Museum of the Empire, Eveari, Ananto

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V.2 and V.2a
ANANTO-KUNDRATI 2
Emperor Fredrick III Ananto and Princess Michelle Ananto-Sandoval


Emperor Fredrick III Ananto on his Coronation, and Princess Regent Michelle Ananto-Sandoval, 5631

Emperor Fredrick III Ananto took power in 5610. The Emperor, who suffered a congenital auditory disorder, had almost completely lost his hearing by the time he was crowned Emperor: He had almost no aural sensation during his entire reign. Nevertheless, he had an irrepressible sense of humor, and played many practical jokes in his youth. But he was quite serious as well, and inherited a war which he prosecuted with utter ruthlessness and brutality, until his nation, standing almost completely alone in its opposition to fascism, was utterly exhausted.

The Artanian Campaign
Emperor Fredrick III Ananto was a took the throne as tensions with Kundrati had reached their heights. Following Kundrati's strikes on Xsampa, Kalistan was on full alert and deployed its navy into the Mad Dog Ocean to provide forward monitoring of Kundrati fleet activities. A plan for a strike aimed at crippling Kundrati's offensive naval capabilities was hastily drawn up that involved deployment of Kalistani's First and Fourth Imperial Fleets to the Artanian Sea with the aim to search and destroy whatever Kundrati Navy was located. Tentative support was obtained from Luthori, who had grown concerned about Kundrati's growing menace at long last, and in 5611, formal war was declared upon Kundrati by Kalistan. Likatonia was added later that month, due to its alliance with Kundrati. Kalistan had hoped to have the support of its imperial ally in Lodamun, which had significant naval capacity in the area, as well as Luthori, which also had a strong naval presence as well as air capacity which could have made the difference.

The war did not go as planned. When it became clear that other nations had no intention to send help, the Fourth Imperial Fleet engaged the Kundratis alone. Intervention on Kalistan's part by foreign allies would have supplied a different outcome, but Lodamun was MIA and Luthori remained in port for the campaign, and no other nation made any attempt to come to Kalistan's aid. Instead, The entire 4th Fleet was utterly destroyed, after seriously, but not critically damaging the Kundrati fleet. By the time the 1st Imperial Fleet arrived on what was supposed to be a mop up exercise, they were ambushed and suffered significant casualties as well. And the Kundrati Air Craft Carrier survived the battle to be refitted later. The 1st Fleet shelled Kundrati's southern coast, actually destroying about 60% of its naval building capacity on the southern coast, so it was a strategic victory for Kalistan, but the cost was deemed catastrophic, and the 1st Fleet retreated from the Artanian Sea unable to follow up against the Kundratis.

Following the disaster, Luthori finally joined the battle and helped take over Etxea. But Kalsitan had already departed the Artanian Sea. A year later, in the early morning hours of August 10, 5612, Kundrati partisans, working in collaboration with the pro-Kundrati Likatonian Government, launched at least four missiles from Likatonia at Kalistani population centers. The missiles had warheads containing deadly a deadly mixture of chlorine, blistering agent and white phosphorous, and were meant to murder Kalsitani civilians wholesale. The weapons had horrific effect against the sleeping civilians of Kaliburg, Eshar and Port Swedes, murdering more than 30,000 Kalistanis and burning significant portions of all three cities. The damage was by far the most extensive in Kaliburg. No nations in the world, even Kalistan's so called allies, condemned Kundrati for their atrocities.

The Likatonian Campaign
Soon Lodamun, who had been building up its own forces along the Likatonian border, agreed to attack Likatonia with Kalistan. Lodamun had intended a conventional campaign, and had operational leadership over the invasion, but Kalistan had other plans. As Lodamun and Kalistan crossed the border, Kalistani regulars were given the green light by Military High Command to employ unconventional tactics, including killing unarmed prisoners of war, destroying vital civilian infrastructure, and burning cities it had captured.

The fighting between Likatonian and Lodamese forces was intense, but Kalistani Partisans, having suffered isolation and having carried the entire effort to contain Kundrati on its shoulders for decades, were particularly vicious in taking their revenge for the destruction of Kalistani cities out on Likatonia. Ultimately, the violence was so horrific that Lodamun quickly agreed to a peace deal of the Status Quo ex ante. Emperor Fredrick III Ananto, who had grown up while the Empire was in a low intensity war with Kundrati was later found to have ok'd the atrocities against Likatonia, and Kalistan ended up agreeing to pay a war indemnification to Likatonia.

Fredrick III Ananto in Post War years
Following settlement of the Likatonian conflict, Kalistan left the Mad Dog Ocean all together. Other nations were found to be excessively unreliable and mercurial, and not even Kalistan's so called allies could be trusted to come to Kalistan's aid at need. Kalistan was exhausted from the war it had prosecuted for more than three decades, mostly alone by that point, and the people craved peace. A new Orthodox government swept into power in 5614 on the promise of peace and a more regional focus to Kalistan's politics, as opposed to the more nationalist policies of the past years.

Seven years after the royal family evacuated Wilson House due to extensive destruction of the Kundrati attack, they purchased another large home on the other side of Wilson Hill, and dubbed the home Cliff House. Emperor Fredrick III Ananto was thus able to return to Kaliburg from his sojourn in Eveari. Ten years after hostilities in Kaliburg were settled, the Orthodox Chancellor, Sir David Levine launched a Truth commission to hold those responsible for atrocities in Likatonia accountable. The Commission, which was extremely unpopular in Kalistan, nonetheless found hundreds guilty of ordering and carrying out war crimes against the people of Likatonia, though there was no charges of crimes against Kundrati partisans who were stationed in Likatonia.

Under Orthodox leadership, Kalistan enjoyed its first extended peace in generations, and the nation began to focus on matters of peace. The Emperor's sister, Princess Michelle Ananto-Sandoval became very active in supporting the cause of aquatic wildlife, and Fredrick's daughter Mary, always an introvert and generally desirous of solitude in Kalistan's few remaining Redwood Forests, took up the cause of tree planting, which would stay with her for the rest of her life. As things looked up, the peace was shattered by a plane accident which killed both Emperor Fredrick III Ananto and Chancellor of the Empire David Levine, requiring Princess Michelle Ananto-Sandoval to step up and become Regent to Princess Mary who was still in National Service.

The Second Regency
The Princess Regent Michelle Ananto-Sandoval promised a caretaker government. Everyone, including the Princess Regent herself expected the regency to be short. The Crown Princess Mary, who had spent much of her time wandering alone through Kalistan's few remaining redwood groves, had actually completed very little of her formal education or her Imperial Education. She was very ill prepared to rule, but the Princess Regent, herself a marine biologist, was even less so, so it was assumed that Mary would just need to do most of her training on the job following the end of her National Service.

The Princess Regent's short tenure was indeed quiet. A notable visit to Hutori to acquire new frigates was completed, and the Royal Family hired Melvin Reed as the Imperial Jeweler, establishing a relationship that continues to this date. But very little happened during the short two year regency, and Princess Michelle Ananto-Sandoval was allowed to return to her work and life in Dulnerstaad in 5632, when her niece was crowned Empress Mary I Ananto.