Aragon (Principia Moderni IV Map Game)

The Crown Union of the Kingdoms of Aragon, Majorca, Valencia, Sicily, Sardinia, Argelia and Counties of Barcelona and Malta, more commonly referred to as the Crown of Aragon or simply as Aragon, is a composite monarchy under the rule of the King of Aragon. The Crown of Aragon is a thalassocracy controlling the easternmost third of the Iberian peninsula and the Balearic Islands, Sicily, Sardinia and Malta. Until 1388 it also controlled parts of Greece.

Constituents
The Crown of Aragon is in effect a confederation of separate monarchies under the rule of a single monarch, with the exception of Malta, which is when an heir apparent is in waiting to the throne is governed by the Crown Prince. This was the case from 1412 to 1416 when Crown Prince Alfonso was invested as Count of Malta. However, since his accession to the throne of Aragon after the death of Ferdinand I, the title has been transferred back to the Crown.
 * Kingdom of Aragon - Capital: Zarazoga (de jure), Barcelona (de facto)
 * Kingdom of Sardinia - Capital: Cagliari
 * County of Barcelona - Capital: Barcelona
 * County of Malta - Capital: Nueva Barcelona
 * Colony of Gran Oesta - Capital: Puerto Delgado
 * Kingdom of Majorca - Capital: Palma
 * Kingdom of Valencia - Capital: Valencia City
 * Kingdom of Sicily - Capital: Palermo

Former possessions

 * Kingdom of Argelia - Capital: Argelia City - Lost in 1418 to the Abbasid Caliphate.

Royal family
The current ruling family of Aragon is the Castilian House of Trastamara. The line of succession as of 1434 is as follows:

Alfonso V (born 1396) - King of Aragon and her Dominions since 1416. Married to cousin Catherine of Castile until her death in 1432. Preceded by Ferdinand I.
 * Ferdinand, Crown Prince of Aragon, Count of Malta (1422 - 1428) - Firstborn son of Alfonso V and Catherine of Castile. Heir apparent to the throne of Aragon until his death. Died suddenly in 1428 aged six after a devastating illness.
 * 1) HRH Arianne, Crown Princess of Aragon, etc., Countess of Malta (born 1425) - Eldest daughter and surviving child of Alfonso V and Catherine of Castile. Heir presumptive to the throne of Aragon from 1428 until 1432; Heir apparent from 1432 onwards. Betrothed to Sancho, Crown Prince of Castile. Destined to be the first co-monarch of a united Spain.
 * 2) HRH Princess Eleanor of Aragon, etc. (born 1427) - Second daughter of Alfonso V and Catherine of Castile.
 * 3) HRH Princess Isabella of Aragon, etc. (born 1429) - Third daughter of Alfonso V and Catherine of Castile.
 * 4) HRH Prince John of Aragon, etc. (born 1398) - Brother of Alfonso V. Married to Anne of Cyprus. Regent on behalf of Alfonso V from 1419 to 1421.
 * 5) HRH Princess Henrietta of Aragon (born 1420) - Daughter of Prince John and niece of Alfonso V.
 * 6) HRH Prince Henry of Aragon, etc. (born 1400) - Brother of Alfonso V. Married to Joanne Valois-Orléans.
 * 7) HRH Prince Peter of Aragon, etc. (born 1424) - Son of Prince Henry and Princess Joanne. Nephew of Alfonso V.
 * 8) HRH Princess Maria of Aragon, etc. (born 1396) - Older sister of Alfonso V. Entered a convent voluntarily in 1429.
 * 9) HRH Princess Eleanor of Aragon, etc. (born 1402) - Younger sister of Alfonso V. Married to John II Crispo, Duke of Naxos.
 * 10) HDH Prince Giacomo Crispo of Naxos (born 1436) - Son of Princess Eleanor and Duke John II Crispo of Naxos. Nephew of Alfonso V.

Military
The Aragonese military is of modest size in comparison to other contemporaries, but is large enough to effectively defend the Crown Union from both internal and external threats, and to advance Aragonese interests abroad. Aragon focuses more of its resources on its navy, the Royal Armada, which is growing to become one of the largest in the region.

Army
While Aragon does not have a standing army, it does possess the resources required to quickly and efficiently raise and train one for any purpose. The current Aragonese Army is focused on defending Aragon from foreign incursions, particularly from Africa in the south and Genoa in the north, and on assisting the Crusade in Greece and Turkey. As of 1424, the whole land force of the Aragonese armed forces is about 80,000 strong.

Royal Armada
The pride of Aragon's military, the Royal Armada is a grand fleet of 360 ships. All are equipped with state-of-the-art cannons, which Aragon claims to be proof of the country's technological prowess. The design of the caravels, which are the heart of the entire navy, are a closely guarded secret, and crews are ordered to destroy their ships rather than surrender them to the enemy if need be, and the government spends a lot of time and money on continually improving ship designs to stay ahead of any enemies and rivals. The Royal Armada is currently led by Admiral Juan-Carlos Fernandez.

Foreign relations
Various descriptions apply to the diplomatic relations Aragon has to the countries around it. At this time, Aragon has very few formal alliances with other countries, although it does share friendly relations with a number of European countries.

Allies

 * Bandera de la Corona de Castilla.svg Castile: Castile, Aragon's western neighbour and one of the other two countries on the Iberian peninsula, is a close partner of Aragon. The current dynasty governing Aragon is a branch of Castile's House of Trastamara, and thus Aragon's King Alfonso V is the first cousin of Castile's King Henry IV. An alliance between the two was formally created in 1407 under the Treaty of Barcelona. Aragon and Castile are currently in the process of integrating into a single nation known as Great Iberia.
 * Flag of England.svg England: An unofficial alliance was established between Aragon and England in 1415 when Aragon initiated an invasion of Navarre.

Trading partners

 * Byz-Bishop-Arms.png Epirus: Aragon and Epirus signed a cross-Mediterranean trade agreement in 1407 mainly regarding foodstuffs and other similar commodities to help revive the Epirotan agricultural sector. After the fall of Epirus to the Ottoman Sultanate, Aragon was forced to sever relations and trade deals with Epirus; the King has however made a personal vow that Aragon will one day liberate Epirus from Turkish rule.

Other friendly relations

 * Flag of the Papal States (pre 1808).svg Papal States: Although there was some animosity from the Holy See towards Aragon as the Antipope was Aragonese, this swiftly came to an end after the arrest of the Antipope in 1403. Diplomatic relations between Barcelona and Rome have since been restored and are improving; King Ferdinand I has declared Aragon's full support for the Catholic establishment in the Vatican.
 * Pavillon royal de la France.svg France: Aragon and France became enemies in 1415 when Aragon declared war and invaded Navarre. However, the swift withdrawal of forces from Navarre ended the war, and both Aragon and France agreed to a status quo ante bellum; relations were thereafter normalised. Since then, relations have improved considerably thanks partly to a royal marriage between Prince Henry of Aragon and Princess Joanne Valois-Orléans of France.
 * Bandera de Reino de Navarra.svg.png Navarre: Historically part of the Crown of Aragon. Aragon invaded Navarre in 1415 with the encouragement of England with the aim of "reunifying what is rightfully the property of the King of Aragon with the motherland." After the death of Ferdinand I and the accession of Alfonso V, all Aragonese invasion forces were withdrawn from Navarre, ending the war. Repair work on the walls of Navarre's capital of Pamplona began with Aragonese assistance.

Neutral

 * Flag of the Duchy of Milan (1450).svg Milan

Tense relations

 * CaliphateFlag.png Abbasid Caliphate: The Abbasid Caliphate, current ruler of what was the Kingdom of Argelia, is as an Islamic country a rival of Aragon. However, with the extended peace that has allowed both countries to develop since the Abbasid conquest of Argelia, relations have been slowly normalising.
 * PortugueseFlag1385.svg Portugal: Aragon had next to nothing to do with Portugal until around the early 1440s, when Aragon attempted to restrict Genoese migration into Portugal. This caused some tension, exacerbated by a rogue attack by an Aragonese naval squadron on a convoy of Portuguese ships, resulting in the destruction of the squadron. The King of Aragon apologised for the squadron's actions, compensating the Portuguese government with 10 pounds of gold for the purpose of repairing the fleet. However, Portugal refused to accept the gold, demanding a significantly larger amount to "respect" the Portuguese government. Thereafter, Aragon ceased contacting Portugal and tensions have been rising ever since.

Enemies

 * Flag of the Ottoman Sultanate (1299-1453).svg Ottoman Sultanate: As a Catholic nation, Aragon has historically been at odds with the Ottomans, although direct conflict never actually occurred until the Ottoman invasion of Epirus. Since then, Aragon has been bitter enemies with the Ottomans, and wishes to have the Sultanate conquered, dismantled and Christianised.