History of Tinderland

Colonisation
Tinderland was founded by displaced Dutch settlers who made their way to Vancouver Island, located off the Pacific coast of North America. Here they found a haven away from the harsh continental winters and near year-round growing conditions, as well as access to deep water harbours and long inlets. It was in this environment that the original 14 group of pioneers settled and set about taming the land.

The first year passed with little event, as the 14 colonies went about their business, tending growing farms to feed an ever expanding population and by the winter of the second year, the success of the colonies seemed all but assured. That winter though, was harsh, and the following spring was particularly wet, saturating the ground, rendering it useless for planting. By the end of the third year, 3 colonies had died from a combination of malnutrition and disease.

A further three months of similar weather saw the disappearance of 2 remote colonies, some speculating that they joined with transient native populations, others speculating more grisly ends. By the end of summer in the third year, the remaining colonies had congregated in a more central and secure location (now where Edrona is located). The two smallest colony groups (consisting of 4 and 7 people respectively) joined larger, more stable colony groups in a bid to stave off hunger and death.

The beginning of winter in the third year saw the 7 remaining colonies setting upon each other for what little food remained. After several days of bloodshed and death, a truce was called when the chief parson of the colonies was killed by an overeager militiaman. The colony leaders managed to coble together an agreement to end the fighting. They agreed, that with their ships unsuitable for seafaring at the present time, the colonies would set about repairing them on the assumption that the next year would not bring better weather. Once the ships were ready, they would cast off for the nearest inhabited port.

The remainder of the winter was hard, particularly for lack of food. The colonists managed to eek out an existence during this time, and only 20 people died. As winter turned to spring though, the weather improved dramatically. And many farmers sowed their fields, still aware that the ships were even then being readied for departure. By the middle of spring though, the weather had been gentle enough that crops were doing well and many colonists began asking if it was necessary to leave.

The colonists came together in late May (either the 26 or the 27) and debated the pros and cons of staying (and leaving) their settlements. In the end, no agreement could be reached. Nearly half of the population wanted to leave. With the remainder unwilling to give up their new homes and land, despite the grim toll of the past. It was eventually settled that, once the harvest had been gathered, the ships would be provisioned for the four day trip to the nearest major settlement and those who wanted to leave would be free to.

On October 30 the ships departed. They never reached their destination.

The Early Commonwealth
The following day, the remaining colonists came together once again. Determined to avoid a repeat of the previous years events, they set about founding a new country, that would be able to safeguard their interests and more importantly, their lives. It was proclaimed, that on January 1st of the 5th year, the Commonwealth would be declared. The delay was to provide the colonists the opportunity to establish the system of government, the laws and other minutia that would be required for the new country to function effectively.

From 1 January of the 5th year, little changed or advanced within the Commonwealth. It remained a primarily agrarian society and was wary of advanced technology. The population remained small, but self-sufficient. This bucolic, albeit pleasant, lifestyle, was not suited to one young citizen (Alexander), and through tireless political activism and playing to the desire of the young for a more vibrant and prosperous country, he managed to secure the leadership of the Commonwealth on April 23, 2006.

Early Tinderland
On April 24, 2006, Alexander proclaimed that the old Commonwealth was dead and that from that day forward, the country was to be known as the Commonwealth of Tinderland. No on is sure where the name Tinderland originated, but the young were ecstatic with the change. Within hours of this proclamation, new efforts in construction were underway. Alexander had a vision for Tinderland.

ODN Membership
This reorganisation payed off in an unsuspecting way. For the day following the proclamation of Tinderland, a message was received, inviting Tinderland to join an organisation identifying itself as the Orange Defence Network. After pondering the offer for a time, Alexander decided, that it would be in Tinderland's best interest to ally itself with the ODN, in order to secure the young (and weak) country from foreign aggression.

Tinderland to the Great War
The history of Tinderland from its rebirth on 24 April, 2006, until the Great War, was tame and uneventful. Effort was dedicated to growing the country's populations and improving its technology. Military preparedness was a minor concern, with only the most basic of peace officer forces on active duty. The country's population and administrators were largely convinced that Tinderland would be over-looked by any potential rogue and also considered war an unlikely prospect.

When the ODN came into conflict with a group of BF1942 invaders, the government became concerned that military action may become widespread and could bring the Commonwealth into conflict. Immediately, military development increased as the country hedged against possible attacks from foreign powers. These efforts were unnecessary though and the Commonwealth was engaged in no military activity during the BF1942 Invasion. The incident did prompt the government to focus more on the defensive and offensive capabilities of the country.

The Great War
Tinderland was an active, though low key, participant in the Great War, a massive, globe encompassing conflict between the NPO-NpO-IGC and the CoaLUEtion-Legion-ODN and other small alliances. It was through the ODN-LUE mutual defence pact, United for Orange that Tinderland found itself embroiled in the conflict.

The Road to War
On July 15, 2006, the first shots of the Great War were fired as Tygaland, then the Emperor of the New Polar Order, launched a nuclear weapon at a LUEnited Nations member, Duffman04, in retaliation for public comments that LUE Co-Leader Yaridovich made prior to taking his own life (and his entire nation as well) in a most violent, and horrific fashion; and the support that these comments received from within LUE.

Shortly after the news reached the ODN General Assembly, Tinderland's representative there was on the phone to the Legatus Dominus, and planning for potential war began. The government of Tinderland felt itself at a severe disadvantage, as it had never been involved in any form of conflict and thus had no previous experience to work from.

The Legatus Dominus, the High Commanders of all branches of the military and the Conventus Legi Scriptor worked tirelessly in an effort to prepare the country for what many in the military felt would be a bloody and devastating war. Even during these efforts, there was a near universal desire to avoid conflict, but there was little agreement on how such an end could be attained.

Within the General Assembly of the ODN there was considerable activity. Bound to LUE by the United for Orange (UFO) Treaty, the ODN was under obligation to come to LUE's aid, even while many would have rather avoided war. A motion to join the war was presented on the 15th and within short order, it was becoming apparent that war would be nigh to impossible to avoid. Tinderland's representative contacted the Legatus Dominus with this and awaited orders on how to vote. It would be nearly 24 hours before the representative would get a response, just before the vote closed.

It was yes.

Battle of Primus Sanguis
The Battle of Primus Sanguis was the first military operation that the Commonwealth of Tinderland ever engaged in. Not wanting to end up embroiled in an engagement it had no hope of winning, the Legatus Dominus of Tinderland ordered its forces to a relatively obscure portion of the globe, to engage the NPO nation of Spideria, which was already in conflict with members of the CoaLUEtion.

On July 17, 2006, the First Tinderland Expeditionary Force (FTEF) secured a beach head late on the 17th and engaged Spiderian forces. This paved the way for an early-morning attack on the 18 that was expected to deal a crippling blow to the Spiderian defenders. This was not to be.

Spiderian forces proved more than capable of defending their positions, dealing the FTEF a significant blow, and forcing them to withdraw to more defensible positions. The FTEF commander on the ground called for reinforcements so that the attack might resume in the evening. By 2100 hours, two more divisions were on the front lines and the FTEF was advancing again.

Initial progress was slow though, and was even threatening to stall. In a bid to preserve what advantage the Tinderland forces had, the FTEF commander brought down 2 cruise missiles on obstacles that had been holding up the advance. This had the desired effect, sending the Spiderian forces into disarray and providing the FTEF the opportunity to break through the defending lines. A second attack along the same front found a second defensive position though, and forced the Tinderland forces to a halt.

In the early morning of the 20th, further reinforcements arrived, and the attack resumed. Following a bombardment by the Tinderland Cruise Missile Corps, the FTEF advanced and dealt Spiderian forces the heaviest blow in the battle, killing 790 soldiers, while losing only 189 in the course of two battles.

Either just before, or during, this last offensive, the Spiderian government collapsed and the country was thrown into anarchy. Seeing the results of the most recent battles, and not wanting to inflict unnecessary destruction upon Spideria or her people, the Legatus Dominus of Tinderland messaged its allies about offering peace in exchange for the unconditional surrender of Spideria.

It came as a disappointment, but not a great surprise to the Legatus Dominus, that the CoaLuetion forces were determined to press the attack until Spideria was destroyed, or the NPO as a whole surrendered.

Unwilling to press the attack further, but unwilling to undermine the efforts of the CoaLuetion and the ODN, the Legatus Dominus of Tinderland reluctantly decided that it would remain in a state of war against Spideria, but refrain from attacking, allowing the war to expire instead. With this decision made, the FTEF was recalled and the Legatus Dominus set about determining what the next target would be.

Battle of Arduus Triumphus
Following the withdrawal of the FTEF from the Spideria front, it was promptly directed to its new target, Sith Empire II, joining CoaLUEtion forces who were already attacking. The FTEF would be joined by the Second Tinderland Expeditionary Force (STEF) on the 21st of July, 2006, the day attacks were scheduled to commence. Weather proved uncooperative though, and the STEF did not reach the rendez-vous point in time. It was thus left for the exhausted FTEF to launch the attack on Sith Empire II without much needed relief.

The attack began in the early morning, beginning with a cruise missile barrage to soften forward defensive targets. These efforts proved moderately successful, but were insufficient to allow the FTEF to break through Sith Empire II's lines. Both subsequent ground attacks were discouraging in their results, and the High Commanders and the Legatus Dominus wondered if a target had been chosen that might prove to difficult for Tinderland's military to overcome.

In the mid-afternoon on the 21st, a message arrived from Evil Jim, ruler of Sith Empire II. He wished to surrender.

The entire Tinderland military hierarchy was stunned. Orders had already gone out to fortify existing positions and prepare for a protracted struggle. With the surrender of Sith Empire II though, all orders were countermanded, and the FTEF was again recalled.

As a condition of Sith Empire II's surrender, it was required to leave the NPO and refrain from assisting any member of the NPO during the course of the war. It was also directed to the Legion's Protectorate Programme, so that it could avoid being embroiled in any further conflict.

While Tinderland's military was relieved that the war with Sith Empire II was over, the outcome was disturbing to senior military officials. There was widespread concern that the early successes Tinderland had against Spideria might have been more due to chance, than to actual ability. The Legatus Dominus decided that it would be best for the FTEF to return to Tinderland for a period of rest before it was redeployed.

Battle of Damnosus Interitus
On July 23, 2006, the Legatus Dominus directed the FTEF and STEF to engage a new target: Gateborg. Gateborg was already under heavy attack from multiple CoaLUEtion countries and was in anarchy. What disturbed the Legatus Dominus was that many of the countries engaged against Gateborg were also in anarchy. The Legatus Dominus and the High Command were of the opinion that the FTEF and the STEF could provide cover for the anarchied CoaLUEtion members while at the same time do serious damage to Gateborg and its continued ability to prosecute the war.

In the early morning of the 23, the FTEF and STEF managed to secure a beachhead on the shores of Gateborg. A cruise missile barrage was launched against defending positions, allowing Tinderland forces to make significant headway against the Gateborgian defenders.

During the course of the day, the FTEF and STEF secured their positions and there were tentative celebrations at the High Command and various government offices around Edrona. These celebrations ended when four cruise missiles came down upon the capital around midnight, inflicting serious damage and killing many civilians. This attack was followed by a swift attack by Gateborgian forces against positions held by the First, Second, and Fifth Home Brigades in the early morning hours of the 24th.

The losses inflicted upon Tinderland's home defences were significant. 940 soldiers died in the battle, the highest casualty rate the country's military had endured during the course of the war. The damage to public morale was even greater, with citizens now afraid to leave their homes for fear of being shelled or shot at.

The Legatus Dominus chose to press the attack by the FTEF and STEF and managed to inflict significant casualties upon Gateborg, but was left with a position that was only weakly defensible. Against the advice of the High Command, who wanted to secure the existing position, the Legatus Dominus ordered the FTEF and STEF to attack again. The result was disastrous.

The FTEF and STEF lost more soldiers than the Gateborgian defenders and had to retreat with such haste, that it was necessary to abandon equipment in the field. Both the High Command and the Legatus Dominus agreed that the momentum had been lost. The pitched battle that all had thought had been avoided when Sith Empire II had surrendered had simply been postponed.

The High Command began making preparations for a protracted battle that could well make its way to the streets of Edrona, and ordered the FTEF and STEF to secure a landing zone for two more expeditionary forces.

Reprieve came during the afternoon of the 24th, with the announcement of a 24 hour cease-fire. The people were ecstatic and the High Command and the Legatus Dominus were relieved. This provided an opportunity to reinforce existing positions and repair damage inflicted upon critical systems located in the capital. There was no belief that the cease-fire would be permanent.

It came as a pleasant surprise that, with the 24 hour cease-fire nearing its end, another cease-fire was announced. And following that, the announcement of an indefinite cease-fire. During this time-frame, the war between Tinderland and Gateborg expired, and the Legatus Dominus believed it prudent to seek out no further conflicts. The battle against Gateborg was officially declared a stalemate by the High Command.

The official end to hostilities between the NPO-NpO-IGC and the CoaLUEtion-Legion-ODN was announced August 1st, 2006. There was much celebrating in Edrona that day.

Honours
Following the conclusion of the war, the soldiers of the Commonwealth of Tinderland, along with their comrades-in-arms from other ODN countries, were awarded the veterans award seen below.



Military Growth
Thanks to the massive military buildup that Tinderland underwent during the war, as well as the rapid decline of numerous top-level powers, the country climbed the ranks of the nation strength reports, breaking the 1,000 mark near the end of the conflict. This was not to last though, as Tinderland fell to roughly 100 points below the 1,000 mark after the war due to the decommissioning of half its armed forces and the entirety of its tank corps.

Public Support
The public support for Tinderland's participation in the war was lukewarm at best. Most citizens viewed the conflict as a personal disagreement that was permitted to grow out of control. In all circles, there was absolutely no support for Yaridovich, whose actions have been largely credited with setting the world on the path to a small-scale conflict. Public opinion of Tygaland is more mixed. Many understand why he launched a pre-emptive attack, but nonetheless disagree with his actions as well as with the targeting of LUE. And most feel that it was his actions that converted a small-scale war into a global conflict.

Post-War
With its military reduced to a manageable and functional level, the government set out a long-term plan to boost the country's strength through population growth and technological development.

Development Initiative
The first part of the post-war plan was to increase the country's population. In order to accomplish this feat, the government began to invest heavily in factories, allowing it to significantly drop the price of infrastructure and spur rapid development. The policy was an enormous success. In fact, it was, to some, to successful, as the country began to run out of land for development. In order to accommodate the extensive growth the government had to make at least five separate purchases of land so that overpopulation could be avoided.

Technology Development Programme
After an extensive period of time focusing on population growth, the government undertook a massive policy shift, changing its focus from people to technology, as per the post-war plan. Having come out of the Great War at roughly 53 on the technology spectrum and seeing that most of its peers were at 80 or more, the government decided that it should strive to break the 100 mark. This decision led to the replacement of factories with clinics and a hospital in an effort to further boost population levels, as well as with schools and a university. These efforts proved successful, with Tinderland passing the 100 mark in short order and with much national fanfare.

Renewed Buildup
Following GATO's decision not to recognise the New Polar Order and its ill-timed internal difficulties during October 2006, government policy shifted and focused on defensive matters. With the immediate technology aims achieved, an increased emphasis was placed on national defence, and with new aviation technologies becoming available, a substantial military buildup was undertaken. This once again put Tinderland in the top 1,000 nations by strength, where it has remained since.

With the passing of the GATO-NpO non-crisis, the government put further military expansion on hold, with the exception of aircraft, in order to focus on infrastructure and technology development. However, not wanting to be caught off guard in the future, no reduction in the size of the standing army was issued.

From Couptober to the Second Great War
From the de-escalation of the GATO-NpO tiff until the beginning of the Second Great War, Tinderland pursued a steady policy of infrastructure and technological development. The most notable events up to mid-late December 2006 related entirely to aid and Tinderland's constant position within the top 1000 nations by strength (generally having a NS of between 750 and 900).

During the latter half of December though, Tinderland began to realise a military ambition that had been thought to be long off in the future: the development of nuclear weapons.

With world events conspiring to plunge the planet into war and chaos again, the government of Tindeland became concerned about the country's vulnerability to not only nuclear attack by an alliance nation, but also to nuclear rogues. With these concerns in mind, the government managed to secure uranium and began development of nuclear weapons technology.

On January 3, 2007, the government of Tinderland informed the ODN General Assembly that it would acquire 3 nuclear weapons over the span of no more than five days. This ended up being an unnecessarily long time, as by the third day, Tinderland had completed its acquisitions.

The Second Great War
Within hours of the beginning of the Second Great War, the Commonwealth of Tinderland ordered all military units to DEFCON 1 in anticipation of the ODN's potential involvement. The first 72 hours proved most harrowing for government officials due to the constant stream of incomplete or contradictory information.

Of particular concern were the declarations of war by the UGO and Illuminati on January 11, 2007, both of which declared against the enemies of the Initiative in a broad sense. This technically meant that these two alliances were also declaring against NAAC, an ally of the ODN, and that if a peaceful resolution to the situation could not be found, the ODN would be at war.

Both UGO and the Illuminati amended their declarations following a joint Legion-ODN statement, averting further escalation of the conflict. With this potential crisis avoided, the Legatus Dominus was confident that the country would not be dragged into the conflict. And while the country remained at DEFCON 1 until the end of major combat operations, this was a purely precautionary measure.

From the Second Great War
Since the end of the Second Great War, Tinderland focused almost exclusively on infrastructure development and population growth, passing the 2,000.000 infrastructure mark on February 19, 2007. Occasionally technology was purchased, and 2 fighter aircraft were added to the air force, but these events were exceptions to the infrastructure/development rule.