History of the Cheninus System

Cheninus (left), Chalan (right)

## Introduction

Cheninus is a sub-sector of the Tolonda/Ryloth oversector several thousand parsecs south east of Ryloth. The system comprises the two inhabited planets of Cheninus and Chalan, the inhabited moon of Syla as well as a large asteroid belt, a gas giant with a large mining station orbiting it, several more moons and a barren dwarf planet. While for centuries the system has been an independent constitutional monarchy officially part of neither the Republic or the CIS, after the fall of the Republic it was invaded and occupied by the Galactic Empire.

## Pre-Sim History

### Early History

The Early history of Cheninus before Twi'lek colonisation of the system is not well-recorded as the planet was isolated from the rest of the galaxy and did not appear on any star maps. What little is known suggests that the planet was once home to at least 10 sentient species including the Gallorca, Cishafaa, Salari and the Jarati that still inhabit the planet today and many more that were brought to extinction or near-extinction during the Twi'lek colonisation of the planet. It is also likely that at one point ethnic Cishafaans dominated the regions now known today as Naskurum, Aberfraw and the CSAR and that Invercta and Kaven were inhabited mostly by the Gallorca for centuries before the arrival of the Twi'leks. Due to the planet's isolation from the rest of the galaxy its peoples appear to have had access to sub-par technology compared to the rest of the galaxy with the inhabitants of the planet known to have primarily used steel tools and weapons.

### First Discovery

The Cheninus system was first discovered in 864 BBY by Rylothi smugglers looking for an uncharted system to set up a hideout in. In the same year they set up a base on Chenisia's second moon, Sylva. The location of the system was closely guarded by the smugglers and for several more centuries the planet would remain uncharted. The smuggler base was soon abandoned after most of the group were caught and imprisoned by the Republic in the Core.

### Second Discovery

In 763 BBY one of many brutal blood feuds that plagued the planet of Ryloth ended in a decisive victory for the Vomrurek clan over the Lowsyk's. Fearing the execution of the whole clan the Lowsyk's their land and power taken from them made the collective decision to flee Ryloth and seek refuge in another planet in the Outer Rim far from their homeworld. As such they soon boarded their small fleet and escaped before the Vomrurek fleet were able to shoot them down.

While fleeing Ryloth the Lowsyk royal family ploughed through dozens of star-charts and soon choose the planet of Tarnoonga as their new refuge, on arrival they promptly set up a base in the mountains of the planet where they believed themselves to be safe from pursuit. However, days later the Vomrurek fleet and army were spotted approaching the clan's base prompting them to retreat. While the Lowsyk's managed to escape the planet's atmosphere and enter hyperspace the pursuing Vomrurek fleet managed to seriously damage the hyperdrive generator on their capital ship. This damage went unnoticed until halfway between Tarnooga and Shinbone it went offline plunging the clan's capital ship out of hyperspace.

Against the odds the Lowysk's largest ship managed to survive being thrown out of hyperspace and using trackers the rest of their fleet was able to leave hyperspace and rendezvous with them. After around a week spent looking for a safe place to set their ship down to repair it they eventually came across the Cheninus system and set their fleet down in the eastern continent of Chenisia at a site that now compromises part of the capital of the Kingdom they would go on to establish.

After setting down the Twi'leks were soon able to repair their hyperdrive but not before being set upon by the planet's natives. Though the numbers of the natives are no doubt exaggerated by historical sources it is clear that the Twi'leks were vastly outnumbered by their native counterparts however they soon realised that the swords and lances of the natives were no match for their blasters and what has been recorded as a valiant victory for the Twi'lek colonists was really a massacre.

### Early Colonisation

Despite the Lowysk's success in repairing their hyperdrive their recent victory over the natives had made clear the superiority of their blasters and ships over the natives chivalry and honour, as such the clan decided to stay on Chenisia and soon founded the settlement of Maberyderu, named after their old holding on Ryloth. Though the Twi'leks were eager to expand their holdings on the planet pragmatism overcame ambition and since they did not have the population to make use of any more land than they'd already taken for the next century or so the clan focused on securing tribute and fealty from their native neighbours soon expanding their influence far beyond the borders of their own settlement.

However in 712 BBY King Hewduco Lowsyk became bored of the slow pace his influence was growing at and decided to solve the settlers main issue, that being a small population. As such he soon became coming up with ideas to bring more Twi'leks into Maberyderu while keeping the existence of the system secret. His solution was twofold, firstly he began using much of the Lowsyk's personal wealth to buy up Twi'lek slaves from across the galaxy which he then took to Maberyderu and freed and secondly he began kidnapping whole orphanages worth of children from Ryloth and bringing them to Maberyderu to raise them amongst his clan.

Hewduco's policies successfully expanded the population of Maberyderu to around 50,000 by 600 BBY and the Lowysk's were soon able to use this new manpower to conquer land around the settlement proper from native groups. Within a few decades the Lowsyk's came to exact tribute from an area roughly 5x the size of their own lands as they subjugated nearby kingdoms.

For around two centuries the Twi'lek colonists continued to expand their domain through conquering hostile kingdoms and assimilating those natives smart enough to give up their independence in return for access to the technological advances possessed by the Twi'leks. It is around this time that the colonists began to identify themselves as "Chenisians" and within a few centuries of the first landing at Maberyderu the settlers had created their own distinct culture based on the superiority of their own people over the natives of Chenisia. It is also known that the colonists began to systematically enslave thousands of native peoples of varying levels of sentience and that much of these slaves were put to work on Meiloorun fruit farms as the Twi'leks had discovered that the eastern continent's temperate rainforest provided perfect conditions for Meiloorun farming. Much of the produce of these plantations were sold by the colonists across the galaxy though the origin of the produce remained secret.

#### Jirati Jungle War

   Though there were dozens of wars fought between the colonists and natives between 763 BBY and 500 BBY the most brutal was the Jirati-Twi'lek Jungle War of 452. While the conflict started with a fairly routine Jirati raid on Twi'lek settlements near the frontier of Twi'lek territory the decision by the Lowysk's to carry out a concerted campaign of genocide in retaliation led to a full-scale war lasting around a year. While the native Jirati's use of their knowledge of their home territory and their use of guerrilla tactics evened the odds between the colonists and the Jirati somewhat however the colonists eventually adopted tactics to counter this including using incendiary bombs to destroy vast areas of jungle to deprive the Jirati of the cover necessary for their ambushes. Eventually the colonists were able to seize all Jirati-inhabited territory in what is today known as the Military Industrial Region and purge it completely of all ethnic Jarati's living there through execution and systematic enslavement. The remaining Jirati's fled from their native jungles into what is now known as the Jirati desert and have lived there ever since.

### Later Colonisation

        In around 376 BBY King Sarlo Lowsyk, confident after successive victories against several Stacalian tribes and Cheonac tribes to the north of Maberyderu, decided to start openly recruiting colonists from the slums of Ryloth. Using the wealth now produced by the Kingdom's many plantations he acquired several large transport ships and set up regular transport routes from Ryloth to Maberyderu. With the promise of free land and minimal taxation around 400,000 Twi'leks made the trip from Ryloth to Cheninus, much of them settling in the territory recently taken from the northern tribes. With this influx in population the Twi'lek colonists were soon able to industrialise Maberyderu satisfying both their military needs and the settlers desire for consumer goods.

#### Invasion of the Salari Swampland

While the Lowsyk's continued expanding into the rainforests to the north of Maberydery they eventually reached a stalemate with the native Stacalian's (known to the settlers as lizard-men) to their north west as while the settlers could easily take land from the Stacalian's it was often counter-productive to do so as the Stacalian's would make keeping and utilising the land taken difficult and often impossible. Aside from the constant raids on settlers farms and garrisons in the jungle's the Stacalian's main tactic involved poisoning all the land near their frontier with the colonists to make it infertile. As a result of this stalemate the Chenisian's turned their attention to the swampland's to the south of their capital at that time occupied by the Salari people which while not as fertile as the jungles to their north west would (they hoped) be easier to take and the Kingdom was quickly running out of land to give to new settlers.

As such King Ryi'a Lowsyk raised an army of around 10,000 well-armed infantrymen supplemented by 50,000 recent settlers promised generous parcels of land in the swamplands for their service. Along with the Chenisian Battle Fleet they moved south into the Salari swamplands and began raiding Salari settlements across the swamplands. In response to this invasion the Salari, despite being a disunited people managed to unite against the foreign invaders forming an army comprised of men from most of the Salari clans. Unfortunately for the Salari their gathering at Latharna Bog was soon reported to the Chenisian invaders and the Chenisian army moved to meet the Salari army at the Bog.

The Battle of Latharna Bog began the following day with the Salari initially holding their own against the Chenisian gunships and artillery due in no small part to their use of the Kraket, a ferocious beast known to swat gunships out of the sky with its wings and the boggy conditions which made for perfect ambushing conditions for the native Salari. However within hours it was clear that the tide of the battle had turned with the overwhelming technical superiority of the Chenisian's eventually forcing the Salari to retreat from the field. Afterward the Salari would fight a long, brutal guerrilla war against the Chenisian's which lasted for more than 2 years however in the end they were never able to defeat the Chenisian's in a pitched battle and so after years of fighting the Salari clans emigrated together to the island of Dulegirbhal where they and their Kraket's still live today.

### Formalisation of the Constitutional Monarchy of Chenisia and Democratisation

After the conquest of the Salari Swamplands the Chenisian's thirst for expansion was seemingly satiated for the time being and the monarchy continued to parcel out the conquered land to new settlers. With there being no need to expand their borders the monarchy refocused their efforts on continuing the industrialisation of their kingdom leading to the creation and development of the cities of Innach and Trevenvers in the south of Chenisia. Soon thousands of Twi'lek settlers were arriving into the Kingdom each month so much so that in 350 BBY the Twi'lek population of the Kingdom had reached 700,000. However with this influx of settlers came a simultaneous influx in new ideas and soon there were overwhelming demands for constitutional reform and democratisation. Unlike on many other planets there were no major calls for the abolishment of the monarchy along with the calls for democratisation as most of the settlers had nothing but respect for the monarchy given that many had received acres of free land as a direct result of conquests masterminded and led by the royal family. As such the Kingdom of Chenisia adapted and changed slowly over time with a Parliament being formed in 323 BBY and a constitution being approved by popular referendum in 296 BBY (suffrage limited to Chenisians of course) solidifying both the role of free and fair elections and the continuing power and influence of the monarchy. Elections between 323 BBY and 200 BBY were dominated by the Chenisian Constitutional Party, a liberal democratic, pro-monarchy party responsible for spearheading the yes movement in the constitutional referendum in 296 BBY.

### Alliance with Gallorca and Solidification of Control over the East

Whilst the Chenisian's had a fairly easy time conquering their neighbours by 250 BBY they were not the only major power on the continent. In 327 BBY High King Seaghdh Rosach had managed, after decades of negotiating and conquering to unite the Gallorcan Kingdoms together into one federation. Following this his sons successfully expelled the Nelbari from the Kaven peninsula and by 270 BBY the Gallorcan Kingdom had been transformed into a constitutional monarchy though suffrage remained restricted to around 5% of the population as only the nobility were allowed to vote.

As the only two unified and centralised kingdoms on the planet Cheninus and Gallorca quickly developed a strong trading relationship and their elites quickly developed a grudging respect for their counterparts in the other country. As a result of the common threat faced by both kingdoms (raids from the Jirati and Stacalian tribes) it was not long before they began working together to launch co-ordinated campaigns against the tribes. This relationship was then formalised into an alliance in 223 BBY when the eldest daughter of the High King of Gallorca, Deala Rosach married the King of Chenisia, Nabtoba Lowysk. The alliance proved successful any by 180 BBY both the Stacalian and Jirati tribes had been forced into the Jirati Desert and their lands annexed by the two kingdoms.

### Unification of Chenisia and Gallorca

After the defeat of the Jirati and the Stacalian’s the relationship between the twin kingdoms of Gallorca and Cheninus soon deteriorated with there no longer being any common threat to bind them together. The main reason for this falling-out was the many border skirmishes that took place between the two Kingdoms as they fought over the land taken from the tribesmen. Though these skirmishes never escalated into a full-blown war due to the alliance through blood between the royal families of both states, the brutality of these skirmishes should not be underestimated with several thousand from both sides being killed fighting in them.

Therefore when the Rosach male line ended with the death of King Rian Rosach in 187 the Gallorcan nobility, army and people were not exactly thrilled when Steveth Lowsyk, King of Chenisia announced that he intended to pursue his claim to the throne through his mother, the eldest daughter of the previous High King. However by this time continued immigration into Chenisia and continued industrialisation had secured Chenisia as the dominant power on the eastern continent, a fact recognised by the Gallorican Council and nobility. Furthermore although Steveth was only half-Gallorca the Gallorca nobility at this time retained a devout belief in divine right to rule. As such the Gallorcan Council voted to accept Steveth Lowsyk and despite widespread protests across the country Steveth was successfully coronated as King of Gallorca, with both states retaining full independence from each other whilst having a common monarch.