The Principality of Aragon
Posted: 03 Aug 2020, 01:29
Formal Name: The Principality of Aragon
Informal Name: Aragon
Demonym: Aragonese
Official Languages: Catalan, Spanish, and Portuguese
State Religion: Catholicism
Form of Government: Centralised Absolute Monarchy
Capital: Barcelona
Monarch: Ofelia la Providència, de l'Rosario Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart, La Princesa Reial de l'Aragó, La Reina d’Espanya, La Reina de Portugal, La Duquessa d'Alba, i La Gran Mestra de l'Ordre de l'Card.
Royal Council
Lieutenant-General Commandant
Executor Regnant
Lord Grand Admiral
Most High Master of Laws
Grand Financier-General
Map of Aragon (1973)
Information
Monarchist factions had been brewing in Spain since the deposition of King Alfonso XIII by the Second Republic, through El Caudillo's tyranny, and under the Communist government that had been, heretofore, in power. There had been little hope for years, especially following the devastation brought on by the German Flu. But that would change when agents discovered a young and viable claimant to the Crown of Aragon in the Catalonian Countryside, one Ofelia del Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart, the Duchess of Alba and a direct descendant of the House of Barcelona, the ancestral rulers of the Principality of Catalonia and Crown of Aragon.
Initially intended merely as a figurehead for the restorationist aspirations of that fledgling resistance, in their years of preparation she made the most of it, building inroads with the revolutionaries and eventually rising from de jure to de facto leader, taking on the personal title of La Providència and bolder stances. It would all culminate in 1968 when Spain once again erupted into civil war. The writing had been on the wall for years, the loyalists of the middling socialist republic considered it inevitable and feared the worst.
They were not surprised when open conflict broke out, but they never could have predicted the sheer velocity at which La Provi waged her campaign. With the majority of the army and a significant paramilitary force behind her, she cut a swath of blood through the nation, rapidly overtaking the meagre resistance that was able to be mounted at every turn. Just as quickly as the war was on, it was over. Spain, now a territory of the resurgent Principality of Aragon, was once again monarchist, and, under the guidance of their brash sovereign, would be made pious.
Amidst the brutality her regime exercises against undesirables, time was found to uplift the nation from a second-rate minor state to a rising power. With modern industry and infrastructure, quality of life improved, at least, for those who were not eliminated or worse. Though there was never any illusion that these improvements were not in service of expanding the military's capabilities, with great focus being placed on conscription and developing domestic heavy industry. This was put to the test in 1971, when La Provi exercised her title to the Portuguese throne, claiming the authoritarian communist government of Portugal were rebelliously occupying the territory. Though far from fools, having seen this coming, they too were shocked by the speed of warfare conducted, with their entire army annihilated and nation occupied in a matter of months.
Portugal now exists as another territory of the Principality, and after a year under martial law, has had a civilian administration formed to manage the region. Much poorer than Spain was and ravaged by the merciless war waged across it, reconstruction and modernisation efforts remain ongoing and are likely to continue through the decade. Should the defeat of Portugal stand as the first example of many to those who would defy Providence, may God have mercy on us all.
Conflicts
The War of Reunification (1971) [link]
In which La Provi claims the Kingdom of Portugal as a de jure holding of hers, declares the government of the People's Republic of Portugal illegal, and successfully annexes the nation in a swift military victory, taking minimal casualties.
