Mitrania

Mitrania is situated on flat boundless plains in the heart of Gishoto. The rich soil and pleasant climate allow a thriving agricultural industry. With more than thirty thousand farms, which produce over 70% of the country's grain, it is known locally as Gishoto's breadbasket. It also has some of the most productive gold and diamond mines in the world.

Early History
Before the Luthori colonists came to Gishoto, Mitrania and the rest of the country were part of the Domains of the Gishotoi, a loosly associated set of feudal fiefdoms and nomad homelands under the titular rule of an Emperor who was the head of whichever Gishotoi tribe was most powerful at the time. Little of this period remains as only a few nobles and religious figures were able to write and many Gishotoi lived a nomadic life. What few permament settlements were constructed were mostly destroyed by colonists in later years.

What is known is that even in ancient times, Mitrania was a rich and productive area. The nobles that ruled this region were powerful within the ranks of the Gishotoi for their agricultural produce. Remains found only a few years ago at Naruhito, near present day Nelspruit gave modern scholars an unprecedented look into Gishotoi life before the colonists. They found relatively sophisticated agricultural equipment and other artifacts.

Colonial History
The region east of the Schnee-Berge Mountains was first visited by Luthori colonists towards the close of the 15th century. At that time it was somewhat thinly peopled. The majority of the inhabitants appear to have been unskilled farmers of the Gishotoi, barely resembling their sophisticated forefathers. Modern scholars believe that the strain of the wars with the Luthori Empire had drained the resources of the Gishotoi in the region. Once the territories were conquered by the Luthori, colonists poured into the rich farmlands of Mitrania. The colonists built the city of Graaffsberg as the administrative centre of the new colony.

In 1578 farmers of Duntrekker, Luthori Catholic, and Episcopalian Kalistani descent seeking pasture for their flocks settled in the country. They were followed in 1593 by the first settlers of the Southern Expansion. These emigrants left Hultria, New Liore, New Luthori, and the other northern and coastal colonies for various reason, but were primarily animated by the desire to escape from Luthori sovereignty. The leader of the first large party of emigrants was Pieter Heerden, who concluded an agreement with Takehiko, the chief noble of the local Gishotoi, ceding to the farmers the country between the Schnee-Berge Mountains and the Grote Blauwe Rivier. The region continued to prosper, at the expense of the native Gishotoi. By the 1620's it is estimated that only 1/3 of the original number of Gishotoi remained in Mitrania.

Independence
In December 1608 the settlers beyond the Schnee-Berge Mountains declared their independence from Luthori and drew up an elementary republican form of government. After the final defeat of Ryoichi, the heir of Takehiko, a national assembly was elected, and Wilhelm Retief, one of the ablest of the settlers, chosen "governor and commandant-general." The so-called Mitranian Free State tried to stir up support for independence in neighbouring Hulstria, to little avail. The Luthori administrators in Gishoto at the time did not desire to waste troops on reconquering the Mitranians. They invited Mitranian leaders to a summit in New Liore and agreed to terms for peace. The new Mitranian Free State would be part of a "customs union" with the Luthori colonies in Gishoto. The Mitranian Free State was the first independent modern state on the Dorvani continent.