Kyslev

Placeholder. Hail to the Spider Queen

## History

Kyslevite history is divided into several periods, beginning with its founding in 1698 before its current status as a Regency for Queen Ashyse.

* Tribal Era Antiquity to 1698
* Isolation: 1698 to 1817
* Dominion of Kyslev: 1817 to 1849
* Silk Wars: 1849 to 1887
* Eternal Regency of Kyslev: 1887 to Present

### Isolation (1698 CE to 1817 CE)

Starting from the exodus of so-called ‘cultists’ from the dual monarchy of Denishu-Astyria in 1697, the Eternal Beylik of Kislev started from humble origins. Severed from the homeland due to fears that their ‘religious extremism’ would cause further unrest in an Era that almost saw the total collapse of secular authority in Denishu, Kislev was left mostly alone for the next one hundred and twenty years, its isolation only broken whenever a new wave of exiles arrived on its shores or crossed its borders, bringing scant news of the outside world before their eventual assimilation into Kislev society.

### Dominion of Kyslev (1817 CE to 1887 CE)

In 1817, Denishu-Astyria dropped its previous policy of isolating Kislev and restarted trade on a limited manner, primarily buying up Kislevite silk in large quantities back to the homeland while exporting food-stuffs and manufactured goods to Kislev, quickly causing the collapse of local Kislevite industry as foreign goods flooded the market.

This arrangement would last until 1842 when the first ‘modern’ loom was introduced into Samarkand to help dramatically increase efficiency in the outdated and archaic silk factories that dominated Kislev’s local economy. However, unbeknownst to the two Denishu merchants, Kislev’s silk manufacturing industry was heavily rooted in religious dogma, with silk holding a special place in Kislev society due to its religious connotations with the Queen-Goddess Nephys.

While the first loom provoked some unrest, this unrest would simmer for the next few years as no further looms were imported, with Denishu-Astyria focusing most of its capital investments on improving the national economy following the signing of what would become known as the first Unequal Treaties while the local administrators spent the next few years pacifying the clergy with claims that this importation was a one time thing.

In 1849 this uneasy arrangement would collapse fully as foreign investors - free to invest into Kislev with the second Unequal Treaty and with no knowledge of the understanding established in the previous years - quickly tried to modernize the Kislev economy by attempting to replace all handmade looms with foreign iron ones, quickly sparking what would be known as the “Silk Wars”.

### Silk Wars (1849 CE to 1887 CE)

A series of conflicts and revolutions against the trampling of their native culture and religion, the Silk Wars would span the next thirty-eight years, with each Silk War ending only with the punitive intervention of either Denishu-Astyria or a foreign coalition who would use the opportunities prevented to either pressure Denishu-Astyria for further concessions or loot the countryside, helping keep Kislev behind as most technological advances slowed or were halted all together due to the civil unrest.

### Eternal Regency of Kyslev (1887 CE to Present)

In 1887, the Silk Wars would finally come to a conclusive end with the convening of the Ecumenical Council of Slutsk. At Slutsk, the role of industrialization and modernization of Kislevite society (particularly silk production) was brought to grips with religious dogma and cultural traditions. As part of a compromise, a distinction was made between mechanically loomed silk and traditionally loomed silk, with the latter being reaffirmed as the ‘Holy Embodiment of the Queen-Goddess’ while the former was ultimately declared halal after much debate. Although mechanically loomed silk is still frowned upon for use in religious ceremonies, its use has slowly been accepted as most silk factories have been converted into ‘modern’ ones, leaving traditional silk increasingly hard to find.

In addition to figuring out the silk problem, Slutsk also clarified the role of weavers and loomers both religiously and in Kislevite society, allowed for the adoption of a limited amount of Kislevite spiders as ‘pets’, permitted the importation and adoption of foreign technology as long as measures were made to make foreign technology and advances more ‘Kislevite’ (if possible), and reduced restrictions on local research projects as long as they weren’t deemed heretical.

## Demographics

### Religion

The Kyslevite faith is the dominant faith of Kyslev, practiced by a near 100% of Kyslevite citizens according to government estimates. With only with a few thousand adherents outside of its border, the Kyslevite faith has little influence outside of Kyslev proper. Established as a way for Astyrian exiles to take advantage of a localized, fractured political climate, the Kyslevite faith quickly spread in the region, causing the area of Kyslev to slowly come together as a theocracy. The Kyslevite faith is a prime example of religious syncretism, as seen by its integration of local customs and holidays to be more in line with Slutsk's edicts. While Kyslev in recent years has relaxed its religious stance - partially out of realpolitik concerns, the Kyslevite faith remains an integral part of the Kyslevite administration and implementation of socialism framed as the logical extension of "Ashyse's Will".

Common Practices and Customs

For the Bolish majority and Astyrian minority of Kyslev, practices and customs remain relatively the same due to a high level of cultural interaction over the centuries. While some variation in the Astyrian community is present due to the influx of Astyrians into Kyslev following the Silk Wars and Kyslev's mining boom in 1890, these variations are minor and don't impact most religious practices.

During breakfast and dinner, followers of the Kyslevite come together and pray to Ashyse, asking them to bless their food and the day (or night) ahead. While usually done in larger groups with the prayers led by an ordained priest, there exists provisions for smaller and less formal prayers to be done by either families or an individual in the absence of a priest. Once the prayer is done, a spider - either predetermined or drawn by lottery - will be given a small bit of food before everyone is allowed to formally dig in.

In addition to the morning and evening prayers, followers of the Kyslevite faith are given seven traits to try and become morally in order to fully be spiritually pure for when they pass, or Ashyse returns, whichever happens sir. While there exists no provision to explicitly care for a spider (or groups of spiders), due to their necessity for ceremonies and their status as Ashyse's chosen ones, spider ownership in Kyslev estimated to be almost universal.

## Culture

### Literature

* ***Slow Violence and the Exploitation of the Poor*** (1906): A political treatise detailing systems of oppression and exploitation of Kyslev and Astyria-Denishu viewed through the lens of slow violence. Published under the pseudonym Milani, the book has been a hit success and Kyslev's first truly *modern* piece of literature.