Salisbury

This article is about the Gabonese city and borough. Salisbury is the capital and largest city of Gabon. The capital is fringed by an arc of towns with which it forms a continuous conurbation, these town being South Shields, Tynemouth, Tinwell, and Reddingsfield.

Settled in June 2018, the city lies in fertile temperate forests on the western side of the Elizabeth bay, approximately 1.9km (1900m) from the city of Varkonia and 0.9km (900m) from the city of Bloom. Salisbury, since its inception as the capital in July 2018 has been the location of the national government with the city itself being governed by the Lord's Council.

Salisbury is one of the most impressive cities of the -, - quadrant, it exerts a considerable impact upon the arts, commerce and tourism. Salisbury has numerous museums, galleries, libraries and historical buildings of grandeur, notable mentions including the Stately home of Balmoral, Salisbury Cathedral, and Highgrove Palace.

= Recorded History of Salisbury and its Peoples =

Founding & Development of Salisbury Proper
Queen Jamietech's letters patentof 2018 announced the foundation of the land claims of Gabon and thus the settlement of Salisbury. Within its first period, the people of Salisbury excavated a large area in the centre of the forest, this set off the beginning of the quarry industry with reasonably sized mineral deposits located under the topsoil. This huge undertaking was the first large scale project of its kind in the mainland of Gabon, with the idea that the plentiful amount of stone and minerals would be utilised to jump start the construction industry. Originally the citizenry was small-scale, with most notable citizens being Jamietech as the Queen, BritishWanderer as the Queen's Chancellor and Tvman999 as the initial explorer of the lands that would become Gabon. Soon after the founding of the state however, the prospect of grand new lands, the potential for wealth and influence in an upcoming nation state attracted citizens from across the server, most notably of these was Gobblin, who travelled from MTA to assist in the digging of the quarry and was crucial in planning the initial constructions of Salisbury. ComradeNick from the HJE was also a noteworthy figure who visited Salisbury in its early days and gifted the government diamond tools which greatly aided in the excavation of the great hole and in bringing Salisbury off the ground. One of the earliest structures to be built was the factory building, with the first factory, a compactor which was donated by Mount Augusta, installed by Mayor Ahrimanne in particular. Following this, Salisbury's train station was slowly dug underground around 20 metres from the quarry itself with the first completed rails to Bloom and Varkonia within this time period. This underground rail construction was overseen by Chancellor BritishWanderer who is also credited with the construction of the original Bakery, Storehouse and Mckinley gardens which were the projects built around the quarry and were the start of what we now know as the Capital of Salisbury. The Bakery built during this time is the oldest building within Gabon.

As Queen Jamietech enriched the lives of her and the royal family, the privy council { BritishWanderer, Gobblin & Tvman999 } was appointed by Jamietech to better the life of much of the citizenry. The council followed through excellently with the construction and renovation of the Grand Station and Royal Factory. Positioned on the wide Balmoral avenue and Worchester road respectively, these buildings provided ambitious entrepreneurs the foundations needed to improve the quality and quantity of their goods while providing a transport network from which to import and export to the international stage. Rail connections to Salisbury were expanded to include Alpoko in the south, Westmore in the north and the excavation of a rail line to MTA.

The construction of the Grand Station & Royal Factory set the tone and direction from which Salisbury would take while under the Monarchy, with a focus on improving architecture and infrastructure for the sole purpose of productivity for the local economy while the concerns of the local citizens were to be brushed aside. The roads during this time were constructed as medium sized 5 block wide, straight plain passages out of stone slabs built solely for passing wagons and large amount of citizenry, leaving no room for greenery or public spaces. These roads would make up the three main avenues of Salisbury named, Worchester Road, Balmoral Avenue and Warwick Drive.

In late June, with vast construction underway to the southeast and within the capital of Salisbury, council concern was placed on the damage that many citizens were committing on the native flora and fauna when collecting resources. This opened a fierce debate within the Salisbury privy council, some councillors stating that protecting the native habitat from any further construction would hamper any economic growth and throw Salisbury and it's surrounding area into turmoil while others believing it necessary to protect the wildlife on a land that was not always theirs to begin with and which was irreplaceable. This led Her Majesty to make a tough decision, ultimately siding with the native wildlife signing by letters patent creating defensive measures to protect the natural wildlife from any further destruction. The Queen later conceded a compromise to quell a minority of the councillors by allowing members of the privy council of Salisbury to authorise the destruction of any particular instance of flora so long as saplings of the respective fauna were planted elsewhere. This patent is regarded as saving the once rapid decline of the irreplaceable natural trees around the capital and set a track for development that is still followed to the present day. Remarking on the quantities of resources and minerals being extracted from the central quarry, Her Majesty The Queen Jamietech informed her then Privy Council { BritishWanderer, Gobblin & Tvman999 } of her desire to construct a palace fit to house the royal family and council meetings, later to be known as Balmoral Castle. There were numerous debates on the placement of Balmoral, with its initial construction site being moved and adjusted at her Majesty's request, settling on a stretch of land located 100 metres west of the quarry. In July, construction officially began with the approval and the laying of the first stones by Gabon's government. The original designs of Balmoral were drawn up by Councillor Gobblin who envisioned a stunning castle on a grand scale, containing nearly fifty rooms, wide corridors and boasting a sizeable courtyard. It was planned to have the capacity to hold not only the Queen's residential quarters but the internal and external government gatherings, with three large meeting halls. In order to meet the demands of such an ambition project, a glass factory and concretery were constructed on Worchester road, these two buildings would mark the foundation of what would later become the suburb of Winchester within the Capital. However due to budget constraints and a skilled labour shortage, only a brief foundation of the castle and a small meeting room was ever laid down and as such construction was ceased in late July 2018 at the dismay of the Queen.

July 20th 2018 marked the moment that Her Majesty alongside the Privy Council declared that Salisbury would from here on out be the Capital City of Gabon.

In late July, the Principality of Gabon formally joined governments with the Grand Duchy of Varkonia and while not explicitly having an immediate effect upon the city of Salisbury due to its size, the economical and social benefits that came since the signing of the treaty cannot be understated. The treaty bought with it the investments of great sums of wealth internally and abroad, funding large scale public projects such as the construction of Salisbury's second international station, upgrading the total number of rail lines from three to eight.

From late July to August, Salisbury's leading government ministers and monarchy especially that of Jamietech and BritishWanderer had been playing an instrumental role in drafting the original Charter for the United Northern Congress. The UNC Charter reflected upon the capital of Salisbury with the document being signed by each contracting party at the location of Balmoral Castle, this was displayed at the bottom of the Charter alongside the date. The Gabonese Lord High Chancellor, BritishWanderer served the United Northern Congress for 118 days as the Alliance Spokesperson and was the last serving Spokesperson at the alliance's disbandment on 13th July 2019.

During August the initial productivity slowed down in Salisbury, with much of the Council taking up residence in neighbouring Varkonia to assist in policy due to their appointment as Varkonian Senators representing the Province of Gabon. This left Salisbury somewhat stagnant, with no buildings being constructed during this time. Although Councillor Gobblin was hard at work making blueprints of the suburb of Winchester, continuing on from the construction of the surrounding areas of the concretery.

Political Turmoil
In September 2018, the government was suffering a crisis, the capital government was in debt to Varkonia and other neighbouring countries and was struggling to make repayments even after implementing measures to cut all unnecessary expenditure, all construction projects had been halted the previous month due to the lack of resources and lack of active councillors. In order to assist in the payments, the council implemented the royal tax which was a strict diamond tax levied on all Gabonese citizens and their wealth every month. Out of all the laws passed to remedy the situation, the royal tax would end up being the most controversial. These unfavourable factors in Salisbury led to many citizens leaving to spend this tumultuous period in Varkonia or other provinces.

Of those who stayed, their taxes were used to fund projects such as Balmoral Castle and the surrounding area, foreign trips and material imports on behalf of the royal family. Very little was left to the council to pay off the outstanding debts that were owed by Salisbury. As a result of the mismanagement of tax money, the citizenry were beginning to become discontent with the royal family's practices and their apparent apathy towards Salisbury's situation. Although republicanism was not uncommon within Salisbury, it was especially heightened during this time.

October 2018 was perhaps one of the least active periods in Salisbury's history, the streets were said to be desolate and overrun with brigands with looting and griefing becoming common place during this time. In response to this, the Privy Council reached out to MrLlamma, Leader of Coventhia for assistance in constructing a defensive structure to store valuables and act as a noticeable repellent to any bandits who would see fit to attempt to strike Salisbury.

This defensive structure was funded in part by Coventhia and Varkonia who both had a vested interest in protecting the quadrant from looters entering and stopping them from coming any further north.

After being settled in and becoming an integral part of the Varkonian Senate, BritishWanderer, still Chancellor of Gabon returned home to Salisbury to continue to work on the city alongside Councillor Gobblin. It did not take long for numerous issues to arise, internally Salisbury was suffering deep neglect with royal duties being off-loaded onto the already over-encumbered Council. The peaceful green flag protests occurred during November, where much of the remaining citizenry held up green banners on their person and blocked roadways and other crucial infrastructure, the protestors demanded an end to the royal tax and an overhaul to the current system of governance.

Chancellor BritishWanderer put an end to the royal tax in late October by pushing through a successful council vote to abolish the controversial levy. Her Majesty, Queen Jamietech, was insulted by the fact she had not been consulted over this matter, although The Queen did not push it any further than publicly voicing her displeasure. After the quelling of the citizenry, Gobblin & BritishWanderer set about constructing and renovating current building projects within the centre of Salisbury. The underground portion of the train station was updated to a modern standard and granted the title of `International` by the Government of Varkonia. Homes were planned and built up around the small central fountain in Salisbury with priority given to housing councillors and active citizenry. Councillor Gobblin encouraged excavation of nearby areas in search of minerals, with a focus on diamonds to fund the purchase of building materials for Salisbury. Meanwhile Chancellor BritishWanderer sought out those without a home to come to Salisbury and assist in the construction and to participate in the start of a new era, most notably of all those who came as a result of this is ChrisFa99, who would play an instrumental role in the foundation of Gabon's culture. Her Majesty, Jamietech, unhappy with the current state of affairs, demanded that the royal tax be readministered to the local citizenry in order to fund the continued construction of Balmoral. The Council rejected her proposals in favour of supporting the growth of Salisbury rather than the monarchy. Tensions between The Queen and her councillors had reached its boiling point, when the council rejected numerous independence votes put forward by Her Majesty who felt that Varkonia was being too controlling and influencing internal policy away from the Monarch.

On the 9th of November The Queen branded her Chancellor and his fellow Councillors as traitors and declared a civil war in order to restore the absolute power of the monarchy subsequently declaring independence from Varkonia. Citizenry within Salisbury were split with regards to political support of either side, most of those residing in poorer sections of Salisbury supported the rebels who were led by BritishWanderer and supported by Varkonia & Hjaltland, while those living closest to Balmoral felt a deeper connection and supported the Monarchy. Her Majesty allowed the military forces of Gabon to commit any acts they must for a victory, an order which the military used to commit brash violence on citizens throughout the city. Many rebel sympathisers tried to hide from the royalists however most were found, arrested or murdered in cold blood. Gabonese rebel forces led by BritishWanderer and a Varkonian Legion led by S4NTA entered Salisbury from the west in order to take back the city and put a swift end to the civil war.

Following the orders of the Red Duke Mickale of Varkonia to show no mercy, many royalists suffered brutality at the hands of the Varkonian Legions. The devastation and the horrific scenes that they witnessed was said to have shocked the Gabonese rebel forces upon their entrance into the city.

With the capital being seized by the rebels and the royal family surrendering, peace was officially announced by BritishWanderer on November 14th. The citizenry, although disgusted in the actions of the Varkonian legion and what they did in order to achieve victory, mostly accepted the new government, with others emigrating to neighbouring nations. The abolishment of the monarchy and the establishment of an executive lord's council freed up an immense amount of wealth that was held by the royal family, which the council swiftly used for the betterment of Salisbury.

Internal Recovery
The end of the Civil War in Gabon brought about a much-needed period of growth to the nation. The Government was reformed into a direct democracy as the Grand Mercantile Republic of the Autonomous Free Sovereign State of Gabon, the Abode of Peace. The Head of State from this point onwards was the Lord High Chancellor, BritishWanderer accompanied by his Vice Chancellor of Gobblin. The elected Council during this time was made up of the Chancellors, and Councillors Tvman999 & ChrisFa99. The construction industry was once again given the go ahead with Vice Chancellor Gobblin leading the efforts to construct new suburbs and set up new trade routes with foreign countries and individuals. The impoverished housing suburb of Melbourne was built to house those left homeless by the Civil war, the messy-style apartment buildings were built in a close knit fashion to allow as many citizens to inhabit as humanly possible. The apartments were snug and purely funded by the Gabonese treasury allowing residents to forego any worry about housing payments. Foreign labourers were brought in from the neighbouring Republic of Bloom to construct the buildings at a low cost as much of Salisbury's citizenry were busy cleaning up damages dealt by the civil war.

Government grants were also provided to the suburb of Winchester to provide more environmental benefits to the local residences and businesses. In the early period of Salisbury, Winchester was widely regarded as one of the prettier parts of Salisbury, earning the name as the jewel of Salisbury mainly thanks to the additions of the BnB and the Gloriana Cafe, both constructions overseen by the Vice Chancellor, Gobblin.

While the rebuilding efforts were continuing, Chancellor BritishWanderer took it upon himself to revisit the policies of Salisbury and restructure them from the ground up, cutting taxes and establishing the Sovereign Fund which would be used as a safety net for the capital government and its citizenry. The Sovereign Fund was vital in keeping the economy afloat and allowing citizens to benefit themselves in periods when the Council were on diplomatic missions or otherwise outside of the Capital.

In late December, the Council came together to formalise and negotiate the funding and construction of a sturdy wall, 12 metres in height and 6 metres in width, surrounding Salisbury. The negotiations took 13 hours and ended with a fully funded wall, with slight changes being made to the design to make it more sturdy. The wall had the main goal of outlining the city boundary of Salisbury while providing a defensive benefit to all of Salisbury's citizenry. Around the same time, plans were drawn up by the Chancellor and his Vice counterpart to further increase the security of Salisbury alongside the wall and as such, 40% of the Sovereign Fund was used to fund snitch and bastion coverage across the entire capital borough of Salisbury.

During this period, the council of Gabon was approached by Cincius who wished to construct the town of Venice in the northern territory of Gabon, after some intense discussions among the Councillors it was decided that Salisbury would cede a portion of the Capital borough to create a new borough of Venice under the oversight of Councillor Cincius. Although Cincius mainly kept to himself, he was able to construct a vast town in a short period of time and personally excavated rails to Salisbury's International Station and Varkonia City. Cincius became an integral part of the Council from this point forward, contributing to automated rail systems while continuing to build up Venice. Throughout December post civil war, Books and art were heavily encouraged by the Chancellor, of which such works of 'Tender Night in Gabon' & 'Gabon in Spring' were written by ChrisFa99 during this time. 'Tender Night In Gabon' especially proved popular internationally and was sold out twice during the height of publication. ChrisFa99 would continue to author many pieces of Gabonese literature, many of which are still held in high regard and form an integral part of Gabonese culture.



Era of Growth [2019]
While construction projects were well underway with the near completion of both the Winchester and Melbourne suburbs, Vice Chancellor Gobblin commissioned a nature walk lined with natural flora and fauna to lead north from Salisbury towards to the international border with the Republic of Bloom, this culminated in the construction of the friendship bridge by both nations. Encouraging visitors and diplomatic ties was an important direction taken by the Chancellor BritishWanderer, aiding in Vice Chancellor Gobblin's vision of a strong economical city. The Military Camp of Willywhacker was also built during this time, a military complex tasked with the goal of training, equipping and housing those who would defend Salisbury and the country of Gabon.

On the 10th of January, the Government of Gabon reformed away from the "Grand Mercantile Republic of the Autonomous Free Sovereign State of Gabon, the Abode of Peace" into "The Chancellery of Gabon" and while not having any major consequences for the day to day of Salisbury, it did make the position of Lord High Chancellor and Vice Chancellor permanent fixtures only vacant for election upon death or retirement. This change would cement BritishWanderer and Gobblin as permanent figures to represent Gabon for the foreseeable future. This change also came with a shift in the Council which would be made up of { BritishWanderer, Gobblin, Tvman999, ChrisFa99 and Cincius }.

With the expansion of Salisbury, surrounding towns and the ceded borough territory to Venice, local governance slowly ceased to exist as the Capital was no longer the only settlement on the mainland and as such the Councillors of Salisbury merged into the same position of Councillors of Gabon. The borough of Salisbury would remain the largest and most populated borough, with the neighbouring boroughs of Bakerswood [2] {Southeast}, Venice [4] {North} and Highgrove [3] {South} following suit.

As the city became sizable yet compact with tight streets, confusing alleyways and a myriad of houses in a unorganised fashion, it was decreed by the Chancellery to set up a rigorous street naming scheme, with each alleyway and street named and every house given a number and the resident names printed on all doors. This scheme aided greatly in keeping organisation inside of the suburb of Melbourne which was becoming a complex maze of apartments haphazardly built on top of one another in different shapes and sizes. Under official Chancellery decree in mid January, one of the larger envisioned projects was allowed to go ahead. This project would entail promptly filling in Salisbury's defensive structure and the surrounding hole with incredible amounts of stone, sand and topsoil. This refill of the hole paved the way for a grand square to be set up in the centre of the Capital, with the now famous Great Tree as the centrepiece of the square. This was later joined on January 15th by the St Varkanos Cathedral which involved all government members in its construction, the cathedral was the tallest building in Gabon at its completion and still retains the title as of September 2020 with a height of 145m.

After the fervent display of unprecedented growth, with the Capital expanding to nearly three times its size than in November 2018, most of the Council decided that a break was in their best interests, with Chancellor BritishWanderer heading off to Varkonia to carry out duties as Spokesperson of the UNC and Vice Chancellor Gobblin heading to Highgrove to continue construction of the St Marcus Headquarters. Unfortunately it was at this time that ChrisFa99 penned his resignation from the Lord's Council, deciding that his time serving Salisbury had run its course. Councillor Cincius also went missing around this time and lost his position in the Council due to the unsure whereabouts of his persons.

The citizenry of Salisbury carried on business as usual, the sovereign fund allowed for the absence of both Chancellors and gave the citizenry the ability to fund their businesses or personal projects during this quiet period. The streets were relatively peaceful with no reports of crime due to the security measures in place by both Gabon and Varkonia.

This hibernation period continued throughout the majority of March until the 28th when the Lord High Chancellor returned and decreed that the train station should have the available rail-lines expanded from 8 to 12 slots in order to accompany future diplomatic projects should Salisbury desire to expand international rail connections. Apart from this construction, it was still quiet on most fronts and business as usual for all citizens of Salisbury.

Growth of the Capital
Fortunately the period of hibernation was not lengthy and with the return of The Vice Chancellor in early April, it was decided to continue to build upon previous progress. OstenVonStolz, a model citizen who had been hard at work constructing the Capital walls was promptly appointed to the position of Councillor in place of the late ChrisFa99. The government wasted no time and immediately set itself three enormous tasks, namely the Capital Depository, the shoreline district of Portsmouth, with a heavy focus on shopping in the harbour and a renovation of Salisbury International Station. These projects were chosen due to a chancellery decree to expand the diplomatic outreach of Salisbury via rail connections and economical growth.

The Capital Depository was the first project to be attempted, a behemoth of a building with the intent of storing all of Salisbury's building materials and supplies. It was not only the construction of the building itself that was time consuming but transporting almost 30 double chests of resources into the depository itself, reportedly three fully-loaded donkeys died in the transportation process. The Capital Depository would become a vital part of every future building project planned from then on, making the distribution of building supplies much more efficient throughout the entire borough.Portsmouth's blueprints were gradually laid out as foundations across the eastern bay of Salisbury by Vice Chancellor Gobblin, who had the vision of creating a modest economic community within the Capital to hopefully attract business from across the quadrant. Initial progress was slow as on April 11th it was leaked that allegedly the Gabonese Government had poorly budgeted the cities stone supplies and overstated the amount of stone in storage. While the stone crisis started as gossip, the government did later confirm the rumour and city-wide projects including the Salisbury city wall were halted as government ministers sought a new source to make up for the lack of stone. While construction materials were being ordered, Chancellor BritishWanderer and Vice Chancellor Gobblin took part in public events and set out to better the daily life of the average citizen, this included the popular bill to provide adequate public lighting across Salisbury especially to those who resided in impoverished areas of the Capital such as Melbourne. Both Chancellors also took the time to repave certain roads and enhance the local beauty by adding in bunting strewn across streets, planting flora and fauna that lined major roads and creating public gardens for citizenry to benefit from.

Once the aptly named stone crisis was declared over by the Council, labour immediately began on the renovations of Salisbury International Station, the scale comparatively to the station at the time was colossal, stationed underground at nearly 100 metres tall, it was a tremendous upgrade and became a grand entrance for any tourists or travellers passing through. The construction was the most efficient project of its size in the history of Salisbury, being designed, collected resources for and built all in the same working day. The days following, old rail lines were re-linked up to the new international station and holes were dug out in anticipation for future rail line extensions to Nyasaland, Gensokyo & Tvtopia. On the 14th of April, a direct rail line was dug between Icenia and Salisbury, linking the two major cities in the -, - quadrant.

The April renovations brought with it vast commercialisation to Portsmouth thanks to immense government investment which attracted international corporations and countries to open up stores selling foreign goods. This economic growth in turn created a steady supply of visitors, shoppers and tourism for Salisbury which boosted the number of citizenship applications and property purchases.

Around the same time, Councillor OstenVonStolz, undaunted by the scale of the project took it upon himself to finish the remainder of the capital wall, this was no small feat as the wall only covered the north side of the city at the time. For his efforts in completing the entirety of the wall of his own volition, a small ceremony was held in a meeting of Lord's Council where Councillor OstenVonStolz was awarded a sizable portion of forested land south of the Capital within the borough of Salisbury. It was this parcel of land that Councillor OstenVonStolz would transform into the quaint town of South Shields, boasting a pub, church, and blacksmith. This settlement was the first to be constructed outside of the capital within the same borough, making it the second oldest settlement in the borough of Salisbury. With the success of South Shields, the Lord's Council would grant OstenVonStolz further land to the far west, upon which Osten would found the port settlement of Tynemouth.

The wave of constructions continued with immense progress undertaken on the foundations of the new suburb of Hackney in the south of Salisbury. This suburb would go onto house working class, and lower middle class individuals who would form the backbone of Salisbury's service and minor industrial economy. The suburb of Hackney would house the Nox Theatre until the suburbs were redrawn in November 2019. The erection of Hackney was partly overseen by Dr_Oracle, diplomat of Mount Augusta at the time. Dr_Oracle was appointed as an health inspector for the duration of his visit, allowing him to visit construction sites and interact with the locals of Hackney. The diplomat from MtA was taken on a tour by the Vice Chancellor, the tour included places such as the famous Melbourne public toilet, widely known as the first toilet in the -,-, the new monasterial grounds, and additionally the inspector checked active building sites such as the Portsmouth south-end expansion, and Balmoral Castle.

The Red Duke of Varkonia, Mickale, also visited during this time. Mickale was shown around new developments such as the Nox Theatre, Winchester South and the new developing townships of South Shields and Tynemouth.

Salisbury was growing at a rapid rate, with nearly one new construction every other day for the months of April and May. The number of buildings in the Capital stood at 33 at the beginning of April, this grew to 67 buildings by the end of May.

On May 31st it was announced that Salisbury would hold a One Year Anniversary festival on the 10th of June. Invitations were sent out to numerous neighbouring leaders, citizens and the general international public. In preparation for the festivities, Vice Chancellor Gobblin commissioned a Victory Arch to commemorate the Civil War and founding of Gabon. This Arch would be flanked by a street of tall townhouses, a style which had not yet been seen anywhere else throughout the country.

The Lord High Chancellor, BritishWanderer gathered up citizens and appointed tasks, the festivities required an extensive amount of alcohol and food which had to be produced in just a week prior to the party. The inside of the theatre was completely redesigned, long pew chairs were ripped out and replaced with three large centrepiece tables with each table being adorned with a colour of the national flag. Huge amounts of bunting were hung throughout the theatre and across Patriotic Row, and along Balmoral Avenue. On June 5th 2019, when tending flowers in Nox Square, Chancellor BritishWanderer was struck in the head by an arrow. Security forces led by the Vice Chancellor quickly secured the area and the Lord High Chancellor was taken to an improvised medical facility set up in the basement of the town hall. Luckily the Chancellor did not suffer any serious injuries and after bed rest would be able to attend the festivities later in the week.

The One Year Anniversary Festival was held on the 10th of June 2019 as planned and was attended by many notable individuals such as; Mickale, Red Duke of Varkonia. Varkanos, King of Varkonia. MrLlamma, Leader of Coventhia. BennyX, Commissar of Nyasaland and Slushhi, Prime Minister of Bloom. The night was deemed a success, with a race around the city walls, city tours and the now world-renowned reading of 'Tender Night of Gabon' by InvictusX and Varkanos. The Party concluded after a speech made by the Red Duke of Varkonia, expressing his immense pride and admiration of Gabon and it's government.

As a pet project in late June, the Vice Chancellor decided to enact land reclaiming policies in the eastern sea, by dredging the seabed and piling up sturdy materials to form islands off the coast. These three islands would be the start of an east coast archipelago project, with the islands varying in size and height. The Lord's Council would name the three islands, Christmas island, Nauru and Zealand respectively.

After this period of vast expansion, diplomatic outreach and population growth, the Chancellery once again decided to step back. BritishWanderer tended to duties in the Varkonian Senate whilst Gobblin spent his holiday designing new suburbs and constructions for the future of Salisbury.

Salisbury around this time was quiet, yet extremely safe. No major events occurred during this time inside the City, and daily life continued as it had in June and the months prior. This period of dormancy would last from 12th of June until the 3rd of November 2019

Wartime & Council Elections
The Chancellery would return in November 2019, with the nation being involved in the NATO-Mir War under the helm of Varkonia. Although at war, the conflict did not come to the city of Salisbury and as such the Chancellery did not get involved for the most part, except for partly funding the vault break during the War of the Coalition.

November bought another celebration on the citizenry of Gabon with the One Year Anniversary of the Civil War in Gabon. This was celebrated by light gatherings in the Salisbury square and a 14 bow salute at 14:00 to mark the memory of lives lost.

November was a strong month for the capital's construction industry, with Reddingsfield receiving an expansion of an extra 4 buildings and the HMS Nox, which would remain docked in port at Reddingsfield. This northern region on the border with the Republic of Bloom would see a small population boom during this time, filling up the new-built houses and solidified the gabonese claim to the western portion of the river. The Republic of Bloom would initiate a building competition around this time, by starting construction on their own town on the east side of the river with Slushhi, Prime Minister of Bloom as the main architect.

In the south of Salisbury, plans were made for a shipyard suburb under the name of Whitehaven. Whitehaven was set upon large amounts of sediment and dirt which was used to fill in the southern bay, this land reclamation project was the size of the suburb of balmoral and was huge undertaking by the Chancellery. The construction of the suburb of Whitehaven was headed up by Vice Chancellor Gobblin and Zyra_bot, the latter of which was put incharge of construction on account of his architectural vision and activity. Production was the main focus of Whitehaven, with a Woolery being one of the first constructions, containing cranes allowing it to take wagons from the elevated borough of Bakerswood down to the Capital Borough and vice versa. Whitehaven would go on to further integrate the Capital borough with the agricultural producing borough of Bakerswood, with closer links and easier transport methods. Additional housing was also constructed during this time to house the influx of new workers into the suburb. Around this time, the Chancellery was approached by Bgbba regarding the GOR and whether Gabon would be interested in a connection. The matter fell to the Vice Chancellor and was accepted on the condition that Gobblin would construct the portion running through the borough of Highgrove and Salisbury. This elevated rail line was an expensive and colossal project that spanned from the river between The Grand Duchy of Varkonia & Gabon in the southern region of Highgrove, up through the southern portions of the Salisbury borough, and across the borough of Bakerswood. The GOR then ran up past the Capital city and into Reddingsfield where it crossed the river into the Republic of Bloom. This rail line would connect Salisbury to many major cities across the world, and the wall it sat on would serve the dual purpose of being an outer wall around the new developments of Whitehaven and settlements such as South Shields.The new developments around the suburb of Whitehaven would take shape in late November, with a shipyard accompanied by multiple long piers being constructed. Whitehaven was aptly named by the Lord's Council as the industrial & shipbuilding port of Salisbury, in contrast to the suburb of Portsmouth which was regarded as a commercial port and canal thoroughfare. This suburb would mark the new direction that future construction would go in the borough of Salisbury, as the inner city walls began to fill up, more and more buildings would begin to spread out from the gates. In November, former Queen of Gabon, Jamie would go on to found the Salisbury Gazette. The Salisbury Gazette would report on all notable on-goings inside of Gabon and international political stories. The Gazette was seen as a real hit with both citizens and the government of Gabon, the latter of which would encourage further publications and celebrate the growing of Gabonese culture, art and news.

November would also be the month where the Chancellery would revisit some of its policies, rewriting the structure of government and opening up the positions of Lord's Council for election by the citizenry. The first ever Gabonese election was a popular endeavour with 5 candidates running for 3 seats, only one candidate, Tvman999, was an incumbent of the Lord's Council prior to the election. There was intense campaigning around prominent issues, mainly that of Gabon's position under Varkonia and the expansion of rail connections. The council elections were not without controversy as Tvman999 would go on to constantly accuse candidate IcyPenguin of being a foreign infiltrator on behalf of Icenia. These elections would result in Jamie, Zyra_Bot and Tvman999 being elected to serve as the Lord's Council, with Jamie impressively receiving 100% of the vote, meaning that every registered voter had Jamie as one of their three choices.

The new Lord's Council would go onto implement the Corporations Act, allowing corporations to be founded in Gabon and their approved structure culminating in the founding of the Gabon Trading Company, headed up by Councillor Zyra_Bot. This trading company would set up numerous shops in Salisbury selling an array of goods from the overflow of the Salisbury depository.

However construction and election activity would be mired by the on-going NATO-Mir War and activity would slowly grind to a halt over the christmas period. The GOR would see progress stalled until it's completion in late December but other projects would unfortunately remain unfinished for the rest of 2019.

A New Direction [2020]
The construction industry took a backseat during the early periods of 2020, with only minor constructions in reddingsfield being completed alongside minor roads in the north.

Although the beginning of the year was a slow period of growth for Salisbury, it did experience a small influx of immigrants most notably of these was EvilxFish and Brettlessr who arrived in early January and settled north-west of Reddingsfield in the borough of Venice. They would later be joined by JonJonBenBen, Vemredat and Skullicus the latter of which would begin construction on multiple underwater projects including that of a church and rail system. These individuals would go onto found the Shadowwyn Trading Company focused on the buying & selling of XP materials. Shadowwyn would supply vast amounts of glass bottles to Varkonia which furthered Varkonia's XP industry and in-turn helped to encourage economic growth in Salisbury. The XP industry would be a steady supply of income for the city at this time, with Salisbury selling XP in shops around the city as well as contributing to the XP co-operative in Varkonia. However demand began to fall and XP businesses would slowly grind to a halt in early March as the Varkonia's XP co-operative would cease to function properly, driving the Shadowwyn Trading Company and others into inactivity.

The NATO-Mir War was still ongoing at this time and was unfortunately a drain on activity for most citizens in Salisbury, with trade, diplomacy and travel being hampered by the conflict. Rail lines connecting to Salisbury from foreign nations were also damaged which restrained anyone from making long journeys outside of the city. This city was safe during this period of stagnation due to an increase in armed patrols, snitch coverage and bastions. Behind the scenes, the Lord's Council drafted an independence checklist as a result of their disagreements with the state of Varkonia and its policies. This document contained 23 items required to be checked off before Gabonese independence would be considered by the Council. Although not implemented during this time, it was evidence of the split in perspective of both Gabon and Varkonia which had built up due to frustration from the war.

In March 2020 the second election for Lord's Council was postponed by the Lord High Chancellor until further notice due to inactivity within the nation.

This period of stagnation would last from early March until July 29th, just after the conclusion of the NATO-Mir war.

Reinvigoration of the Capital
Activity would be jumped started once again with the end of the war and subsequent commencement of the first Varkonian Senate elections on the 29th July. Citizens of Salisbury would find themselves participating in democracy for the first time in 8 months and the outcome of these elections would place 3 Gabonese citizens into the Varkonian Senate which gave Gabon alone a majority within the Senate. Those citizens, and now Senators were BritishWanderer, Gobblin and EvilxFish. Multiple laws would be implemented from this point onwards which would have a great impact on the city of Salisbury, such as the Civil Service Act 2020 which would implement a civil service across Varkonia headed by Gobblin. It was subsequently voted on that the headquarters of the civil service for Varkonia would be located in Salisbury Proper next to St. Varkanos Cathedral. The HQ of the civil service would be constructed in Salisbury Proper, and many Gabonese citizens would be appointed to head up departments within the civil service, Tiddy1809 became head of Cartography, rclMan became head of Transport and both EvilxFish & Brettlessr became head of information and head of architecture respectively.

In early August, Chancellor BritishWanderer and Vice Chancellor Gobblin would stumble upon horrific damage to the old storehouse in the suburb of Salisbury Proper. The walls of the storehouse were torn down, and with it signs depicting history were removed, factories also fell victim to this attack with valuables still strewn across the floor. The individual who committed these acts would be named as Gooddknight97 and the Chancellery would rebuild the old storehouse replacing the signs of history with signs about the Gooddknight97 assault on Salisbury. This story would quickly become a national treasure within Salisbury and many citizens flocked to read it in the opening days.

Construction within Salisbury would see an explosive amount of growth in the weeks of August, beginning with the excavation and construction of the Salisbury crypts under the Cathedral, serving as a spot to remember those who had contributed greatly to Salisbury and it's people. The Chancellery would also go on to design new interiors for buildings such that of the town hall & councillors building which received a full interior redesign, giving it a court, holding cells, meeting spaces and council offices. The Corvus shop was torn down during this period, opening up the square and the view of the Cathedral from the great tree.

With improvements being implemented throughout Salisbury Proper, the Chancellery turned its eyes towards a project much grander in scale. It was planned that the bay straddling the suburb of Portsmouth was to be dredged and deepened, with the same occurring for the Salisbury canal which ran through Portsmouth and out into the suburb of Whitehaven. Vice Chancellor Gobblin would propose for a connected line of tall yet roomy townhouses to straddle the canal towards Whitehaven, and to expand the region out so that the development would stretch around the south-eastern portion of the city walls. This new development would be named as the suburb of Swanmore and would be accompanied by an influx of citizenry to the region.

New citizens such as Tiddy1809, themoonisflat and rclMan would contribute greatly to Salisbury. Themoonisflat would write new literature, taking Gabonese culture in a new direction with works such as the acclaimed Pacem PD, a book about the libertarian society in Pacem. Themoonisflat would go on to be remarked as this era's ChrisFa99 by the Chancellor as moon continued to work tirelessly on authoring new novels for the populace and international buyers. Tiddy1809 would take an interest in creating maps and later, architecture. Tiddy would provide Salisbury with it's first street map, outlining all the major and minor roads which intersected throughout the city and beyond the walls. RclMan would look into repairing and redesigning the rail network of Salisbury and would be instrumental in assisting the excavation of a rail tunnel towards Pacem.

Swanmore would begin to take shape in the latter portion of August with both Tiddy1809 and Gobblin working tirelessly to construct nearly 30 buildings within the suburb. Swanmore quickly grew to become one of the favourite suburbs of Salisbury, with it's distinct style and beautiful street decoration & layout. As Swanmore began to touch the GOR outer wall, new roads were built connecting the southern portion of Whitehaven up to Swanmore through Bakerswood which was also receiving new developments at this time.

The Question of Independence
On the 26th of August, the Lord High Chancellor BritishWanderer would instate Vice Chancellor Gobblin as acting head of state for a week and would vest all powers, abilities and country representation into this role. The peaceful transition took place in the Chancellery offices and was witnessed by Tiddy1809.

During the Chancellor's week holiday, the second Varkonian Senate elections would take place. This election would return BritishWanderer, Gobblin and EvilxFish to the Senate accompanied by Jamie who had been elected for a first time, giving Gabon a further majority for this term in the Varkonian Senate.

BritishWanderer would return on the 2nd of September and all powers would be transferred back to their usual roles. Upon his return the Lord High Chancellor would appoint Tiddy1809 as councillor to replace outgoing councillor Tvman999 due to the efforts and activity that Tiddy had displayed over the past few weeks. After discussions amongst the Chancellery and the Lord's Council { Jamietech, Zyra_Bot & Tiddy1806 }. it was decided that Council elections would officially be held on the 11th of September for the first time in 10 months.

The candidates for Lord's Council would declare themselves in the days following the announcement, these candidates being Vemredat, Tiddy1806, Skullicus, Rclman, Zyra_bot and Jamie, with all incumbents seeking re-election. Prominent issues of this election was the independence movement, which had been growing in recent weeks and the betterment of infrastructure in Gabon. This election would see the first political parties, with the Gabon National Party being created as well as some candidates receiving official backing from the Shadowwyn Company. The election was hard fought, drawing lines in the sand between those wishing to stay & those wishing to leave the union with all other policy points being discarded.

On September 14th, Lord High Chancellor BritishWanderer announced the new council of Tiddy1806, Rclman and Jamie. Tiddy received the most votes with 15 or 93.75% of voters choosing them as their first choice. The council would pass the Architectural Standards Act, reinforcing the Salisbury build style across multiple boroughs.

In the weeks following the election, immense campaigning took place on the topic of Independence of Varkonia. Gobblin and BritishWanderer had decided not to run for the Varkonian Senate in the October elections which triggered a treaty crisis due to Article 9 Representation on the Senate. Whilst underneath the surface, the Gabonese Government had entered talks with Varkonia about invoking Article 10 Gabon may Withdraw, this was mostly due to rising support among the populace. On the 1st October, Mickale addressed Varkonia concerning Gabon partnership inside of the union and the Lord High Chancellor would address Gabon the following day.

An Independence referendum was declared on the 2nd of October and voting would last 72 hours, with the two choices being 'Stay' and 'Leave'. The Government officially took no position on the matter however it was rumoured that BritishWanderer & Gobblin were strong supporters of the leave vote. The Referendum had the highest turnout of any democratic election in Gabon's history, the final result of the referendum would be Leave 62% | 38% Stay marking an historic moment in Gabon and changing the direction of the nation forever.

On the streets of Salisbury, the news was received with jubilant celebration, with pubs across the capital selling out of alcohol and breweries being raided for their stockpile. Signs marking Varkonia or other instances of the union across the city were torn down by citizens caught up in carousing leaving mess strewn across city streets.

Industrial Revolution
Following Independence, the Lord's Council immediately set about turning Salisbury from a city dominated by the tourist and service industry into a city worthy of exporting its own goods. An XP advisory committee

= Administrative Suburbs = The word Suburb is used when referring to the Capital boundaries between neighbouring areas.

An independent assessment survey was conducted on the seven marked suburbs and districts within the capital city boundaries during the period of April to November 2019. This survey assessed the quality of education, housing and service facilities, additionally touching on the economical benefits and social aspects of individual residents.

Melbourne
'Good Hope'. The administrative division of Melbourne is 83 metres crosswise with the highest point of the district standing at 17 metres above local ground level (70). There is a clear display of a lack of safety regulations with rampant violations on the residential buildings, overhanging structures are not sufficiently supported, stairs to reach other stories act more as a climbing frame than a reasonable flight of stairs. Vines and vast stretches of leaves have overrun the walls and roofs of Melbourne, the district is in a dilapidated state with no form of active education, sports or other service facilities besides an inn, the 'coughing swine'.

Quality of Life
The QoL within Melbourne is nowhere near acceptable levels, the residents of this particular area can expect to be at the lowest rung on the social ladder, with a majority of inhabitants being unemployed with little to no wealth to their name.

Most residents shall be born and die in this suburb, unable to be buried in the grounds of St Varkanos Cathedral, many residents will be buried in the unmaintained graveyard in the centre of Melbourne. There is a single public toilet within the district of Melbourne, in close proximity to the graveyard however in no better shape, the potential for diseases and festering bacteria leaves the toilet a mockery of the more advance toilets seen in other parts of Salisbury. No educational facility exists within Melbourne, with most parents taking to home schooling their children or allowing them to learn on the streets.

The culture of Melbourne is that of a very close knit community, almost all residents know each other and gossip spreads like wildfire through the tight alleys and over balconies. Happiness is surprisingly above average, many remarking on the hard working and community collective of the district in contrast to the more individualistic styles of the other districts. There is a real sense of family within the close knit streets which is compounded further by the government's unnatural desire to construct tall and externally pretty looking buildings to effectively wall in the impoverished area of the district, blocking the view from anyone outside. In addition to the boundary constructions, higher quality streets and numerous gardens have been laid down though at no adverse benefit to the residents and more serving a facade for residents in neighbouring suburbs. Because of this, residents of Melbourne hold strong opinions about not only the government however on their neighbouring districts as well, with many residents hurling abuse at anyone seen to act 'above' the inhabitants of Melbourne.

Notable Buildings
Serving the residents of Melbourne with drink, food and a place to sleep is the aforementioned inn, the 'coughing swine'. A butchers, 'Paps Meat' is also within the vicinity, serving fresh cuts of meat from various animals for affordable prices. Although lacking in major industry, Melbourne is home to the Gabon Florist which produces 80% of Salisbury's output of grass and various flowers.

Winchester
'Jewel of Salisbury'. The administrative division of Winchester is approximately 122 metres crosswise with the highest point of the housing district standing at 20 metres above local ground level (70). There is a clear eye for detail within the suburb, with adequately wide inner pathways and sizable open spaces littered throughout. Great care has been taken to ensure the beauty of Winchester and it's boundary zone by the local district administrators, flora and fauna has been carefully manicured into a structured yet messy style which compliments the suburb nicely. Every building with exception of the central residence is detached from those around it with at least 3 metres of pathway or green spaces being the most common divider. Winchester is clearly the recipient of extra government funding compared to suburbs around it, boasting an Inn, a BnB, Cafe and an Academy as amenities.

Quality of Life
The QoL within Winchester is well above the average for the Capital as a whole, the residents within this suburb tend to be upper class with a majority of inhabitants being highly educated and holding government or white collar jobs.

Most locals received a comprehensive education at the Winchester Academy which borders Balmoral, most employers including that of the government tend to have a bias towards those educated in Winchester, perhaps due to the increased tax income and generous donations towards government projects by residents within Winchester. This self repeating cycle has had vast benefits for those who reside in Winchester while causing a noticeable detriment to neighbouring suburbs. Contrary to the northern district of Melbourne, Winchester does not contain a graveyard however with a much higher wealth per person, most inhabitants of Winchester can afford to be buried in the grounds of St. Varkanos Cathedral. Every building within this district has more than adequate plumbing, with sewage and other disposable materials being dumped outside of district boundaries.

The community within Winchester is remarked to be snobbish, with residents carrying a 'holier than thou' attitude. It is notable to mention that a majority of residents (56%) support the restoration of the Monarchy. Inhabitants tend to avoid each other outside of organised gatherings such as street parties or national holidays, most families keep to themselves imposing strict schedules and curfews on their children which carries on to shape much of the adult residents of Winchester. Winchester boys are usually expected to follow in their father's footsteps, this is evidenced by nearly 55% of government employees being part of this generational work ethic. This however is not without criticism, many outside Winchester feel that it is improper to allow one such district to practically dictate Capital policy, efforts to combat this have been weak-willed at best with seemingly no change coming in the near future.

Expansion has been slow within the suburb, inhabitants are adamant that no further development should take place. The housing development of Pillypaddle lane took 4 months to debate and plan, with the plans eventually being taken to the highest court of Varkonia by residents in order to dispute the project, the courts ruled in favour of the development and as such it was constructed in late May 2019. This is not the only foray into development projects by the residents of Winchester, with inhabitants protesting and taking the government to court over the neighbouring suburb of Melbourne in order to have portions of it demolitioned due to the claim that it was 'unsightly'. The court case was settled outside of the courtroom with the government agreeing to construct unnatural tall and externally pretty looking buildings to effectively wall in the impoverished area of Melbourne, this solution pleased residents on the mainroad of Winchester and as such the situation has been left alone since.

Notable Buildings
The residents of Winchester have a varied selection of food & drink establishments with the immensely popular and posh Cafe Glorina, and the two alcohol serving businesses of The Red Lion Pub and the Royal Bed & Breakfast. However the most recognised Winchester building would have to be that of Winchester Academy, responsible for the education of almost every single inhabitant of the suburb. The Academy is also the host of the Winchester Wolves, the hugely celebrated resident football team for the suburb with a current W-D-L ratio of 17-5-2 and a current win streak against the Hackey Hogs of 6. Although the district of which the vital Gabon Concretery resides, most employees come from the neighbouring suburb of Hackney.

Hackney
'Industrial Heart'. The administrative division of Hackney is approximately 100 metres crosswise with the highest point of the southern hub standing at 32 metres above local ground level (68). The overall structure of Hackney has been planned out and precisely constructed with the main roads encompassing the district being wide enough to service wagons to the industrial sites. There is a distinct lack of any green spaces or notable flora and fauna, with focus being on outfitting Hackney with well-paved streets. The buildings are well built and quite pleasing to the eye, with adequate space between neighbouring structures although there are usually multiple families per building. The industry is concentrated on the western boundary of Hackney, anchoring to the Capital Depository which too resides in Hackney.

Quality of Life
The QoL within Hackney is considered to be the capital average upon which all other districts base their ratings off of. Residents in Hackney tend to be lower - average middle class with a majority of inhabitants having received a decent local education and working in blue-collar industries within the district.

Hackney locals are proud of their subculture, seeing themselves as highly self sufficient, owing to the centralised industry and the impressive depository in the district. Hackney acts as the city's entrance for 95% of goods that travel by land, imports are then stored in the depository where workers take care to attentively organise goods into their designated storage. Exports from the local fletchery, smithy and copperwares are of excellent quality and highly regarded among labourers.

= Governance of Salisbury = Salisbury has been under a myriad of government systems throughout it's growing history. Every government up to the present has maintained the importance of a council whether advisory to the head of state or having a more direct role in the day to the day governance.

Era of The Monarchy
5th June 2018 - 9th November 2018 (158 days)

The system under which Salisbury was founded and awarded Capital status. Curial laws were enacted under this era, most notably the Code of Laws and Judicial Act which were both later adopted by Varkonia. Although originally necessary due to the small population and the lack of laws within the settlement territories, the growth of the population and the transition of Government between Varkonia and Gabon, saw the monarchy eventually lose favour with a majority of citizens of Salisbury and the greater area.

Civil War
9th November 2018 - 14th November 2018 (5 days)

This short-lived system was a result of the Monarch branding her government as traitors and installing herself as an absolute monarch, starting the Gabonese civil war.

Post-Civil War Era
14th November 2018 - 10th January 2019 (58 days)

This system presided over the recovery from the previous conflict, putting funding into expansion and construction projects across Salisbury. Being a Mercantile Republic was seen as a complex and complicated system by many of the citizens and government members alike leading to the reforms that would result in the creation of the Chancellery Act.

Era of The Chancellery
10th January 2019 - 27th November 2019 (322 days)

This system has governed over the largest expansion and growth period to occur to the Capital and the greater borough of Salisbury. Economic and population growth rewarded this system of government and its citizens with an unprecedented era of stability, making this the longest unchanged government in Gabonese history.

First Council Election
28th November 2019 - Present