Masovia

From BluWiki

Historically Masovia was not a nation at all, but a small cultural region between three larger nations. It's people never had much of a strong culture of their own other than a general strong work ethic, instead borrowing from the stronger cultures in the surrounding area. It's strategic position and weak national identity often led to it's occupation by larger warring forces. It's people, while not enslaved, were commonly used in other nations as domestic or manual labor.

The city-state of Masovia's political existance began as a treaty among it's neighbors. The Treaty of Masovia determined the borders of the small nation and declared the region off limits to foreign armies. For the first twelve years of this new arrangement, the govornorship of the region would be rotated between the three nations that signed the Treaty. Thereafter, the people of Masovia itself would be free to determine their own government.

The new ideas and new technology of the recent era of enlightenment, what we may call a Renaissance, did not begin in Masovia. But it is perhaps in Masovia that these ideas have found the most fertile soil. When the time came for the people of Masovia to elect their own form of government, they looked to the new political and economic ideas that were becoming popular among the intelligencia of the other nations. It is precicely because of the regions lack of cultural identity and history that they were able to most completely implement these ideas of individualism, representation and freedom into the structure of their nation.

Where once existed a small handful of villages now can be seen a great city. A proserping, busy, metropolis filled with energy and a boundless sense of mankind's potential for acheivement and excellence. Instead of a cultural backwater, Masovia has become an area of great cultural movement and energy, creating great works of art such as symphonies, great architecture, sculptures and paintings. The artists and philosophers of the West all either speak Masovian or are learning it. Many people of all the sentient races flock to Masovia for it's equality, freedom and opportunity. The new economic power of the small city-state has allowed it to purchase more land from the surrounding nations, expanding its tiny boundries.

This new freedom does not come without price, however. Many criminals come to Masovia seeking refuge or perhaps seeking to steal their piece of the pie. It's strategic position in the West also makes it a hotbed of espionage. It has been said that more spies live and work in the City State of Masovia than the rest of the West combined. Some come to gather information, some to steal new ideas, others to attempt to sway the favor of the city toward or away from some other nation. Despite all this activity, Masovia continues to grow. It's merchant fleet now rivals those of its neighbors. As the 100th anniversary of its independance approaches, the people of Masovia are begining to realize they can no longer afford to survive under the protection of the Treaty. For the first time in their history, Masovians are no longer an invisible, inconsequntial people and they must struggle with their new identity and new place in the world.