Sabino Marini

**Sabino Marini** was a Yanzeran Republican and peasant leader from the Baeloe province who played a significant role in the Yanzeran Civil War by leading the Blue Revolt in 2112 and defeating Imperial troops led by Istvan Cecilius in 2113, firmly placing the agrarian province of Baeloe in Republican hands.

Sabino Marini was also a prominent political figure in the early years of the Republic of Yanzera. In 2120, he left the Yanzeran Democratic Front and formed the Baeloe Peasant's & Worker's Party, and was elected as the first Governor of Baeloe. He served in the position for 11 years, before resigning- being succeeded by his deputy Octavian Salamone- and being elected to the National Council, where he served for 33 years before his death.

Sabino Marini is remembered as a champion of worker's rights and a great freedom fighter by the Republic of Yanzera, and continues to be respected across party lines in the modern era. His birthday is one of the national holidays of the Republic, and a statue of Marini was erected outside the National Council by High Minister Julia Vedrix, despite the fact that Vedrix's party- the Yanzeran Democratic Front- was opposed to the Baeloe Peasant's & Worker's Party, which Marini had founded.

## Early Life

**Sabino Marini** was born in the agrarian province of Baeloe in 2078, under the rule of Emperor Aurelio Larcius the Kind. Although the Emperor was in the process of bringing about many reforms in the country, the Baeloe province still remained stunted, with the ruling House of Cecilius suppressing the region's peasants to ensure a profit for themselves.

Due to House Cecilius's greedy misrule, Marini- like most agrarian families in Baeloe- grew up with a strong hatred for the Imperial Government, despite the fact that the Emperor of Yanzera and the Imperial Cabinet were mostly filled with reformist noblemen at the time. Like many disenchanted Yanzerans, Marini was drawn towards the Yanzeran Democratic Front, which- under the Presidency of the radical republican Citrio Optatus- espoused a transition into a constitutional monarchy, or perhaps even a republic.

## Revolutionary and Political Career

### Rise to Leadership (2093-2112)

And so, when Marini turned 15 in 2093, he joined the Yanzeran Democratic Front's youth league and began to work as a local party worker. Marini's parents had been able to afford a basic education for him, and due to a local YDF provided free library, Marini had grown up literate and well read, which was uncommon for the poor peasants of Baeloe. His oratory skills and intelligence allowed him to quickly rise the ranks of the local party, despite his young age, until soon he had become the President of the YDF in Baeloe in 2103, at the age of 25.

Soon after Marini became the leader of the Baeloe unit of the YDF, Emperor Aurelio Larcius died, and the position of Emperor passed to his nephew, Scapha Larcius, a staunch conservative completely unlike his reformist uncle. Soon after, Novia Aspernus- the reformist High Minister of Yanzera- passed away as well. Although a noblewoman from the House of Aspernus, Novia had been a radical reformist and had supported the YDF in many situations. In her place, the conservative Ballio Sylvian was elected, in a largely fradulent election that saw the YDF candidate Citrio Optatus's name struck from ballots in most provinces.

In response to the fradulent election, Marini and the Baeloe unit of the YDF staged mass agitations, lasting two years from 2104 to 2106. The movement was eventually violently suppressed by High Legate Arria Larcius- the sister of Emperor Scapha- and the new Governor of Baeloe Istvan Cecilius. Marini was arrested for inciting violence, but was eventually released in 2108 alongside all other political prisoners as a part of a deal to stop YDF rioters in the province. While leaving prison, Marini was greeted by a crowd of around three thousand of his supporters, as well as the YDF's Chairman Citrio Optatus.

Shortly after, Marini founded the Baeloe Peasant's Union, an organisation dedicated to demanding more rights for Baeloe's landless farmers. Although a popular move in Baeloe, many in the upper echelons of the YDF, particularly the reformist nobles, saw this move as dangerously close to communism, and they publicly disassociated themselves from the BPU. Marini was undeterred, and most of the Baeloe YDF was supportive of his venture.

### The Blue Revolt & the Yanzeran Civil War (2112-2120)

In 2111, Citrio Optatus- a radical republican from the Yanzeran Democratic Front- was elected High Minister of Yanzera, despite strong opposition by Emperor Scapha Larcius and most conservative noble houses. Optatus's election ended up galvinising much of the YDF's cadre, and gave Marini's Baeloe Peasant's Union, as well as the Baeloe branch of the YDF, a huge boost in membership.