A Brief History of Simia

Main Thesis Paper for Imperial Historical Society Consideration

A Brief History of Simia

 

The history of Simia goes back many centuries before the Sacrifice of Saint Nerissa and to detail it in full would be a grand undertaking that would fill volumes of text. It is therefore the aim of this paper to provide a brief outline of the history of Simia and the Simian people from its origins in the deep past to the present day as well as highlight some of the more important and definitive moments in their history in order to serve as an introduction to what will hopefully become a much longer work.

The history of the Simian people begins long ago, obscured by the mist of ages. Simian myths, legends and oral histories describe a migratory people; semi-nomadic in nature. They came from the mainland east and made their homes in the savannahs and jungles of what the Simians call Uatatoa, which means the birth land. According to their creation myth, the Simians were made in Uatatoa from soil, tree bark, and leaves by The Maker, who some church officials have likened to Somorat, The One and Holy. It is from The Maker, it is said, that Simians received their gift of prolific tool use. There in Uatatoa, they flourished for untold centuries until they were forced to move by the coming of the Raezilian hordes that erupted from west beyond the mountains. At first the Simian people fought the Raezilian armies with all their might, but they soon realized the insectile Raezilians were too numerous, defeating the strongest of their warriors through sheer numbers. The bulk of the Simian armies defeated, the Raezilian hordes swarmed over the defenseless Simian villages and camps eating everything and everyone.

Here the oral histories say a great king arose from among the tribal leaders who led his people to the east, away from the dangerous scourge. This was the time of the Great Migration. The surviving Simian tribes traveled far from their ancestral home, until finally they reached the ocean and could travel no more. In his foresight, this great king, whose name has been lost to time but is called Kanwhep, which means Traveler, knew the only hope his people had to escape the Raezilians was to cross the vast ocean. He commanded that ships be built and that the Simian people would ride the ships to a new homeland, a new Uatatoa. After months on the ocean, they landed on an island chain, which is now known as Simia.

The many tribes of the Simian people spread across the islands, exploring and settling where they could. They found the islands had a tropical clime, and adapted easily to hunting and foraging in the massive jungles of the island chain. This was the time of heroes, when great warriors and hunters made their name killing the ferocious beasts that inhabited the islands, such as the Warhog, and the now extinct Splitter Beast. Everyone knows the tale of Kehmer Hua, who defeated the mighty Megaraptor of the Mountain in order to steal its gargantuan golden eggs. Though there is no official consensus on the matter, many historians estimate that this age of heroes and colonization lasted for maybe a thousand years. In that time, the culture and customs of the Simian people changed very little. Archaeological evidence suggests a few periods of population growth and decline occurred before the Simians found a state of equilibrium with their home, where they stayed until Man first encountered them.

It is a common assumption amongst laymen that Simia was always a single polity. Nothing could be further from the truth. The Simian people were a scattering of nations, peoples and cultures for most of their history. From the gargantuan Gorillan, to the tiniest Leemur, Simians come in all shapes and sizes and their cultures and ways of habit reflect this diversity. In fact, Simia was a region rife with conflict. Whether it was territorial disputes or plain tribal bickering, the Simians seemingly never grew tired of fighting and bickering with each other. Their records name countless wars between tribes with amusing titles like “The War for the Yellow Fruit” or “The Bed War” or “The War for No More War”. Indeed, it is a testament to the great achievements of the diplomatic Orangu-men that Simia was able to unite as it had when the Mycean Empire made its famous ultimatum to the tribal kings.

The only times the many Simian tribes would find any sort of common ground, it seemed, was when their most ancient of enemies, the Raezilians, made their regular raids to the island chain. Yes even in their new home the Simians were not safe from the threat of Raezilian invasion, for it seemed the Raezilians had apparently learned the art of seafaring. The danger, they found, was not as great as it had once been on the mainland, for Raezilian boats were not reliable in the least and caused many losses to the Raezilian forces before they could ever make shore. This was because Raezilian sea craft were usually made from their most readily available resource, the dead bodies of their brethren.

Though their numbers were reduced, the Raezilian invasion forces were still very formidable. They would often strike first on Zi-chu, the westernmost island, since the ocean currents would carry their corpse barges there. As a result, Zi-chu became home to the most veteran of Raezilian fighters as they usually experienced the most intense fighting during an invasion. The Howler Squad Shock Troops are the most famous of the Zi-chu military arm, known for their propensity to howl and scream continuously as they charged an enemy formation. The invasions became so regular that the Simians came up with a name for it; The Green Tide. The saying “A Green Tide’s coming in,” thus became a phrase to portend future calamity or bad luck among the Simian people. The Raezilians were a ferocious enemy, but time and again, the Simians’ tactical cunning and inventive tool use helped them survive the onslaught. This was to be the state of affairs in Simia for centuries until the year they first encountered Man.

In the Year Five Hundred Twenty Three before the Sacrifice of Saint Nerissa, 523 B.N., the Kingdom of Lecanum sent explorers to far off Simia in order that they might secure the jungle islands and the riches they might hold in the name of the king. The explorers, led by the famous Palini Masobli, were surprised to find the islands were already inhabited by strange and hairy man-like creatures, the Simians. Palini named the creatures after the island chain, but interestingly enough the actual word Simians use to describe themselves is Mon’kai. This word degenerated into monkey, which is used as a pejorative word for Simians the world over. Palini established first contact with the Cobuskin Tribe on the easternmost island of Gizai but it took a long time before he was able to understand the culture enough to effectively communicate his purpose. In one famous telling, Palini asked the Cobuskin Tribesmen if he could speak to their leader, miming his request as best he could. Looking confused, the Tribesmen obliged and took Palini to the center of their camp where they pointed to a very large and impressive ladder, all the while wondering why this strange hairless ape wanted to see their tools.

But it would be their other tools that Palini would become fascinated with, namely their measuring instruments. As Palini integrated himself into the Cobuskin community, he began to learn about their culture and about their ways as a people. He found that these Simians had mastered the art of measuring the movements of the stars, the cycles of the seasons, and many other things besides with advanced, intricate and oftentimes very complicated tools. Why the tribe had not advanced beyond the jungles and established cities was beyond Palini. These creatures were clearly more than clever enough to do so, yet they remained stuck at the tribal level using their advanced instruments and tools as little more than scientific curiosities. In fact, every Simian he asked about it expressed the same bemused look and explained to the hairless oddity that living in balance with their environment was a core principle every Simian culture shared. To them, cities sounded like a highly ineffective organization of dwelling. With so many buildings in the way, where would the trees go? (Duchas, 201).

When word spread of what Palini had discovered (many Simians find it a bit egocentric to hear that they were ‘discovered’) the rest of the civilized world began to send their own emissaries. It wasn’t long before every major world power had established a trade network with one or more of the Simian tribes, of which there were hundreds. Conflict was inevitable. At first limited to skirmishes and small battles between different tribes backed by the major powers, the Year Four Hundred Twelve before the Sacrifice of Saint Nerissa, 412 B.N., marked the first major war between Simians and a major power. That power was the Kingdom of Veris. The ruler of one of the most powerful kingdoms of the civilized world at the time, Queen Amera of Veris recognized that Simia’s most valuable resource was not its mineral deposits or its exotic plants and herbs, but the Simians themselves. Their innate understanding of science and engineering and their ability to tinker and create such wonderful tools piqued the Queen’s interest and she understood that the Simian’s tinkering would give her armies a superior edge in battle (Hollis, 622). Queen Amera decreed that Simia would become a colony of Veris and its people subject to the laws of the Crown. This angered the other major powers, the Kingdom of Maelgan and the Civil Union most of all, because it impinged on their claims to trade, but Veris was such a formidable power that no other kingdom could think of standing up to Veris’ claims on their own. And since the other major powers thought of a union with the other powers as anathema, no credible opposition to Veris’ claim was mustered.

The kingdom of Veris was a formidable land and naval power and its annexation of the Simian islands was thought by everyone to be a sure thing. After all, the Simians were renowned for their scattered and un-neighborly nature. Surely a war against a major power would be over quickly as each individual Simian tribe would stand no chance against the powerful Verissian forces. However, this was not to be the case. The Simians, seeing a common threat to their way of life, convened a council of elders to discuss their options. After three nights of cacophonous debate, they finally made a unanimous decision to oppose the Verissian invasion, putting aside their differences in the name of survival as they had done before against the Raezilians.

This surprised every major power; for in the hundred years since they had known of the Simians, they had never witnessed the Simian people unite in such a fashion. The war, which would come to be called the War of Verissian Aggression, lasted for almost a decade. Embarrassingly, Veris was unable to subjugate the Simians, as they had easily done for dozens of other kingdoms. The Simians showcased superior tactical knowledge and outmaneuvered the hopelessly over encumbered Verissian knights at every turn. In addition to the fact that the Simians were fighting on their home turf, they could navigate the trees and winding jungle paths much easier than the knights could with their horses and carriages. The term Guerilla fighting came from the Gorillan’s expert use of stealth and ambush tactics during the war. The advantage of numbers that Veris had used against many an enemy was lost, as they could never field their troops in the proper formations in the dense underbrush of the jungle islands.

Queen Amera had several generals killed for their incompetence before she realized that perhaps the fault of Veris’ unsuccess lay elsewhere. As year ten of the war approached and then arrived, she drew up plans to send an invasion force ten times the size of the one she had originally sent so that the Simians would be crushed once and for all. Unfortunately, her plans never came to fruition. Before Veris was able to muster the full strength of her legions, their chief rival, The Kingdom of Maelgan, began to attack Veris holdings in the regions bordering the Bittermore Channel. The Queen’s advisors advised against splitting up the military so thinly. With no other choice, Amera tabled her invasion plans and ordered her remaining troops to withdraw from Simia. While Amera viewed this as a minor setback to an agenda that she would eventually return to, the Simians would celebrate their victory against Veris for nigh unto a year. A more complete history of the war can be read from Paul Hollis’ preeminent work on the subject, The Veris Military Engagements of the 5^th Century B.N.

The fact that the Simians had survived against Veris caught the notice of military leaders the world over. Many military historians would visit Simia in the years following the war in an attempt to glean how the Simians had fought such a numerous and powerful foe for years on their own. The only answer they would get, however, was that the Simians were used to fighting such foes. Battling Raezilians for most of their history had prepared them for countering such overwhelming numbers. Chief scholars of the day found this answer unsatisfactory, for how could anyone even compare the elite Verissian knights with the downright savage and barbaric Raezilian race? It was a mockery of modern military notions to even contemplate it, so historians and other military scholars would later attribute Veris’ military kerfuffle to sickness and general malaise among the ranks thanks to bites from the Cheche fly.

The defeat of Veris marked the beginning of a new age for the Simian people. An age defined by expansion, technological innovation and unification. The Simian tribes on Zi-chu had grown especially prosperous thanks to their trade with the major powers. Rather than relinquish the advantage unity had given them, the Zi-chu tribes decided to create a new alliance between all the tribes on their island. In this way, the Zi-chu would have the power necessary to expand. Rather than risk fighting with the other tribes fresh from a major war, they decided to set their sights west. And so, taking a page from the major powers’ playbook, the tribes of Zi-chu Island built massive ships based on Verissian and Lecanum ship designs and set sail for the mainland.

They found empty coast when they arrived and established villages from horizon to horizon. Using the wealth they had acquired from trade, the Zi-chu turned their fleet into the envy of the world, building the fastest and most maneuverable ships in all of Deseray at the time. They conquered and drove out the scattered and isolated Raezilian hives further inland and set up a trade network with Lecanum and Civil Union colonies in the far northern mainland. Within a few decades, Zi-chu had transformed itself into a minor power to rival the other minor powers. Back on the islands, the other tribes had seen what Zi-chu had accomplished and began to form unions of their own. Each island in turn had its own union of tribes which would try to emulate Zi-chu’s success, though the exact percentage of success was decidedly less than that of Zi-chu. The most famous example was the cursed Tribull trade fleet. The expedition was met with bad luck and ill omen almost from its onset and not a single ship ever made it back to Tribull Island. The Era of Big Chiefs, as this time was called, lasted for two centuries until in the Year One Hundred and Ninety Nine before the Sacrifice of Saint Nerissa, 199 B.N., disaster struck. That disaster was the second largest Raezilian invasion in recorded history.

Historians still debate to this day what exactly caused the invasion to be so large. Some posit that several monarchs had been born while others say that a single invasion had simply grown to that size because of its absorbing every hive it encountered along the way to the coast. Regardless of the reason, the invasion force was unprecedented in size in the eastern world. The first attacks occurred along the trade routes between Zi-chu and the northern Major Power colonies. A week later, more attacks occurred against Zi-chu’s westernmost outpost. Zi-chu colonists sent word to the island for reinforcements, but by the time their ships arrived, not a single colony was left standing. All had been destroyed and consumed by the Raezilian horde. The Zi-chu military was by far the most formidable among the Simian tribes, and so they were confident that they could overturn this Raezilian invasion force. By the time they realized how large the invasion force was, though, it was far too late for any meaningful action.

For months, the Zi-chu held off the Raezilian forces, precision striking where they were weakest and retreating when they were being overwhelmed. The veteran Zi-chu employed brilliant tactics and strategies as well as the latest in weapons technology such as the mighty Boom Cannon and Dragon Tongue Rockets, the first known mass use of gunpowder weapons in warfare. This did much to slow the Raezilians’ advance, but in the end the Raezilians proved too numerous. By year’s end, the Zi-chu Simians realized that this was no ordinary invasion force. Thousands upon thousands of Raezilians had been killed but they showed no sign of slowing down. With only half their forces remaining, the Zi-chu generals finally swallowed their pride and sent word to the other Simian tribes for help.

The Simians on the islands had gotten reports on the situation and sent whatever aid they could since the invasion began, but when they learned that the Raezilian forces were too much for even the Zi-chu Simians to handle they knew there was only one way to stop the threat of Raezilian attack on their home. Once again, the elders convened and a Simian Union was formed. The Zi-chu were ordered to fall back and wait for the Raezilian forces to try and cross the ocean to the islands. Thinking retreat cowardly, but not wanting to disrespect the elders’ wishes, the Zi-chu did as instructed and waited off the shores of the mainland. They watched with growing anxiety as the Raezilians mindlessly threw themselves at the surf trying to reach the Zi-chu vessels. Before long, countless corpses floated back to shore, carried back by the unforgiving waves. It was then that the Zi-chu understood what was happening.

When the main force of the Raezilian horde arrived they began to construct their corpse barges in earnest. The Zi-chu admirals ordered their men to fire all cannons at the growing barges, but all the bombardment succeeded in doing was creating more material for the barges. Realizing that bombarding the shore until they ran out of shot would get them nowhere the Zi-chu admiral, Sifaka, formulated a cunning plan; strike the barges after they had made it to open water. One good hit would take a barge and hundreds of Raezilians down with every blow. The fleet moved further back and waited.

The Simian New Year came during that lull in the fighting and its celebrations were filled with tension. Many knew that if things went poorly, this could very well be their last year on their islands. Their last year alive. It was then that the Zi-chu anchored off the coast of the mainland noticed a great change among the Raezilians. Where there was once chaos and disorder, there was now a decidedly more military-like orderliness to their proceedings. They were still savage by all accounts; their hissing and chittering and beating of their war drums could be heard well into the night to be sure, but their construction was more organized and a hierarchy of officers could now be discerned. This was when the Zi-chu knew that a monarch was close and that this invasion force would soon be on the move.

The fighting did not stop for long. The Raezilian barges launched under the cover of night, timing it to match the going of the tides. This was when Admiral Sifaka gave the famous order, “Drown the damn bugs.” The plan was a success and the Zi-chu seized a decisive early victory. It was not to last. Without warning, a massive Raezilian flotilla was spotted off the coast of Hanewae. The Raezilian invaders had supplemented much of their fleet with fishing vessels captured from coastal villages and this enabled them to sail more confidently toward the northern Simian islands. The barge construction on the shore of the mainland had been a diversion. The Hanewae tribes fought bravely, but they and their island home were consumed entirely within a month of landing. Every living thing was exterminated, the island picked clean. The fighting on the other islands grew more intense as the invasion continued. Wave after wave of Raezilian forces battered the Simians’ meager defenses. The hit and run strategy that had worked so well against Veris continued to be an excellent strategy against the Raezilian invaders, but as the invasion wore on the Raezilians would eat more and more of the jungle, giving the Simians fewer places to hide and retreat to until they had no choice but to either flee the island or take the invaders on in one last head-on assault.

Four years after the Raezilians had first landed on Hanewae, nearly half of the Simian islands were overrun with the insectile creatures. The situation was grim and total defeat seemed an almost certain possibility by that point. The Zi-chu navy could do little to stem the tide of the Raezilian flotilla and the few allies that answered the Simian call for aid were entirely outmatched and outnumbered. Of these allies, the Lecanum kingdom and the mercenary arm of the East Union Trading Company were the most powerful. Many Simians fled the islands on ships built at the last moment, echoing the Great Migration period of their history. Nearly a sixth of the Simian people sailed away to find a new home. Another sixth had been killed by the ravenous hordes. With no rescue in sight, no reinforcements to look toward, the remaining Simians began to form a daring plan. Whether the plan worked or not, they knew the war would soon be over.

As the rainy season was set to begin, the Simians enacted their plan; find the Raezilian Monarch and kill her. If they could do that; the invasion would be stopped in its tracks. It was a desperate gambit. Such a feat had never been done by Simian or Man alike. Only the ancient and proud Skirminoan race told tales of their venerable heroes who had turned the tide of a Raezilian invasion by slaying the Monarch and the veracity of such tales had never been proven. But the Simians had no other choice. The search for the Monarch began. Many brave souls lost their lives in the search, but it was not in vain. The Monarch had been spotted several times on the island of Zi-chu, which was in the process of being utterly consumed. The surviving Zi-chu forces all volunteered for the chance to take back their home before it was completely gone.

The battle for Zi-chu Island was one of the most intense and bloody ever seen on Simia. The battle itself lasted for several days and untold thousands of dead littered the battlefield by the time it was all done. The closer they got to the Monarch, the bigger and more fearsome the Raezilian warriors became. In the final darkest hours of the battle, the Simian force, spearheaded by Zi-chu fighters made up of Gorillan canoneers and Chimpan-zi spear corps as well as elite Union mercenaries, had finally made violent contact with the Monarch’s bodyguards. These monstrous creatures towered over the Simian soldiers, their razor sharp mandibles as large as elephants’ tusks, their iron hard carapaces able to shrug off everything but direct canon fire. They were a living wall of death standing between the Simians and their victory, ready to lay down their lives to protect their queen.

For hours each side hammered against the other, one behemoth down, twenty Simians crushed underfoot, back and forth until finally an opening appeared. A young Chimpan-zi captain named Wellani, who would later be known as Wellani the Red for her Orangu like features saw the opening and took it. She found the Raezilian Monarch, sitting on a throne made from the body of a particularly large and fat Raezilian servant. Before Wellani brought down the final blow with her spear, it is reported that the Monarch spoke a few words to the captain. What was said to the captain we shall never know, for Wellani never spoke of what happened that day and took the Monarch’s words with her to the grave.

The fighting stalemated on almost every island, simultaneously. The Raezilians began to lose their momentum and then simply began to scatter, their invasion force splintering into hundreds of smaller raiding and hunting parties. Against all odds, the Simians had won the day and just as quickly as the invasion had begun, it was over. The next several decades saw the Simians slowly take back their island homes from the rampant Raezilian infestation while trying to recover what was lost. Several islands became uninhabitable, desertification quickly stepped in where life had once been and many more Simians simply chose to sail away and find new homes. It would be a hundred years before the last Raezilian was driven off of Simia.

The recovery period after the invasion lasted longer still. Some argue that the Simians hadn’t fully recovered their strength when the events surrounding the Sacrifice of Saint Nerissa occurred, but one thing is for certain, the Simian people had never been more united or divided at the same time. The Simian diaspora spread the Simian people all over the world. They settled in such far off places as Bittermore, Hargascher, the Civil Union, Lecanum and even the tiny People’s Free Democratic Liberated Confederated Republic of Veris (Havermore, 102). Meanwhile, on Simia, the Orangu-men were caught in the middle of a fierce debate between the leaders of the tribes. Some Simians wanted to return to the autonomous tribal system they had used for most of their history. Others said that the Alliance system worked and that the Simian people would have ceased to exist had they not adopted it on a more permanent basis.

For years the political battles raged until finally the Orangu-men proposed an all-together different solution. A new system of organization would be adopted which would be a synthesis of the two. The tribes would return to their roots as autonomous political bodies, but each and every tribe would answer to the council of elders made up of elders from every tribe. Thus the Simians would enact a permanent system of Union that could respond to threats much faster and much more efficiently than could the tribes on their own, yet the tribes would remain essentially autonomous, governing their own affairs. The Orangu-men diplomats worked tirelessly, bringing each disparate tribe one by one to their fold. But, once most of the tribes had agreed, all of them joined the new Simian Union.

So it was that the newly formed Simian Union would face its greatest challenge mere decades after its formation. The events of the much discussed War in Heaven, do not need to be repeated here, suffice to say that the whole of Deseray was changed and the Simians were as affected as every other power in the world. Two years after the Sacrifice of Saint Nerissa, the rubble had finally stopped bouncing and the smoke had cleared. The Simian islands did not see the worst of the fighting, but the devastation was still enough that it brought back the memories of the Raezilian invasion to the oldest Simian elders. But despite the bitter conflict, the Simian Union persisted.

After a decade of rebuilding, and another decade of expansion, the Simians were once again masters of their island homes. The Union would last for three hundred years before the resource base that allowed it to flourish, namely its exotic spices, herbs and minerals, began to wane. This led to the Simian Union’s decline and by the year Three Hundred Forty Five After the Sacrifice of Saint Nerissa, 345 A.N.; it was a power only in name. When the Mycean Empire arrived that year with their large, impressive, and highly advanced “diplomatic” fleet, the writing was on the wall for the Simian Union.

The Mycean Empire, fairly young by civilization standards in those days, realized that with Simia’s diminishing natural resources and exploding population, it would only be a matter of time before the Simian people went mobile again and attempted to expand their borders. Sensing the possible threat to Mycean sovereignty of the Eastern Ocean, the Mycean Empire had decided to make Simia an ally, killing them with kindness so the saying goes. The representatives of the Emperor of Mycea gave the Orangu-men diplomats a very straightforward choice; join the Mycean Empire in the modern age, or be left behind by the march of time and progress. The Simians heartily accepted. From there, the Mycean ambassadors quickly worked to influence Simia using the subtle art of statecraft. Before long, Simia was convinced through economic pressure to become a full protectorate of Mycea. Then through more diplomatic hand-wavery, the Mycean Empire welcomed Simia as a new territory. In a stunningly progressive move, every Simian was given Mycean citizenship, regardless of where they currently lived. Through shadow diplomacy and back room dealings, the Mycean Empire had succeeded where Veris had failed.

After that, Simia was quick to industrialize, and the natural capacity for Simian innovation caught up with and soon overcame the rest of the world in technological advancement. It was Simian engineers who first perfected rifling techniques which would change the face of warfare forever. It was Simian chemasters who developed smokeless gunpowder and higher grade explosives than was thought possible at the time. They even managed to create a “machine” gun which could send hundreds of rounds of ammunition down range in minutes. Though they never built cities as we know them, the tribal communities of the Simian people underwent a massive reorganization along lines more familiar to their Mycean “compatriots”. Thanks to Simian ingenuity, the Mycean Empire would revolutionize mechanized warfare and become a world power unto its own. When the Great War for Holy Unity began in 434 A.N., Simians fought on the side of Mycea and the other Technocratic Allies against the evil Magical Kingdoms. Several Simians were awarded the highest honors in the Mycean military for their bravery and service.

And that is the very briefest of brief outlines of Simian history. Perhaps in the future this work can be expanded upon for we have yet to delve into the details of the Gizai Massacre, the Reconstruction Period, the age of the Pirate Lords or the Kofuki War Period. To all my Simian fellows out there; Feets up!

Author's Note

Did I cite my sources correctly? I tend to favor the Flavian method myself but my professor has a certain infatuation with the Butchell method that I cannot explain. This is a stand alone work for now, but as soon as my grant from the Imperial School of Historical Introspection is approved I will be able to continue my research.