[OFFICIAL] HISTORY OF THE MODERN KINGDOM OF RIZORIEN

Note: you may have read before of fantastic legends, of knights, Emperors, and castles. Those are but hearsay, legends passed down through generations. While some of those facts may be true of Rizorien, those accounts, labeled "Fabled" and any future updates to them are not officially sanctioned by the Government as factual history due to their unreliability. This brief guide and all other articles labeled "Official" are approved by the Government for use.

Long ago when the mystical arts and secret societies flourished, a brotherhood calling themselves the Order of Invictus arose from both European esoteric tradition and Eastern mysticism. They worshipped the Dragon God Invictus, a mighty being said to be responsible for the creation of the Universe. As the ages passed the descendants of the men and women accumulated vast material wealth in secret. Their goal was to acquire a homeland for the worshippers of Invictus. In 1867, Russia, under the influence of the Order, put "Russkaya Amerika" up for sale to the highest bidder instead of directly offering it to the US. The fledgling United States, caught off guard, offered a generous sum of roughly 7.5 million dollars. Predictably that amount was dwarfed by the collective riches of the Order, who had been stockpiling currency in anticipation of this goal before the US existed. The American's dream of a state they would name "Alaska" vanished overnight. After a grand total of 15 million dollars changed hands, the Sovereign State of Rizorien (meaning Sanctuary in the Serpent Tongue) was declared in 1867.

Other countries were somewhat slow at first to recognize Rizorien, gradually signing trade agreements by the handful. The United States in particular was wary of them. The first High Court soon held a divination of Invictus's will to select the first King. This monarch would have nigh-absolute power over the land and act as head of state and government. He was to be assisted by a secular Senate, who passed laws in his absence and a High Court, who were the religious leaders and King-makers. The King was to be a bridge between Church and State. King Uneus was crowned as Monarch Highfather of Rizorien on January 1st, 1875. By the time World War I had commenced, Rizorien had become one of the world's largest arms manufacturers, selling weapons to any faction to fund their growing economy. Rizorien's prosperity skyrocketed in the early 20th century, largely unaffected by a war they did not formally engage in.

As WWII raged on however, it was clear the nation was in danger of being eradicated only decades after its birth. The United States, as the main rival in the weapons supply market, grew increasingly powerful in the wake of Adolph Hitler's destruction of Europe. Combined with the increasing entitlement the American government felt at the loss of a potential state, tensions between the two nations continued to deteriorate due to the radically opposed populaces of Dragon worshippers and Evangelical Christians. The United States formally declared war on Rizorien in 1942 after the revelation it had supplied weapons to the Japanese, who had subsequently bombed Pearl harbor in Hawaii. A lengthy ground conflict ensued, with both sides suffering immense casualties. After WWII officially ended with the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, King Ragnis I (crowned in 1925) and his administration were pressured by a frightened Rizorient populace to surrender to America. Riots erupted in the streets as hysterical citizens, terrified of obliteration by an Atomic Bomb, threatened to overthrow the government. Finally, the King, himself fearful of a coup, signed America's Terms of Surrender in 1946. This single document is perhaps the most hated in Rizorien's history. It relegated the nation as a US territory and effectively converted the once-proud King and his host to a mere puppet government. Rizorients were swamped with American culture as legions of US citizens poured across the border of Canada to spread their ideology, politics, and, in an atrocious disrespect to the Dragon worshippers, their Christianity. The plague of the American Empire seemed to stretch on for infinity.

Finally as the Cold War was in effect a new King rose to power in 1960. Unlike the wise Uneus and the temperate Ragnis, Rex the Red Zealot, as he came to be called, was entirely different. Raised far from his father Ragnis by his fundementalist High Court, themselves driven to rage by the conquest of Rizorien, Rex emerged as an extremist. The young patriot was willing to liberate his faith and nation by any means necessary. Ten years after the unforseen death of his father, Rex's patience had been broken by the hammer of justice. He took advantage of American interests being focused on Vietnam to institute a nationwide resistance movement, sparking anew the smoldering embers of war. He organized a Russian-backed uprising to force the US to relinquish control of Rizorien to its rightful owners. America had no choice to disengage from Vietnam, letting it fall to Communism, to hopefully not lose both wars. That hope was in vain as the fanatical King Rex relentlessly assaulted position after position, going so far as to mount successful invasions of the American mainland to prove his might. The year 1975 granted Rizorien victory, with a peace Treaty signed restoring their sovereignty. However, Rex's machinations were only beginning to unfold.

The second Rizorien became free, the King sought to eradicate any and all traces of its hated conqueror. He instituted sweeping changes to the law, banning immigration and persecuting religious, racial, and sexual/gender minorities. Christian churches burned en masse. In fact, Christmas Day 1989 is known as "The Burning of a Thousand Churches", as the exactly 1,000 remaining churches were burned by the military in 24 hours. Anything that America accomplished, he tried his best to counter. His fury was unabated still, as his most horrifying plan was yet to commence. In 1990 he directed the military to carry out a nationwide genocide of any American still living in Rizorien. America itself scrambled to organize rescue missions with Canada...but it was too late. Millions were killed as the native population stood aghast at their King's cruelty. King Rex was no longer a patriot. King Rex was a madman. He was assassinated in 1999 by a Navy SEAL operative, his 9-year-old son left to take the throne.

In the aftermath of the incident, America held to the belief they could once again create a puppet government in Rizorien by molding the young Ragnis II. Apparently the child didn't get the memo. His formal ascension to the Throne in 2008 was marked with an infamous speech that made it crystal clear he bowed to no one. As ruler, Ragnis slowly reversed many of his father's policies, legalizing freedom of religion and reinstating the secular Senate with democratic elections. Whereas his father hated America and his grandfather was weak against it, Ragnis II worked tirelessly to disentangle Rizorien's legacy from that of the United States. To this day he continues to work toward a functional state and establish Rizorien's place among the greatest of world nations. He is often pegged by critics as a moderate caught between the attacks of critics on both conservative and progressive sides, who respectively say he's weak and will ruin things like his grandfather, or that he is too heavy handed and will let religion devolve him into a clone of his father. The reality is neither stance fits him. Ragnis II is a bold visionary with a confident plan charted for the future of Rizorien, and he'll be damned if he lets politics get in the way. He does his best to mend relationships with the international community who took to comparing Rizorien to Nazi Germany in the wake of Rex's genocide.

Rizorien is currently in a powerful position to enact influence on the global scale, having regained their former glory in the Arms Manufacturing Industry. As it stands Rizorien is poised to dominate global politics alongside China and the USA, and with immigration opened up, talent is now able to be acquired like never before. The future is looking bright for Rizorien thanks to one of the most divisive Kings in its brief history. From the secret society, the Order of Invictus, to the more consumer-friendly Church of the First Dragon (the mainstream side of the Order), Rizorien has come a long way from its humble origins in such a short time. We can only hope it flourishes for centuries to come.

Victoria non sine sanguine est

"Victory is not without blood"

–national motto of Rizorien

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