Chicagoland
Chicagoland
Government: Mayorate
Head of State: Colonel of Iowa
Head of Government: Mayor, chosen by primogeniture from the sons of the ruling Daley family.
Population: 160,000 total, with 40,000 in Chicago and 120,000 in Chicagoland
Religion: Non-Denom
Totemic Symbol: Bushel of Wheat
Like many great cities, Chicago straddles the border between many different world. On the one hand, there are the Great Plains, home to those savage New Israelites, their caravans bearing the promise of the riches of the mysterious peoples of the Wild West. Then on the East you have the feudal core, a land of civilization, order and Christendom. To the north there's the Great Lakes, that singular sweetwater sea that the stern Lakemen call home.But just to the south there lay the great Mississippi river basin, the great artery of the America's that will take on to the exotic and eldritch metropolis of N'awleens, a land said to be ruled by women who do not die. Placed as it is, it is no surprise that Chicago has risen to be one of the great cities of Medieval America.
Indeed, its prosperity results from the interplay between the east and the west, and the north and the south. Latitudinally, it has grown rich from the beef trade. Cowboy clans from across the plains have been known to drive their herds into the great markets of Chicagoland. Some of these cows will be bought by more easterly merchants to be driven still further from their native sod but most will be bought by local merchant comppanies to be butchered in one of the dozens of great slaughterhouses of Chicago, the largest in the world. After this, the meat will be salted and shipped either across the Great Lakes or down south onto the Mississippi. The access to beef allows even the most destitute of serfs to enjoy the famous Chicago Frank.
On the longitudinal axis, Chicago has profited from being a great center of trade. Being located right on the Great Lakes, it was sure to benefit trade somewhat. More critically is its strategic location on the so-called "Chicago Portage", a two-mile gap that seperates the Great Lakes from the drainage system of the mighty Mississippi. In less civilized times, this gap had to be traversed by foot. Now, a series of canals and pund-locks, carefully maintained by the Non-Denominational Church's Army Corp of Engineers under the Order of the Elks (at the cost of some rathe significant "tithing" on Chicago's part), have allowed ships laden with cargo to sail from Buffalo to Louisiana. Duties and trade have made Chicago one of the richest cities on the Great Lakes.
It is therefore understandable as to how Chicago became the seat for the DuPont family to conquer the whole of Illinois and Iowa, forging one of the greatest American empires since the fall of Federal power beyond the eastern seaboard. It was equally a surprise, then, when Illinois (embroiled in its war with Ohio, perhaps the greatest war since the Regression) was invaded by the Baileys and the Dabneys who utterly wasted the once mighty empire, executing the DuPonts to a man and putting Chicago to the torch.
The Razing of Chicago
When the Baileys finally set about to putting down the Dabneys, they found some trouble as their fleet of Memphis river boats advanced. In their retreat, the Dabneys had destroyed the locks that linked Chicago to the Mississippi. The Baileys were forced to encamp outside the rebuilt walls of Chicago, while the Dabneys were able to resupply via the Michigan. However, it was not to last: it is no exaggeration to say that the Dabney Illinois Territory was among the most despised states in the whole of the East. They were New Israelite savages that had overcome one of the mightiest kingdoms of America, and continually threatened the Christian nations of the Midwest. The first link to break was Wisconsin, where Governor Oliver Schultz revoked his vassalge to the Dabneys and pledged fealty to the Baileys. The Wisconsite knights divided the Dabney forces, allowing them to be smashed piecemeal.
Then, when the Church declared its "War on New Israelism", the Dabney death-warrant was signed. The Mackinaw league, who had been forced into an uneasy cooperation with the Dabneys, convened in Buffalo and expelled the Dabneys, and then declared a League War, with moral and material support from lords across the nation. The armada was to be headed by the Daley family, who had long ago been exiled to Buffalo for corurption where they grew into a powerful merchant clan. Now, they sailed west to reclaim their birthright.
Along the way, they would stop in Milwaukee to resupply, and take on men. When the Armada came within sight of Chicago, the populace rose up against their New Israelite masters, tearing their men apart in the streets and burning their colossal Revival tents. The Mackinaw force captured the Dabneys and those that were not executed were exiled to the outposts of the far north. In a hasty ceremony, Noah Daley was crowned the Mayor of Chicago. Then, the gates of the city were opened, and the crown was handed over to George Bailey.
Though technically a part of Iowa, pledging allegiance, levies and taxes (at a considerably higher rate then Wisconsin) to the Hawkeye Colonel, Chicago enjoys a remarkable degree of independence. All import duties go to the Daleys, and they have near absolute political autonomy. The city controls the outlying metropolitan areas, and a pale surrounding the many canals that belong to the city, with its territory stretching from Joliet to the grim metropol of Gary. Though a far cry from its height under the DuPonts (its population and infrastructure having been ravaged by the Dabneys), the population is growing fast, helped in no small part by its excellent sewage system which has made it the cleanest city this side of the Rockies. The forecast is looking good for the Windy City, and the beloved Daleys show no sign of being unseated any time soon.
Government: Mayorate
Head of State: Colonel of Iowa
Head of Government: Mayor, chosen by primogeniture from the sons of the ruling Daley family.
Population: 160,000 total, with 40,000 in Chicago and 120,000 in Chicagoland
Religion: Non-Denom
Totemic Symbol: Bushel of Wheat
Like many great cities, Chicago straddles the border between many different world. On the one hand, there are the Great Plains, home to those savage New Israelites, their caravans bearing the promise of the riches of the mysterious peoples of the Wild West. Then on the East you have the feudal core, a land of civilization, order and Christendom. To the north there's the Great Lakes, that singular sweetwater sea that the stern Lakemen call home.But just to the south there lay the great Mississippi river basin, the great artery of the America's that will take on to the exotic and eldritch metropolis of N'awleens, a land said to be ruled by women who do not die. Placed as it is, it is no surprise that Chicago has risen to be one of the great cities of Medieval America.
Indeed, its prosperity results from the interplay between the east and the west, and the north and the south. Latitudinally, it has grown rich from the beef trade. Cowboy clans from across the plains have been known to drive their herds into the great markets of Chicagoland. Some of these cows will be bought by more easterly merchants to be driven still further from their native sod but most will be bought by local merchant comppanies to be butchered in one of the dozens of great slaughterhouses of Chicago, the largest in the world. After this, the meat will be salted and shipped either across the Great Lakes or down south onto the Mississippi. The access to beef allows even the most destitute of serfs to enjoy the famous Chicago Frank.
On the longitudinal axis, Chicago has profited from being a great center of trade. Being located right on the Great Lakes, it was sure to benefit trade somewhat. More critically is its strategic location on the so-called "Chicago Portage", a two-mile gap that seperates the Great Lakes from the drainage system of the mighty Mississippi. In less civilized times, this gap had to be traversed by foot. Now, a series of canals and pund-locks, carefully maintained by the Non-Denominational Church's Army Corp of Engineers under the Order of the Elks (at the cost of some rathe significant "tithing" on Chicago's part), have allowed ships laden with cargo to sail from Buffalo to Louisiana. Duties and trade have made Chicago one of the richest cities on the Great Lakes.
It is therefore understandable as to how Chicago became the seat for the DuPont family to conquer the whole of Illinois and Iowa, forging one of the greatest American empires since the fall of Federal power beyond the eastern seaboard. It was equally a surprise, then, when Illinois (embroiled in its war with Ohio, perhaps the greatest war since the Regression) was invaded by the Baileys and the Dabneys who utterly wasted the once mighty empire, executing the DuPonts to a man and putting Chicago to the torch.
The Razing of Chicago
When the Baileys finally set about to putting down the Dabneys, they found some trouble as their fleet of Memphis river boats advanced. In their retreat, the Dabneys had destroyed the locks that linked Chicago to the Mississippi. The Baileys were forced to encamp outside the rebuilt walls of Chicago, while the Dabneys were able to resupply via the Michigan. However, it was not to last: it is no exaggeration to say that the Dabney Illinois Territory was among the most despised states in the whole of the East. They were New Israelite savages that had overcome one of the mightiest kingdoms of America, and continually threatened the Christian nations of the Midwest. The first link to break was Wisconsin, where Governor Oliver Schultz revoked his vassalge to the Dabneys and pledged fealty to the Baileys. The Wisconsite knights divided the Dabney forces, allowing them to be smashed piecemeal.
Then, when the Church declared its "War on New Israelism", the Dabney death-warrant was signed. The Mackinaw league, who had been forced into an uneasy cooperation with the Dabneys, convened in Buffalo and expelled the Dabneys, and then declared a League War, with moral and material support from lords across the nation. The armada was to be headed by the Daley family, who had long ago been exiled to Buffalo for corurption where they grew into a powerful merchant clan. Now, they sailed west to reclaim their birthright.
Along the way, they would stop in Milwaukee to resupply, and take on men. When the Armada came within sight of Chicago, the populace rose up against their New Israelite masters, tearing their men apart in the streets and burning their colossal Revival tents. The Mackinaw force captured the Dabneys and those that were not executed were exiled to the outposts of the far north. In a hasty ceremony, Noah Daley was crowned the Mayor of Chicago. Then, the gates of the city were opened, and the crown was handed over to George Bailey.
Though technically a part of Iowa, pledging allegiance, levies and taxes (at a considerably higher rate then Wisconsin) to the Hawkeye Colonel, Chicago enjoys a remarkable degree of independence. All import duties go to the Daleys, and they have near absolute political autonomy. The city controls the outlying metropolitan areas, and a pale surrounding the many canals that belong to the city, with its territory stretching from Joliet to the grim metropol of Gary. Though a far cry from its height under the DuPonts (its population and infrastructure having been ravaged by the Dabneys), the population is growing fast, helped in no small part by its excellent sewage system which has made it the cleanest city this side of the Rockies. The forecast is looking good for the Windy City, and the beloved Daleys show no sign of being unseated any time soon.
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