Conditions for
the Martian Revolution – Cultural
The new wealth from
trade and industry supported a corresponding cultural explosion.
Subsidizing artists, scholars, and educational institutions became a
mark of prestige and affluence among the upper nobility, guildsmen
and mercantiles. The Elysian Academy, founded in 4,881 AD, was a
key center of this new intellectual ferment. Originally intended to
provide a scholarly gloss to noblemen not rich enough to afford
private tutors for their children, over time more and more children
of the new middle classes were sent there.
The new scholarship
focused initially on the political and economic history of Mars, a
surprisingly neglected subject – most historical courses continued
to focus almost exclusively the period before 4,000 AD. This
eventually expanded into a harsh reevaluation of received political
and philosophical wisdom, particularly after several scholars were
granted official access to the Elysium deep archives in 4,921 AD.
The access was limited to material from well before the Vigili
regime; in all likelihood municipal officials expected the results to
vindicate their own policies by vilifying their predecessors. The
material retrieved before the permits were revoked included
uncensored diplomatic correspondence and transcripts of Municipal
Council meetings, and put the lie to much of the noble gloss on prior
history. But scholars were quick to point out the similarities
between the public justifications of the current rulers and their
predecessors, and to speculate as to the real reasons behind their
decisions, leading to a revocation of the permits in 4,923 AD. The
damage, however, had already been done.
Historically, the
theoretical role of the Autarch was to ensure the safety and
prosperity of the city's people, with the ultimate aim of retaking
Earth – though obviously considerably more emphasis was placed on
the first task then the second. The scholarly underground produced
numerous critiques of their performance in both tasks, circulated in
underground networks or handed from person to person in encrypted
memory sticks.
One of the most
important of these new historians is known to this day only by his
pseudonym, Lee Ven. Ven published the short file Historical
Development of the Martian Autarchies some time around 4,940 AD.
HistDev, based heavily on the archival files, argued the
guild-feudal system deliberately suppressed the growth of the Martian
industrial base, so as to maintain the relative position of the
guilds and nobles. The author called for a revolution to overthrow
the Autarchs, abolish the Guilds, and establish a classless state.
This was followed by a second, shorter paper, On Human Destiny,
calling for a global Martian revolution, unification of the planet,
and freedom of thought and speech. Unlike later authors, he did not
acknowledge the need to ultimately retake Earth, which he viewed as
impossible for the foreseeable future. Despite this deplorable
Neutralism, he became a favored author of the early revolutionaries,
and the basis for the writers who followed.
Reminder:
Neutralism is a level five memetic hazard. If you feel inclined to
neutralism, consult a qualified psychoneurologist for assistance.
Fighting
the Long War is the duty of all humanity.
Interrupt
from Author:
Ah, Ven, Ven, Ven... Quite a mystery, that one, a mystery I never
did solve. My own hypothesis is a disaffected minor noble, Gerset
Iskarus, who died in 4,942. Of heart failure, allegedly, despite
being only sixty years old. Much later, “heart failure” was a
favorite technique of the Elysium IntSec, but the first verified
assassination by that means wasn't until 5,029. For the better part
of a century I spent a weekend every month or two going through the
old records, trying to nail down who he was. But to no avail, and I
eventually gave up. Sometimes, the past keeps it secrets.
By 4,950 AD, the
Elysium MuniDef launched the first recorded crackdown on subversives
inspired by the new history. Almost nothing is known of this first
group, except their name: the Zealots. They would lend that title
to their successors.
The Zealots, as they
called themselves, agreed on very little beyond the need for drastic,
revolutionary change. The proposed programs ranged from the
complete elimination of all hierarchy, to the displacement of the
Autarch by a new “enlightened autarch”. But they would prove
fertile ground for the recruiting efforts of the emerging Republic.
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