Luhai City

"Luhai" redirects here. For the state of Luhai, see Luhai (state).

Luhai 綠海市 Lǜhǎi shì
City
0px Clockwise from top: Luhai skyline, Museum of the Natural World, Luhai National Football Stadium
Flag
Country	Monsilva
State	Luhai
Settled	20 BCE
Declared city	22 March 1402
Luhai state est.	1 July 1984
Government
• Body	Luhai City Council
• Mayor	Mao Xiao-lian (FDP)
Population  (July 2022)
• Total	4,350,800
Time zone	AMT+12 (Monsilvan Standard Time, MST)
ISO 3166 code	MS-LUH-C
Major airports	Luhai Qingdao International Airport (LQO)
Transit System(s)	MRA Federal North Railway Luhai Metro
Police	Luhai Metropolitan Police
Ambulance	Luhai State Ambulance
Fire	Luhai Fire Service

Luhai City (Monsilvan: 綠海市; pinyin: Lǜhǎi shì), is a city and the capital of its namesake state of Luhai. Luhai City is located in northern Monsilva on the coast of the Kivu Ocean. Most of the city lies within the basin of the Chun River which flows from the Port of Luhai in Luhai City through the city towards Tsingyi and the mountains of Leibo. As the capital, Luhai City is home to the seat of the Luhai State Government, the Luhai State Office. The city is located in the center-east of the state, with the country of Fujikuni being to the north and the state of Meixian being to the south.

The city is home to an estimated population of 4,350,800 (July 2022), forming the majority of what is occasionally referred to as the "Greater Luhai Area" which includes towns in the city's outskirts which are located in rural municipalities surrounding the city. Luhai City is Monsilva's 2nd most-populous city, just beating Menchi but falling well behind Amking. It is also Ostlandet's 12th largest city. The city holds around 71% of the state of Luhai's population, with the other 29% living in either Tsingyi or in the state's more rural areas. Tsingyi's proximity to the outskirts of Luhai City has allowed the two cities to be 'linked' by a thin strip of towns that are very close together. During the dynastic period of Monsilva, Luhai City was the capital of the Qin dynasty which lasted from 792 BCE to 1201 CE. During this period, the Port of Luhai was built, which is Monsilva's busiest harbor and has allowed Luhai's economy to become one of the largest in Monsilva. Even after Luhai lost its capital status, the vitality of the Port kept its economy and political status at a high level.

Luhai City is a hub for high-tech industries and business, with many top Monsilvan companies, such as Fushao, Ltd. being headquartered within the city's limits. As well as being an economic center, Luhai is also a cultural and architectural center, being home to many famous landmarks such as the Luhai National Football Stadium, Kaohsiung Tower, the Museum of the Natural World and the Port of Luhai. Education is very high quality in Luhai, being home to the University of Luhai which is a highly regarded, often considered one of, if not the top university in Monsilva. Thanks to Luhai's popularity and importance, the city is well connected. Monsilvan Railways Administration, highways, airports and bus lines connect Luhai to the rest of the country and internationally. The city is served by Luhai Qingdao International Airport which runs both domestic and international flights. The city is also served by both the Monsilvan Railways Administration, which provides both commuter and high-speed services across Monsilva, and the Federal North Railway, which runs slower but more extensive services throughout the states of Luhai, Leibo and Meixian. Serving both Luhai and the city of Tsingyi is the Luhai Metro, which is Monsilva's second largest metropolitan railway network.

Toponymy

The name, Luhai comes directly from the HY Pinyin of the Monsilvan "綠海". The character "綠" means "green" in Monsilvan, and the character "海" means "sea". Luhai directly translates to "green sea", which most likely originated due to the large amount of algae which can be found near the Port of Luhai making the sea appear green.

History

Prehistory and early dynasties

Stone carvings originating from the Qin dynasty.

The earliest evidence of a settlement resembling Luhai can be dated back to the 10th century BCE. However, it wasn't until the Qin dynasty began around 200 years later in 792 BCE, that Luhai began becoming a very important city.

Luhai was the capital of the new Qin dynasty from its start until its end in 1201 CE. Its status as capital and its warm climate is likely why it was one of the largest settlements in Monsilva, and remains to be today. The city would have been filled with businesses all along the coastline and around the mouth of the Chun River. In the 9th century CE, the Port of Luhai was built. It quickly became the most vital feature of the dynasty and contributed massively towards the dynasty's increase in wealth and population.

The emperors of the Qin dynasty would build large castles both in and around the city. Unfortunately, many of the castles that would have been located within the city limits, are either in ruins or have been completely removed due to the demolition of many historical buildings during the Zhou dynasty.

Zhou dynasty and the Empire of Baltanla

Luhai lost its capital status after the Unification of the Monsilvan Kingdoms in 1201. However, the city did not lose its importance. The Port of Luhai was important not only in the new Zhou dynasty's trade and economy, but also its politics and culture. The Luhainese culture was not as similar to the rest of Monsilva, and this brought challenges for the two ends of the dynasty. The challenges were mainly linguistically, with Luhainese and Southern Monsilvan people having little idea what each other were saying. Historians believe they likely overcame the barrier with translators and their shared character system.

Luhai was Monsilva's richest region by the late 14th century, surpassing the government region of Sanzhong, and the dynasty's largest city, Amking. This was extremely beneficial for the dynasty economically, but politically it was a disaster. Merchants attempted to monopolize goods coming in and out of the port as well as putting tariffs on imports and exports. Many merchants had become more powerful than the emperor himself, as they could prevent the government from trading with little repurcussions. As these merchants became stricter and stricter, the actual trading done in the port was declining quickly.

In the 1490s, the emperor and his advisors made several attempts to exterminate the merchant monopolies of Luhai. But those attempts were to no avail, and in 1499, the Empire of Baltanla suggested the integration of the dynasty into the empire, in exchange for dealing with the merchants. The emperor had little to no choice, as the empire was significantly stronger than the dynasty. In 1500, the Zhou dynasty was integrated into the empire.

Fortunately for Luhai, the empire banished the monopolising merchants who had no power over the new government, and the smaller merchants began returning to the port. Luhai retained the position of richest region in Monsilva, and was also one of the richest regions in the Empire, thanks to having the largest port on the empire's eastern coast.

Kingdom of Great Shan and the Civil War

Main article: Monsilvan Civil War

When Monsilva left the Empire of Baltanla in 1730, Luhai was a huge, busy port. The city was about 10x larger than when it entered the empire. The city was also very diverse and highly populated. The city was suggested to be the capital of the Kingdom of Great Shan, however this was rejected in favor of Amking, as it was much larger and was closer to the rest of the country.

Luhai maintained a steady growth during the 18th and early 19th centuries in terms of population and economically. However, the growth was quikcly put to an end at the start of the Monsilvan Civil War in 1824. Luhai was the capital of the Liberate Monsilva Movement, this meant that the city ended up facing little land bombardment, but did face plenty of naval bombardment from the imperial army. After the war in 1830, the Port of Luhai was severly damaged as well as most of the city's seafront buildings.

Kingdom of Monsilva and the Republic

Riots took place across the city, but it was worst in its central area.

During the Kingdom of Monsilva, Luhai lost its status as richest region, coming second to Amking which was now becoming one of the largest cities on the continent. Luhai was still very important however, as the Port of Luhai was still Monsilva's largest port, as well as being home to the Monsilvan Royal Navy. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Luhai became a favorable city for growing and starting businesses, an example of a business that was established in this period is Fushao, Ltd., one of Monsilva's largest companies.

The martial law period in Monsilva, Luhai was filled with police. This was due to frequent protests and rioting against the government that took place within the city. These riots caused significant damage to the city centre everytime they happened due to the industrial strength hoses used by the military as well as the firebombs and rocks used by protesters. During the unanimous 1978 Monsilvan protests, the protesters actually managed to overpower the police, and one group even took control of a military tank.

The damage caused after the protests was significant, however the large volunteer movement created by the Monsilvan Revolutionary Army, the damage was repaired after only half a year. The city was made capital of the state of Beining in 1978, until 1984, when the state was dissolved in favor of the states of Leibo and Luhai, which the city is currently capital of, making it the home of the Luhai State Government.

Government

Local government

Luhai City has its own city council, the head of which is the Mayor of Luhai. The council serves as a de-facto upper house to the 13 county councils within the city council's juristiction. The council consists of 39 seats and is currently lead by the Freedom and Democracy Party.

State government

Luhai City, as the capital of Luhai state, is home to the Luhai State Government in the State Office. The state government is a 77-seat unicameral legislature which serves the entire state of Luhai, which includes the city. The seats correspond to each municipality of the state, 40 of which are the municipalities consisting of Luhai City's metropolitan area. The city therefore contributes 25 FDP seats, 12 Liberal Party seats, 2 Green Party seats, and one RNP seat as of the 2022 local elections.

National government

Before the Legislative Reform Act 2023, Luhai City consisted of 12 full counties, and parts of 3 others. Since the 2020 Monsilvan federal election, 9 of these counties contribute seats to the FDP, 4 of them contribute seats to the Liberal Party, and the last 2 contribute seats to the RNP.

Since an election has not taken place since the passing of the Legislative Reform Act 2023, seats from the current counties and districts have not been determined.

Geography

Luhai City is mostly flat, with small hills scattered across the city, especially towards the outskirts. The Chun River flows straight through the city, starting in the far east, then travels down through towards the city centre where it converges with the Tamsui River and into the Port of Luhai where it flows into the Kivu Ocean.

During the summer, Luhai's sandy beaches are very popular with international and domestic tourists thanks to their long width, especially when the tide is out. Luhai state is filled with many lush forests, some of which do enter the outskirts of the city. Luhai City does not have any national parks, but it has many standard parks. All of the city's beaches are protected, which means that litter and bonfires carry extremely hefty fines, and repeat offences can result in imprisonment.

Climate

Luhai is a warm city, being located not far north from the subtropics. Summers usually peak at around 33 degrees celcius and sinks to around 5-10 degrees celcius in the winter. Luhai does suffer from large amounts of rainfall during the wet season thanks to its proximity to the ocean. This has caused floods in areas by the Chun River, however anti-flooding measures are quite extensive within the city's limits so flooding usually only happens outside the city.

Although snow is possible, snow that has actually settled on the ground hasn't happened since the winter of 1986.

Cityscape

View of central Luhai and surrounding areas at night. The Port of Luhai is located to the left just outside of the photo.

Demography

Luhai City is one of Monsilva's most diverse cities. Most residents are Monsilvan. However, thanks to its proximity to Fujikuni, it also has quite a large Fujikunian population. Baltanians and Akvarelians also make up a significant portion of the rest of Luhai's non-Monsilvan population. The city also comprises of a noticeable Kivuian population, likely due to historical migration over the Kivu Ocean over hundreds of years.

Religion

Luhai City is Monsilva's most secular city, with the vast majority of the city's residents put 'Unaffiliated' on the last census. It has been this way for many years and it is likely due to the influence of Fujikunian secularism as well as the general drift of younger people towards secularism in the country.

As well as secularism, Monsilvan folk religion and Buddhism make up the majority of religious residents of the city.

See also

• Outline of Monsilva