Balearic War

The Balearic War (Veikan: Balari Kriga) was a primarily naval military conflict fought between the Kingdom of Veikaia and a large coalition force composed primarily of Tiperyn and Agranian vessels. It began in 4th March 1687 when a large contingent of Tiperyn and Agranan ships entered the Balearic Sea and initiated a standoff against an almost equally matched Veikan force. The Coalition force presented an ultimatum demanding the lowering of tariffs and the halting of all taxation levied against foreign merchant ships traversing the Balearic Sea, which was declined and triggered the start of the war. The conflict ended in the signing of the Treaty of Tariffs and Taxation and the signing of all demands by the royal family of Veikaia. The war directly led to the total collapse of Veikan Balearic domination, and the last portion of the Veikan golden age decline.

The primary cause for the Agranian-Tiperyn coalition was the ongoing friction between these nations and Veikaia over trade rights in the Balearic Sea, with Gardic furs and Quakaliq ivory and slaves generating large profits for the mercantile Veikan royal family. Veikaia had secured a near complete monopoly over Balearic trade thanks to excessive taxation of foreign vessels and a large fleet to back its claim to the waters. Foreign traders had already long demanded a lowering of taxation and persuasive attempts by the mercantile class to the Agranian and Tiperyn royal families are believed to have led to the creation of the coalition. Veikaia had also grown exponentially in power for the past centuries and presented a possible future threat to Tiperyn interests in the region, and Veikan traders had begun to operate at a significant scale within the Eurybian Sea also threatening Agranian trade.

Escalation towards all out war began when Tiperyn agents and merchants exchanged firearms for furs, ivory and slaves with a number of Quakaliq tribes. These Tiperyn loyal tribes then began to attack their competitors trading with Veikan merchants, inflicting heavy casualties and slowing down the Quakaliq trade due to tribal warfare. Very quickly this evolved into a proxy war as both sides continued to funnel weaponry into both sides of the conflict in an attempt to end the war and return trade to a status quo. A series of Quakaliq Fur Wars erupted from 1685 to 1691 when the last tribes loyal to the Kingdom of Veikaia surrendered or were entirely eliminated by their enemies. The tribal proxy conflict extended through the Balearic War and was the primary grounds for land combat outside of a single failed naval landing in Ostovo.

Background
One of the primary causes for the Balearic War was the increasing pressure of Veikan trade policy on foreign traders, particularly those from Tiperyn and Agrana y Griegro. Veikan traders and the royal family itself held near absolute control over trade within the sea, with large taxes and tariffs being levied to any foreign vessel traversing it. This led to increasing friction particularly with Tiperyn, and eventually with Agrana y Griegro as rich Veikan traders began to venture into the entrance of the Eurybian Sea. Traders from Veikaia grew increasingly rich from the trade of furs, ivory and Quakaliq slaves with Gardarike and tribes inhabiting what is now modern day Thuyiquakliq. Some treaties were signed that alleviated the pressure on Tiperyn traders but they were rarely observed by Veikan authorities in their entirety and as such incited the ire of the Tiperyn merchant class.

Due to these concerns, the mercantile class of Tiperyn raised several requests to the crown for intervention in the Balearic sea to force the Veikan royal family into the negotiation table and agree to better terms. The first move of the Tiperyn royal family was the intervention in the thuyiquakliq slave, fur and ivory trade through the trade of firearms in exchange of goods with tribes opposing the Sakhoy Confederation and its allies, which were aligned with Veikan traders at the time. This led to a reaction by Veikaia who in turn armed and partially trained the Sakhoy in an attempt to strengthen their position and defend the trade network across the island. This led to the beginning of a proxy war of varying intensity between various tribes opposing the Sakhoy, supported by Tiperyn, and the Sakhoy and their allies, who were supported by Veikaia. The Quakaliq Fur Wars, as they are known by modern historians, lasted over a decade and caused severe damage to trade in the region, debilitating the Veikan position in the Balearic and Boreal Seas.