The Drakonian Union is an alliance between the various majority-Edrossian culture nations on Doras Edrossi established by the Dealing Council at the Dealing of 310 AC, pledging to aid each other in war should the need arise. It was founded after the third War of Woods, in which the Zaentovi Horde attempted to conquer the Leyse Woodlands, which mostly belonged to the city-state of Ethryke at the time. The Union, by extension, is derived from the Ethrykian Alliance, which for nearly 20 years kept the Edrossian culture intact and safe from the Zaentovi invasion.
Although it still exists in the present day, it has not been exercised since the War of Woods that created it -- in 40 years, Doras Edrossi has not seen any major wars beyond that of petty disputes among themselves. The Union was close to being invoked during the Thysian Conflict of 320 AC, though given the military strength of the Kingdom of Andoras and their closeness due to Aeramor Dragomyr saving the Ethrykian Alliance from the Horde, there was a majority vote against it. Regardless, Aeramor had died in the single battle of the conflict, which resulted in his son and newly-crowned king Aegor IV Dragomyr torching the entire Thysian armada, to which the Thysians did not retaliate but remained wary of the Andorasi. The conflict was called off, and no official state of war ever existed between the two parties.
This may be subject to change, however -- the Ceryno-Shoremen Border Tensions are engulfing the isle of Deimia in the middle of the White Sea, and though like the Thysian Conflict it is not an official war, it could soon escalate to be one. The practicality -- as well as the rigidity -- of the Union may soon come into question if either Thunder's Shore or Ceryne decide to pursue the conflict. The treaty that established the Union, the Treaty of Lavos, says that while nations are 'honor-bound' to help their Edrossian brothers in war, it never explicitly states that they are under any risk of penalty for not joining. The treaty acknowledges the Kingdom of Andoras, yet never planned for a Civil War or the dissolution of the kingdom into several independent entities, so their political standings are also in question when it comes to war; would certain Andorasi powers join Thunder's Shore or Ceryne in their war, for example, and further blur the lines of alliance?
It all remains to be seen, and at best the Drakonian Union is an alliance of opportunity based on preservation of culture; at worst, a failed political experiment waiting for its dissolution in regards to a war that it was never supposed to prevent.
Members[]
The members of the Drakonian Union are as follows: the magisterial city-states of Ceryne, Thysia, Ethryke, Edynar, and Vecys, the premiership city-states of Meyron and Lavos, the various Village Territories including the most prominent one, Efugio (though they were not signatories to the treaty due to their unrecognized status), and the feudal lordships to the north of the city-states, including Valraenos, and the kingdom of Sigon. One notable exception is the Drakonteian Empire, which despite being the only actual Drakonians that remain on Drakonius are not part of the Union, in part due to their xenophobic nature and their denial of having 'Edrossian' culture, saying there is a distinction between the ways of the Edrossians and the Drakonians.
| “ | Interesting that you choose to call yourself a "Drakonian" Union despite having little to nothing Drakonian about yourself. Have you any idea of the strife that has been bestowed upon that word? That decaying culture? Have your people in thousands of years achieved half of what we did in a lifetime? Re-appropriate a race however you wish; we'll see if you still want to be Drakonian after you take a trip beyond the Embergleam and take in the sights of a ruined peninsula.
- Nikandrys Antaeus, Hand of the Drakonteian Emperor in an open letter to the Pryiore Villa, 340 AC
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Various attempts have been made to get the Drakonteians to join the Union, but all have been in vain, and they remain isolationist as ever.
Dragomyra, the ancient domain of House Dragomyr and the home of Taeronys Dragomyr, is equally unrecognized, but the island is thought to be uninhabited, as the common belief is that House Dragomyr died out in the Second Siege of Dragonspire. Should he contact the Union, they may recognize Dragomyra or even support him in a possible claim war against the entirety of Andoras.
Inspiration for other governments[]
Some Kingslander lords, following the dissolution of the Kingdom of Andoras in the wake of the Civil War, have taken inspiration from the Drakonian Union and formed a coalition-based alliance in the same manner. The Dealing Council attempted to do the same themselves, bestowing control of Dragonspire City upon Dunstan Chambers, who was pro-Edrossian and a proponent of the Drakonian Union. It is likely that he seeks to unite the Kingsland against those who would invade it -- at the time, namely Thyllanor and Thunder's Shore.
In 326 AC, an earlier rebellion during Aegor IV's reign, called the Farmers' Revolution, was ignited partially by sentiments of Con-crownism, which led to the establishment of a government called the Farrowhalt Freehold. They sought to take the Drakonian Union a step further -- they wanted to fully unite the states founded via the generous land grant to their cause from Dalan I Karthmere, Lord Paramount of Thyllanor, under one political identity -- in its current state, the Drakonian Union is something of a confederation, and the nations in it could technically opt out if they chose. The Freehold wrote a document, known as the Farrowhalt Codex, which laid out their plans for their government and to ensure that the principalities were not totally autonomous to the point of being independent. They believed a strong central government was integral to fighting off the Andorasi, which would slowly convert into a more democratic state over time as the threat of war diminished, and eventually the creators, Veddel Markwell and Michael Avleston, hoped that their victory would lead to what they called a Planned Union of Freeholds, where the lower classes of all nations on Drakonius would rise up and establish a government like their own. It never came to fruition, of course, and the presence of democracy remains an interesting footnote in Andorasi history which still lives on, via the Principalities of Voyatia and Colburgh -- subjects of Thyllanor.