Vaan Aujoen
| Vaan Aujoen | |
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| Subdivision type: | N/A |
| Capital: | Zumerhaven |
| Population: | 1,002,794 |
| Largest Cities: | Zumerhaven |
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| Local Leadership Title: | N/A |
| Local Government: | Local chiefdom |
| Current leader: | N/A |
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| Local language: | Crandish |
| Local Religion: | Arminianism |
The Vaan Aujoen islands are a group of four islands along the northeastern coast of Apollonia, as of 1697 AN belonging to Lac Glacei. Directly to the south lies the Violette Sea. From east to west, these islands include Zumerhaven, Kjolsgard, Ragnoye, and Aujovik. The region was first settled and named by Cranda (later Arminy). The islands were an important duchy within Cranda for many centuries before eventually being occupied by Gralus and then Stormark. The Storish occupiers tried to impose their Nordic culture upon the locals, and while not completely successful their influence remains in some place names today. After the Crab Plague wiped out most of the Storish population the Crandish population overthrew their yoke and reinstated an Arminian hierarchy. It was this Arminian chiefdom that the Lac Glaceian came into contact with during the Riel Expedition of 1697. Seeing the sad state to which the islands had fallen Riel negotiated bringing Vaan Aujoen under Lac Glacei's wing as an autonomous overseas territory, which the Vaanen quickly accepted. Since then, Lac Glacei has begun heavily investing into the region and helping the Vaanen to reassert control over the islands. The development of a safe northern shipping route through the area has helped to significantly bolster the local economy, aiding in reclamation efforts.
The name means Islands of Hope, or Hope Islands, in the Crandish dialect, from aujo for island and vaan for hope.
Beginning in 1699 the government of Lac Glacei launched a concerted effort to help the islanders regain their historic lands from the Green. After two years of significant investment in local infrastructure at each island's major population centers, the Lac Glaceian government felt enough of a foothold had been established to begin helping the islanders retake their homeland. Elements of the GARD were deployed to Zumerhaven, escorted by the frigates LS Melvin and LS Rosario. Lac Glaceian marines landed in the city and coordinated forces with Ragner Klosson's militia. These units then pushed southwest from the city, ejecting petty warlords and bringing the area firmly under government control. The relative rural population of the area offered little resistance, so the effort to conquer the southern half of Zumerhaven took only three days. Once Klosson's forces were stationed to maintain order, Lac Glacei's marines moved north and again occupied the northern half of the island. With only a few scattered villages, the effort was more a formality than an actual military maneuver. But it gave Klosson's forces the needed manpower to exert authority over the whole island and give them time to establish a centralized administration.
Following the success on Zumerhaven, Lac Glaceian forces allowed a month to elapse, giving Klosson's forces time to establish a firm garrison over the island. With Klosson firmly in control, Lac Glaceian forces then moved westward, landing first on Kjolsgard. Here they met some resistance from some of the rural villages with primarily Storish populations. These villages were extremely isolated, and most had degenerated into a barbaric state following the Crab Plague. A field hospital was established in Kjolsgardbuurg to provide vaccinations for the plague and mental treatment for some of the more deranged infected. For the most part casualties were minimal, though around a dozen Storish villagers died when attacking the advancing marines. Klosson's minor garrison in Kjolsgard was then given reigns to the island's security and GARD units moved on to Ragnoye and Aujovik. Like Kjolsgard, Ragnoye had a strong Storish presence outside of the main village, but these too had degenerated into a base community barely worth calling civilized. Ragnoye's small population saved it from further casualty, and the island was secured without shots being fired. Lac Glaceian forces transported the sick to Kjolsgard for treatment before moving on to Aujovik. The final island in the chain had a larger population than either Ragnoye or Kjolsgard, with a mix of ethic groups ranging from Purple Islanders to Crandish to a very small minority of Storish. The former two welcomed the assistance of the GARD units in securing the island, with only the latter again posing objection. But the lone Storish village soon capitulated against impossible odds, bringing to a close the reconquest of Vaan Aujoen.
Culture
The Vaanen are a stout race of northerners that have lived on the isles for several thousand years. Having long-ago acclimated to the harsh extremes of climate in the north, the Vaanen carry with them a well-earned reputation as fierce warriors and seafarers. An inhospitable landscape coupled with long winters forced the inhabitants to the seas for sustenance. Fishing and raiding the mainland became early mainstays and often the only means of survival. But this roving attitude also lent itself to exploration, and the Vaanen fleets roamed far and wide searching for new troves of resources to supply their villages.
