Vojiskiy War

The Vojiskiy War (: Войский Война, : Війська Війський, : Войская вайна, : Vojiskiy rata, : Vojiskis karas, : Vojiskis karš), also referred to as the Second Yarovan Civil War (: Вторая яровская гражданская война), was a fought in the former Vojiskiy Empire between imperial and republican forces, with various ethnic separatist movements fighting on each side. The two largest forces in the conflict were of the Vojiskiy Imperial Army (Яровская Императорская Армия), formed mainly of rural farmers and monarchists loyal to the reigning Tsar Fridrik III, and the Republican Front (Республиканский фронт), primarily comprised of industrial workers and soldiers returning from the Grand Campaigns. Towards the end of the war, there were occurrences where certain factions were fighting both sides, such as the Legija Death Corps and the Kartvelian National Army. The majority of the fighting took place in the south-western, north-western, and north-eastern fringes of the Vojiskiy Empire, where the republicans garnered sizeable support from separatists desiring independence. tactics were the most common form of combat until an organised fighting force could be assembled in late-1922 by the republican forces. After the capital was taken by republican forces, most imperial forces became concentrated in eastern Yarova Proper where they garnered the support of the navy, rural Yarovar farmers, and some eastern minorities such as, , and. The majority of imperial forces surrendered on 28 January 1926, just 15 days after the fall of the Imperial Palace. However, imperial loyalists would continue to fight in Yarova Proper up until 17 November 1926, when the fortified city of Pervouborg in Yadryshkina was finally seized by republicans. Kholak volunteers would continue clashing with Vojiskiy loyalists in the north until the spring of the following year. The remnants of the Vojiskiy Imperial Navy would  rule over Tolima until 1931, and the Legija Death Corps would fight with isolated imperial loyalists in southern Yarova and the United Provinces of Rovsnoska and Zaporizhia until 1929.

Background
Signs of the sprawling Vojiskiy Empire's decay had been showing since the early 20th century, with the most significant of these being the defeat of the Imperial Army at the hands of rebels in Lestykhol's War of Independence in 1920. Whilst engaging in war with the Kholaks, the Vojiskiy Empire decreased its manpower considerably upon its entry into the Grand Campaigns on the side of Vallis. The challenging nature of both respective conflicts exerted tremendous strain on the empire's resources, causing their personnel to be highly under-equipped which proved a severe blow to morale. Unsurprisingly, the empire plummeted into a financial crisis and, in 1921, a famine had begun to spread like wildfire, claiming the lives of over 70,000 people in a mere timeframe of six months. The acute shortages of food supplies also impacted soldiers on the frontlines in Western Artemia and only resulted in increased taxation on the empire's crippled working class. The ever-widening wealth gaps in Yarovan society, along with the mounting death toll at home and abroad, gave the republican cause unprecedented traction. By mid-1921, republican and separatist movements had started to utilise small-scale guerrilla tactics, which prompted an unsparing crackdown by the empire. On 16 April 1922, more than 650 vocal republican advocates in the city of Yumarapol were executed by firing squad in an event now known as the Trials of Yumarapol. Notable radical republican leaders Nikita Dmitrievich and Gima Dadei, who were both largely responsible for the popularisation of their ideology, were among those who lost their lives during the trials. As a result, rioting broke out in several key locations across the empire against the imperial government and was formally declared on 14 April 1922. In accordance with this, Vojiskiy soldiers at war in Western Artemia were called home to counter the growing insurgency.

Formation of the Yarovan Republican Front
In late-1922, imperial forces were drawn out of Kryzhelovschina owing to an unrelenting onslaught of republican combatants. This decision cleared an area in which the republican forces could begin organising an army for a unified offensive against the imperialists. A substantial number of imperial soldiers who were captured during the Battle of Kirawsk began to join the ranks, a great many of whom fought in the Grand Campaigns. Vladimir Simakin, one of the first members of the republican inner-circle and a war veteran, was tasked with the formation and commandeering of the republican forces. The new army of the Yarovan republicans became known as the Republican Front, and commenced an active policy of conscription by late-1923. The Republican Front quickly gained the support of Raudonasis Judėjimas in the north-west, the Rovski-Zaporizhian Revolutionary Army in the south, volunteers from Lestykhol, and the Kartvelian National Army with the promise of honouring Kartvelian nationalism, and out of this on June 23rd signed the United Front Pact, guaranteeing each nation independence of their ethnic lands on the basis of that they fight alongside the Republicans against the imperialists. The Union of Communists fought alongside the republicans until their betrayal in 1924. Lestykhol was initially hesitant to support the Yarovan Republican Front, however, the prospect of being ceded additional territory, along with the reality of an Imperial Naval blockade, convinced the Kholaks to join the war in early-1924. The last and most deadly guerrilla incident was a bombing in the of Chaykoboksarsk on 24 February 1924, which claimed the lives of 53 people and injured hundreds more.

Unification of Imperial Forces and Operation Virgate
During the early stages of the conflict, the Imperial Armed Forces were awaiting the reinforcement of troops returning from the frontlines of Western Artemia before making any major assaults. However, this strategy would show to be ill-advised, allowing for the organisation and mobilisation of the republican forces. Another significant disadvantage for the Vojiskiy forces was the staging of a by far-reaching elements of the returning units, purportedly due to the inhumane conditions they were subjected to and the devastating impact of the famine on their families. General Mikhail Pleshkov, who described the fallout from the mutiny as a "hornet's nest", took the unforeseen decision to withdraw troops from southern Peremorovka, Leont'yevskaya, southern Khomustatskaya, and large areas of the Governorate of Rovsnoska. This plan of action was materialised with the undertaking of Operation Virgate (Операция Виргейт) on 5 September 1922, which included the posting of troops in hundreds of garrisons on the western frontier of the imperialist heartlands in central Yarova Proper, from Abramivka to Kubyshevsk. Operation Virgate is regarded by historians as having been both beneficial and disastrous, as it enabled the Imperial Armed Forces to secure a unified front and prevented isolated units from being overrun, but also opened up more territory for the Republican Front to continue to expand.

Aftermath
The Vojiskiy Empire was dissolved after the war ended, and the United Federated Districts of Yarova was established. A large portion of the infrastructure was destroyed and millions of civilians were killed, wounded or left homeless. The newly-established Yarovan government went back on many of their promises of ceding land to the breakaway nation of Kartvelia and land claimed by Lestykhol.