Arkan IV ve Sherkoz

Arkan IV in 1871

**Arkan IV ve Sherkoz** (Arashin: *𐰨𐰆𐱃𐰲𐰅𐰐 𐰅𐰢 𐰴𐰀𐰲𐰺𐰀𐰊 𐰮𐰀𐱃𐰲𐰀*), was the Eshva of Ikhan from 1871 to 1932. He is well-regarded for his reforms and leadership during the as one of Ikhan's greatest rulers, putting him alongside Khorai I and Arkan I. He is often referred to as "Arkan the Lawgiver (Arashin: *𐰃𐰀𐰔𐰊𐰅𐱁𐰔 𐰮𐰀𐱃𐰲𐰀; Arkan Tsevatai*)".

## Early Life

Arkan was born on 4 June, 1853, to Emperor Erel V and Empress Eira in the Imperial Palace. As the firstborn son of the Emperor, he was the Crown Prince from birth, a role which he would be trained for until the day he ascended to the throne. Despite this, in those days, the male members of the Imperial Family were expected to train with the blade as *Zharai*, a role which the young prince didn't take well to, though he proved himself skilled *enough* in it to be considered a decent duelist. Following the Ardian War (1866-1868), the Empire would slowly fall into unrest. At the age of eighteen, his father died, and he ascended to the throne of Ikhan.

## Emperor of Ikhan

### The First Decade

Upon his accession to the throne, the Empire would face a period of great civil unrest, though some also felt hope that the new Emperor would be able to bring about its retribution against the Ardians. Nonetheless, Arkan's first actions as the new ruler of Ikhan would be to issue a proclamation ordering for the armies of the clans of Ikhan to be modernized. As part of this, the Empire would begin to build a series of forts along it's new border with the Ardian Empire; these forts which would be maintained and upgraded well into the 20th century.

In 1880, at the age of 27, Arkan married Isana, the daughter of Lord Erel Aran, patriarch of Clan Arkhos (for which the city is named). They would go on to have three children: Ashot (later Emperor Ashot I), Ikos, and Kiri.

By 1882, tensions in Ikhan had become too high to resolve peacefully: War had come to the Empire once more.

### The Civil War

Uprisings across the Empire began starting in 1882, when the cities of Anai and Ekrit fell under the control over rebels seeking the overthrow of the government. Though action was taken to quell these uprisings, not much could be done for nearly three years, by which point more and more of the Empire had risen up. A large part of those who had taken arms against the empire were reactionaries seeking to reverse the policies instituted during Arkan's reign, though the clans *mostly* stayed loyal.

The war came to a close in 1887 with the recapture of Ekrit and Anai, though remnants continued to fight on into the 1910's.

### Post-War Ikhan

The civil war was, despite it's relatively low casualties for the population at the time, quite scarring for the nation. Rebuilding would last until 1902, though some parts of the nation would never *truly* recover, abandoned as refugees fled to the coast much as they did in the war against the Ardians. Arkan would, following the war, continue his reforms, though his greatest accomplishment would come in 1899 with the passing of the Arashin Constitution, which established the National Assembly and greatly limited the power of the Clans, an idea which initially saw opposition though would eventually be accepted with the understanding that they would be permitted to maintain their estates.

Arkan nonetheless worried about a potential second invasion by the Ardian Empire, which led to him continuing the reforms to the Imperial Military over the course of the rest of his life. In 1911, the Empire invaded the territory now known as "Lekhai", annexing it in 1913. The rest of his reign would be rather peaceful, though it was a watchful peace at best, the army ever-ready to counter an invasion of Ikhan.

### Death

On 11 November, 1932, Arkan was hospitalized due to illness, presumed to be a case of influenza. On the 15th, it was reported that he was in a critical condition and was unlikely to recover. By the 19th, the Emperor had passed away, though it would be two days before his death would be publicly announced. He was buried on the 24th of November, 1932, in the Imperial Cemetery within the grounds of the Imperial Palace in Ikan.

## Legacy

Arkan is well-regarded in Ikhan for the reforms he brought about and for the efforts he undertook to rebuild the nation after the Ardian War and the Civil War. He is seen as one of the "FourGreat Emperors" of Ikhan, the others being Khorai I, Arkan I, and Khorai II.