Babylonia

### GDP

• Total: 773 million Egyptian shematy (77 AEE)• Per capita: 122.75 Egyptian shematy (77 AEE)

The Kingdom of Babylonia is a semi-independent kingdom within the Eastern Coalition, still being somewhat dependent on Elam. It is one of the most powerful countries in the known world, being second in terms of population and GDP, with only the Commonwealth of Kemet, Kush, and Retjenu surpassing it.

## History

### **Great Powers' War and the founding of the kingdom**

**Spoiler warning: this section contains spoilers for the novel The Rise of Kemet.**

In 71 AEE the Great Powers' War began and the Kingdom of Karduniash was almost immediately invaded from both sides by Assyria and Elam, both part of the Pact of Civilizations. In a few months the two countries completely destroyed the Kassite army and took over most of the cities, with Babylon itself falling in 72 AEE after its siege. The kingdom was divided between Assyria and Elam, with the former gaining everything north of Babylon and the latter everything south of it including Babylon itself. This was supposed to be a temporary arrangement, with the actual division taking place later and Elam only occupying most of the area until the end of the war, as the Assyrian army was busy campaigning in the north.

Nonetheless, the Elamite king Shilhak-Inshushinak established the puppet Kingdom of Babylonia in his occupied territories, with the capital being Isin - a more central location than Babylon - and its first ruler Nebuchadnezzar, a noble from the city who organized the overthrowing of local Kassite officials. While this was publicly said to be a temporary measure, in reality Nebuchadnezzar and Shilhak spent over a year preparing for the betrayal of the Pact and the invasion of Assyria. A new large Babylonian army was raised, resources gathered, and contacts in Assyria established for easier takeover of the country.

In 73 AEE Shilhak officially began the invasion of Assyria and the country fell very quickly, with the population being tired of the authoritarian Assyrian regime and most of the army being stuck in Hayasa-Azzi along with the Assyrian king himself Shilhak-Inshushinak. It managed to return to try to defend its lands, but was decisively defeated at the Battle of Ashur, which shortly afterwards resulted in the Elamite takeover of Ashur, and soon the entirety of Assyria. Assyrian occupied lands in former Karduniash were handed over to Babylonia, while Assyria itself was made into another Elamite puppet.

### **OFK-EC War**

**Spoiler warning: this section contains spoilers for the novel The March of Deshret.**

The Eastern Coalition was founded not too long later, and Babylonia became one of its members, and, in turn, a participant of the OFK-EC War. However, it was one of the few countries, along with Elam, which was not directly affected by the war, as it was far away from the front and no battles took place on Babylonian soil. Babylonia did send thousands of soldiers and siege engines to the front in the Levant, but was never directly threatened, which allowed it to recover from the prior destruction during the Great Powers' War and build up its strength. The Babylonian general Zikarsin was also the only non-Elamite highest ranking general fighting in the Levantine front, though he did not spend much time there due to the army's retreat after Shilhak's death.

Babylonia still remained an Elamite puppet state, with the Elamite leader now being Shilhak's wife Lim-Kiririsha. The two leaders met in 76 AEE and reaffirmed their relationship, while also discussing possibilities for further integration and a potential royal marriage between their children. They also agreed to create the Sitan - a single currency to be used by all EC members, with the central bank of the EC being established by Nebuchadnezzar, with Lim's approval, in Sippar in 77 AEE. In 76 AEE the OFK-EC War ended, which saw the return of the remaining Babylonian troops home and Nebuchadnezzar diversifying the industries from mostly military to ones more geared for civilians.

## Geography

The Kingdom of Babylonia encompasses the entirety of the former Kingdom of Karduniash. It is surrounded by Assyria to the north, the Zagros Mountains, now ruled by the Kingdom of Lullubum to the northeast, Elam to the east, the Elamite Gulf to the south, and the Arabian desert to the west. The country is located between the rivers of Euphrates and Tigris, and their many tributaries and artificial canals. The area is covered in fertile farmlands, which are considered to be the best in the known world, but the country lacks other natural resources and so has to import wood and metals from the surrounding regions. Babylonia is divided into 33 provinces or city-states, as every province is centered on and administered from the city holding the area, with the city-states being almost the same as they had been for centuries. The northern portion of the country, north of Babylon, is sometimes referred to as Akkad, while the portion south of Babylon as Sumer, though those terms are rarely in use, with the regions having merged already many centuries ago.

## Administration

### Government

The Kingdom is still divided between the same city state provinces as in Karduniash, with the exception of Dur-Kurigalzu, as it had been sacked in 71 AEE, and so the total number of provinces is now 33 rather than 34, with the Dur-Kurigalzu province being divided between other northern ones. Local mayors have quite a lot of control and Nebuchadnezzar does not interfere much with their work, and so in turn they remain loyal to him and support his rule.

### Economy

Under Nebuchadnezzar, the region saw many more infrastructure investments and the creation of a more efficient administration. The trade was opened up more as well, with Babylonia becoming very integrated into the EC common market and the global market as a whole. This immediately started raising the GDP, which is still continuously growing, and an influx of immigrants and larger local population growth. Most of the population continues to work in agriculture, but the manufacturing and service sectors continues to grow as Nebuchadnezzar seeks to make his realm into a more diversified one. Nebuchadnezzar's policies include low taxes, austerity, making favorable conditions for businesses, and decentralization of the country, which is popular with the upper classes, merchants, priests, nobles, and corporations. Babylonia sees the fasters growth of corporations in terms of both quantity and their size, with some executives now considered to have quite a significant influence on Nebuchadnezzar and his court. The country uses the sitan as its currency, along with most other EC countries, being the first along with Elam to adopt it.

### Military

Babylonia has a mixed professional and coscript army of around 80 000 soldiers currently, and is transitioning towards a fully volunteer based one like in the Commonwealth. Both men and women are allowed to serve, though women tend to only receive supporting roles and not frontline combat duty. Babylonia specializes in siege warfare and provides EC with the majority of combat engineers and siege equipment, as well as other warfare technologies. The kingdom also has a fleet of around 150 ships, with more being built in the southern ports.

## Demographics

Most of the population is Babylonian, which has not changed since Kassite times. The country also has some Assyrians, Elamites, and other mostly also EC inhabitants in the country, with more and more arriving every day due to the relaxed movement and trade rules within the faction. However, there are almost no Kassites in the country anymore, due to most being killed or fleeing the region during the Great Powers' War. The country has one of the highest rates of urbanization in the known world, at 59.5%, as more and more people are still moving into cities. The literacy rate has also grown to 22.1% under Nebuchadnezzar, again due to people moving into cities and needing to use writing more and more. Babylonia has some of the largest cities in the known world, with 6 out of 10 largest cities being located in Babylonia, with even its smaller cities rivalling the capitals of other kingdoms.

List of the largest cities in the Kingdom of Babylonia (77 AEE)
 Uruk
 Ur
 Isin
 Nippur
 Larsa
 Sippar
 Kish
 Lagash
 Umma

## International relations

The kingdom has good relations with most EC countries. Elam, Dilmun, and Magan are considered as its best allies, though relations with Assyria are improving as well and talks of unifications are also starting. The Kingdom of Lullubum is still viewed rather negatively by Babylonia and its inhabitants, as it is considered a barbarian state and one which could threaten Babylonia. The OFK countries are obviously viewed also negatively, though due to the war not reaching Babylonia, most people do not care too much about the western kingdoms and still trade with and visit them occasionally.