Mezemia

"I'm not sure who our enemies are anymore."

- A Mezemian

The Republic of Mezemia is a newcomer to the international stage, having declared its independence from Radovia at the onset of the civil war in 1921. The early period of the country, when it was known as the Mezemian Council State was a shaky one, with multiple armed clashes between various factions vying for influence, including the old Druthenian aristocratic elite, as well as Radovian elements (both Imperial and Republican) trying to re-integrate the territory. Its capital is Viljs, though its largest city is the mezemian part of Lintirgū (known as Mezemian Lindköping in Druthenia).

Mezemia is actually comprised of two distinct but closely related ethnic groups, who refer to themselves and northern and southern Mezemians in the interest of unity. The Mezemians would later become an interesting study into converging cultures, as the two groups would slowly merge towards a "combined" Mezemian culture.

General information
The flag of the later republic is a tricolore that represents the three ethnic groups in the country: green for Mezemians (northern and southern), white for Radovians, and blue for Druthenians. The three colours also represents the forests, the purity of peace, and the sea respectively.

History
While Mezemian state entities have existed throughout history, they have always been under the whims of some foreign elite - most often Druthenian, Zvogorian, and Radovian - until the independence declaration in 1921.

A shared sentiment between the foreign rulers of the region was the disinterest in the differences between northern and southern Mezemians. To the ruling elite, they were just peasants that spoke a strange language, and would at most identify the two different groups as having very different dialects. This mindset would inadvertedly be the "beginning" of the unified Mezemian national identity.

1700's
Mezemia was once part of the greater Zvogorian-!Romanian union, which collapsed spectacularily in the 1700's. The Mezemian lands would then coalesce into various smaller states, often ruled by a Druthenian and/or Zvogorian elite. The Druthenian elite mostly resided around the city of Annesborg, or Anpils as it is known in Mezemian.

1800's
Much like Satímaa, Mezemia would become a diplomatic battle ground between Rdovia and Druthenia. Unlike Satímaa however, the two powers never committed to a military confrontation in the region, letting the smaller Mezemian political entities do the fighting instead. In the end, the Radovian-backed "Mezemian governate" would incorporate most of the region before being absorbed into Radovia proper: the coastal cities would however elect to be annexed by Druthenia (if they weren't already a part of them), much to Radovia's dismay.

When the first Satímaa war began in 1872, these cities were besieged and later occupied and annexed by Radovian forces, completing the Radovian conquest of Mezemia. After the war, the Radovians would attempt to out-manouver the Mezemo-Druthenian aristocracy that was consistently hostile to the rule of Sirev, which did little to improve their opinion of Radovian rule. The Mezemian population was also very upset with the encroaching imperial rule, as well as the recently introduced policy of radovification.

Great Eidoran War
Many Mezemians found themselves fighting for the Imperial army during the war, mostly through conscription. While Mezemians weren't happy under Radovian rule, they were also very suspicious of the Vangerist ideals of the Commonwealth. Only a small number of Mezemians would join with the Red Radovian army in the hopes of securing an "independent" socialist Mezemian state.

Independence war
Even just before the mutiny of the Radovian 3rd army and the beginning of the civil war, dissenting Mezemians had already taken up arms as the "Forest brothers" and waged a guerilla war on the Radovian military presence in the region.

Meta

 * The northern and southern Mezemians are analogous to Latvians and Lithuanians, respectively
 * The presence of the Mezemo-Druthenians is analogous to Baltic germans