Free and Sovereign Cities

There are two free and sovereign cities on the Panguillan Mainland, those being the **Free and Sovereign Mercantile State of the Site of the Heavenly Lady of Morworth,**abbreviated to **Mercantile Morworth,** and the **Free and Sovereign Imperial Mercantile State of the Earldom of Westers,**commonly known as **Westers,** or **The Westers.**

Historically, both cities had a warm, though distant relationship with Kymurian central power. Since both cities had established themselves as independent economic forces as early as the 3rd Century, and since they were geographically distant from Kymuria proper, Saffia was never particularly keen on subjugating either of the cities.

The relationship between the two cities was always one of friendly competition, though they both regarded the Diarchy of Astar as a mortal enemy.

The most important piece of diplomacy between the cities and Kymuria came in 784KF, when Lampardier's Treaty (explained below) was signed.

## The Drakemount Affair & Lampardier's Treaty

In 784KF, a disagreement between Morworth and Kymuria developed over the right of the Kymurian Army and Navy to access the city. Historically, Kymurian forces had always been granted free passage, and Kymuria in general had been regarded as a valuable political and economic ally. In 783KF, the rabidly isolationist Colonel Percival An-Haro had, due to political turmoil and the sudden deaths of many members of the ruling Straussand family, become Regent for Life, and prevented any Kymurian military or civil personnel from entering. As the Kymurian Diplomatic Ministry attempted to calm the situation, an anti-Regency uprising occurred in northern Morworth. This uprising failed due to An-Haro's newly formed secret police, The Whitecoats, dismantling the movement from inside. Once order was restored, An-Haro ordered a general crackdown, and at some point in the ensuing purge, a Kymurian national, Sir Oswald Drakemount, was killed.

An-Haro insisted that he had not ordered the killing, and none of the police or militia commanders present at the event co-operated with efforts to find who was responsible. As a result, Kymuria applied some moderate sanctions, and pressured An-Haro to relinquish his position, though they did not insist that the Straussand Family return to power. So far, Emperor Ferdinand V had not been involved, but, sensing the ability to score a political win, and further Kymurian domination of the continent, he sent a secret message to his Minister for Foreign Affairs, Lord Randolph Lampardier, which read:

> *In your opinion, what is the likelihood that we could use the present crisis in Morworth to establish ourselves as the nominal controllers, or at least protectors of that republic? Following that, once we have secured Morworth as a dominion, I would like to begin work of the same ambition in Westers. Please note that I have no intention of conquering these lands - under no circumstances should Kymuria be seen as the aggressor- , and I think the best settlement would be an arrangement similar to that of the Diarchy of Astar. Do not hesitate to inform me if you think such plans are impractical.*
>
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Lampardier wrote back in agreement with the Emperor, and informed him that he fully expected to bring the province under Kymurian Dominion. An-Haro, unconvinced that Kymuria had any intention to infringe on his country's sovereignty, did little except continue to solidify his rule. Pressing their case further, Lord Lampardier pointed out that no real effort had been made to find the culprit behind Drakemount's murder, and that since Kymurian honour was not satisfied, sanctions would increase. Morworth, being a city utterly dependent on trade and high finance for the functioning of it's institutions, began to rapidly turn against their Regent, and massive crowds assembled daily outside his palace, demanding he either sate the Kymurians or relinquish power.

Within a few days, an official opposition movement to An-Haro formed, and began publicly planning a march on his palace to remove him by force. The thuggish Whitecoats, sensing imminent change, began to defect en masse to the rebellion, thus making the situation even more precipitous. The Kymurians realised that if the opposition groups took control, their raison d'etre for dominion over Morworth would be lost. With the Emperor's permission, Lampardier had the Minister of War rush four heavy infantry battalions to the southern plains, where they set up a perimeter of siege around Morworth, though they did not prevent any overland food, supply or goods trains from entering or leaving the city. Realising the time-sensitive nature of the situation, both Lampardier and the Minister of War travelled with the army to Morworth. Within a week, it seemed as though An-Haro was on the verge of relinquishing power to save his own life. Unwilling to surrender their chance, Lampardier sent in the troops. They charged forward through the vast streets and avenues of Morworth, cheered by the local populace. As they neared the Palace, Lampardier went to personally meet the leader of the opposition, Prince Kaisay, and informed him that Kymuria wished to establish a government under opposition control, but as the status quo had been "so thoroughly violated," a new, formal treaty would need to be drawn up in order to ensure "future peace and harmony."

Meanwhile, Kymurian troops stormed the Palace, knocked An-Haro unconscious, and transported him back to Saffira.

At the following diplomatic convention, Prince Kaisay began to realise that the Kymurians had sold him out. The first article of the new treaty demanded that, although Morworth was to remain technically free and sovereign in its affairs, the nominal head of state would be the Kymurian monarch. This caused considerable backlash among Morworthian elites, but since the city was flush with Kymurian troops, there was little they could do. And, as Lampardier later pointed out, there were many Morworthians who would take up the government if Kaisay and the opposition would not.