The Merchant Republic of Udnor

The Merchant Republic of Udnor
The Merchant Republic of Udnor is a (generally) neutral nation of considerable wealth in Central Aelkot. The nation is descendant from a city state and owes most of its territorial gain to the peaceful annexation of lands from the Kingdom of Maesteg.

History
In the 1528 DR Caleah and The Republic of Pwllheney went to war over the ownership of Lake Udnor and the city of the same name located on its shore. This war quickly devolved into a stalemate but neither would yield. The primary battleground was the city of Udnor. By the winter of 1533 DR both belligerents were fighting in the streets for ownership of the city and it appeared that there would simply be nothing left by the end of the conflict.

Udnor had been a wealthy city prior to the conflict due to its prime location as a trading hub. A group of the wealthiest who had fled in time to avoid the worst of the conflict were living in Maesteg which had been neutral in the conflict. These wealthy merchants would become known as first Cabal. Claiming to be the benefactors of Udnor this wealthy group approached the king of Maesteg and suggested that he intervene in the conflict for humanitarian reasons. They were initially rebuked. The king of Maesteg desired to help them but lacked the army he would need to stop the conflict. Over the course of a year the Cabal was able to secure the services of a Wydal legion and they approached the king again.

In the summer of 1535 DR the Kingdom of Maesteg, with considerable support of men of Wydal, were able to overcome both the armies of Caleah and Pwllheney. They sat down to draft a treaty and the resultant agreement established Udnor as a neutral city state controlling the waters of Lake Udnor from their head to the sea. Caleah was opposed to the republican ideals of Pwllheney, but as a compromise the idea of a oligarchy ruling the neutral trading city state was agreeable to all sides.

The city state's borders fluctuated until reaching the current limits in 1573 DR with the annexation of a large part of south west Maesteg in exchange for the establishment of "proper order" among a populace too culturally removed from the ideals of the Maesteg homeland to be effectively ruled (and the clearance of a large amount of Maesteg debt).

Internal Politics
Udnor is ruled by a seven person body known as the Cabal. The Cabal consists of the wealthiest five merchants of the city and its membership can change at any moment. Every five years an election is held for the other two seats on the Cabal and those members do not change except through the elections. The Cabal is not a very active political body and there is very little legislation that is done. The last law to be passed by the Cabal was issued in 1599 DR when slavery was outlawed. It was not controversial except in the debate for whether such a thing was necessary as "The people of Udnor are not predisposed to the ownership of slaves" and "obviously such a thing would go against the spirit of well conducted enterprise, so it's more or less never going to happen anyway".

There is a large administrative system directed by the Cabal that handles taxation and tariffs as well as all legal matters. Like the Cabal the administration is extremely stable and strives to be as inactive as possible.

Economy
The economy of Udnor is extremely strong. One of the first laws in that land established a central bank, a commodity and stock exchange, and a commission to oversee them both in the spirit of free enterprise and fair transaction. These powerful financial instruments and Udnor's location make it a powerful player in global economics.

Military
The initial terms of the treaties establishing the Merchant Republic with its neighbors prohibited the nation from having a military. This was shown to be problematic in 1545 when a pretender to the throne of Colme invaded and tried to seize the city as his capitol-in-exile. The Republic of Pwllheney defended the city and championed the existence of a defensive military for Udnor.

The Merchant Republic offers letters of marque to anyone who would contribute ships to the hunting of pirates or to the defense of the Republic. These privateers are paid by their prizes or records of sinking. Small mercenary companies are offered similar compensation for the hunting of bandits and defense of the realm.

The only other time a large military force was needed came in 1583 DR when the necromancer Dortunder was able to wage war on the entirety of central Aelkot. In this conflict the Merchant Republic was able to hire mercenaries from Wydal and Ynnean and press many men into service. Since then a small professional army has been kept at the ready but they have seen no service other than bandit hunting duties.

Relations
Udnor is active in their commitment to neutrality. They are bound by treaty with the Kingdom of Maesteg, The Republic of Pwllheney, and Caleah to act only in defense. Relations with Pwllheney and Caleah are cool. Maesteg is a strong supporter of open and friendly relations with Udnor. Maesteg is in many ways dependent on Udnor, despite their disparity in size, for being a driver of economic growth.

Laws
The Merchant Republic of Udnor follows a set of laws known as the Common Code which more or less outlaws doing harm to others and failing to honor contracts. It is a sparse code of laws, contained only within a single tome. Matters of contract are considered to trump common sense and even the law in Udnor.