The various tribes of Ilia have inhabited the western half of Váracmy/Voroșmi Island for as long as can be remembered, though it is hypothesized that they migrated from the main continent (presently consisting mostly of the Glaagh Empire) 1300 years ago. The land that they found was rather steppe-like, very fertile and blessed by rain in abundance, so they settled and made their home there. The tribes were distinct, ruled by their own chieftains, but they still shared several common traits with the others, including a fairly similar language and culture. Inter-tribe relations weren't, by any means, friendly, but they weren't perpetually violent; they were a few war outbreaks, but there was generally tolerance and some flow of trade among the groups, namely fish and crops.
In the year 793, though, after a rather bloody and drawn out conflict, Pocóg, an ambitious young man of the Dymỹtre tribe and the successor to the deceased chief Iqqir, took control of his tribe and, after vanquishing the Vrné clan towards the end of the year, chose instead to absorb the latter into the former. From there, he began on a campaign to dominate and unify the warring Ilian tribes. Some, like the Ivor, fought rather brutally while others, like the Kalatyn, chose instead to peacefully capitulate to avoid bloodshed. The task completed in the year 811, Pocóg proclaimed the first Ilian state, The Ilian Kingdom (Iljómóficqõttíctdodómjõl), assuming the regnal name Tollomótíct ("King" Talla, or the Victorious Leader) in an elaborate ceremony. He ruled in a time of peace, although with an iron fist and a rather oppressive regime to stifle any possible opposition to his rule. However, he was able to achieve some economic progress, allowing for free and efficient trade throughout the country, and he established an impartial court system where grievances could be addressed and had a public audience system where the people could speak to the king directly. The country performed well and finally realized the aim of a unified Ilian state.
After Pocóg passed away in 852 from natural causes, the throne went, in accordance with his will, to his eldest son Valdas. Valdas was considerably more modest in demeanor and behavior, chosing instead of a rather elaborate or fanciful title to adopt the regnal name Voldosmótíct, merely an adaptation of his personal name, and opting instead for a simple investiture and no ceremony rather than the elaborate enthronement. However, he quickly endeared himself to his people and worked on many changes, including summoning an assembly (Cỹmalqãtmaclýs, or the People's Assembly) in 853 and 854 to seek advice on issues impacting the kingdom and to hear what was going on with other areas, seeing as how the capital was established in the near-geographic center at Lydã and travel to the reaches of the kingdom was both slow and rather perilous. Also notable was that he travelled extensively, attempting to visit as many regions as possible and see what the people wanted. His reign, unfortunately, was short-lived as a result of him dying under suspicious circumstances in 855, leading him to be succeeded by his younger brother, Myja. His death was a great blow to the nation, but not nearly as devastating as what was to come.
Myja assumed the regnal name of Mitumótíct, or the "Good Leader", and rolled back many of the changes that his brother had instated. The parliament was dissolved, speech and dissent were severely restricted, many other freedoms were rescinded under the banner of "security and unity", and mourning for the previous king was squashed under pain of death. This new status quo was maintained through his death in 899 and with the next ruler, his son Adalvart, who took the name Cóndímótíct, or the "Knowledgeable Leader". However, Adalvart began a rather aggressive modernization campaign after seeing the progress being achieved in some of the neighboring states, using the recent development of the steam engine to great effect as he directed the construction of a rather intensive railway system and beginning the industrialization of Ilia.
The Cỹmalqãtmaclýs, this time renamed the Týctremaclýs (Assembly to the Leader), was surprisingly resummoned in 924 to seek advice on the subjects of taxation and the line of succession. Adalvart was unmarried, much like his uncle Valdas, and didn't have a direct heir. The advice, in addition to the usual request to limit taxation to only what was needed, was that the throne not pass to his younger brother, Járne, but instead to his older sister Mohon. Before he got the chance to act on this, though, he and his sister were both assassinated under unusual circumstances by a hitman during a public audience, allowing aforementioned brother to take the throne with the regnal name Vúnúcmótíct, or the "Beautiful Leader".
Using the assassinations as an excuse for a further crackdown, he both introduced a secret police force, the Dámjãmásyqerháqãharmyla (Force for State Security), and raised taxes across the board to support his increasingly lavish lifestyle and that of his consort, including importing wine and the finest foodstuffs from all over the world. This took place even during the famine in 932, an event which decimated the population partly due to a particularly dry spell. The inflexibility of the ruler's tax regime plus the greatly reduced grain and fruit yields led to widespread shortages of basic foods, causing malnutrition in a good portion of the population and death. Járne was unmoved, though, and maintained his very extravagant habits, passing them on to his son Vafenam after his death in 960.
Vafenam, as the Mojímmótíct (Holy Leader), initially maintained the status quo. This, naturally, began causing unrest and led to the formation of the Lyvyrtáqãézetretaljetejalqãmaclýs, or the "Assembly for Justice and Freedom", an organization opposed to the present system which called for loosening of the legal restraints on the people, especially after seeing the success of the Telèmor Federation, and for a fairer tax policy. The group was tolerated, partly because they didn't advocate abolition of the monarchy, but were, on many occasions, threatened with arrest for "disrupting the public order". Some loosening did take place, such as a symbolic reduction of taxes and a reduction of the number of police on the streets. Disaster, however, occurred in 983 when the Glaagh Empire, largely unknown, attempted an invasion of the island.
A low-tech force that is sufficiently large can, indeed, do a fair amount of damage. Several large wooden warships carrying large numbers of Glaagh (about forty thousand) landed at present-day Qujito and promptly began attempting to conquer the land. The invaders were repelled after three months of the onslaught, with all of the invaders and about ten thousand Ilians killed. The stress of this war, however, combined with his fragile health in the first place contributed to the death of Vafenam in 984 and the accession of his son, Madyn, who received the title Ginmótíct, or the "Iron Leader".
Madyn's concerns were not with governing: at the age of 14, he was not prepared to assume the throne and was easily manipulated by those around him, including his hand-picked trophy wife Ircibit, who broke precedent and gave herself the title Arzrthektrvénécmátýct, or the "Consort of Eternal Beauty". A few years later, though, Ircibit chose to depose her husband by attempting an assassination and, when that failed, he fled the country to Telèmor, leaving her, in 986, as the sole ruler.
Titling herself using the form Orzlthuktrvúnúcmótíct to symbolize a leader proper, she established a heavy-handed and iron-fisted rule, raising taxes to intolerable levels, executing members of the Lyvyrtáqãézetretaljetejalqãmaclýs through burning at the stake, and, for the first time, establishing sumptuary laws and dress codes to ensure that she was the most attractive being in the realm. In an effort to preserve her beauty, though, she consumed large quantities of virginal blood, normally extracted from girls who were "hired" to work in her household, and had orgies with large numbers of young men hoping that their youth would transfer to her. Tales of these exploits, along with the number of people executed, gave her the names Vitúqõvódómótíct, the "Bloody Leader", and Putõmútíct, the "Whore Leader".
Her reign unravelled, though, as a result of the war she decided to wage against Telèmor. Her astrologer informed her that the former leader lived in Telèmor and, in order to ensure that her reign would last for a period no shorter than eternity, she would need to ensure her husband met his end soon. Thus, after divining the appropriate time to start a war, she decided to invade the neighboring country in the winter of 999 by laying a seige on the border cities of Russe and Dobor. This started a very bloody war that lasted for three years, resulting in many deaths on both sides and not much territory gained on either front. The apparent pointlessness of the war, however, was not lost on the underground resistance of Ilia, the Dámjãhelmágehécredaxán (Front for National Salvation): seeing that there really was no rhyme or reason for the war, they began encourage men to disobey the almost universal conscription orders and mobilized strikes of the war industries. At first, apprehension prevented many people from revolting, especially as the punishments for disobeying orders were death. The instigators kept at it, though, and, within a few months, the disruptions they hoped for had come to fruition. The resources of the military had dwindled due to the strikes, desertions became rather commonplace, and people were openly defying the rule of the secret police. This gave the Telèmor military the opportunity to advance on the capital with few obstructions, much to the chagrin of Ircibit. Indeed, she fled rather quickly to a far-away land as soon as danger to her became apparent, and the Ilian Kingdom then "surrendered" by default. The Telèmor, however, chose not to occupy the country, but leave quickly once they had ensured that the dominated territory would not collapse.
Madyn, who was in Telèmor, was offered to return to the throne; however, having assumed by this time Telèmor citizenship and a new identity, he declined. Instead, the Front for National Salvation, led by Moriku Góvozu and Viktor Óxin, two students of political science and psychology, decided to take control of the country, proclaiming the Ilian State (Iljómódómjõ) as a republic with Góvozu as the president. A group of scholars was then summoned to draft a constitution and, by an overwhelming majority of about 81%, the "Freedom Constitution" was adopted in a referendum; within a year of the war's end, a republic had been established. During the five-year term of Góvozu, the country made incredible improvements economically and socially, increasing the wealth of the country and allowing for a free and democratic society to blossom. He declined to run for a second term, thus allowing for the first presidential election. The second president, Elle Majadré, was similarly reform-minded with her focus on education and social improvement, aiming to raise the literacy rate to 100% and providing lower-cost housing and healthcare for the people while slightly increasing the economic output of the country. Her term in office concluded and she was replaced with Óxin in a hotly contested election between the Front for National Salvation and a more revolutionary liberal party, the Ilian Social Democratic Alliance (Yljámasazjalycmázécte). The more moderate direction continued with him, though problems arose when the economy slowed down after the initial push from the fall of the Bloody Queen. Things were still looking positive and, in 1019, another election was held, bringing the Social Democratic Alliance to the government with their president, Jadrá Kacar, a businessman who had helped to improve the rail system.
Two years into the Kacar presidency, however, another disaster struck: Ircibit had returned, and she wasn't alone. She had gone off and married a wealthy chieftain of the Yaglu, a people who lived far to the west of the Ilia and who were rather happy to wage war. A few months into 1023, without warning, the Yaglu immediately invaded Ilia with the aim of reintroducing the reign of terror Ircibit had previously held. By the middle of the year, the country had been subjugated once more with all the leaders of the republic brutally executed in increasingly bloody and gory ways, such as sawing in half (in public), slow slicing, and the classic British punishment of hanging, drawing, and quartering. Her new husband, Utge, held no title as a ruler (though was de facto the prince consort), but served as a commander of the forces of the Yaglu who remained in the country as an occupying army to assist Ircibit's rule. As before, even small whispers of dissent were brutally punished with gruesome and bloody execution of the perpetrators, a systematic overhaul of the country's economy to divert practically all the country's wealth to the ruler and her husband, schools were shut down and records burned, many historic monuments and areas were wiped out to create room for the new buildings and monuments to the new regime, and sumptuary laws were re-enacted to attempt to mold the population more to the Yaglu ideal. Accordingly, the new regulations banned trivial things such as beards, moustaches, any facial hair, and long hair on men (i.e. Yaglu-style haircuts, namely buzz-cuts, and clean-shaven faces were required), anyone from having lighter-colored hair than the Yaglu or the queen, clothing made from a wide range of materials and in certain colors, jewelry, and many other whims of the ruler. The Telèmor refused to recognize the new government and provide any economic support, even imposing entry bans on the government officials, but would not take any military action due to the threat of the Yaglu, a people that had practically moved their entire country to Ilia.
Her decadence, however, partly contributed to her downfall. Though Telèmor refused to trade with her, other countries still continued the trade, and she racked up horrible sums of debt to satisfy her desires. She passed away in 1045 at the age of 75: the cause of her death is unknown and unconfirmed (the official cause reported to the people was "due to overwork and exhaustion"), but it's widely thought to be due to cancer from smoking large quantities of imported cigars. In her will, she ordered a lavish state funeral and that the throne go to her only son by Madyn, Mycgat, who was proclaimed Blvukmótíct, the Sun King. He, having grown up with his mother's influence, was equally decadent: he did not consume blood, but he had expensive tastes for alcohol and clothing and still threw orgies. He had no desire to govern, though, and was rather apathetic about ruling, instead continuing to channel wealth to his own coffers and letting his stepfather handle a lot of the work.
It's important to note, however, that the Yaglu were not present out of the goodness of their hearts: they were being paid tribute in exchange for their presence, and this was especially important after the death of Ircibit since Utge was not related at all to the current king. In 1047, however, Mycgat began to resent the fact that the tribute was being paid for this purpose and wanted to divert the money to purchasing more shipments of prostitutes. Accordingly, he stopped payment. His stepfather confronted him but, once he found that Mycgat would pay no more, Utge ordered the immediate evacuation of the Yaglu from Ilia. Within two days, nobody was there to support the regime. The absence of the Yaglu was visible and, within a few days, the Ilian people, this time, staged a revolt, captured Mycgat in his palace, and executed him summarily through the hanging, drawing, and quartering that had been used to intimidate the population. Thus, within a week, the system that Ircibit had worked hard to build, a regime she predicted would stand for a million years, had fallen.
Once Mycgat was dead, however, the hardest task lay ahead: rebuilding a country in shambles. The currency was worthless, most of the infrastructure was destroyed, the economy was in a poor state, the people were horribly underfed and in poverty, and very few people were around who had taken part in the previous governments. Those few people who had stepped up to the plate to begin constructing a new government, but that solved only one of the issues. The Telèmor government, however, decided to provide aid: they began by sending in advisors to assist in rebuilding, coordinate resources, and hopefully get a recovery underway, and this was then followed by food and relief aid.
As Madyn, now much older but still in perfect health, again chose not to return to Ilia, a new constitution was finished at the start of 1048 and the new country was announced. This document proclaimed the Ilian People's Republic (Iljómócĩmoqõtdómjõ), similar in structure to the first Republic but more similar to the Telèmor set-up in delineating more overall power to the legislature. A plebiscite held that year approved the constitution by a vote of approximately 93% in favor and, by the end of that year, a new government was convened with the first president of the new Republic being Borút Piconov, an energetic businessman who had been involved with the first Republic's government but fled to Telèmor during the reign of terror. Two years later, the advisors left, and the country was independent and functioning on its own. Around this time marked Madyn, the old king, taking a short visit to Ilia, the first time he had been in the country since he left power; he was incredibly warmly received and the visit helped provide a moral boost to the Ilian people.
Ilia is still rebuilding only 20 years after the fall of the last dictatorship, and a lot is still to be done, particularly with infrastructure. Many monuments to the old regime were destroyed in a systematic process to remove many of the traces of the two bloody monarchs with older, historical buildings being refurbished in the meantime. Economically, a new currency was introduced and, after some runaway inflation initially, it now is traded widely and is seen as somewhat stable; additionally, there has been decent economic growth overall, averaging about 2% GDP growth per year for the past 10 years. A good deal of debt still remains to be paid off, but the debt is no longer accruing at the rapid rate it had been; further, the Pearl Islands forgave some of the debts owed to them, and that further helped along the road to recovery.
Some signs of the old regime remain, though. Most men still do not wear any facial hair, but many grow their hair out long and the youth are now known for particularly daring fashions and hairstyles. Many who are between 26 and 50 still have a fear about talking anything regarding politics and are reluctant to speak their minds about anything partly due to the fear that the regime had instilled. Health problems also linger, with the life expectancy remaining low for the majority of people who were born during the second reign. Literacy is only at about 90% (up from about 20% at the fall of the monarchy). A positive remainder is the low crime rate that had a small spike after the fall of the monarchy before settling down again. Ultimately, the country is recovering rather well with the goal, by the year 1070, of 95% literacy, good economic indicators, and a strong network of infrastructure available to provide everyone's basic needs and transportation of goods into the country efficiently and cheaply.
In the year 793, though, after a rather bloody and drawn out conflict, Pocóg, an ambitious young man of the Dymỹtre tribe and the successor to the deceased chief Iqqir, took control of his tribe and, after vanquishing the Vrné clan towards the end of the year, chose instead to absorb the latter into the former. From there, he began on a campaign to dominate and unify the warring Ilian tribes. Some, like the Ivor, fought rather brutally while others, like the Kalatyn, chose instead to peacefully capitulate to avoid bloodshed. The task completed in the year 811, Pocóg proclaimed the first Ilian state, The Ilian Kingdom (Iljómóficqõttíctdodómjõl), assuming the regnal name Tollomótíct ("King" Talla, or the Victorious Leader) in an elaborate ceremony. He ruled in a time of peace, although with an iron fist and a rather oppressive regime to stifle any possible opposition to his rule. However, he was able to achieve some economic progress, allowing for free and efficient trade throughout the country, and he established an impartial court system where grievances could be addressed and had a public audience system where the people could speak to the king directly. The country performed well and finally realized the aim of a unified Ilian state.
After Pocóg passed away in 852 from natural causes, the throne went, in accordance with his will, to his eldest son Valdas. Valdas was considerably more modest in demeanor and behavior, chosing instead of a rather elaborate or fanciful title to adopt the regnal name Voldosmótíct, merely an adaptation of his personal name, and opting instead for a simple investiture and no ceremony rather than the elaborate enthronement. However, he quickly endeared himself to his people and worked on many changes, including summoning an assembly (Cỹmalqãtmaclýs, or the People's Assembly) in 853 and 854 to seek advice on issues impacting the kingdom and to hear what was going on with other areas, seeing as how the capital was established in the near-geographic center at Lydã and travel to the reaches of the kingdom was both slow and rather perilous. Also notable was that he travelled extensively, attempting to visit as many regions as possible and see what the people wanted. His reign, unfortunately, was short-lived as a result of him dying under suspicious circumstances in 855, leading him to be succeeded by his younger brother, Myja. His death was a great blow to the nation, but not nearly as devastating as what was to come.
Myja assumed the regnal name of Mitumótíct, or the "Good Leader", and rolled back many of the changes that his brother had instated. The parliament was dissolved, speech and dissent were severely restricted, many other freedoms were rescinded under the banner of "security and unity", and mourning for the previous king was squashed under pain of death. This new status quo was maintained through his death in 899 and with the next ruler, his son Adalvart, who took the name Cóndímótíct, or the "Knowledgeable Leader". However, Adalvart began a rather aggressive modernization campaign after seeing the progress being achieved in some of the neighboring states, using the recent development of the steam engine to great effect as he directed the construction of a rather intensive railway system and beginning the industrialization of Ilia.
The Cỹmalqãtmaclýs, this time renamed the Týctremaclýs (Assembly to the Leader), was surprisingly resummoned in 924 to seek advice on the subjects of taxation and the line of succession. Adalvart was unmarried, much like his uncle Valdas, and didn't have a direct heir. The advice, in addition to the usual request to limit taxation to only what was needed, was that the throne not pass to his younger brother, Járne, but instead to his older sister Mohon. Before he got the chance to act on this, though, he and his sister were both assassinated under unusual circumstances by a hitman during a public audience, allowing aforementioned brother to take the throne with the regnal name Vúnúcmótíct, or the "Beautiful Leader".
Using the assassinations as an excuse for a further crackdown, he both introduced a secret police force, the Dámjãmásyqerháqãharmyla (Force for State Security), and raised taxes across the board to support his increasingly lavish lifestyle and that of his consort, including importing wine and the finest foodstuffs from all over the world. This took place even during the famine in 932, an event which decimated the population partly due to a particularly dry spell. The inflexibility of the ruler's tax regime plus the greatly reduced grain and fruit yields led to widespread shortages of basic foods, causing malnutrition in a good portion of the population and death. Járne was unmoved, though, and maintained his very extravagant habits, passing them on to his son Vafenam after his death in 960.
Vafenam, as the Mojímmótíct (Holy Leader), initially maintained the status quo. This, naturally, began causing unrest and led to the formation of the Lyvyrtáqãézetretaljetejalqãmaclýs, or the "Assembly for Justice and Freedom", an organization opposed to the present system which called for loosening of the legal restraints on the people, especially after seeing the success of the Telèmor Federation, and for a fairer tax policy. The group was tolerated, partly because they didn't advocate abolition of the monarchy, but were, on many occasions, threatened with arrest for "disrupting the public order". Some loosening did take place, such as a symbolic reduction of taxes and a reduction of the number of police on the streets. Disaster, however, occurred in 983 when the Glaagh Empire, largely unknown, attempted an invasion of the island.
A low-tech force that is sufficiently large can, indeed, do a fair amount of damage. Several large wooden warships carrying large numbers of Glaagh (about forty thousand) landed at present-day Qujito and promptly began attempting to conquer the land. The invaders were repelled after three months of the onslaught, with all of the invaders and about ten thousand Ilians killed. The stress of this war, however, combined with his fragile health in the first place contributed to the death of Vafenam in 984 and the accession of his son, Madyn, who received the title Ginmótíct, or the "Iron Leader".
Madyn's concerns were not with governing: at the age of 14, he was not prepared to assume the throne and was easily manipulated by those around him, including his hand-picked trophy wife Ircibit, who broke precedent and gave herself the title Arzrthektrvénécmátýct, or the "Consort of Eternal Beauty". A few years later, though, Ircibit chose to depose her husband by attempting an assassination and, when that failed, he fled the country to Telèmor, leaving her, in 986, as the sole ruler.
Titling herself using the form Orzlthuktrvúnúcmótíct to symbolize a leader proper, she established a heavy-handed and iron-fisted rule, raising taxes to intolerable levels, executing members of the Lyvyrtáqãézetretaljetejalqãmaclýs through burning at the stake, and, for the first time, establishing sumptuary laws and dress codes to ensure that she was the most attractive being in the realm. In an effort to preserve her beauty, though, she consumed large quantities of virginal blood, normally extracted from girls who were "hired" to work in her household, and had orgies with large numbers of young men hoping that their youth would transfer to her. Tales of these exploits, along with the number of people executed, gave her the names Vitúqõvódómótíct, the "Bloody Leader", and Putõmútíct, the "Whore Leader".
Her reign unravelled, though, as a result of the war she decided to wage against Telèmor. Her astrologer informed her that the former leader lived in Telèmor and, in order to ensure that her reign would last for a period no shorter than eternity, she would need to ensure her husband met his end soon. Thus, after divining the appropriate time to start a war, she decided to invade the neighboring country in the winter of 999 by laying a seige on the border cities of Russe and Dobor. This started a very bloody war that lasted for three years, resulting in many deaths on both sides and not much territory gained on either front. The apparent pointlessness of the war, however, was not lost on the underground resistance of Ilia, the Dámjãhelmágehécredaxán (Front for National Salvation): seeing that there really was no rhyme or reason for the war, they began encourage men to disobey the almost universal conscription orders and mobilized strikes of the war industries. At first, apprehension prevented many people from revolting, especially as the punishments for disobeying orders were death. The instigators kept at it, though, and, within a few months, the disruptions they hoped for had come to fruition. The resources of the military had dwindled due to the strikes, desertions became rather commonplace, and people were openly defying the rule of the secret police. This gave the Telèmor military the opportunity to advance on the capital with few obstructions, much to the chagrin of Ircibit. Indeed, she fled rather quickly to a far-away land as soon as danger to her became apparent, and the Ilian Kingdom then "surrendered" by default. The Telèmor, however, chose not to occupy the country, but leave quickly once they had ensured that the dominated territory would not collapse.
Madyn, who was in Telèmor, was offered to return to the throne; however, having assumed by this time Telèmor citizenship and a new identity, he declined. Instead, the Front for National Salvation, led by Moriku Góvozu and Viktor Óxin, two students of political science and psychology, decided to take control of the country, proclaiming the Ilian State (Iljómódómjõ) as a republic with Góvozu as the president. A group of scholars was then summoned to draft a constitution and, by an overwhelming majority of about 81%, the "Freedom Constitution" was adopted in a referendum; within a year of the war's end, a republic had been established. During the five-year term of Góvozu, the country made incredible improvements economically and socially, increasing the wealth of the country and allowing for a free and democratic society to blossom. He declined to run for a second term, thus allowing for the first presidential election. The second president, Elle Majadré, was similarly reform-minded with her focus on education and social improvement, aiming to raise the literacy rate to 100% and providing lower-cost housing and healthcare for the people while slightly increasing the economic output of the country. Her term in office concluded and she was replaced with Óxin in a hotly contested election between the Front for National Salvation and a more revolutionary liberal party, the Ilian Social Democratic Alliance (Yljámasazjalycmázécte). The more moderate direction continued with him, though problems arose when the economy slowed down after the initial push from the fall of the Bloody Queen. Things were still looking positive and, in 1019, another election was held, bringing the Social Democratic Alliance to the government with their president, Jadrá Kacar, a businessman who had helped to improve the rail system.
Two years into the Kacar presidency, however, another disaster struck: Ircibit had returned, and she wasn't alone. She had gone off and married a wealthy chieftain of the Yaglu, a people who lived far to the west of the Ilia and who were rather happy to wage war. A few months into 1023, without warning, the Yaglu immediately invaded Ilia with the aim of reintroducing the reign of terror Ircibit had previously held. By the middle of the year, the country had been subjugated once more with all the leaders of the republic brutally executed in increasingly bloody and gory ways, such as sawing in half (in public), slow slicing, and the classic British punishment of hanging, drawing, and quartering. Her new husband, Utge, held no title as a ruler (though was de facto the prince consort), but served as a commander of the forces of the Yaglu who remained in the country as an occupying army to assist Ircibit's rule. As before, even small whispers of dissent were brutally punished with gruesome and bloody execution of the perpetrators, a systematic overhaul of the country's economy to divert practically all the country's wealth to the ruler and her husband, schools were shut down and records burned, many historic monuments and areas were wiped out to create room for the new buildings and monuments to the new regime, and sumptuary laws were re-enacted to attempt to mold the population more to the Yaglu ideal. Accordingly, the new regulations banned trivial things such as beards, moustaches, any facial hair, and long hair on men (i.e. Yaglu-style haircuts, namely buzz-cuts, and clean-shaven faces were required), anyone from having lighter-colored hair than the Yaglu or the queen, clothing made from a wide range of materials and in certain colors, jewelry, and many other whims of the ruler. The Telèmor refused to recognize the new government and provide any economic support, even imposing entry bans on the government officials, but would not take any military action due to the threat of the Yaglu, a people that had practically moved their entire country to Ilia.
Her decadence, however, partly contributed to her downfall. Though Telèmor refused to trade with her, other countries still continued the trade, and she racked up horrible sums of debt to satisfy her desires. She passed away in 1045 at the age of 75: the cause of her death is unknown and unconfirmed (the official cause reported to the people was "due to overwork and exhaustion"), but it's widely thought to be due to cancer from smoking large quantities of imported cigars. In her will, she ordered a lavish state funeral and that the throne go to her only son by Madyn, Mycgat, who was proclaimed Blvukmótíct, the Sun King. He, having grown up with his mother's influence, was equally decadent: he did not consume blood, but he had expensive tastes for alcohol and clothing and still threw orgies. He had no desire to govern, though, and was rather apathetic about ruling, instead continuing to channel wealth to his own coffers and letting his stepfather handle a lot of the work.
It's important to note, however, that the Yaglu were not present out of the goodness of their hearts: they were being paid tribute in exchange for their presence, and this was especially important after the death of Ircibit since Utge was not related at all to the current king. In 1047, however, Mycgat began to resent the fact that the tribute was being paid for this purpose and wanted to divert the money to purchasing more shipments of prostitutes. Accordingly, he stopped payment. His stepfather confronted him but, once he found that Mycgat would pay no more, Utge ordered the immediate evacuation of the Yaglu from Ilia. Within two days, nobody was there to support the regime. The absence of the Yaglu was visible and, within a few days, the Ilian people, this time, staged a revolt, captured Mycgat in his palace, and executed him summarily through the hanging, drawing, and quartering that had been used to intimidate the population. Thus, within a week, the system that Ircibit had worked hard to build, a regime she predicted would stand for a million years, had fallen.
Once Mycgat was dead, however, the hardest task lay ahead: rebuilding a country in shambles. The currency was worthless, most of the infrastructure was destroyed, the economy was in a poor state, the people were horribly underfed and in poverty, and very few people were around who had taken part in the previous governments. Those few people who had stepped up to the plate to begin constructing a new government, but that solved only one of the issues. The Telèmor government, however, decided to provide aid: they began by sending in advisors to assist in rebuilding, coordinate resources, and hopefully get a recovery underway, and this was then followed by food and relief aid.
As Madyn, now much older but still in perfect health, again chose not to return to Ilia, a new constitution was finished at the start of 1048 and the new country was announced. This document proclaimed the Ilian People's Republic (Iljómócĩmoqõtdómjõ), similar in structure to the first Republic but more similar to the Telèmor set-up in delineating more overall power to the legislature. A plebiscite held that year approved the constitution by a vote of approximately 93% in favor and, by the end of that year, a new government was convened with the first president of the new Republic being Borút Piconov, an energetic businessman who had been involved with the first Republic's government but fled to Telèmor during the reign of terror. Two years later, the advisors left, and the country was independent and functioning on its own. Around this time marked Madyn, the old king, taking a short visit to Ilia, the first time he had been in the country since he left power; he was incredibly warmly received and the visit helped provide a moral boost to the Ilian people.
Ilia is still rebuilding only 20 years after the fall of the last dictatorship, and a lot is still to be done, particularly with infrastructure. Many monuments to the old regime were destroyed in a systematic process to remove many of the traces of the two bloody monarchs with older, historical buildings being refurbished in the meantime. Economically, a new currency was introduced and, after some runaway inflation initially, it now is traded widely and is seen as somewhat stable; additionally, there has been decent economic growth overall, averaging about 2% GDP growth per year for the past 10 years. A good deal of debt still remains to be paid off, but the debt is no longer accruing at the rapid rate it had been; further, the Pearl Islands forgave some of the debts owed to them, and that further helped along the road to recovery.
Some signs of the old regime remain, though. Most men still do not wear any facial hair, but many grow their hair out long and the youth are now known for particularly daring fashions and hairstyles. Many who are between 26 and 50 still have a fear about talking anything regarding politics and are reluctant to speak their minds about anything partly due to the fear that the regime had instilled. Health problems also linger, with the life expectancy remaining low for the majority of people who were born during the second reign. Literacy is only at about 90% (up from about 20% at the fall of the monarchy). A positive remainder is the low crime rate that had a small spike after the fall of the monarchy before settling down again. Ultimately, the country is recovering rather well with the goal, by the year 1070, of 95% literacy, good economic indicators, and a strong network of infrastructure available to provide everyone's basic needs and transportation of goods into the country efficiently and cheaply.