Archive:Dragnet War
| Dragnet War Frosthorogqusuur | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||
| Military Participants | |||||||||
| File:ProvPelsKingdomflag.png Pels Kingdom | Salbür fishermen and community leaders | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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File:ProvPelsKingdomflag.png IO Latkó Taplakurad |
Mayor Orró Balt (Pfefarinaan) | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
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8 destroyers |
1 seized Pels sloop-of-war | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| 3 sailors killed, 7 sailors wounded |
2 fishermen killed one seized small Pels patrol vessel | ||||||||
The Dragnet War (Template:Lang-fld, =dragging net war=, less commonly known as the Salbürag y teekmunastqusuur, =independence war of the Salbürs=) was a series of confrontations between the Pels Kingdom and the Salbür regional minority which started out as a dispute regarding fishing rights in the Pels-controlled lake Kalg; and grew out to become an independence struggle for the Salbürs. The conflict lasted relatively shortly and ended with Salbür victory, when the Pels Kingdom accepted the secession of Salbür-inhabited lands to form a separate province within the Empire.
The war began with an incident in the waters between Enziyid and Viewer, when a Pels patrol ship apprehended a Salbür fishing boat that had surpassed its fishing quota. When the fisherman was ordered to jettison much of his fish, an argument broke out. Eventually, the man brought a rifle from beneath the deck began shooting at the Pels ship, killing one of the sailors. The fisherman was shot in the shoulder briefly afterward and was taken into custody. At the time, the Pels Kingdom had passed a law that restricted the amount of fish that could be taken from lake Kalg. The motive for the quota law was proclaimed to counter overfishing of the lake and counted for the entire coast of the lake; but because in practice it was only ever enforced in Salbür-inhabited territory, it was seen as a clear attempt to give Pels fishermen the upper hand and to force the Salbür off the fishing market completely. In reality, both the Pels and Salbür fishermen combined could by no means overfish lake Kalg.
In the following two weeks, the Pels equipped their patrol ships with net cutters to cut the nets of Salbür fishermen that had surpassed their fishing quota, which for the solely fishing industry-reliant coastal Salbür villages and Salbür islanders was the foremost way to ensure an income. This incited the anger of a large part of the populations of these settlements, and the fishermen quickly after began bringing weapons with them on board, while some even laid amateur sea mines to blow up Pels patrols ships. One such mine exploded underneath the engine of a fast patrol ship, killing two sailors and injuring seven. After this, the Pels brought in minesweepers and set up a large naval presence in Salbür waters, resulting in a large number of minor confrontations that miraculously brought no casualties with it.
On October 17th, the Pfefarinaan fishermen and boatmen (a large part of the male population) stormed the harbour and took control of a multitude of ships, including a sloop-of-war, 5 patrol ships, and some 10 tugboats which were later equipped with small-caliber cannons. A number of trawlers of Pels fishermen were also taken. Later that day, one of the smaller patrol ships was shot by a Pels destroyer, killing two men. All of the Salbür ships, captured or owned converged on the location and an impasse came to be, especially when a large portion of the Pels fleet also arrived.
WIP