Republic of Northern Florida

[THIS PAGE IS CONSIDERED NONCANONICAL]

(For the canonical replacement, see: Republic of Dixie)

"...We have seen the rise and fall of Florida in one single violent year..."-Emperor Yohannes Iyasu of Ethiopia

The Republic of Northern Florida was a small, militant nation state centered in the Gulf of Mexico. Gaining independence in the early months of 1970, constant warfare and expansion coupled with a pandemic brought down the small nation in the last month of the same year it was conceived. The expansive Floridians were at constant war with their neighbors, a trait that lead to the development of a military culture and a lasting legacy in military technology such as their signature Su-27. After the collapse of Florida's independent government, it's holding were brought back into the United States, and it's holdings in West Cuba were adopted by the Communist East Cuba.

Hostilities Begin
In 1940, the United States Congress passed new laws that allowed government agents to arrest and detain without trial anyone engaging in "un-American" activities. Such arrests did not need a reason behind them, and a young, firebrand speaker named Jason Duhmell, fresh from the Army, stirred up protest in his hometown of Jacksonville, Florida. The protesters were quickly and brutally put down, with police and National Guardsmen first firing shots in the air, and then into the crowd of protestors. A death toll was never determined, but Duhmell and several other rioters escaped, forming the "Republic Army of Florida", which began recruiting members.

In 1945, the movement had attracted enough followers to begin a guerilla campaign against the American government, which had initiated a manhunt for Duhmell. The rebellion raged for 25 years without any significant impact on the rest of America, which had come to accept the new laws and generally supported government action against the RAF. Although the Americans never captured Duhmell, they had whittled down his rebellion to a fraction of its height.

Independence Achieved
Then, in 1970, elements of the RAF attacked and destroyed Ft. Grant in St. Marks, south of Tallahassee. Immediately after that, the Mobile Bridge was destroyed. Interstate 10, as well as several other major roads leading into Florida, was heavily mined. In addition, a huge force of rebels had gathered around Eglin Air Force Base with stolen Patton tanks that had been taken from a National Guard Armory nearby. When the signal came, they attacked the AFB, flooding in and stealing its supply of Huey helicopters. They destroyed the F4s, having no use for them.

The Hueys were then flown to a staging area west of Jacksonville, where roughly 2,000 rebels had organized. The rebels boarded the helicopters and landed in Jacksonville itself, which they soon captured. Every rebel in Florida was then transported to Jacksonville, where they held out against continual American assaults for two days. Gradually, the American will to fight eroded, and they began talks in Europe with representatives of the RAF. Soon, American soldiers had withdrawn from the agreed-on locations, and the Republic of Northern Florida was internationally recognized the next day.

===The Construction of Florida ===

The new country immediately began raising a military, one with an incredibly high entrance standard, and set conscription into practice. Due to North Florida's lack of resources, the RAF, in its first true test against a foreign power, invaded Cuba, quickly capturing Havana and thereby securing the rest of the island's capitulation. A rebel movement began gaining momentum but was crushed by a Special Forces group, which assassinated the Cuban leaders. Cuba was immediately annexed, with all Cubans gainig citizenship.

The next step was to make a name for herself on the international stage. North Florida, worried about the Americans to her north, joined the Central Eurasian League, becoming the most recent nation to do so.

The North American Wars
High tensions between the United States and North Florida erupted when a Floridian force at North Point border station fired on the American guards. Reinforcements were called on both sites all along the border, and the incident soon erupted into full-scale war.

In Cuba, a new rebellion had formed, but it was granted independance and land in the northeast due to a need for troops to fight the Americans. After two days of fighting, the Americans retreated back to defenses in Atlanta, Georgia and the war became a bloody stalemate. Mexico sensed weakness and attacked Floridian Cuba, resulting in the end of the war between the RNF and the USA (the USA only agreed the truce due to the threat of CEL intervention on the side of the RNF.) The Floridians gained land down to Key West and up to Macon, Georgia. Veterans from the newly-dubbed Three Day War were immediately sent down to Mexico, where the new Sukhoi fighters were put to the test, proving their effectiveness against Mexican AA defenses. Eventually, the RAF surrounded the Mexicans in the city of Pinar del Rio and began a seige, which was cut short by the invasion of the United States by Canada. Yet another treaty was signed, ending the Mexican War. Three days later, the RNF declared war on Canada, beginning a massive assault on NWC lines north of the border. After a day of prolonged fighting, the NWC surrendered and withdrew from the war. Immediately the RAF began an advance to reinforce the beluegered Americans, sending the main force west to engage the Canadian troops at the Mississippi. The two sides met near Jackson in late December, where Floridian armored cavalry met and defeated the Canadians, pushing them back to the Mississippi. Meanwhile, peace talks in the NWC were being held.

The Fall of Florida
Late into 1970 however, their short, yet eventful life would end. Living the life of a mouse on speed they lived violently only to die violently. A violent strain of malaria ripped through the Republic and depleted morale signifigantly. Animosity for the government took shape in the newly acquired lands of Georgia over the government's tolerance to black citizens. During a speech to the people, the entire RNF government was slain in a grenade blast, effectively plunging them into anarchy.

Florida sat empty until 1973 when the US re-annexed it. Cuba would remain in a half-chaotic state until the local eastern communists swallowed it later that same year. All that remains of the RNF legacy likely sits in private shore-rooms and collection halls, their gear having become priceless artifacts that once belonged to the speed-demon of nations. More of their hardware still sits tended to in Ethiopia, or in the chop-shops of the Chinese military being re purposed and duplicated, their design concepts going into modernizing the country's air-force.

What's left of the RNF are graves to fallen heroes in Jacksonville, a couple of monuments strewed with bullet holes, scared memories, disappearing relics and notes in the hands of mindful governments.