The Archetian Struggles

The Archetian Struggles
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Background information
Participants	Archetians, High Penguins
Date	100-2011 AD
Location	Modern-day Freezeland, Archet and the Happyface State

The Archetian Struggles are a series of wars, conflicts, and battles that occurred in Archet (whether they be in the old or new borders), on Archetian land, or involving Archetians. The Archetian soldiers are often called the Bonde Soldaters.

History

The High Penguin Archetians were descended from optimistic farmers and settlers who came to Antarctica to have a better, more peaceful life. They for the most part were not great with magic, the smartest, or the bravest. These Archetians mostly came from the south-west of Tol na Aglornde and came upon some of the first ships to Antarctica. They pioneered High Penguin exploration into inland Antarctica, yet were persecuted for years by the other High Penguins. The main types of High Penguins who came to Antartcica (before the destruction of Valnor) were the Archetian farmers and settlers (who named their land Arçet Arr-shet), merchants/miners, government officials, soldiers, scientists/professors, and wizards. They mainly settled in what is now Northfold, Freezeland and had some dealings with natives. The Archetians were seen as unskilled, uneducated, and useless by the other colonialists. The Valnorian Colony of Ard was set up by the Valnorians, who then persecuted the Archetians who were developing their own culture and did not want the ways of the old land. The Archetians would not surrender their crops to the Valnorians, so the Valnorians stopped protecting them. When the Bondes as they were called banded together and formed a militia to protect themselves against hostile Valnorians and natives, the Valnorians brought in other farmers who would settle their land and hopefully would drive out the Valnorians. The Colonial government gave subsidies to farms run by penguins who agreed with their values and traditions. Benefits were given to those who had many chicks, and promises of free land were advertised all across Valnor to those who would come and open up a farm. They did not want to declare war on them as they were begining to unite, and they were starting to have dealings with the natives, and at the time there were only about 350 soldiers in the colony (there was about 1700 penguins in the Valnorian colony in 130, with an estimated 500 Archetian milita, though the Archetian militia was not well trained like the Valnorians).

They established their own country, called the Republic of Archet, which was a small country in the begining, but eventually covering most of the land from about 150 miles inland, to the sea about where Frostborough is now, over to parts of Northfold. They never dared to cross the Jadis river. In fact, the Jadis river was called "the Uncrossable" for many years. By this time it was the year 300. The High Penguin population of the Republic of Archet was about 14 500 and the native population slightly lower, although they mostly still lived in villages and tribes in the south and some were still hostile. The population of the Valnorian colony was about 35 000, although natives and Archetians were not considered citizens so they were not counted. Tensions began between the rich Valnorian colonists and the poor Archetians. War broke out and the Valnorians quickly defeated them. The colonial government sent out a scorched earth order, meaning that anything that could help the enemy, including their houses, crops, and farms were burnt. The militia fought long and hard, but when many of the women and chicks were captured and taken to the Valnorian colony, Valnor sent more troops, and then even though the Archetians allied with the natives, they still lost. So, the population that hadn't been displaced, shipped off, died, or forced to assimilate made a long trek down through the hill-lands of Freezeland, through the inner forests, passing through lands never seen before until they came to a land where they could be safe and rebuild their country in peace. This is now Archet, parts of Southern Freezeland, and parts of the Happyface State.

Now, the Valnorians have driven out the Archetians from their land and sent them south, thereby isolating them. This allowed their culture to evolve at a different pace and they became even more distinctive from the Valnorians. The Archetians lived in peace with the natives, unlike the Valnorians who were often at war with them.

However, when Malcur came to power in the 500s, the Valnorians and Archetians were at peace with each other. There was a mutual dislike, but they were not at war. Many Archetian Bonde Soldater volunteered to help fight against Malcur. However Malcur conquered parts of Archet and the colonies and then the government of the Republic of Archet declared war on Malcur as well. Since Malcur was hiding deep in the interior of the continent, when he moved towards Freezeland to attack he had to fight through Archet first. The Archetians knew they could not win a full-scale war with him, for it was nothing like guerilla warfare with weary posh colonists. They were mainly farmers without much of an army. So, the President of Archet, Wessels Duimpe, agreed to allow Valnorian soldiers to come in and defend them. At the time this was accepted due to the circumstances, but after the war which hit Archet hard the soldiers were supposed to leave. They did not, and the government of Archet was assimilated into the Valnorian colonial government as part of the province of Ard Mhaca. Now that the Valnorians had control of Archet, they could pass through the lands to new frontiers past Archet. So they did, and more immmigration from Valnorians into Archet and the lands south of it weakened the Bondes. For centuries under the High Penguin Confederacy they were ignored but did not assimilate. They kept their own lifestyles and cultures, despite persecution from those of Valnorian descent. After Valnor was destroyed more High Penguins came to Antarctica and settled, and by 950 the Bondes only accounted for 35% of the province's population and 12% of the total population of High Penguins in Antarctica at the time ("lowers" were not considered penguins until around the end of the Early HPC).

They declined in influence and numbers but maintained their culture. Modern Archetians do not typically consider themselves Bondes as the term now mainly is used to describe High Penguin farmers. The Bondes culture now has evolved into modern Archetian culture, though some remnants still remain exclusively with those of Bondes descent.

In the 1900s, trouble began again. In the Khanzem, Archet was one of the main battleground between the Naughtzees and Good Guys. It was often the scene of fighting between opposing armies. In Colonial Antarctica a resurgence of Archetian culture began again and after Freezeland declared independence in 1997, the land now known as the Happyface State declared independence as Archet. It joined Freezeland soon after. A war between Euphoric Penguins and the joint Freezelandian-Archetian forces was fought and eventually resulted in the loss of most of the region. Keep in mind that most of the province was not actually owned by the Bondes in the past, and High Penguins and Sroots were only mainly concentrated in the North and the West. However, these areas became a part of the Happyface State. It was given little representation and is basicly ignored by almost everyone. Read the Archet article for more.