Bijoux

A hereditary monarchy, The Kingship of Bijoux is ruled by the royal Beaumont Family. Patrons of the arts, the Brexxon's have cultivated a libertine society filled with great art, food, wine, and music. They are known for their chivalrous nature and honesty. The Kingship of Bijoux are loyal to the Church of Halcyon, and have been for generations.

Church of Halcyon is headquartered in the City of Halcyon, and the Magistrate is highly influential to the Monarch. They have historically been one of the most isolationist nations, with all of its following Monarchs agreeing to the Arcadian Clause of 466, which states that no Monarch that rules Bijoux may trade, communicate, or form alliances with Outsiders.

Classical Era
The history of the island of Bijoux is a long, bloody, and mostly unwritten one, but still one which is worth studying and learning from. The first era of Bijoux is named the Classical Era, and has 3 distinct periods. The Aeos period, from the Year 12 to the Year 140. At this point, humans and elves had already migrated here, some fleeing from the political disorder of the mainland, some seeking a better life. The island was known to the mainland, but none of the big Empires of the time bothered to explore it. These humans and elves formed the first settlements.

These Oshira eventually evolved over the years to become the first towns, with the biggest still surviving to this day, Rennes Village. The first kingdom, Asheau, was formed, and consisted of several villages and towns mainly around the central area of the island. Asheau was made up mostly of Cirven refugees, and copied the pre-existing structure of Cirven. The second Kingdom, Kyote, was formed shortly after, made up mostly of human settlers who felt threatened that Asheau might invade their towns.

The next period would be known as the Tiki period, lasting from 141 to 302. This period saw the rapid growth and expansion of kingdoms, and the first wars breaking out. These were mostly sparked over control of the fertile Oshowa grasslands, which were easy to farm and produced over a million kilograms of wheat a month. 4 kingdoms would eventually gain power and become known as the Great Four. Asheau, Euycalse, Paola, and Qwetsn.

The Great Four would eventually form an alliance, the Quatite Entente, and would marry into each others Royal Houses, forming the basis of the Holy Bloodline, which would spark the creation of the Kingship of Bijoux. The final period of the Classical Era is the Unification period, which lasted from 303 to 334. It spans just 30 years, but is the most impactful of the 3 periods, due to its role in uniting the island of Bijoux. During this time, the 4 Great powers united to form the Commonwealth of Bijoux. This would later be renamed to the Kingship of Bijoux, as the newly-formed nation began invading or merging with other nations on the island.

Eventually, after 20 long years of conquest, Bijoux was fully united and began establishing diplomatic communications with outside nations. Meanwhile, the Holy Monarch, Alexon Beaumont, would begin his holy ascension to the throne of the Gods, leaving his seat as Holy Monarch open to his heir, Thomas Beaumont.

Ascension Era
The next era of Bijoux began with the mortal ascension of Thomas Beaumont, after he died of cardiac arrest, which would be known as the Oxzni period, lasting from 335 to 412, which brought great prosperity to Bijoux. The Kingship in these times was much more united behind the Monarch, and was much more friendly towards other nations outside of Bijoux. The Kingship during this time also began a tradition of Skywhale hunting, which would be taken on by each member of the Beaumont noble family once they turned of age. Also, several of Bijoux's signature industries, like coubu farming and wheat production, massively expanded and become extremely profitable, selling the goods to the mainland.

Eventually, this period came to an end during a time of extremely tense foreign relations with a certain nation, which would be named the Samui period. The period would last from 413 to 455. This period saw the slow decline of industries, as the cold war with Cirven caused many nations to seek their goods from elsewhere. This period also saw the development of religion in Bijoux, as some turned the financial insecurity of the time to seek answers in the supernatural.

The next period, the warring period, lasted from 456 to 466 began when the Cirven attacked Rennes Harbour, invading from the sea. The Cirven-Bijoux war had begun. Cirven immediately blockaded Bijoux, and cut it off from its supply of iron, which it desprately needed for the war. With this, the Cirven managed to corner Bijoux, which gave them the upper hand. But then, a series of harsh winters and summers came and went, and the war had to be put on hold, for 3 years. After those 3 years, Cirven emerged with an even more powerful fighting force, and crushed Bijoux in the Battle of the Red Peak.

Bijoux was forced to surrender, and had to go into a period of isolationism for 100 years, and also pay war reparations to Cirven. It was right after this period ended that the Arcadian Clause of 466 was signed, so that their isolationism was put on pen and paper. So, for 100 years, Bijoux toiled and rebuilt, whilst the world around them changed, they couldn't do anything but watch. They watched as the Ellysian menace fell, as Regnum Drakaes was unceremoniously toppled from its throne, as the Triple Entente slowly gained power. And eventually, in the Holy Year 566, Bijoux awakened once more.

Culture
The Kingship of Bijoux is protected by the Order of Arcadia, a Holy Crusader Force, commissioned by the Magister of Halcyon. The Order is considered to be a powerful force in the region, and is extremely well-trained and well-equipped. Each Holy Knight of the Order is taken from their family at birth, and forced to undergo brutal training which stretches them to their limits. The ones who make it out alive are kinghted at 16, and are fully ingrained into the order at 20.

The physical geography of the Kingship mostly consists of fertile grasslands between 2 massive rocky, snow-capped mountain ranges spanning the length of the island. The nation sits on the Yyuimsk tectonic plate, a volatile plate which smashed into the Westreach plate about 200,000 years ago, and created the 2 ranges that surround the grasslands. The only resource that the Arcadian Clause allowed states to trade is Skywhale Oil, which is found in fossils of Skywhales, which can be commonly found in the Eastern Range mountains, near to the icy south of the island. The Kingship is a relatively diverse nation, with several species of elves and humans co-existing on the island.

Fashion
Brexxoni fashion is highly informed by its cousin, Valore, and their style. However, it defers from Valoran fashion as most of its outfits are gendered. But, this does not stop Brexxoni fashion from being... fashionable. Typical everyday dresses and suits can be seen in the image to the right.

The noblewoman is wearing a simple lace dress, with a red wool overcoat draped around her arms, whilst the 2 noblemen wear simple shirts underneath everything, tucked into a pair of breeches and tied at the top with a cravat. On top of that, a layer of stockings and a waistcoat, leaving the top buttons undone to let the lace peek through. And, at the very top layer, a pastel-colour coat. In the bottom photo, we can see 2 middleclass men, obviously out on a stroll, wearing typically middle-class attire. The pants are more off-white, and are tucked into boots, instead of dance shoes. They are also carrying canes, which would usually signify that one was more worked and experienced. The top hat also symbolises upper-middle-classmanship. Their outfits are also much less pastel and much more solid coloured, with one wearing a striped yellow-lime coat, whilst the other wears a solid dark-blue coat which stretches down to his knees.

Agriculture & Aquaculture
Agriculture in the Kingship is highly developed and makes use of several technologies that are unavailable to outsiders. 95% of Bijoux's crop yield comes from the Oshowa Grasslands, which cover 60% of the total land area on the island. They mostly produce wheat, carrots, potatoes amongst other crops. Also, there are several wineries spread throughout these fields, which grow grapes and other items needed for alcohol brewing.

Animals like cows, sheep, and horses, are bred and raised in large pastures. Horses are usually used by the Order to easily traverse the island, and several competitions have been held in the past to have horse races. In lore, the main export of the Kingship is Skywhale Oil, which can power airship travel. Following that is animal products, and crops.

However, Bijoux is not just a farming nation. It also has a vibrant fishing industry. It harvests coubu from the ocean, which is a breed of salmon that is commonly found in the Westreach Sea. Coubu is widely known for its health properties and high nutrient levels, which makes it the ideal food for foot soldiers in war. Fish farms can be mostly found on the east coast of the island, and catch large hauls of coubu, salmon, and cod. However, further out to the northwest of the Island of Bijoux, past the iceberg fields, fishing vessels often catch more exotic fishes.

Architecture
Architecture often varies from town to town. Each town has its signature building style. Brexxon, situated on a cliff overlooking the Westreach Sea, is majorly made out of materials available in the area, such as brick and terracotta. Leblanc, situated around Kyote Bay, is made mostly out of wood from the forests that used to surround the area, and brick from clay deposits in the bay. Halcyon, situated on the peak of Mont-Orxello, is made out of quartz found in the mountains surrounding it, and gold, from the gold found inside the mountain.