Varsow

**Union of Varsow**The **Union of Varsow,** commonly known as **Varsow,** is a multi-ethnic state in the eastern Rift Valley. The majority of Varsowans are Bolish, however the country also holds considerable populations of ethnic Picts,Remans, & Antarians, the majority of whom being holdovers from previous occupations. Varsow borders Ostrony to the west, Toraidhach to the north, Antargentina to the east, & Celtica to the south. The southern half of the country is dominated by Lake Saltica, through which the Varsow Canal runs, connecting the country to the Gulf of Ostrony.

### **History**

#### The Pictish Federation

The Pictish Federation expanded north, eventually assimilating the native tribes of Varsow into the wider Celtic culture. Varsow was conquered, alongside the rest of the Pictish Federation, by the Reorganized Reman Empire in the 11th century.

#### Inoltra Superior

During the time of the Reorganized Roman Empire, nearly the entirety of modern Varsow was part of the province of Inoltra Superior. A small amount of Reman settlers entered the province during this time, largely due to settlings grants bestowed upon them by the provincial authorities. Inoltra Superior's control over the Rift Valley remained shaky, as their distance from the core of the Reman Empire made effective reinforcement of the area largely untenable, causing the province to rely mostly on native auxiliaries, raised from the Pictish population.

#### The Czardom of Asparagya

Bols first migrated into modern Varsow around the 1100s, during the collapse of the Second Reman Empire. The majority of them were members of the ancient *Asparukh* tribe; one branch went westward, into modern Ostrony & Inoltra, while the other conquered the east, eventually becoming the Czardom of Asparagya, Varsow's Bolish predecessor. By exploiting the political & military weakness of Inoltra Superior, the Asparukh quickly conquered the province.

#### Antarian & Celtican Rivalry

Much like its westward counterpart, the First Czardom of Ostrony, the Czardom of Asparakie was highly decentralized and largely a lawless land; large minorities of Remans remained in the country, and continually upended the rule of the Bols, and the areas around the Lake Saltica remained largely under the control of Pictish clans which were semi-supported by Celtica. At this time, the relative chaos in the area, and the Rift Valley as a whole, had gained the attention of the upstart Antargentinian Empire, who had recently gained their own independence from the Pictish Federation. Between managing Fir independence and battling Celtican influence in the region, however, these expansionist dreams eventually fell apart.

#### The Varsowan Inquisition

The area remained in chaos, constantly engaging in both extensive trade & warfare with their neighbors, which was highly economically damaging to particularly its border with Celtica & Antaria. To remedy this, with the support of the Pankasmic Church, an enigmatic Antarian noble, Mario Marinero, would launch a campaign into the country in 1322, beginning the Varsowan Inquisition. Marinero was joined by volunteers & mercenaries from across the Pankasmic world, including Fir, Patians, Gaborians, & Turaguans, while being financed directly by both the Pontiff & various sympathetic Fir & Antarian nobles.

The Inquisition lasted for several years, consisting of a great deal of extended campaigns and battles undertaken by both sides, however eventually Marinero's crusade would triumph, as he subjugated the native Bols, Remans, & Picts. While Antarian authorities were initially pleased with this, hoping that Marinero would cede his control over the region, Marinero instead had other plans; he would instead opt to organize the territory under the Tierra Grieta, a state through which Marinero established the former crusading Antarians as an elite & wealthy ruling class over the the indigenous populace of the region, and which formalized the forceful conversion of the area to Theophanitism. Only the direct support of the Pontiff in this endeavor stopped an Antarian governmental invasion of Marinero's new rogue state.

#### Under the Tierra Grieta

The Tierra Grieta established the first recognizable basis for the modern state of Varsow, with the joint Varsowan identity being found in Theophanitism. Even after Marinero passed, the territory continued as a semi-theocratic military dictatorship, through which the small Antarian minority held absolute power over the indiginous peoples; seemingly, the hatred for this new order was the only thing which united these former rivals. Numerous revolts occured, which managed to undermine the Tierra Grieta's authority, however the power of the Antarians was seemingly entrenched.

The Varsowan dedication to Theophanitism was confirmed during the Gruszite Wars, where large numbers of Varsowans went to fight the heretical Zaikovite sect in Ostrony.

#### Establishment of the Union

By the late 1700s, the Tierra Grieta was struggling massively. It faced economic ruin from international sanctions, as the world increasingly saw the Tierra Grieta as a fossil from an age of mythical holy wars & "unreconstructed example of civilisation twisted by racism." The country was also plagued by increasingly violent, yearly protests which began in 1772, on the 450th anniversary of the beginning of the Varsowan Inquisition. After hundreds of years, the political order of the Tierra Grieta finally came tumbling down in 1798, when Varsow's ethnically diverse army mutinied during Bonaventura's invasion of the country, instead opting to help the upstart reformist as opposed to the crumbling status quo.

When Bonaventura conquered the The Rift by the end of 1798, he organized the area into the Confederation of the Rift, a conglomerate of allied states lead by appointees of his. The ethnically Antarian leadership was at first hopeful that ethnic ties would make Bonaventura sympathetic to their regime. Bonaventura, however, held true to his liberalist ideals, and was careful to build a proper regional constitution in order to adjust to the needs of its very diverse population.

After the fall of Bonaventura's empire, using the constitution which he himself has equipped them with, the Varsowans ousted his stooge in the area, and rebuilt the country as a liberal republic.

#### Modern

Parties which would support any particular group's supremacy are explicitly banned from entering government. In the years since democratization, Varsow has aligned heavily with both Ostrony & Toraidhach, joining a defensive pact with them in 1906, whilst remaining diplomatically skeptical of the larger powers Celtica & Arkadyetsiya, whom surround the Rift Valley.

### **Geography**

#### Political Parties

##### Legal

* Varsowan Unity Party
* Social-Democratic Party
* Traditional Party
* Adjoinment Party

##### Illegal

* Sabrani pa Adnaŭlienni Arhanizacyja Asparagyhi - "Organization for the Restoration of Asparagya"
* Consumptio Pugnapudnosmutuo - "Those Who Fight Together"
* Soudard du Wapiti - "Soldiers of the Elk"
* Varsovia Bajola Antargentina - "Varsow under Antargentina"

### **Demographics**

**ROUGH DRAFT**

* 65% Bolish
* 20% Pictish
* 10% Reman
* 5% Antarian

### **Culture**

Varsowan identity is defined by its ethnic diversity, including Bols, Picts, Remans, & various Antarians.

#### Religion

The majority of Varsowans, from all ethnicities, are Theophanites.