Luthori

[Ligbruderkrieg]

Exceptional imperial intervention forces government to agree to talks with Kalistan in Gaduridos.
September 5736

With the “war hawk” Labour government sending the nation to a war that nobody wished for, coupled with Kalistan’s continued provocation towards the Luthorian Fleet, it seems that war between Luthori and Kalistan is right about to begin at any instant. The Luthorian Homeland and Prosperity Fleets have been placed at high-alert, forcing increased readiness to wage a conflict.

Prime Minister Harold Pockerfield has repeatedly stated that the government was aiming to “preserve the nation’s integrity and right to assert her defensive rights towards the Commonwealth of Mordusia” - although it more like seems that the imperial government has been stroking the flames of war higher and higher, by escalating the situation against Kalistan to force a conflict between the two powers.

Throughout the crisis, Luthorian and Kalistani diplomats have used backchannel diplomacy to convey both governments’ grievances and claims, although both Kaliburg and Fort William didn’t hold explicit diplomatic talks, a fact that was criticised in both Luthori and Kalistan. 

With war on the horizon, it seemed unlikely that any offer of peace would have resolved the matter peacefully, that was until the Gaduri government offered to host a conference to preserve peace in the Anantonese that the possibility of war might be avoided.

In Luthori, the government was divided, some members of the Cabinet were favourable to the organisation of diplomatic talks in Gaduridos with Kalistan to defuse the crisis in extremis, but some other members of the government, notably, Seleya Minister, Rosa Meaglia and the Foreign Secretary pushing for the refusal of holding talks, under the impression that war was inevitable and any further delay in the commencement of operations would only give time for Kalistan to prepare for the conflict.

Ultimately, it was an exceptional imperial intervention that concluded the deadlock. His Imperial Majesty Emperor Edward VII, after discussing of the situation with the Luthorian Prime Minister and the Mordusian Prime Minister, essentially summoned Prime Minister Wittfield to the Orange Palace to “sharply compel” him to agree to the organisation of talks between Kalistan and Luthori under Gaduridos’ mediation.

His Imperial Majesty has essentially forced the government to pursue peace, with the Prime Minister essentially acquiescing to his request, an imperial intervention was exceptionally rare, rejecting the advice offered by such an intervention is highly frowned upon.

His Imperial Majesty has been, according to the Orange Palace, “in direct contact with the Emperor of Kalistan” to reach a “satisfactory agreement that would avoid further escalation of the conflict”. The acceptance of the peace talks offer by the Emperor of Luthori is likely to see a positive Kalistani response. In his televised address at 8 pm (Fort William), the Emperor stated that his decision to force the government into accepting peace talks was because of his belief that “every way to preserve peace should be studied with meticulous observation [...]”

“We have a duty, as a government, to look towards any possibility to preserve peace, whatever the cost might be. [...] A war is the ultimate failure of mankind, and as monarch, I have advised my government to observe these peace talks as the last opportunity to save the lives of countless sons and daughters at sea, land and air.” said the 58-year-old monarch during his speech.

Luthorian diplomats are preparing themselves to leave for Gaduridos for the talks, with Imperial Household Minister, Sir Oswald Knightley, 18th Baronet likely being appointed as Imperial Plenipotentiary due to the Foreign Secretary’s own controversial role in the crisis, this move will likely solidify the large imperial oversight over the peace-making process.

[GreekIdiot]

[Ligbruderkrieg]

Kalistan & Luthori finds last-minute agreement in Gaduridos; sees CSG Clockwork retreat and replaced by 7th Flotilla.
November 5736 (backdated)

Following the imperial intervention from His Imperial Majesty to press for the establishment of diplomatic talks between the Luthorian Empire and the Kalistani Empire, it seems that negotiations reached a breakthrough in Gaduridos. A delegation led by the Secretary of State for the Imperial Household, Sir Oswald Knightley has been announced to have a reached an agreement with the Kalistani delegation led by the Kalistani Emperor.

Knightley’s appointment as Imperial Plenipotentiary was encouraged by the Emperor to the Prime Minister in an attempt to sideline the problematic Foreign Secretary, Dylan McAffie and his allies at the Foreign Department. Since the beginning of the crisis, the Foreign Office has pushed for an alarming jingoistic and militaristic rhetoric, with Foreign Secretary McAffie being noted as one of the main proponents for continued confrontation with Kalistan. His presence at these negotiations was noted to potentially be of a “disruptive” nature, hence the reason why he was sidelined.

The negotiations were held in neutral Gaduridos, after an invitation was extended to both the Holy Luthori Emperor and the Emperor of Kalistan by the King of Gaduridos. Following intense diplomatic back-and-forth between diplomats, a settlement was reached which for many concluded the Schismatic Sea Crisis. 

For many outsider observers, the agreement found between Luthori and Kalistan was “moderately on Luthori’s favour” with the Luthorians affirming a naval presence in the Schismatic Sea, although agreeing to withdraw their Clockwork CSG from the area, in exchange Kalistan would withdraw the Third Fleet from the Schismatic Sea.

Luthorian naval fleets were ordered to lower their alert standing, with the specifically the Prosperity Fleet in Southern Majatra/Seleya being ordered to lower its readiness level from “Orange” (Level 2) at “Yellow” (Level 3). 

Under the terms of the agreement, the Luthorian “Regina” CSG will be able to retreat from its current position in the Mad Dog Ocean towards the Artanian Sea and their home base on Luthorian soil, as the threat of war between the Luthorian Commonwealth and the Kalistani Empire was lowered significantly by the signature of this agreement. Furthermore, Kalistan recognised Luthori’s continued policy of supporting the Mordusian Commonwealth’s defence capabilities both in the Western and Eastern Hemispheres, while the Luthorian delegation tacitly recognised Kalistan’s pre-eminence in the Northern Anantonese.

According to a Luthorian diplomat in Ciudad de Gadur, the agreement managed to “effectively kill off the greatest threat for the world economy since the Lost Souls War.”

The risk of a general escalation in the Schismatic Sea caused a general panic in worldwide markets, with the Fort William Stock Exchange experiencing one of its worst downturns in the century, with the risk of war growing quieter, it seems that every economic actor can breathe a sigh of relief as the threat of war on the Anantonese Ocean, the world’s busiest trade route and the possibility of the Aldegar Canal being blocked have both been significantly reduced.

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The agreement on the basing rights of Luthorian ships in Mordusia’s eastern coast have prompted the Imperial General Headquarters, and more notably, the Navy Headquarters in Randworth to lobby the Wittfield administration to lead an effort to create new bases in Eastern Mordusia.

This demand has also been coupled with demands from Army Chief of Staff, Maj-Gen. Paul about the future status of Mordusia within broader Luthorian security strategy from now on.

He allegedly stressed during a meeting with Defence Secretary Kyle Dabble that, in virtue of Luthori’s ‘new role’ in the Anantonese Ocean, that the current Luthori-Mordusian security relationship should be “extended”, with him having mentioned the potential construction of ground military bases and airfields on Mordusian soil, filled with Luthorian military personnel.

These demands were “duly noted”, although any modification of the current Luthori-Mordusian relationship would need the agreement of both Fort William and Randworth and currently it seems that Randworth is uninterested in such a brash turn of long-standing policy, although negotiations might happen during the upcoming Imperial Conference on the subject of expanding Luthorian naval presence to the Anantonese through new naval bases.

[Ligbruderkrieg]

Yet another naval fleet for Luthori? Navy HQ gives green light for "eastern armada" study.
July 5737 (backdated)

Fort William’s recent moves have all indicated towards the formation of a new fleet in the Eastern Hemisphere. The conclusion of the Schismatic Crisis has left the Prosperity Fleet vastly overstretched, leading to yet another round of debates within the Ministry of Defence and Imperial General Headquarters about the necessity of the formation of another fleet.

The main issue resided with the opposition of the Treasury, which warned about the expanded military expenditures and upkeep costs that have risen dramatically over the last decade. The Labour government’s continued deficit spending, a sharp break from traditional conservative Luthorian spending policy has continued to raise to the national debt from 66% of GDP to 79% of GDP over 24 years of continued Labour administration (with a short interregnum from Parkford’s Conservative Party between 5723 and 5727).

In a recent Imperial Defence Committee meeting, two visions clashed, one favourable to an expansion of the Prosperity Fleet, and other one favourable to creating another fleet from scratch, at the risk of once again, rising the expected cost of military expenditures and upkeep, but one ultimately prevailed, with the Imperial General Headquarters confirming alongside the Ministry of Defence that the risk of “vastly overstretching” the Prosperity Fleet by strengthening its forces with the addition of several new naval vessels, furthermore, it would place the Prosperity Fleet’s organisation at odds with the overall Luthorian standardisation model in its naval fleets’ formation.

The Navy Headquarters announced the Navy’s intent at “restructuring” the current deployment orders for the Prosperity Fleet, furthermore, adding to that statement that the publication of the next Naval White Paper, due for 5740, will tackle with the conclusion of the modernisation program of the Imperial Luthorian Navy and the restructuration of the naval presence in the eastern hemisphere.

By that statement, later confirmed by words from First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff, Lloyd Radcliff, the Imperial Luthorian Navy will soon launch the preparation for one of its biggest naval procurement programs, outside of a standard modernisation course. 

Details around the creation, organisation, objectives and command structure of the future “Eastern Fleet” of the Imperial Luthorian Navy have for now not been communicated by the Imperial Navy’s Headquarters nor by the Ministry of Defence, nonetheless it seems likely that the Eastern Fleet will take over the current role of the Prosperity Fleet in the Eastern Hemisphere, acting as the main arm of Luthorian power projection in eastern Seleya and western Dovani.

Due to continued tensions between Fort William and Kaliburg, tensions that have been reduced due to Gaduri mediation of the Schismatic Sea Crisis in 5726, it’s unknown how Kaliburg will react to the formation of the ILN’s Eastern Fleet. Imperial General HQ aimed at reassuring that the aforementioned agreement between the two empires will be “honoured” by the Imperial Luthorian Armed Forces, a sentiment echoed by the Ministry of Defence, which confirmed that the Luthori-Kalistani agreement will continue to be upheld by His Majesty’s Government. 

“The potential for the creation of another active Luthorian carrier strike group represent a worrying development for the preservation of peace in the region”, stated the pacifist organisation, Luthori4Peace which urged in a statement the government to “reconsider the decision”, enlightening the lingering tensions between Fort William and Kaliburg as a threat to global peace.

The government hasn’t answered to these allegations, although the Prime Minister dismissed the allegations in which Luthori-Kalistani relations were going to be threatened by the ILN placing its future Eastern Fleet in the Schismatic Sea: “We’ve reached an agreement with Kalistan, and the government intend to stand by it. Any future deployment in the Eastern Hemisphere will not constitute a genuine threat to these relations.”

[Ligbruderkrieg]

The Schismatic Sea Crisis’ consequences weren’t merely felt on the entire world, but also reflected on the Luthorian political landscape. With a government still recovering from the fallout of the crisis and the political cost of triggering an exceptional imperial intervention to narrowly avoid the outbreak of war in the southern hemisphere, it seemed unlikely that Prime Minister Wittfield would survive the crisis and successfully remain as the nation’s chief executive.

And these fears were proven right, as on December 24, before the Emperor’s traditional Hallowtide speech, some National Labour MPs expressed “displeasure” at the Prime Minister’s overall handling of the Schismatic Crisis, with his war hawk policies having nearly brought the nation to the brink of war.

While the Orange Palace and the Imperial Household Ministry remained silent on political matters following the monarch’s intervention in the recent diplomatic clash between the Kalistanis and Luthorians. Furthermore, the Imperial Household Ministry deliberately sidestepped the Foreign Office in the matter of negotiations with the Kalistani government, with Emperor Edward VII asking the Secretary of State to the Imperial Household (who is, by tradition, appointed at the monarch’s discretion) to lead the Luthorian delegation in Gaduridos instead of the Foreign Secretary, whose behavior during the crisis had left many perplexed as about his real intentions in the negotiating table.

The fallout came out following the rapidly hatched up agreement between the Luthorians and Kalistanis. While most in Parliament were favourable to the outbreak of hostilities between Luthori and Kalistan before the Gaduri mediation, following the announcement of an agreement, they quickly turned against the government’s policy, which in their mind was “warmongering in its worst senses”, the Conservatives, the Hosian People’s Party, some segments of the Liberal Party, all of these sides which supported the war turned against the Prime Minister and his administration.

Needless to say, his handling of the situation was mediocre to say at best, the issue for the Prime Minister was to attack his opponents of their hypocrisy and also defend the point of view that he had, in dramatically escalating the situation in the Anantonese, defended Luthorian interests to the point of potentially going to war. This left the Prime Minister in a vulnerable position to defend against the left-wing opposition in the Greens, Left Party and other extra parliamentary parties such as the Socialists, the Peace Party and others. To add up, the left-wing factions within the Labour Party quickly turned on its own head as the political fallout of the crisis quickly made heads turn quickly.

As pressure mounted and him and his cabinet to face accountability for its actions and resign, the Prime Minister’s own allies begun to turn on him, Seleya Minister Meaglia was sacked on January 6, with Foreign Secretary McAffie following suit, resigning from his post on January 13. But these resignation of the two most hated persons in Luthori right now have had no consequences on the real demand that was his own resignation. Pressure continued to mount in both the Imperial Diet and the House of Peers, with the latter even threatening to pass a non-binding no-confidence motion against the PM to force his removal.

After a disastrous showing in the Imperial Diet in which the Prime Minister struggled against both attacks from the left-wing and the rest of the formerly pro-war opposition, in which notably, the Greens’ Parliamentary Leader, Krysten Biles, stated that the Prime Minister had “willingly toyed with the whole nation’s future, the life of numerous innocent people” and that he should be “ashamed of having tarnished our nation’s reputation with his warmongering and thank God that the situation didn’t escalate further, as otherwise, he wouldn’t be remembered merely as a man who played with fire, but as a man who sacrificed his nation’s future, the brightest of our future for no reason at all.”

The Prime Minister, after increased pressure from his own political side, finally announced his resignation as Luthori’s chief executive on January 26, 5737. He announced his intention of standing until the next Leader of the National Labour Party was elected by his peers in Parliament. Resigning in disgrace, his resignation speech was met with boos and jeers as protestors demonstrated in front of Number 10 and the Orange Palace to show their discontent about him. During their meeting at the Orange Palace, the Emperor accepted his resignation, and they discussed for around 20 minutes, details of their discussions not being released to the public.

[Ligbruderkrieg]

PM's replacement known, Sir Jeoffrey enters Number 10 as Sun and Moon Society prepares to take over government.
March 7th, 5737

End of the crisis within the National Labour Party, as the ruling party successfully rallied under the banner of the so-called “Sun and Moon Society” of influential parliamentary shadowy powerbroker within the Labour Party, Sir Timothy Jeoffrey. Of course, he isn’t well known within the public, but Mr. Jeoffrey has served as an MP for the best course of the last thirty years, first being elected as an MP for Middleshaw, Erneshire in 5712, taking this seat out of Conservative hand, he was however voted out in the 5715 general election, losing to Conservative former veteran MP, Pat Burnell in a close rematch (36.8 pp to 35.9 pp).

As he lost his seat in the Imperial Diet, Jeoffrey entered a brief period of political wilderness, narrowly quitting politics altogether to work in the private sector as an advisor, as he says in his autobiography: “Hope?”, however, once again, the opportunity will rise again for him to make a name for his himself in the 5716 Cherryport by-election. Triggered by the resignation of long-time MP, Stephanie Gomez over health issues, as the veteran MP when resigning has had a long history of complicated health problems which worsened as her tenure grew longer, putting a strain on her health. This proved to be the right opportunity for him to put an end to his forced hiatus and enter back into Parliament, expanding the Henry Schnee’s Labour Party’s majority by a single seat.

Once back on Darlington, he quietly begun to build a network of allies within the National Labour Party, eventually creating the “Sun and Moon Society”, an informal think tank, affiliated with the Labour Party and organizing various galas, meetings, releasing papers on their policies among other activities. The Sun and Moon Society will quickly become his main levy of influence within the National Labour Party, as through the years he confirmed his place as one of the informal “party bosses” of the left-wing dominant political formation. From 5716 to 5737, he continued to expand his influence within the National Labour Party, while not even sitting on either the shadow cabinet between 5723 and 5727 and rejecting to join the successive cabinets after Labour’s return to government.

Using the Prime Minister’s weakened position following the Schismatic Sea Crisis, he entered the race by openly criticizing Prime Minister Wittfield for his handling of the crisis and his willingness to “risk the nation’s future over water”, strategically for his own ambitions, he had avoided taking a definite stance on the crisis and the Labour government’s overall management of it. This stance placed him as a definite challenger to the Prime Minister, as it helped shore up his credentials among the left-wing electorate, who opposed the Prime Minister’s crisis management, although placing him at odds among more moderate Labour Party members.

Using his enormous influence within the National Labour Party at his advantage, he effectively talked down James Robb, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Services from running in the leadership election following the resignation of Prime Minister Pockerfield, effectively running unopposed for his great triumph, as he was elected as Leader of the National Labour Party and ex officio Prime Minister of Luthori with over 82% of the vote. His opponents only gathered 18%. Now, as Prime Minister, what can we expect from Timothy Jeoffrey as the nation’s chief executive. 

After meeting His Majesty the Emperor, he’ll be tasked with forming an administration in his name and the names of some ministers will give the idea of what a Jeoffrey ministry would look like and how it would act. The Sun and Moon Society worked as Jeoffrey’s personal fiefdom, with no real ideological consistency, except ruthless left-wing opportunism, in some days, Labour MPs would describe the SMS as a “left-wing populist” organisation, while on another day, they would describe it as “reformist social democrat” organisation. The lack of ideological coherence within the SMS and its own leader’s own ideological flip-flopping being well-known within Labour Party circles now forces us to ask the following question: What does he actually stand for? 

Of course, he’s left-wing, but apart from broadly agreeing to the party’s manifesto, in some policies areas, he’s well known for his constant flip-flopping, such as his stance on euthanasia. Back in 5732, he stated that he was “favourable to a great debate in parliament and among the public” on the topic, but as he grew closer to the Luthorian Church and left-wing religious voters, he became far more opposed to the practice, stating his worry that the legalisation of euthanasia would “pave the way for abuse” of the elderly and affirmed his “moral opposition to the practice of government-mandated killing”, as he said in a recent statement in 5736. His flip-flopping has constantly been an attack angle for his opponents, who accused him of being “unmoral”, “unprincipled” or other names. His stance on euthanasia is merely one of the few issues in which Mr. Jeoffrey changed his position if it didn’t benefit his political standing, prompting fears among the National Labour Party that his flip-flopping would harm the party’s chances among the electorate for the next general election.

Jeoffrey addressed the Labour Party following his election, stating that the National Labour Party electing him as its leader was the “greatest honour bestowed upon himself”, promising that he will be “rising for the occasion” and would lead the Luthorian Empire into a “bright, new, better era” under his leadership.

[Ligbruderkrieg]

Luthorian Council lead cultural push by implementing offices in Dundorf, Narikaton & Darnussia.
November 5th, 5741



The Luthorian Institute's President, Jackson Butler, today announced that the non-profit organisation would now open branches in Dundorf and Narikaton & Darnussia.

Mr. Butler explained this move to be encouraged by the wish of "expanding the reach of Luthorian culture, knowledge and encourage collaborative effort in academia with the rest to our continent's preferred partners, continuing the work of Artanian intra-cultural exchange engaged through the development of positive relations between the Luthorians and the two Dundorfian states"

The Luthorian Institute is a government-funded non-profit organisation created in 5713 by former Prime Minister Holian-Keaty's government and aiming at acting as the "pinnacle" of Luthorian culture abroad and its main representative. It directly funds and maintains education centers throughout the nations in which they are implemented, directly offering Luthorian quality of education to both Luthorian-speaking communities and the rest of the population.

The Luthorian Institute also sponsors museums, expositions, studies and community events held by the Luthorian community in foreign nations or foreign academic studies, aiming at promoting Luthorian culture throughout the world.

The choice of implementing offices in Narikaton & Darnussia and Dundorf was encouraged by Luthori's close relationship with both nations, their relatively tolerant nature about the Luthorian-speaking communities in both countries and by a wish to expand cultural relations and interactions between the Dundorfian world and Luthorian world.

"By expanding our operations in Dundorf and Narikaton & Darnussia, we are opening the way for a new scientific collaborative relationship between us and them. We will, by being there, open schools, work with academic circles to bring ahead a new age in pan-Artanian scientific and academic relationships," Mr. Butler added. He also stated the addition of new education centers dedicated to the transmission of Luthorian culture, norms and values, adding to this, the organisation of classes through the Luthorian language will be beneficial to both our brethren in these nations and to other individuals who are gifted with curiosity and an eagerness to learn, as do our students back home.

The implementation of the Luthorian Institute in Dundorf and Narikaton & Darnussia has for now received zero statement from either government, in Fort William as well, Prime Minister Sir Timothy Jeoffrey has publicly refused to comment on the development, merely wishing the Institute "well in its efforts", it's without a doubt the first real test of the organisation, one that could act well for Luthori's soft power or come to destroy it, furthermore, according to informaiton, the Foreign Office will be observing these developments with an interested eye, as the Institute was created in part to act as one of the many instruments of Luthorian soft power on the world stage.