Dust Belt

Not to be confused with the Great Western Desert Belt, of which the Dust Belt is a subregion of.

The Dust Belt is a geographical area that comprises the entirety of Eastern Haven. The region takes it's name from the powerful dust storms in the savannahs and deserts of, primarily, Aldane. The Dust Belt is bordered by the Sea of Jcon and the Pirate Sea to the east, the Kushite Sea to the north, the Baldic Sea, the Heart of Haven and the Sanctuary Mountains to the west and the Savernian Jungle in the south. The western border of the region is variously defined, however there is a general area of separation. The highest point in the region is Mount Zhaskgrod, standing at 4307 meters tall, in Ironhold.

Etymology
The name 'Dust Belt' was coined during the end of the Second Republic of Chevkri by it's Apex Chidius, referring to the powerful sandstorms that occur in the region.

Pre-Athinische Arrival
The original name of region was 'Maqri'. It's etymology and meaning is fully unknown however there exists some theories that cite Chevkri mythology and folklore, hypothetizing that 'Maqri' is or something related to 'Maqrish', the forgotten Ninekh god of War. They reason that the region may be named after him due to the Ardatian invasions or the native raids.

Post-Athinische
Following the arrival of the Aetherians, they briefly gave it their own name, 'Umbria'. This name was in fact the name of the region the Aetherians settled in, however the migrants were unaware. This name would be quite brief as when the Qeshbago and the Umbrians chose to unite, their union was named the 'Holy Chevkri Empire'. It would be through this name that this region would be named 'Chevkri'.

Late Kingdom of Chevkri
During the Late Kingdom of Chevkri, the name 'East Haven' became much more popular among the mainly Auroran emigrant or Auroran-tied government who, thanks to their ties, used their influence to impose this name on the region.

Modern Times
The name 'Dust Belt' was coined near the end of Chevkri, being used ever since not simply because it is easy to remember, but to distance nations like Aetheria or Nullaria from Chevkri.

Definitions and Boundaries
The different boundaries for the Dust Belt, going from most accepted to least accepted Black: Lünefeller Line

Red: Ursus Line

Green: GWDB Line

The boundaries of the region have always been disputed however the general area it comprises is pretty accepted, with it the fact that it includes Kutaiyara, Nebula, Nullaria, Aetheria, Montroig, Alokhrad and Dande being widely agreed on. Various seperations from the rest of Haven have been proposed, with the Ursus Line being the oldest of them that is still used on some maps and definitions.

Original Boundary
The original boundary of the Dust Belt infact only stretched from the Meramhold Plateau down to the Nul'lari desert as the north was considered part of the Cat's Claw Peninsula and the south part of Lietmarg. This definition of the region was due to the area being under the First Kingdom of Jcon and generally underpopulated. It was also not helped that the entire need for a definition of the region only came with the Qeshbago Dynasty, who set the boundaries as such to fit their needs as they wished.

Cat's Claw Peninsula
The Cat's Claw Peninsula, as stated, used to not be part of the region. However, as time passed, it became the most known and recognizable area of the Dust Belt. It was with little controversy that the peninsula was considered a territory within the Dust Belt, however many Aetherian nationalists pushed for it's seperation from the Dust Belt in recent times due to their wish to distance themselves from Chevkri and Dara Lumonde.

Tamji
Tamji is the single most disputed area in terms of setting a boundary for the Dust Belt. In many maps at first, it was not even included. However, slowly, with the partition of Andros, Tamji appeared more and more. However, some still said that it was not part of the Dust Belt, and those who did agree it was within it's borders, could not agree where it's borders ended. The Ursus line argues it ends on the Chevkri border, while the Lünefeller line argues it ends with the Greater Nul'lari desert.

Qeshbago Dynasty
Main article: Qeshbago Dynasty

Holy Chevkri Empire
Main article: Holy Chevkri Empire

Chevkri Republic
Main article: Chevkri Republic

Uldarashi Civil War
Main article: Uldarashi Civil War

Union of Haven
Main article: Union of Haven

Aetherian Revolution
Main article: Aetherian Revolution

Dara-Lumonde
Main article: Dara-Lumonde

Politics
There exists only three democracies in the Dust Belt, being Kutaiyara, Alfheim and Montroig, as the rest are monarchies. Monarchism in the region has been a very disputed ideology as previously to the formation of the Kingdom of Chevkri, the only real Monarchist state (that did not host elections, such as Qeshbago) was the Umbrian Empire. Throughout the region's early history, it was was ruled solely by the Republic of Chevkri, an authoritative republic. When Alfheim formed and Montroig seceded, there now existed two more democracies in the region. Alokhrad's independence created the first monarchy in the Dust Belt in a long time. Though, calls for monarchism had not faded away with the Holy Chevkri Empire as Umbrian loyalists still wished for the return of the Czardom. Their calls for monarchism, however, would be realized in a fashion they did not hope for. The Aurorans that migrated into Chevkri quickly took control of the government and it went from an authoritative republic to a military junta during and following the Uldarashi Civil War. With Smartaholic retiring from power, Neon took power and declared the Kingdom of Chevkri.

This Kingdom would be shortlived, and so would his reign, as the Northern Uprising put an end to both and put the final Apex, Chid, in power. The Second Republic was formed and democracy lived on until it's collapse. Then, five new Kingdoms formed along with two new democracies. The region, by this time, was ruled by the Union of Haven. The Union of Haven was a parliamentary republic and a democracy, however the states were reserved the right to choose their own government systems. Thus, monarchies prevailed once again. This new order would remain for the rest of the Dust Belt's history as monarchies dominated over democracies.

Ethnic cleansing in the Cat's Claw Peninsula
Ethnic cleansing in the Cat's Claw Peninsula has taken place very uncommonly throughout it's history, used only as a last resort tool. The only cases of ethnic cleansing in the Dust Belt are in the Ironhold Genocide, the Russantia Genocide, the Areus Genocide, the Zhaitker Genocide and the Suedlande Genocide. These genocides were most often caused by sky-high tensions following territorial or cultural disputes.

Ironhold Genocide
The Ironhold Genocide was caused by the Paragonite invasion of Umbria and the formation of Paragonite Chevkri, and the following instability within the territory. With the territory occupied, the Aetherians living within the lands caused great trouble for the occupying forces. For many years, the Aetherians remained as the vastly dominant ethnic group, refusing to assimilate. Much of the occupying government's actions were blocked by unrest, and this continued following the formation of Ironhold. The government of Ironhold had to come to a decision on how to deal with this, and they saw no other solution but resorting to barbarian acts of massacre.

Russantia Genocide
The Russantian Genocide had much of the same causes as the Ironhold Genocide, however the circumstances were different to incredible proportions. The Aetherians in the territory controlled by Elys following the Second Umbrian Civil War constituted 98% of the population of the city and held most of the local government positions. The Elysene government had, in the past, tried to identify their state as Umbrian. Their efforts were in vain, and the same unrest present in Ironhold persisted here.

Areus Genocide
The Areus Genocide was, to say the least, a long time coming. Tensions between the central Chevkri government and the Aetherians/Umbrians had reached untenable heights long before the genocide. It was undertaken as a very last resort to restore stability to the north, however wrong the central government deemed it. The dissolution of Umbria and replacement by Areus, additionally removing all Umbrians from the Areus government, was the stepping stone to undertaking the Genocide and would be the origin for the Northern Uprising.

Zhaitker Genocide
The Zhaitker Genocide, to say the least, was one of the easiest and fastest. The locals had been a nuisance to the Aetherian government and their elimination and replacement by ethnic Aetherians would have greatly stabilized the peninsula. Although they were friendly to the Aetherian government, many of the actions to come would have largely changed that.