[Vision Statement] The Five Provinces/Mitau/Mitō

[Mito]

(Posting this here because I cannot post in the academy. Hopefully it will be moved to the right place) 

The Five Provinces (Mitonese: 五國 gokoku) also known as Mitau or Mitō (魅島) is an island country ruled by an absolute monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. Its population is 9,723,000, and its capital is Kauhime (小媛). The Mitonese (!Japanese) and Venuans (!Polynesian con-culture) form the two native ethnic groups of the country. 

The history of the Five Provinces begins with their settlement by the Proto-Mitonese people in the Mesolithic era. In the early 100s BCE, a central ruling dynasty was established that was heavily tied to Mitonese mythology and claimed descent from the ruler of the pantheon’s underwurld. The islands would fluctuate between unity and disunity throughout history as the authority of the ruling dynasty often waned or grew depending on the era leading to periodic rises and falls in the authority of local rulers. This situation changed significantly with the arrival of Huang ideas such as the teachings of the Muntjac Sage, Jizi, which influenced the ruling class of the country significantly and was adopted whole-heartedly by the imperial dynasty. This led the dynasty to effectively withdraw from politics though they would retain their status as absolute rulers by divine right. 

The vacuum left by the imperial dynasty was initially by the aristocracy. However, over time in the Five Provinces, the merchant class began to rise in prominence due to prolonged peace and economic prosperity. To secure more mercantile wealth local nobles began to offer places in their courts in exchange for a steep fee. This led to a situation where merchants would often pile their wealth together in order to afford influence with the local lord. The merchants that participated in this system would often hold elections among themselves to choose who to send to the court. This marked the beginning of Mitonese democracy as over time, this system became more intricate and was expanded to allow participation by a wider portion of the population. This would fundamentally separate Mitonese democracy from other democracies as precedent formed from wide consensus building among different parties was the norm instead of directly written laws and constitutions.

In the 19th century, great debate arose about the role of the country in the wurld as well as about the increase of “western” influences and how far the country should go in its reforms or whether to reform at all. This situation ended in the failure of Mitonese democracy when an authoritarian regime was able to take power in the early 20th century due to the lack of any checks and balances. Ultimately the regime voluntarily gave up power in the 50s to avoid political collapse and for the country to survive. In the reforms that followed, Mitonese democracy was both restored and reinvented as a formal parliament was established but the emperor remained an absolute monarch in principle. In the proceeding decades the country experienced significant economic growth becoming a large producer of electronics and consumer goods. Today the Five Provinces is a democratic country whose society, though very open, remains conservative. With its export-driven economy, the country pursues a foreign policy of removing trade barriers and attempts to establish secure supply chains and promote stability. 

Point allocation: 4 Economy, 0 Population, 0 Land