Great Callada

*Salus, Securitas et Libertas*

### Introduction:

Great Callada, commonly referred to as just Callada or often abbreviated to GC, is a sovereign nation located off the North-East coast of the Aeriyad mainland. Great Callada refers to the main island where the capital and the majority population is situated, however it is part of the Greater Callada region, which refers to all lands which are under Callay jurisdiction, this includes several provinces (Aurumore, etc), and multiple islands (Callay Isles). Great Callada shares no land borders and is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, however its provinces do - for instance Aurumore borders nomadic territories in North Aeriya.

The Capital of Great Callada is St. Yannahsburg, with multiple port-towns, mining villages and agricultural hamlets strewn about the island. Callada is currently not known to have any significant national religions, despite the prevalence of churches and / or other religious buildings and monuments existing on the island. The national animal of GC is the phoenix.

As for the inhabitants, not much is known about these proud people, or the nature of the island itself on which they reside, other than general topology and wildlife. Until recently the Callay Isles have been all but barren of human activity, instead hosting vast forests and grassland, that is until numerous towns and villages were constructed all at once, seemingly by no-one. The rise of Callada and it’s towns inexplicably have no roots in history, nor previous settlements. The island has seen no evolution, nor growth from its dwindling people, which by nature are extremely secretive and mysterious. However, one thing is for certain, they are out of place, and fiercely determined, for what exactly is yet another mystery.

#### Side-note:

The naming conventions of Great Callada have been described as *“both confusing and annoying”* by most people, however in order to shed even but a smear of clarity on the matter here is what is generally accepted as the names of regions / places as listed below and further in this document:

* Great Callada refers to specifically the main island, also called Callada, or G.C.
* Callay Isles refers to Great Callada and the surrounding isles, including Milsolocha Island etc.
* Greater Callada is G.C. and any other outside territory or province that is not a member-state.
* Aurumore is not an individual member-state, but a province of Greater Callada.
* Mwaanca is one member-state but refers to two lands, Mwaanca Major and Hidernia (Mwaanca Minor)
* Klayeróger is a small member-state north of Aurumore, connected by Atom’s Straight, however it is separate from Aurumore.

Here's the confusing bit: Great Callada can refer to the small island in the north-east of Aeriya, *or* the entire country as a whole, when technically the term to describe all of the above is “The United States of Greater Callada”, however U.S.G.C, G.C, Great Callada, and just Callada are all interchangeable in this context.

## History:

Sources for the History of Callada are flawed at best, and utter fabrications at worst. The people of the island are incredibly protective of their past and go to great lengths to conceal it, however, with that in mind, the story as of general understanding follows thusly:

Many centuries ago, the Pre-Callay people lived undisturbed and unprovoked in their calm way of life on another time-forgotten island. Peaceful and prosperous they sat comfy. However, it would soon come to be known that old grudges and recent hostilities between neighbouring nations had twisted relations sour, and before long the sleepy islands were shuddered into war.

A long and gruesome war it was indeed. One that was sure to forever scar the minds and hearts of any unfortunate souls to lose themselves within the conflict and destruction. Many lives were lost in defending the realm, most of them civilians caught in the crossfire. Nevertheless, the Callay people persevered with courageous dignity - as the narrative so far would have you believe - not ready to accept that the battle was already lost. Cities laid to waste. Townships reduced the rubble. These were the conditions the original Callay were born under. Under the heavy burden of endless artillery and gun barrels, a plan was conceived in secret: an escape from hell. They were to gather all of their resources, all of their food, materials, and books, and children and sail west.

Of course being a proud nation, the idea was widely condemned, and those who backed it were labelled as callous, or perhaps callow, the point is, the word Callada comes from either of these words, transformed with accent and dialect into Callay to describe a cowardly people who fled from a dying, burning country, and then naming the lands and themselves as such, however the word callay has since taken a new meaning: hope. Great Callada, originally spelled Callayda - or even on one account, Callaida -  rose from the ashes of a smouldering island, populated by traitors. Of course now it is plain to see that these were not traitors, but survivors.

So is the story of these sorry isles, full of the descendants of the last remaining survivors from a long dead land. They never forgot though, passed down from generation to generation, the desire to return home was always strong, part of each individual’s personal, and national identity. A burning desire to just go home. And this feeling has never felt more alive than now.

That’s how they’d have you believe it anyway.

## Provinces and States:

### Member-States:

* Mwaanca
* Klayeróger

## Towns, Cities and Areas:

* Bynmouth (formerly Byndover)
* St. Yannahsburg
* Milsolocha Castle
* Railfell Meadow

## Flags:

**Domestic Flag:** This is GC's main flag, flown in most towns and cities. The green, white, and pink are from an old flag that used to represent the area Callada resides upon, as to not forget. Individually these colours are also representative of other nations that no longer exist. The yellow arc and black fill represent the walls and heavy fortification of the island, with a five pointed star being "defended" inside, this star represents a multitude of things, sources unclear on what it actually was intended to represent.

**Overseas Flag:** This is the maritime / overseas flag. The design is essentially the same as the domestic flag however it features a pointed design as opposed to the arc. This represents the clear way forward at sea. It is also to distinguish it from the peacetime flag but keep it recognisable.