The History of the World VII . . . .

[OzzyKP]

We appreciate the notification.

Yours in Allah,

Caliph Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz

[OzzyKP]

THIRTEENTH SESSION 1304 AD

India(Gandhi) - CyberShy
Egypt(Ramses) - AI
Vikings(Ragnar Lodbrok) - LzPrst
China(Qin Shi Huang) - AI
Choson(Wang Kong) - Deity
Inca(Huayna Capac) - Levi_the_Oracle
Kushren(Napoleon Boneparte) - Conquistador45
England(Victoria) - AI
Celts(Brennus) - AI
Arabs(Saladin) - OzzyKP
Carthage(Hannibal) - Rykoffe
Bulgaria(Cyrus II) - Toni


Session 13 Number of Cities (since session 12)

Choson - 13
Arabs - 11 (+2)
Bulgaria - 11 (+1)
Inca - 10
China - 10
Kushren - 9 (+3)
Vikings - 9 (+3)
England - 7
India - 6 (+1)
Egypt - 6
Celts - 6 (-2)
Carthage - ? (help me out i can't see their city list since they are a vassal)

[OzzyKP]

Ali ibn al-Athir the renowned historian from Baghdad has finished his book, The Growth and Decline of World Religions. Already a best seller throughout Arabia, scholars are busy at work translating the work into English, Kushrena and Bulgarian. From the upcoming English version, here is a copy of a chart showing the progress of each world religion as of 1304 AD:



Most notable during this period is the rapid expansion of Islam throughout the world. The last of the great world religions to form, Islam has thusfar had a meteoric climb and is currently accepted by and estimated 18% of the world's population. What is also interesting, is that during this same period the once dominant, original monotheistic faith, Judaism has experienced a large decline. No doubt due to a large number of converts from the old monotheistic practices to accepting the revelations of the Prophet Muhammad.

[OzzyKP]

In The Complete History, Ali ibn al-Athir looks at recent wars and the changing tides of troop levels in various nations across terra.

[KunojiLym]

Tang Gaozu had supported Gandhi from behind the scenes, in hopes of gaining an advantage in India; at the same time, he was also pursuing cordical relations with the Bulgerians. Thus, he was doubly dissappointed when Ghandi was killed, and the Bulgerian-hating Asoka ascended the Indian throne. Fortunatedly for Gaozu, the Chinese maintained their influence in India, and for a time, at least, Asoka did not seem intent on pressing the issue with Bulgeria.

After a reign of many years, Gaozu died, and Tang Taizong succeeded to the throne. Under the new Emperor's direction, the Tang dynasty ascended new heights. Her production and her army were among the best in the world. And the first of the famed pavillions were being established in the major cities.

All that was about to come crashing down.

Towards the end of his reign, Tang Taizong learned that the Bulgerians had broken faith with Egypt. Egypt had been promised the secrets of Astronomy, but all she received was a slip of a galleon, which, while sea-worthy, was hardly at all the deal that was promised. This perceived betrayal by Bulgeria shocked and angered the Tang imperial court, who saw it as a slap in the face against all that was natural in Confucian and Taoist teachings. Tang Taizong was greatly dissappointed as well, and he recalled his army from the Bulgerian border cities. But still, he sought to calm tension, arguing that there was little to gain from now antagonizing what was now clearly the most advanced empire in the world. The end result of this was a coup d'etet, and Tang Taizong was exiled to the far reaches of Ri Ben. In his place, Wu Zetian rose to become the first, and only Empress of China.

The new ruler, supported by a hardline military faction, now planned to punish the Bulgerians by acquiring the holy cities of Confucianism and Taoism. Her reasoning was that the Bulgerians, as double dealing as they were, no longer deserved to hold such an honor. Coupled with the intelligence that Asoka was finally about to move on Bulgeria, Wu Zetian reasoned that nothing would stop the grand Tang army.

But the 'infallible' Son (or Daughter) of Heaven had made a fatal miscalculation. The Imperial Tang army was strong, that was true, but it was woefully inadequete when it came to seige weaponary. This was something that the Bulgerians used to their advantage. A horde of catapults pummelled the pride of the Tang into disarray, and then camel archers, supplied by the Arabs, destroyed what remained. At the same time, the arrogence of the Tang had led them to dismiss the Inca to the north. They now paid dearly for their arrogence, as the Inca seized the opportunity to invade the very heartland of China. Faced with the enormity of such a debacle, the hardline generals turned on Wu Zetian, and had her drawn and quartered. In her place, they installed her pacifist nephew, Tang Xuanzong.

The new Emperor dulely sued for peace, but neither the Inca nor the Bulgerians would be appeased. Thus it was that the ancient capital of the state of Wei fell to Incan hands. Finally, Xuanzong capitulated completedly to the Bulgerians, as her armies approached Guangzhou, and also caved in to Arab demands to convert to Islam - even though there was not a single Muslim in the whole of the Tang Empire. A year after the surrender, Xuanzong hanged himself, and his son Tang Yanzong became the new Emperor of China... now for the first time, dominated by foreigners.

It was not only Xuanzong who could not stomach so complete a humiliation; the whole empire was enraged. When the new demands of the Bulgerians reached the ears of the populace, this proved to be the breaking point. Even as Yanzong drowned himself rather than deal with the emissary, all China broke out in general revolt. In a few short months, the Tang Dynasty had come to an ignoble end, and from then on, rival warlords fought each other, each claiming to be the legitimate Son of Heaven. China was once again mired in civil war.

[Toni]

Rising Threat



Tsar Peter rule has become the longest reign ever in Bulgarian till this day. Forty of those years had passed in undisturbed peace and quiet with all neighbors. With the exception of the revolting demands from the materialistic Vikings from the north towards the new Bulgarian colony in the new world. During his reign Bulgaria had not lost a single square meter of its territory. Bulgaria has become a dominant force on Terra because of its strong military tradition and strong sense of national identity. Also as an experienced diplomat, Tsar Peter deftly avoided the ripening confrontations with the Vikings. After hearing of the Vikings aggressive and sick threats, Peter ordered all diplomatic relationship to be terminated at once. This northern provoker clamed that the new world territories were theirs for the keeping and Bulgaria should leave at once or face a Viking assault. This was an interesting development, Bulgaria wasn’t the only nation with a new colony in the New World, but it was the only one threatened. There were other nations with more colonies and territorial presence already. The 1st Battalion Boyana Cavalry was ordered to be shipped at once to aid the new colony in case of a Viking invasion. The great consul in Veliki Preslav has decided that Bulgaria won’t give in to the Vikings harassments to leave the new world, because first we won’t allow to be intimidation by such a puny nation in such a way and second it was agreed long time ago that all Terra nations have the right to build settlements and establish trade with the local tribes.

Also those first forty peaceful years were, beyond doubt, extremely important for the recoupment of the demographic and economic losses of Simeon's wars. The lasting peace helped finalize without cataclysms the process of consolidating further the united Bulgarian nation, strengthening the position of Taoism , disseminating once and for all, the Old Bulgarian alphabet and literature and establishing firmly Taoism state and religious structures.

The territorial expansion of the Bulgarian state within the boundaries of the Bulgarian ethnos had created favorable conditions for its successful economic and cultural development. From that time on, the Bulgarian economy took an active part in the all- round exchanges with the economy of Western and Eastern Terra. Peter signed many agreements with Terra political formations which helped regulate their trade with the West and East. Fully restored after the Great Western War, the Bulgarian patriarchal became the only institution of the Taoism religion to be backed up by a well-established political power. Thus, it gained enormous authority with the whole of the country. The cultural exchanges initiated by the intellectual circles in the bosom of the Bulgarian church became an example to follow for the intellectuals of the Terra world.

[Toni]

The Great Mausoleum

Shortly after his coronation Peter’s wife tsaritsa Maria died giving birth to their only son Kaloyan. As a tribute to his beautiful wife and as a monument for enduring love tsar Peter build a great marble mausoleum.

Having buried her down at Veliki Preslav, the tsar decided to build the magnificent mausoleum there. But because it was felt that it was virtually impossible to transfer all the marble to Veliki Preslav for the great mausoleum, as it would cost an entire fortune and an entire lifetime. The city of Pasagradae was chosen as the only alternative; astonishingly her grave was uprooted and brought to Pasagradae, only to be finally transferred to the monument, completed twenty two years later.

The mausoleum rises on a high red sandstone base topped by a huge white marble terrace on which rests the famous dome flanked by four tapering minarets. Within the dome lies the jewel inlaid cenotaph of the tsaritsa. So exquisite is the workmanship that the mausoleum has been described as “designed by giants and finished by jewelers".

The Mausoleum reveals its subtleties when one visits it without being in a hurry. The rectangular base of mausoleum is in itself symbolic of the different sides from which to view a beautiful woman. The main gate is like a veil to a woman's face which should be lifted delicately, gently and without haste on the wedding night. In Bulgarian tradition the veil is lifted gently to reveal the beauty of the bride. As one stands inside the main gate of mausoleum, his eyes are directed to an arch which frames the mausoleum.

The dome is made of white marble, but the tomb is set against an awesome backdrop of the river and it is this background that works its magic of colors through their reflection and transforms the view of the mausoleum. The colors change at different hours of the day and during different seasons. Like a jewel, the mausoleum sparkles in moonlight when the semi-precious stones inlaid into the white marble on the main mausoleum catch the glow of the moon. The mausoleum is pinkish in the morning, milky white in the evening and golden when the moon shines. These changes, they say, depict the different moods of woman.

Different people have different views of the mausoleum but it would be enough to say that the mausoleum has a life of its own that leaps out of marble, provided you understand that it is a monument of love. As an architectural masterpiece, nothing could be added or subtracted from it.

[OzzyKP]

Amir and Jalal barely waited until they left the small general store in Sheba before ripping open the paper packaging containing their new purchase. Jalal jams a stick of gum in his mouth, while Amir just throws it away with the packaging as they quickly thumb through the stack of cards they hold in their hands.

"Who'd you get? Who'd you get?"

"Hold on, lemme see... Abd al-Malik, Al-Hajjaj bin Yousef , eh.. no one great. How about you?"

"Got it, got it, never heard of him, got it, never heard of him, oh! Yess!!! I've got Tariq ibn-Ziyad!!"

"Lemme see!"

"Wait! Damn, this is great. General Tariq. The other guys are gonna be jealous now."

"Lemme see!! Lemme see!"

"Ok here. Be careful!"

"Very nice... I'll trade you Abi'l-Saj Devdad and Najm ad-Din Ayyub for him."

"No way. General Tariq kicks their asses."

"At the same time?"

"Hell yea, without breaking a sweat."

"What about if they had Utbah ibn Ghazwan and Khalid ibn al-Walid too?"

"Hmm... Utbah definitely, but Khalid... I dunno, that'd be a bit tougher. Maybe if Tariq was really weak from a virus, and if they got lucky, then maaybe they'd die an honorable death without embarrassing themselves. But Tariq killed the Choson, the Celts, the Kushren, the Indians, the Chinese AND the Visigoths in the new world. He is unstoppable. Here, look at his stats, this year alone he has killed 102 men, and wounded 27, while only losing 9 of his own men. No one else living or dead could do that. General Tariq is the most bad ass fighter the world has ever seen."

"Yea... you're probably right. You sure you don't want to trade?"

"Very sure, now give me it back before you bend the corner."

[OzzyKP]

سيوجه كلمة

"Al-News, Al-the Time"

March 24, 1304 a.d.
1/10 Gold Piece

____________________
TOP STORY
____________________

Umayyad Dynasty Falls, Abbisad Dynasty Begins

After several years of internal strife, the rule of Caliph Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz and the Umayyad Dynasty has finally fallen. Weakened after a series of revolts by non-Arab Muslims disgruntled over the payment of Jizya and the dominance of Arabs in the empire, the Umayyad's have been deposed. Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz and his entire family have been executed in the ensuing chaos. The only surviving Umayyad heir, Abd ar-Rahman, is rumored to have escaped to Al-Andalus

Many claimants to the Caliphate emerged in the chaos, the most credible and most successful of these are the Abbasids. Their leader, Abu al-`Abbas led the final push against the Umayyad.

Concerned that there would be a return of Umayyad power, Abu al-`Abbas invited all of the remaining members of the Umayyad family to a dinner party where he had them clubbed to death. For his ruthless efforts to eliminate the Umayyad family, Abu al-`Abbas gained the epithet al-Saffah, which means the Slaughterer or blood-letter.

He would not live long however, after a few short years of rule Abu al-`Abbas died and was succeeded by his grand nephew, Harun al-Rashid.

____________________
DOMESTIC NEWS
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General Tariq Conquers al-Andalus

Renowned general and popular hero to young and old, Tariq ibn-Ziyad, has led an expeditionary force to the new world to do battle with the pagan, barbarian Visigoths. The barbarians were defeated handily by the expert tactics and power of Tariq's forces.

The Arabian fleet transporting General Tariq's forces was commanded by famous sailor, Sinbad, the first Arabian to make a voyage to the new world some years earlier. Sinbad's seven earlier voyages have become the stuff of legends, and was the obvious choice to command this historic fleet. The fleet was the first to make use of new Bulgarian shipbuilding technology that for the first time was able to accommodate the large number of troops, colonists and supplies necessary for such an expedition.

To reward his loyal service to the Arabian Caliph, Tariq was named governor over the new lands - called al-Andalus - with its capitol at Cordoba. The New World has proven to be more crowded than expected. Tariq's forces have encountered Vikings, Carthaginians, Indians, and Bulgarians all across the northern continent. A map of the northern continent and the borders of Arabian al-Andalus is enclosed:




Artistic and Literary Golden Age in Arabia

Under the new Caliph, Harun al-Rashid, Arabia is experiencing a golden age in literature due to the recently introduced Bulgarian printing press. The Heroic Epic retelling the many battles of General Tariq both in the new and old world has been published in Baghdad, and in Mecca The Book of One Thousand and One Nights containing the tales of Sinbad, Aladdin, and many more have been published and rapidly become best sellers.

____________________
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
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War Rages Among the Celts & Kushren

Following the Second Kushren War, Islam spread across Kushrena like wildfire. At long last the Kushren leadership forsake their Buddhist blasphemy and embraced the true revelations of Allah through his prophet Muhammad. The inflamed passions of the new converts were directed south toward their Celtic neighbors.

The conflict centered on two main complaints. First, the Celts settled in historic Kushren land violating an ancient treaty. Second, the Celts were the first nation to embrace Islam after the Arabs, and have since rejected the teachings of Muhammad instead turning back to the pre-Muhammad, Jewish faith of the Arabs. This wholesale rejection angered Muslims the world over, but it was the Kushren who first acted to right the situation.

Invading from the north the Kushren achieved many notable military victories against the Celts, in all capturing or razing three Celtic cities. The Celts appealed to Arabia for help, but they had sown their own seeds of destruction by casting off the protection of Arabia long ago. It is hoped the Celts have learned their lesson and will now return to the fold of Islam and Arabia as they once did. Only time will tell.

Viking Hordes Threaten Bulgaria

Tensions have risen in the New World as Vikings have claimed the continent to themselves and demanded the immediate withdrawal of Bulgaria. The Vikings, and their Carthaginian allies have a large military presence in the new world and New Bulgaria and al-Andalus are both in danger of invasion. No shots have thus far been fired, but there has been a rapid escalation in hostility and tension due to Viking threats.

Tsar Peter of Bulgaria has refused to bow to the threats, and the Viking imposed deadline for withdrawal has come and gone. No one is quite sure what will happen next, but Caliph Harun al-Rashid pledges his support for Bulgaria if they are attacked. The timing of the rising tensions are all the more grim in light of the soon to expire peace treaty between Arabia and the Choson. Considering the close partnership between the Choson and Vikings in recent years the Arabian military is on high alert both in al-Andalus and mainland Arabia.

Caliph Harun al-Rashid hopes the hostility can be defused without fighting, but is prepared to defend his borders if attacked.

[deity]

AD 1304

A Buddhist philosopher sits by the sandy shores and allows the thoughts to enter his mind.

Ageless memories, inertia, static planet.

Always a Buddhist nation, always friendly, always adventurous, the Choson despair for equality. Efforts to balance settlement of the new world are now failing. The little western nations are too afraid to do anything at all, save the scraps they receive from the big powers. All is quiet on the western front but in the new world the brave and fearsome Vikings stand firm and make threats to the big powers who are now settling the northern continent of the new world. But who else has the ability to help? The Choson are not in the northern continent and it is in their interests to maintain peace to allow continued expansion - only India and Carthage can assist the Vikings. But are they likely to assist the mad Vikings whose leadership is in constant turmoil. It is doubtful.

It is most likely that peaceful expansion will continue by those that can.

It is most likely that no wars will occur unless the big powers attack someone. This is seemingly less likely as the big powers surge towards the future that is to come…

The anonymous philosopher muses over a graphic and can clearly see why inertia exists.

[OzzyKP]

During one of Sinbad's great voyages he comes across a great northern continent previously unknown and uncharted. Within just a few days sail from the Carthaginian homeland this new land is large and thus far unclaimed. With room for untold thousands, Sinbad wonders out loud whether this, together with the possessions in the New World will satisfy the cravings for land by the barbarian Viking hordes and their more civilized Carthaginian ally.

[Robert]

Ajatashatru became King after Ila became too old to lead India.

Ajatashatru was born in the times of peace.
There were no enemies in those days. That's why Ila named his son Ajatashatru, which means: "Without enemies"

Ila had brought the Indians to Tan.
He feared that new wars might be fought on Tan, after the Vikings started agression against the Bulgarians. Ila's instructions to Ajatashatru were to keep peace and lead his people. Then his thoughts became darker and he wandered in a world in which he didn't recognize one day from another day.

Ajatashatru besieged the throne from that day on.

[OzzyKP]

FOURTEENTH SESSION 1334 AD

India(Gandhi) - CyberShy
Egypt(Ramses) - condor223
Vikings(Ragnar Lodbrok) - Mark_Weston
China(Qin Shi Huang) - AI
Choson(Wang Kong) - Deity
Inca(Huayna Capac) - Levi_the_Oracle
Kushren(Napoleon Boneparte) - AI
England(Victoria) - Nicoya1
Celts(Brennus) - dacole
Arabs(Saladin) - OzzyKP
Carthage(Hannibal) - Rykoffe
Bulgaria(Cyrus II) - Toni


Session 14 Number of Cities (since session 13)

Choson - 13
Arabs - 12 (+1)
Bulgaria - 11
Inca - 10
China - 10
Kushren - 9
Vikings - 9
India - 8 (+2)
England - 8 (+1)
Egypt - 7 (+1)
Celts - 7 (+1)
Carthage - ? (PLEASE help me out i can't see their city list since they are a vassal)

[Levi_the_Oracle]

I sat in my place, and I listened to the endless droning of the Confucian Prophet. I was expected to sit through what seemed to be an endless series of affairs of state politely, and applaud in all appropriate places. But my mind belonged to the jungle. I was looking in the general direction of the speaker and despite the fact that I had to at least appear to be paying attention to him, I was allowed to let my gaze wander about the area. Eventually I noticed a large bell the missionary brought with him cast an intriguing reflection.

I was bored out of my mind. This crazy guy wanted the people at his party to follow his faith or some terrible fate awaited them in the afterlife. He kept telling me the door was open now, and if made the decision to accept his truth, I could enter through the door. But also that the door could close at any moment, that once closed could not be reopened. Apparently it was a bad thing to be on the wrong side of this metaphorical door.

I stared at the reflection on the bell out of sheer boredom. At first I had no idea what I was looking at. The light was playing tricks and the image shifted in a pattern I began to recognize as the branches of trees being blown by the wind, back and forth across each other. I stared at the trees in a sort of transfixed state, a congenial smile plastered on my face, but my mind dreamed of the trees. How could the speaker realize my heart already belonged to a different kind of god?

The Priest had this book with him, and he passed one out to everyone at the event. He read from the book and often quoted from various chapters and verses, and I politely opened the book and read along with him as did everyone. One older man told the priest that he did not want to see his book, but the priest was pushy and forced it upon him. The old man put the book on the seat next to him and never touched it again. He did not sing any of the songs the Priest asked us to sing. In fact, he looked like he did not want to be there at all, but he never interrupted as the Cleric prattled on, politely allowing the man his say.

But not all the people at the state affair thought the Prophet was preaching to the wrong group. Several of the young people in the room were listening intently and one young lad in particular seemed to be reading the book eagerly.

The bell I stared at also appeared to fascinate two young girls, they sat on the bell’s support structure and swung their skinny legs back and forth like little clocks counting off how long the priest could keep up his lecture. The reflection of the trees in the wind and the legs of the girls swinging back and forth fascinated me, and I was so bored I began to wonder if it was really the distorted image of the legs of the girls who’s reflection I had been staring at.

After the state dinner with the Confucian Missionary, I had a meeting with my military commanders. They had been demanding a lot of my attention recently. The army had been marching back and forth across the nation. First the Carthaginian army moved south through our territory, and our army was ordered to follow it. Then they turned around and went home, with no bloodshed at all, and our army followed. Then the tensions to the south arose and the army was ordered to once again march across the nation on the newly built jungle roads.

The Army arrived at the lost city of Machu Picchu and made camp on the outskirts of the city. They barely had time to set up their pavilion before the Indians and Chinese attacked the Bulgarians. I wanted to end the war as quickly at possible, lest it get out of hand so I ordered the army to attack the Chinese after they had joined the Indians in their attack on the Bulgarians. They found the Chinese city of Chengdu well defended by Chinese military units of a type no Incan soldier had ever before seen. But the Incan Druids manning the catapults were of a type the Chinese military had never seen before either and they took the city.

Before their victory celebration had been completed, I ordered them north in response to the Vikings amassing units at our boarder. Once again the army marched north, now cheered as heroes. No sooner did they arrive at their northern base, then the Chinese attempted to retake Chengdu. Once again the army was ordered to march south. The local militia were able to repel the Chinese attempt to bring the city of Chengdu back under Chinese control without the support of the main army.

[Robert]

The wedding of Abhijit, Prince of India, with Magdalena, Princess of Bulgaria

Arjunaday, Rhobuary 14th, 1334 AK (After Krishna)
The Church of Nativity in Krishnai



The bride was dressed as an Indian bride, to please the Indians, which was appreciated!


The prince was wearing his royal uniform


The service started with the famous Choir of Brahman.
They sang their famous anthem about the creation of Terra by Brahman, which was an alternate, hinduistic, version of the original Indian creation myth.

When earth was cold
When Terra was without life
When Earth was empty
Sun errupted flames

The sun errupted flames upon the earth
When the sun errupted flames upon the earth
Then the sun errupted flames upon the earth
As it was told by Brahman

Terra was heated by the flames of Brahman
For thousands of years Terra was heated by the breath of our lord
There's fire all over Terra
Brahman, it was him who heated up our earth

Then the fires ceased the be
The face unvealed was shocking me
Creatures of beginning of time
Were crawling the place that were heated by fire

The small animals began to multiply
By the grace of Brahman they started to multiply
they multiplied to honor Brahman the great.

Then man was born and walked on two legs
They used their brains and used their legs
They feared our lord Brahman
They were the smartest the most wise
And they named themselves the Indians, to rule all life!
Hail Brahman

original Indian creation story



After the choir finished this beautifull and ancient song the church errupted into applause.
Then the bride and the groom kneeled in front of the Krishnian Vicker who said:

We are here to celebrate the eternal binding of [name], Prince of India and [name], Princess of Bulgaria.
We are here to connect their hearts
We are here to connect the heart of [name] with [name]
And to connect the heart of [name] with [name]
And to connect [name] and [name] with Krishna, honored be his name!

Krishna has gathered you and brought you here!
May he lead your lifes and bless the offspring of your loins.
May he protect you and let his face shine above you and give grace to you!

Abhijit, will you take Magdalena as your lawfull wife and leader her and protect her and do all the things that a true krishnian man will do to lead her and serve her?

Abhijit: Yes, I will, during the days of grace and the days of pain I will lead her and help her and protect her and serve her.

Magdalena, will you follow your lawfull husband, love him, take care of him, bring forth many children and serve your family?

Magdalena: Yes, I will obey him and serve him and love him and protect him.

Then I pronounce you to be man and wife!

All people in the church cheered!

You may kiss the bride

Then they kissed. The kiss sealed the binding between man and woman as it sealed the relation between India and Bulgaria. The troubles of the past were forgotten, a bright new future was ahead of them.