The Ridlemarch

The Ridlemarch (Ridder: Þe Hridtleimerk [ðɛ hrɪdt'leɪ'mərk] or Merk ov þei Hridtlaar [mərk ɔːrf ðeɪ hrɪdt'lɑː]) is a country in the Ladinotia region of Hergensia. It is one of six Ladinotian states and lies on the eastern shore of the Twilight Sea. The Ridlemarch shares land borders with Fabiana in the north, Ispanestan to the northeast, Beblatiya to the east, Jarland to the south, and Wibstra-Riddellia to the southwest. The Ridlemarch covers an area of 188,525 km2 (72,790 sq mi), with a population of 6.2 million. Its capital and largest city is Chalfont; other major cities are Romford, Barnet, Edmonton and Fleetwood. Ridders belong to the Ingerlad ethno-linguistic group and speak Ridder, one of only a few living Ingerladic languages.

For millennia the eastern shores of the Twilight Sea were inhabited by various Ingerladic tribes. The 1100s, in the wake of the Lazianosian Crusades, saw a period of intensive christianisation in The Ridlemarch. Many argue that it was this christianisation which allowed for Hemreic, a local magnate, to unite the Ridler lands on the 5 February 1135. Hemreic would swear allegiance to the Hergensian Emperor and The Ridlemarch would be a part of the Empire until after the turmoil of the Tivan Reformation, when The Ridlemarch would formally leave the Hergensian Empire, and convert to the Articuline branch of Christianity. The 17th and 18th centuries were a Golden Age for The Ridlemarch, with a flourishing of arts, literature, and philosophy. It also saw the zenith of Ridler historical power over Latinotia. However, this period was followed by stagnation and decline, and in 1835, The Ridlemarch came into a dynastic personal union the United Kingdom of Fabiana. During the Fabian Civil War, The Ridlemarch declared independence in 1915. After a war with the Illuminatory Council Nation-Republics of Fabiana, it then proceeded to fight alongside Fabiana against Serica in the Totality War, with much of The Ridlemarch being occupied and participating in brutal partisan warfare against invading Sericese soldiers. After the Totality War, The Ridlemarch was an informal satellite state of Fabiana, which ended after the 1989 Treaty of Eldland. Since 1989, The Ridlemarch has adopted increasingly Hergensophilic policies, as has grown into a modern stable country, despite the troubles of the 1990s and 2010s in Ladinotia.

The Ridlemarch is a constitutional monarchy, with its bicameral legislature being comprised of the Reevate Chamber and the Weirdmeet. It is an emerging market and a high income economy. Considered a middle power, The Ridlemarch has the second largest economy in Ladinotia by GDP (nominal) and the fourth largest by GDP (PPP). It provides high standards of living, safety and economic freedom, as well as universal health care. The country has 9 WCEHCO International Heritage Sites, 8 of which are cultural. The Ridlemarch, despite being an independent country on its creation, only joined the World Council in 1957, and is also a member of the World Trade Organisation, the Organisation of Ladinotian States, and is an observer (and potential member) of the Hergensian Commonwealth.