Timeline of the Laurasian Empire (1501-1700)

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*The offer was made on September 4, 1502; Emperor Antigonus accepted in short order, and on October 9, 1502, the Treaty of Istria was concluded. Peaceful relations were thus restored between the Laurasian Empire and the Celestial Dynasty of Kimania. The Orion Cluster (with Dorothea, Lange, Leseur, Orion III), Millard, Filorean, and Reading were acquired by Laurasia. The Shogun of Kimania agreed to return all Laurasian fugitives, captives, and prisoners of war, and all subsidy arrangements with the Imperial Treasury were formally terminated. Moreover, the Shogun promised not to conclude any treaties without first obtaining the consent of the Emperor of Laurasia. The Treaty of Istria was ratified by Emperor Antigonus on October 14 and by Decabolio Shogun on November 3. The Emperor of Laurasia thus returned to Laurasia Prime in triumph (November 11, 1502). Festivities were staged at Laurasia Prime, and throughout the Empire, to celebrate the victories which he had obtained. Moreover, Chief Procurator of the Holy Synod Antiochus Wincheslia (1445-1513), presiding over a benediction service at Old Westphalian Cathedral, offered his thanks to the Lord Almitis and his agents on behalf of the Laurasian people. Yet Decabolio Shogun was not completely quiescent, and war would once again break out, leading to Kimania's final destruction and its incorporation into the Laurasian Empire.

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=== 1503 ===

===1503===

⚫

*1503, the 3rd year of the sixteenth century, saw the Laurasian Empire's dominions returning to a state of peace, following the conclusion of the First Antigonid-Kimanian War. In his New Year's proclamation, Antigonus I touted his achievements, asserting, as Laurasian sovereigns had before, and would after him, that the "Lord Almitis, as well as the spirits of our noble ancestors," would look upon them with favor, and that under his leadership, the Laurasian State had prospered. And indeed, the Emperor was able to credibly claim that he had done much already to advance the Empire's geopolitical position, to maintain the stability and prosperity of its economy, and to defeat the threat posed to its territories by its enemies. In March 1503, he was to order for the erection of a stele at the ''Casta Praetoria'', to be inscribed with scenes of Laurasian sailors and soldiers in pursuit of their duties, and with the Jageronians and Kimanians depicted kneeling in might before the Emperor. Yet as mentioned above, Decabolio Shogun remained dissatisfied with the terms of the Treaty of Istria, and was determined to regain the Orion Cluster, to avenge the humiliations inflicted upon his Dynasty by the Laurasians, and to assert the power of his species at the earliest opportunity.

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*Beginning in June 1503, the Shogun would once more begin to harbor fugitives and deserters from justice at the hands of the Imperial Laurasian Government. He openly proclaimed that by doing so, he was playing his part in preserving "galactic tranquility" and that he would not allow anyone admitted into his realms, to commit any future crimes or offenses against other states. Decabolio Shogun even went as far to order for the establishment of colonies at Dylan, Tauskino, and Takei, in the vicinity of Kimanis Mooria, at which any fugitives or deserters in Kimanian territory could make their residences and pursue their occupations, as they desired. Emperor Antigonus, who was angered by these moves, nevertheless did not wish to resume war at this juncture, and bided his time. More provocative on the part of Decabolio Shogun was the support he provided to renegade pirate and slaver organizations, who conducted operations into the territory of not just Laurasia, but also of the Great Kingdom of Lesia and the Huntite Caliphate.

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*Chief among these organizations were the Izygian League of Skold and the Zyggerian Pirates, which had originated in the fifteenth century and had gradually expanded, in terms of the number of their adherents, as well as in terms of the numbers of bases and starships which they controlled. From August 1503 to July 1504, numerous star systems in the Borderlands Territories, including Emma, Tahon, Bryce, Peterslie, and Kathryn would be harried by the Izygians and Zyggerians, inflicting more than $5 quadrillion ''denarii'' worth of damage, capturing or killing some over 60 million sentients, and disrupting trade, as well as communications, into the affected star systems. In response to these moves, Emperor Antigonus would order for the establishment of new Laurasian operational outposts at April, Soraya, and Abigail (October 1503), and on November 7, he reorganized the Imperial General Headquarters, establishing a new Border Survelliance Office to draft all plans for the actions and responses undertaken by Laurasian forces facing Kimania. In December 1503, Antigonus issued a series of memorandums to the General Headquarters, ordering them to take "all necessary measures" to disrupt the League and Pirates, and outlining the measures to be taken with regards to captured pirate leaders and their associates. 1503 ended on this note, with tensions again building to war.

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===1504===

⚫

* 1503, the 3rd year of the sixteenth century, saw the Laurasian Empire's dominions returning to a state of peace, following the conclusion of the First Antigonid-Kimanian War. In his New Year's proclamation, Antigonus I touted his achievements, asserting, as Laurasian sovereigns had before, and would after him, that the "Lord Almitis, as well as the spirits of our noble ancestors," would look upon them with favor, and that under his leadership, the Laurasian State had prospered. And indeed, the Emperor was able to credibly claim that he had done much already to advance the Empire's geopolitical position, to maintain the stability and prosperity of its economy, and to defeat the threat posed to its territories by its enemies. In March 1503, he was to order for the erection of a stele at the ''Casta Praetoria'', to be inscribed with scenes of Laurasian sailors and soldiers in pursuit of their duties, and with the Jageronians and Kimanians depicted kneeling in might before the Emperor. Yet as mentioned above, Decabolio Shogun remained dissatisfied with the terms of the Treaty of Istria, and was determined to regain the Orion Cluster, to avenge the humiliations inflicted upon his Dynasty by the Laurasians, and to assert the power of his species at the earliest opportunity.

⚫

*1504, the 4th year of the sixteenth century, commenced with tensions again building up between the Laurasian Empire and the Celestial Dynasty of Kimania. As mentioned above, Emperor Antigonus I had begun to take measures in response to the Izygian League of Skold and the Zyggerian Pirates, promoted as they were by the Emperor's intractable enemy, Decabolio Shogun. Yet Antigonus was now to confront a more direct challenge to his authority. Decabolio Shogun felt that he could gain an advantage over the Laurasians by sponsoring the assassination of the Emperor himself. Such a move, the Shogun reckoned, would paralyze the Imperial Laurasian Government, provoke rebellion and possibly even civil war within the Laurasian Empire, and allow him to reclaim the territories which Kimania had lost to Laurasia over the preceding century.

⚫

* Beginning in June 1503, the Shogun would once more begin to harbor fugitives and deserters from justice at the hands of the Imperial Laurasian Government. He openly proclaimed that by doing so, he was playing his part in preserving "galactic tranquility" and that he would not allow anyone admitted into his realms, to commit any future crimes or offenses against other states. Decabolio Shogun even went as far to order for the establishment of colonies at Dylan, Tauskino, and Takei, in the vicinity of Kimanis Mooria, at which any fugitives or deserters in Kimanian territory could make their residences and pursue their occupations, as they desired. Emperor Antigonus, who was angered by these moves, nevertheless did not wish to resume war at this juncture, and bided his time. More provocative on the part of Decabolio Shogun was the support he provided to renegade pirate and slaver organizations, who conducted operations into the territory of not just Laurasia, but also of the Great Kingdom of Lesia and the Huntite Caliphate.

⚫

*The Coeles brothers were now the beneficiaries of Decabolio Shogun's "generosity." These brothers, Pomponius (1471-1504) and Tacitus (1475-1504), were both Praetorian Guards, who had served in the Emperor's personal bodyguard during his campaigns against Jageronia and Kimania, and were thus intimately aware of Antigonus' daily habits, as well as possessing knowledge of the servants in the Imperial Household. They were now provided with two doses of the notorious Rhylitte poison, which was procured by the Zyggerian Pirates, and given to them in a secret rendezvous at Larkin (February 17, 1504). The intention was for them to slip this into the Emperor's personal food pantry, in his bedchambers at Quencilvanian Palace, so that he would at once be exposed to it, take ill, and die. On March 2, the brothers arrived back at Laurasia Prime, but before they could carry out their scheme, they were arrested.

⚫

* Chief among these organizations were the Izygian League of Skold and the Zyggerian Pirates, which had originated in the fifteenth century and had gradually expanded, in terms of the number of their adherents, as well as in terms of the numbers of bases and starships which they controlled. From August 1503 to July 1504, numerous star systems in the Borderlands Territories, including Emma, Tahon, Bryce, Peterslie, and Kathryn would be harried by the Izygians and Zyggerians, inflicting more than $5 quadrillion ''denarii'' worth of damage, capturing or killing some over 60 million sentients, and disrupting trade, as well as communications, into the affected star systems. In response to these moves, Emperor Antigonus would order for the establishment of new Laurasian operational outposts at April, Soraya, and Abigail (October 1503), and on November 7, he reorganized the Imperial General Headquarters, establishing a new Border Survelliance Office to draft all plans for the actions and responses undertaken by Laurasian forces facing Kimania. In December 1503, Antigonus issued a series of memorandums to the General Headquarters, ordering them to take "all necessary measures" to disrupt the League and Pirates, and outlining the measures to be taken with regards to captured pirate leaders and their associates. 1503 ended on this note, with tensions again building to war.

⚫

*Antigonus, who remained ever skeptical of Decabolio Shogun's motives, and who kept a vigorous watch over the Guards, had been informed, by both the Guards and the Imperial Intelligence Agency, of this Kimanian scheme. On the Emperor's orders, the Coeles brothers were incarcerated at the High Tower of Christiania. They were vigorously interrogated and subjected to torture. While on the rack, Tacitus Coeles admitted to his schemes with Decabolio Shogun, and provided the details. Antigonus, informed of their confession, was enraged by this. He told his close friend and trusted subordinate, Plinius Caecilius (1461-1513), better known as Pliny the Younger (who was to eventually become Imperial Governor of Shenandoah), that the "Kimanian perfidy will not remain unpunished" and that the Lord Almitis had saved him from ruin. The two brothers were subsequently placed on trial before the Governing Senate (March 22, 1504), on charges of treason, conspiracy, and ''lèse-majesté''. Convicted on these charges, they were subsequently executed at the High Tower of Christiania (April 7, 1504). This execution was attended by more than 150,000 persons.

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*Following the execution of the Coeles brothers, Emperor Antigonus commanded for a strict surveillance to be placed on the activities of the Kimanian Ambassador to the Court of Laurasia Prime, Xi-Chai (1445-1507). In September 1504, the Emperor ordered for rearmament to commence. He imposed a new recruit levy, of 1 per 60,000 male Laurasian subjects, expanded the Laurasian military academies on Caladaria, Darsis, Darcia, and Aeoleon, and on October 18, issued new instructions to the Imperial General Headquarters, regarding new offensives against the Celestial Dynasty. Antigonus diverted vast sums to the production of starships, vehicles, arms, shield generators, munitions, and supplies, and he ordered for the construction of three new Imperial Fleets at the shipyards of Chancia, Katherine, Gordasis, Elizabeth, Tanaria, Blackria, and Martina Mccasia. Decabolio Shogun, knowing that the game was up, also renewed preparations for his military forces. He attempted to deceive the Imperial Laurasian Government by sending false communiques across the Galactic Holonet, concerning Kimanian strategic dispositions and forces. Antigonus, however, did not fall for these ploys, as the Imperial Intelligence Agency had implanted its own agents at the Court of Kimania and was closely monitoring the Shogun's actions. In December 1504, Antigonus departed from Laurasia Prime and quickly proceeded to Melorkia Major, to take command of the planned offensives. 1504 ended with war again on the horizon.

⚫

=== 1504 ===

− ⚫

* 1504, the 4th year of the sixteenth century, commenced with tensions again building up between the Laurasian Empire and the Celestial Dynasty of Kimania. As mentioned above, Emperor Antigonus I had begun to take measures in response to the Izygian League of Skold and the Zyggerian Pirates, promoted as they were by the Emperor's intractable enemy, Decabolio Shogun. Yet Antigonus was now to confront a more direct challenge to his authority. Decabolio Shogun felt that he could gain an advantage over the Laurasians by sponsoring the assassination of the Emperor himself. Such a move, the Shogun reckoned, would paralyze the Imperial Laurasian Government, provoke rebellion and possibly even civil war within the Laurasian Empire, and allow him to reclaim the territories which Kimania had lost to Laurasia over the preceding century.

⚫

* The Coeles brothers were now the ~~beneficaries~~ of Decabolio Shogun's "generosity." These brothers, Pomponius (1471-1504) and Tacitus (1475-1504), were both Praetorian Guards, who had served in the Emperor's personal bodyguard during his campaigns against Jageronia and Kimania, and were thus intimately aware of Antigonus' daily habits, as well as possessing knowledge of the servants in the Imperial Household. They were now provided with two doses of the notorious Rhylitte poison, which was procured by the Zyggerian Pirates, and given to them in a secret rendezvous at Larkin (February 17, 1504). The intention was for them to slip this into the Emperor's personal food pantry, in his bedchambers at Quencilvanian Palace, so that he would at once be exposed to it, take ill, and die. On March 2, the brothers arrived back at Laurasia Prime, but before they could carry out their scheme, they were arrested.

⚫

* Antigonus, who remained ever skeptical of Decabolio Shogun's motives, and who kept a vigorous watch over the Guards, had been informed, by both the Guards and the Imperial Intelligence Agency, of this Kimanian scheme. On the Emperor's orders, the Coeles brothers were incarcerated at the High Tower of Christiania. They were vigorously interrogated and subjected to torture. While on the rack, Tacitus Coeles admitted to his schemes with Decabolio Shogun, and provided the details. Antigonus, informed of their confession, was enraged by this. He told his close friend and trusted subordinate, Plinius Caecilius (1461-1513), better known as Pliny the Younger (who was to eventually become Imperial Governor of Shenandoah), that the "Kimanian perfidy will not remain unpunished" and that the Lord Almitis had saved him from ruin. The two brothers were subsequently placed on trial before the Governing Senate (March 22, 1504), on charges of treason, conspiracy, and ''lèse-majesté''. Convicted on these charges, they were subsequently executed at the High Tower of Christiania (April 7, 1504). This execution was attended by more than 150,000 persons.

⚫

* Following the execution of the Coeles brothers, Emperor Antigonus commanded for a strict surveillance to be placed on the activities of the Kimanian Ambassador to the Court of Laurasia Prime, Xi-Chai (1445-1507). In September 1504, the Emperor ordered for rearmament to commence. He imposed a new recruit levy, of 1 per 60,000 male Laurasian subjects, expanded the Laurasian military academies on Caladaria, Darsis, Darcia, and Aeoleon, and on October 18, issued new instructions to the Imperial General Headquarters, regarding new offensives against the Celestial Dynasty. Antigonus diverted vast sums to the production of starships, vehicles, arms, shield generators, munitions, and supplies, and he ordered for the construction of three new Imperial Fleets at the shipyards of Chancia, Katherine, Gordasis, Elizabeth, Tanaria, Blackria, and Martina Mccasia. Decabolio Shogun, knowing that the game was up, also renewed preparations for his military forces. He attempted to deceive the Imperial Laurasian Government by sending false communiques across the Galactic Holonet, concerning Kimanian strategic dispositions and forces. Antigonus, however, did not fall for these ploys, as the Imperial Intelligence Agency had implanted its own agents at the Court of Kimania and was closely monitoring the Shogun's actions. In December 1504, Antigonus departed from Laurasia Prime and quickly proceeded to Melorkia Major, to take command of the planned offensives. 1504 ended with war again on the horizon.

===1505===

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*On June 22, the Emperor issued a formal decree of annexation from Oituz in the Barsar Regions, denying recognition to Amayia as Queen Mother and ordering for the direct incorporation of the Neo-Venasian Consortium into the Laurasian Empire. This came 350 years after Queen Mother Kennatha I had overthrown the Venasian Khanate and restored the independence of her species. Laurasian troops occupied Venasia Prime, Hapes, Venasia Secondary, and the other chief strongholds of the Venasian Cluster with little opposition, and the Cluster was absorbed into the normal administrative system of the Empire. As for Princess Amayia, she was granted an imperial pension by Emperor Antigonus, given the official rank of ''Dowager of Venasia'', and allowed to retain all of her hereditary estates in the Venasian Cluster. She resided quietly in the Cluster, making routine visits to the Imperial Court on Laurasia Prime, until her death on November 15, 1565, at Hannis, aged eighty-eight.

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=== 1507 ===

===1507===

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*1507, the 7th year of the sixteenth century, commenced with the Laurasian Empire restored to peace in the aftermath of the Sixth Kimanian War (or the Second Antigonid-Kimanian War, as it was also known). In his New Year's proclamation to his subjects (January 1, 1507), Antigonus exulted that Laurasia was now relieved of a neighbor "who has, for more than a century, produced nothing but discord and war for us," and asserted that the Caladarian Galaxy as a whole was now more stable and wholesome due to the Celestial Dynasty's disappearance. The Emperor now turned his attention once again to internal reform, to the provision of popular amusements, and to conciliation with the Imperial Almitian Church. In March 1507, Antigonus began a "major reconstruction" of the ''Circus Maximus'' in Christiania, which was already the Empire's largest and best appointed circuit for track racing, theatrical spectacles and games, and public processions on the grandest possible scale.

− ⚫

* 1507, the 7th year of the sixteenth century, commenced with the Laurasian Empire restored to peace in the aftermath of the Sixth Kimanian War (or the Second Antigonid-Kimanian War, as it was also known). In his New Year's proclamation to his subjects (January 1, 1507), Antigonus exulted that Laurasia was now relieved of a neighbor "who has, for more than a century, produced nothing but discord and war for us," and asserted that the Caladarian Galaxy as a whole was now more stable and wholesome due to the Celestial Dynasty's disappearance. The Emperor now turned his attention once again to internal reform, to the provision of popular amusements, and to conciliation with the Imperial Almitian Church. In March 1507, Antigonus began a "major reconstruction" of the ''Circus Maximus'' in Christiania, which was already the Empire's largest and best appointed circuit for track racing, theatrical spectacles and games, and public processions on the grandest possible scale.

* This reconstruction, which proceeded in stages until its completion in April 1508, would ultimately cost the Imperial Treasury more than $200 trillion ''denarii''. The ''Circus Maximus'' now had capacity to seat over one million individuals, while its lofty, elevated imperial viewing box was rebuilt among the seating tiers. This was to enable spectators to see their Emperor also enjoying the games. By such a move, Antigonus hoped to build a closer relationship with his subjects and in doing so, to reduce the possibility of rebellion or dissent against the Imperial Laurasian Government.

* Antigonus also focused his attention on the expansion of the Imperial Holonet. He ordered for a new production studio to be constructed in the city of Christiania (July 13, 1507), supplementing the already extant Imperial Holonet Communications Center, and had secondary production studios constructed on worlds farther afield in the Empire, ranging from Shenandoah and Vickis to Malaria Prime. The new Antigonid Production Headquarters, in Christiania, would eventually be dedicated on January 14, 1509. The Holonet, moreover, saw a significant expansion in terms of the programming that it offered, the actors and producers which it employed, and the news coverage that it rendered. Through all of these means, Antigonus sought to improve the dissemination of information and propaganda throughout his realms, while also providing his subjects with newer and more innovative forms of personal entertainment, in an interactive or "streamed" context. In August 1507, Antigonus embarked on a tour through the Laurasian Purse Region and Clancian Provinces, which lasted for over two months. He subsequently returned to Laurasia Prime again (November 8, 1507), and on November 13, received the first ever Hungarian envoy dispatched to the Laurasian Empire from the Great Amulak Spiral, Jan Hundani (1449-1518), at Quencilvanian Palace. 1507 ended with the Empire's dominions still residing in general peace.

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=== 1508 ===

===1508===

−

* Throughout 1508, the 8th year of the sixteenth century, peace and tranquility continued to predominate in the Laurasian Empire's territories. Emperor Antigonus, who basked in the praise of his subjects and in the "due regard for his military and diplomatic prowess, given to him both within and outside of the Empire," decided, in February 1508, to devalue the Laurasian currency. By the decrees of February 27, March 9, and April 17, 1508, the Emperor ordered for a reduction in the silver content of the ''denarii'', which was now lowered from 93.5% to 89.0%, with the actual silver weight dropping from 3.04 grams to 2.88 grams. This devaulation, coupled with the massive influx in hard currency caused by the conquest of Kimania, the development of new mines and refineries throughout the Empire's territories, and the seizure of the Kimanian Reserves, enabled for Antigonus to greatly expand the production of coinage, to levels comparable to, and surpassing, the production levels which had been witnessed during Seleucus the Victor's reign.

* Moreover, Antigonus ordered for all imperial coins and bills produced prior to the reign of Antiochus III to be withdrawn from circulation. In June 1508, he proscribed new penalties for counterfeiting, ordered the Imperial Treasury to confiscate and destroy all unauthorized coinage, and initiated a program, by which subjects in possession of outdated or useless currency, could trade their coins and bills, with authorized credit unions, banks, and depositories, and receive new currency issue in due order. As a result of these measures, confidence in the ''denarii'' increased, and the Laurasian Denarius, by the end of Antigonus' reign, became the most valued currency within the Caladarian Galaxy.

* Emperor Antigonus followed this up by promulgating the Community Laws (September 1508), which expanded and reorganized the Laurasian public welfare system. The Laws regulated obligations and terms of welfare provision for all lower-income subjects within the Empire, introducing means testing and a "sliding" scale to measure the extent and form of benefits which these subjects could receive. The Laws, moreover, provided a fixed account for all local welfare, healthcare, and social services providers, agencies, and coordinators in the Empire to utilize, and established a "basic" standard of employment, which lower-income subjects would be obliged to meet to retain their benefits. Exempted from this standard were elderly, disabled, or mentally incompetent subjects, who were, moreover, to be preferred with regards to the benefits that they received. On October 22, 1508, Antigonus followed up the promulgation of the Laws by ordering for the creation, in the College of Health and Sentient Services, of the Charitable Collections Agency, which became responsible for coordinating the activities of all charities and nonprofits in the Empire, providing them with the funding necessary to meet their missions, and exercising oversight over them. In December 1508, he engaged in a extraordinary gesture at Quencilvanian Palace, bequeathing more than 200,000 of his orphaned subjects with a scholarship to any university, college, or academy of their choice in the Empire, and ensuring their adoption by dependents of the Empire's nobility and gentry.

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=== 1509 ===

===1509===

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*Into 1509, the 9th year of the sixteenth century, the beneficial measures of Antigonus I continued. On January 14, 1509, the Emperor commenced his "Kimanian Games," which were held in honor of the Conquest of Kimania, and were meant to serve as a further reward to his subjects on Laurasia Prime. The Games lasted for over four months, until their conclusion with a grand parade through the City of Christiania (May 17, 1509). They involved more than 10,000 athletes, physical performers, artists, musicians, and scholars from throughout the Empire, and also involved tens of thousands of wild animals, vehicles, and the like. Antigonus' careful management of these public spectacles led the orator Sir Antiochus Fronto (1449-1515), to congratulate him in a communique (June 13, 1509), for paying equal attention to public entertainments and more serious issues, acknowledging that "neglect of more serious measures can cause greater damage, but neglect of amusements greater discontent." State-funded public entertainments helped to maintain contentment among the populace, while the "more serious" matters of welfare, healthcare, and education, as represented by the Community Laws, aimed to satisfy individuals.

− ⚫

*The other significant measure, undertaken by Emperor Antigonus in this year, was the issuance of his General Edict of Toleration (August 17, 1509). In doing so, the Emperor followed upon the precedents which had been established by his predecessors, regarding religious freedom for Laurasia's subjects, and for those who immigrated to and made their habitation within the Empire. And they would be precedents which would be followed by most of his successors, most notably Aurelia the Great, who was to base her All Faiths Toleration Edict of 1774 upon the Antigonid Edict. By the terms of this edict, Antigonus established a policy of moderation and prudence towards religious minoriites and alien sects within the Empire. He forbade the Holy Synod and the Governing Senate, as well as the Councils of Imperial Secretaries and Civil Service, from trampling upon the rights, in particular, of Dasian Cultists, the Arachosian Orders, or the Briannian Congregations. In October 1509, moreover, Antigonus issued the first of many reconfirmations of the privileges of the Venasian Matrons, including their rights to polygamous and same-sex marriage (among their circles), and including them under the privileges of the General Edict of Toleration. This was to be another custom followed by his successors. In a communique of December 18, 1509, to his friend Caecilius, Antigonus stated that "we must not punish any man for following his conscience, except for instances in which his conscience jeopardizes his duties or loyalty towards us."

⚫

* Into 1509, the 9th year of the sixteenth century, the beneficial measures of Antigonus I continued. On January 14, 1509, the Emperor commenced his "Kimanian Games," which were held in honor of the Conquest of Kimania, and were meant to serve as a further reward to his subjects on Laurasia Prime. The Games lasted for over four months, until their conclusion with a grand parade through the City of Christiania (May 17, 1509). They involved more than 10,000 athletes, physical performers, artists, musicians, and scholars from throughout the Empire, and also involved tens of thousands of wild animals, vehicles, and the like. Antigonus' careful management of these public spectacles led the orator Sir Antiochus Fronto (1449-1515), to congratulate him in a communique (June 13, 1509), for paying equal attention to public entertainments and more serious issues, acknowledging that "neglect of more serious measures can cause greater damage, but neglect of amusements greater discontent." State-funded public entertainments helped to maintain contentment among the populace, while the "more serious" matters of welfare, healthcare, and education, as represented by the Community Laws, aimed to satisfy individuals.

⚫

* The other significant measure, undertaken by Emperor Antigonus in this year, was the issuance of his General Edict of Toleration (August 17, 1509). In doing so, the Emperor followed upon the precedents which had been established by his predecessors, regarding religious freedom for Laurasia's subjects, and for those who immigrated to and made their habitation within the Empire. And they would be precedents which would be followed by most of his successors, most notably Aurelia the Great, who was to base her All Faiths Toleration Edict of 1774 upon the Antigonid Edict. By the terms of this edict, Antigonus established a policy of moderation and prudence towards religious minoriites and alien sects within the Empire. He forbade the Holy Synod and the Governing Senate, as well as the Councils of Imperial Secretaries and Civil Service, from trampling upon the rights, in particular, of Dasian Cultists, the Arachosian Orders, or the Briannian Congregations. In October 1509, moreover, Antigonus issued the first of many reconfirmations of the privileges of the Venasian Matrons, including their rights to polygamous and same-sex marriage (among their circles), and including them under the privileges of the General Edict of Toleration. This was to be another custom followed by his successors. In a communique of December 18, 1509, to his friend Caecilius, Antigonus stated that "we must not punish any man for following his conscience, except for instances in which his conscience jeopardizes his duties or loyalty towards us."

− ⚫

=== 1510 ===

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===1510===

*1510, the 10th year of the sixteenth century, opened with the Laurasian Empire of Antigonus I in the midst of one of the most extended periods of peace and prosperity in its history. The Emperor focused his attention, even more so than previously, on to renewed construction projects. He further expanded upon his reputation as a vigorous builder, and in doing so, established an example that, like his policies of religious toleration, were to be adhered to by most of his successors. Antigonus initiated, in March 1510, the construction of the Antigonid Trade Exchange in Christiania, Laurasia Prime. This was intended to replace the Seleucid Trade Exchange, which Seleucus the Victor had built between 1303 and 1311, and which, by the early sixteenth century, was considered by many to be outdated. As with most of his other projects, the Emperor relied upon his trusted architect Apollodorus of Dramis, who, as noted above, was the main actor in the construction of Antigonus' Column.

*Apollodorus now conceived a grand new scheme for the Exchange, intending to build it across a land area of eight square miles. The Exchange was to be dominated by a "Central Market," to extend 4,000 feet into the air, and to consist of nearly four hundred levels. Around this "Central Market," would be eight secondary markets, each of which was to extend at least 1,000 feet upwards, and consist of at least one hundred levels each. It was to have room enough to host at least 50,000 individual businesses and 100,000 smaller vendors, and was to have its own spaceport, internal turbolift system, and communications network. The Antigonid Trade Exchange, which would be formally dedicated on April 18, 1512, was to remain the central trade exchange on Laurasia Prime until the dedication of the Galactic Exchange of the Laurasian Empire in 1770.

*Aside from this, Antigonus also focused his attention on the expansion of the Empire's educational system. He founded new Imperial Universities at Strongstine, Chobania, Samantha, Messalina, Reading, Kimania, Kimanis Mooria, and Breha (decree of July 17, 1510). Moreover, the Emperor created a centralized Imperial Scholarships Office, under his personal direction, to award deserving students from throughout the Empire, of non-noble or non-gentry backgrounds, and to supervise all private scholarships and grants in Laurasia. The Emperor lowered tuition rates, and in the manifesto of August 28, 1510, forgave student loan debt for 25% of the Empire's holders of such debt. Further remissions of debt would be conferred in 1513, 1515, and 1517. In addition to this, Antigonus provided financial grants and vouchers for the establishment and/or expansion of private charter schools, religious schools, and college preparatory academies, and he issued a decree, on November 9, 1510, lifting all remaining restrictions imposed upon the entry of the sons of common laborers and unskilled workers into the Empire's military academies. This now opened the door for them to advance through the commissioned ranks in the Imperial Laurasian Military.

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=== 1511 ===

===1511===

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*1511, the 11th year of the sixteenth century, also passed with no dissent or discord transpiring within Laurasia. Antigonus I, in February 1511, initiated yet another construction project: the expansion of the Diplomatic Palace. As the Laurasian Empire's foreign relations with the powers of the Great Amulak Spiral intensified and widened (to be described later in the timeline), Antigonus realized that foreign embassies to Laurasia Prime required additional accommodation. Moreover, he saw the Palace's expansion as a opportunity to showcase the resources and wealth which he, as absolute master of a galactic Empire, commanded. The Emperor, again enlisting the services of Apollodorus of Dramis (who was already at work supervising the construction of the Antigonid Trade Exchange and the Forum of Apollodorus), embarked on the construction of the new ''Palatia Imperium'', which was intended to provide quarters to the staff and servants of the Empire's foreign emissaries, to serve as a reception house for such emissaries, and to connect the Diplomatic Palace with Quencilvanian Palace.

⚫

*In addition to the ''Palatia Imperium'', Antigonus also ordered for the Palace's security systems to be redesigned and enhanced, with the addition of new admissions stations, security cameras, locking mechanisms, and surveillance consoles. In July 1511, he also erected a special Athletic Court, intended to provide a "wholesome and welcoming" atmosphere for foreign dignitaries, and he also had new Noble Quarters erected in the lower levels of the Palace. A labor force of more than 500,000 workers was conscripted to execute these designs, and they were to continue in their work for more than two years, until the renovations were completed in August 1513.

⚫

*Antigonus also sought to broaden the Empire's system of starbases, supply depots, garrisons, outposts, and hyperspace terminals. This would serve to strengthen communications, trade, and common travel, and would be of benefit to both the Imperial Laurasian Military (which needed to have rapid access to galactic regions, in cases of rebellion or war) and to the Emperor's subjects. Already, in June 1510, he had begun the construction of Cholidria Starbase near Acabania. Comprised of over 55,000 dockspaces, oriented around a central structure, Cholidria Starbase represented a new milestone in Laurasian architectural achievement. It would be finished in September 1511. More than 15,000 other starbases like it would be constructed during the remainder of the Emperor's reign, and into the reign of Lysimachus I. Antigonus reconstructed the Station of Dosch (beginning in May 1511), expanded the Neuron Plantita Station (beginning in August 1511), and on October 7, 1511, dedicated the Booms of Martina Mccasia, which became one of the largest and most complex, "asteroid"-based starbase complexes in the Empire. Antigonus also ordered for the construction of eighty new hyperspace terminals, ranging from Laurasia and Courdina V, to Way'tosk, Boydaria, and Temperance in the Millian Provinces, down to Melorkia Major, Roastafaria Major, and westwards to Ashlgothia Major, Greg, Larkin, and Pressburg. The terminals began construction in November 1511 and would be completed by his death in August 1517.

⚫

===1512===

⚫

* 1511, the 11th year of the sixteenth century, also passed with no dissent or discord transpiring within Laurasia. Antigonus I, in February 1511, initiated yet another construction project: the expansion of the Diplomatic Palace. As the Laurasian Empire's foreign relations with the powers of the Great Amulak Spiral intensified and widened (to be described later in the timeline), Antigonus realized that foreign embassies to Laurasia Prime required additional accommodation. Moreover, he saw the Palace's expansion as a opportunity to showcase the resources and wealth which he, as absolute master of a galactic Empire, commanded. The Emperor, again enlisting the services of Apollodorus of Dramis (who was already at work supervising the construction of the Antigonid Trade Exchange and the Forum of Apollodorus), embarked on the construction of the new ''Palatia Imperium'', which was intended to provide quarters to the staff and servants of the Empire's foreign emissaries, to serve as a reception house for such emissaries, and to connect the Diplomatic Palace with Quencilvanian Palace.

⚫

*1512, the 12th year of the sixteenth century, saw the culmination of some of Emperor Antigonus' architectural projects. The completion of the Antigonid Trade Exchange in April 1512, has already been highlighted above. Two other notable structures reached their fruition in this year: the Forum of Antigonus and the Baths of Antigonus, both located in Christiania, Laurasia Prime. The Forum of Antigonus was formally dedicated on January 1, 1512, and was to be among the last of the major Imperial Forums completed prior to the eighteenth century. Encompassing an area of ten square miles, the Forum was built around Antigonus' Column, and included a variety of public and private structures, including theaters, banks, restaurants, museums, galleries, and shops, among other attractions. The Forum cost over $300 trillion ''denarii'' to build, and like much else during Antigonus' reign of an architectural nature, was the brainchild of Apollodorus of Dramis. For this specific accomplishment, Apollodorus would be made 1st Baronet Apollodorus of Dramis on June 18, 1512, marking a significant elevation for a man who had been born into very humble circumstances, at the lowest rungs of Laurasian society.

⚫

* In addition to the ''Palatia Imperium'', Antigonus also ordered for the Palace's security systems to be redesigned and enhanced, with the addition of new admissions stations, security cameras, locking mechanisms, and surveillance consoles. In July 1511, he also erected a special Athletic Court, intended to provide a "wholesome and welcoming" atmosphere for foreign dignitaries, and he also had new Noble Quarters erected in the lower levels of the Palace. A labor force of more than 500,000 workers was conscripted to execute these designs, and they were to continue in their work for more than two years, until the renovations were completed in August 1513.

⚫

*The Baths of Antigonus, dedicated on April 4, 1512, had been built in conjunction with the Forum. Consisting of four interconnected structures, the Baths served as another public amenity for the inhabitants of Christiania. The Baths were surrounded by a grassy area on three of its sides, and enclosed by a perimeter wall, broken only by a single gate, which constituted the public entrance. The main chambers were arranged in a sequence along a central axis from northeast to southwest, and flanked on either side by a network of rooms and open courts which were strictly symmetrical with each other. These chambers included the ''apodyterium'' (dressing room), ''frigidarium'' (cool room), ''tepidarium'' (warm room), ''calidarium'' (hot room), ''laconicum'' (hottest room), ''and lavandium'' (bathing and shampooing room), along with a cold plunge pool (''frigus immergite piscinam''), saunas (''saunae''), and hot & cold showers (''calidum et frigidum imbres''). Aside from these bathing chambers, the Baths also incorporated its own gymnasiums (both indoors and outdoors) and athletic facilities, along with libraries, restrooms, gardens, scenic walkways, cafes, and dine-in restaurants, with both indoor and outdoor dining options. And as was typical for Laurasian Baths, nudity was required throughout the entire complex, and for every activity and setting. This was a requirement enforced by the Baths' employees, who were known as ''monitors'' - and were themselves subject to the requirement.

⚫

* Antigonus also sought to broaden the Empire's system of starbases, supply depots, garrisons, outposts, and hyperspace terminals. This would serve to strengthen communications, trade, and common travel, and would be of benefit to both the Imperial Laurasian Military (which needed to have rapid access to galactic regions, in cases of rebellion or war) and to the Emperor's subjects. Already, in June 1510, he had begun the construction of Cholidria Starbase near Acabania. Comprised of over 55,000 dockspaces, oriented around a central structure, Cholidria Starbase represented a new milestone in Laurasian architectural achievement. It would be finished in September 1511. More than 15,000 other starbases like it would be constructed during the remainder of the Emperor's reign, and into the reign of Lysimachus I. Antigonus reconstructed the Station of Dosch (beginning in May 1511), expanded the Neuron Plantita Station (beginning in August 1511), and on October 7, 1511, dedicated the Booms of Martina Mccasia, which became one of the largest and most complex, "asteroid"-based starbase complexes in the Empire. Antigonus also ordered for the construction of eighty new hyperspace terminals, ranging from Laurasia and Courdina V, to Way'tosk, Boydaria, and Temperance in the Millian Provinces, down to Melorkia Major, Roastafaria Major, and westwards to Ashlgothia Major, Greg, Larkin, and Pressburg. The terminals began construction in November 1511 and would be completed by his death in August 1517.

⚫

*The Laurasians placed a heavy emphasis on cleanliness and hygiene, and public bathing was a means through which these virtues could be expressed. This had been true from as far back as the First Laurasian Space Age, and coupled with this was a considerable cultural tolerance among Laurasians - a species that, in many respects, were deeply religious and governed by norms that emphasized "morality" and "proper conduct" - for recreational nudity among large, organized gatherings, whether public or private, in designated locations or at designated events. The Laurasians felt that nudity in such contexts enabled everyone to relax, to gain mental clarity, and to garner a better appreciation for themselves. Moreover, the Baths were one arena in which Laurasians of both genders were equal, as they freely mixed with one another and enjoyed the amenities therein, and they were free of charge, being financed by imperial municipal and business taxes. Thus, Laurasians of all classes and statuses were able to take advantage of them. Antigonus' Baths would provide the basic outline adhered to by later Imperial Baths.

− ⚫

*1512 was also dominated by the Emperor's further expansion of the galactic hyperroute system within his realms. In addition to constructing new starbases, garrisons, and terminals, as noted above, Antigonus sought to expand the routes linking them, and to create new ones. This would further link the Empire's star systems together, and by extension, the Galaxy's star systems. Antigonus chartered, in August 1512, the Roxuli-Abraham Way, connecting these two important star systems in the northern territories of Laurasia's dominions. Following upon the Roxuli-Abraham Way would be the Dennis Trace, the ''Via Antigonia'' (connecting Narra with the Lower Kimanian Trade Run), and the Lower Angelican Military Highway, whose roots actually dated to as far back as 1309, and which would be fully completed by 1516. All total, more than 175,000 light years of hyperroute would be charted during the Emperor's reign.

⚫

=== 1512 ===

⚫

*Moreover, between 1506 and 1513, more than 10,000 new star systems were colonized in the Ashlgothian Borderlands Territories, the Melorkian Provinces, and the Barsar Regions, with millions of Laurasian and Core colonists, along with colonists from the Wild Marshes and from the Middle Territories, populating these star systems. Antigonus, building upon this, also sought to encourage population growth, offering financial incentives to families who had more children. This included the creation of an Earned Income Tax Credit for families with at least one child, a financial bonus for families that had at least two children, and the extension of interest-free loans for the acquisition or establishment of new habitats and businesses for families with children. He also provided generous parental leave privileges (up to two months for Laurasian fathers and eight months for Laurasian mothers) to working and middle-class Laurasians, instigated a significant expansion of the Empire's childcare and preschool educational programs, and sponsored the development of new technologies and fertility treatments that would enable Laurasian couples to procreate and deliver children naturally and in greater numbers, with a reduced need for surrogates or for emergency delivery methods such as caesearan sections.

− ⚫

*His policies on this front would be generally successful, as birth rates within the Empire would rise substantially during the latter years of his reign, along with marriage rates. By 1516, nearly 90% of adult Laurasians, aged eighteen and older, would be married or betrothed, and nearly 80% would have at least one biological child. These numbers would remain fairly stable for decades after Antigonus' death, and despite experiencing a relapse during the Crisis of the Seventeenth Century, would resume an upwards trajectory during the reign of Neuchrus the Reformer. This revival would be such, that by 1750, 97% of adult Laurasians over the age of eighteen would be married or betrothed, and over 90% would have at least one biological child. In some ways, this was an ironic move on the Emperor's part, for he and his wife, Empress Consort Pompeia Plotina (1456-1522), whom he had married in 1474, never had any children of their own.

⚫

* 1512, the 12th year of the sixteenth century, saw the culmination of some of Emperor Antigonus' architectural projects. The completion of the Antigonid Trade Exchange in April 1512, has already been highlighted above. Two other notable structures reached their fruition in this year: the Forum of Antigonus and the Baths of Antigonus, both located in Christiania, Laurasia Prime. The Forum of Antigonus was formally dedicated on January 1, 1512, and was to be among the last of the major Imperial Forums completed prior to the eighteenth century. Encompassing an area of ten square miles, the Forum was built around Antigonus' Column, and included a variety of public and private structures, including theaters, banks, restaurants, museums, galleries, and shops, among other attractions. The Forum cost over $300 trillion ''denarii'' to build, and like much else during Antigonus' reign of an architectural nature, was the brainchild of Apollodorus of Dramis. For this specific accomplishment, Apollodorus would be made 1st Baronet Apollodorus of Dramis on June 18, 1512, marking a significant elevation for a man who had been born into very humble circumstances, at the lowest rungs of Laurasian society.

⚫

* The Baths of Antigonus, dedicated on April 4, 1512, had been built in conjunction with the Forum. Consisting of four interconnected structures, the Baths served as another public amenity for the inhabitants of Christiania. The Baths were surrounded by a grassy area on three of its sides, and enclosed by a perimeter wall, broken only by a single gate, which constituted the public entrance. The main chambers were arranged in a sequence along a central axis from northeast to southwest, and flanked on either side by a network of rooms and open courts which were strictly symmetrical with each other. These chambers included the ''apodyterium'' (dressing room), ''frigidarium'' (cool room), ''tepidarium'' (warm room), ''calidarium'' (hot room), ''laconicum'' (hottest room), ''and lavandium'' (bathing and shampooing room), along with a cold plunge pool (''frigus immergite piscinam''), saunas (''saunae''), and hot & cold showers (''calidum et frigidum imbres''). Aside from these bathing chambers, the Baths also incorporated its own gymnasiums (both indoors and outdoors) and athletic facilities, along with libraries, restrooms, gardens, scenic walkways, cafes, and dine-in restaurants, with both indoor and outdoor dining options. And as was typical for Laurasian Baths, nudity was required throughout the entire complex, and for every activity and setting. This was a requirement enforced by the Baths' employees, who were known as ''monitors'' - and were themselves subject to the requirement.

⚫

* The Laurasians placed a heavy emphasis on cleanliness and hygiene, and public bathing was a means through which these virtues could be expressed. This had been true from as far back as the First Laurasian Space Age, and coupled with this was a considerable cultural tolerance among Laurasians - a species that, in many respects, were deeply religious and governed by norms that emphasized "morality" and "proper conduct" - for recreational nudity among large, organized gatherings, whether public or private, in designated locations or at designated events. The Laurasians felt that nudity in such contexts enabled everyone to relax, to gain mental clarity, and to garner a better appreciation for themselves. Moreover, the Baths were one arena in which Laurasians of both genders were equal, as they freely mixed with one another and enjoyed the amenities therein, and they were free of charge, being financed by imperial municipal and business taxes. Thus, Laurasians of all classes and statuses were able to take advantage of them. Antigonus' Baths would provide the basic outline adhered to by later Imperial Baths.

⚫

* 1512 was also dominated by the Emperor's further expansion of the galactic hyperroute system within his realms. In addition to constructing new starbases, garrisons, and terminals, as noted above, Antigonus sought to expand the routes linking them, and to create new ones. This would further link the Empire's star systems together, and by extension, the Galaxy's star systems. Antigonus chartered, in August 1512, the Roxuli-Abraham Way, connecting these two important star systems in the northern territories of Laurasia's dominions. Following upon the Roxuli-Abraham Way would be the Dennis Trace, the ''Via Antigonia'' (connecting Narra with the Lower Kimanian Trade Run), and the Lower Angelican Military Highway, whose roots actually dated to as far back as 1309, and which would be fully completed by 1516. All total, more than 175,000 light years of hyperroute would be charted during the Emperor's reign.

⚫

* Moreover, between 1506 and 1513, more than 10,000 new star systems were colonized in the Ashlgothian Borderlands Territories, the Melorkian Provinces, and the Barsar Regions, with millions of Laurasian and Core colonists, along with colonists from the Wild Marshes and from the Middle Territories, populating these star systems. Antigonus, building upon this, also sought to encourage population growth, offering financial incentives to families who had more children. This included the creation of an Earned Income Tax Credit for families with at least one child, a financial bonus for families that had at least two children, and the extension of interest-free loans for the acquisition or establishment of new habitats and businesses for families with children. He also provided generous parental leave privileges (up to two months for Laurasian fathers and eight months for Laurasian mothers) to working and middle-class Laurasians, instigated a significant expansion of the Empire's childcare and preschool educational programs, and sponsored the development of new technologies and fertility treatments that would enable Laurasian couples to procreate and deliver children naturally and in greater numbers, with a reduced need for surrogates or for emergency delivery methods such as caesearan sections.

⚫

* His policies on this front would be generally successful, as birth rates within the Empire would rise substantially during the latter years of his reign, along with marriage rates. By 1516, nearly 90% of adult Laurasians, aged eighteen and older, would be married or betrothed, and nearly 80% would have at least one biological child. These numbers would remain fairly stable for decades after Antigonus' death, and despite experiencing a relapse during the Crisis of the Seventeenth Century, would resume an upwards trajectory during the reign of Neuchrus the Reformer. This revival would be such, that by 1750, 97% of adult Laurasians over the age of eighteen would be married or betrothed, and over 90% would have at least one biological child. In some ways, this was an ironic move on the Emperor's part, for he and his wife, Empress Consort Pompeia Plotina (1456-1522), whom he had married in 1474, never had any children of their own.

===1513===

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*It was while he was at Harm Buhamidal, in the outskirts of the Wild Marshes, that Lysimachus, on April 15, 1522, issued the first instructions to the Imperial General Headquarters, and to the garrisons of the Hypasian Provinces, to begin construction of a series of border outposts, garrisons, and minefields, in order to control cross border trade and immigration; provide protection for the Empire's garrisons against both rebels and foreign enemies; and to delineate Laurasian territorial claims. Construction of this elaborate system of defenses, which had been planned by the Emperor since January 1520, commenced in earnest in June 1522, after his departure from the Hypasian Provinces, and lasted for the next two decades. The Lysimachid Barrier Defenses, as they would become known, would not be finished until 1543, during the reign of Lysimachus' successor Antoninus Pius, and would, from the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries, become a focus for Laurasian military operations in the Wild Marshes and Galactic Borderlands.

*Following his departure from Hypasia Major, the Emperor headed south to Beatrice. From there, he personally conducted a military campaign to suppress rebels at Trieste, Zoo, and Ginger, who had risen up against the Imperial Laurasian Government out of dissent over Laurasian taxation and enumeration policies (August 1522). Upon the conclusion of this campaign, which resulted in the execution of more than five million rebels and the imprisonment or banishment of some ten million others, Lysimachus returned to Beatrice (September 3, 1522), and convalesced there for over a month. He resided at King Juba's Palace, commissioned the construction of St. Cletus' Cathedral in Tipaza, and received homage from his Beatrician subjects. On October 9, Lysimachus departed, and made visits to Safer, Masau, and the Laurasian colony of Volubilis, before returning again to Laurasia Prime (October 17, 1522). The Emperor, aside from excursions to Caladaria, Darcia, and Americana, largely remained at Laurasia Prime during the last two months of 1522. On Ascentmas Eve, he announced that his next progress would be to the Neo-Merlite Provinces. Preparations for this were well underway as 1522 ended.

===1523===

*1523, the 23rd year of the sixteenth century, got underway, as Lysimachus I, who was back at Laurasia Prime, pushed forward with his plans for his Neo-Merlite progress. On January 17, 1523, he and the Imperial Court made their formal departure from Laurasia Prime, proceeding, by juncture of the Clancian Corridor and the Goldarian Highway, into the Central Core, and from thence, through Galicia and Donguaria, to the Neo-Merlite Provinces. Bobria became the first Merlite system to be visited (January 19, 1523), followed in due order by Carolyn (January 27-February 1), Korgia (February 4), Franklin (February 14), Evan (February 18), Ryan Barlak (February 22), and Thathel Prime (February 25). Alec, Aretha, Austin, and Talaris were graced with His Majesty's presence in March 1523, and on April 7, he visited Orithiana. From Orithiana, the Imperial Court subsequently passed through Rory, Sylvester, Roaeris, and Jacquenthia (April 9-22, 1523), before reaching Merilash, former capital of the Kingdom of Merlita (May 1, 1523). The Emperor took up residence at the underground Palace of Uvar, presided over a succession of tournaments, athletic competitions, and plays in the Merlite Royal City, and gave a grand banquet in honor of the collective Merlite nobility.

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*Mellorita, at that point, spanned from the Galactic Frontier Route in the west to the Lower Burglais Arm in the east. But Qalawun was assassinated in December 1493, and a period of factional struggle ensued. His toddler son, Nasria I, then only nine, was deposed for the first time in December 1494 by his regent Kitbugha, who then seized the throne. Kitbugha ruled for less than two years, until he was deposed in November 1496; he died in May 1497, at Wakino. Lajiana then became King, but he died prematurely in January 1499. At that time, Nasria was restored to the Mellorite throne, and his second reign marked the collapse of Mellorite power west of the Larkian Way. The wars of 1502-05 and 1507-10 saw the Xilanians under their new Emperor, Amharti VI (r. 1501-29), recover Xilania Minoria, Calrissian, the Marauder Colonies, Nandi, and the Esperanto Worlds, and drive the Mellorites from the Galactic Borderlands. Nasria, confronted also with constant rebellions in the Burglais Arm, and war with Karakorum, ultimately lost his throne a second time in March 1509. He was succeeded by Baibars II (r. 1509-10), whose brief reign was marked by further strife. Baibars was deposed and executed in March 1510, and Nasria again regained the throne, for the third and last time. He was to rule until his death in June 1541. Nasria concluded peace with Xilania (1512), and in 1516-20, extended Mellorite suzerainty over Karakorum, forcing King Balamber (r. 1509-12, 1517-22), to become his vassal. Karakorum would remain a Mellorite vassal for eighty-two years, until Dinga I rejected their overlordship in 1602. This was how things stood, when Lysimachus was confronted with this new challenge.

*In his characteristic fashion, the Emperor now hastened from Woolestone to Robert. There, Lysimachus vigorously reorganized the defenses of Elijahana, Parson, Abuza, Izonza, and Iego, and issued contingency instructions to the Imperial General Headquarters. King Nasria, however, realizing that a confrontation with the Laurasian Empire at this stage would be disastrous, and imitated by the Emperor's military forces, decided to negotiate with the Imperial Laurasian Government, instead of launching an offensive against Laurasian territory. A conference was opened on Peters in October 1523, and on November 9, 1523, the Treaty of Peters was signed. By the terms of this treaty, the Great King of Mellorita agreed to recognize Laurasian acquisition of Hunt and Kimania, and Laurasian acquisitions at the expense of the Neo-Anastasian Empire. Moreover, all Laurasian and Mellorite merchants were to be able to travel, unmolested, in the territories of the other; a joint commission to govern commerce along the Rebeccan Galactic Trade Route was established; and Nasria agreed to protect religious minorities in his realms. Emperor Lysimachus, having therefore maintained peace through diplomatic negotiation, then toned down military armament. The Treaty of Peters was ratified by him on November 15 and by King Nasria on December 9, 1523.

===1524===

*1524, the 24th year of the sixteenth century, commenced with the Laurasian Empire, under Lysimachus I, having averted war with the Mellorite Empire. The Treaty of Peters conferred Mellorite recognition of the Empire's territorial acquisitions under Antigonus the Conqueror and regulated relations between the two powers. Emperor Lysimachus now decided to embark on another progress through the Robertian and Mereditan Provinces, determined to showcase his power and the unity of Laurasia's realms. It was also intended to further underscore, to the Mellorites and any other potential adversaries of Laurasia, with what they would be confronted if they tried to aggressively attack Laurasian territory in the future. Lysimachus departed from Robert on January 17, 1524. He progressed through Meris (January 22), Wakedia (January 25), and Jamuine (February 2), before making his arrival at Beharis (February 11, 1524). There, the Emperor commissioned the construction of the new St. Marius' Dockyards, named after the great Laurasian General and Consul of the Stellar Kingdom of Laurasia, in the late 2nd and early 1st centuries BH.

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*Following his return to Laurasia Prime, Lysimachus experienced a bout of illness, and convalesced in his personal bedchambers. But by September 17, he had emerged from his illness, and to celebrate his recovery, the Emperor gave thanks in a service at Old Westphalian Cathedral. He set aside a donation to the Deanery of the Old Cathedral, and ordered for the statue of the Lord Paul of Almitis to be regilded in Halarian gold. Lysimachus also focused on improving the sanitary and utilities systems of Christiania, and he drained Fulciadae Lake, ordering for the plotting of new residential and commercial quadrants in its place. In December 1527, Lysimachus and the Imperial Court moved to Darcia, where they finished out the year.

−

=== 1528 ===

===1528===

*By 1528, the 28th year of the sixteenth century, after more than a decade on the throne, Emperor Lysimachus had succeeded in his goal of strengthening the Empire's internal condition, and of remaining at peace with the Empire's neighbors. However, the Emperor of Laurasia was to find that not all was to persist in such a state. The Huntite Provinces, the Laurasian Empire's most recently acquired region, still boiled over with dissent against the Laurasian occupiers. Solay, in particular, was ravaged by a series of violent riots from December 1526 to March 1527, demonstrating that world's resistance against the Empire. With these tensions building up, it was inevitable that a rebellion would break out against the Imperial Laurasian Government. And indeed, that was what happened. The rebellion was now to be led by Huntite Prince Muggutha (1472-1529), who had, during the preceding decade, apparently ingratiated himself with his new Laurasian masters. In reality, however, Mugguthia had been plotting rebellion against the Imperial Laurasian Government; he stockpiled supplies at his estates on Hunt Minor, Claithbourne, Raithbourne, Lorna, Garnett, Ber Bachman, and Vasquaro, determined to take the lead of the effort.

*It was on April 7, 1528, that the Mugguthian Rebellion formally erupted. The Prince refused a summons from the Council of Notables on Hunt Major, and from Vasquaro, announced his revolt against the Empire. In his proclamation of rebellion, Muggutha claimed that continued adherence to the "dictates and the directives of the foreigners" would humiliate the honor of the Huntite species. Therefore, he called upon all Huntites to overthrow such an odious evil. Many were attracted to Muggutha's message (except for those on Jasonia and Samarkand), and he was able to assemble a substantial military force. With this force, the Prince quickly made gains. Charax and the Huntite colony of Susa quickly fell into his possession (April 8-14, 1528); he repelled a government offensive against Raithbourne (April 17); and on April 22, 1528, captured a convoy under the command of Captain Scripo Marcanius (1487-1529) in the Battle of Doug. Amida, Zachary, and Negro were then captured (May 1528), and on May 21, 1528, the Prince obtained another victory in the Battle of Petrault. Adenstyrae was soon threatened by rebel units, and Jabul capitulated in July 1528.

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*Once they had been "processed," they were loaded onto commercial cargo ships and sold to masters throughout the territories of the Haynsian Despotate and - following Haynsia's subjection to Marasharite overlordship in 1578 - those of the Marasharite Empire. They were kept naked throughout this process, a punishment intended to humiliate them and erase all distinctions, and upon entering the service of their new masters as slaves, were allowed to only wear those garments - often made from coarse sackcloth - which their masters provided them. They were not allowed to wear underwear or footwear unless if the nature of their job necessitated it, and some categories of slaves (i.e., concubines, miners) were required to be nude at all times. Moreover, they were compelled to wear metal collars around their necks, serving as another visual marker of their subordinate status. This initial Haynsian expedition would be followed by other, more sporadic expeditions into the Hutsite Reaches and Jarjanican Provinces from 1532 to 1537, launched by Despot Sahradi I Karany (r. 1532-51). But it was not until the Borderlands Wars, some three decades later, that the expeditions would become an annual occurence, and that the Haynsians would establish themselves as a truly serious threat to the Laurasian Empire. The Haynsian Despotate would pose a dilemma for the Imperial Laurasian Government for over two centuries, which was not solved until the annexation of the Haynsia by Aurelia the Great in the late eighteenth century.

−

=== 1532 ===

===1532===

*1532, the 32nd year of the sixteenth century, commenced with the Laurasian Empire's dominions still at peace, aside from the Haynsian operations in the Barsar Regions of the year prior, and those in future years, as mentioned above. But this state of tranquility was to be disrupted in one region of the Empire, which had undergone much turmoil in the previous century: the Donguarian Provinces. Tensions within that region, as directed against the Imperial Laurasian Government, had remained high during the six decades following the end of the First Donguarian Rebellion. In March 1530, Emperor Lysimachus had paid a visit to Donguaria Prima. It had appeared to some Donguarians, particularly to the rabbis and elders of Donguarianism, that the Emperor would sponsor the restoration of the Great Temple of Donguaria, which had been destroyed by the forces of Vespasian's son and successor, Titus I, in 1470. Lysimachus himself had seemed to lend credence to this belief. In a speech at the Donguarian Imperial Palace, he said that he truly "honored the traditions and customs of your species" and that he would consider them to be "important to the stability and tranquility of these regions."

*These hopes, however, were soon dashed. In July 1531, the Emperor had announced that a new Almitian cathedral, dedicated to the Almitian monk and missionary St. Thomasius of Clancia (who had been executed in 353 BH by Clancian authorities on accusations of treason and heresy), was to be constructed. This cathedral would be erected at the site of the former Great Temple. Two months later, Lysimachus formally outlawed a number of ancient Donguarian religious customs, including ritual circumcision and war dances. He compounded these insults against the Donguarian species by pursuing a policy of resettlement in Donguaria Prima's cities, encouraging Laurasian, Clancian, Melarnarian, Goldarian, Tethian, Denveranian, Jaredian, and other colonists, from throughout the Core Regions, to settle there, and confiscating properties held by Donguarian families, to make way for such settlements. All of these actions angered the Donguarians considerably, and inspired the outbreak of the Second Donguarian Rebellion.

−

*On June 7, 1532, Simagrad bar Kohba (1484-1535), who was a Donguarian commoner of Galician dessent, raised his standard of rebellion on Pressburg. He was assisted by the Donguarian Rabbi Elasar (1461-1534), who had memories of the conquest of Donguaria Prima by Titus' forces, and was determined to avenge the "insult" against his ancestors. Elasar declared, in sermons to his flock, that the "Laurasian devils" needed to be repelled, and that if they were, the sanctity of Donguarianism would be preserved. Moreover, the Donguarian Stellar Empire would be restored, and limits placed upon the Laurasian Empire's power. Bar Kohba, who was a charismatic, intelligent, and handsome individual, seemed to Elasar's followers to be the savior who they had looked for.

*It did not take long for him to muster strength. Bar Kohba's forces, growing in size by the day, advanced quickly from Pressburg. Jotapata fell into Donguarian hands (June 8-14, 1532), followed in due order by Gamla (June 19), Ephraim (June 22), and Terremenia (June 24). On June 29, 1532, Kohba obtained a decisive victory over a Laurasian force under Vice-Admiral Sir Telemachus Denisaria (1469-1532) in the Battle of Emmaus. Denisaria himself died in the battle, along with over 350,000 of his sailors. The Donguarians also captured a sizable number of Laurasian transports. In the aftermath of this victory, Shechem, Syechar, and Masada were overrun by rebel forces (July-August 1532), and on August 18, the Battle of Borilla ended in another victory for Kohba's forces, even more decisive than that of Emmaus. Yet another Laurasian commander, this time Commodore Sir Carus Lasius (1471-1532), lost his life, and a large number of ''Antigonus''-class projectiles were captured by the Donguarians. Jilach fell into their hands on September 9, and they subsequently seized control of Haifa and Judah (September 14-19, 1532). Donguaria Prima itself was now isolated by rebel forces.

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*He ordered for a supply line to be opened to Donguaria Prima, and pulled substantial reinforcements from the Laurasian Purse Region, the Central Core, and the Galician Provinces to respond to the rebellion. Furthermore, on December 4, 1532, the Emperor appointed Legate-General Sextus Julius Severus, 5th Baron Severus of Vang Dong (1481-1551), who then served as Governor of Hypasia, as the commander-in-chief of the Empire's forces in the Donguarian Provinces. Severus was now ordered to move with all speed, and he did so. On December 14, he established his operational headquarters at Samaria, and two days later, inflicted a defeat upon bar Kohba in the Battle of Tel Amarem. By the end of 1532, the Laurasian response to the Second Donguarian Rebellion was consolidating in earnest.

−

=== 1533 ===

===1533===

*1533, the 33rd year of the sixteenth century, commenced with Laurasia's internal tranquility having been disrupted by the outbreak of the Second Donguarian Rebellion. The new commander-in-chief of the Donguarian Provinces, Legate-General Lord Severus, had, as mentioned above, begun taking vigorous measures to respond to the Rebellion. He was now, in January 1533, provided with additional reinforcements by Emperor Lysimachus. This included the 19th, 20th, 21st, and 22nd Imperial Armies, as well as the 9th and 10th Imperial Fleets. The size of the military forces amassed against this new rebellion, was much larger than those forces which had been commanded by Titus six decades earlier. Emperor Lysimachus had studied the battles and the military strategies of the First Donguarian Rebellion closely, and he was determined to leave nothing to chance. Lysimachus was well aware of the nationalistic sentiment which existed among the Donguarians, and he did not want to provide inspiration to any of the Empire's other subject species to rise up in their turn.

*And indeed, Legate-General Severus found the Donguarians to be a tough foe. He actually experienced some reverses during the first half of 1533. On February 7, 1533, bar Kohba humiliated the Laurasians in the Battle of Jericho, capturing more than 300,000 troops of the Imperial Laurasian Army and almost overrunning the Laurasian operational headquarters in the star system. Jericho remained in Laurasian hands, but its strategic value to the Imperial Laurasian Government had been seriously compromised. bar Kohba subsequently launched a series of offensives against Beth Horon and Gaza (February 8-17, 1533), overrunning both star systems and expelling their Laurasian garrisons. Severus, however, did halt a Donguarian assault against Hervat Etri (February 24, 1533), and on March 8, he recovered Jilach from the Donguarians in a surprise offensive.

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*The Siege of Herodium now served as an example to bar Kohba and his followers of what justice they could expect to face, and in doing so, magnified the extent of their resistance. bar Kohba was now determined to throw all he could against the Laurasians. This was demonstrated by his desperate assault against the Laurasian garrison at Bethelem (August 17-22, 1533), in which he managed to destroy most of the garrison's shield generators and armories before retreating. It was also signified by the fierce Donguarian resistance to the Laurasian advances at Mohi and Cossack (September 1533). Nevertheless, by October 9, both strongholds had been recovered by Severus' forces, and on October 22, he besieged Kaunas. Kaunas too, fell back into Laurasian hands on November 7. Although bar Kohba subsequently defeated Laurasian forces in confrontations at Joppa, Bethhabra, and Kreia (November 18-December 5, 1533), he could not stop the general thrust of the Laurasian offensive. By the end of 1533, the Second Donguarian Rebellion was headed towards its doom.

−

=== 1534 ===

===1534===

−

* 1534, the 34th year of the sixteenth century, was dominated by the continuing military offensives of the Second Donguarian Rebellion, waged between bar Kohba's Organization and the Laurasian Empire. In January 1534, bar Kohba launched another counteroffensive, aiming to catch his Laurasian adversaries again off guard. He temporarily managed to drive Laurasian units from Hippos (January 5-9) and Gerasa (January 17). But this latest Donguarian move, as all of the previous had been, was doomed to failure. On January 25, a Donguarian operation against Maul was repelled with heavy losses, and on February 9, Severus defeated bar Kohba in the Battle of Nihilius. By February 22, he had recovered both Hippos and Gerasa. Masada (March 1-5), Borilla (March 17), and Croac (March 22) were reconquered by the Laurasians, and on April 1, 1534, bar Kohba was defeated again in the Battle of Judah.

* Severus subsequently cleared Donguarian rebel units from their bases at Benjamin (April 2-19), Manasseh (April 14), and Zephraim (April 22). In May 1534, Rohi was reconquered by the Empire's forces, and would be followed by Syechar (June 5-17). On July 13, 1534, bar Kohba attempted to ambush Severus at Lachish, but the ensuing Battle of Lachish turned to the favor of the Laurasian Legate-General, and ended in a decisive victory for him. bar Kohba was able to barely escape from the star system with his life. Aohi was now besieged by the Imperial Laurasian Navy, beginning on July 22. The Siege of Aohi lasted for nearly a month, as bar Kohba, in a series of confrontations with Laurasian units at Sitah, Jebus, and Ezron-geber, attempted to undercut Laurasian communications and supply lines.

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*Aside from the suppression of the Second Donguarian Rebellion, 1535 was also marked by the birth of a future Laurasian Emperor. On August 14, 1535, the future Emperor Pescennius Niger (r. 1593-94), who was to be a rival to Demetrius Severus I, was born in Aqunio, Aquilionia. He was the son of Sir Annius Fuscus Niger (1507-89), who served as Mayor of Aqunio and was a Aedile of Public Welfare, and of his wife Lampridia (1511-89), who was the daughter of Sir Athanasius Seros (1483-1555), who was Senatorial Procurator of Clancia from 1529 to 1536. Niger was born into a family of considerable wealth and some social status; his ancestors had held a number of positions in the Imperial Laurasian Government and in the Military. He would be raised in comfort on his family's estates during the earliest years of his life.

−

=== 1536 ===

===1536===

⚫

*1536, the 36th year of the sixteenth century, commenced with the Laurasian Empire restored to complete internal tranquility, following the suppression of the Second Donguarian Rebellion. Emperor Lysimachus had returned to Laurasia Prime in November 1535 from his last progress in the Malarian Provinces. Although the Emperor had plans for a progress into the Solidaritan Provinces, these plans never came to fruition. In January 1536, the Emperor instead moved from Laurasia to Rebecca. There, he resided at the Estates of the Remesis. The Emperor had purchased the Estates in 1523, and in the succeeding years, they had become one of his most favored residences. He had lavished an enormous amount of time, money, and manpower into expanding and embellishing the Estates. Spanning over an area of nearly eight square miles, they contained innumerable pools, baths, and fountains. Statues, obelisks, and monuments, depicting such mythological figures as nymphs, satyrs, gods, heroes, villains, and the like, lined the passageways which connected the Estates' six central structures. Here, Lysimachus could take the waters and could distract himself from the cares of the now, and of the present.

− ⚫

*But he didn't distract himself entirely. The Emperor invested considerable effort, during these closing years of his reign, in promulgating additional legal and social reforms, seeking by doing so to strengthen his authority. He was assisted in these efforts by the Quaestor of Laurasia Prime and the Chair of the Council of Imperial Secretaries, Sir Salvius Julianus (1501-70), who was one of the most respected jurists, legal scholars, and academics of the sixteenth century. It was Julianus who had persuaded Lysimachus to considerably expand the ranks of legal aides who were attached to the Council of Secretaries (August 1534), providing them with permanent salaries. This was a major innovation, and served to strengthen the Emperor's oversight over the bureaucracy. However, it also aroused opposition in the Senate, with many of the Senators believing that Lysimachus was encroaching upon their prerogatives. This served only to further poison the already perilous relationship between Lysimachus and the Senate.

⚫

* 1536, the 36th year of the sixteenth century, commenced with the Laurasian Empire restored to complete internal tranquility, following the suppression of the Second Donguarian Rebellion. Emperor Lysimachus had returned to Laurasia Prime in November 1535 from his last progress in the Malarian Provinces. Although the Emperor had plans for a progress into the Solidaritan Provinces, these plans never came to fruition. In January 1536, the Emperor instead moved from Laurasia to Rebecca. There, he resided at the Estates of the Remesis. The Emperor had purchased the Estates in 1523, and in the succeeding years, they had become one of his most favored residences. He had lavished an enormous amount of time, money, and manpower into expanding and embellishing the Estates. Spanning over an area of nearly eight square miles, they contained innumerable pools, baths, and fountains. Statues, obelisks, and monuments, depicting such mythological figures as nymphs, satyrs, gods, heroes, villains, and the like, lined the passageways which connected the Estates' six central structures. Here, Lysimachus could take the waters and could distract himself from the cares of the now, and of the present.

⚫

*By the decree of January 17, 1536, Lysimachus further clarified the customary legal privileges enjoyed by the Empire's wealthiest, most prominent non-noble elites. Although they were still subjected to all of the normal methods of punishment, as were applied to other commoners, the wealthiest subjects were allowed to appeal directly to the Senate for redress of their grievances, and they were to be permitted to utilize the services of legal counsel, although they were still denied the right to employ such counsel in any proceedings or trials, concerning offenses faced by them. Moreover, the Emperor ordered that any fines levied upon these subjects could be deferred, if they voluntarily contributed their services or labor to any Imperial projects or ventures for which they might be contracted. Lysimachus also, by the decrees of March 17 and June 9, 1536, reiterated the traditional "forms" of respect and of precedence, which were to be extended to the Laurasian nobility and gentry by commoners, and the "forms" of respect which commoners were to exercise towards each other. Harsh penalties were laid out for any commoner who did not address his betters by the proper "forms," but these penalties were less severe than those which had been proscribed under previous Emperors. In addition to this, Lysimachus felt it necessary to clarify the distinction between Laurasians - who enjoyed all of the rights and privileges of subjecthood - and non-Laurasians - who enjoyed only those rights and privileges which he felt fit to grant them. This distinction, which had existed since the Empire's foundation, would be maintained until the promulgation of the ''Antonine Constitution'' in 1612.

⚫

* But he didn't distract himself entirely. The Emperor invested considerable effort, during these closing years of his reign, in promulgating additional legal and social reforms, seeking by doing so to strengthen his authority. He was assisted in these efforts by the Quaestor of Laurasia Prime and the Chair of the Council of Imperial Secretaries, Sir Salvius Julianus (1501-70), who was one of the most respected jurists, legal scholars, and academics of the sixteenth century. It was Julianus who had persuaded Lysimachus to considerably expand the ranks of legal aides who were attached to the Council of Secretaries (August 1534), providing them with permanent salaries. This was a major innovation, and served to strengthen the Emperor's oversight over the bureaucracy. However, it also aroused opposition in the Senate, with many of the Senators believing that Lysimachus was encroaching upon their prerogatives. This served only to further poison the already perilous relationship between Lysimachus and the Senate.

⚫

*Lysimachus also sought to improve the condition of the poorest and lowliest among his subjects. He forbade any man from being imprisoned or compelled into hard labor for failing to pay off his debts (decree of August 22, 1536), and he ordered for the abolition of all private prisons within the Empire (decree of June 11, 1536), commanding for these facilities to be transferred into the custody of the College of Justice. Lysimachus also cracked down on the practice of "bounty hunting," by which men would place a price on those who they sought for punishment, or sought for the resolution of disputes, and he further restricted the practice of dueling, forbidding anyone in attendance at the Imperial Court from engaging in it.

⚫

* By the decree of January 17, 1536, Lysimachus further clarified the customary legal privileges enjoyed by the Empire's wealthiest, most prominent non-noble elites. Although they were still subjected to all of the normal methods of punishment, as were applied to other commoners, the wealthiest subjects were allowed to appeal directly to the Senate for redress of their grievances, and they were to be permitted to utilize the services of legal counsel, although they were still denied the right to employ such counsel in any proceedings or trials, concerning offenses faced by them. Moreover, the Emperor ordered that any fines levied upon these subjects could be deferred, if they voluntarily contributed their services or labor to any Imperial projects or ventures for which they might be contracted. Lysimachus also, by the decrees of March 17 and June 9, 1536, reiterated the traditional "forms" of respect and of precedence, which were to be extended to the Laurasian nobility and gentry by commoners, and the "forms" of respect which commoners were to exercise towards each other. Harsh penalties were laid out for any commoner who did not address his betters by the proper "forms," but these penalties were less severe than those which had been proscribed under previous Emperors. In addition to this, Lysimachus felt it necessary to clarify the distinction between Laurasians - who enjoyed all of the rights and privileges of subjecthood - and non-Laurasians - who enjoyed only those rights and privileges which he felt fit to grant them. This distinction, which had existed since the Empire's foundation, would be maintained until the promulgation of the ''Antonine Constitution'' in 1612.

⚫

*Moreover, the Emperor outlawed castration as a method of punishment in the Empire (manifesto of November 7, 1536), reinforcing the earlier restrictions, promulgated in 1526 and 1529, which he had laid upon the practice. Castration could now only be performed in the context of the "extreme penalty" administered to traitors who had been sentenced to death, and was considered a felony, on par with conspiracy to murder, under all other circumstances. Likewise, by the decrees of July 17, 1537 and January 1, 1538, Lysimachus laid strict restrictions upon the utilization of so-called "maiming penalties" - which included tongue ripping, eye gouging, skin branding, and feet binding - reserving these punishments only for the most heinous of criminal offenses, and only for the most egregious offenders. But Lysimachus also insisted upon the maintenance of traditional sexual and personal mores among his subjects, in spite of his own behaviors, passing decrees, in 1534, 1535, and 1536, to crack down on adultery, expand counseling for disputes between couples, and to regulate the forms and frequency of sexual relations among them. Lysimachus also enforced a strict separation of the genders at public baths and theaters, a distinction that would be maintained until the reign of Commodus, who dispensed with this restriction. Furthermore, the Emperor, between 1533 and 1536, promulgated a series of "Sumptuary Laws," regulating the attire, jewelry, and insignia that could be worn by his non-noble and non-clerical subjects. These Laws also provided extensive regulations with regards to the vehicles, armor, and devices which could be utilized by the nobility and gentry, particularly those in attendance at the Imperial Laurasian Court. These measures, taken in their sum, generally reinforced the "structures" of Laurasian society, but did so in a manner that, to some extent at least, equalized the burdens borne by the Emperor's subjects.

⚫

* Lysimachus also sought to improve the condition of the poorest and lowliest among his subjects. He forbade any man from being imprisoned or compelled into hard labor for failing to pay off his debts (decree of August 22, 1536), and he ordered for the abolition of all private prisons within the Empire (decree of June 11, 1536), commanding for these facilities to be transferred into the custody of the College of Justice. Lysimachus also cracked down on the practice of "bounty hunting," by which men would place a price on those who they sought for punishment, or sought for the resolution of disputes, and he further restricted the practice of dueling, forbidding anyone in attendance at the Imperial Court from engaging in it.

⚫

* Moreover, the Emperor outlawed castration as a method of punishment in the Empire (manifesto of November 7, 1536), reinforcing the earlier restrictions, promulgated in 1526 and 1529, which he had laid upon the practice. Castration could now only be performed in the context of the "extreme penalty" administered to traitors who had been sentenced to death, and was considered a felony, on par with conspiracy to murder, under all other circumstances. Likewise, by the decrees of July 17, 1537 and January 1, 1538, Lysimachus laid strict restrictions upon the utilization of so-called "maiming penalties" - which included tongue ripping, eye gouging, skin branding, and feet binding - reserving these punishments only for the most heinous of criminal offenses, and only for the most egregious offenders. But Lysimachus also insisted upon the maintenance of traditional sexual and personal mores among his subjects, in spite of his own behaviors, passing decrees, in 1534, 1535, and 1536, to crack down on adultery, expand counseling for disputes between couples, and to regulate the forms and frequency of sexual relations among them. Lysimachus also enforced a strict separation of the genders at public baths and theaters, a distinction that would be maintained until the reign of Commodus, who dispensed with this restriction. Furthermore, the Emperor, between 1533 and 1536, promulgated a series of "Sumptuary Laws," regulating the attire, jewelry, and insignia that could be worn by his non-noble and non-clerical subjects. These Laws also provided extensive regulations with regards to the vehicles, armor, and devices which could be utilized by the nobility and gentry, particularly those in attendance at the Imperial Laurasian Court. These measures, taken in their sum, generally reinforced the "structures" of Laurasian society, but did so in a manner that, to some extent at least, equalized the burdens borne by the Emperor's subjects.

− ⚫

=== 1537 ===

⚫

===1537===

−

* 1537, the 37th year of the sixteenth century, passed with the Laurasian Empire's dominions remaining at peace. Emperor Lysimachus, who continued to dwell at the Estates of the Remesis on Rebecca, was, however, now declining in health. In January 1537, the Emperor suffered from a bout of stomach sickness, which was accompanied by diarrhea, vomiting, and a high fever. He took a series of medicines and herbal treatments, and soon emerged from this bout. But it now elevated the fears of his subjects about the succession. Lysimachus, as had been noted above, had been trapped in an unhappy marriage with Empress Consort Vibia Sabina. By 1537, the imperial couple's relationship had deteroriated further, and they hardly saw each other anymore. Empress Sabina did not accompany Lysimachus on his last progress to Malaria, and she remained on Laurasia Prime throughout the latter years of his reign. Consequently, their marriage had remained childless, and the Emperor, who turned 61 on January 24, 1537, had little hope of becoming a father at this point.

*1537, the 37th year of the sixteenth century, passed with the Laurasian Empire's dominions remaining at peace. Emperor Lysimachus, who continued to dwell at the Estates of the Remesis on Rebecca, was, however, now declining in health. In January 1537, the Emperor suffered from a bout of stomach sickness, which was accompanied by diarrhea, vomiting, and a high fever. He took a series of medicines and herbal treatments, and soon emerged from this bout. But it now elevated the fears of his subjects about the succession. Lysimachus, as had been noted above, had been trapped in an unhappy marriage with Empress Consort Vibia Sabina. By 1537, the imperial couple's relationship had deteroriated further, and they hardly saw each other anymore. Empress Sabina did not accompany Lysimachus on his last progress to Malaria, and she remained on Laurasia Prime throughout the latter years of his reign. Consequently, their marriage had remained childless, and the Emperor, who turned 61 on January 24, 1537, had little hope of becoming a father at this point.

−

* Consequently, Lysimachus' attention now turned, during the early months of 1537, to definitively securing the succession. He now turned to Lucius Verus, 1st Duke of Constantinople (1501-38). Verus had been born on January 13, 1501, in Christiania, Laurasia Prime. He was the namesake son of Sir Lucius Verus (1465-1530) and of his wife Plautia (1471-1543). Verus had entered the Imperial Laurasian Army in 1519 and had subsequently risen through the ranks, participating in the campaigns of the Mugguthian Rebellion (1528-29), Third Northern War (1529), and the Second Donguarian Rebellion (1532-35). By 1536, he had obtained the rank of Legate-General. Two years previously, Emperor Lysimachus, who had known the young man's father, and had gained confidence in his abilities, had appointed him to the Governing Senate and made him one of his honorary Praetorian Guards. Verus, who was known for his intelligence and for his learning (he spoke seven languages, including the ancient tongues of Dasian, Marauder, Arachosian, and Millian), distinguished himself by his service in the Senate, and this further increased his credibility in the eyes of the Emperor.

*Consequently, Lysimachus' attention now turned, during the early months of 1537, to definitively securing the succession. He now turned to Lucius Verus, 1st Duke of Constantinople (1501-38). Verus had been born on January 13, 1501, in Christiania, Laurasia Prime. He was the namesake son of Sir Lucius Verus (1465-1530) and of his wife Plautia (1471-1543). Verus had entered the Imperial Laurasian Army in 1519 and had subsequently risen through the ranks, participating in the campaigns of the Mugguthian Rebellion (1528-29), Third Northern War (1529), and the Second Donguarian Rebellion (1532-35). By 1536, he had obtained the rank of Legate-General. Two years previously, Emperor Lysimachus, who had known the young man's father, and had gained confidence in his abilities, had appointed him to the Governing Senate and made him one of his honorary Praetorian Guards. Verus, who was known for his intelligence and for his learning (he spoke seven languages, including the ancient tongues of Dasian, Marauder, Arachosian, and Millian), distinguished himself by his service in the Senate, and this further increased his credibility in the eyes of the Emperor.

−

* Moreover, through his marriage to Lady Avidia Nigrania (1504-59), Verus had proved himself fertile. They had four children: their namesake son, the future Emperor Lucius Verus (r. 1561-69), who was born on December 15, 1530, in Constantinople, Laurasia Prime; Gaius (1531-37), who died in a starship accident at the age of six; Ceionia (1534-79), who was to be Neuchrus I's maternal great-great grandmother; and Plautia (1536-81). Thus, Lysimachus came to the viewpoint that, with Verus as his heir, the throne would be secure. Thus, on March 9, 1537, the Emperor formally adopted Verus, named him as his heir-apparent (in accordance with the 1322 Seleucid Statute of Succession), and elevated him to the rank of Grand Prince. Verus was now made Praetorian Prefect and Procurator-General of the Empire, and he was given responsibility for the affairs of the Imperial Household. In July 1537, Lysimachus presented Grand Prince Verus to the crowds from the balcony of Quencilvanian Palace, and on October 11, he had the Holy Synod issue a manifesto, conferring its blessings upon Verus and denouncing any who dared to challenge his title as Grand Prince and heir-apparent.

*Moreover, through his marriage to Lady Avidia Nigrania (1504-59), Verus had proved himself fertile. They had four children: their namesake son, the future Emperor Lucius Verus (r. 1561-69), who was born on December 15, 1530, in Constantinople, Laurasia Prime; Gaius (1531-37), who died in a starship accident at the age of six; Ceionia (1534-79), who was to be Neuchrus I's maternal great-great grandmother; and Plautia (1536-81). Thus, Lysimachus came to the viewpoint that, with Verus as his heir, the throne would be secure. Thus, on March 9, 1537, the Emperor formally adopted Verus, named him as his heir-apparent (in accordance with the 1322 Seleucid Statute of Succession), and elevated him to the rank of Grand Prince. Verus was now made Praetorian Prefect and Procurator-General of the Empire, and he was given responsibility for the affairs of the Imperial Household. In July 1537, Lysimachus presented Grand Prince Verus to the crowds from the balcony of Quencilvanian Palace, and on October 11, he had the Holy Synod issue a manifesto, conferring its blessings upon Verus and denouncing any who dared to challenge his title as Grand Prince and heir-apparent.

−

* Verus immersed herself in preparations for assuming the imperial dignity, and he carried out his duties in the Guards and Senate, with devotion to the Emperor and the Imperial Laurasian Government. But Verus himself was in delicate health, and in November 1537, he was forced to travel to Idyll, partaking of the spas there. Lysimachus' succession plans would shortly be thrown into disarray. But as 1537 came to an end, the Emperor was now a widower. On June 22, 1537, Empress Sabina had died at the Imperial Hospital of Quencilvanian Palace, aged fifty-four. Lysimachus had issued a manifesto to his subjects on the occasion of her death, and ordered a lavish funeral to be conducted for her at Old Westphalian Cathedral. She was interred there on August 15, 1537, although the Emperor himself did not attend either her funeral or her burial. Afterwards, he made no further mention of her, instead reserving his laments for his favorite Antinous.

*Verus immersed herself in preparations for assuming the imperial dignity, and he carried out his duties in the Guards and Senate, with devotion to the Emperor and the Imperial Laurasian Government. But Verus himself was in delicate health, and in November 1537, he was forced to travel to Idyll, partaking of the spas there. Lysimachus' succession plans would shortly be thrown into disarray. But as 1537 came to an end, the Emperor was now a widower. On June 22, 1537, Empress Sabina had died at the Imperial Hospital of Quencilvanian Palace, aged fifty-four. Lysimachus had issued a manifesto to his subjects on the occasion of her death, and ordered a lavish funeral to be conducted for her at Old Westphalian Cathedral. She was interred there on August 15, 1537, although the Emperor himself did not attend either her funeral or her burial. Afterwards, he made no further mention of her, instead reserving his laments for his favorite Antinous.

===1538===

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*Despite partaking of the spas of Idyll, receiving various herbal treatments, and adhering to a regime of medicine proscribed by the physicians of the Imperial Hospital, the pain would not abandon the Empress, and in November 1540, she suffered a minor stroke in her bedchambers. Pius, who could not bear to lose the woman who was closest to him, ordered for his physicians to redouble their efforts, and for two months, was at his wife's bedside. But it was not to be. Her death was considered a tragedy by all at the Imperial Court, and by many of the Empire's subjects. Pius issued a proclamation announcing her death to his subjects, and on February 14, had a grand funeral staged for her at Old Westphalian Cathedral. A day of mourning was proclaimed throughout the Empire, and businesses, as well as schools, were closed on the Emperor's orders to honor her memory. He held a Mass at Quencilvanian Palace in her honor, distributed largess to 50,000 of his needier subjects (with the largess deriving from the Emperor's personal revenues, rather than the Imperial Treasury), and authorized for statues, portraits, and other depictions of her to be placed at prominent public buildings and thoroughfares across the Empire.

*The Emperor, moreover, established a charity, the Girls of Faustina, in his late wife's honor, meant to assist orphaned Laurasian girls. In September 1541, he ordered for new coinage to be struck by the Imperial Treasury. This coinage was inscribed with the words "Holy Faustina" and "Patroness Faustina," and were elaborately decorated. In 1545, the Emperor would dedicate the Monastery of St. Faustina the Beloved in Christiania, and would grant it a sizable annuity, to be paid from the Imperial Patrimony. Empress Consort Faustina was interred at the Imperial Mausoleum. More than two centuries later, in 1765, Empress Aurelia would order for Faustina's grave to be repaved and redecorated, and she had a golden statue of the Empress, adorned in the garb of an Almitian adherent, erected at the gateway to the Old Royal Palace, where she had died. Faustina was also honored by her husband's successors, Antigonus II and Lucius Verus. In November 1561, they would erect the Column of Antoninus Pius, which dramatically depicted Pius and Faustina being elevated heavenward together on the back of an Angel of Almitis. Pius' grief over his wife's death was to occupy his mind for much of the remainder of 1541, and he abstained from public appearances during that time.

===1542===

*1542, the 42nd year of the sixteenth century, commenced with Emperor Antoninus Pius still in a state of grief and despair over the death of his wife and consort, Empress Galeria Faustina. In February 1542, the Emperor would issue a manifesto to his subjects, reminding them of the "very special place" which his wife had held in his heart, and enjoining them never to forget her memory. Yet Pius realized that he needed to move on, and that his wife would wish for him to do so. Thus, on March 19, he emerged from his convalescence within Quencilvanian Palace, and subsequently embarked on a progress through the Laurasian Purse Region.

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===1544===

⚫

*1544, the 44th year of the sixteenth century, commenced with the construction of New Westphalian Cathedral and Fortress of Baureux underway in earnest. Emperor Antoninus Pius, in his New Year's proclamation (January 1, 1544), asserted to his subjects that the construction of these edifices would glorify his reign, but would also be a testament to their strength and endurance against all the odds. The Emperor, in further pursuance of this goal, continued on his program of reform, which was to reach new heights in this year. Pius now focused his attention, throughout 1544, on the patrimonies of the Imperial Estates. By doing so, he sought to improve the efficiency of their operations, to clear out waste in the Imperial Household, and to streamline his bureaucracy, reasoning that it would be improved if there were a functional Imperial Court at the heart of it.

⚫

*Thus, by the decrees of February 17 and March 9, 1544, the Emperor affected the partition of the Imperial Estate's patrimonies. They were now to be divided into two equal portions. The first, to be known as the ''Imperial Patrimony'', was to consist of the properties of the Imperial Laurasian Crown. The Imperial Patrimony was now incorporated as a corporation sole, meaning that it was to belong to the Emperor of Laurasia only, not to the Imperial Laurasian Government or to any of his subjects. This ensured that the Patrimony would be the hereditary estate of each succeeding person who sat on the Laurasian throne, transmitted to his successors in the office, and therefore regarded as public domain. The second, known as the ''Personal Patrimony'', was to comprise of the "private" properties, businesses, and landholdings tied to the maintenance of the Emperor and the Imperial Family, and therefore part of the monarch's private domain. The Emperor exercised absolute power over both Patrimonies, as he did over his subjects and the Empire as a whole. But Pius sought to demonstrate, by creating this formal, legal distinction, that "what was the monarch's was the state's, and what was the state's was the monarch's."

⚫

*The partition of the Imperial Estates, served, therefore, as a consolidation of the concepts of monarchial absolutism and state capitalism within the Laurasian Empire. In August 1544, Pius reorganized the Board of the Imperial Household, which was now placed under the direction of a Lord Comptroller, to be appointed and dismissed by the Emperor directly. The Comptroller assumed responsibility for maintaining financial records of the Household's expenses, for establishing the Household's budget, and for reporting to the Emperor on any property or financial transactions connected to his Estates, as the need arose. Pius appointed Sir Marcus Larania (1490-1547) as the first Lord Comptroller of the Imperial Household. Larania, who had served as a Gentleman of the Imperial Privy Chamber (1517-25) and as Groom of the Stool (1525-38), was one of the most respected officials within the Imperial Household at the time of his appointment. He would hold the position until his death on September 5, 1547, in Christiania. Furthermore, the Board assumed direct governing powers over the Imperial Patrimony, subject to the Emperor's oversight. The Personal Patrimony, by contrast, was to be administered by the Emperor's personal secretaries and household officials. In October 1544, moreover, Pius would order for a valuation to be made of all properties, imperial and personal, owned by him directly. This valuation, beginning on November 9, 1544, and continuing until August 15, 1545, would determine that a third of the Empire's landed and commercial interests were under Pius' direct control. Pius would subsequently mandate that a valuation be made of the Patrimonies every five years. The estate reforms introduced by the Emperor were to remain in effect until the reforms of Neuchrus I in the late seventeenth century, who further elaborated upon Pius' measures.

⚫

===1545===

⚫

* 1544, the 44th year of the sixteenth century, commenced with the construction of New Westphalian Cathedral and Fortress of Baureux underway in earnest. Emperor Antoninus Pius, in his New Year's proclamation (January 1, 1544), asserted to his subjects that the construction of these edifices would glorify his reign, but would also be a testament to their strength and endurance against all the odds. The Emperor, in further pursuance of this goal, continued on his program of reform, which was to reach new heights in this year. Pius now focused his attention, throughout 1544, on the patrimonies of the Imperial Estates. By doing so, he sought to improve the efficiency of their operations, to clear out waste in the Imperial Household, and to streamline his bureaucracy, reasoning that it would be improved if there were a functional Imperial Court at the heart of it.

⚫

* Thus, by the decrees of February 17 and March 9, 1544, the Emperor affected the partition of the Imperial Estate's patrimonies. They were now to be divided into two equal portions. The first, to be known as the ''Imperial Patrimony'', was to consist of the properties of the Imperial Laurasian Crown. The Imperial Patrimony was now incorporated as a corporation sole, meaning that it was to belong to the Emperor of Laurasia only, not to the Imperial Laurasian Government or to any of his subjects. This ensured that the Patrimony would be the hereditary estate of each succeeding person who sat on the Laurasian throne, transmitted to his successors in the office, and therefore regarded as public domain. The second, known as the ''Personal Patrimony'', was to comprise of the "private" properties, businesses, and landholdings tied to the maintenance of the Emperor and the Imperial Family, and therefore part of the monarch's private domain. The Emperor exercised absolute power over both Patrimonies, as he did over his subjects and the Empire as a whole. But Pius sought to demonstrate, by creating this formal, legal distinction, that "what was the monarch's was the state's, and what was the state's was the monarch's."

⚫

* The partition of the Imperial Estates, served, therefore, as a consolidation of the concepts of monarchial absolutism and state capitalism within the Laurasian Empire. In August 1544, Pius reorganized the Board of the Imperial Household, which was now placed under the direction of a Lord Comptroller, to be appointed and dismissed by the Emperor directly. The Comptroller assumed responsibility for maintaining financial records of the Household's expenses, for establishing the Household's budget, and for reporting to the Emperor on any property or financial transactions connected to his Estates, as the need arose. Pius appointed Sir Marcus Larania (1490-1547) as the first Lord Comptroller of the Imperial Household. Larania, who had served as a Gentleman of the Imperial Privy Chamber (1517-25) and as Groom of the Stool (1525-38), was one of the most respected officials within the Imperial Household at the time of his appointment. He would hold the position until his death on September 5, 1547, in Christiania. Furthermore, the Board assumed direct governing powers over the Imperial Patrimony, subject to the Emperor's oversight. The Personal Patrimony, by contrast, was to be administered by the Emperor's personal secretaries and household officials. In October 1544, moreover, Pius would order for a valuation to be made of all properties, imperial and personal, owned by him directly. This valuation, beginning on November 9, 1544, and continuing until August 15, 1545, would determine that a third of the Empire's landed and commercial interests were under Pius' direct control. Pius would subsequently mandate that a valuation be made of the Patrimonies every five years. The estate reforms introduced by the Emperor were to remain in effect until the reforms of Neuchrus I in the late seventeenth century, who further elaborated upon Pius' measures.

− ⚫

=== 1545 ===

*1545, the 45th year of the sixteenth century, commenced with Emperor Antoninus Pius' program of reform still ongoing. The Emperor now turned his eyes to the matter of legal reform, aiming to further clarify the objections of his subjects, the legal norms governing them, and the relationship between his subjects and the Imperial Laurasian Government. As he explained in a manifesto of January 17, 1545, Pius sought to ensure that "all Laurasians can be confident about the mechanisms of justice and equity administered to them, and that there be no illusions about the role which they possess within this Empire, both as my subjects, and in regards to each other." Moreover, Pius also sought to ensure that all non-Laurasian communities, sects, and species throughout the Empire respected the authority of the Imperial Laurasian Government, that Laurasian laws took precedence over alien or local practices and traditions (aside from exemptions granted to certain favored species, such as the Venasians), and that the standards imposed by the Governing Senate, as well as the bureaucracy, were uniform.

*Consequently, the Emperor issued instructions to proconsuls, Senatorial Procurators, Governors, and Praetors throughout the Empire, commanding them to keep detailed records of all cases that came within their purview, and to always report their decisions in these cases to the Senate. But Pius did not seek to strictly adhere to all the norms of earlier Laurasian law. He was motivated by concerns over humanity and equality, and he introduced numerous principles, embodying these concepts, into the letter of Laurasian law. In carrying out these legal initiatives, the Emperor was assisted at this stage by several legal advisers. These included Sir Fulvius Aburnius Valens, 1st Baronet Valens of Texana (1499-1581) and Sir Demetrius Marcellus (1505-84). Both of these men were known for their extensive legal works. Valens was the author of ''Precedents of Laurasian Civil Law'' (1542) and of the ''Treatises on Fairness and Justness in Law'' (1551), the latter of which sought to examine how these concepts were embodied in the legal codes of not just Laurasia, but of other past and present states within the Caladarian Galaxy. Marcellus, on his part, was the publisher of the ''Galactic Legal Commentaries'', beginning in 1543, which compiled decisions handed down by the Senate and by lower courts and officials within the Empire, and analyzed them for the common lay-reader.

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*Nevertheless, the Lesian intervention proved to be a turning point, as Campsura issued a declaration of war against Anastasia on September 13. Lesian forces, stationed at Lesia Minor, Ankara, and Meridu, immediately launched their own offensives against the Anastasians. The Battle of Connelly (September 19, 1546), proved to be an undoubted success for the Laurasian-Lesian Coalition. Four days prior, Governor Urbicus of Hypasia had been reassigned by Emperor Pius to take command of Laurasian forces in the Barsar Regions. In conjunction with the Lesians, he now radically shifted the strategic dispositions which had been laid by his predecessors and renewed counteroffensives against the Anastasians with especial vigor. The Battle of Connelly was only the first sign of this. Laurasian units, cooperating with Lesian forces under the command of Admiral Teshura (1489-1555), subsequently defeated the Anastasians in confrontations at Wickersham, Esposito, and Jennifer along the Murphian Trade Spine (September 22-29, 1546). On October 7, Helen was attacked by the Coalition, and fell in quick order, with more than 600,000 Anastasian troops becoming Laurasian prisoners of war. From Helen, Governor Urbicus overran the defenses of Teutonica (October 9-15, 1546), and on October 24, blockaded Hospallia Minor.

*Hospallia Minor remained under siege until November 7, when the world fell into Laurasian possession. An Anastasian counter-thrust at Grenada (November 9-14, 1546), accomplished nothing, and Admiral Narada was humiliated by Urbicus in the Battle of Ipkit (November 20, 1546). By the end of November, the Laurasians had recovered Ginger, Strabala, and Colalenglo, and on December 4, the Anastasians were defeated again in the Battle of Michael. Strahan, Arrington, and Nicole were reconquered (December 9-15, 1546), and the Anastasians were driven from Redia (December 18) and Sejucia (December 24). By the end of 1546, the Laurasians and their Lesian allies had gained the definitive upper hand over their Anastasian adversaries.

===1547===

*1547, the 47th year of the sixteenth century, opened with the Laurasian and Neo-Anastasian Empires again at war, which had, as highlighted above, turned to the advantage of the Laurasians. On January 5, 1547, the Battle of Nestos ended in a decisive victory for Governor Urbicus. Urbicus, in conjunction with his Lesian counterpart Teshura, inflicted another crushing defeat upon Anastasian Admiral Narada, who lost fifty of his valuable ''Taddian''-class frigates. Nestos was now occupied by the Laurasian Empire, and from this stronghold, further offensives into Anastasian territory were made possible. Swabie (January 16-21), Bledsoe (January 24), and Dickerson (February 7) were besieged and conquered in turn. On February 15, the Anastasians were ejected from Heather, and on February 24, Laurasian Brigadier-General Sir Valerius Mauricius (1696-1585), wiped out an Anastasian army under the command of General Sula (1499-1547) in the Battle of Graham. Sula himself was killed.

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*The Siege of Anastasia Minor commenced on August 11, 1547, and was conducted by the 22nd Imperial Laurasian Fleet, along with the 1st Grand Lesian Fleet. The Anastasian fleets and garrison of Anastasia Minor were outnumbered nearly two-to-one, but were under strict orders from Emperor Narvada to not surrender. Thus, the Siege dragged on for nearly two months, as the Anastasians harried the Coalition supply lines and even managed to temporarily overrun some of the Coalition positions, in the outskirts of the star system. But Anastasia Minor was doomed, nonetheless, and on October 9, it fell to the Coalition. Urbicus and Admiral Teshura now engaged on a blazing path of conquest, as a succession of Anastasian worlds fell before them. Hospallia Minor (October 11-14), Hospallia Major (October 22), Al-Pushim (November 1), and Tong (November 12), were subdued in their turn, and Laurasian units also penetrated to the outskirts of Anastasia Major itself (December 1547). 1547 ended with the advantage firmly with the Coalition.

−

=== 1548 ===

===1548===

⚫

*During 1548, the 48th year of the sixteenth century, the run of Coalition successes against the Neo-Anastasian Empire continued. On January 17, 1548, the Battle of Jonathan ended in victory for Governor-General Urbicus and Admiral Teshura, who captured more than 150,000 Anastasian troops, along with one hundred ''Armus''-class Anastasian armored transports. Admiral Tarada was able to gain a minor victory at Marie (January 25, 1548), to reconquer Tong (February 7-19, 1548), and even, on February 24, to penetrate into the outskirts of Ginger. But this Anastasian counter-thrust quickly fizzled, and in a series of battles in the Straits of the Depot Mists (March 1548), Urbicus and Teshura regained the upper hand. On April 15, 1548, the Battle of Keristen ended in another victory for the Allied Coalition, and paved the way to their conquest of Aletis (April 22), Jacksonian Backory (May 1-9), and Caesearea (May 15).

⚫

*In June 1548, Tarada launched yet another counteroffensive, this time directed against Al-Pushim, but this thrust came to a ruinous halt in the Battle of Al-Makary (June 24, 1548). Laurasian units subsequently subdued the Anastasian garrisons of Scheiffer (July 4), Arnell (July 16), and Dubois (July 22), and on August 5, the Anastasian intelligence garrison at Lindsay was captured and destroyed by Imperial Marines. In September 1548, Borgia was besieged and conquered by Governor-General Urbicus, and on October 11, Meridu also fell into his possession. On November 19, 1548, Brennan also fell into Laurasian hands. By the latter weeks of December 1548, Anastasia Major itself was under threat from the Empire's forces, and it now dawned upon Narvada that the war lost. Thus, he began contemplating negotiations with the Laurasians and Lesians, as 1548 ended.

⚫

===1549===

⚫

* During 1548, the 48th year of the sixteenth century, the run of Coalition successes against the Neo-Anastasian Empire continued. On January 17, 1548, the Battle of Jonathan ended in victory for Governor-General Urbicus and Admiral Teshura, who captured more than 150,000 Anastasian troops, along with one hundred ''Armus''-class Anastasian armored transports. Admiral Tarada was able to gain a minor victory at Marie (January 25, 1548), to reconquer Tong (February 7-19, 1548), and even, on February 24, to penetrate into the outskirts of Ginger. But this Anastasian counter-thrust quickly fizzled, and in a series of battles in the Straits of the Depot Mists (March 1548), Urbicus and Teshura regained the upper hand. On April 15, 1548, the Battle of Keristen ended in another victory for the Allied Coalition, and paved the way to their conquest of Aletis (April 22), Jacksonian Backory (May 1-9), and Caesearea (May 15).

⚫

*As 1549, the 49th year of the sixteenth century, opened, the Laurasian-Anastasian War of 1546-49 was now drawing to a conclusion. As mentioned above, Neo-Anastasian Emperor Narvada II had come to the realization that the war with Laurasia was lost, and that he needed to conclude peace now, before his realms were completely destroyed. Thus, on January 15, 1549, the Neo-Anastasian Emperor submitted a request for a military armistice to Emperor Pius and to King Campsura. Pius, who was satisified by the victories of his military commanders, and believing that he had enhanced the Empire's territorial position in the Barsar Regions, quickly accepted the Anastasian armistice request. King Campsura, on his part, was not so assured, and sought to make further gains for Lesia. But the power imbalance between Laurasia and Lesia was now revealed, as Pius ignored the King of Lesia's complaints and moved forward with the conclusion of peace. Campsura eventually realized that he could do nothing more, and on January 28, he too accepted Narvada's request for a military armistice.

⚫

* In June 1548, Tarada launched yet another counteroffensive, this time directed against Al-Pushim, but this thrust came to a ruinous halt in the Battle of Al-Makary (June 24, 1548). Laurasian units subsequently subdued the Anastasian garrisons of Scheiffer (July 4), Arnell (July 16), and Dubois (July 22), and on August 5, the Anastasian intelligence garrison at Lindsay was captured and destroyed by Imperial Marines. In September 1548, Borgia was besieged and conquered by Governor-General Urbicus, and on October 11, Meridu also fell into his possession. On November 19, 1548, Brennan also fell into Laurasian hands. By the latter weeks of December 1548, Anastasia Major itself was under threat from the Empire's forces, and it now dawned upon Narvada that the war lost. Thus, he began contemplating negotiations with the Laurasians and Lesians, as 1548 ended.

⚫

*The Armistice of Elaine was then signed (February 7, 1549), and the following month, a diplomatic conference was convened, between Laurasia, Neo-Anastasia, and Lesia, at Armenia Major. Governor-General Urbicus was made the leader of the Laurasian delegation to the Armenia Conference, while Prince Gampsura and Admiral Teshura were designated by King Campsura as the Lesian plenipotentiaries. Neo-Anastasian Emperor Narvada, on his part, named his Chief Minister, Prince Yeshura (1505-64), as his diplomatic representative. Negotiations at Elaine, beginning from March 14, dragged on for over two months, as the respective delegations wrangled over the terms of the peace settlement. Ultimately, the Treaty of Armenia Major (May 19, 1549), was signed. Ratified by Emperor Pius on May 22, by King Campsura on May 25, and by Emperor Narvada on June 1, the Treaty brought the Laurasian-Anastasian War of 1546-49 to a close.

− ⚫

*By the terms of the treaty, the Laurasian Empire's jurisdiction over the outer Durant Cluster, as well as the disputed Trans-Durant Colonies of Muir, Pierre, Thomas, Chelsea, and Durant, was acknowledged. Moreover, Laurasia gained undisputed posssession of Sejucia, Ruumlist, Heather, Graham, Ginger, Zee, Zoo, and Stephanopoulos. Lesia, on its part, secured minor territorial concessions in the form of Brynn, Carman, Merry, Kasia, and Kerridge (the "Krodian Outposts," as they were known), and was to be compensated for its military expenses. Laurasian and Lesian merchants obtained "most favored nation" status, including duty-free tarriffs for a period of five years and rights of free passage, in Anastasian territory. The Anastasians agreed to not conclude any treaties or other alliances detrimental to the interests of Laurasia and Lesia, to create a demilitarization zone encompassing Bledsoe, Swabie, Dickerson, Scheiffer, Arnell, and Dubois, and to limit the size of their military forces. In return, Pius and Campsura restored all other occupied Anastasian territories back to Narvada's authority. Coalition forces were to be withdrawn from those territories by no later than the end of September 1549.

⚫

=== 1549 ===

⚫

*The Treaty of Armenia Major thus constituted an additional triumph for the Laurasian Empire, which had further extended itself into the Barsar Regions, and was a humiliation for the Neo-Anastasian Empire. Governor-General Urbicus received a hero's welcome at Laurasia Prime in August 1549, and Emperor Pius ordered his subjects to celebrate the victory. His officials distributed largesse to crowds gathered at prominent locations throughout the Empire, and the Emperor himself conducted a series of triumphal Games at the Flavian Amphitheater, to further highlight the Laurasian victories. In November 1549, he was to commission the Arch of Antoninus Pius. Completed in 1553, it would be endorned with scenes from the War, along with Almitian and Imperial Laurasian symbols. Peace now returned to the Empire as 1549 came to its close.

− ⚫

* As 1549, the 49th year of the sixteenth century, opened, the Laurasian-Anastasian War of 1546-49 was now drawing to a conclusion. As mentioned above, Neo-Anastasian Emperor Narvada II had come to the realization that the war with Laurasia was lost, and that he needed to conclude peace now, before his realms were completely destroyed. Thus, on January 15, 1549, the Neo-Anastasian Emperor submitted a request for a military armistice to Emperor Pius and to King Campsura. Pius, who was satisified by the victories of his military commanders, and believing that he had enhanced the Empire's territorial position in the Barsar Regions, quickly accepted the Anastasian armistice request. King Campsura, on his part, was not so assured, and sought to make further gains for Lesia. But the power imbalance between Laurasia and Lesia was now revealed, as Pius ignored the King of Lesia's complaints and moved forward with the conclusion of peace. Campsura eventually realized that he could do nothing more, and on January 28, he too accepted Narvada's request for a military armistice.

⚫

* The Armistice of Elaine was then signed (February 7, 1549), and the following month, a diplomatic conference was convened, between Laurasia, Neo-Anastasia, and Lesia, at Armenia Major. Governor-General Urbicus was made the leader of the Laurasian delegation to the Armenia Conference, while Prince Gampsura and Admiral Teshura were designated by King Campsura as the Lesian plenipotentiaries. Neo-Anastasian Emperor Narvada, on his part, named his Chief Minister, Prince Yeshura (1505-64), as his diplomatic representative. Negotiations at Elaine, beginning from March 14, dragged on for over two months, as the respective delegations wrangled over the terms of the peace settlement. Ultimately, the Treaty of Armenia Major (May 19, 1549), was signed. Ratified by Emperor Pius on May 22, by King Campsura on May 25, and by Emperor Narvada on June 1, the Treaty brought the Laurasian-Anastasian War of 1546-49 to a close.

⚫

* By the terms of the treaty, the Laurasian Empire's jurisdiction over the outer Durant Cluster, as well as the disputed Trans-Durant Colonies of Muir, Pierre, Thomas, Chelsea, and Durant, was acknowledged. Moreover, Laurasia gained undisputed posssession of Sejucia, Ruumlist, Heather, Graham, Ginger, Zee, Zoo, and Stephanopoulos. Lesia, on its part, secured minor territorial concessions in the form of Brynn, Carman, Merry, Kasia, and Kerridge (the "Krodian Outposts," as they were known), and was to be compensated for its military expenses. Laurasian and Lesian merchants obtained "most favored nation" status, including duty-free tarriffs for a period of five years and rights of free passage, in Anastasian territory. The Anastasians agreed to not conclude any treaties or other alliances detrimental to the interests of Laurasia and Lesia, to create a demilitarization zone encompassing Bledsoe, Swabie, Dickerson, Scheiffer, Arnell, and Dubois, and to limit the size of their military forces. In return, Pius and Campsura restored all other occupied Anastasian territories back to Narvada's authority. Coalition forces were to be withdrawn from those territories by no later than the end of September 1549.

⚫

* The Treaty of Armenia Major thus constituted an additional triumph for the Laurasian Empire, which had further extended itself into the Barsar Regions, and was a humiliation for the Neo-Anastasian Empire. Governor-General Urbicus received a hero's welcome at Laurasia Prime in August 1549, and Emperor Pius ordered his subjects to celebrate the victory. His officials distributed largesse to crowds gathered at prominent locations throughout the Empire, and the Emperor himself conducted a series of triumphal Games at the Flavian Amphitheater, to further highlight the Laurasian victories. In November 1549, he was to commission the Arch of Antoninus Pius. Completed in 1553, it would be endorned with scenes from the War, along with Almitian and Imperial Laurasian symbols. Peace now returned to the Empire as 1549 came to its close.

===1550===

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*Emperor Pius was enraged when he learned of this assault, and he ordered Laurasian units under the command of Admiral Suetonius Nurmedia (1504-64), to instigate a counteroffensive into the Galactic Void. Nurmedia was able to capture a convoy of Haynsian scoutships at Gashan (March 1553), recovered some of the lost minerals and goods in another confrontation at the Belts of Halla (April 7, 1553), and drove off another Haynsian raid against the devastated Karti (April 21-28). However, he was unable to stop a third Haynsian raiding operation, this time against Olbica (May 5, 1553). Olbica, like Karti, had been colonized in 1489 by the Zannius Consortium, and by 1553, had become a prominent agricultural and commercial hub. It had a population of over thirty million sentients and was dominated by the central Market of Fen. The Haynsians, once again commanded by Kashim-Karany, were able to evade Nurmedia's squadrons and to penetrate Olbica's defenses. Ten million Laurasian colonists died, were wounded, or captured, and the Market of Fen was demolished. An additional $50 trillion ''denarii'' in damage was incurred as a result of this offensive.

*Kashim-Karany, however, was unable to escape into the Galactic Void, as Nurmedia intercepted him at the minor star system of Mallory (May 9, 1553). The ensuing Battle of Mallory ended in a decisive victory for the Laurasians. Kashim-Karany was captured, becoming the first Haynsian commander ever to become a Laurasian prisoner of war (he would be subsequently imprisoned at the Secret Prison of Ipsus V, and would remain there until his death on June 17, 1558), and more than eighty of his scoutships were destroyed, damaged, or captured by the Imperial Laurasian Navy. The Laurasian captives taken from Olbica were freed from their chains. With this, the Haynsian Expedition of 1553 came to an end. Admiral Nurmedia was subsequently honored by the Emperor, who conferred upon him the Order of St. Antiochus the Great (August 1553), and granted him the honor of a triumph in the Laurasia Prime star system. Karti and Olbica would be restored in subsequent decades. They would be subjected to further Haynsian raids in 1561, 1569, 1579, 1598, and 1614, but none of these would ever be as severe or as extensive as that of 1553. The latter months of 1553 again saw the Empire's dominions return to a state of tranquility, and no further Haynsian raids into Laurasian territory would be launched until after Pius' death.

===1554===

*1554, the 54th year of the sixteenth century, was marked by two significant events. The first of these was the emergence of anti-Laurasian disturbances on Angelica Major, Eric, Shineski, and Iverman (March 1554). These disturbances, aroused by protests against the taxation practices of Laurasian officials in those star systems, led to the destruction of the Laurasian Garrison in Kamara City, the second-largest city on Angelica Major, and to the deaths of 75,000 Laurasian navigators at the Markets of Electronica, which was one of the largest and most important commercial exchanges within the Angelican Provinces. But the disturbances came to an end with the arrival of the new Governor of Angelica Major, Sir Caius Popillius Pedo (1510-94). Pedo, who had entered the Imperial Laurasian Navy in 1528, had held several important military commands in the Empire's service during the preceding decades.

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*Pius, who had not been seriously challenged from within the Imperial Laurasian Government before, was alarmed, but nevertheless acted swiftly. Within hours, both Priscanus and Tufus had been arrested and confined to the Post Settlement of Hepudermia, while the Guards, Senators, Councilors, and courtiers loyal to them had also been rounded up and incarcerated at the Post Setttlement and other imperial prisons within and beyond the Laurasia Prime star system. In a proclamation from the Imperial Court (February 19, 1556), the Emperor formally announced the charges laid against these men, who were accused of treason, conspiracy, and ''lèse-majesté''. He declared that Priscanus and Tufus would be tried by their peers in the Senate. The Senators were interrogated by the Emperor's officials, including his Chancellor Willanius Editrania, Bishop of Jadia (1499-1566), who had assumed office on January 7, 1556, and was to remain in office until his retirement in August 1563. Following this interrogation, their Senatorial trial was conducted on March 8.

*After just two hours of proceedings, they were found guilty by their former colleagues and convicted on all charges laid against them. On March 19, 1556, both were executed at the Post Settlement, in front of a crowd of 120,000 spectators. Emperor Pius then conducted a purge of the Imperial Court, the Praetorian Guards, and the Councils of State, determined to root out any who were hostile to him. This process began in April 1556 and lasted for several months, concluding in November of that year. As a result of it, 12 Senators, 5 Synostic Councilors, 10,000 Guardsmen, and over three hundred Household officials, including the men who had already been arrested and imprisoned along with Priscanus and Tufus, were punished, either with perpetual imprisonment, exile, banishment from Laurasia Prime, or in extreme cases, execution. Due to this entire experience, Pius became more paranoid and more distrustful of his officials, court, and confidantes, and the Emperor increasingly spent time alone, at his personal library, his parks, and within his bedchambers. His physical decline became more pronounced in the succeeding years.

===1557===

*1557, the 57th year of the sixteenth century, saw the Laurasian Empire's dominions restored to internal tranquility once again. Emperor Pius had successfully suppressed the Priscanian-Tufian Conspiracy, as recounted above, and was to face no other challenges to his authority, in such a manner, during the closing years of his reign. To underscore the prosperity which now encompassed his realms, Pius commissioned the construction of the Obelisk of Tranquility in Soriana, Laurasia Prime (February 1557). Construction on the Obelisk actually commenced on March 9, and lasted until May 1, when it was dedicated by the Emperor in a formal ceremony attended by his heirs, Grand Princes Faustina and Verus, and by the members of the Councils of State, as well as most of the personages of the Imperial Laurasian Court. One notable personage was absent, however: General Urbicus.

*The General's health had entered a serious decline in April 1557, and although he had retreated to Idyll, to partake of the famous spas there, that had done nothing to alleviate the decline in his condition. Emperor Pius, who was truly concerned about his trusted commander's condition, ordered for his own physicians to administer treatments to him, and in so doing, to do "their utmost" to bolster and maintain his health. But this too, proved a useless endeavor, and Urbicus ultimately returned to Laurasia Prime on May 14, retreating to his residence in Christiania, Urbican House. His health continued its steady decline, and he was visited by the Emperor at intervals. Finally, on August 4, 1557, General Urbicus died, aged fifty-five. The General's death was received poorly by the Emperor, and he engaged in a fit of public wailing. Pius now ordered for Urbicus to be given a grand funeral at the Imperial Chapel of Quencilvanian Palace (for New Westphalian Cathedral was still under construction). This funeral was conducted on August 26. Urbicus was subsequently interred in his family plot in Heliotrope (September 13, 1557). In October 1557, Pius issued a proclamation hailing the General's merits, and in January 1561, his remains would be transferred to New Westphalian Cathedral. In November 1557, the Emperor made a detour to Clancia, but returned to Laurasia Prime in due order and stayed there. He would not depart from his capital world for over three years, until shortly before his final illness.

===1558===

*1558, the 58th year of the sixteenth century, passed uneventfully for the Laurasian Empire. Emperor Pius, in the aftermath of the death of General Urbicus, convalesced at Quencilvanian Palace, and limited his involvement in public entertainments or in ceremonies of state. Yet he persisted with his program of reform, and nowhere was this more evident than with his appointment on February 11, 1558, of Sir Lucius Volsius Maecianus (1510-75), to become Procurator-General of the Empire. Maecianus, who had been born at Conservan on August 11, 1510, was one of the most respected jurists and legal academics within the Empire. He had received his J.D. from the University of Laurasia Prime in 1532, at the age of twenty-two, making him one of the youngest individuals in Laurasian history to have obtained an academic degree of that kind and nature. Maecianus had subsequently become a professor at the Imperial Jurisprudence Academy, and remained on the Academy's staff for nearly 20 years. Then in August 1551, he had been appointed to the Governing Senate by Emperor Pius, and had subsequently taken charge of the Senatorial Archives. Now, Maecianus was called upon by Pius to become his chief legal adviser.

*The new Procurator-General invested his energy in the creation of new legal guidebooks, for the Academies, the Senate's clerks, and for notaries public, paralegals, and other lower-level legal officials throughout the Empire. In this endeavor, he had the support of Pius, who sought to further clarify the principles of Laurasian law, to make such principles clear to his subjects, and in so doing, to ensure the stability and integrity of the Empire's legal system. Maecianus' primary work was to be his ''Fideicommissum'' (Monograph on Trusts), which he began in April 1558. The ''Fideicomissum'', which would be completed in January 1561, consisted of sixteen books and would be considered one of the most authoritative works ever produced by a Laurasian legal scholar. Smaller works by Maecianus included the ''Judicia Publica'' (1559) and the ''Rhodian Treatises'' (1562), published after Pius' death. The ''Judicia Publica'' sought to compile all psychological, mental, and psychiatric aspects, terms, and regulations relating to trials, sentences, and Laurasian legal processes, while the ''Rhodian Treatises'' provided a definitive summation and analysis of the basic principles of Laurasian astrographic and maritime law.

*In October 1558, moreover, Maecianus ordered for the construction of a new Archives House in Christiania, recognizing that the Senatorial Palace did not contain enough space for the Archives as they existed. The Archives House would be completed in September 1560 and would be considered one of the grandest architectural achievements of the sixteenth century, below the Fortress of Baureux and New Westphalian Cathedral. Finally, Maecianus worked to improve the efficiency of the Senate's sessions. He built close relationships between and with his fellow Senators, reported dilligently on their affairs to the Emperor, and sought to provide them with consistent and persistent reminders of their duties. In all aspects, Maecianus succeeded, and he would remain Procurator-General until his retirement in July 1566, during the reign of Antigonus II and Lucius Verus. He would subsequently retire to Caladaria and would die there on June 9, 1575, at the age of sixty-five.

===1559===

*1559, the 59th year of the sixteenth century, witnessed a swift and rapid territorial expansion for Laurasia, after years of quiescence and inertia on the Empire's part. This was occasioned by the death of the last Great King of Lesia, Campsura II (January 16, 1559). Campsura had remained a Laurasian vassal since submitting to Emperor Pius in September 1554, as described above. During the last years of his life, his health had declined, even more severely then had Pius', and he had been unable to provide for the succession in his realms. This now gave the opportunity to Emperor Pius. The Emperor of Laurasia was determined to consolidate the Laurasian position in the Central Barsar Regions. Moreover, he sought for a further buttress against the Neo-Anastasians, who remained an enemy to Laurasia. Thus, in February 1559, Pius refused to acknowledge the claims of Lesian Prince Hampsura (1535-98), to the throne of Lesia, and he ordered for the Imperial Laurasian Military to advance into Lesian territories.

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*More than $1.2 quadrillion ''denarii'' worth of Laurasian goods, equipment, and arms were seized by the Dejanicans during this first raiding offensive. Emperor Antigonus and his military commanders had been particularly alarmed by this first Dejanican intrusion; the Laurasian Ambassador to the Court of Dejanica Major, Sir Phocas Ereasius (1511-78), posted a formal diplomatic protest to the King and the Dejanican Diet. Sig'sio Augustus, however, rejected these claims, and during the course of the next four years, Dejanican units would harry the Lysimachid Barrier Defenses, penetrating to Emerson, Ambarac, Spencer, Coleman, and Londarania. This thereby irritated the Imperial Laurasian Government. In November 1566, a Dejanican-Lavellan force invaded Ho Chi Minh, Saigon, and Hanoi; the former two star systems briefly fell into Dejanican possession, and the third was blockaded from its supply lines, but Laurasian General Cassius was ultimately able to terminate this expedition. 1566 ended with hostilities thus evident between the Laurasian Empire and the Dejanican-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

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=== 1567 ===

===1567===

*As 1567, the 67th year of the sixteenth century, began, the Laurasian Empire found that its Borderland Territories were under threat from foreign enemies. In January 1567, Hypasia Minor, Huerta Mongol, and Qu'emia fell under the assault of Dejanican units; they seized more than 200,000 captives and collected intelligence information on the state of Laurasian defenses in that region. Compounded to this was the Marasharite Empire's moves into Laurasian territory. As early as November 1565, Marasharite intelligence units had appeared in the vicinity of Roxuli, Abraham, Zoe, Skyler, and Lincoln, thereby collecting information on the defenses of those systems for the Grand Council. From March to September 1566, Massanay, Sassanay, Cibourney, the Western Redoubt, and Angelica Minor were threatened by a Marasharite naval task-force; Marasharite units also sacked the defenses of Leopolodia. On September 5, 1566, Marasharite Emperor Suleyman I, who was then conducting his last campaigns in Royal Hungary, died at Szigetvár, aged seventy-two. His son Selim II now acceded to the throne (r. 1566-74), and became determined to launch his Empire's military forces into a major confrontation with the Laurasian foe. Thus it was that on March 9, 1567, the Emperor of Marasharita summoned the Laurasian Ambassador, Sir Basilicus Asatius (1500-69), to his presence, and issued a formal ultimatum to him.

*In this ultimatum, the Marasharite Emperor demanded that the government of "Their Imperial Majesties of Laurasia" concede the Angelican Provinces, Western Redoubt, Roxuli, and Abraham to the authority of the Marasharite Empire; that the Emperors of Laurasia restore all territories which they had gained from the Mellorite Empire the previous year; that they limit the military garrisons deployed in the Hypasian Provinces; and that they recognize Marasharite rights to the rule of the Satian Provinces, and their expeditions in the Wild Marshes. Ambassador Asatius, alarmed by this series of insolent demands, refused; on March 19, therefore, Selim had him imprisoned at the Seven Towers of Topacia, and ordered the Grand Council to issue a formal declaration of war against the Empire. Thus the Borderlands Wars commenced, which were to drag on throughout the last decade of Antigonus II's reign.

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*He staged lavish and expensive festivities at the ''Circus Maximus'' and the Flavian Amphitheater for the benefit of his subjects; presided over the official processions, religious festivals, and public banquets in the city of Christiania; and patronized musicians, artists, writers, actors, performers, and the like at the Imperial Court. Moreover, the Emperor, by the decrees of June 8 and July 19, 1581, lifted many of the onerous property and public levy duties which had been imposed upon his subjects; expanded vacation and paid-leave privileges for the servants of the Imperial Household; and increased the number of holidays on the public calendar. He also staged a memorable occasion, in October 1581, in which more than $20 trillion ''denarii'' worth of largesse was distributed to the Empire's subjects in all of the cities and settlements of Laurasia Prime. These measures earned him the loyalty of the common populace, which he was to retain throughout most of his reign. Yet new issues were brewing for the Emperor.

*Grand Princess Lucilla, who loathed her brother's lack of concern for the governmental administration of the Empire, and disagreed strongly with his decision to end the Borderlands War, now became involved in a conspiracy against him. This was further fueled by disputes between her and Empress Consort Bruttia, who demanded absolute obedience from all of the ladies of the Imperial Court, including the Emperor's sister. Beginning in November 1581, the Grand Princess became engaged in planning her conspiracy, holding meetings with fellow nobles and personages of her own household in Colombia, Ostia, and Osraninpolis; withdrawing more than $14 trillion ''denarii'' from her personal accounts, and sending her agents among the Praetorian Guards, attempting to stir them up in her support. In this, she was assisted by Sir Marcus Annianus (1538-82), a Governing Senator and one of the wealthiest gentlemen in the Empire, owning estates in star systems from Taurasia and Aquilionia to Hunt Minor and Gedrosia Max, and by Sir Appius Quintianus (1545-82), a Captain of the Praetorian Guards who had served under Lucilla's father, Emperor Antigonus II himself. It would later be alleged that the Grand Princess was engaged in an affair with both of these personages. 1581 ended with the Empire's dominions on the brink of a potential palace coup.

===1582===

*1582, the 82nd year of the sixteenth century, began with the Laurasian Empire's dominions still at peace, but with conspiracy brewing at the Imperial Laurasian Court. This conspiracy, as noted above, was the work of Emperor Commodus' elder sister, Grand Princess Lucilla. In January 1582, Emperor Commodus embarked on a tour of Oxia Vixius, Ralina Vixius, Americana, and Charasia. Whilst this minor progress was underway, Lucilla became further determined to act against his brother, and she became convinced that the chief figures of the Imperial Court and Government would easily be won over to her cause. It was not until March 9, however, that the Grand Princess finalized her plans. Annianus and Quintianus were to lead a party of Praetorian Guards and Imperial Marines to assassinate the Emperor while he attended a performance at the Galactic Opera.

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*Nevertheless, Cleander sought to demonstrate that all avenues of patronage were his. He lavished Vesvour, Pertinax, General Albinus, and the suffects of Christiania with numerous gifts, estates, and titles; in June 1589, the Chancellor was "awarded" Livadian Resort, the Estate of Calmos, and Fortunata Mansion by Emperor Commodus, and set upon developing these properties for his own use. In August 1589, Brigadier-General Sir Demetrius Severus, the future Emperor (who was then forty-four years old), and was a veteran of every Laurasian conflict since the Mellorite War of 1563-66, was promoted to the rank of Major-General and named one of the suffects of the City of Christiania. Severus was also appointed to the Praetorian Guards and became a confidante of the Chancellor's. Cleander remained dominant within the Empire as 1589 drew to a close.

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=== 1590 ===

===1590===

*As 1590, the 90th year of the sixteenth century, commenced, Emperor Commodus' regime, in general, had become widely unpopular throughout the realms of the Empire. The Emperor himself, who was growing increasingly paranoid, continued to indulge himself in athletic and courtly pursuits, and neglected the affairs of state. Although he maintained the support of the common populace, he had lost it among the nobles, government officials, and courtiers of the Empire, failing to inspire their respect, loyalty, or affection. They compared him unfavorably to his father and to the other rulers of the Nervian Dynasty. Many of the Empire's elites considered Commodus to be one of the worst rulers in Laurasian history, on par with Antiochus III, Antiochus IV, Didius Julianus, or Honorius the Terrible; and that the Empire was disgraced with his presence. What incensed their opinions against him even more was that he allowed Chancellor Cleander to assume so much control over the affairs of the Empire, and laid no restraint on his actions. Tensions were boiling.

*On January 22, 1590, a notable incident occurred at the Imperial Academy of the Arts, where the Chancellor was dedicating the new Pavarian Gallery of Sculptures and Models. There, a crowd of unruly commoners denounced the Emperor's favorite, calling him a "beggar, liar, plunderer, coward, and consort of the Anti-Almitis" and demanding his head. Cleander had his guards disperse the unruly crowd; many of the crowd's members would be imprisoned at the Fortress of Baureux, the Post Settlement of Hepudermia, and the Neuron Plantita Station. During February and March 1590, a series of manifestos were circulated on the galactic media, decrying Cleander and providing a list of his "crimes." The Chancellor's efforts to suppress this libelous material did nothing. Events were swiftly turning against the Chancellor. On April 6, 1590, Christiania's high-rail system was disrupted by a series of failures in the city's transportation computer systems.

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*By August 9, Severus had regained control of all the strongholds which Percius had seized. He made his formal return to Laurasia Prime (October 7, 1603), after having conducted tours through Ashlgothia in order to suppress any further challenges to his authority. The Emperor was received with adoration by his subjects, and he conducted a formal triumph in the quadrants of the City of Christiania. Chancellor and Praetorian Prefect Plautianus took charge of staging the ceremonies. In spite of the central role which he had played in negotiating the Treaty of Littleton, which had ended the First Laurasian-Scottrian War, Plautianus was by now deeply unpopular with the Empire's subjects. This was due to the excessive influence which he wielded over Severus; to his accumulation of wealth, titles, and estates for himself, his family, and his associates; and also, his own petty cruelties, rapacity, and personal vindictiveness. Plautianus was known for taking pleasure in inflicting pain and suffering upon those who had crossed him, and he was at the center of many conspiracies within the Imperial Court.

*For the time being, however, Severus ignored the complaints. In November 1603, he commissioned the construction of the Arch of Demetrius Severus, to commemorate the successful conclusion of the war. Work on the Arch began on December 7, 1603, and it would be finished in July 1604. The Arch's spandrels were crowned by flying Victorias - or female Angels of the Lord Paul of Almitis - iconography meant to convey the depth and significance of the Emperor's military victories. Beneath these spandrels were four statues, representing the four seasons. Prisoners of war were depicted on the pedestals nearest to the ground floor. Visitors to the Arch would be immediately confronted with these images, and be reminded of Demetrius Severus' glory, and of the glory of his Dynasty and the Laurasian Empire. Some of the prisoners were depicted with gloomy faces, and others were shown bound, being led by Laurasian soldiers into captivity. The spoils obtained by the Emperor and his forces during the Dejanican, Mellorite, and Marasharite Wars of the 1590s was depicted, and the Arch consisted of four relief panels depicting many of the major battles of those wars. Emperor Severus also initiated the construction of the ''Demizodium'' (or Demetrian Gateway), which was intended to be a decorative façade, or nymphaeum, that would serve as a further visual reminder of his glory, and provide an additional entry point into the central squares of the City of Christiania. The ''Demizodium'' was divided into seven parts and consisted of statues honoring the Lord Almitis, Paul of Almitis, and six of Paul's leading adherents - David, Constantine, Mark, Lucius, Theodore, Modestus, and Antigenes. The ''Demizodium'' - which was a more elaborate and extensive project than the Arch of Demetrius Severus - would not be completed until August 1610. With these projects underway, Emperor Severus, along with Empress Julia, Grand Princes Caracalla and Geta, and the Imperial Court, held Ascentmas festivities at Quencilvanian Palace. 1603 ended on a positive note for the Laurasian Empire.

−

*On May 9, 1603, the future Emperor Elagabalus the Loathsome (r. 1618-22) was born in Emacia City, Doracia, of the Permian Province in the Laurasian Empire. Doracia had been originally colonized by the Dasian Golden Horde in 889 during the reign of Khan Kalanbuga, and had been rehabilitated as a Laurasian colony during ~~the reign of~~ Antiochus the Great in the fourteenth century. Elagabalus was the son of Sir Sextus Varius Marcellus (1565-1615), who served as a Senatorial Procurator in Christiania (1603-08), became a Governing Senator in 1611, and then was made Governor of Malaria Prime. His mother was Lady Julia Soaemias (1581-1622), niece of the Emperor and his wife, Julia Domna, through her mother, Domna's older sister Julia Maesa (1557-1626). Elagabalus was to become one of the most despised rulers in all of Laurasian history, and his reign would be viewed as laying the foundations for the Almitian Church's decline during the remainder of the seventeenth century. This would ultimately culminate in the Almitian Reformation during the reigns of Antigonus III, Demetrius II, and Aurelia I.

*On May 9, 1603, the future Emperor Elagabalus the Loathsome (r. 1618-22) was born in Emacia City, Doracia, of the Permian Province in the Laurasian Empire. Doracia had been originally colonized by the Dasian Golden Horde in 889 during the reign of Khan Kalanbuga (r. 885-91), and had been rehabilitated as a Laurasian colony during Antiochus the Great's reign in the fourteenth century. Elagabalus was the son of Sir Sextus Varius Marcellus (1565-1615), who served as a Senatorial Procurator in Christiania (1603-08), became a Governing Senator in 1611, and then was made Governor of Malaria Prime. His mother was Lady Julia Soaemias (1581-1622), niece of the Emperor and his wife, Julia Domna, through her mother, Domna's older sister Julia Maesa (1557-1626). Elagabalus was to become one of the most despised rulers in all of Laurasian history, and his reign would be viewed as laying the foundations for the Almitian Church's decline during the remainder of the seventeenth century. This would ultimately culminate in the Third Almitian Reformation during the reigns of Antigonus III, Demetrius II, and Aurelia I.

===1604===

*1604, the fourth year of the seventeenth century, passed with the Laurasian Emprie's dominions persisting in a state of both internal and external tranquility. The only significant event that occurred this year was the birth (May 27, 1604), of the future Emperor Philip I (r. 1644-49). He was born as Marcus Philippus in Strabtha, Millard, as the eldest son of Sir Macrinus Philippus (1571-1640) and of his wife Didymeia (1578-1636). Strabtha had been founded by Lysimachus I in 1519, as a civil colony for Laurasian and other Core colonists who had immigrated to Millard following the final annexation of the Huntite Caliphate. Sir Macrinus was one of the most prominent Laurasians on Millard, and was responsible for the establishment of the Philippian Wax Museum (1608), which became one of the most curious institutions of its kind within the Laurasian Empire. Lady Didymeia, on her part, was a prominent actress, playwright, and poet, who had gained particular notice for her performance in ''Iona'' (1599) and ''Appius and Virginia'' (1602), and was also known for her ''Sapphic Eulogies'' (1606), considered to be a masterful work of prose. Philip was to have one younger brother, Sir Priscus Philippus (1607-49), who was to enjoy a prominent role of his own during his brother's reign.

−

*On May 27, 1604, the future Emperor Philip I (r. 1644-49) was born in Strabtha, Millard. Strabtha had been established as a civil settlement for Laurasian, Rebeccan, and Chancian colonists from the Core Regions in 1519, by Emperor Lysimachus I. Philip's parents were Sir Macrinus Philippus (1571-1640) and his wife Didymeia (1578-1636).

===1605===

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*On May 8, 1620, a formal declaration of war was issued by the Dejanican Diet. Dejanican units under General Stanis Zaskuskia (1556-1623) then invaded the Empire's territory. Ernie fell quickly into Dejanican hands (May 9-15, 1620), followed by Gurlack (May 22), McIntyre (May 28), and Kanjur (June 2-4). Mordan then fell on June 8, and Dejanican expeditions harried the defenses of Anjun, Kelvania Minor, Bouchet, Merlin, and Guenevere. General Comazon, however, who had departed hastily from Laurasia Prime, repelled a Dejanican move against Lancelot (June 12, 1620), and on June 29, he won the Battle of Arthur, thereby securing that stronghold for the Empire. Although Dejanican units overran Barbara, Kira, and Lielle (July 1-7, 1620), and penetrated to Meehan and Manzo (July 15), the General was gradually able to turn the tide. By August 1620, Mordan and Kanjur had been recovered by the Empire's forces; Comazon then defeated Dejanican General Zaskuskia in the Battle of Queen (September 4, 1620), and then proceeded to storm Major (September 17), driving Dejanican units from Barbara, Bouchet, and Lielle. By the end of September, Gurlack and McIntyre had fallen back into Laurasian hands, and Laurasian units were penetrating to Shashanaya, Black Chandlier, and Monique. It was on October 18, 1620, with the prospect of war looming with the Marasharite Empire, that King Ariogasi was forced to ask for negotiations. The Armistice of Orion (October 25, 1620), ended hostilities. The war itself was terminated by the Treaty of Nelson (December 2, 1620), which restored the ''status quo ante bellum''. Thus, although the prior situation was maintained, many blamed Emperor Elagabalus' regime for not taking advantage of the opportunity presented to press into Dejanican Lavella. Dissent against his rule thereby increased further.

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=== 1621 ===

===1621===

*1621, the 21st year of the seventeenth century, saw the 300th anniversary of the Laurasian Empire's foundation (November 25, 1621). For many subjects of the Empire, it was considered an extreme curse that they were burdened, at this important commemoration date in their history, with a decadent, lazy, and vile monarch. Emperor Elagabalus did not arouse any affection or respect from the hearts of his subjects, and many believed that the Anti-Almitis would ruin the Laurasian dominions. The Emperor justified their views by his behavior at the ceremonies. His lovers Hiercoles and Aurelius Zoticus were given prominent places in the order of ceremonies; his other favorites presided over the affairs of the imperial household, with there being much sloth and debauchery; and the rituals of the Almitian Church were degraded by Elagabalus' demands that he be worshiped as an angel of Almitis and his refusal to pay his respects to the tomb of Seleucus the Victor. He disgraced the names of his predecessors, and gave riotous occasion in the quarters of the palace. All of this will lead to Elagabalus' memory being harshly criticized and censured by historians of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, from Cassius Dio to Lord Monompahlaus, Lady Vassalina, and Gibboneous. Nevertheless, the Laurasian Empire was at this stage stronger and larger than it had been at its inception three centuries earlier.

*By November 1621, the Laurasian Empire’s jurisdiction extended from the Galactic Frontier Route and the Satian Provinces in the northwest to the outskirts of the Eastern Outer Borderlands and to the Burglais Arm, Corporate Trade Corridor, and Larkian Way. Laurasian rule now extended over nearly forty million inhabited star systems within the confines of the Caladarian Galaxy. The Empire also held over-lordship over the Neo-Anastasian Empire, which held on to the southwestern Barsar Regions; had extracted commercial concessions from the Celestial Kingdom of Scottria and the Mellorite Empire; and signed economic treaties with the Vectorian and Marasharite Empires. The Empire’s Western Provinces, however, were under threat from the Dejanican-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Haynsian Despotate, who were ceaseless in their raiding expeditions. The Marasharites, Scottrians, and Vectorians in the Galactic Borderlands all desired to expand their dominions at Laurasian expense, and they continued to gather intelligence about the status of the Laurasian military forces.

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===1628===

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*1628, the 28th year of the seventeenth century, was a largely peaceful year for the Laurasian Empire. Emperor Severus, emerging from the debacle of his failed marriage with Lady Sallustia Orbiana, sought to divert himself by giving renewed focus to state affairs, and to the affairs of the Imperial Court. In particular, the Emperor investigated greater energy into a variety of architectural projects throughout his dominions. Beginning in July 1627, Alexander Severus had begun the restoration of the Baths of Antiochus III, which had been constructed by that Emperor during the 1450s. The restoration, on which he expended more than $22 quadrillion ''denarii'', proved to be a considerable success, and the reconstructed Baths were dedicated on April 22, 1628. They would eventually become known as the Baths of Alexander Severus, renamed in his honor by Neuchrus the Reformer in 1688. The Emperor also embarked upon a expansion of the Laurasia Prime star system's water supply, constructing the Aqua Claudia Water Depots in the Marsian Asteroid Belt, beginning in March 1628 and concluding in January 1629. He conducted renovations of Quencilvanian Palace, Old Royal Palace, Diplomatic Palace, Westphalian Cathedral, and Senatorial Palace, and in July 1628, began a massive expansion of the Flavian Amphitheater, adding additional spectator benches and the like.

*The late 1620s also witnessed the establishment of more than 300,000 new Laurasian colonies, garrisons, outposts, and stations throughout the length and breath of the Empire's territory, an effort which Alexander Severus pursued through the Imperial Colleges of Space, Transportation, and Commerce, and in conjunction with many of the Empire's leading nobles and corporate firms. He continued with the same policies of freedom of religion, freedom to petition, and freedom of movement, as had his predecessors, so as to promote the development of these colonies. On balance, the majority of the Emperor's subjects were benefited by his policies. However, 1628 was not an entirely peaceful year.

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===1629===

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*1629, the 29th year of the seventeenth century, passed with little of note occuring in the Laurasian Empire's dominions. Emperor Alexander Severus, in his New Year's proclamation to his subjects (January 1, 1629), again took credit for the peace and prosperity which they were now experiencing, and promised to maintain such conditions for as long as he was able. Nevertheless, not all was well under the surface. The assassination of Prefect Macer the year before, had revealed that discipline had deteroriated in the Empire's military forces. Emperor Severus' response to the assassination, seemed to indicate to some that he was not as sure of his authority as he professed to be, and that the personnel of the forces did not hold the same regard for his authority as they had formerly. These were to become more obvious in the closing years of his reign, as the Empire headed into the Crisis of the Seventeenth Century. But for the time being, matters remained stable.

*Emperor Severus conducted a series of progresses throughout the Empire's territory during 1629, including a tour of the Venasian Cluster (May 1629) and a notable visit to the Merlite and Donguarian Provinces (June 1629). He constructed the Nymphaeum of Alexander (also known as the Trophies of Marius), as a monument to the mythological figures of Laurasia's gloried past. The Nymphaeum was dedicated on July 22, 1629. Emperor Severus also expanded the Palace of Placenta on Darcia and the Palace of Harmony on Clancia, embellishing both residences with new statues, banners, paintings, and frescoes; greatly extending their entertainment complexes; and erecting new, elaborate audience chambers, along with libraries and other such beneficial facilities. He was also to dedicate the Fountain of Horti Lamani in Osraninpolis (September 19, 1629), which was to become a major landmark and "place of pride" for the residents of that City.

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*He made his move to Malaria Prime, arriving there on September 6, 1634. By that point, Dejanican units had secured Hadlson and Pumos. Alexander Severus now established his command headquarters on Malaria Prime, issued a series of instructions to his subordinates and to the General Headquarters, and ordered for extensive preparations to be made before the instigation of military counteroffensives against the Dejanicans. In October, however, the Emperor, under pressure by his commanders, directed a series of operations to prevent the Dejanicans from seizing White and the Jar Asteroid Belt. He obtained a minor victory at Johnald (October 15-22, 1634), but was unable to prevent a Dejanican raiding expedition from penetrating to and sacking the outskirts of Kamachina (November 6, 1634). Laurasian counter-efforts then flagged, and the Emperor retreated to Melarnaria, where he held court for the Ascentmas season of 1634. By the end of the year, he still had not made major advances against the Dejanican foe. The Dejanicans, however, on the explicit orders of King and Diet, continued to harry the star systems which they had occupied. Alexander Severus' reputation with his military forces and subjects now weakened even further. They viewed his conduct as dishonorable and believed that he was actually in collusion with the Empire's enemies.

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=== 1635 ===

===1635===

*1635, the 35th year of the seventeenth century, commenced with the Laurasian Empire enmeshed in war with the Dejanican-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and still in the process of recovery from the wars with the Marasharite Empire and Haynsian Despotate. General Sir Maximinus Thrax, who had earned the respect of the troops under his command, and who was the most successful Laurasian operational commander at that time, was now considered by many among the Praetorian Guards, and at the Imperial Court, as a possible candidate for the imperial throne. Emperor Alexander’s conduct during the early months of 1635 finally pushed the soldiers into action against him. On January 3, 1635, his mother, Grand Princess Julia Mamaea, arrived at the operational headquarters on Malaria Prime, to which the Emperor himself returned on January 9.

*Still holding a substantial influence over her son, the Grand Princess convinced him that, in the light of Laurasian losses against the Marasharite Empire, it would be wiser to attempt to persuade the Dejanicans to halt their offensives, and to even consider territorial adjustments in the Wild Marshes and Malarian Provinces in their favor. The Emperor agreed to this, and on February 9, after the conquest of Malaria Outer by Dejanican forces (January 24, 1635), he sent an offer for negotiations to the Dejanican Government. King Vologravius sent his demands to the Emperor seven days later: that the Imperial Laurasian Government restore the whole of the Dejanican Borderlands to the Commonwealth's authority; that it agree to the occupation of the Malarian Provinces by Dejanican military and governmental forces for a period of ten years; and that it pay an annual financial subsidy to the Dejanican Treasury. Alexander Severus asked for time to consider these demands. Vologravius responded by setting a deadline for May 17, after which time he would renew hostilities with Laurasia.

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*The Emperor of Laurasia now declared that the King of Dejanica would be forced to acknowledge the supremacy of Laurasian arms. Establishing his chief military headquarters at Palmisiano, he commenced his moves on June 4. Two days later, defeating General Ralecza in the Battle of Aldastaire, Maximinus reconquered Takrania. Acabania and Siri followed (June 8-14, 1635), and on June 27, 1635, he obtained another victory over the Dejanican General at Terell; Ralecza himself died at the end of the confrontation. Malaria Outer was then cleared of Dejanican units, and on July 5, 1635, Almastead was recovered by the Empire. Maximinus now directed his forces against Kanley; it proved to be a tougher target, and it was not recovered until September 2, 1635. Ettleman, Goodman, and Evans were reconquered in August 1635. King Vologravius now entrusted Prince Samogitz Clesharkia (1589-1641), with the task of repelling his Laurasian adversary's forces. In a series of confrontations at Ursula (August 19-September 1), Guin (September 6-14), and Van-Dogh (September 19), Maximinus successfully parried Clesharkia's forces. He then obtained a further victory at Lafaria (September 21), reconquered Unacia (September 24), and stormed Welch (October 1), before recovering Manzo (October 14) and Meehan (October 22-November 5). On November 14, 1635, the Battle of the Belts of Asil, fought between Maximinus and Clesharkia, ended in a decisive Laurasian victory, though the Emperor did sustain greater losses of troops and equipment. Nevertheless, Aingley and Lancelot fell back into Laurasian hands in December 1635, and by the end of the year, Kelvania Minor was under siege. On December 26, Emperor Maximinus was granted the title of ''Malarius Maximus'' by the Councils of State.

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===1636 ===

===1636===

*1636, the 36th year of the seventeenth century, opened with Emperor Maximinus' campaigns against the Dejanican-Lithuanian Commonwealth reaching their victorious conclusion. On January 7, 1636, Laurasian troops under the command of General Sir Callimachus Arvenius (1582-1639) obtained a decisive victory over the forces of General Clesharkia in the Battle of Acabania. Acabania was now firmly back under Laurasian control. Barbara (January 9-14); Bouchet (January 22); Anjun (January 24); and Kelvania Minor (January 25-29), were then reconquered in succession; a final Dejanican move to recover control of Lancelot and Gunevere was blunted in the Battle of Merlin (February 15, 1636). Emperor Maximinus now focused all of his efforts on clearing Dejanican units from the Narvet Corridor and Upper Morgania. With his victory at Arthur (March 19, 1636), he achieved this goal. He now sought to hail his accomplishments to his subjects, asserting that no foreign power could obstruct the rights and territorial intergrity of the Empire. On April 4, Laurasian forces launched a renewed invasion of the Dejanican Borderlands, pursuing the Commonwealth's retreating forces. The Battle of Sister-Niger (April 9, 1636), resulted in the final and decisive defeat of General Clesharkia; the Dejanican General himself fell into the custody of the Emperor of Laurasia, who treated him with much courtesy and more as a guest than a prisoner. McIntyre (April 11-13); Flournoy (April 15); Ernie (April 18); Gurlack (April 22); John (April 26); and Gibbs (April 29) all fell into the hands of the Emperor's troops.

*May 1636 saw the subjugation of Monique, Black Chandlier, and Shashanaya, with Laurasian forces harrying the defenses of Adelita and even launching raiding expeditions against Dequan, Antwone, Novella, Nelson, Carrie, Irving, and Spacek. King Vologravius, who was facing renewed tensions with the Republic of Novogrod and the Great Breffal Federation, was now induced to request peace negotiations with the Imperial Laurasian Government. He extended an armistice offer on May 24; Emperor Maximinus accepted this, and the Armistice of Dejan was signed on June 1, 1636. A conference then convened at Abraham. Negotiations lasted for over a month, culminating in the Treaty of Abraham (July 5, 1636), which resulted in the concession of all the remaining strongholds of the Dejanican Borderlands, including Monique, Black-Chandlier, John, Orion, Shashanaya, Flournoy, and Adelita, to the Laurasian Empire. All prisoners and goods of war were to be returned, and peaceful economic relations (in accordance with the Commercial Treaties of 1581, 1589, 1596, and 1611) were restored.

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*During the following two months, Laurasian troops occupied Madison, Levi, Joseph, and Cris-Homidinia, securing control of the last remaining Mellorite outposts in the vicinity of Homidinia Major. Finally, on October 7, 1642, General Timesithus' forces advanced to the outskirts of Scanlan. Jaqmaq, in his last desperate show of resistance, organized his remaining starfighter squadrons and a detachment of destroyer escorts to defend Scanlan. The Mellorite force numbered twenty warships; that of the Laurasians, nearly one hundred. Nevertheless, Mellorite units under the command of the Emperor's subordinate commander, General Abuz-Kajiz (1589-1642), resisted fiercely. Frontal assaults by Laurasian troops against Scanlan Minor and Brevan were repelled with heavy losses on October 13 and 16; on October 22, General Timesithus was forced to bring substantial reinforcements to the blockade. Eventually, however, on November 19, Scanlan's defenses were finally penetrated by Laurasian units. Abuz-Kajiz himself was killed while leading the final stand of Mellorite units in Scanlan's capital city, Commerce Hub. By the end of November 1642, Scanlan was definitely in the possession of the Laurasian Empire. On December 7, Lizaragga, Glassia, and Sierra were all stormed by Laurasian units; the inevitable end was approaching for Jaqmaq. By the end of December 1642, Wyatt and Felix, the final remaining Mellorite strongholds, were on the verge of falling to the Laurasian Empire.

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===1643 ===

===1643===

*1643 commenced with the Mellorite Empire of Jaqmaq on its last legs, in the face of the ceaseless military offensives by the forces of the Laurasian Empire. Prefect-General Sir Gaius Timesithus, who was definitely the most powerful personage in the Imperial Laurasian Government, and who had proven his capabilities as a military commander and officer, had won acclaim for himself throughout the Caladarian Galaxy, as a result of his victories over the Mellorites. This reputation was to be burnished further throughout the first half of 1643, until untimely circumstances brought a sudden end to his career. On January 5, 1643, Rushina, which had functioned as an intelligence and supply convoy outpost for the Mellorite units, was besieged and conquered by the 2nd Imperial Army under the command of General Sir Seleucus Brusius (1581-1647). Within three days, Laurasian troops had stormed the last remaining minor Mellorite outposts on Kyler, Cesania, and Ibica, penetrating to the outskirts of Wyatt. Wyatt itself fell under siege by the forces of General Timesithus on February 1, 1643; twenty days later, Mellorite General Al-Bauk (1588-1645) surrendered unconditionally, compelled to do so by his starving, exhausted, and war-sick men. Emir Abgul-Kamak, who had been initially responsible for provoking Mellorite hostilities against Laurasia, had died near Coronadia on January 8, 1643, while leading a charge against a Laurasian force in the region. Jaqmaq himself, however, utterly pathetic and enjoying no respect from his forces, nevertheless displayed a last burst of initiative, and refused all Laurasian demands that he capitulate.

*Therefore, on February 28, 1643, General Timesithus directed the final offensive against Felix; within five days, the world was in Laurasian possession. Jaqmaq managed to evade capture for a time, but was finally intercepted by Laurasian starfighters near Konik on March 21, 1643. On the orders of General Timesithus, he was bound in chains, placed on a prison transport, and taken on a progress throughout the Laurasian Empire's dominions, so that the Empire's subjects would be able to see the man who had been humiliated at the hands of the imperial forces. Jaqmaq's journey would take him from worlds such as Massanay and Sassanay to Robert, Hunt Major, Melorkia Major, and to Briannia, Rebecca, and other major worlds in the Core Regions. His arrival on Laurasia Prime (September 1, 1643), would be greeted with much spectacle. Paraded in chains past the Second Station of Callista, the two Calaxies, Hepudermia, Jadia, and then through the streets of Christiania, Jaqmaq's humiliation was evident to all. His journey would eventually end at the Fortress of Baureux, where he would be executed on November 7, 1643. With his death, the Mellorite Empire ended, more than four centuries after the first penetration of the Mellorites into the Caladarian Galaxy, and 390 years after the fall of the Homidinian Khanate, which it had displaced.

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*He reaffirmed Traditionalist Laurasian values and traditions, vigorously enforcing the Heresy Laws and supporting the policies of Chief Procurator Demetrius Staffordia (in office 1643-52), Archbishop of Clackimeris, who was determined to suppress "heresy" and to maintain order and conformity within the Almitian Church. He quickly ordered an enormous expansion and revitalization project in Strabtha, Millard, the city of his birth. Renaming it Philippolis, he raised it to the status of an Imperial City and populated it with statues of himself and his family. This was not his only project however; the Emperor also initiated the establishment or reconstruction of nearly fifty thousand colonial settlements throughout the star systems of the Laurasian Empire. As a result of this, the expenses lavished upon the Imperial Court, the donative allowance given to the Praetorian Guards and Imperial Armed Forces, the expenses of his own lavish coronation, and the gifts handed out to various courtiers and nobles, the Emperor soon found himself desperately short of money. To pay for this, he ruthlessly increased the levels of taxation, imposing a new capitation levy in September 1644 and a imposition of 15% upon the goods of spice, transport, and agricultural supply merchants. He also imposed heavy levies and tariffs upon the goods of Dejanican and Vectorian merchants, who generally enjoyed greater prosperity than native Imperial merchants of the Empire. This, however, provoked tensions which were to lead to war the following year.

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=== 1645===

===1645===

*1645, the 45th year of the seventeenth century, commenced with the Laurasian Empire becoming "adjusted" to the rule of Philip I, who had ascended to the throne following the assassination of Gordian VI. Philip, who had been a popular and well-respected general, and who had demonstrated consistent and loyal service to the Imperial Government, had, however, already begun losing the support of his subjects. His oppressive taxation policies; the favors he conferred upon nobles and courtiers on Laurasia Prime; all of this began to alienate some of the Empire's subjects against him. For the time being, however, the Emperor retained his general position in the Empire. Nevertheless his taxation policies now provoked a new military conflict for the Laurasian Empire; with the Dejanican Commonwealth. By this point, the Commonwealth was under the rule of King Wladlio II Vamana (r. 1638-48), who had ascended to the Dejanican throne in 1638, following the death of Wladlio I (r. 1637-38), successor to King Vologravius VI. The King had, until this point, remained at peace with his Laurasian neighbors in the Caladarian Galaxy, distracted by wars with the Marasharite Empire, Haxonian Confederacy, and Holy Austarlian Empire. Now, however, the Laurasian Emperor's intrusions upon the rights of Dejanican merchants, and the very fact that he was vastly increasing funding to the Imperial Armed Forces, provoked the King into taking action.

*On January 27, 1645, the King of Dejanica held a conference on Praga with the Dejanican Diet and the Council of Military Advisers, resolving on a directed military offensive into Laurasian territory. Within a week, Dejanican units began to assemble at Vietsbk, Polotsk, Ladelle, Lavelle, the Galactic Frontier, Dehner, and in the Marvald Straits, poised for a direct strike into the Empire. Emperor Philip, who was still focused on rewarding his associates and "consolidating" his position on Laurasia Prime, ignored reports from the Imperial Intelligence Agency of the building tensions on the Empire's western borders. This backfired against him, as on February 12, 1645, the Dejanican Commonwealth's forces in the Lavellan Provinces, under the command of General Pa'vo Warmalaki (1583-1646), launched a sudden offensive into Laurasian territory. Dejanican forces made shift advances. Shashanaya and Black-Chandlier fell into their hands on the day of their invasion; Orion followed on February 14, and by February 18, Monique was also in the enemy possession. General Warmalaki then humiliated the Laurasian garrison of Gurlack (February 20, 1645), and on February 22, stormed the defenses of Ernie. From thence, Dejanican forces moved into the Wild Marshes. Iverman (February 23-24), Shineski (February 26), Schulzki (February 28), and Etienne (March 1-2) fell into Dejanican hands, and on March 6, Laurasian Admiral Sir Cyprian Athao (1590-1664), was defeated in the Battle of Roach. On March 11, a surprise Dejanican operation led to the capture of Merlin; from thence, Kelvania Minor, Rani, and Anjun fell to the enemy (March 12-17, 1645). On March 21, the Battle of Zachary ended in another victory for General Warmalaki; Admiral Athao himself was captured, and made a Dejanican prisoner of war.

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*He assembled his military units at many of the chief Malarian strongholds, and became determined to drive to the Narvet Corridor. In a manifesto to his subjects (August 21, 1645), the Emperor assured them that "I shall not permit the foreign barbarians to do as they wish in our territories; they shall be ejected and they shall know the Empire's power." On September 2, he validated his words with action. In a series of confrontations at Xeberts (September 2-4), Onn (September 10), Ariasole (September 19-22), Racqueline (October 1-5), Pumos (October 10), and the Station of Christiane (October 14-23), Philip gradually gained the advantage in the Malarian Provinces. On October 29, Johnald and White were both recovered by imperial troops operating from Guin, Van-Dogh, and Timaslan; six days later, Malaria Outer was blockaded. It fell on November 11, 1645. The Emperor then recovered Almastead (November 12), Naranja (November 14), Manzo (November 18), and Ettleman (November 19-24). Evans and Takrania were both besieged, but they did not fall until Ascentmas Day, 1645. At the same time, Laurasian forces recovered Donathan, Sebastiani, and Zachary (September 5-19, 1645), and on October 1, stormed into Roach. Etienne, Aspen, Iverman, Shineski, Schulzki, and Roach were back in secure Laurasian hands by October 23, and on November 7, 1645, the Battle of Ambarac saw another victory for the Empire. Barbara and Bouchet were abandoned by the Dejanicans on December 8, and on December 14, they also withdrew from Excalibur and Cordelia. By the end of the month, the Emperor was besieging both Merlin and Kelvania Minor.

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===1646 ===

===1646===

*1646 commenced with the Laurasian Empire of Emperor Philip I engaged in another vigorous conflict with its foreign adversaries, in this case the Dejanican-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Dejanicans, under the direction of their vigorous and ambitious King Wladlio II Vamana, had at first caught their Laurasian neighbors off-balance; they had managed to overrun parts of the Malarian, Morganian, and Kelvanian Provinces, and menaced the Empire's western frontier in the Wild Marshes. The forces of Emperor Philip, however, had regained the advantage, and started on the process of hurling the Dejanican adversaries back. This accelerated quickly during the early months of 1646. On January 8, 1646, the Emperor held a strategic conference with his chief military commanders on Timsies, which had now become one of the Empire's chief military arsenals in the Malarian Provinces. Here, it was decided that the effort would be focused on expelling Dejanican units from the remainder of the territories they held in the Malarian Provinces, and to therefore isolate them from their units elsewhere in imperial territory. Within a week of this conference, Laurasian troops had recovered Welch and Odika, driving Dejanican units from the Maluyta Nebula back to the strongholds of the Narvet Corridor. A Dejanican counteroffensive (January 22-29, 1646), directed against Lafaria, Aingley, and Acabania, was blunted, and on February 7, 1646, Manzo was reconquered by a Laurasian expeditionary corps. The situation for the Dejanicans worsened four days later, when General Warmalaki suffered a severe stroke at his command headquarters on Kelvania Major. Despite the efforts of the military physicians, he died on February 19. Following his death, the morale of the Dejanican forces collapsed. They were swept from Kanley, Regan, Goneril, and Gawain by the end of February 1646. In March 1646, Kelvania Minor, isolated from support and bombarded ceaselessly by the Laurasian task force besieging it, surrendered. Merlin followed its example on April 2.

*On April 5, 1646, the Battle of Lear resulted in a decisive victory for Laurasian forces under General Sir Antigonus Crattius (1591-1649). By the middle of April 1646, Laurasian forces had recovered Kanley, Anjun, and Ranim, and were pushing back into the Dejanican Borderlands. At this point, the King of Dejanica, whose border territories were being harried ceaselessly by Haynsian forces, and facing a major rebellion against his authority in Dejanican Ukraine (in the Great Tesmanian Cloud), decided to divest himself of this costly and expensive "sideshow" war in the Caladarian Galaxy. On April 25, he sent a request for peace to Emperor Philip. The Emperor, who wished to return to Laurasia Prime, accepted the request almost immediately. A diplomatic conference was convened on Trash Dakai from May 7, and negotiations continued for some weeks. Finally, on May 29, 1646, the Treaty of Trash Dakai was signed, concluding the Frontier War of 1645-46 between the Laurasian Empire and the Dejanican-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The ''status quo ante bellum'' was imposed in territorial matters; all sides were to return prisoners and captives of war seized in the military campaigns; and free trade privileges between the two realms were confirmed, with the Emperor of Laurasia pledging not to raise levies upon Dejanican merchants in the future. The Treaty of Trash Dakai was ratified by King Wladlio II Vamana the day it was signed, and by Emperor Philip on June 11. By August 1646, all Dejanican units had withdrawn from Laurasian territory, and the Empire's garrisons were back in their normal positions. Emperor Philip supervised the withdrawal of Dejanican units and the restoration of the Empire's frontier provinces to normal alert status.

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*By November 1647, with his son established as his co-ruler, and with the Empire experiencing no difficulties, Philip I decided to continue with the tradition of the ''Ludi Saeculares'' (Secular Games), which had previously been staged by Emperors Claudius II (1448) and Antoninus Pius (1548). The Secular Games were a tradition extending back to the 1st millennium BH; they had first been staged in 505 BH, four years after the establishment of the Stellar Republic of Laurasia. Following this, celebrations were held in 425 BH, 348 BH, 249 BH, 142 BH, and 17 BH. The tradition lapsed after the 2nd century AH, but was then revived in the seventh century by King Perseus the Savior (r. 653-59). Thereafter, they continued for nearly two centuries until the commencement of the Dasian Yoke in AH 840. Emperor Claudius had revived the tradition six centuries later, ostensibly to celebrate the millennium after the foundation of the Laurasian monarchy. Philip was therefore adhering to a long-established custom.

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===1648 ===

===1648===

*1648, the 48th year of the seventeenth century, began with Emperor Philip now making ground for the commencement of the Secular Games. On January 18, 1648, the Emperor formally announced his intentions to all of his subjects, and commanded them to pray for the Empire's future welfare. The Imperial Treasury poured billions of ''denarii'' into the celebrations, with Christiania's subjects becoming absorbed in all of the spirit and vigor of the occasion. Finally, on April 5, 1648, the Secular Games of 1648 formally commenced when heralds departed from Quencilvanian Palace, Westphalian Cathedral, and Old Royal Palace. The heralds, wearing garments of gold, assumed their positions at public platforms which had been erected in the major squares of the City; from these locations, they formally "invited" the people to attend "a spectacle, such as they would witness and never would again." Their invitations were carried by the Holonet to all residential quadrants of the city. The citizens of Christiania now emerged from their residencies and businesses, and dispersed throughout the public thoroughfares, in accordance with the directions of the Christiania Police Department and the Praetorian Guards. The ''quindecimviri'', ceremonial officials of note who had been appointed by the Holy Synod to officiate during the Games, handed out sulphur, asphalt, and electrical torches, to be burnt as a means of purification. This was in accordance with the Book of Antigonus, which contained the procedures of law for the Almitian Church, and mandated that followers of Almitis "sanctify themselves in the eyes of the Lord." Offerings of honey wheat and ''barchi'' (Laurasian ceremonial wine), were also made to those gathered. The formal declaration of inscription then arrived from the Senate, which mandated that the official record of "all which has and will transpire be indicated at the Tarentum Memorial."

* Following the declaration of inscription, Emperor Philip himself, escorted by his wife and leading courtiers, departed from Quencilvanian Palace and began their procession through the Palatial Districts. The procession, which was attended by all of the members of the Imperial Household, followed the traditional route of coronation to New Westphalian Cathedral. There, the Emperor conducted the rite of central purification; all were enjoined to purify themselves with what they had been provided by the ''quindecimviri''. Following this, the "stay on joy" was lifted, and the Emperor permitted the inhabitants to enjoy themselves with the proffered entertainments. During the course of the next two weeks, Christiania, and Laurasia Prime in general, were dominated by a series of lavish events. The ''Circus Maximus'' staged three animal games; two shockball competitions; and a "performance at arms," in the Emperor's honor. Plays, literature readings, fireworks displays, opera concerts, formal dances, and gatherings came in plenty; the Emperor himself staged a massive banquet for all of his courtiers, while his wife, the Empress Consort, arranged banquets and society gatherings for the leading women of the cities of Laurasia Prime. Turbocannon displays; a military parade through the star system; and space simulations also accompanied the celebrations. Six more ceremonies of purification were performed at New Westphalian Cathedral; April 14 witnessed a "day of prayer and honor," held by the monasteries of the Church. The Games ultimately ended on April 21 with one final celebration at the ''Circus Maximus''; nearly a thousand animals, including such exotic creatures as Gardinerite rancors; Horacian bamboos; Aquilionian eels; Marcian brabants; Zennethian giraffes; and Samanthan hippotamuses, were brought in, choreographed, and then killed in a series of gory combats. Philip also presented his son once more to the crowds; he received a formal oath of allegiance from the chief officials of the Imperial Government. After 1648, the Secular Games would fall into abeyance again, and would ultimately be formally declared terminated by Neuchrus I in 1703.

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* Emperor Philip, whose attitude had changed swiftly to one of apprehension and fear, was now engaged in hectic moves on Laurasia Prime. Sending instructions to his garrison commanders, the Emperor followed the situation in the Barsar Regions and Merlite Provinces anxiously. On December 8, General Pacatianus obtained a victory over government forces in the Battle of India, preventing a move against his positions at Ryan Barlak and Evan. Five days later, Warren, threatened by the Vectorian troops and believing that Emperor Philip was weak, defected to the rebel. By the end of December 1648, Vectorian forces had seized Pocket V, Lincoln, Rhodes, Tong, and Al-Pushim, seriously imperiling the defenses of Hospallia Major.

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===1649 ===

===1649===

*1649, the 49th year of the seventeenth century, commenced with Emperor Philip I, who had only a year before conducted the magnificent Secular Games in the streets of Christiania, now overwhelmed with two major crises at the same time. Both presented a major threat to his authority, and both occurred in some of the Empire's more perennially unstable and vulnerable regions. Governor-General Sir Tiberius Pacatianus had found himself at the head of the Merlite Rebellion, and had been proclaimed Emperor by his troops. Thus far, he had managed to overcome all challenges which had been made against him by the government forces, and posed a serious threat to Philip's position in the Ashlgothian Provinces. At the same time, the Vectorian Empire, under the direction of Ashurnasirpal I, had launched an invasion of the Neo-Anastasian Empire and the Barsar Regions, determined to take advantage of the Emperor's troubles to arise to a position of ascendancy in the Barsar Regions. Their advance, in fact, continued during the first two months of 1649. Ankara, which had been besieged for more than a month, fell more and more into the depths of despair.

*On January 6, the garrison commander of Ankara, Sir Demetrius Paullanius (1597-1654), made one last plea for assistance to the Imperial Government on Laurasia Prime, begging "my most honorable Majesty not to abandon me to the hands of barbarians, who have no respect for your authority and loathing for our Empire and our customs." The Emperor, however, whose forces were now blockaded from the Western Barsar Regions by the units of Pacatianus and by the Vectorians themselves, decided to leave the garrison to its fate. General Paullanius finally surrendered to Adad-nirari on January 11; the Vectorian General, deeming him a worthy adversary, decided to spare him from execution. After the fall of Ankara, the Vectorian forces made further advances. By January 16, Caesearea, Jacksonian Backory, and Aletis had all been stormed by Vectorian troops. Then on January 23 the Vectorians crushed the last remaining Anastasian battlefleet of note in the Battle of the Martima Asteroid Belt; within six days, Hospallia Major and Anastasia Major had both fallen into their possession, extinguishing the Neo-Anastasian Empire. Neo-Anastasian Emperor Matilla was captured by Vectorian forces and was, on Ashurnasirpal's orders, immediately executed, with his remains ejected by turbocannon into the space surrounding Anastasia Major.

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*He arrived at the Empire's capital world on October 12, 1649, and was formally acknowledged by the bodies of state and the Imperial Court as Emperor. Decius now quickly arranged for his coronation, intended to demonstrate that he had established his position on the throne. The coronation, which occurred on November 1, 1649, was staged with much splendor and conducted with much effort. As soon as it was over, however, the Emperor immediately turned his attention to the war with the Vectorian Empire. On November 11, 1649, the Emperor declared to the Imperial Chiefs of Staff that he would not permit the Vectorians to continue their ravages in the Barsar Regions. Five days later, after making administrative arrangements on Laurasia Prime, he departed for the theater of conflict. On November 19, he received word that Grand Prince Priscus, Emperor Philip's brother, had been assassinated by his own officers on Chalassia. This followed upon the earlier demise of the late Emperor's brother-in-law, Sir Begamius, who had died in combat at Abraham in January 1649, while fighting off a Haynsian raiding party. Decius, consequently, felt himself more sure of his authority than before. This was confirmed in his eyes when the Farther Homidinian Provinces, the only region which had not quickly acknowledged Decius' authority following the death of Philip, now did so. On November 23, Decius arrived at Trebek, which became his chief command headquarters. Over the course of the next month, he repelled Vectorian moves against Nandia, Greg, Larkin, and Cyrus III, inflicting losses upon their offensive units. On December 29, he obtained victory in the Battle of Redia, recovering that stronghold for the Laurasian Empire.

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===1650 ===

===1650===

*1650, the 50th year of the seventeenth century, commenced with the Laurasian Empire having survived a succession of internal crises and unrest, and once again having experienced a change in ruler and dynasty. The Empire was now bogged down in war with its implacable Vectorian adversaries, who had seized the remaining Neo-Anastasian territories and held a commanding position in the Barsar Regions. At the middle of the seventeenth century, nevertheless, the Laurasian Empire had definitively established itself as the predominant power in the Caladarian Galaxy outside of the Galactic Borderlands. By 1650, the Empire's dominions extended from the Galactic Frontier Route and the Corporate Trade Corridor in the northern Outer Borderlands to the Hutsite Reaches in the Barsar Regions, and from Morsia in the East to the Wild Marshes in the West. Laurasian territorial acquisitions during the first half of the century had been less extensive than those made during the first half of the last century (with Antigonus I's conquest of Hunt, Kimania, and Jageronia), but nevertheless had seen the extension of imperial control over the Neo-Xilanian and Mellorite Empires, as well as the Garaman Provinces in the Wild Marshes, which had previously belonged to the Celestial Kingdom of Scottria. Emperor Decius, in his New Year's proclamation to his subjects, promised them that his reign would be a time of prosperity and stability, and that he would maintain a "firm hand over this Empire's dominions, while crushing our enemies without." Shortly after his proclamation however, the Vectorian War intensified. The health of both the Vectorian Emperor Ashurnasirpal and his brother, Adad-nirari, experienced a sudden and swift decline in January 1650. It was soon discovered by the physicians that both brothers had developed a genetically-related disease, the dreaded Sargonic fever, which had struck down Sargon the Conqueror thirteen centuries earlier.

*The Emperor and his brother were now moved, by the command of their physicians, to the Vectorian Military Hospital on Ghaza. Ashurnasirpal, knowing that both he and his brother would now face their demise, nevertheless declared that he would not depart before making preparations for the commencement of further military campaigns into the Laurasian Empire. He wished that the honor of his species would not be disgraced through defeat to the Laurasians. Therefore, on January 17, while lying in delirium on his sickbed, he formally named his talented and determined general of the mobile offensive corps, Cniva, as his heir apparent and successor to the Vectorian throne. Cniva, who had gradually risen through the ranks of the Vectorian forces, possessed a fierce hatred of the Laurasians and believed that their power within the Caladarian Galaxy needed to be contained, "lest they overspread their filth and ideals into our realms and the realms of other civilizations." Following the proclamation, Ashurnasirpal's health, and that of his brother, Adad-nirari, collapsed completely; the two Vectorian royal brothers died on February 7.

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*Thus, once again, the Laurasian Empire had two rulers, a situation which had now become common for that century. A lavish coronation ceremony for father and son was staged (November 6, 1653), with much attention being paid to the festivities, in order to communicate the impression of the Empire's continuing glory. Yet the Empire continued to be dogged by issues; by the time of Valerian's coronation, Haynsian raiding expeditions were penetrating to Wakedia, the OsonBoka Nebula, Meris, Jamuina, Brenda, Dickinson, and the lower Burglais Arm, thereby periling the entire northern swath of the Laurasian Empire. Norah and Satie both fell into Marasharite hands (October 1653), and Angelica Major was on the verge of falling. Therefore, in late November 1653, Emperor Valerian decided to organize a vigorous counter-response to the Marasharites. He now entrusted his son, co-Emperor Gallienus, with the task of remaining on Laurasia Prime and taking charge of the affairs of the Core Regions, and of the Empire's more southerly regions. The Emperor himself would take command of Laurasian military forces and launch a vigorous counteroffensive against the Marasharites. This enactment was made official in early December 1653; Valerian departed from Laurasia Prime on December 9, and proceeded northwards. Halting a Marasharite offensive against Massanay and Cibourney (December 7-11, 1653), he then recovered Giron in a surprise offensive (December 22) and cleared Marasharite units from Londarania, the Lysimachian Barrier Defenses, and the Immortalized Cluster. On December 19, Abraham and Roxuli were both recovered; and on December 25, Valerian destroyed a Marasharite force in the Battle of Rani, thereby terminating their threat to Eric. By the end of that year, the tide had shifted. Spencer and Coleman, both of whom had suffered from Haynsian raids, were refortified.

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=== 1654===

===1654===

*1654 saw the eruption of wars between the Laurasian Empire on the one hand, and the Vectorian Empire, as well as the Celestial Kingdom of Scottria, on the other, besides the continuing military conflict with the Marasharite Empire and Haynsian Despotate. Throughout the first half of 1654, the Marasharites and their Haynsian vassals actually managed to make further gains in the Lacian Cluster and in the Farther Homidinian Provinces. Mackenzia Minor was besieged and conquered (January 1654); the following month, a Laurasian counteroffensive, by the forces of Antiochus Crajania, 2nd Earl of Jadia (1605-72), was repelled by Marasharite Admiral Al-Kadik in the Battle of Edessa. By March 1654, Marasharite units had stormed Coronadia, English Star, Jacobs I, Mackenzia Major, Edmundia Minor, and Cassie, thereby entrenching themselves within the Burglais Arm. At the same time, Sonny fell victim to a major Haynsian raiding expedition, and on April 9, 1654, Haynsian vessels even penetrated into the Lacia star system, imperiling the system's defenses and its settlements. Emperor Valerian, however, who had methodically prepared his forces in the Solidaritan Provinces for a counteroffensive, now launched his move. Reconquering Juxles and Orkhan (April 1654), he then isolated Sommers, thereby forcing Haynsian expeditions to halt their raids against Zoe, Skyler, and Eaidon.

*On April 27, 1654, the Battle of Alexander Haley ended in a victory for Sir Honorius Grasius (1603-59), Governor of Homidinia Major; Cassie was recovered five days later, and in May 1654, Laurasian units chased the Marasharites from Mir, Perry, and Wakino. Haynsian expeditions against those systems, as well as Gwendolyn, Demebzaic, Dominic, Ryan, and Markis Prime, all failed to accomplish anything. Simmons was then recovered by Emperor Valerian, and on June 7, 1654, he scored another victory in the Battle of Boniface. The Marasharites were soon compelled to abandon Kemp and Al-Durah. At that point, however, a new threat emerged from the Vectorian Empire. Emperor Ishuima, whose raiding expeditions had harried Nicole, Sejucia, the Hospallian Sectors, and the Murphian Trade Spine without rest, and who, having suppressed the Arachosian Rebellion in 1653, sought to resume with their territorial expansion, launched a formal invasion of the Barsar Regions (June 1654).

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*Although the Haynsians continued to strike into the Wild Marshes, with Gunevere, Lancelot, Barbara, Bouchet, Anjun, Kelvania Minor, and Morgania Minor all suffering from the Despotate's expeditions during this time, Odenathus had, nevertheless, successfully advanced the Empire's overall strategic position forward against its adversaries. This was further displayed when he won the Third Battle of Carrhae (October 8, 1663), recovering many of the standards, emblems, and armor which had been lost to the Marasharites three years earlier. He then turned his attention to Ctesiphon, determined to secure the reduction of that stronghold. Ctesiphon was besieged from October 14, and it fell on November 2, thereby constituting a blow to the Marasharite strategic position. Edessa soon followed (November 14, 1663). On November 18, Meneia too, was overrun by the Prefect's forces, and he then proceeded to the subjugation of Kia (November 22), Pulaski (December 2), and Billy Gasis (December 9-15). It was the capture of Billy Gasis which finally compelled Emperor Shapur to consider peace negotiations with the Laurasian Empire. This was the picture now forming as 1663 came to a close.

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=== 1664===

===1664===

*1664, the 64th year of the seventeenth century, commenced with the long Shapurian War drawing to its close. In January 1664, Shapur requested for a truce to end the conflict, through his Grand Council, and ordered for Marasharite and Haynsian military forces to halt all of their operations. Emperor Gaillenus reciprocated, accepting the truce and ordering Odenathus to halt his moves. The Truce of Marson (January 27, 1664), put military hostilities to a halt. It was not until March 5, 1664, however, before the Treaty of Latrice was signed, thereby terminating the Shapurian War of 1653-64, which had dragged on for nearly eleven years. Laurasian rule of Abrianne, Adrianne, Natalie, Tiona, Belaprasian, and the Chapperian Colonies was recognized by the Marasharite Empire, as was Gaillenus' rightful title to the Laurasian throne. The Marasharites thereby promised not to conduct any diplomatic or economic relations with the breakaway Samanthan Empire. All prisoners of war were to be exchanged; the Haynsians were to return all plunder, equipment, and goods seized since January 1, 1662; and all military forces were to be withdrawn back to their respective realms.

*Emperor Shapur also agreed to return the body of the late Emperor Valerian, father of Gaillenus, so that he could be properly interred at New Westphalian Cathedral. Valerian's body would be handed over on April 1, 1664, at Norah, and he would be interred at New Westphalian Cathedral two months later, in a ceremony presided over by his son. The Marasharites also returned the body of the late rebel General Sir Marides Uranius, who had died at Bucharina on April 7, 1657, and whose flight to the Marasharite Galactic Borderlands had been a precipitating factor of the Shapurian War. On Emperor Gaillenus' orders, Uranius' body, which was received on the same day as his father's, would be posthumously condemned to death, incinerated, and dumped into the Pit of Traitors on Jadia (May 1664). With the Shapurian War having now formally terminated, Laurasia and Marasharita were to remain at peace for the next thirty-four years (until 1698). Moreover, Prefect Odenathus had enhanced his own position. He obtained further plaudits by negotiating the Treaty of McDowell with the Brestord Kingdom of Karakorum (May 19, 1664), resolving all outstanding disputes with that power and providing for the payment, by Brestord King Charaton, of $5.5 quadrillion ''denarii'' in reparations to the Laurasian Empire. Odenathus then spent the remainder of the year focusing his attention on the recovery and consolidation of the Imperial position in the Borderlands Provinces and other Northern Territories. Elsewhere in the Empire, events continued to develop.

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*By December 1666, however, the Emperor's position in the Barsar Regions had further deteriorated. The efforts by his subordinates in the Ashlgothian Borderland and Melorkian Provinces to defeat Postumus had failed, and on December 17, 1666, Postumus finally seized Kimania and Leo's Redoubt, which his forces had blockaded since December 1665, allowing for him to consolidate his hold of the entire lower Kimanian Run. Yet there were other issues for the Emperor's government as well, as regards to Laurasia's turbulent neighbor in the southwestern Galactic Borderlands, the Vectorian Empire. Vectorian Emperor Ishuima I died on January 17, 1666, and was succeeded to the Vectorian throne by his aggressive nephew, Mandaru I (r. 1666-74). Emperor Mandaru now sought to turn his eyes once more upon the Laurasian Empire, for his predecessor had been engaged in wars with the Haynsians, Dejanicans, and Scottrians over the course of the preceding decade. By September 1666, Vectorian units had been assembled at Rhedita, Mercia, Camarania, Kylatnha, Essie, Deira, Ghaza, Anastasia Major, Anastasia Minor, Rhodes, Hospallia, Al-Pushim, Aletis, and Jacksonian Backory, among other strongholds. Vectorian reconnaissance and intelligence expeditions now penetrated deep into Laurasian territory, in spite of numerous protests issued by the Imperial Laurasian Government.

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===1667 ===

===1667===

*1667, the 67th year of the seventeenth century, commenced with war on the horizon between Laurasia and Vectoria. On January 7, 1667, Emperor Mandaru issued instructions to the Vectorian High Command, ordering them to make preparations for the final commencement of military campaigns. The war itself began on March 9, 1667, in the wake of these preparations. Within weeks, Vectorian military forces, catching their Laurasian adversaries off guard, made hefty gains. Angela Masia was conquered (March 9-14, 1667), followed by Lesia Minor (March 22); Ruumlist (March 29); Nicole (April 4); and Redia (April 11). Sejucia found itself subjected to a Vectorian blockade from April 15, 1667, and fell at the end of the month. Sharon Alfonsi, Hamacaki Barka, Destiny Major, and the Laurasian colonies of Schieffer, Dickerson, and Brennan all fell into Vectorian hands (May 1667); Laurasian forces were humiliated in these confrontations, suffering extensive losses in personnel, supplies, and warships. On June 7, 1667, Emperor Mandaru's chief military commander, ''Harna''-General Nuabu-Gabu (1608-73), inflicted an additional humiliation upon Laurasian forces under the command of Xiphilius Beartus, 3rd Earl of Beatrice (1612-71), in the Battle of O'Donnell.

*The Laurasians lost more than 300,000 personnel, 35 warships, and nearly half of their turbocannons, escort fighters, and transports; the Vectorians suffered the loss of just five ships and 50,000 personnel, with no comparable losses in materiel or escorts. The Earl of Beatrice was, in the aftermath of this battle, recalled by an angry Emperor Gaillenus back to Laurasia Prime; he would be forced to retire to his private estates, dying in disgrace in Christiania in January 1671. By June 18, still reeling from the Battle of O'Donnell, Laurasian military forces had been ejected from Stewart, Hannibal, Skye I, and Lesia Major; and in July 1667, Lesia Minor also fell victim to Vectorian assaults. Meridu and Eliza Spencer were then seized (August 5, 1667), and Nuabu-Gabu achieved the spectacular feat of capturing 45,000 Imperial Laurasian Marines, along with their armor and equipment.

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*Narra, Gilestis, and Christopher were conquered before the end of September 1674; Rolle, Filorean, and Millard in October; and Kimanis Mooria on November 7, 1674. Chobania and Offshora surrendered on November 15, 1674, and by the latter weeks of that month, Emperor Aurelian's forces were approaching Goni, Samantha, and Messalina. Allen and Jarman had fallen into his hands in September and October 1674. Finally, on December 3, 1674, Tetricus, realizing that there was nothing more he could do, offered to surrender to Aurelian, along with his officials, forces, and strongholds, promptly, on promise of the pardon. Aurelian, who wished to return to Laurasia Prime to introduce more economic and governmental innovations, and nurturing plans for a war against the Vectorian Empire to seize all of the remaining Anastasian territories still in their possession, accepted this on December 6. Then on December 14, 1674, the garrisons of Samantha, and of all other remaining rebel strongholds, again proclaimed their allegiance to Emperor Aurelian; Tetricus and his son formally surrendered, and abdicated from the Samanthan "throne"; and the Samanthan Empire dissolved. Emperor Aurelian was once again acknowledged as ruler of all the Laurasian dominions, and the Empire had regained its territories in the Northern Outer Borderlands, and in the Eastern Barsar Regions.

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===1675 ===

===1675===

*1675, the 75th year of the seventeenth century, began with the Laurasian Empire once again reunified, and with its frontiers stabilized. Emperor Aurelian, by his victories over the breakaway Empires and the Scottrians, had restored the Empire's integrity and overall stability; as the last quarter of the seventeenth century thus commenced, many considered him a savior, sent by the Lord Almitis to atone for his subjects. On January 15, 1675, after securing the allegiance of all remaining rebel holdouts in the Barsar Regions, the Emperor and his main forces began their advance back towards Laurasia Prime. With them were Tetricus and his son; the Emperor had decided to again extend clemency, and once more spared the lives of these of his enemies. Aurelian arrived on Laurasia Prime (January 22, 1675), and was greeted by his subjects with further ceremonial and jubilation. Tetricus and his son were the prominent "enemies" displayed in the Emperor's triumph.

*Soon after the triumph had concluded, however, Emperor Aurelian conferred upon the elder Tetricus the title of Duke of Samantha, granted him a honorary commission in the Imperial Laurasian Army, and permitted for him to take up residence in Christiania. The younger Tetricus became 1st Baron Tetricus of Goni (March 2, 1675), and was permitted to pursue academic studies at the University of Laurasia Prime. Tetricus would rise to the point that Emperor Probus would name him Governor of Melarnaria in November 1677, a position which he would hold for two years. Upon acceding to the throne in August 1685, Neuchrus I would grant Tetricus estates on Goni, Samantha, Reading, Nanking, Gardiner, Leo's Redoubt, Reading, Breha, Offshora, Messalina, Chobania, and Kimania. Moreover, Neuchrus reaffirmed the privileges and honors which had previously been conferred upon the ex-Emperor. Tetricus subsequently took up his chief residence at Chobania, and in 1696, he was made Governor of the star system by the Emperor.

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*As for foreign policy, Probus sought to build closer relations with some of the Empire's neighbors, both in the Great Amulak Spiral and in the Caladarian Galaxy proper. Commercial treaties were signed with Pruthia, Austarlia, and Haxonia in 1678-79; King Frederich Wilhelm I of Autocratic Pruthia, in particular, proved to be amendable to offers of negotiation from the Imperial Laurasian Government. Yet the most important overtures were to Scottria. In June 1677, the two governments had agreed a Treaty of Amity and Commerce, thereby permitting for free transit and navigation privileges in the Garaman Provinces, Berwick Barrier regions, and Rogeria for a period of ten years, for Laurasian and Scottrian merchants respectively, and abolishing all immigration restrictions in those territories. In December 1678, Probus issued a manifesto from Laurasia Prime, reaffirming his commitment to this agreement. 1678 ended with the Laurasian Empire restored to peace, which, however, would not last for long.

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=== 1679===

===1679===

*1679, the 79th year of the seventeenth century, opened with Emperor Probus continuing with his diplomatic overtures. The possibility of a marriage treaty with Scottria was now pursued by him and his government. He first raised the subject to his advisers in June 1678, but it was not until January 2, 1679, before the Imperial College of Foreign Affairs made the formal proposal to its Scottrian counterpart. King James III of Scottria, who had by now been compelled to abandon his ambitions in the Durthian Duchies, but had expanded his domestic power through the seizure of the Lordships of the Straits (1674), proved amenable, and accepted the Laurasian offer on January 19, 1679 (the date that Ferdinand II, future Laurasian ally, became King of Greater Spamalka). Negotiations commenced on March 2, 1679, at Madelaine, and they were concluded on April 1 with the signing of the Treaty of Madelaine. Lord Howardis of Soria, Chief Procurator Boucherius, and the Earl of Malaria Prime were instrumental in securing the agreement. By the terms of the Treaty, the Emperor's second surviving daughter, Cerania, was formally betrothed to the King of Scottria's young son and heir, Duke James of Rothesay (the future James IV, who had been born in 1673).

*By the terms of this agreement, Emperor Probus agreed to pay a financial dowry of $550 trillion ''denarii'' ''per annum'' to the Scottrian Court; in exchange, Cerania was to be granted the courtesy title of Princess of Scottria, and, upon reaching the age of fourteen, was to reside at Ediania. The marriage was to be formally conducted once Grand Princess Cerania reached her eighteenth birthday (in 1685). The Treaty of Madelaine, ratified by both parties by the end of April 1679, seemed at first that it would preserve the peace, and improve relations, between the two realms. Yet other affairs eventually caused the arrangements to fall apart. In April 1679, Laurasian and Scottrian merchants experienced serious commercial disputes at Frederickshamm, Crusher, Ladoga, Onieda, and in the Berwick Barrier, imperiling the free-transit provisions of the agreements. Two months later, a Laurasian reconnaissance expedition strayed from Hypasia into Scottrian Kalbacha, passing near Sherry, Sabinia, Seeben, and the Irand Colonies.

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*1682, the 82nd year of the seventeenth century, commenced with the Laurasian Empire of Probus I having faced down further internal threats, and continuing its successful offensives against the Scottrians in the Galactic Borderlands. On January 7, 1682, Sherry surrendered to Emperor Probus; this was shortly afterwards followed by the conquest of Kathy Major, thereby completing the effective subjugation of the Rasdallan Provinces. By the beginning of February 1682, the Emperor's forces had overrun Kuris, Gwyenne, Kalbacha Minor, and Kania, with the Scottrians holding on to the Galactic Barrier and to the Northern Kalbachan Territories. King James, faced by revolt in the Dumbarton and Outskirt Districts, and himself in danger of bankruptcy, decided, on March 3, 1682, to seek peace with the Laurasian Empire. Six days later, he sent a request for a military armistice by means of James Douglain, 1st Earl of Morton (1626-93), who was Governor of the Upper Galactic Barrier.

*On March 15, 1682, Probus himself, who was determined to turn his attention to other matters, accepted the armistice offer. The Armistice of Alemeda was signed (March 27, 1682); on April 9, negotiations began at the Belts of Barton in the Core Worlds. Two months of negotiations followed, as the Scottrian delegation made the greatest effort to regain control of the Rasdallan, Canian, and Southern Kalbachan Provinces, and as the Laurasian delegation (led by Chancellor Thomasius Rotterdamia, Archbishop of Christiania (1630-1700), who had assumed office in November 1675, and been retained by Florian and Probus), sought to strengthen the Empire's position in the Garaman Provinces. Finally, however, the Treaty of the Belts of Barton was signed (June 11, 1682), concluding the Laurasian-Scottrian War of 1679-82.

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* By the terms of this treaty, the Imperial Laurasian Government restored Kania, Rasdalla, Kalbacha, and Rogeria to the authority of the Celestial Kingdom of Scottria (those territories would remain under Scottrian control into the first half of the eighteenth century). However, King James III of Scottria now agreed to the concession of Ranieda Major, the Eastern Berwick Barrier, Ladoga, Onieda, and the Hypasian colonies of Prsi Burhadi, Mamdh Buhamidal, and Adjuajei to the Laurasian Empire; additionally, Laurasia gained the right to occupy the Western Berwick Barrier, including Vilmanstrand, Frederickshamm, Crusher, Wheaton, and Janeway, for a period of ten years (to June 11, 1693). Also, the Royal Scottrian Government reconfirmed all free-transit privileges previously granted to Laurasian merchants and navigators, and agreed to extend these rights to the whole of the Scottrian Galactic Borderlands (until January 1, 1699). Finally, King James agreed to dispense the amount of €75.5 quadrillion ''denarii'' over the next five years, to compensate the Imperial Laurasian Government for military and property damages. The Treaty of the Belts of Barton was ratified by Emperor Probus on June 28, and by King James on July 12.

*By the terms of this treaty, the Imperial Laurasian Government restored Kania, Rasdalla, Kalbacha, and Rogeria to the authority of the Celestial Kingdom of Scottria (those territories would remain under Scottrian control into the first half of the eighteenth century). However, King James III of Scottria now agreed to the concession of Ranieda Major, the Eastern Berwick Barrier, Ladoga, Onieda, and the Hypasian colonies of Prsi Burhadi, Mamdh Buhamidal, and Adjuajei to the Laurasian Empire; additionally, Laurasia gained the right to occupy the Western Berwick Barrier, including Vilmanstrand, Frederickshamm, Crusher, Wheaton, and Janeway, for a period of ten years (to June 11, 1693). Also, the Royal Scottrian Government reconfirmed all free-transit privileges previously granted to Laurasian merchants and navigators, and agreed to extend these rights to the whole of the Scottrian Galactic Borderlands (until January 1, 1699). Finally, King James agreed to dispense the amount of €75.5 quadrillion ''denarii'' over the next five years, to compensate the Imperial Laurasian Government for military and property damages. The Treaty of the Belts of Barton was ratified by Emperor Probus on June 28, and by King James on July 12.

*Almost as soon as the Treaty of the Belts of Barton was concluded, Probus turned his attention to a major territorial goal, a goal which had been an ambition of the Laurasian Empire’s since earlier in that century. This was the goal of the subjection of the old Dasian Heartland, ruled by the Brestord Kingdom of Karakorum, to Laurasian jurisdiction. Karakorum had by this stage existed as an independent state for more than two centuries, ever since its secession from the Mellorite Empire in 1456, under Ranna I. Probus was encouraged in this goal by the outbreak of the Great Marasharite War that same year - 1682 - which was to pit the Marasharite Empire and its vassals (the Haynsian Despotate, the Danubian Principalities, the Barbary States, and the Sherifates of Mecca and Medina) against the Holy Austarlian Empire, the Dejanican-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Haxonian Confederacy, the Germanian Principalities, and eventually - towards its terminus - the Laurasian Empire itself. Under the rule of Ardashir I and of his son, Shapur I, as has been examined above, the Marasharite Empire had entered into a period of military revival and renewed, aggressive conflict against its neighbors, throughout much of the period after 1620.

*Ardashir's wars against Haxonia, Dejanica, the Great Breffal Federation, and Laurasia, during the first decade of his reign, have already been noted. The Marasharite-Austarlian War of 1632-38, instigated by Emperor Ardashir, in his effort to take advantage of Austarlia's entanglements in the Germanian Principalities due to the Thirty Years' War, had ended with the Treaty of Linz (November 1638), by which Karlstadt, Sathmar, Frausbach, and the Eastern Captaincy of Upper Hungary were conceded to the Marasharite Empire. Immediately following the conclusion of this conflict, Ardashir had renewed the offensive against the Great Breffal Federation; the ensuing war (1638-39), ended in a decisive victory for the Marasharite Empire, with the Marasharites overrunning Tabriz, Hamadan, and Baghdad, the capital of the Mesopotamian Regions.

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*Already, in May 1684, the Emperor had forbidden the Guards from transporting or taking leave without his permission; the following month, he had cut their donative, tying any further military benefits to "absolute performance of their duties"; and on September 2, 1684, he conducted a purge of the officer's corps, cutting it in size by more than 20%. Furthermore, the Emperor reformed the discipline and uniform standards, requiring for the Guards to adopt tighter-fitting uniforms, restricting their access to high-powered arms and weaponry, and announcing plans for the demolition of the Praetorian Barracks in Heliotrope and Ostis. As for the military, Titus increased conscription rates; extended the range of penalties for crimes committed in the service; and reduced leave privileges, while at the same time (October 1684), instituting a harsher court-martial system, with service-members losing their rights to a hearing, and to being informed of the charges and evidence against them. By December 1684, the Emperor had imposed heavy-handed restrictions on communications, public assemblies, and navigation, constraining his subjects within the context of a police state. He also talked of abolishing all trial proceedings at the local level, revoking the ''Antonine Constitution'' of 1612 (and thereby depriving his non-Laurasian subjects of their civil rights), and introducing new taxes on ecclesiastical estates, noble properties, and business operations. Each of these measures taken by Titus greatly reduced his popularity, aroused dissent within the Empire, and inspired additional support for the cause of Neuchrus. 1684 ended, therefore, with the Empire teetering at the edge of renewed civil conflict.

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=== 1685===

===1685===

*1685, the 85th year of the seventeenth century, and the concluding year to the Crisis of the Seventeenth Century, commenced with Emperor Titus having alienated many of his subjects through his various military, judicial, and economic policies. Moreover, his act of "seizing" the throne had come to be despised by many, who desired for the return of a fully stable government, and for an end to all the troubles which had plagued the Empire throughout the preceding five decades. Titus himself added further credit to this impression during the first months of 1685. On January 8, 1685, Antiochus Polsius (1662-87), the Emperor's nephew, was raised by him to become Earl of Licantoria; one month later, the Emperor named him Prefect of the Malarian Provinces, and had the Senate designate him as Senatorial Procurator of Angelica, giving him power over a substantial slice of the Wild Marshes. This offended the Earl of Malaria Prime, who nevertheless remained loyal to the Emperor; in fact, in February 1685, Titus named Malaria Prime as Senatorial Procurator of Hypasia and Kelvania, assuaging his grumbles. By that point, as well, Titus had taken further action, in pursuance of his efforts to weaken Neuchrus' support base. On January 21, 1685, the Emperor sent a communique to Treasurer Landais; the Duke of Brittany had been stricken with illness, and was then in the process of recuperation. In this communique, Titus offered to sign a pact of non-aggression with Brittany, and to provide for free commerce between the Empire and the Duchy, if in exchange Landais agreed to hand Neuchrus and his supporters over into his custody. This was the first time in Laurasian history that the Empire had extended an offer of military alliance to any Amulak power.

*Landais, seeking to secure Brittany's position against the ever-present threat of Franconia and its new king, Charles VIII (who had acceded following the death of Louis XI in August 1683), decided to accept. Neuchrus, however, who was aware of Titus' intrigues (thanks to his supporters within the Empire), had already been sending his mercenaries and supporters to Normandy, Anjou, and Calais; in March 1685, he and his uncle fled to Parri, eluding the grasp of ducal authorities. The King's older sister, Duchess Anna of Bourbon (1661-1722), who along with her husband, Duke Peter II of Bourbon (1638-1703), served as the regents of the Kingdom in her brother's name (until he reached the age of majority, in 1691), realized what she had at play, and pledged full support to Neuchrus' cause. Neuchrus was now making rapid progress, and by the end of May 1685, he considered himself ready to move against Titus. The Emperor, on his part, now grappled with personal tragedy. On March 16, 1685, his wife, Empress Consort Octavia Neuronia (1656-85), died on Nystadia at the age of just twenty-eight.

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*Yet the Staffordia brothers, determined to resist Neuchrus' forces, managed to reach Clarise and to provoke rebellion there (July 12, 1686). Within days, they seized control of Jodie, Northrop, Grumman's Star, Lector, and Solay, posing a serious threat to the defenses of Jasonia. But on August 4, 1686, Commodore Tyleria inflicted a serious defeat upon Sir Thomasius in the Battle of Penez; four days later, he repelled a rebel offensive against Horne and Hacker, maintaining central control of those two strongholds; on August 19, Jasonia Minor became the scene of another major victory for the Emperor's forces. Lector and Solay were both recovered by the end of the month, and on September 7, 1686, Sir Thomasius was defeated and captured by the Commodore at Haxey Star. Northrop fell ten days later, followed shortly afterwards by Grumman's Star. It was not until October 17, 1686, however, before Jodie was stormed, leading to the end of the short-lived Lovellia and Staffordia Rebellion. Sir Heredotus was soon captured at Horne by Imperial Marines. On Emperor Neuchrus' orders, the two brothers were taken in chains to Hunt Major, tried by the Huntite Court of Criminal Assizes, and on November 5, convicted of treason, conspiracy, and ''lèse-majesté''. Ten days later (November 15, 1686), Sir Heredotus was executed at the Spaceport of Hunt Minor. His younger brother, however, was now spared by the Emperor, and was consigned to life imprisonment at the Secret Prison of Ipsus V. There, he remained until his death on July 17, 1702, aged sixty-eight.

*With this rebellion having taken place against his authority, Neuchrus now found it prudent to direct his attention to two of the most important institutions in the Empire, both of which had played a significant role in the Crisis of the Seventeenth Century: the Governing Senate and Praetorian Guards. He dealt with the Senate first. Already in April 1686, the Emperor had indicated that he would be welcome to the Senate's advice on state affairs, but that he would not tolerate insubordination or conspiracy from its members. Two months later (decree of June 9, 1686), Neuchrus had imposed the first limits on senatorial authority and influence in provincial administration, requiring the Procurators to submit direct reports to him, and to the Council of Civil Service, on all matters of concern within their jurisdictions. In addition to this, any reports the Procurators produced for the Senate were to be given to the Emperor as well, and he claimed the right of demanding reports on any other matters, as befitted his attention.

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*Then on November 6, 1686, Emperor Neuchrus issued the first of his Senatorial Administrative Regulations. This first one deprived the Senate of its authority to impose ''damnatio memoriae'' upon the reputations of condemned criminals, or of Emperors, which had been conferred upon it in 1415, towards the end of Demetrius the Fat's reign. Moreover, the Senate's proclamations and directives now became subject to direct ratification by the Bureau of the Imperial Chancellory, and the Senate lost its right to confer titles, honors, or other decorations upon prominent personages, unless if so authorized by His Majesty. Then in December 1686, the Emperor abolished the tax exemption status of the Praetorian Guards, a privilege which they had now enjoyed for more than two centuries (having originally been conferred on them by Claudius II). ~~Neuchrus~~ also froze future pay raises for the Guards ~~and~~ ~~ordered~~ ~~for~~ the Senate to conduct an investigation of the finances and properties of each individual Guardsman.

*Then on November 6, 1686, Emperor Neuchrus issued the first of his Senatorial Administrative Regulations. This first one deprived the Senate of its authority to impose ''damnatio memoriae'' upon the reputations of condemned criminals, or of Emperors, which had been conferred upon it in 1415, towards the end of Demetrius the Fat's reign. Moreover, the Senate's proclamations and directives now became subject to direct ratification by the Bureau of the Imperial Chancellory, and the Senate lost its ability to issue formal decrees (or ''senatorium ordinariums''), which had been used to codify key aspects of imperial law, including the succession, governmental administration, and the privileges granted to Laurasian subjects and institutions. Moreover, the Senate lost its right to confer titles, honors, or other decorations upon prominent personages, unless if so authorized by His Majesty. Then in December 1686, the Emperor abolished the tax exemption status of the Praetorian Guards, a privilege which they had now enjoyed for more than two centuries (having originally been conferred on them by Claudius II). He also eliminated the Praetorian donative - another practice dating to Claudius II's reign - and in tandem with this, froze future pay raises for the Guards. Furthermore, Neuchrus commanded the Senate - via the Heraldmaster's Office - to conduct an investigation of the finances and properties of each individual Guardsman.

*1686 also saw another event of importance for the Empire: the birth of the Neuchrian Dynasty's first heir. Empress Consort Aurelia Zemakala had become pregnant on her wedding night, and on February 14, 1686, her pregnancy had been announced by the Imperial Chancellory to the Empire's subjects. It was on September 20, 1686, that the Empress Consort gave birth to her and Neuchrus' first child, a son, in the Imperial Hospital of Quencilvanian Palace, in Christiania, Laurasia Prime. This son, although he was born a month premature, was nevertheless considered to be in "perfect condition" by his physicians. A joyous Neuchrus named him Craterus. Four days after his birth, the Grand Prince was baptized at the Imperial Chapel by Archbishop Alcornia of Oxia Vixius, and was shortly thereafter confirmed. The Earl of Oxfadia, the Earl of Duana, the Empress Consort's mother Dowager Empress Aurelia Woodaria, the Empress Consort's younger sister Grand Princess Ceciliana, and Willanius Fitzalleria, 16th Baron Fitzalleria of Americana (1617-87), became the boy's godparents. The young Grand Prince's grandmother and aunt carried him during the ceremonies. Craterus would be assigned to the care of nurses and attendants from his earliest days, and in 1690, would be given his own household.

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===1688===

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* 1688, the 88th year of the seventeenth century, witnessed Emperor Neuchrus continuing his reforms to the imperial bureaucracy and the administrative structure of the Laurasian Empire and suppressing another revolt against his authority, this time from the Praetorian Guards. The Emperor now began to truly earn the title by which he would become known: the "Reformer." On January 24, 1688, Neuchrus issued instructions to every Procurator, Praetor, and Governor within the Empire, ordering them to carry out their duties effectively and to maintain loyalty towards the state. The same instructions, furthermore, commanded all provincial and regional administrative officials within the Empire to maintain accurate enumeration, conscription, and taxation records within their jurisdictions; to take extensive surveys of all the star systems explored or colonized by imperial authorities, or under the patronage of the Imperial Laurasian Government; and to report on economic matters, particularly those concerning agriculture, industry, and commerce. The following month, on February 12, the Commission of State Revenue and Finances formally presented its report to the Emperor at Quencilvanian Palace; this report stated that the Imperial Laurasian Government was in debt, to the tune of $151.2 quintillion ''denarii'', due to the extravagant spending and careless financial practices pursued by many of Neuchrus' predecessors.

*1688, the 88th year of the seventeenth century, witnessed Emperor Neuchrus continuing his reforms to the imperial bureaucracy and the administrative structure of the Laurasian Empire and suppressing another revolt against his authority, this time from the Praetorian Guards. The Emperor now began to truly earn the title by which he would become known: the "Reformer." On January 24, 1688, Neuchrus issued instructions to every Procurator, Praetor, and Governor within the Empire, ordering them to carry out their duties effectively and to maintain loyalty towards the state. The same instructions, furthermore, commanded all provincial and regional administrative officials within the Empire to maintain accurate enumeration, conscription, and taxation records within their jurisdictions; to take extensive surveys of all the star systems explored or colonized by imperial authorities, or under the patronage of the Imperial Laurasian Government; and to report on economic matters, particularly those concerning agriculture, industry, and commerce. The following month, on February 12, the Commission of State Revenue and Finances formally presented its report to the Emperor at Quencilvanian Palace; this report stated that the Imperial Laurasian Government was in debt, to the tune of $151.2 quintillion ''denarii'', due to the extravagant spending and careless financial practices pursued by many of Neuchrus' predecessors.

*The Imperial Treasury's resources were drained, as the government's expenses were greater than its income, and the Imperial Treasury did not use its financial resources effectively. The Imperial Household's budget was in dire need of reform and proper management. The Commission recommended that spending be slashed, a balanced budget instated, and the entire tax system reorganized. Neuchrus agreed, and in March 1688, he ordered for the Imperial Treasury to produce a uniform budget concerning all state expenditures, revenues, returns, and obligations. That same month, he lowered interest rates on government bonds; authorized for investors, brokers, and stock-market traders to have greater leeway with stock transactions; and imposed an artificial check on the prices of bonds and loans to the Imperial Treasury, allowing for the government to regain its financial bearings. Moreover, the Emperor began a reform of the Household's obligations and general expenses, imposing an allocation cap for entertainment and maintenance expenses, and ordering the Board of the Imperial Household to reform taxation rates and obligations at all crown estates, properties, and holdings.

*In June 1688, Neuchrus would forbid the Imperial Household's suppliers and contractors from demanding a rate of service from his agents; he also mandated that all agents were to provide their services to the Household interest-free. All of these measures helped to alleviate the financial situation. In addition, in adherence to the Commission's recommendations, Neuchrus cut court, noble, heredity, and ecclesiastical spending, intending to reduce the budget and to return unused tax dollars to the emergency reserves. These measures were further buttressed by the abolition, in September 1688, of the government monopoly in feldspars, borite, and other rare minerals, allowing for these goods to circulate more freely in the market and encouraging competition, paving the way for an increase in general tax receipts.

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*The Emperor now entrusted Sir Athansius Mydarania (1635-1714), the Lord Mayor of Christiania, and the Earl of Oxfadia with the task of suppressing the Praetorian Rebellion. The Christiania Police Force and the imperial garrison of Laurasia Prime remained absolutely loyal to His Majesty, and their more effective organization, larger personnel size, and more sophisticated communications turned out to be key. By the early hours of November 20, after a day of confrontations in the streets and quadrants of Christiania, the rebellion had been crushed. More than 15,000 Guards died in confrontations with the Emperor’s troops; Simnelis, all of his leading co-conspirators (including Chlorus and the Suffects), and more than 20,000 members of the Guards were captured. Neuchrus was now determined to find out why the rebellion had erupted, and he sought to punish all of those who had participated in the rebellion. The Governing Senate, Holy Synod, and Council of Civil Service were constituted into a special tribunal in order to investigate, interrogate, and to convict those involved. Simnelis and his conspirators were imprisoned at the Fortress of Baureux, the Post Settlement of Hepudermia, and the Tyburn Stockards of the Cron Drift, and the investigation got underway in December 1688.

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=== 1689===

===1689===

*1689, the 89th year of the seventeenth century, opened with the Imperial Laurasian Government still dealing with the consequences of the Praetorian Rebellion on Laurasia Prime, which had erupted the previous year. This year would also see the instigation of a military conflict, by Emperor Neuchrus, with the Vectorian Empire, which continued to hold parts of the Anastasian and Hospallian Provinces in the Western Barsar Regions. As had been alluded above, between November 1688 and March 1689, a series of trial proceedings, punishments, and interrogation sessions were conducted by the Councils of State and by the Emperor's subordinates, as they sought to uncover the facts behind the Praetorian Rebellion and to punish those who were responsible for it. Chancellor Mortonia, Privy Seal Foxius, Oxfadia, and the Emperor's uncle, the Duke of Mariana Prime, took the most prominent roles during this process. On January 5, 1689, Simnelis himself, along with Commander Chlorus and Suffect Sir Desiderius Meranius, 1st Baronet Meranius of Christiania (1642-89), chief among the Suffects who had condoned the Praetorian upheaval, were formally tried and condemned by the Councils of State after a two-hour trial. Fourteen days later, they were executed at the Fortress of Baureux, in front of crowds of more than 200,000. By the end of March 1689, virtually all of those who had been involved in the rebellion (over 25,000 individuals) had been interrogated, formally condemned, and either executed or imprisoned.

*Emperor Neuchrus, who had gained an additional motivation in his efforts at reform, decided to now get rid of the Guards entirely. Neuchrus believed that any further attempts to limit their influence would be futile, and that the best course of action would be to replace them with a new set of regiments. Thus Neuchrus, by the decree of February 2, 1689, formally disbanded the Praetorian Guards; ordered for the demolition of the ''Casta Praetoria'', which had stood for 267 years, and all other Guards fortresses, barracks, and installations; and banished all family members and associates of the Guards officers from Laurasia Prime. The Emperor dispersed the Guards commanders and officers who had not been involved in the rebellion among the regiments of the Imperial Laurasian Army; deprived all who had retired from the Guards of their benefits and honors earned from that service; and expunged all references to the Guards in public or official memorandum, documents, and orders. Neuchrus even went as far to destroy a statue of Seleucus the Victor in the gear of the regiments which he had established. In April 1689, he announced the formation of the successor regiments to the Praetorians, which he designated as the Valedictorian Guards of the Imperial Household, an elite force to comprise of no more than 10,000 men. In contrast to the Guards, they were to be stationed directly at the Palace, and would be under his direct oversight. They were given no special privileges or trading rights except for their salary and pension upon retirement. Admittance was to be strictly confined to those between the ages of 18 and 35; Guards officers were forbidden to travel beyond Laurasia Prime, or to make any financial or property transactions, without the Emperor’s consent. The Valedictorian Guards thus established would become the main protection squad of the sovereign, to be joined by the Gentlemen Pensioners during the reign of his son Antigonus III, in the eighteenth century.

*At the same time, Neuchrus further widened his efforts at diplomacy. The second half of the seventeenth century had, as alluded above, seen the intensification of the Empire’s ties with the powers of the Great Amulak Spiral. Neuchrus himself was determined to continue this process, and believed that by making additional overtures to those powers, he would be able to counterbalance the power of Dejanica, Marasharita, and Scottria. In June 1687, the Imperial College of Foreign Affairs had begun sending communiques to the chancellories of the Spamalkan Kingdoms, Portugallia, Haxonia, Vendragia, Scandinavia, Pruthia, and Austarlia, among other states, which indicated the express desire of the Emperor of Laurasia to come to terms with any power which was willing to do so. It was now the Spamalkan Kingdoms (Greater and Lesser Spamalka), who rendered the first formal response to these Laurasian overtures. At that time, the Spamalkan Kingdoms were ruled by the "Spouse Monarchs": Ferdinand II of Greater Spamalka (1652-1716) and Isabella I of Lesser Spamalka (1651-1704).

*As implied by their title, they were a married couple, and each of them exercised power in their own right. Ferdinand and Isabella both belonged to the Spamalkan House of Trastamarta, which had begun governing in Lesser Spamalka in 1569 before extending its rule into Greater Spamalka. On October 16, 1669, Ferdinand (then seventeen) and Isabella (eighteen), who were the heirs to their respective thrones, had been married at Valladolid. Possessed with ability and intelligence, and enjoying a strong as well as loving relationship, the two were determined to expand the power and influence of their dynasty. In December 1674, Isabella became Queen of Lesser Spamalka, succeeding her half-brother Enrique IV (r. 1654-74). She had been confronted with the challenge of Enrique's daughter, Joanna (1662-1730), who became Queen Consort of Portugallia in May 1675. Securing the support of her husband, King Alfonso V of Portugallia (r. 1638-81), she then launched a war against Isabella, attempting to assert her claim to the Spamalkan throne. The War of the Lesser Spamalkan Succession had lasted for four years, until its conclusion in September 1679 with the Treaty of Alacovas, by which Isabella's title as Queen of Lesser Spamalka had been recognized. Several months earlier, in January 1679, Ferdinand had become King of Greater Spamalka, following the death of his father Jose II (r. 1658-79).

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* During the next ten years, the Spouse Monarchs had become embroiled in a series of additional wars. They had already secured concessions in the Colombiana, the Spice Colonies, and the Canaries through the War of the Lesser Spamalkan Succession. Beginning in 1682, they launched an invasion of the Emirate of Grenada, which was the last remnant of the Ummayian Empire which had once ruled over the Spamalkan Dominions. This war, which was still ongoing by January 1689, strained the military and financial resources of the Spouse Monarchs and included the intervention of their traditional northern enemy, Franconia, as well as of the Barbary States to the south of Grenada. Ferdinand and Isabella, therefore, when they received the overtures from the Imperial Laurasian Government, were determined to follow up on them. They now considered the prospect of an alliance with the faraway Laurasian Empire in the Caladarian Galaxy to be a viable and promising one, and they hoped that it would widen Spamalka's diplomatic ties beyond the bounds of the Great Amulak Spiral. Ferdinand and Isabella envisioned that such an alliance could be further consummated through a dynastic marriage. Emperor Neuchrus had a young son, Grand Prince Craterus. The Spouse Monarchs had five children by that point: Isabella (1670-98), Jose (1678-97), Joanna (1679-1719), Maria (1682-1717), and Catalina (1685-1736). The last of these, Catalina, remained uncommitted, and the Spouse Monarchs now hoped that she could be betrothed to the Laurasian Grand Prince. Such an arrangement, they believed, would benefit both sides: Neuchrus would gain acceptance of his position by a major foreign power; the Spamalkans would obtain a potential partner against Franconia and other Amulak enemies.

*During the next ten years, the Spouse Monarchs had become embroiled in a series of additional wars. They had already secured concessions in the Colombiana, the Spice Colonies, and the Canaries through the War of the Lesser Spamalkan Succession. Beginning in 1682, they launched an invasion of the Emirate of Grenada, which was the last remnant of the Ummayian Empire which had once ruled over the Spamalkan Dominions. This war, which was still ongoing by January 1689, strained the military and financial resources of the Spouse Monarchs and included the intervention of their traditional northern enemy, Franconia, as well as of the Barbary States to the south of Grenada. Ferdinand and Isabella, therefore, when they received the overtures from the Imperial Laurasian Government, were determined to follow up on them. They now considered the prospect of an alliance with the faraway Laurasian Empire in the Caladarian Galaxy to be a viable and promising one, and they hoped that it would widen Spamalka's diplomatic ties beyond the bounds of the Great Amulak Spiral. Ferdinand and Isabella envisioned that such an alliance could be further consummated through a dynastic marriage. Emperor Neuchrus had a young son, Grand Prince Craterus. The Spouse Monarchs had five children by that point: Isabella (1670-98), Jose (1678-97), Joanna (1679-1719), Maria (1682-1717), and Catalina (1685-1736). The last of these, Catalina, remained uncommitted, and the Spouse Monarchs now hoped that she could be betrothed to the Laurasian Grand Prince. Such an arrangement, they believed, would benefit both sides: Neuchrus would gain acceptance of his position by a major foreign power; the Spamalkans would obtain a potential partner against Franconia and other Amulak enemies.

*The Spouse Monarchs made their first response to the Emperor's overtures in September 1687, but it was not until January 1689 before the two governments agreed to negotiations. Those negotiations commenced at Medina Del Campo, in Leon, Lesser Spamalka, on February 1, 1689. Laurasian interests were represented by Neuchrus' Ambassador to the courts of the Spouse Monarchs, Julian Clarus, 2nd Baron Clarus of Hannah (1635-1710), who had served as Ambassador since 1683; those of the Spouse Monarchs were represented by Alfonso de Madarilla (1621-94), who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Spouse Monarchs between 1680 and his death in 1694. Clarus and de Madarilla, who had developed a good amount of mutual respect for each other, were able to proceed swiftly with the negotiations. Out of them emerged the Treaty of Medina del Campo (March 26, 1689), which was the first alliance treaty of any kind (diplomatic, marriage, or military), concluded between Laurasia and an Amulak-based power.

*By the terms of this treaty, Laurasia and the Kingdoms of Greater and Lesser Spamalka were obliged to come to each other's aid should they declare war upon a hostile third power in the Great Amulak (confirmed, under secret codicil, to be Franconia). Moreover, if Laurasia entered into hostilities with Marasharita, the Spouse Monarchs pledged not to sign a separate treaty with that power. Laurasia recognized Spamalkan rights to Roussilon and Cerdanya; Spamalka in turn, affirmed the Empire's hold on the Dejanican Borderland Territories and the Galactic Frontier Route, as well as Laurasian rights of access to the Galactic Void. The Treaty established that Neuchrus' son and heir apparent, Grand Prince Craterus, was to be formally betrothed to Princess Catalina of Greater Spamalka. Catalina was to convert to the Imperial Almitian Church, to receive the title of Grand Princess of Shenandoah, and to reside at the Imperial Laurasian Court, once she reached the age of fifteen. A dowry of $400 trillion ''denarii'' for the future Grand Princess, to be provided by her parents, was authorized. Finally, the two realms agreed to eliminate a number of tariffs on non-essential goods, primarily luxury items, scientific instruments, and consumer goods, and rights of free navigation between the two realms were confirmed.

* The Spouse Monarchs ratified the Treaty of Medina del Campo in May 1689, but Emperor Neuchrus did not, at this juncture do so. Throughout 1689 and 1690, he continued to tread the waters of Amulak politics. Laurasia was to most of those powers (except for Marasharita and Dejanica, its direct neighbors), a foreign, distant realm, in spite of the fact that it had maintained embassies and commercial ties with them for well over a century by this point. In the late seventeenth century, Vendragians, Haxonians, Pruthians, Austarlians, Franconians, and Portugallians alike did not consider Laurasia to be a direct threat, for its military forces had never campaigned in, or even reached the Great Amulak Spiral, it was located well over two million light years away from the Amulak Spiral, and it had not been actively involved in Amulak affairs during the sixteenth and much of the seventeenth centuries, excluding its relationships with Dejanica and Marasharita; as early as 1636, Jean Poton de Xaintrailles (1587-1653), Marshal of Franconia and the re-conqueror of Normandy and Guyenne from the Vendragian Confederacy, had excluded Laurasia, along with the Great Breffal Federation and the Grand Duchy of Masacavania, from the system of Amulak diplomacy.

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* Yet the process was underway that would change Amulak views completely. In 1713, nearly eighty years after Xaintrailles' claim that Laurasia was "irrelevant" to Amulak politics, Andre de Flury, Archate of Frejus (1653-1743), one of King Louis XII's ministers and a leading Franconian scholar, recognized that peace in the Great Amulak Spiral could not be guaranteed unless if Laurasia were part of the system. By the middle of the eighteenth century, the Laurasian Empire would be fully incorporated into the system of Amulak politics and war; in 1765, slightly over a century following Xaintrailles' death, Joag Hallart, 2nd Vendragian Duke of Buckinghamshire (1723-93), who served as the Confederacy's ambassador to the Imperial Laurasian Court of Aurelia I from 1762-65, would remark that the Laurasian Empire was "no longer to be gazed at as a distant glimmering star" but was now "a great planet which has obtruded itself into our system, whose place is yet undetermined, but whose motions most powerfully affect those of every other orb."

*Yet the process was underway that would change Amulak views completely. In 1713, nearly eighty years after Xaintrailles' claim that Laurasia was "irrelevant" to Amulak politics, Andre de Flury, Archate of Frejus (1653-1743), one of King Louis XII's ministers and a leading Franconian scholar, recognized that peace in the Great Amulak Spiral could not be guaranteed unless if Laurasia were part of the system. By the middle of the eighteenth century, the Laurasian Empire would be fully incorporated into the system of Amulak politics and war; in 1765, slightly over a century following Xaintrailles' death, Joag Hallart, 2nd Vendragian Duke of Buckinghamshire (1723-93), who served as the Confederacy's ambassador to the Imperial Laurasian Court of Aurelia I from 1762-65, would remark that the Laurasian Empire was "no longer to be gazed at as a distant glimmering star" but was now "a great planet which has obtruded itself into our system, whose place is yet undetermined, but whose motions most powerfully affect those of every other orb."

*Following the conclusion of the Treaty of Medina del Campo, Emperor Neuchrus sent an ultimatum to Vectorian Emperor Sargon Adak I, who had succeeded his father Shamashi-Adad Adak I upon his death in 1684 (April 7, 1689). In this ultimatum, Neuchrus demanded for all the remaining territories once belonging to the Neo-Anastasian Empire, in the Western Barsar Regions, to be conceded to the authority of his Empire; for the Vectorians to return all captives and prisoners of war seized by their forces; and for the Vectorians to recognize Laurasian transit privileges in the Galactic Borderlands. Sargon Adak I, who was overconfident and boastful, refused these demands on April 23, declaring that he would rather die than submit to the Imperial Laurasian Government’s terms. Consequently, the Emperor, who had been engaged in extensive military preparations for months, declared war (May 14, 1689). The Earls of Oxfadia and Duana, Sir Giletus Daubeny, and the Duke of Mariana Prime had been named as the commanders of the Empire’s military forces, stationed in the Barsar Regions and in the Neo-Merlite Provinces. As soon as the declaration of war was issued, Laurasian units began making substantial progress against their Vectorian foes. The Earl of Oxfadia repelled frantic Vectorian counteroffensives against Destiny Major, Destiny Minor, and Hemkura (May 14-22, 1689), and on May 25, instigated a siege of Hospallia Major, one of the chief remaining strongholds for the Vectorians in the Barsar Regions.

*The Siege of Hospallia Major, in which Oxfadia was aided by the Earl of Duana and by the Duke of Mariana Prime, lasted for some weeks, but on June 9, 1689, the stronghold fell into Laurasian possession. Oxfadia subsequently subdued Al-Pushim (June 17) and the Vectorian colony of Taldaim (June 22). A series of confrontations ensued between Laurasian and Vectorian forces at Helena, Hakura, and Grenada (June 24-July 1, 1689), as the Vectorians, launching a series of additional counteroffensives into Laurasian territory, desperately attempted to hold off a Laurasian thrust against Anastasia Major. But this effort failed. The subsequent Battle of Lea (July 7-9, 1689), ended in defeat for Vectorian General Nur-dugul (1634-1703), who was captured by the Duke of Mariana Prime and was dispatched as a prisoner to Laurasia Prime, being incarcerated at the Fortress of Baureux on the Emperor's orders. The Laurasians won further victories at the Vectorian outposts of Song (July 12), the Approaches of Hospallia (July 14), and Solana the Great (July 16). Finally, on July 22, 1689, Anastasia Major, once the capital world of the Neo-Anastasian Empire, fell under siege by the Imperial Laurasian Navy.

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*By the end of March, Oxfadia and Duana had also stormed Aubrey, Tessa, and Noelle, further consolidating the Laurasian grip in the Nagoshi Homeland Territories. Vectorian counteroffensives against Eliza Spencer, Meridu, Helena, Hospallia Major, Teutonica, and Destiny Major ended in failure, and on April 14, 1690, the Battle of Nagosh was waged. The Vectorian Governor of Nagosh, Peredith-Gabash (1623-99), proved to be a resilient and effective military commander; he was not willing to yield to his Laurasian foes willingly, and he organized a vigorous defense, rallying the personnel of the garrison and reminding them of what they were fighting for. Several successive Laurasian assaults upon Nagosh's military defense lines ended in failure; on April 22, Vectorian forces even broke out to Timber, Joanna, and Blake, briefly recovering those outposts and posing a serious danger to the imperial supply lines.

*Ultimately, however, Duana shored up the lines, and on May 4, 1690, the stronghold finally fell into Laurasian hands. Duana proved to be kind to the subjugated inhabitants of the star system, forbidding his troops to quarter on private property or to ransack privately-held factories, businesses, and enterprises without his permission. The conquest of Nagosh, which was shortly afterwards compounded with the fall of Neustron and Invictis Mesura to the Empire's forces (both on May 21, 1690), finally compelled Vectorian Emperor Sargon Adak I and his Council of Regents to request for negotiations with the Laurasian Empire. The armistice request was made on June 3, 1690; Emperor Neuchrus approved it three days later, and on June 17, 1690, the Truce of Marith was signed, thereby suspending hostilities between the opposing Empires. It was not until July 3 before delegations from the two governments convened at Skold for terminating the conflict; Privy Seal Foxius, Sir Giletius Daubeny, Chancellor Mortonia, Imperial Marshal Berkalania, and the Duke of Mariana Prime served as the chief commissioners for the Imperial Laurasian Government. The Vectorian Government, on its part, was represented by Lord Ashur-dugul of Vector Prime (1630-97); by High Admiral Isharana-Adak (1646-1705); by General Asinum of Arachosia Prime (1631-1700); and by the Governor of the Sassi-ruuk Provinces, Libaya Barsak (1642-1709).

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* After a month of negotiations, the Treaty of Skold was signed (August 3, 1690). By the terms of this treaty, Emperor Neuchrus pledged to restore the Sassi-ruukian, Nagai, and Kthexoxian Provinces (that is, all the territories which had been seized by the Empire's military forces in the Galactic Borderlands), back to the Vectorian Empire. This restoration was to be accomplished by no later than September 1, 1691. All military prisoners of war were to be exchanged, but no financial compensations were to be paid by either government. In return, however, the Vectorian Empire agreed to the concession of Hospallia Major, Anastasia Major, Borgia, Al-Pushim, Tong, and the remaining Western Barsarian Territories to the Laurasian Empire (in effect, the remainder of the territories which Vectoria had gained four decades earlier with the dissolution of the Neo-Anastasian Empire), establishing the boundary between the two states as it was to exist at the commencement of the eighteenth century. In addition to this, free transit and navigation privileges for Laurasian subjects in Vectorian territory were guaranteed, and all Laurasian subjects were to gain a right of appeal to the Council of High Regents. The Treaty of Skold was ratified by Neuchrus on August 19, 1690, and by ASargon Adak I on September 7.

*After a month of negotiations, the Treaty of Skold was signed (August 3, 1690). By the terms of this treaty, Emperor Neuchrus pledged to restore the Sassi-ruukian, Nagai, and Kthexoxian Provinces (that is, all the territories which had been seized by the Empire's military forces in the Galactic Borderlands), back to the Vectorian Empire. This restoration was to be accomplished by no later than September 1, 1691. All military prisoners of war were to be exchanged, but no financial compensations were to be paid by either government. In return, however, the Vectorian Empire agreed to the concession of Hospallia Major, Anastasia Major, Borgia, Al-Pushim, Tong, and the remaining Western Barsarian Territories to the Laurasian Empire (in effect, the remainder of the territories which Vectoria had gained four decades earlier with the dissolution of the Neo-Anastasian Empire), establishing the boundary between the two states as it was to exist at the commencement of the eighteenth century. In addition to this, free transit and navigation privileges for Laurasian subjects in Vectorian territory were guaranteed, and all Laurasian subjects were to gain a right of appeal to the Council of High Regents. The Treaty of Skold was ratified by Neuchrus on August 19, 1690, and by ASargon Adak I on September 7.

*By October 1690, the Laurasian Empire's hold over the entire Barsar Regions had been confirmed, and with it, had come control of all the Caladarian Galaxy outside of the Galactic Borderlands. At that stage, 365 years after the death of Seleucus the Victor, there were now only five powers within the Caladarian Galaxy: Laurasia, Marasharita, Dejanica, Scottria, and Vectoria. This was a far remove from the twenty-four independent states which had existed four centuries earlier. Neuchrus now turned his attention again back to internal reform. In November 1689, the Emperor had decreed the establishment of the Court of the Imperial Chancery, which he designated as the highest court of appeal for criminal cases from throughout the Empire, and for those criminal cases concerning lower government officials, members and servants of the Imperial Household, and employees of the Imperial Laurasian Government. Sir Athanasius Belleria (1638-1704), was named by the Emperor as the first Chief Justice of the Court of Chancery. Then two months later (decree of January 17, 1690), Neuchrus had established a legal commission to review the situation of the Empire's judicial system, and to compile all imperial statutes, constitutions, decrees, prescripts, charters, and orders issued since 1517 (up to 1690), into a new uniform code.

*He appointed his childhood tutor Sir Aurelius Hermogenianus, as well as Chief Justices Hussarania and Belleria, the jurist Sir Arcadius Charasius (1645-1728), and Privy Seal Foxius to this commission. The commission's labor extended six years, and would ultimately produce two codifications of the Empire's laws. Emperor Neuchrus also began his taxation reforms; in April 1690, he changed the tax due date to September 1, established the office of ''decurion'' to levy taxes directly from estates and businesses, and reorganized the Imperial Internal Revenues Service (IIRS), entrusting it with greater jurisdiction over cases of tax fraud, evasion, and peculation. In October 1690, Neuchrus deprived nobles and gentry in the Empire of their exemption from taxation, and imposed a new system of graduated taxation upon their estates and titles; in January 1691, the city of Christiania lost its traditional tax-exemption status. In November 1690, internal tariffs on spices, military hardware, and industrial equipment were abolished; on December 8, 1690, the Emperor ordered for an extensive account of all state excise and import revenues to be compiled by the Imperial Treasury. In June 1691, he abolished the Agency of State Diversions, producing a uniform reserve fund for all government agencies.

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*Besides the events surrounding the pretender Warbeckia, 1691 also saw the birth of another son for Emperor Neuchrus and his wife, Empress Consort Aurelia. On June 28, 1691, the Empress Consort gave birth to their second son, and third child, at Gilbertine Palace on Tudoria. Neuchrus, who was overjoyed by his birth, named his younger son Antigonus. He was destined to become Antigonus III, the Extravagant (r. 1709-47), one of the most significant monarchs in the history of the Laurasian Empire, renowned for his extravagance, his six wives, and his thorough reform of the Imperial Almitian Church. Antigonus was baptized by Privy Seal Foxius, in his capacity as Archbishop of Taurasia. His godparents were Empress-Dowager Aurelia Woodaria, Grand Princess Ceciliana, the Duke of Mariana Prime, and the Earl of Oxfadia. Grand Prince Antigonus, who became Duke of Laurasia Prime from the moment of his birth, was nevertheless not expected to succeed his father upon the Laurasian throne, due to the presence of his elder brother, Grand Prince Craterus. Antigonus, however, would prove to be far more alert, both physically and mentally, than Craterus.

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=== 1692 ===

===1692===

*1692, the 92nd year of the seventeenth century, witnessed the continuation of Alexander Warbeckia's challenge to Emperor Neuchrus and, more importantly, the Laurasian Empire's first-ever military conflict in the Great Amulak Spiral, against the Serene Kingdom of Franconia. By early 1692, King Charles VIII of Franconia had grown more invested in the idea of an intervention against Laurasia, in the interests of expanding his own power. His harboring of Warbeckia was in accordance with this goal. Warbeckia issued a stream of new manifestos from Parri in January 1692, expressing his contempt for Neuchrus; urging his subjects to rise up against him, and to reject his authority over the realms of the Laurasian Empire; and declaring that any who defected to his cause would be doing a service to the Imperial Almitian Church. The Emperor of Laurasia, responding to these manifestos, issued his own proclamation on January 5, 1692, threatening severe punishment for any who continued to condone, or to promote, the claims of the "heinous pretender Warbeckia, whose only intention is to bring anarchy and ruin to our dominions." Neuchrus also engaged in efforts to pressure the Franconians, through diplomatic and economic means, into dropping their support for Warbeckia. He had also conceived the idea of extending a territorial guarantee to the Duchy of Brittany. If the Duchy were to retain some measure of autonomy, the Emperor believed, then it would help limit the threat which the Franconians might be able to poise against Laurasian interests.

*As far back as November 1691, the Imperial Laurasian Government had exchanged parleys with its Durthian and Austarlian counterparts, with the goal of providing for the autonomy of Brittany; the security of the Durthian Duchies; and the limitation of Charles' forays into Orange, Franche-Comte, and Alsace, among other regions. By January 1692, delegations from the three governments had convened at Liege, for the purpose of drawing up a treaty relating to these matters. The Treaty of Liege, however, was not signed until February 22, 1692. By the terms of this treaty, Emperor Neuchrus, along with Holy Austarlian Emperor Leopold I and Archduke-Regent Maximilian of Durthia, pledged themselves to a common military front against the ambitions of Franconia. Considering that Austarlia was still tied up by the campaigns of the Great Marasharite War against the Marasharite Empire in Transylvania, the Danubian Principalities, Serbia, and Bosnia, and that Durthia itself was focused on efforts to secure its territorial frontiers against Franconian incursions, the main responsibility would fall upon the Laurasian Empire for "providing military resources by which to conduct the effectual defense of the interests of the Duchy of Brittany, and to prevent any aggressive moves from the direction of His Majesty of Franconia whereof."

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*Then, on March 5, 1694, the Emperor organized the last of the Imperial Courts, that of Common Pleas, to deal with petitions from the Empire's subjects to the imperial authorities, as well as petitions among governmental organizations and disputes or cases of corruption relating to the Empire's administration. Neuchrus appointed Sir Gregorius Ladaria (1636-1746) as the first Chief Justice of the Court. Ladaria had possibly the most interesting background of any of the Chief Justices appointed by Emperor Neuchrus, a background which deserves further elaboration here. He had been born on May 7, 1636, in Antinouspolis, Chronographia. He was the eldest child - and only son - of Alexander Ladaria (1612-51), who was an accountant and clerk for Christiania Pharmaceuticals, and of his wife Apollonia (1615-67). Ladaria had two younger sisters, Helena (1638-1720) and Arsinoe (1641-1721). Ladaria originally had no interest in the law, and instead aspired to become an actor. He began acting in plays at the age of four, and when he was six, he became a contract player with the Lord Comptroller's Men.

*The Lord Comptroller's Men traced its origins to the reign of Antoninus Pius and its establishment by the first Lord Comptroller, Sir Marcus Larania (1490-1547), in 1546. By the time of Ladaria's birth, it had become one of the most respected dramatic acting troupes in the Laurasian Empire, performing not just for the Imperial Court, but for audiences of all classes, and at prominent venues, throughout the Laurasian Empire. The Lord Comptroller's Men would eventually be transferred to the control of the Imperial Lord High Chamberlain following that office's establishment by Emperor Neuchrus in 1687, and would at that stage be renamed the Lord Chamberlain's Men. In April 1643, after appearing in his first role with the troupe, as Onsemius in ''The Conflict'', Ladaria was the youngest of 64 contract players - who ranged in age from six to seventy-eight - to be photographed in the "group portrait," taken annually, of the Lord Comptroller's Men. He was destined to outlive all of them, as well as the Director, Sir Lysimachus Mayronia (1584-1657), who held that position from 1624 until his death in 1657 - and who was one of his two "great" mentors.

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*Ladaria remained with the Lord Comptroller's Men for another nineteen years, earning accolades - including three Grand Prizes for Dramatic Performance from the Imperial Academy of the Arts - for his roles as Grand Prince Demetrius, Honorius the Terrible's youngest child, in ''The Tragedy of the Captive Prince of Uglich'' (1645) and the Duke of Chancia in ''The Folly of Youth'' (1652). But it was his marriage to Euthemia Greysius (1638-1733) in 1658, which altered the trajectory of his career and of his life. Euthemia, whom he had known since childhood, was herself an actress by background, but had begun studying to become a paralegal. She encouraged her new husband - with whom she shared an intense and devoted romance, culminating in a marriage which lasted for 76 years until her death in September 1733 - to pursue a legal career of his own. Ladaria himself had developed a considerable interest in the law, partly because of contractual issues which he encountered with the Lord Comptroller's Men.

*Therefore, after obtaining his B.A. in Dramatic Art from the Imperial Academy of the Arts, the same year of his marriage, Ladaria had entered the Imperial Jurisprudence Academy. He proved himself to a devoted and dilligent student, and graduated from the Academy ''summa cum laude'' in 1662. Ladaria would name Sir Eusebius Warania (1591-1674), who served as Chancellor of the Academy from 1653 to 1669, as his other "great" mentor, saying in later years that Warania taught him the value of "reason," as Mayronia had taught him the value of "compassion," values that would guide him throughout his legal career. Resigning from the Lord Comptroller's Men soon afterwards, he obtained, with Warania's assistance, a clerkship with the prestigious Christiania Inns, working there as a junior barrister for four years, before establishing his own private practice, ''Ladaria Litigations'', in Christiania, in 1666. He remained in private practice for eighteen years, and become one of the most respected barristers on Laurasia Prime. Ladaria also continued his academic pursuits, obtaining a PhD in Galactic Political Sciences, from the University of Laurasia Prime, in 1673. His dissertation, ''On the Evolution of Monarchial Systems in the Caladarian Galaxy'', would be cited by historians and legalists alike long after his death. In 1685, he had been among the first notable personages on Laurasia Prime to declare his loyalty for Neuchrus, and had been rewarded by the new Emperor with appointment to the Planetary Court of Assizes in Christiania (1687).

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*Neuchrus would then confirm the abolition of all other praetorian prefectures which had been established throughout the Empire, principally those of the Upper Barsar Regions, Xilanian Provinces, and Imperial General Headquarters (decree of December 6, 1694). Most of these positions had emerged since the reign of Antigonus I. Their responsibilities were divided between the varying regional authorities in the Empire and Chancellor Mortonia. The Chancellor now became responsible for the ultimate supervision of governmental and political affairs on Laurasia Prime, and for all involvement with criminal and civil cases handled by the Imperial Laurasian Government. Neuchrus also continued on his drive against the power and influence of the Governing Senate; the decree of December 4, 1694 circumscribed the Senate's authority to demand reports from the Senatorial Provinces and on Ascentmas Day, 1694, the Emperor ordered for the Imperial College of Regional and Provincial Administration to begin a study of the Empire's local administrative system. Yet as 1694 was coming to its close, tensions were building up again, in relation to the pretender Alexander Warbeckia and the threat which he posed to Neuchrus' position.

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=== 1695===

===1695===

*1695, the 95th year of the seventeenth century, commenced with Emperor Neuchrus, having continued with his program of reforms, once again facing the threat of the pretender Alexander Warbeckia. In November 1694, in a move of retaliation, the Emperor had imposed an embargo upon all commerce between the Laurasian Empire and the Durthian Duchies. Neuchrus declared that the harboring of Warbeckia by the Regent-Representative of Durthia, Margaret of Burgundy (1646-1703), the step grand-mother of Duke Philip I, to whom the Pretender had fled in February 1693, following his expulsion from Parri by King Charles, was "a crime against Almitis, and upsetting to the tranquility of all powers of intergalactic civilization." In January 1695, the Emperor forbade his subjects from traveling to, or engaging in commerce within, the realms of the Durthian Duchies. Neuchrus, on the advice of his uncle, the Duke of Mariana Prime, also took action against Sir Willanius Stanelis, who was suspected by the Imperial Intelligence Agency of being in collusion with Warbeckia and having offered him financial assistance. Stanelis was arrested on January 15, 1695, tried by the Councils of State, and sentenced to death. He now offered a full confession, hoping to escape execution.

*Neuchrus hesitated for a while, not wishing to antagonize his mother and stepfather. They too, however, came around to understanding Stanelis' guilt, and the Emperor felt himself free to proceed. Stanelis was executed at the Fortress of Baureux on February 16, 1695. Warbeckia, on his part, who was assured that there were elements within the Empire (particularly in the Burglais Arm), which were opposed to Neuchrus, and hearing of Stanelis' execution, decided to make a second effort, and to launch a renewed invasion. Throughout the early months of 1695, with financial and material aid from Margaret of Burgundy (who entertained ambitions of extending Durthian power and influence towards the Caladarian Galaxy, and viewed Warbeckia as the best means of doing this), Warbeckia reorganized and expanded his forces. By April 1695, he had more than 2,000 warships and 10 million military personnel, along with tens of thousands of support craft and vehicles, at his disposal. His forces were predominantly Durthian, Germanian, and Haxonian.

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*On March 18, 1696, at the Palace of Placenta on Darcia, Empress Consort Aurelia Zemakala gave birth to a second surviving daughter, who she and Neuchrus named Octavia. Octavia, destined to become Queen Consort of Franconia and Duchess of Sufforia, would also be the grandmother of Lady Minerva Greysius, the "Nine Day's Empress" of 1753, and of Ladies Katharina and Didymeia Greysius, claimants to the Imperial Laurasian Crown during the early years of the reign of her niece, Aurelia the Great.

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===1697 ===

===1697===

*1697, the 97th year of the seventeenth century, commenced with the Laurasian Empire and Celestial Kingdom of Scottria engaged in a bitter fight, relating to the claims of the Pretender Alexander Warbeckia. On January 7, 1697, the Battle of Eliza Spencer resulted in a victory for Scottrian forces under the Earls of Ross and Caithness. By January 16, Scottrian units had stormed Meridu, Hemkura, Helena, Aletis, and Grenada, entrenching themselves within the Hospallian and Anastasian Provinces. Hospallia Major, Teutonica, and Anastasia Minor, however, defied their attempts, and on February 1, 1697, Oxfadia blunted a Scottrian move against Jacksonian Backory, in the Battle of Childress. Childress was a minor colony located five light years to the west of Jacksonian Backory. On February 17, Roxburgh and Yoder were recovered by Oxfadia in a series of surprise assaults, and by the end of the month, Zabi and Cydamus had both fallen under siege by the Imperial Laurasian Navy. Scottrian expeditions into the Merlite and Ashlgothian Provinces continued to be repelled by Laurasian fleets and garrisons. Yet Warbeckia remained in the favor of King James. By his connivance, the Pretender married the Scottrian Lady Catherine Gordon (1674-1737), daughter of George Gordon, 2nd Earl of Huntly (1641-1701). The marriage took place at Kathy Major (March 4, 1697), and was celebrated with much lavishness and much vigor by the chief personages of the Royal Scottrian Court. Yet it provoked Emperor Neuchrus yet more, and on March 16, he issued his "firm resolution" not to make peace with Scottria until the Pretender and his forces had been expelled from that realm.

*March 1697, however, saw the tide of conflict turn in the favor of the Emperor. On March 6, 1697, the Siege of Zabi ended in victory for the Empire's forces; Cydamus fell on March 19. Marcotte and Blumer proved to be more difficult, but by the beginning of April 1697, both star systems were back in Laurasian hands. The Earl of Oxfadia, along with his subordinate, Vice-Admiral Valentinian Flavius, 2nd Earl of Almastead (1644-1712), then secured Sejucia and Nicole (April 5, 1697), and on April 22, the Scottrians were driven from Aletis. On May 1, 1697, Hemkura and Meris were recovered, and four days later, Oxfadia inflicted a ruinous defeat upon the Earl of Angus in the Battle of the Berazanius. Angus lost more than a third of his corvettes and starfighters. Shelton and Michelle were recovered on May 11, and four days later, Wheaton in the Galactic Borderlands was stormed by Sir Daubeny, now an Admiral, giving the Empire a foothold within Scottrian territory. By May 19, Crusher, McKellen, Janeway, and Frasier had all been seized by the Laurasians. Gholaia and Castellum Dimmidi were recovered on May 24, and Ranieda Major was besieged from May 26 (it would ultimately fall on June 2).

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*All prisoners of war, and all properties captured, in the preceding conflict were to be returned to their rightful owners. Neither realm was to harbor rebels or pretenders from the other; moreover, King James formally denounced all claims by Warbeckia, or any other pretenders, against the Imperial Laurasian Crown. However, the Imperial Laurasian Government agreed to dispense €5.7 quadrillion dataries over the next four years, on demand, to compensate those who suffered undue damage from Laurasian raiding expeditions over the preceding twenty years. The Treaty of Ayton was ratified on December 22, 1697 by Emperor Neuchrus; King James, however, who was actively engaged in the suppression of rebel movements on Smwerick, Niddry, Baltinglass, Brechin, Corgaff, Kerry, and Limerick, deferred. Nevertheless, Emperor Neuchrus declared that the end of the war brought tranquility and stability back to the Empire.

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===1698 ===

===1698===

*1698, the 98th year of the seventeenth century, began with the Laurasian Empire at peace with its Scottrian neighbors once again; the next Laurasian-Scottrian War would not occur until 1713, in the reign of Neuchrus' son, Antigonus III. On January 4, 1698, Emperor Neuchrus returned to Laurasia Prime, after having conducted a tour through the Laurasian Purse Region to suppress all remaining strands of rebel tension. In a proclamation from Quencilvanian Palace on Laurasia Prime, the Emperor announced that the end of the war, and the final capture of Alexander Warbeckia, had brought tranquility back to the Empire's realms. Nevertheless, he continued to await for the final ratification by his Scottrian counterpart, King James IV, of the Treaty of Ayton. King James finally suppressed the rebellions in the Dumbarton Provinces, and on January 27, 1698, announced his intention to honor the treaty. On February 10, 1698, the King formally ratified the Treaty of Ayton at St. Andrews; he then conducted a formal celebration there, to commemorate the Treaty. As for de Ayala, the Spamalkan Monarchs rewarded him generously.

*He was made Count de Ayala in January 1698, and on March 7, they named him Ambassador to the Laurasian Empire. de Ayala made his leave of King James and of the Scottrian Court at Leith on March 14, and from there, proceeded rapidly across the Galactic Void, and into the Caladarian Galaxy. He arrived at Quencilvanian Palace (March 21, 1698), and was greeted by Emperor Neuchrus with much formality. He was presented along with the new Scottrian Ambassador, Andrew Forman, appointed by King James six days earlier, and who had just helped to negotiate the Treaty of Ayton. de Ayala quickly gained favor with the Emperor's courtiers, and built ties with his fellow ambassadors, in particular with Raimando de'Raimondi (1632-1708), the Haxonian Confederacy's emissary to the Laurasian Empire from 1691 to 1703. Nevertheless, he and the Spamalkan Consul to the Embassy on Laurasia Prime, Rodrigo Gonzalez de Puebla (1650-1725), soon developed a rivalry, and this complicated diplomatic negotiation efforts, particularly regarding the marriage of Grand Prince Craterus with Spamalkan Princess Catalina of Greater Spamalka.

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*Emperor Neuchrus watched the negotiations with interest. He also contended with the disputes, at his Imperial Court, of de Ayala and Puebla. Puebla, who still resented de Ayala's presence, sent a communique to the Spouse Monarchs in July 1698, asking for de Ayala's recall and accusing him of working against their interests. In August and September 1698, a series of brawls between the servants and subordinates of de Ayala and Puebla brought down a formal note of rebuke from the Emperor; talk circulated that the Spamalkan Monarchs would soon recall both diplomats. Ultimately, however, these troubles receded, and in October 1698, de Ayala was confirmed in his position as Ambassador to the Laurasian Empire. That same month, he and Puebla, who were now forced to work together, entered into a series of discussions with Neuchrus and his Privy Council over the terms of the marriage contract between Craterus and Catalina. These discussions were to continue into 1699, and result in the conclusion of another treaty between the two realms. On December 15, 1698, the Emperor and his court retreated to Gilbertine Palace on Tudoria, where they celebrated Ascentmas, Twelfth Night, and New Year's.

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===1699 ===

===1699===

*1699, the 99th year of the seventeenth century, commenced with the Laurasian Empire, emerging from a recent and short conflict with the Marasharite Empire and Haynsian Despotate, again returning to a state of both external and internal tranquility. Emperor Neuchrus, who was determined that his Empire would remain in such a state as the close of the seventeenth century drew ever nearer, continued to manage the governmental affairs of his Empire with vigor, and to ensure that his subjects continued to exist in a state of economic prosperity and of tranquility. 1699 was marked by three main events: the conclusion of the Treaty of Karlowitz, the final marriage settlement between the Laurasian and Holy Spamalkan Empires, and the execution of the Pretender Alexander Warbeckia as well as the Earl of Sarah. The first of these was the end of the Great Marasharite War.

*On January 26, 1699, after more than two months of negotiations, the Treaty of Karlowitz was signed by the delegations of the Laurasian Empire, Holy Austarlian Empire, Dejanican-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Haxonian Confederacy, and Marasharite Empire. This treaty thereby ended the Great Marasharite War, which had lasted for sixteen years, along with the shorter Laurasian-Marasharite War of 1698-99 (the last of five wars between Laurasia and Marasharita during the seventeenth century). By the terms of this treaty, the Marasharite Empire made substantial territorial concessions in the Great Amulak Spiral, and modest ones in the Caladarian Galaxy. The Holy Austarlian Empire was the chief beneficiary. Emperor Leopold I acquired the Egri ''Eyalet'', the Varat ''Eyalet'', 85% of the Budin ''Eyalet'', 25% of the Temesvar ''Eyalet'', and 10% of the Bosnia ''Eyalet''. This corresponded to the majority of Marasharite Hungary, Croatia, Slavonia, and Herzegovina, including the Pazak Cluster. Leopold's title as King of Hungary and Croatia was recognized by the Marasharites, as well as the attachment of those realms in perpetuity to the Emperors of Austarlia.

*Furthermore, the Principality of Transylvania was now to become a protectorate of the Holy Austarlian Empire, and the Austarlians received the right to station garrisons across its territory and to control commercial, diplomatic, and religious matters (Transylvania would not be formally incorporated into Austarlia as a constituent kingdom until 1711, in the aftermath of Rakoczi's Rebellion). The Dejanican-Lithuanian Commonwealth recovered Podolia (including Kamenets), which it had lost to the Marasharite Empire back in 1672. The Haxonian Confederacy acquired Naxos, Prios, Sparta, the Morea, Cornith, the Aetolian States, the Ionias, and Inner Dalmatia, considerably strengthening its own territorial base (the Peloponnese, Athens, and Cyprus would be gained in 1718). Haxonia also recovered Crete, which it had lost to the Marasharites in 1669. Upper Serbia, Olthenia, the Banat of Temesvar, Bukovina, Macedonica, Epirus, Albania, Ragusa, Bulgania, Cyprus, the remainder of the Grecian Provinces, and the Danubian Principalities were retained by the Marasharite Empire. The Laurasian Empire, moreover, now made its final territorial acquisition of the seventeenth century. The Marasharites finally recognized undisputed Laurasian jurisdiction over the Eastern Galactic Frontier Route, including Amelia, Chromy, Chappelear, Guthmiller, Natalie, Tiona, Adrianne, Belaprasian, and Abrianne.

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* Neuchrus agreed to abandon Laurasian claims to the Tof Borderlands, which had been maintained by every Emperor since Antigonus II (his son, Antigonus III, was to revive the claims in 1714, after his death). Thus ended a territorial dispute between Laurasia and Marasharita which had now been ongoing for more than a century, since the Borderlands Wars. In recompense, Marasharite Emperor Chomqat II pledged to outlaw all further raids by the Haynsian Despotate, against Laurasia, Dejanica, Austarlia, or Haxonia, and promised to punish all Marasharite subjects who engaged in enslavement or piracy activities in the Galactic Void. A border commission was instituted to delineate the boundaries outlined in the Great Amulak Spiral, and those in the Galactic Borderlands, established by the treaty. The Marasharite-Haxonian boundary would be complete by June 1700, the Marasharite-Dejanican boundary in November of that year, the Marasharite-Laurasian boundary in April 1701, and the Marasharite-Austarlian boundary, the last to be settled, in July 1703.

*Neuchrus agreed to abandon Laurasian claims to the Tof Borderlands, which had been maintained by every Emperor since Antigonus II (his son, Antigonus III, was to revive the claims in 1714, after his death). Thus ended a territorial dispute between Laurasia and Marasharita which had now been ongoing for more than a century, since the Borderlands Wars. In recompense, Marasharite Emperor Chomqat II pledged to outlaw all further raids by the Haynsian Despotate, against Laurasia, Dejanica, Austarlia, or Haxonia, and promised to punish all Marasharite subjects who engaged in enslavement or piracy activities in the Galactic Void. A border commission was instituted to delineate the boundaries outlined in the Great Amulak Spiral, and those in the Galactic Borderlands, established by the treaty. The Marasharite-Haxonian boundary would be complete by June 1700, the Marasharite-Dejanican boundary in November of that year, the Marasharite-Laurasian boundary in April 1701, and the Marasharite-Austarlian boundary, the last to be settled, in July 1703.

*The Treaty of Karlowitz was ratified by Emperor Neuchrus on January 30; by Holy Austarlian Emperor Leopold I on February 7; by King Callaganius II of Dejanica on February 16; by Doge Agostino Barbarigo of Haxonia on February 21; and by Marasharite Emperor Chomqat II on March 2. By the end of April 1699, all Laurasian forces in the Muggal Cluster and the Tof Borderlands had been withdrawn back to the territories of the Laurasian Empire. The Marasharite Empire's expansionism, which had been ongoing for four centuries by that point (since Osman I declared himself Emperor in 1299), now came to an end. The Empire would be engaged in continual conflict with its neighbors throughout the eighteenth century, and its boundaries would wax and wane. But it would never achieve the same kinds of territorial gains as it had under such Emperors as Mehmed the Conqueror and Suleyman the Magnificent, and its wars would be primarily defensive in nature.

*Neuchrus' attention, in the meantime, had shifted to the matter of the marriage alliance with Spamalka. In February 1699, the Emperor indicated his resolution to the Privy Council to provide for the final settlement of this matter between the two realms. He then held an audience with Spamalkan Ambassador de Ayala, and secured his assurances that his masters were more than willing to conclude the final arrangements. On April 2, 1699, Emperor Ferdinand did give the authorization for de Ayala to proceed with the negotiations, reminding him to always keep the goals and the needs of the Holy Spamalkan Empire in mind. de Ayala, Puebla, and Jose de Alodio, Count de Alodio (1647-1710), convened at the Senatorial Palace with the Earls of Soria and Duana, Chancellor Mortonia, and Privy Seal Foxius (April 17, 1699). A month of negotiations then followed, as the two delegations wrangled over the terms of the dowry, over the time of Catalina's arrival at the Imperial Court, and over "marital responsibility" arrangements. Finally, however, the Treaty of Christiania was signed (May 23, 1699). By the terms of this treaty, the conferral of the title of Grand Princess of Shenandoah upon Catalina was affirmed; she was to be converted to the Almitian faith, to take a Laurasian name, and to become a subject of the Laurasian Empire.

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*Lady Gordon became a lady-in-waiting to the Empress Consort in December 1699; was granted an imperial annuity by the Emperor; and in January 1700, formally absolved by the Almitian Church of any responsibility for her husband's actions. She remained a prominent personage at the Imperial Court into the reign of Antigonus III. She attended the proxy wedding of King James IV and Grand Princess Constantia in January 1703, the funeral of the Empress Consort in February of that year, and the coronation of Emperor Antigonus in June 1709. She remarried, to Sir Lysimachus Strangia (1671-1715), an usher of the Privy Chamber, on February 13, 1712. They remained married until Sir Lysimachus' sudden death on March 12, 1715, aged forty-four. Two years later, she married a third time to Sir Matthew Cransea (1673-1731), Steward of the Palace of Placenta, and they remained married until his death on July 2, 1731. Lady Gordon then married a fourth time, to Sir Christopheus Astonia (1677-1771), on June 10, 1732, and they remained married until her death on October 12, 1737 at Americana, aged sixty-three. Emperor Neuchrus, having eliminated Warbeckia and Sarah, felt far more secure than before. On Ascentmas Day 1699, he declared to his subjects that the Lord Almitis had preserved him, and his Empire, through all.

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===1700 ===

===1700===

*The year 1700, the 100th and concluding year of the seventeenth century, began with there being a renewal of exuberance, vigor, and hope within the realms of the Laurasian Empire. As the seventeenth century neared its close, the Empire had finally returned to a state of domestic tranquility and stability. Moreover, the Empire's economy and culture had been launched upon a course which allow for both to mature, and to develop, considerably throughout the following century. By 1700, the Laurasian Empire's territory encompassed the whole of the Caladarian Galaxy outside of the Galactic Borderlands. Emperor Neuchrus ruled over nearly thirty-eight million star systems, spread across a distance of 115,000 light years. His dominions stretched from the Dasian Heartland in the north to the Hutsite Reaches in the south, and from the Wild Marshes and Galactic Frontier Route in the west to the Osonboka Nebula and the Burglais Arm in the east. The population of Laurasia Prime, in spite of all the troubles and turmoils of the Crisis of the Seventeenth Century, had broken the one-trillion mark during the seventeenth century: it reached this major landmark in 1695. By 1700, that number had increased by a further two hundred million. Population density in the Core Regions remained higher than in other regions of the Caladarian Galaxy, but many of the star systems which had been devastated by the Crisis of the Seventeenth Century had experienced a great recovery. The Emperor himself had done much to stabilize the administrative, military, and economic system of the Empire.

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* He had introduced a new currency, complete with new values and bills of denomination; reformed the chaotic, and conflicting taxation system; reorganized the imperial bureaucracy and introduced the Imperial Privy Council, third of the Councils of State; and revitalized the Empire's military, destroying the Praetorian Guards and strengthening the ranks of the forces. He had built a close relationship with the Holy Synod, encouraged immigration into his realms, and development of its resources, and strengthened its diplomatic ties with its neighbors in the Great Amulak Spiral. His treaties with Dejanica and Marasharita; his assertion of Laurasian dominance in the Wild Marshes; and his seizure of the southwestern Barsar Regions from the flagging Vectorian Empire had all served to buttress Laurasia's own position. 1700, consequently, was a year in which the Emperor and his subjects could look back upon the challenges of the previous century. Three things occurred this year: the deaths of the Emperor's younger son, Grand Prince Edwardis, 1st Duke of Volta, and of Chancellor-Chief Procurator Mortonia, as well as the continuation of Neuchrus' reforms. The Duke of Volta died on June 19, 1700, at the age of only one year and three months. His death had a great effect upon the Emperor, who had lost one child already. His second daughter, Grand Princess Aurelia, named after her mother, who had been born at Gilbertine Palace on July 2, 1692, had died at the Palace of Harmony on Clancia, on September 14, 1695, at the age of only three.

*He had introduced a new currency, complete with new values and bills of denomination; reformed the chaotic, and conflicting taxation system; reorganized the imperial bureaucracy and introduced the Imperial Privy Council, third of the Councils of State; and revitalized the Empire's military, destroying the Praetorian Guards and strengthening the ranks of the forces. He had built a close relationship with the Holy Synod, encouraged immigration into his realms, and development of its resources, and strengthened its diplomatic ties with its neighbors in the Great Amulak Spiral. His treaties with Dejanica and Marasharita; his assertion of Laurasian dominance in the Wild Marshes; and his seizure of the southwestern Barsar Regions from the flagging Vectorian Empire had all served to buttress Laurasia's own position. 1700, consequently, was a year in which the Emperor and his subjects could look back upon the challenges of the previous century. Three things occurred this year: the deaths of the Emperor's younger son, Grand Prince Edwardis, 1st Duke of Volta, and of Chancellor-Chief Procurator Mortonia, as well as the continuation of Neuchrus' reforms. The Duke of Volta died on June 19, 1700, at the age of only one year and three months. His death had a great effect upon the Emperor, who had lost one child already. His second daughter, Grand Princess Aurelia, named after her mother, who had been born at Gilbertine Palace on July 2, 1692, had died at the Palace of Harmony on Clancia, on September 14, 1695, at the age of only three.

*Neuchrus was forced to console his wife once more; Edwardis would be interred at New Westphalian Cathedral on July 2, 1700. In spite of the death of Edwardis, Emperor Neuchrus was nevertheless still focused on the success of his own Empire. This year saw some further beneficial reforms. In January 1700, the Emperor granted the Governing Senate the authority to countermand the instructions of Praetors and Aediles throughout the Empire. Subsequently (decree of February 18, 1700), he provided harsh penalties against embezzlement, corruption, and peculation among the judicial service, forbidding the advisory boards in petty cases from being exposed to any communications or evidence which would hamper them in the execution of their duties.

*The Emperor raised the ''iugera'' and ''capita'' tax rates upon noble and hereditary properties in July 1700. This was a policy sponsored by Chancellor Mortonia, who reasoned that if a man had much revenue, he could spare much revenue, while a man who had little could spare little. The last years of Neuchrus' reign would see the further intensification of taxation, alienating many of the Emperor's subjects and leading to a decline in his overall popularity. Moreover, Neuchrus (manifesto of August 7, 1700), cracked down on the practices of "livery" and "maintenance," forbidding the nobility from hiring or employing personal retainers or mercenaries without imperial permission, limiting the number of male servants and attendants to which they were entitled, and establishing strict regulations regarding the identification, honors, and badgery of all in their households. This manifesto would be followed by the decree of October 13, 1700, which amended the Nobility Regulations of 1553, as had been promulgated by Antoninus Pius.

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