Apalacosa

Apalacosa, or the United States of Apalacosa as it is known officially, is a nation in the northwestern part of the world. It is located on the continent of Irteka, along with the country of similar name, Irteka which Apalacosa borders to the east and shares a sea with Artzenovia in the south.

Apalacosa is known for its personal freedom, limited government interference and free market economy.

History
Apalacosa was founded in the year 1005 after a successful war against the invading Litovkans that had tried to colonize the lands. Apalacosa was originally a lone state, inhabited by ranchers and farmers. These ranchers called the neighboring territories to arms after the attempted colonization and they united into the United States of Apalacosa and went to war to protect their lands.

The War Against the Litovkans
The Litovkans won major battles in the beginning of the war as they had much more manpower and equipment, but the Apalacosan ranchers took shelter in the thick forests that cover the nation and successfully regrouped. A guerrilla war began, and the ranchers inflicted major damage on the invading forces until they were able to push them back to the newly built Litovkan city, Poloski. After a fierce battle, the Apalacosans took the government building and raised the flag. The leader of the Litovkans, Georgy Konev, was taken prisoner and officially surrendered to the forces led by Marshall Daniels. The city of Poloski was renamed the City of Victorsburgh to commemorate the heroic victory against the foreign invaders.

The Civil War of 1015
In 1015 people marched on the government building in Port Alexis, both armed and unarmed to protest the recent changes to laws by the president at the time, George Adams. Adams then ordered his loyal police force to open fire at the protesters, blaming them. This erupted into a civil war as the army commander General Dwyer ordered his forces to disobey the president's orders and to fight back against the president and his forces. The Free Army regrouped and fought back in Adamstown and later Port Alexis, winning decisively against the armed police and Republican Guard regiment. The commander of the Free Army and former President Marshall Daniels later won a snap election after the people voted to amend the constitution to let him be president again.

Regions
Apalacosa is divided into states. These states are in turn divided into smaller subdivisions called counties. Each state has their own government and laws, but must follow federal law. The state governors are elected by the people in each state.

The capital of the nation is the District of Liberty, but is commonly known as Port Alexis. It is not a part of any state. The District of Liberty is divided into boroughs.

Economy
Apalacosa is a capitalist nation with a free market economy and private ownership of the means of production. The government does very little to interfere with the market and the prices. Apalacosa has very low taxes and are only used to fund the absolute necessary things such as the military.

Infrastructure
Apalacosa has a good network of roads and railroads. The largest port in Apalacosa is the North Shore port, which handles coal, oil and mineral transportations to other parts of the country. There's also several civilian airports in the country, for example the Port Alexis-Marshall Daniels International Airport and the Mille Bay airfield.

Government
The federal government is composed of three branches, the legislative, executive, and judicial. The legislative branch is the congress which makes laws, the executive branch is the president and the judicial branch is the supreme court.

Constitution
The current constitution was signed after the victory against the Litovkans and consists of several articles. These articles describe the separation of powers, the rights and responsibilities of state governments and the relation between the government and the people of the nation. It also consists of the bill of rights, which describes rights and freedoms of the people and limitations on the government.

Military
The military of the United States of Apalacosa is split into three branches, the Army, the Air Force and the Navy. The armed forces of Apalacosa is mainly a defensive force as Apalacosa has no intentions to attack other nations.

The Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces is the President.

The Navy of the United States of Apalacosa
Each state also has its own National Guard.

Foreign relations
Apalacosa has good relations with the Irtekan Federation and the two countries signed the Treaty of Port Alexis in 1007. Apalacosa is also a member of METO together with Irteka, Artzenovia and Uzebacia. Apalacosa has diplomatic relations with several other countries, for example Carolia, Sankina and Aurillia.