Bringing Syldavian history into the 19th century

Yesterday, I wrote a piece about the 19th century history of Borduria, so today I am going to do the same for its western neighbour Syldavia.

I will begin with the death of Ottokar IX in 1776. He was succeeded by his grandson Muskar, whose father, the Crown Prince Viktar had died in 1774 in a hunting accident. Muskar VI had never expected to become king and had pursued a life in antiquarian and literary studies until the death of his father. His wife, Sophie de la Boissière was French, as was his mother, Queen Octavie. Muskar, despite his bookish demeanour was an able ruler, willing to listen to advice from his chief ministers and advisors. A child of the Enlightenment, Muskar VI introduced political reforms influenced by certain aspects of the aftermath of the American War of Independence and began to reject the absolutism of the French monarchy, despite his mother's family connections. However, he was appalled at the French Revolution and the Terror, during which his aristocratic father-in-law perished in the Place de la Guillotine. Numerous exiled French royalists fled to Syldavia and their anti-revolutionary sentiments shifted Muskar away from making further reforms. Syldavian policies shifted towards supporting the anti-Napoleonic Third Coalition and many Syldavian regiments fought alongside the Austrians, suffering heavy losses at the Battle of Austerlitz, which led to Syldavia pursuing a path of neutrality from 1806 until 1809, when Syldavia joined the Fifth Coalition (as did Borduria). The Syldavian army fought alongside the Austrians in the 1809 Dalmatian Campaign and a Syldavian Corps fought at Aspern-Essling and again at Wagram, suffering heavy casualties in the latter battle, which ended the Coalition.

Syldavia sent troops to fight in the Sixth Coalition, but not in large numbers as there were fears of a local war breaking out with Borduria, the perennial enemy in 1813.

After the Congress of Vienna in 1814, Syldavia and Borduria signed a non-aggression Treaty which would last until the 1850s.

Muskar VI died in 1822 to be succeeded as king by Crown Prince Johannes, who ruled as Johannes I. His Queen was Lucrezia di Grissini, the granddaughter of the famous 18th century Italian soldier of fortune and Syldavian general, Ercole di Grissini. Johannes ruled over a period of Syldavian prosperity and gradual democratisation. Limited male suffrage was introduced in 1830 and the electoral qualifications were widened again in 1848, to try and contain the revolutionary fervour that gripped much of Europe. Syldavian politicians managed to resist the revolutionary pressures from below by bringing in measures to liberalise employment laws and introduce improved Poor Laws. The Constitution of 1849 codified the role of the monarchy and the newly-reformed parliament (Versammlung or Parlament in the local official languages).

The liberal rule of Johannes contrasted greatly with the repressive authoritarianism of Constantine III and Alexandros I in Borduria, and Syldavia became a refuge for Bordurian radicals in the years leading up to the Bordurian Coup of 1858. This was to become a major cause of the outbreak of war between the two countries in 1859, lasting intermittently until 1863 with the defeat of Borduria.

Johannes I died in 1877, having seen the end of the Bordurian Autocracy and the rise of the revolutionary Republic of Borduria. His successor, his son Muskar VII followed his liberal rule, ensuring that the Syldavian state was secure from revolutionary civil war by continuing to enact a series of laws improving the lives of the growing urban working classes and rural peasantry, including free education (for boys only) until the age of 12 and a limited free hospital system in major centres of population. At the same time, he modernised the Syldavian military and created a Security and Intelligence Service, the Varnosti Policija, popularly known as the Vohunska, whose role was very much aimed at countering Bordurian attempts to subvert and overthrow the Syldavian monarchy and state. Unhappily, Muskar VII only ruled for a short time, dying of a rare disease in 1882. He was succeeded by his brother Marko, who ruled under the regnal name of Muskar VIII.

Ok, so that is where we are now in Syldavia and Borduria. All set for intrigue and hopefully games of pulp and In Her Majesty's Name featuring the two countries and their secret agencies. All I need now is to find some suitable late-19th or early-20th century miniatures to serve as Syldavians. Still, it isn't as though I have much else to occupy my time at present.