihil and many Vaktrians first came into New Illyricum during the Terranilian Civil War in the 1860s seeking new opportunity and work as well as fleeing the violence. However the vast majority of Vaktrians came to New Illyricum in the 1950s and 60s after the Progressive revolution. Vaktrians mostly inhabit northern Alephonicum near Planurbe and Kavardan City and historically have been the main labor force in the region. Recently in the last two decades there has been a large trend in Vaktrians leaving New Illyricum and returning back to Terranihil, which is due to a variety of reasons including higher rates of Astrianism amongst Vaktrians in New Illyricum and President of Terranihil Draıčren Armǎk's calls to reunite the Vaktrian peoples.
Kavardans make up about 16% of the population of Alephonicum, 334,626 people and mostly live in northern Alephonicum around Kavardan City. Kavardans originate from Kagoria in eastern Terranihil on the Caelean Coast however moved west over time towards Mestaga following the expansion of the Umayyad Caliphate and founded the Emirate of Mestaga. Kavardans have been ethnically oppressed in Terranihil since the establishment of the Progressive government and an estimated 800,000 Kavardans have fled to New Illyricum over the past 70 years following the Progressive Revolution. In New Illyricum Kavardans have been ethnically redlined into specific departments and municipalities which have prevented Kavardans from having upward economic mobility. In the late 1990s after the International Inclusion Act Kavardans were forced into tight communities which would become Kavardan City, which became an officially designated city in 1999 with at the time an estimated population of 450,000. In 2003 a massive cholera outbreak ravaged the city, and continued heath issues would plague the city throughout the 2000s, leading many Kavardans to move to Planurbe and to pursue work in AleMine, which offered them an opportunity for work near Alephonia. Kavardans were first granted citizenship in 2004 under the Kavardan Citizenship Act which allowed Kavardans who had lived in New Illyricum for at least 10 years to apply for New Illyrian citizenship.
Culture
Culture in SE Alephonicum is most heavily influenced by Pensulian ethnic culture however it is also heavily influenced by Kavardan and Vaktrian culture as well. Alephonian culture historically has often come from outside ethnic groups and civilizations moving into the region, with most of the original ethnic culture of civilizations on the Senola River being lost.
Sports
While not as prevalent in Alephonicum as many other states in New Illyricum, sports culture, especially around Association football, is very large amongst Illyrians and Pensulians. Historically Alephonicum has never had more than three teams in the New Illyrian Premier Football League at one single time, however EF Alephonicum did win two titles in 2005 and 2009 with Pensulian goalkeeper Paullo Flavio at the helm, who is considered by most New Illyrian football pundits to be one of the greatest goalies in New Illyrian football history. Aside from football, the Pensulian ethnic sport of Laxoseco, while significantly less prevalent now than in the 1800s when the sport was at its height amongst the Pensulian elite, is still played by many recreationally.
Language
People in Alephonicum speak a variety of languages, most principally Illyrian Iberic, Pensulian Iberic, Kavardan, and Vaktrian. Illyrian Iberic is the most spoken language, with over 90% of the population speaking it, and has been used as the state official language since 1997. Pensulian Iberic was the previous state language and is still the main spoken language throughout the eastern half of the state. In the early 2000s, the "Pensulian Unity Movement" led many ethnic Pensulians in the state to refuse to learn Illyrian Iberic and instead turn back to Pensulian Iberic, with in 2007 a proposal to reinstate Pensulian Iberic as the state language being shot down by Grand Marshall Beneçito Foestolo as being "unconstitutional." The movement mostly died down by 2010 and recent surveys conducted by Trurnia University have shown a high increase in the number of Pensulians learning Illyrian Iberic or being taught it from birth. Kavardan and Vaktrian immigrants are required by state law to learn basic levels of Illyrian Iberic (previously as well as Pensulian Iberic until 1999) however most immigrants use their own native languages in speaking especially those in Kavardan City and other immigrant dense areas.
Religion
Religion in SE Alephonicum is widely divided across different ethnicities. The majority of Illyrians are atheist as well as most Pensulians, and the state institutionalized atheism has led to widespread pressure amongst Kavardans and Vaktrians to give up their religions upon entering Alephonicum. According to the 2022 census less than 75,000 people in SE Alephonicum are not athiest, with the majority being Illyrian Catholic or Pytabian Christian. Alephonicum also has the second largest Islamic population of any New Illyrian state, with 10,000 people, mostly Kavardans, following Sunni Islam.
While historically Alephonia has been mostly atheist since the mid-sixteenth century, in the early 1800s the Pensulian Republic saw large surges in followers of Illyrian Catholicism. According to the first New Illyrian administrated census of Alephonicum in 1870, there were around 150,000 Illyrian Catholics in Alephonicum. However political crackdowns following the 18 June Revolt led to heavy drops in these numbers in the early 1900s until in 1933, when Alephonian-born Catholic nurse Maria Anastasia Cecilliana was killed by members of the National Council during the Siege of La'Victoria in the Creeperian Civil War. Anastasia Cecilliana, ethnically Pensulian, was used as a beacon for Catholic leaders of the oppression of the communist New Illyrian government and led to massive growth of Catholic following in the region over the next decade, peaking at just under 200,000 followers in 1940. However the South Ecros War in the late 1940s and large shifts towards political unity under Grand Marshall Aleph Marciunjauskas led this numbers to heavily decline. Anastasia Cecilliana is still considered a symbol of Pensulian ethnic unity and anti-communism in the region, even despite the fact that in 2022 only around 25,000 people are still Catholic in the state.
Notable people
- Gnaeo Lojo – Impressionist painter (June 1850 - November 18, 1916)
- Marco Apelo – Reformist Party (RP) politician and a 1908 candidate for election (May 15, 1867 - January 1, 1924)
- Alesandro Torno – Rocket scientist and designer of the Reykani produced E-1 rocket (July 8, 1903 - March 10, 1971)
- Marco Marçelo – Photographer and reporter who worked with the New Illyrian National News Agency (August 20, 1903 - July 23, 1961)
- Saint Maria Anastasia Cecilliana – Nurse, martyred while with the Illyrian Catholic Peace Corps in Creeperopolis and later canonized in 1940 by Pope Pío XII as the patron saint of nurses (May 9, 1907 - September 9, 1934)
- Alo Marçeloneo – Movie director known for his work with Etruricum Pictures and the late 1970s and 80s (June 3, 1923 - February 16, 2023)
- Publio Estaneo – Marshall of Espionage and administrator of the National Security and Defense Agency
- Paullo Flavio – Former Football goalkeeper for EF Turis, Armorolaus Iuvenes, and EF Alephonicum
- Prodactus Rodactullus – Middleweight boxer and wrestler in the World Fighting Association, currently ranking 5th in the division
See also
Notes
- ↑ The Republic of Pensulia was originally named the Republic of Alephonicum, however after the incorporation of the city of Pensulia in May 1645 the name was changed.
