Tussence

Pre-colonial
The region of Tussencé was one of the last to be settled by early humans in Balteca, only being settled around 8000 years ago. It is believed it was settled from both ends, with incoming settlers both from the south Baltecan rainforest and down from modern day Almeira intermixing upon arrival. This made the native makeup of Tussencé quite unique, with some native languages and people's being found nowhere else on the planet.

First Artopan Settlement
As soon as the Baltecan continent was discovered, the coasts of the Arkbetic sea were explored and mapped by Sylvian and Carrisian navigators. It was around this time that contact was first made by native Baltecans and Artopans in Tussencé. Contact seemed to be peaceful at first, with both sides mostly trading goods with eachother.

Settlement of the region begun around the late 1500s, with Carissia setting outposts in the Vespera Islands. In 1609, Zéstrata, the first Carrisian outpost on the mainland was founded. It was considered not much different than any of those on the islands, and only the coast would come to be settled in The next few years.

By the year 1640 several other Carrisian ports on the mainland would be founded, such as Duncust, Nuevard, and Rivemonde. However, most would fail, and Carrisia couldn't manage to establish itself beyond the coasts direct adjacent to Vespera. At the same time, Zéstratan settlers first started to attempt to expand their territory further inland. Carrisian colonists ventured towards the enterior of the Tussen peninsula, founding homesteads and small towns. This period would be the first time when Carrisian colonists would come into conflict with Baltecan natives. The latter, who had managed to recover from their population decline following introduction to Old world diseases, would see Carrisian expansion inland as a hostile action meant to displace them, and enact raids on nee Carrisian settlements. This, along with the harsh monsoon climate of the peninsula making traditional artopan farming impossible in the region, would spell the doom for the Carrisian effort in the peninsula.

Carrisian Trade Companies
Following such immense failures, the Carrisian March of the Vesperan islands decided to make pull out any attempt to settle the mainland beyond the coasts. A temporary peace would be reached with the natives, and ports such as Zéstrata, Duncust and Nuevard would be maintained, but expansion further inland would be banned.

Yet thus decision wasn't welcomed by all. Starting 1652, several Carrisian ventures and businessmen would start to lobby both the Carrisian March of Vespera and the Carrisian monarchy back home to open up the Tussencian mainland to lease by trade companies. Finally in 1666 the Carrisian crown would make the decision to lease the Tussencian mainland out to several Carrisian companies, who would immediately start Colonizing the region.

Realizing traditional settlement of the region would be impossible, these Carrisian trading companies would instead opt to exploit the land using slave plantations. Carrisia hadn't taken much role in the slave trade up to this point, with slavery being generally frowned upon in the Carrisian mainland. But being driven by profit, Carrisian companies in the region would start buying slaves in the hundreds of thousands. Cheif among these companies was the Carrisian Arkbetic Company, which alone is estimated to have brought up to 200,000 slaves to Tussencé, mostly settling them in the western region of the nation.

It was around this time where Carrisian influence expanded rapidly. Being limited to the Vesperan islands before, Carrisian colonizers now found themselves reaching the coasts of Lake Kovia and down into the coasts of Karjeitha Bay. The natives of the region would be either pushed away inland, or forced to subjegate themselves to Carrisian companies.

Fort Van Den Burg revolt
By the year 1780 the social order on Tussencé was clearly established. Hundreds of slave plantations were scattered all around the mainland, with slaves outnumbering whites almost 3 to 1. The only regions which remained majority white were in the East, close to the Vesperan coast.

Conditions in these plantations were harsh. Slaves would often die from lack of hygiene or basic medical treatment, while the average slave owner was rich even by mainland Carrisian standards. In 1780, these conditions came to a boiling point for a group of slaves working in the fort of Van Den Burg.

The fort of Van Den Burg was a fort/plantation in Western mountainous region of the Tussen Peninsula which served as a stronghold to control trade routes through the enterior of the of Peninsula. The fort and the plantation surrounding it, occupied by just 10 noble families at the time, was maintained and worked by over 1000 slaves. In June 10th 1780 a Slave man was caught by a guard of the fort stealing food from the coffers of the fort to feed his family. Instead of being punished in a regular manner, it was chosen to lash the man in front of a crowd of other slaves "to set an example". The man was flogged brutally, with the whipping not stopping even when the man stopped responding, and was completely surrounded by a pool of his own blood. While the name of this man is unkown today, his public and brutal execution proved as inspiration for the Tussencian revolution. While the crowd protested all during the lashing, upon seeing life leaving the man's body, the crowd erupted in chaos, overrunning the far less numerous guards and beating them to death. Several other guards were called to attention, but were quickly overwhemelled too. With their guns captured, the slaves managed to break their own chains and overrun the fort. The white families inhabiting the plantation were gathered up and executed, yet a few managed to flee and spread out the news.

Spread of the Revolution
News of the incident spread like wildfire throughout the colony. Slave masters went into panic mode, attempting to consolidate their power, but found themselves facing decreasing odds. Word had also reached the slave population, which was inspired to revolt as well. Over the course of the next two months plantation all across the Arkbetic coast sprung in revolt, with almost the entirety of the region from Thraxia to Rivemonde being overrun by slaves.

Fearing for their own safety, Whites in Zéstrata and Duncust urged the Carrisian March of the Vesperan islands to organize a militia, and he complied. In January 2nd 1781 a Carrisian militia landed in Zéstrata, and soon started marching west with the goal to retake Fort Van Den Burg. The militia, lead by general Harare, hoped that by taking out the origin of the revolt that the could remove the spark of Revolution from other slaves and force them to surrender. General Harare's militia soon reached Van Den Burg, and easily managed to retake the underprepared fort in just 4 weeks. However their hope of quelling the revolution proved incorrect. Despite being overwhelmed, several leaders of the revolt had managed to flee before the arrival of the militia. These leaders found themselves fleeing into the territory of the Kricha tribe, where they were captured prisoners. However these men, determines to not have their people put back into slavery, reached to the leaders of the Kricha tribe with an offer- unite our forces, and evict the colonialists from this land together.

The Tussencian Marriage
It is widely thought today that had the leaders of the Kricha tribe declined to join forced with the slaves, that the Tussencian revolution would've utterly failed. While the initial slave revolts were successful, they were each independent from eachother and lacked any cohesive effort or leadership. Yet when presented with the offer of joining the revolution, the chieftain of the Kricha tribe, Oppowe, agreed to entertain the possibility. Oppowe consolidated his men, sending out a call for help for neighboring tribes and notifying revolting plantations of the union. This act was nicknamed **The Tussencian Marriage**, and is the defining principle of the Tussencian nation. The marriage between slaves and natives.

Many other tribes soon answered the call, and with the united effort the revolutionaries went into defensive mode. They knew they couldn't take on the militia head on, so instead the revolution became a guerilla war. Over the course of the next 2 decades, combined Freedman and Native raiding parties made the life of Carrisian militiamen a living hell. The latter might take a plantation, but the former would attack their supply lines in the process. The militias might burn native grounds, but the revolutionaries would use the opportunity overrun a settlement and raid it for supplies. Despite being far greater in numbers and military power, the Carrisian militias found themselves in able to quell the rebellion, and lost at every front. Finally in 1792, while Carrisian militias were busy fighting in the far west, the revolutionaries launched their greatest campaign yet. With a united effort and incredible luck, the revolutionaries managed to overrun the Carrisian stronghold city of Zéstrata- the most important port in the region. With the city completely under revolutionary control, and the battle over, the revolutionary leadership gathered in the Zéstrata port, upon a Carrisian ship, and declared the Union of Tussencé- an independent nation of Freedmen and natives. The citizens of the city, who were mostly white, feared for their safety, but in an unprecedented move the revolutionary leadership made the decision to give amnesty to the remaining white population of the territory, giving them the option either to flee to Vespera, or remain as citizens of the new nation. While many fled, the plurality of the population chose to stay.

Realizing their effort was completely lost, the Carrisian militia decided to redraw to Vespera, freeing the western provinces who also declared themselves a part of the nation. Despite letting Tussencé go free, it would take several more years until Carrisia would officially recognize Tussencian independence.

Nationbuilding
Originally, the Tussencian Marriage was considered just a matter of convenience. Slaves and natives, while having a common goal, had no intention of living together in a shared nation. But with the next 21 years of war, this relationship was forged in fire and blood into becoming one nation. Following full independence, native and freedmen leaders showed no intention of separating the union that had formed, and started nationbuilding together.

Despite being so long in revolt, the new Tussencian people actually had very little knowledge of nationbuilding. Since the territory was never ruled by a central government, rather several disunited companies, the young nation found itself copying its governing model from that of the companies it overthrew.