Overview[]
Arul is a island superpower located on two mid Atlantic landmasses in a alternate Earth. It has 2.3 billion people living there and is a major ally of the United States. Arul is also a major player in world politics.
History Part One: Prehistory[]
Arul is on a large landmass in the middle of the Atlantic. The first people arrived there at about 50,000 BC. It is believed that they were shipwrecked cave people that had tried to build a ship but failed. People think that the people came from the area around what is now New York City. Anyway, the people there spread throughout the landmass, and ancient texts call the landmass Arul, which is why it is the modern day name. There is evidence that the people in Arul were farmers and hunters, because cave drawings have been found showing people growing wheat, and also of people hunting wild boars.
History Part Two: 1,000 BC[]
Arul never really had a government until 1,000 B.C. That is when they created their government, the Imperial Monarchy of Arul. Around this time, they also conscripted the first army, which consisted of about 1,000 soldiers. At 995 BC, some native Americans were shipwrecked on the coast of Arul and taken prisoner by soldiers, and then shortly released and taken to the emperor. The emperor asked them where they were from and they explained that they were from America, and they showed some of their goods, including corn. The Arulians gave the natives a boat to return home in exchange for some corn plants. All this had been documented by the royal scribe, a mysterious figure who had the job of keeping track of everything. By now, Arul had a capital city, Lewport.
History Part Three: 380 AD[]
380 AD is a important year in Arulian history because it marks the first war. The war was between the native Americans, who were looking to expand, and the Arulians, who were trying to protect their borders. It all started with the siege of Lewport, where a small native American navy blockaded Lewport, keeping the Arulians from trading. They had been trading with the other native tribes until now. The emperor demanded the natives leave Lewport but instead they fired arrows at the soldiers in the port. The Arulians responded by firing flaming arrows at the native ships and sinking them. It seemed like the end of the battle. But a month after the incident, more ships approached, heading to the southern shores. The Arulians sent a force of spearmen and archers, but they were forced to retreat because of being outnumbered. The natives tried to siege Lewport again, but could not make it through the forest and to Lewport without being killed by Arulian archers, and they retreated, ending the war.
History Part Four: Age of Expansionism[]
It was 1560 AD, and nothing much happened, other then wars with the native Americans. That would change soon though. The Spaniards landed a ship on the eastern shores of Arul and offered to trade. Arul had high levels of silver, even though it was not worth much to Arulians, since their currency used nickel instead. The Spanish offered to give them a boatload of nickel in exchange for a boatload of silver. Since the Arulians really had no use for the silver they agreed, exchanging silver for nickel. Using the extra money, they expanded the port at Lewport, which was the only port in Arul. In addition, the Arulians discovered what was going on in Europe, with the wars and all. They allied themselves with the Spanish, their best trading partners, and donated money to them to help them in their wars.
In a few hundred years comes 1776, the Revolutionary War. Arul sided with the Americans, as they wanted a chance to knock off the natives. In this version of the war, the Arulians sent soldiers to fight for the Americans, and taught them guerilla warfare, helping them win the war two years earlier. The British were also so intimidated that they did not start the war of 1812, as they did not want another war between America and Arul. By now, Arul had more trading partners and was growing richer and richer.
When the Civil War began, Arul sided with the Union because the Union was more profitable to side with. They turned the war into a total victory for the Union by landing ships in Virginia and surrounding Richmond. Arulian infantry plus Union artillery bombings forced the confederates to retreat and leave Richmond for the taking. Their retreating army was finished off by the Union soldiers. This is also around the time when the government got way more powerful. They expelled the Anarchist Party, a dangerous group that was threatening to revolt. In addition, they dissolved the parliament, giving all the power to the dictator.
Part Five: The Modern Days[]
World Wars I and II came and passed without the help of Arul. This was before Arul became a power in Europe. They began to become a European power in 1962. It was when the USSR sent missiles to Cuba, and told them to attack Arul. Arul was a major economic ally of the U.S.A, and the USSR wanted to hurt them. They attacked Silverwell, a major city on the northern landmass, with a ballistic missile. The missile hit and destroyed a military base, and destroyed many residential buildings. The Arulian people were outraged and demanded that the army invade Cuba. They did.(See Invasion of Cuba) A few days after Arul was bombed, they struck back by carpet bombing Havana, using their military tactic of repeating whatever attack the enemy used on them, only worse. They captured Fidel Castro and executed him. NATO officially condemned their actions, but did not do anything because Arul had helped them. With Fidel Castro gone, Che Guevara stepped in as Cuban leader. The Arulians invaded western Cuba. By now, they were a dynamic army that could deploy anywhere in the world because of their air vehicles. There were months of fighting and nobody could gain a inch, but eventually, the Arulians broke through Cuban lines and captured the empty shell of a city that is Havana. Che Guevara escaped and lived the rest of his life in hiding. It is rumored that he moved to Jamaica and changed his name.
The Arulians also helped the Americans in Vietnam.(See Arulian Vietnam Intervention)
Post Cold War History[]
During the Cold War, nobody else messed with Arul because they realized that Arul was a military power. That was, until the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Arul sent a commando squad(called a AirLand Team, but more on that later.) after the Soviets and helped the insurgents in the war. They did sabotage, attacking Soviet convoys with landmines, and they also supplied weapons to the insurgents. With Arulian help, the insurgents earned a quicker and more complete victory.
After all this, Arul was relatively war free, except for sometimes helping the U.S. When the war on terror started, Arul helped the U.S, and they still are in Afghanistan to this day.
Currently they are invading Pakistan.(See Arulian Invasion of Pakistan)
This section will be updated as Arul interacts with the rest of the world.
Economy[]
Arul has a market economy. They make money by producing and exporting goods. The official currency is the Nickel Dollar, even though paper money is used to. Their GDP in 2012 was ten trillion dollars. On the southern landmass there is also a large technology manufacturing sector, which is growing every day. The exchange rate for American Dollars and Nickel Dollars is about one dollar for one nickel dollar. Also, during the 70s, people began to invest in Arul and it is now a country where people invest in its companies.
Nickel Dollar. Actual size.
There are several large gonernment owned companies like Arul Rail.
Military[]
Government[]
The Arulian Government is made out of five regions. Northeast, Northwest, Southeast, Southwest, and Far South. The government rules by passing down orders from the president to the regional official to the local officials where orders are put into action. The way the president is elected is that a army official from every area votes on the president. The president, once elected, is elected for life and has unlimited powers. The government headquarters is the Arul Building, in Lewport.
There is one other part of the government, the Legal Branch. This branch decides if criminals are guilty or not and runs the courts. Unlike America, there is no jury. It is entirely up to the judge to decide. There is a death penalty in Arul, and it is given out for conspiring against the government or for political sabotage.
Leader[]
See Fritz Wilhelm
Sports[]
Arul is a sports country, spending lots of money on their national sports teams. Internationally, their best sport is basketball. But at home the most popular sport in the country is American football, which was brought to Arul by American immigrants. They have a pro league called the Arulian Football League(AFL). There are fifteen teams and the season length is eighteen games. The playoffs have a divisional round, a semifinal round, and a championship round. Their season begins in September and the playoffs are in January, with the championship game being in March.
List of AFL teams
Lewport Arulians: went 16-2 last season. Are currently national champions.
Lewport Mariners: went 15-3 last season and made it to semifinals.
Silverwell Miners: went 10-8 last season and made it to quarterfinals.
Northwest Hawks: went 12-6 last season and made it to national championship.
South Arul Warriors: went 16-2 before being beat in semifinals by Northwest.
Mapleshade Maple Leaves: went 9-9 last season.
New Virginia Virginians: went 15-3 but were knocked out of playoffs in divisional round.
Flowtown Flyers: went 8-10 last season.
Metro City Metropolans: went 10-8 last season.
Redland Reds: went 14-4 last season.
Rockville Bulldogs: went 11-7 last season.
Spring Harbor Sailors: went 12-6 last season.
Lucan Spartans: went 16-2 last season.
Carlisle Kings: went 10-8 last season
Vanceburg Snakes: went 9-9 last season.
National Teams[]
Arul has a number of national teams too. They have won the Olympic gold medal in hockey, and did well in Euroleague basketball, finishing second in the world. In soccer, Arul is in the CONCACAF group, the same group as the U.S.A. Their team is in second place, and they will play in the FIFA 2014 world cup.
National Soccer Team[]
The Arul F.C is the official national soccer team of Arul. They have two world cup wins and five gold cup wins. They used to not be a force in the region, but recent acquisitions have made them a team to beat. Their team went 30-8 in the 2012-13 season and finished the season with a gold cup win. The home stadium of the national team is Lucan Field, a large stadium built in 2005.
Transportation[]
See Arul Rail.
See Lewport International Airport.