CSR

"Si vis pacem, para bellum."

- Official motto of the CSR

"To say that the Commonwealth began with that fateful day 8 years ago is wrong. Our cause stems from the very beginning of civilisation, when the first lords commanded the first serfs. Ever since, the kings and queens, the rich and the influentual, the emperors and petty princes, they have all worked against the common people and their interest, even more so after we finally cast of our chains in the flames of revolution. Yet here we stand, with half of the continent proudly flying the star-flower on their flags, despite their best efforts. And soon the great east will have mobilized its strength, its mighty army of liberation, to spread the just cause to the west - and then, the world."

- Statement from the Council of Nations on the anniversary of Thaddeus and Junea Vanger's deaths, 1914.

The Commonwealth of Socialist Republics, or CSR (Asterian: Communauté des Républiques Socialistes, CRS) is a supra-national union of Socialist states situated on the south-east of Eidora. It is a very young union, having existed only for 7 years at the beginning of the story (1914). The union came to be after three former kingdoms, with Asteria at its core, succumbed to Vangerist uprisings, and the new republics signing a treaty to begin the world revolution under one flag - the star-flower.

Their stated goal is to, unsurprisingly, unite the workers of the world under one banner, by force if necessary. As a result, the CSR is highly militarised, and it eventually finds itself taking part in a 4-year war with Radovia in what would become known as the Great Eidoran War.

Scholars are still unsure whether or not the CSR could be considered a state, an alliance, or some kind of coalition; a problem most contemporary politicians struggled with aswell.

Vangerism
Vangerism is a militaristic and revolutionary form of socialism, that grew out of the Age of Turmoil in central and eastern Eidora. Contrary to earlier socialist ideologies, Vangerism advocates armed conflict and military conquests as a mean to further socialism, as the capitalist structures of old are too rigid to collapse on its own. Thus, when Vangerism took a hold of Asteria and nearby kingdoms in 1907 and formed the CSR, the rest of Eidora prepared for a fight.

Thaddeus (1876 - 1906) and Junea Vanger (1879 - 1906) were the founders of the ideology. A lower-middle class couple, Thaddeus and Junea worked together to organise their fellow workers into unions in the kingdom of Asteria, a practise that was shunned by the authorities. After the Age of Turmoil began, worker agitation began reaching new heights, and several strikes and protests were violently shut down by police and gendarmerie. While spending time in prison, they began to formulate a new strain of Socialist thought that would bring the workers of the world together - as they did, the First Asterian revolution kicked off, sidelining the monarchy in favor of a new interim reform government. Unfortunately, the new regime proved chaotic and disorganised, and the many problems of Asteria would simply continue under new management.

Vangerism is a very militant socialist ideology. While movements advocating violent overthrows of the government had existed before, Thaddeus and Junea argued that simply replacing the government of one state was not enough. No, for the revolution to truly succeed, socialist states would have to take an active role in spreading it: Vangerism thus advocates for war to liberate the workers of the world. The end goal then, postulated the Vangers, were the creation of a worldwide union of socialist states, and with it, eternal peace. It was this line of thought that would lay the foundations of the Commonwealth in 1907.

The Asterian Revolution
The two Vangers were released in early 1905 as a gesture of good will by the ailing government, and they wasted no time in trying to spread their message. The next year, they were shot and killed by police during a socialist rally. Speaking to the crowd, the two had refused to stop spreading their message, and were killed during the attempted arrest of the two. The crowd, now agitated, turned on the surrounding police and gendarme, killing or disarming them for their weapons. This would be the start of the Second Asterian revolution.

Asteria
Main article: Asteria

WIP

Gravalle
Main article: Gravalle

WIP

Gintra
Main article: Gintra

Long a people under the boots of the related but uncaring Tolanians, the Gintrans finally had enough and rose up against their overlords, fuelled by the extremist ideal of Vangerism. (WIP)

Tolania
Main article: Tolania

WIP

Unincorporated members
These groups and movements were not really considered fully fledged members of the CSR for one reason or another.

Zvogorian People's Republic
Main article: Zvogoria

Scarlet Army
The Radovian SA was formed in the early stages of the Great Eidoran War as a means of organising Radovian deserters (of which there was many) into a useful fighting force. While they would eventually become the armed forces of the small and short-lived Radovian People's Republic (formed in occupied Radovian lands), it always remained under the direct control of the Asterian army. The name "Scarlet Army" was selected almost as a mocking gesture towards the Imperial throne, alluding to the empire's founder, the Scarlet Queen.

After the collapse of the CSR, many SA members fled the Imperial army and hid as best they could across central Eidora. When the Radovian civil war began, the SA was reformed by its former members, and would fight most of the involved factions in the conflict.

Behind the scenes (meta)

 * The CSR is, unsurprisingly, based upon the Soviet union, and Vangerism on the theories of a world revolution.
 * The member countries, including Asteria, are mostly based upon romance-speaking languages.