Midlothian War
| Midlothian War | |||||||
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| Part of the Tension Wars | |||||||
 Clockwise from top:
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 Wegmat Republic of Kariba Lupis Contracting Services | |||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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| Strength | |||||||
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59
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54
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Italics denotes nations participating as diplomatic support. a. Combat was only from 2 – 23 January 2022. | |||||||
Wegmat |
| This article is part of the series |
| History of the Federal Union of Wegmat |
 Portal |
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The Midlothian War was a major war between the Chicagoland nations of the Empire of Kapreburg and the Federal Union of Wegmat. The war was the result of the aftermath of geo-political destabilization from the Great Des Plaines Valley War. The Weg Nationwide Attacks were found to be committed by Kapresh citizens who were then quickly reached out to by the Kapresh government. The Wegmat Marines invaded a colony of Kapreburg which began hostilities and resulted in a joint Weimar-Kapresh invasion of southern Wegmat. Wegmat removed foreign occupiers of Wegmat within a week. Due to logistical complications with militaries on either side, Wegmat dropped its state of war after a 4-month period without combat. The aftermath of the War resulted in a year-long period of tensions between Weimar allied nations and Weg allied nations.
Timeline
Great Des Plaines Valley War
Prelude
For the weeks leading up to the beginning of the war, Jackson I of Kapreburg had expressed a desire to declare war against Wegmat. Jackson refrained, however, stating that it would break the Treaty of New Albuquerque, article 4 of which stated that all parties involved could not wage war against each other for 6 months following the treaty's signing. The treaty would expire on 18 March 2022.
In mid-August, Kapreburg planned an invasion of Wegmat scheduled for 20 November 2021, that would involve Kapresh military units entering Wegmat from the south and the north. These units would meet in Hydrove, where they would force Wegmat to surrender. The plan was put on hold when the Weg government found out about it, and then formally abandoned once the Treaty of New Albuquerque was signed.
In early November the Federal Weimar Defense Agency drafted invasion plans for the planned invasion of Wegmat using the "winter war tactic". This tactic, being fighting in the winter, would impair the Weg war machine, and in turn, the head start would allow the occupation of the southern Weg provinces. The New German High Command composed a strategy of landing the 2nd Observation Regiment in Bushwood, the capital of Madison. The regiment would conduct their invasion and occupy the rest of Madison in time for winter, so that other Weg provinces could be taken. However, Operation Black Parade was canceled, due to the fact that the invasion of Madison would have been an action fueled by the prospect of glory, rather than military strategic importance.
Declaration of War
On 22 November 2021, a Kapresh citizen, acting independently, carried out a terrorist attack on Weg soil. The Weg Nationwide Attacks quickly became a large-scale investigation by the Wegmat Government. The Kapresh government was not involved with the terrorist but reached out following the attack, curious as to what this terrorist could do to aid Kapresh's plans to cripple Wegmat, as well as to gather any intel the terrorist may have acquired. A special committee formed by the Wegmat Special Police and Investigation was formed to investigate the attacks. Special agents found out that Nate Johnson, the leading terrorist in the attack, was contacted by the Kapresh government following the attacks. Nate had already been charged with non-lethal terrorism by the Supreme Court and was being prepared to serve a sentence of public service. The Committee on Terrorism presented their findings to Wegmat Parliament. The parliament voted to issue a declaration of war on the Empire of Kapreburg. Wegmat was a signatory of the Treaty of Kapreburg and a declaration of war was a complte violation of Article 4. The Wegmat Council of State claimed that their signature on the Treaty of New Albuquerque was not affected by Article 4, thus allowing them to take such an action.
Battle of Astrud Lake
The 1st Infantry Regiment of the Wegmat Marines was deployed on 2 January 2022 to New Kariba. This was the first military action of the war. Cole Baird's administration issued a doctrine of decolonization which is why to colony was targeted. Wegmat's goal was to take away local colonial possession first as it was believed they were more important. If the operation was successful and the Kapresh did not abide by Weg demands, an invasion would be conducted in the home counties of Kapreburg. Wegmat Marines arrived at Oak Forest station by train and prepared the forces there. The Regiment led by Commander and Prime Minister Cole Baird marched through the suburban neighborhood bound for New Kariba. The force entered from the north toward a hill where the Ministry of Defense ordered Kapresh to surrender the territory. The brief verbal exchange between Kapresh and Wegs did not solve the situation peacefully and combat began after the Kapresh moved toward Astrud Lake. The Kapresh forces attempted a defense but were overpowered by the invading force. Following the battle, the victorious Weg forces occupied the northern half of New Kariba and prepared for a future continuation of the invasion of their local colonies.
New German entry into the war
New Germany never formally declared war on Wegmat. Tensions between the Democratic Weimar Republic and Wegmat had been high following the Great Des Plaines Valley War and there was legitimate concern over an invasion of Wegmat by Weimar. The Wegmat Minister of Defense and President were hoping for a chance to remove Weimar threat. Operation Auf Wiedersehn was a situation in which an agent of the Federal Weimar Intelligence Agency attempted to deceive the low-ranking Weg politician Josh L. into thinking that New Germany was making a last stand in the city of Westerwald, a suburb of Bobbygrad, on January 9, 2022. It was, in fact, a lie that was meant to allow for a large Weg force to be ambushed by New German soldiers at what Bobbygraders refer to as the "French Position". However, Weg Forces were never deployed, and New German forces left the area.
Joint invasion south of Levare
[1] An anti-Weg alliance was formed between Kapreburg and the Democratic Weimar Republic prior to the outbreak of the war. The DNGR and Kapreburg forces prepared for Operation Glad You Came to invade the province of Madison. Madison was the province where Bushwood, Wegmat's largest city, is located. Weg Military Intelligence was on the alert of the invasion plans, the 2nd Infantry Regiment was deployed in rural Madison near the town of Jefferson. A Joint New German/Kapresh force moved south from a garrison in Levare and crossed the Weg border. The battle occurred on 16 January 2022, shortly preceding the Battle of Bushwood. Encounters between Weg Deer and the invading force happened soon after their invasion into Weg territory. The military encounter between the two forces occured southeast of the town of Jefferson. The Battle was short-lived due to Weg's lines breaking very quickly resulting in a New German/Kapresh victory.
Kapresh/New German forces moved south to the key Weg city of Bushwood immediately following the Battle of Jefferson Lake. The military forces in Madison evacuated several civilians in Bushwood. The entirety of the Downtown area was evacuated and Weg forces moved inside of the greater building structure that made up the Downtown borough of Bushwood. The invading force moved through the river district and did not make any attempts to take Uptown Bushwood. The invading force arrived and Grand Boulevard and intense fighting broke out as they tried to enter the building. New German forces went through the garage of the building and flanked the Wegs from their left. The Battle of Bushwood was a major battle causing catastrophic land loss. No borough of Bushwood was taken by Kapresh/New German forces however the rest of Madison was. The important province of Essef along with Paradise City was taken. Paradise City declared itself as a free city-state, independent of Wegmat and the occupiers. The city government and civilians in the area repelled occupational military forces by using this a defense tactic. The cities of Kiser, Prarik and North Bend were occupied by the invading force. Weimar treated civilians in the occupation zone very harshly.
Occupational period
After the large Weg unit was destroyed a catastrophic land loss occurred. New German forces moved into Essef with no resistance and took it following the Battles. The Wegmat 3rd Army was formed specifically for the Midlothian War. The 3rd Army was deployed to southern Hilda and prepared defenses. Wegmat forces began Operation Off! to lead forces away from the large city of Isadora. The Weg strategy was to wait for an invading force and destroy them allowing them to retake Essef. The Wegmat Intelligence Authority began an aggressive campaign to get some civilian New Germans to fight with Wegmat. The Wegmat Armed Forces also began an aggressive recruitment campaign that ultimately failed when an entire Weg regiment did not show up to the Battle of the Highlands due to outside complications. Because of the occupation Weg citizens with land claims and businesses in Essef became refugees. Many attempted to move everything from their tree forts and move them to Hilda. Weg police were unable to enforce the law and became prisoners of war and were unable to enter Essef by order of the occupation zone. New Germans shot at two people moving their property out of Essef and into Hilda. Others were shot at while looting other people's tree forts. The Wegmat Marines hired Lupis Contracting Service to start guerilla fighting in Essef by February. On 23 January 2022, the Kapresh/New German force moved north between Colorado Depot and Isadora to surround the city of Isadora.
Battle of the Highlands
A Kapresh/New German force moved across the Hilda-Essef border onto rural MoA Road 4 towards Rainbow Bridge on 23 January 2022. A ragtag Weg force made up of infantry regiments, special operations, Lupis Contractors and a civilian was waiting for them in Bailey National Forest. The Battle of the Highlands began at the southern end of the Hilda Highlands in Bailey National Forest. The invading force's goal was to surround Isadora and move north to capture Hilda. The Kapresh started firing at the guards of Bailey Military Reserve. The rest of the force stationed there began holding their ground. A New German unit rushed to the defending force and was taken prisoner of war by Weg special ops. The Weg force would not fall back or move forward. The Kapresh could not move forward. A heavily armed local farmer flanked the Kapresh resulting in heavy hits on the Kapresh. The Kapresh moved back and Jack Morris called a ceasefire. The battle had gone for an hour and a half before Cole Baird and Jack Morris began negotiating. This resulted in a standoff when neither force would stop fighting.
Jack Morris raised his airsoft gun before being shot in the arm by Cole Baird. This shot determined the battle to be a Weg victory. Weg forces rushed down through Essef to liberate all its territory. Negotiations at Prarik resulted in Weimar leaving the war in exchange for Madison except for Bushwood and Southern Essef except for Paradise City. The rest of Essef was reclaimed, however, Paradise City refused to be reclaimed and remained a city-state until March 2022. The Federal District of Bushwood was formed and the Province of Madison was dissolved. Wegmat was prepared to continue their invasion of Kapreburg. It was scheduled for an unknown time in February.
Ceasefire
A temporary ceasefire was called from 23 January 2022 until February. Kapreburg and Wegmat agreed on a ceasefire a month later in February until April 15, 2022 due to medical issues in the Kapresh Army. Negotiations happened during this time between Wegmat and Kapreburg for a peaceful resolution to the war.
The first proposal came from the Wegmat Foreign Exchange Ministry requesting that Kapreburg was to complete 12 combined hours of service for the Wegmat Foundation. Weimar officials persuaded the Kapresh Government not to accept this peace deal claiming it was similar to that at the end of the Weg-New German War. The Wegmat Foreign Exchange Ministry offered a second peace deal, where Kapreburg could control a portion of the Weg economy in exchange for the end of the war and 16 hours of community service. Large parcels of public land, multiple commercial and industrial buildings in several Weg cities, and unlimited licenses for the largest markets in Wegmat were to be given to Kapresh companies or private citizens. The opposition immediately came from the left-wing Wegmat Council of State, Provincial governments of Whynofly, Drystone, Abierta and Irving, and the Wegmat Ministry of Agriculture; which operated most of the lands that would have become private property.
On 25 April 2023, the Minister of Defense eventually released a small statement that Wegmat will no longer be combating Kapreburg unless provoked. The Weg Ministry of Foreign Exchange tried to organize an official peace conference in Downtown Chicago, Kapresh officials agreed to this when they are able to travel there. The war is considered to be over since the date of the last battle in the Hilda Highlands in January. On 10 May 2022 Wegmat Parliament voted to dissolve the state of war. No combat happened between 2 January 2022 and Wegmat dropped its state of war.
Aftermath
Following Weimar's exit from the war, there was a result of heightened tensions between Wegmat and the surviving nations of the Urraca Pact. Following the days after the formerly occupied areas were rebuilt the Cicero Spenninger began. Although Weimar and Wegmat were no longer at war there existed a large amount of tension between the two. Both nations kept trying to outmatch each other, economically or militarily. Kapreburg was highly sympathetic to Weimar and completely on its side. After the Midlothian war officially ended the tension continued. There is constant harassment to one another by leaders and other government officials on either side. The Cicero Spenninger continued to heighten. In March 2023, a year after it began, Weimar began a blockade on Wegmat's largest city, Bushwood. Bushwood is considered a Powercity and the blockade sprung it into chaos. Weimar continued to heighten the tensions by going on an aggressive land grab including succeeding at controlling the new Chavaleir Republic, taking control of the Rainbowlands, including territories of Paloma and Saspearian, and annexing the only neutral nation in the Des Plaines Valley Sector, United Salado. This tense period peaked during the 2023 Ephraim Invasion of Wegmat which is when two nations in the Confederation of Weimar launched an invasion into Wegmat. Both armies are relatively small compared to Wegmat's however they had enough resources to occupy rural areas in Hilda for a time.
Reactions
Cimbrun - The Basileus of Cimbrun condemns the Midlothian War. Kapreburg is blacklisted by the state for a reason, and the state encourages a peaceful solution to the war.
Paloma - The President of Paloma has stated "The basis of any micronational war is generally without a good or realistic purpose. Wegmat is just trying to larp and interfere with other micronations".
Midlothian Star
| Midlothian War | |
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| Type | Campaign medal |
| Country |  Baustralia |
| Campaign(s) | Midlothian War |
| Precedence | |
| Next (higher) | Kapresh Star |
The Midlothian Star is a medal given to any Baustralian civilians and soldiers involved in the Midlothian War. The riband is of nine sections: 1, 3, 7, 9, orange; 4 and 6 yellow; 2 green; 5 white; and 8 blue.
The medal is of a four-pointed star with pyramidal faces, with the emblem of the Baustralian Armed Forces, in the centre. A bar appears in between the crown and the wreath with the word Midlothian.
| Awards by clasp | |||
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| Clasp | Period | Awards | Units |
| 2021-2022 | 30 November – 30 January | 30 |  HMS Promise King's Grenadiers
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| Feb-March 2022 | 30 January – 30 March | 27 | HMS Cascadia Royal Baustralian Regiment
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In popular culture
- See also: The War in Midlothian
In 2023, the Laskaridian Broadcasting Corporation used AI text to speech and war footage to make a documentary on the war.
