Cooperatives of Margade

The Cooperatives of Margade refer to a cluster of organisations whose members are predominantly of the unskilled or semi-skilled working population within Margade.

History
The Cooperatives were born in the chaos in Margade following the two failed eastern expeditions launched by Iru - the Eastern Campaign of Prince Tamus 25 years ago, and the Eastern Campaign of King Lumiseg V 3 years after that. When the second campaign again ended in disaster, the eastern enemies of Iru banded together and launched an assault that breached the Kingdom itself, leading to the nine-month Siege of Margade.

In the resultant panic, large militias were organised among the longshoremen and dockworkers - strong, hard men suitable for fighting. FInanced and led by the merchants and their mercenary bodyguards, they proved their value in combat, beating back several major assaults on Margade and Raumar Palace, before finally driving the barbarians back at the Battle of the Southern Gate Meadow. The worker-soldiers were organised into regiments - Red, Blue, Green, Yellow and White - each led by a simple banner, to ease organisation.

In the wake of these victories, problems quickly arose; with Prince Tamus incapacitated, and the King unwilling to spend too much time before rushing back to his own power base, Margade was forced to manage itself. The heavy-handed attempts of the merchants to disband and disarm these workers soon led to a period of violent revolt that split the city down the Meridian Canal and lasted for a year. This was the infamous Calamity of Margade.

Major Cooperatives

 * Red Cooperative
 * Blue Cooperative
 * Green Cooperative
 * White Cooperative