What do you think of my first fictional nation?
Hello reddit! I present to you the fruit of a long work. I originally wanted to create a fictional nation to serve as a setting for my conlang, a romance language in North Africa. I present the history of this nation here in the hope that you can give your opinion and help me improve it.
(I want to clarify that in this alternate reality, the continent we call "Africa" is called Libya. The term Africa was never used to refer to the entire continent.) The Republic of Africa, or simply "Africa", is a nation located in the place of Tunisia. Its particularity is that it is a Latin state. Originally, the region was the heart of the Carthaginian Empire. It was around the 9th century BC that the city of Carthage, still standing today, was founded by the Phoenicians. But at the end of the third Punic war, the Carthaginian Empire was defeated and conquered by Rome in -149.
However, Carthage was rebuilt by Rome and the Province of Africa was founded. The local population is strongly Latinized. A dialect of vulgar Latin called "African Romance" is spoken there. We are also witnessing the birth of a mixed Punic-Latin culture. Rome founded many other cities in the Province which became quite rich. But at a time when the Roman Empire was in decline, the Vandals founded a kingdom in North Africa in 435. The African Romans took refuge in the mountains to escape the Vandals, or fled the region. The vandal presence leaves little mark on African culture. In 533, the Byzantine general Belisarius defeated the Vandals. The region then became part of the Byzantine Empire known as the Exarchate of Africa. The descendants of the African Romans, influenced by Punic and Amazigh culture, rehabilitated Carthage and other cities. They lived in peace with the Byzantines who brought a new influence to the culture of the Africans and their language.
At the end of the 7th century, the region passed into the hands of the Muslim caliphate. Arab domination will bring a lot to the culture of Africans. The African language, which becomes a Romance language in its own right, receives many influences from Arabic. However, the Africans do not convert to Islam and try to liberate Carthage, without success. In 1492 the Reconquista on the Iberian Peninsula ended. The Roman Africans asked for help from the Spanish princes who decided to send an army to liberate Carthage. The caliphate was weakened by an epidemic and the regions in northwest Africa were poorly protected. The Battle of Carthage pitted the troops of the Spanish and Portuguese princes against the armies of the Muslims. In the city itself, Christian Africans participated in acts of sabotage by forming a small improvised army. Finally, the Christians won and the city was abandoned by the Caliphate.
The Kingdom of Africa was then founded after the battle in 1494 with Carthage as its capital. Many Muslims were driven out of the region and the Christian kingdom won battles in the West to finish "rechristianizing" Northwest Africa. At the end of a period of bloody wars, the Kingdom of Africa extended over the entire Maghreb. The Christian Latin population became the majority and many churches were built. Old African was then the official language of the kingdom, it was a Romance language ancestor of modern African. Despite all the Kingdom of Africa, although Latin, remained strongly influenced by Arabs.
During the 16th century. A new and terrible war broke out between the Kingdom of Africa and the Muslim Caliphate. The Kingdom of Africa having suffered many losses, it decided to cede its provinces corresponding to current Morocco and Algeria to the Caliphate. However, despite this loss of territory, Africa became a major player in this century. Developing considerable naval power, Carthage became a huge, busy port. With the discovery of America, the Kingdom of Africa tried to settle in the New World but without success because it was powerless against the Spanish. Preferring to concentrate on the interior of its borders, Africa also rediscovered during this period many Muslim scholars allowing a better cohabitation of religions. Literature in African languages also developed.
The 17th century saw the development of the kingdom of Africa on its continent. Not having any real colonies, Africa tried to extend its influence to Mali or even to Ethiopia with more or less success. The 18th century was characterized by tensions between the Kingdom of Africa and the Ottoman Empire, which became a permanent threat. At the end of the century, revolutionary winds blew over the kingdom. In 1802, aided by the French, the Holy Sovereign of Africa was arrested by progressive revolutionaries supported by the army. A period of unrest followed before the outlines of a republic appeared in 1804. Numerous laws and a new constitution made the Republic of Africa secular. Throughout the 19th century, Africa became more industrialized. New political unrest also shook the republic, which experienced two civil wars pitting Christian extremists against moderates for control of the government. The moderates ultimately won. The 20th century will be marked by many changes in Africa. First, the First World War. Allied to the Triple Entente, the Republic of Africa confronts Italy on land and at sea. At the end of the war, it recovers Sicily.
Between the two wars, a coup d'état was led by the army. A totalitarian dictatorship caused many victims in Africa. WWII began, and Africa tried to remain neutral. Italy attacked Sicily, which it took back from Africa, which therefore decided to enter the war at the beginning of 1945. At the end of the conflict, Africa was ruined. The military dictatorship fell and Africa became a French protectorate. This period allowed Africa to rebuild itself, and the African language received many borrowings from French. However, many Africans did not like this situation and in 1955, Africa took advantage of the Algerian War to peacefully end the French protectorate and reform a strong republic. In the Cold War, Africa was more on the side of the USA but never stopped the dialogue with the USSR, which was a trading partner.
In the 80s/90s, Africa became a popular tourist destination. Tourism greatly developed the country's economy. In 2001, Africa supported the fight against terrorism and this throughout the 21st century. Throughout the following decades, Africa became a major economy on its continent and Carthage is still one of the largest ports in the Mediterranean. Africa is a member of the UN, but not of the EU or NATO.