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.