History of Zhenia

The history of Zhenia covers the historical relations between the world what is modern-day Zhenia and adjoining entities, characterized by broad interactions with both continental and maritime powers both close and distant.

The origins of Zhenia as a distinct entity after prehistory can be tracked down to well before the advent of the Zhen dynasty, when the primordial Liang dynasty existed in the Taimir River basin, although evidence hinting to the existence of Neolithic civilizations have also been observed near the Weisu and Chang rivers. As the first state in Zhenian history, the Liang dynasty presided over the northern parts of the Taimir River basin, a region often regarded as a, as clarified by numerous historical texts dating back to the Zhen dynasty. The demise of the Liang dynasty around 1000 BC was met with the Era of Great Divide, characterized by the rise of several feudal warlord states across the mainland and the Danguk Peninsula, although only eight of such entities survived by 1000 BC. Amid the flourishing of early Zhenian culture, philosophy and language, the Era of Great Divide saw entities across modern-day Zhenia compete for domination of the Taimir Basin and mainland Zhenia.

In 732 BC, the Kingdom of Zhen, originating from the northern parts of the Danguk Peninsula, conquered and unified much of mainland Zhenia and established the Zhen dynasty. led by Shen Lien, led a series of conquests throughout mainland Zhenia, as well as southeastern Tarsis, to end the Era of Great Divide and unify all of Zhenia for the first time in its history. As the first entity to have fully unified much of modern-day Zhenia, the Zhen dynasty, as well as successive dynasties in both the mainland and the Danguk Peninsula, developed systems to efficiently exert centralized power over its domain, a trend that continued for several centuries. The Zhen dynasty grew into one of the largest empires of the ancient world alongside the Elyrian Empire in Azora, being a leading political and cultural center until its decline in the 6th century; it, however, left lasting influences in Zhenian language, literature, culture and philosophy still felt to this day.

Throughout much of the following the demise of the Zhen dynasty, most of mainland Zhenia saw an era of division and continuous conflict among smaller states that came to replace the Zhen, during an era known as the Hundred States Era, while invasions by northern nomadic tribes caused further political unrest; in contrast, the Danguk Peninsula generally saw a period of alternating but unified dynasties, although it continuously interacted with various states along the Gulf of Danguk and the mainland. While most of mainland Zhenia remained largely feudal until the Zhenian enlightenment in the 14th century AC, numerous kingdoms and city-states along the Gulf and in the Danguk Peninsula began to prosper with maritime and overland trade, their economic activity laid the fundamentals of modern. Under such grounds, Shindanese explorers and smaller states along the Gulf led several maritime expeditions beyond Zhenia and across the Hanmaric Ocean, ushering in an era of colonization and settlement in Hanmaric islands and Veharia and opening the and expansion. Entities around the Gulf of Danguk reached their zenith of prosperity in the 12th and 13th centuries, although further political unrest and invasion from the north resulted in a period of brief decline.

By the early 14th century, an era of enlightenment and the resurgence of numerous schools of and anthropocentric philosophies brought about the rise of Zhenian nationalism and a period of political upheaval. This resulted in the formation of the Zhang dynasty in the mainland, a unified entity spanning most of continental Zhenia and parts of the Golden Arc, while it spurred the in Shindan amid changes in economic circumstances both in the peninsula and its Veharian possessions. Shindan, having industrialized earlier and more rapidly than the mainland, led a series of wars against the mainland under the leadership of Emperor Seongjo, fully unifying Zhenia for the first time since the demise of the Zhen dynasty and thus establishing the Empire of Zhenia; many survivors of mainland states retreated south to modern-day Yinguo. Zhenia's surge into a world power in the 15th century AC resulted in the advent of the Shinzhen Movement, sparking conflicts against Auroran colonial powers in Tarsis and the Hanmaric Ocean. The empire transitioned into a republic in 1499 following the December Revolution, being one of the first republics in the modern sense of the word in the region. While its victory in the First Great War confirmed its status as a global military power, Zhenian involvement in the Second Great War ended in its military defeat and economic devastation in 1538. While the nation was ruled by a military government from 1545 to 1569 as a result of the Coup of 1545, it was democratized as a result of the November Revolution in 1569, resulting in the end of the Third Republic. During the later half of the 16th century AC, Zhenia enjoyed a period of economic resurgence and prosperity after the war, rising to become a highly to this day.

Era of Great Divide
The power vacuum in the Golden Arc and the Taimir River basin, following the collapse of the Liang, was quickly filled by a mix of Wei states, former Liang tributaries and states established by northern tribes all coexisting in the region. Each of these states, claiming themselves as the legitimate successor of the now-defunct Liang, fought one another seeking domination of the Taimir basin and the Gulf, in an era known as the Era of Great Divide.

While dozens of states existed throughout the Taimir basin and the Golden Arc region in the early stages of the era, nine of the most prominent states survived by the 10th century BC.

The era of continuous conflict and strife resulted in kingdoms and feudal states seeking ideologies that would help in ruling and leading their states to victory. As a result, dozens of schools of thought, each proposing numerous ways to bolster national prosperity and military strength, sprung up throughout the era, later becoming known as the Thousand Schools of Philosophy. With some schools of thought attracting thousands of followers at a time, they played a prominent role in shaping the way states functioned at the time, with the ultimate goal of empowering their states in an era of strife and warfare. The existence of the Thousand Schools of Philosophy left lasting impacts in Zhenian philosophical history, with many ideas, successful or not, providing inspirations for future philosophical movements and discussions. and collectivism in particular, two of the defining ideologies of Zhenian history, emerged from some of the schools of thought during this era.

Zhen dynasty
The Zhen dynasty was founded in 742 BC with the declaration of imperial status by Shen Lien, following the end of the Era of Great Divide via the unification of the Danguk Peninsula as well as continental Zhenia under the Kingdom of Zhen. Regarded as the first golden age in Zhenian history, the era of prosperity and political stability during the Zhen dynasty laid the foundation of almost all successor states that, despite several centuries of division, would mostly carry on the political system centered around a centralized imperial bureaucracy. The Zhen dynasty also left lasting cultural accomplishments in various fields that are still seen in Zhenia today, including nationally standardized measurement systems and currency, as well as the fundamentals of standard Zhenian, the completion of the Seomun script, the consolidation of Wuist beliefs as the dominant religion family in Zhenia, among other accomplishments in language, religion, art, science and culture. Compared to its predecessors, the Zhen dynasty made unprecedented progress in culture and science, many of which have survived onto later dynasties and formed the fundamentals of Zhenia today.

Numerous successive Zhen emperors, including Emperor Taejong, led several military campaigns against the south, east and west to expand the dynasty's domain from a nation merely spanning the Taimir River basin and the Golden Arc region into an empire stretching from the North Zhenian Sea to the Chang River. Emperors like the ambitious Emperor Myeongjong, however, went a step further and led northern military expeditions against northern nomadic tribes and stabilized what is now northern Zhenia. The Zhen dynasty reached its first zenith from around 550 BC to 350 BC, in an era also referred to as the 'Golden Epoch'. It was during the 'Golden Epoch' that formalized imperial institutions studying legalism and Sanfengism as the nation's primary ruling ideologies, as well as the national civil service examination system, was established, while the border between, Sanfengism and pre-existent religions, particularly Wuist religions, were also clarified: legalism would remain as the dynasty's primary ruling ideology alongside Sanfengism, while most religions, including Wuism, would be separated from the day-to-day operations of the nation but would remain as a means to rule the empire. The border between the nation's ruling ideologies and religions would remain more or less the same in continental Zhenia for the centuries to come, lasting within successor states as well.

The 'Golden Epoch' ended with a series of famines in central Zhenia, followed by a series of invasions by the Yemeg Yan in the 3rd century BC. As imperial authority declined after the death of Emperor Munjong and the subsequent empowerment of, the dynasty was further destabilized with peasant rebellions. After an era known as the Epoch of Turbulence throughout the 3rd century BC, order under the centralized imperial government was reinstated by Emperor Guangzhong. Under Emperor Guangzhong's rule, the Zhen dynasty entered a new era of political stability and cultural prosperity. It was during Guangzhong's rule that the overland routes of the, connecting the Zhen dynasty and the Elyrian Empire to the west in Azora, were established over central Tarsis.

Zhenian unification
Following the collapse of the Zhang dynasty after the Third Shindan-Zhang War, much of the now-unified territories were reorganized: almost all of its former territories, as well as most of the Geumho Confederation, was reorganized into twelve feudatories, while areas directly-controlled by Shindan expanded to include most of the Golden Arc region. The Feudatories were headed by members of the Shindanese imperial family, at an attempt to restrict the power of surviving local aristocrats and regional warlords in the respective feudatories. All feudatories became part of the primarily Shindan-led Gwangseong Treaty Organization (GTO) following the signing of the Treaty of Gwangseong in 1404 AC. Although many of its core affiliated organizations were headquartered within Shindanese territory and its executives primarily of Shindanese origin, the Gwangseong Treaty Organization, later renamed into the Confederation of Zhenia in 1412 AC, played a key role in promoting industrialization throughout continental Zhenia and maintaining an alliance between Shindan and its feudatories, while also adhering to the One Continent, One Empire scheme proposed and promoted by Shindanese statesmen and ideologists; it collectively pushed ahead Confederation-wide agricultural policies in the 1410s and 1420s, while also promoting infrastructure construction between the Feudatories. The Yemeg-Balakhaat Khanate was also reorganized into the Khanate of Uilim in 1409 AC, while surviving Yemeg and Balakhaat factions retreated north of the Baekryong River to spur the Adai independence movement later in the century. Unlike other feudatories, however, the protectorate maintained itself under a nominal personal union with Shindan, with the Emperor of Shindan still retaining the title of Khagan.

Regional warlords and former Zhang military leaders, however, continued armed resistance against Shindanese forces and ultimately the Gwangseong Treaty Organization in western and southern Zhenia. The Treaty Organization, although much of it primarily consisted of Shindanese forces, led several expeditions against surviving Zhang loyalist factions to the west and south, while also launching a series of military campaigns against modern-day Yinguo to the south, where the surviving members of the Zhang imperial family were rallying Wei refugees who migrated south of the Chang River. Later known as the 12-year Frontier Campaign from 1408 to 1420 AC, Confederation Forces brutally repelled surviving militants in most of present-day central, western and southern Zhenia, it failed to conquer the Great Yin, after the loss of hundreds of thousands of Confederation troops. While smaller military campaigns and skirmishes continued well into the 1420s, the Confederation and the Great Yin signed the Treaty of Zhuhae in 1425 AC, which included an indefinite armistice between the two nations with the Ganjian River as the demarcation line. After the Treaty of Zhuhae, the Confederation focused on promoting Confederation-wide infrastructure and industrialization projects, while the Rebellion of the Five Feudatories took place from 1435 AC in the mainland as a culmination of the power struggle between five of the semi-autonomous feudatories and the remainder of the Confederation, concluding in the Confederation's victory as well as the further centralization of power towards Shindan. Feudatories were abolished entirely with the declaration of the Empire of Zhenia in 1438 AC, as all feudatories reorganized into imperial provinces directly under Shindanese control.