History of Brunant

The history of Brunant spans several millenniums.

Romans and Byzantines
For most of history, the islands were largely uninhabited. In 276, the Romans established a colony at Villa Fulvia. Around 380, the settlement was abandoned by the Romans and largely forgotten. It would only be until after the fall of the Roman Empire that the islands would be re-settled. In the chaos surrounding the fall of the Roman Empire, the islands were briefly conquered by the Vandals in 525, but the islands soon came under the control of the Byzantines after a naval engagement forming part of the Vandalic War. They were the first to begin colonization attempts here in over two centuries. Around 540 they began the foundations of the city of Brezonde. Around 712 some colonists from Brezonde moved south and founded Niesium (modern-day Niesburg).

Aragonese and Venetians
The islands were conquered by the Arabs around 817-818. Unlike previous conquerors of the islands, the Arabs expanded their area and made other settlements (none which remain to this day). They did, however, contribute by turning Brezonde from a settlement to a sizable town, with 1200 people by 900. They also laid the foundations of the regional language, Barzuna.

Around the 1200's the crown of Aragon began mounting attacks on the Muslims in the Balearics and soon they spread to Brunant. They launched several unsuccessful attacks in 1217 and 1231, which prompted the Muslim authorities to construct Brezonde Castle. Aragon began a month-long siege of Brezonde Castle in 1244, which finally resulted in Aragonese victory. The crown of Aragon expelled most Muslims but failed to replenish the populations well. In 1364, a Venetian trading ship spotted the islands. The following year, a ship with settlers arrived and built a settlement at modern-day Donderstad. Soon enough Brezonde was "discovered" and the Aragonese and Muslims (Brezondians) were included into the Venetian society.

The Dutch arrival
In 1408, Dutch crusaders who had been living overseas were near the islands when their ship was forced to land on Hogeberg Island. They eventually settled down in modern-day Sint-Anders upon finding other Europeans (Venetians). In 1411, a second Dutch ship sailed to the islands and founded Grijzestad. Over the next few years, more and more Dutch came to the islands, while the Venetians gradually lost interest in the islands. Soon enough the Dutch became tired of Venetian rule and demanded autonomy. In 1427, the Convention of Grijzestad met in Grijzestad and declared their independence from Venice; a large war took place throughout 1427 and the Brunanters won it and retained their independence. The convention made Marten Sneijder leader of the country, the Brunanter Republic. He would be the leader from 1427-1439.

The Republic
The old republic did well and attracted many Dutch. Hans Niehorster was the next leader, from 1439-1457, followed by Adriaan Boskerck (1457-1463), Jacob van der Ecke (1463-1467), Johannes Neyt (1767-1471) and Leuvis Van Damme. In 1475, Van Damme made himself King of Brunant.

The republic was one of the oldest democracies in the south of Europe, even if not considered a real democracy by modern standards.

Foundation of the kingdom
Brunant became a kingdom in 1475 though it was still a relatively poor nation. Leuvis Van Damme was the first king, though he ruled more like a dictator and did not live a frivolous lifestyle like other European monarchs. For much of his reign Brunant remained largely isolated from the rest of Europe. Brunant was a weak nation and was often raided by pirates such as Mohamed Reis. This would lead to the foundation of the Royal Guard and its expansion into a military. But the country still depended heavily on the employment of mercenaries, which were used at Middleton on several occasions to fight pirates. The population was small, but it did well. But, by the 17th century, people were angry at the monarchy since it had absolute power and was becoming repressive towards the populace. So, in 1663, the people of Brunant revolted against the king and made Karl Van Draak the king. But, he had to sign a Bill of Rights to give people rights if he wanted to remain in power.

Carrington Island
In 1784, Brunant was invaded by Scottish filibuster James Carrington. He hired an army of mercenaries and invaded the islands. After several brief engagements his men overpowered Brunanter troops and claimed victory. He declared himself President and changed the country's name to Carrington Island. Carrington made the king sign a charter removing his political power, and made him a puppet king. Pieter I was deposed that year in favor of his nephew, Adrian II. During Adrian's reign (and Carrington's rule) Brunant resembled a military dictatorship. Troops patrolled the cities and revolts against him were crushed. His frivolous lifestyle was drying up the coffers and in 1800 the king and other Dutch royalists staged a coup and had Carrington arrested. It appeared that change would finally come when Carrington was freed from prison 4 days later with the help of loyal soldiers. Adrian fled the country disguised as a maid and the "old liberator" resumed his rule.

When Carrington died in 1802, his son, David James Carrington succeded him as President. A few weeks later, he was put under house arrest and was forced to sign the Constitution of 1802, which established a more democratic rule.

In 1852, Jan Van Draak became the first democratically elected president in Brunant's history, with an amendment of the constitution. 1881 saw King Johan I deposed in a bloodless coup by his son Pieter II.

Twentieth century
Under Pieter II, Brunant quickly industrialized to become a major arms and ship manufacturer; however, there were still many people who lived in poverty, as industrialization was unequal. Especially in rural areas there was much dissatisfaction, which subsided in early 1900's.

The Koningstad Shipyard suplied ships to the Triple Alliance during World War I. Soldiers also fought overseas during this period but upon their return Brunant fell into an economic slump. In 1917 prohibition was introduced, under various pretenses but in reality many of the politicians in favor looked to make a lot of money because of it. During the 1930's depression, the economy was hit hard, but under Willem Darnant of the Liberal Party, the economy was somewhat revived.

World War II
In 1941, Nazi Germany invaded the island. German paratroopers were landed near the capital and easily conquered it. The Royal family fled overseas and much of the Army and Navy was sent to Alexandria (where they would later take part in Allied operations). A puppet government was set up, but the German Army, commanded by Heinrich Schneider, were really in control. The Underground Revolution movement was the main group opposing the Nazis and from 1941 on they were sabotaging military supplies and hunting down collaborators. From 10-15 July 1944, the U.S. Army and some Brunanter troops liberated Brunant from Nazi control.

Brunant during the Cold War
During the Cold War, Brunant was officially unaligned with any major power, though not a member of the Non-Aligned Movement. But, most government tended to lean more towards the west and in particular western European nations. During the cold war Brunanter companies built vessels and equipment for the militaries of Italy and Greece, both aligned with NATO. During the 1970s the Soviets began "investigating" Brunant, most famously in 1975, and it is believed they had spies in the government.