Celtic Union (S5)

## Foundation

The Celtic Union began as the Isle of Man, and was founded on the 20th of August 2020 by GToMaster and Avedia (aka ItzDutch) upon the return of Avedia to the server. They quickly expanded from the Isle of Man, first claiming most of Ireland as well as Scotland, and soon changing name to the Celtic Union on the 24th of August to better fit the nations feel. People soon joined, notably Moonrojo and DGoldDragon, with DGoldDragon being appointed Governor of Scotland and building the small town of Glasgow. Other areas that were soon developed were the capital of Douglas and the cities of Dundalk and Belfast. The nation also declared neutrality around a week after its creation, leaving the S5 EU on the 25th of August 2020

## Football in the Celtic Union

Blockball was popular across Season 5, and nowhere more so than in the Celtic Union, which set up its own Celtic Union Football Association, composed of the Dundalk football club and the Man City football club. The CUFC had two stadiums; one stadium in Manchester, built by Avedia for use by the Man City team; one in Dundalk, built by Gto for the Dundalk team.

## The Second Generation Revival

After a lull in activity in the Celtic Union throughout early September, the Celtic Union took in two emigrants from the Indo Empire, TheLetterH and RobinW05 on the 7th of September. RobinW05 built the city of Edinburgh, notably including Edinburgh Castle and Villager Village, whilst TheLetterH built the city of Birmingham, which soon became the largest city in the Celtic Union, with Luigimario123, who joined shortly after the Indo Empire emigrants and is considered one of the Second Generation. The city of Birmingham included the King Avedia Airport, one of the largest airports of Season 5 and the National Hospital. The Second Generation soon became the only active members of the faction and led development of the overseas colonies.

## The Kingship Election

On the 19th of September 2020, King Avedia stepped down as leader of the Celtic Union, and decided that the next King of the Celtic Union would be decided by a vote. There were initially four declared candidates, however Moonrojo withdrew from the competition within several hours for unknown reasons, and DGoldDragon stepping down on the 21st, citing his inactivity. The election was then left to TheLetterH and Gto, with DGoldDragon endorsing Gto. A Q and A was set up in the faction Discord after DGoldDragon withdrew from the race.

TheLetterH ran on a campaign of democratic reforms, planning to scale back the power of the monarchy, and increasing the power of the regional elected governors, as well as continuing diplomatic talks to try and obtain the lands that the Celtic Union desired from Germany, as well as beginning the process of making the Celtic Union an imperial power.

Gto ran on a campign of more regional autonomy as well as a national iceway system. He also advocated for the monarchy to stay as it was. But agreed with TheLetterH to continue the policy of neutrality. He often cited his previous ruling experience and longer membership in the nation, and experienced a boost in popularity after TheLetterH admitted he didn't watch football.

The election was held on the 29th of September 2020 after being delayed several days due to Avedia being busy. The initial results looked as though TheLetterH was winning 2-1, however after the more inactive members were prompted to vote, Gto eventually won with the final results being Gto - 3 votes and TheLetterH - 2 votes. An interesting trend in voting was that first generation members voted for Gto and second generation members voted TheLetterH. Gto was then appointed King and leader of the faction.

## Imperialism and Diplomacy

The Celtic Union had a significant imperialist presence towards the end of Season 5, with the Celtic Union having 3 colonies in total by the end. The first of these was minor and had little more than a small hut built on it, the Faroe Islands were not even treated as a colony by the nation's members. The first major colony was that of Eastern Australia, claimed on the 2nd of October 2020, after a debate about where to have the colony. This colony was built on by RobinW05, who built a pigman farm, as well as a few buildings in the southern region of the colony. The next colony was technically meant to be Jamaica, with a transfer being organised to place Jamaica under Celtic authority, however the faction Dai Viet took the colony before the Celtics could claim it. Instead it was decided on the 4th of October that Puerto Rico would be claimed instead, and a large portion of the area around the centre of the island was flattened so that three large bamboo plantations could be built for use by the Bamboo Service.

The nation was technically neutral from the early days of its creation, since it had withdrawn from the EU, and this was widely favoured by all members, however the Celtic Union had several territorial disputes, with two nations, Dai Viet and more significantly the German Empire (S5). The first incident with Dai Viet was a minor one, in which they kept insisting upon purchasing Scotland from the Celtic Union, however the Celtic Union refused under any circumstances. The second incident was in the Caribbean, Dai Viet made their plans for Caribbean domination clear when they claimed the territory of Jamaica, which the Celtic Union had planned to claim. The Celtic Union in response took Puerto Rico, which annoyed Dai Viet, but didn't lead to open hostilities.

The territorial disputes with the German Empire were considered more serious in the Celtic Union, particularly over Brittany, which the Celtic Union saw as a core part of its rightful territory. They tried to purchase Brittany off the German Empire, who refused to relinquish the territory, despite the Celtics citing the fact that there were no buildings or signs of development. The Germans claimed they planned to build a Casino, which was ultimately never constructed. The issue of the south east part of England also being claimed by the Germans was less important than Brittany but still an issue, which eventually resulting in the Celtics constructing the "London Wall", which placed a hard border between the German and Celtic territory.