Thurian War of Independence

The Thurian War of Independence was a short conflict between the Archadian Empire and Thure in 206 AIC. Thure attempted to conquer Cecasandria and the province of Praxidea, but were repelled and instead a negotiated settlement was reached.

Background

Since the first arrivals of Thure in 181 AIC, the relationship between Thure and the Archadian Empire had been growing in tension and rivalry. Thurians had been wary of growing Archadian influence in Praxidea and had been increasingly concerned that the arrival of Archadians in the province threatened the local populations' culture. The inciting incident for the war was the arrest of Thurian merchants in Cecasandria, who had refused to bow before the local governor, Praefectus Iuris. Iuris ordered the merchants arrested, though some escaped back to Thure to relay the incident. Iuris ordered a small group of centurions to chase the Thurians back to their city, where they scuffled with the city's guards, and even flew an Archadian flag over the city gate, before being chased away.

Thure interpreted this as an grievous insult. The follow message was sent from Thure to Archadia:

We, the free men and women of the Viking tribe of Thure, reject the unfounded and insulting demands for Basilean souvereignity over our people and the people we call our brethren! As our fathers and father's-fathers set out to fight for their right to live free, we now set out to restore the freedom and independence of the people of Thure, Whitehaven and Cecasandria! This is war, and we will meet on the battlefield to see whether we shall find our freedom on this earth or in Valhalla!

At the meeting of The Thing, the Thurian parliament, the following goals were established:

1. Restoration of the souvereignity of Cecasandria
2. Official revocation of the Basilean claims to Thure, Whitehaven and Cecasandria
3. Establishment of the Thurian March between Thure and Fort Cecaburg (west of Cecasandria) under Thurian protection and territorial administration
4. The extradition of the Praefectus Makesin to Thure
5. Treaty of mutual defence between Thure, Whitehaven and Cecasandria
6. Treaty of non-aggression between aforementioned pact-brothers and the Basilean aggressors

There was some apparent confusion about whether Thure was previously a province of the Archadian Empire, called Turiana. The armed movements of Thure against the empire soon made that clear.

War

At Fort Cecaburg, the Thurian Liberation Army was being established and was being prepared to march to Cecasandria. Three large trebuchets were constructed and hundreds of charioteers were assembled within the army. Thurian infiltrators in Cecasandria attempted to rile the population against the empire, with criers exhalting messages such as:

Brave Cecasandrians, brothers of Thure, Men and Women born free, do not despair for your Allies have arrived! Right this moment, a large force of Thurian warriors is assembling right outside Cecasandria. We came here to help you overthrow your oppressors, to free you from the yoke of Archadian dictatorship! So brace yourself for the battle of liberation, two days from now we shall fight together for our liberty! Rise up, Cecasandrians, together we shall emerge victorious!

The Thurians also attempted unsuccessfully to bribe Praefectus Iuris into defecting.

Servius Magnus Makesinus, appointed Legate, arrived leading Legio I Impera with a small naval contingent. An excerpt from De Basileio Garantium, an unauthorized biography of Emperor Garantius Augustus, by Aetius Aemilius, Procurator Instrumentalis Auxiliario, describes the campaign:

We have sailed for 3 days and marched for another one until we reached Cecasanderia. The Emperor himself was overseeing the construction of the camp. In a bit more than 2 hours, it was done. Legio I Impera truly was the most efficient military unit of the whole world. The Emperor, wearing a golden armour, looked like a true God ready to smite the barbarians of Turiana. Legionaries immediately prepared for a fight, one that would be both long and bloody, of that I was sure. But Impera always prevails!

If it wasn't me, who wrote Emperor's orders, I wouldn't know about the second part of the plan, such a secret it was. The Emperor ordered his flagship, Gloriosissima, to take as much supplies from Cecasanderia as possible and sail north. It was there that Legatus Makesinus of the Legio II Victrix secretly landed in a desert not far from Turiana several days before we arrived to Cecasanderia and waited since. Many ships, including the Gloriosissima, Ulpianus and Garrus Vakarianus, created a supply chain to keep Victrix in good state. Along with the Emperor's flagship and supplies went an order, written by me as usual. And it was this order that was supposed to win the war in one, bold move.

The princer manoeuvre saw the Thurian besiegers trapped between Legio I Impera and Legio II Victrix, with the Thurian heartland now open to be attacked from behind. Before the assault on Thure truly began, however, peace was reached.

Treaty

The terms of the treaty were as follows:

1. Thure is to recognize the status of Provincia Cecasanderia as a full member of Basileium Archadium.
2. The border between Thure and Basileium Archadium will lead along the Thurian city walls.
3. Basileium Archadium will withdraw all its forces from Thure and will recognize full Thurian independence.
4. A demilitarized zone between Thurian border and the borders of Urbs Cecasanderium will be created, with no military forces of either side present.
5. A treaty of tolls-free trade will be signed between Basileium Archadium and Whitehaven and mutual embassies will be open in those two realms.

Aftermath

Cecasandria and the province of Praxidea remained a part of the Archadian Empire, though Thure was formally recognised an independent realm for the first time. Tensions between the empire and Thure remained high, and later border incidents like the Rikehovn Incident would eventually lead to the Imperial Spring. It is plausible that after their defeat, Thure saw the value of naval supremacy. Diplomatic outreach to Nosamo began soon after the war, and the founding of the Western Pact soon after.