Acadia is a nation in Nova Europa (OTL North America). Its natural resources include timber and fertile farmland. It shares borders with Nova Roma, the Shawnee Territories and Nova Albion. As a member of the League of Nations, Acadia is widely considered to be an influential player on the global and galactic stage.
 
History[]
Prior to the arrival of Europeans in the Americas, Acadia was occupied by many Iroquoian and Algonquian tribes. When the first Roman settlers arrived in the area in the 620s CE, having moved north from Nova Roma, they were met with stubborn resistance. However, crushing defeats at Nova Lutetia and Ratirontak Mountains, plus the effects of smallpox, showed the tribes that they could not possibly hope to win the war against Roma. Guerrilla resistance continued, making it difficult for the Romans to establish any major settlements. An attempt to build a railway into the region in 644 failed after the tracks were repeatedly torn up by native warriors, and crops were regularly looted. Slowly, the tribes were eliminated, but the Roman legions found it difficult to fight in coniferous forests (Teutoburger Wald, anyone?) and casualties were severe.
' The native tribes seemed doomed until the Roman invasion of Nova Albion in 659. Nova Albion's president Augustus Numerius turned to the local tribes for men to fight for them, in exchange for modern weapons and equipment. This was good news for the natives, since despite having stolen a few arquebi from Roman troops, they were desperately short of ammunition. Using such tactics as ambushes and hit-and-run raids, they wore down the Roman troops enough to decisively defeat them at the Battle of Nova Londinium. At the Treaty of Nova Londinium in 666, Roma was forced to accept the sovereignty of the Acadian tribes.'
' Major changes were underway in Acadia itself. Tribal longhouses and palisades began to be built from stone, not wood, and greatly increased in size. Some chiefs began to build multiple longhouses in a small area, emulating the walled cities of the European settlers. Arquebi replaced bows for war, but not for hunting, since ammunition was scarce. Most importantly of all, crops began to be grown inside the new towns. The shift to agriculture had begun, though this was a slow process that continued until around 692, when hunting was no longer used as a major source of food.'
' No longer drawn together against the common enemy of Roma, the Algonquian and Iroquoian tribes began to fight each other again, now with arquebi and in much greater numbers. Nova Albion, who had been expanding west ever since the war with Roma, saw an excellent opportunity to attack Acadia and capture the land for themselves. The invasion, in 679, came as an utter shock. Soon much of Acadia north of the Kaniatarowanenneh River (OTL St Lawrence River) had fallen to the forces of Nova Albion, who were using similar tactics to the Acadians in the wars against Roma. The remaining Iroquois and Algonquian chiefs met in 684 to discuss the future of their nation, and decided the best thing to do would be to forget their differences and merge into one nation, under the leadership of an Algonquian, Ahanu.'
' The new Acadian army was able to drive Nova Albion back, and by 687 was pushing into their territory. Not wanting any more trouble, Nova Albion sued for peace. The main condition of the peace terms was that Nova Albion would expand no further into Cree or any other Native American territory, and would have to be satisfied with its present lands (largely barren wilderness). Nova Albion reluctantly accepted, resigning itself to a future as a minor nation with little arable land. Acadia, conversely, had gained control of everything either side of the Kaniatarowanenneh river from the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean - its entire modern Earth possessions.'
' Ahanu established himself as Emperor of Acadia, with his capital at Tiohtià:ke (OTL Montréal). His regime was short-lived, and a military coup in 691 deposed him and exiled him to the wild lands, never to be seen again, though an impostor attempted to take control in 695. The main impact of his brief rule was the introduction of coins to Acadia, leading to trade and commerce, but also to a large amount of vice. Elections were held for senators and a president every year, like in Nova Albion, though these were corrupt and unfair until around 735, when laws were passed to stamp out bribery. Only men over the age of 18 could vote.'
' Throughout the 8th century, Acadia grew and flourished. Tiohtià:ke grew to encompass the entire island, with a population of around 1,100,000, making it one of the largest cities in the Americas. The fur trade became profitable, selling pelts to Europeans in exchange for glass and metal. Relations with Roma stabilised, and Nova Albion became too toothless to be a threat. Steam railways were built along the length of the realm, and the first Acadian steamship, the warship Mohawk, was launched in 754 from the thriving port of Kouchibouguac, population 400,000, built from a tiny Mi'kmaq fishing village.'
' A notable engineering achievement of the Industrial Revolution (as the period is known in Acadia) is the Kaniatarowanenneh rail bridge, running from the south bank of the river through Tiohtià:ke to the north bank. Completed in 786, it vastly reduced transport times of goods travelling from the north bank of the river to the south bank, and on to the Roman colonies. Compulsory, free schooling between the ages of six and 12 was also introduced for boys in 743, and free healthcare for children, war veterans and the elderly in 768. Town watch were recruited to keep cities in order, and crime rates fell.'
Since Acadia did not have raw materials to be mined, factories of the sort common in other parts of the world were rare in Acadia. Consequently, the Industrial Revolution does not have the sort of bad reputation that it has elsewhere. Instead, it is viewed as a time of great improvement and reform.
'When electricity began to be used in the late 9th century, Acadia was quick to fit its cities with electric lights, trains and telegraphs, which quickly replaced the unreliable carrier pigeons used before. The invention of the telephone in 912 was a global sensation, and public telephone boxes were built in major cities. Other concerns were being sidelined at this time, however. Tiohtià:ke was becoming overcrowded, with a population of 3,800,000 crammed on to the island which had housed 1,100,000 just 100 years before. Cholera had become a problem from poor sanitation. Women demanded the vote, and free education. The Roman Empire was disintegrating, and mutinous stirrings began in the colonies. As the railway from Tiohtià:ke across Nova Albion was finished, people wondered how much longer Acadia would be a great nation...
The problem of overcrowding in Tiohtià:ke was solved relatively painlessly, with the installation of improved sewers under the city and the construction of new neighbourhoods on both sides of the river. Women were eventually given free education in 957, and the vote in 964. But the third problem was dangerous indeed, leading to the First Global War in 979.
Acadia did not participate in the war until 984, when it joined on the side of the Rebels. Around 300,000 Acadian troops perished, but civilian casualties were minimal. When the war ended in 988, Acadia was in a very strong position. The new Republic of Nova Roma was a close ally, and a whole new level of innovation begun with the commercialisation of motorcars, aeroplanes and airships. Roads were metalled, and oil became an important commodity. Women began to take up professional jobs. The health service was extended to include the entire population. By the end of the first millennium, Acadia was a modern nation.