Argyre Republic

The **Argyre Republic** is an extraplanetary of the **European Federal Union** on **Mars**. Most of the country is located along Argyre Planitia and the Margaritifer Floodplains in Mars' southern hemisphere, although one exclave is located in Amenthes Planum, in Mars' northern hemisphere. The capital is New Rome, located along Arda Crater at the site of the first European colony on the planet, while the largest city is Uzboi City, located along its' namesake river valley. With a population of 900 thousand, Argyre is the least populated of the two established Martian Extraplanetary Holdings, approximately 150 thousand behind the **United States of Tharsis**and 100 thousand ahead of the **Mashriq Republic of Cydonia**.

## History

Europe's history of Martian exploration stretches back to the first years of the 21st century. The European Union sent their first interplanetary mission, the*Martian Express*, in 2005. It was quickly followed up in 2009 with the*EuroMars+* mission, which carried the EU's first surface rover to another planet, as well as set up the first Martian sample return in conjunction with the United States. During the Ares program, European citizens made up approximately 18.3% of astronauts on the ten Ares missions, three of which were on Ares 1. When the time came for permanent colonization, the European Union provided many of the logistical modules to Tharsistown, and in 2045 began work on its own civilian base, Uzboi Colony.

After the signing of the Ares Concordat, which allowed for the mass-civilian colonization of Mars and the planet's terraforming, the European Union began in earnest to facilitate not just a series of small civilian colonies, but a large & cohesive unit. Passed in 2056, the Euromartian Governance Act stated that once a series of requirements were reached for the European Union's martian colonies (population, self-sufficiency, potential economic output), then the European Parliament had 10 years to transfer some administrative authority to the colonies for self-governance. After recovering from high unemployment and financial strife during the Martian Depression, The European colonies (which had by now begun to pick up the collective name of 'Argyre') exploded in population along with the rest of Mars. In 2094, all requirements set by the EMGA had been reached when Argyre's population surpassed 700,000. However political strife on Earth, along with increased caution in Martian affairs following the Fossil Crisis, delayed any action from the European government.

The events north of Argyre, in the American-born United States of Tharsis, forced the EU's hand. In 2105, an official referendum on Argyre's future resulted in 71.2% of the population voting in favor of a semi-independent Republic. This forced the New Rome Conference in 2106, a meeting between local colonial authorities and members of the European federal government in order to create a functional system of governance for the colonies. After more than a year of discussion and negotiation, the Conference had agreed on a parliamentary system headed by both a Prime Minister and Colonial Viceroy, who would represent the European Union in the new Republic. After a final passed referendum to approve the constitution, the Argyre Republic was officially founded on August 9, 2108. The second and to-date last country to be founded on Mars.

## Demographics

### Population

The Argyre Statistical Office puts the population of the Argyre Republic at approximately 900 thousand. This has increased by 127 thousand since 2100 and by 830 thousand since 2060. The Argyre Republic is the second most-populated state on Mars, approximately 150 thousand behind the United States of Tharsis and 10 ahead of the Mashriq Republic of Cydonia. The population is expected to continue increasing throughout the 22nd century, with a population of 2.5 to 4 million by 2200.

As of 2110, the most populous states of the Argyre Republic are Uzboi (151,000), New Italy (147,000), and New Baden (132,000); while the least populated are Albion (25,000) and Samara (30,000). The three territories of Argyre have a combined population of 27,000, with any single territory needing 25,000 as a prerequisite for statehood.

### Language

Like it's parent country on Earth, the Argyre Republic is home to an extremely diverse grouping of languages. The "working languages" of the government are also the four most widely-spoken languages in the country: German (24.9%), Italian (19.5%), French (17.4), and English (14.2%). Other widely-spoken languages include Spanish, Polish, Danish, and Arabic. A variety of pidgin languages also exist, with Argyre Frangol and Denglisch.

### Religion

The Argyre Republic's Charter of Rights and European Doctrine of Human Rights both guarantee freedom of religion and worship for all citizens. The largest religion in the Republic is Christianity, practiced by 32.8% of the population, mostly from the Catholic (both branches) and Protestant denominations. 6.9% of the population is Muslim (mostly Sunni), and 2.1% is Jewish. 12.6% of the population follow other faiths, mostly Hinduism and Buddhism. 45.6% of the population is Irreligious.

### Cybernetics

Like the rest of Mars, Europeans in Argyre has a much higher percentage of cybernetics use than their counterparts on Earth. Of Argyre's 900 thousand citizens, 45.8% have some sort of cybernetic modification. Of this, 34.8% have 1-5 modifications, 8.8% have 6-10 modifications, and only 2.2% have more than 10 modifications.