A Guide to Recent Equestrian History

by mint20

Social and Economic Reform

Age of Reconstruction
2149-2158 AW
Social and Economic Reform
Currency Act: 2153 AW
Edic Against Discriminatory Action: 2155 AW
Military Intervention Against Discrimination: 2155-2159 AW
Amendment Regarding the Rights of the Ponies of Equestria: 2156 AW
Declaration of Intent to Seize Lands Possessed by Changelings: 2158 AW

With their hooves on the reins of power, the Royal Sisters had decisions to make. Would they focus on reforms or foreign diplomacy first? Would they maintain the same standards of the Republic, or would they start fresh?

To this effect, the Currency Act was issued. This act remains, if not the most, one of the most controversial acts ever passed by the Equestrian Diarchy to this day. In it, the sisters declared that any currency possessed during the time of the Republic would no longer be honored by the government. Rather, the central government would issue bits, which remains the currency of Equestria to this day.

Seeing as nopony had bits, this edict effectively sent everypony back to square one. The rich suddenly on the same level of the ones who, only a century ago, they had looked down upon with disgust. Therefor, this act was unpopular with them.

However, seeing as the former rich and wealthy made up no more than two percent of the nation, all attempts to repeal the act failed miserably. This is curious, as a pony might think that the middle class of Equestria would have disagreed with this edict. After all, the middle class would have had something to lose, as well.

Careful analysis of records from just before the fall of the Republic shed some light on this matter. Records that date back to just before the fall indicate that the “middle class” was actually very small and not all that rich. The upper middle class consisted of only five percent of the nation, and they earned the equivalent of eighteen thousand bits a year. The lower middle class was only fifteen percent, earning an average of twelve thousand bits. (Bear in mind that the cost of living was much higher due to inflation, over fifteen thousand bits a year, and it only stopped rising due to the fall of Republican Equestria) The lower class had everypony else, with over thirty percent of the population living below the poverty line, and at least twenty percent homeless. What’s more, over twenty five houses or apartments were empty for every homeless family. All these played a role, not to mention the fact that the middle and lower classes shared the view that that the upper classes were nothing more than a collection of stuck-up, arrogant, whiney fools who indirectly contributed to the failure of the Republic. Add these together, and it becomes clear why the Currency Act passed.

Now, with everypony starting fresh with a new lease on life, old patterns began to resurface. Often, discriminatory action, left over from the Three Tribes Period and the Republic, could be seen throughout pony society, most notably in the pegasi-dominated military. It was rare for any talented unicorn or earth pony to receive a commission, and unheard-of for there to be a unicorn/earth pony general. It is possible, though not statistically likely, that this was not discrimination, rather there simply no cases of sufficiently skilled soldiers in the other tribes. As before mentioned, this was more than slightly unlikely. To give a comparison, it is more likely that Discord managed to break free of his stone prison, and replace the stone statue with a fake, then sneak off and found his own nation with a willing population.

Princess Celestia and Luna was aware of this. They also knew that, if this action were to continue, it could very well rip apart the nation. Action had to be taken swiftly, and, unlike the Republic, reforms had to be enforced. Many reform acts were passed by the Republic of Equestria, but they were barely, if at all, enforced.

The Royal Sisters’ answer was threefold. First, they passed an edict declaring discriminatory action to be on par with “treason against the high ideals upon which Equestria is founded.” As such, those actions would be punishable by the same penalties allotted to perpetrators of high treason. After the edict was issued, the Princesses began phase two. Phase two involved a complete reform and restructure of military command, placing skilled ponies from all Tribes in positions of authority. They were required to swear to always and faithfully obey the Edict Against Discriminatory Action.

Finally, phase three. The Princesses moved troops into every settlement of ponies, with orders to arrest anypony who presented any form of discrimination. Between the years of 2155 and 2159, when the troops were pulled to invade changeling lands, several hundred ponies were arrested on charges of high treason. The penalty at the time was fifty five years in the federal prison and a fine of two million bits. It is said that the national treasury doubled in size be because of the fines.

Following up the edict, the Princesses proposed the Amendment Regarding the Rights of the Ponies of Equestria. The document is still on display today in the Canterlot Archives. In it, basic rights to the common pony were outlined and detailed. For as revolutionary and bold the Constitution was and is, no part of it outlined basic rights.

According to the document, these rights were guaranteed to all citizens of Equestria

1. The right to speak one's mind.

2. The right to petition the government, dissent, and protest peacefully

3. The right to carry weapons and train with them

4. The right to receive equal opportunity regardless of Tribe, excepting cases of Tribe-specific jobs (for example, weather control for non-pegasi.) The final authority on what counted as a Tribe specific job was the Princesses.

5. The right to refuse to answer a question in court, and and to not have above-mentioned refusal be taken as an admission of guilt. This only applies to questions asked regarding the pony in question, not to questions posed about family, friends, etc.

6. The right to a fair trail by jury, and to a state-paid lawyer to represent the pony in question in above-mentioned court.

7. The right to deny officers of the law or military the ability to search and/or seize themselves and/or the pony's property, excepting cases where a court of law has decides there is "amble evidence" to warrant such a search/seizure.

8. The right to other rights not necessarily outlined in this document.

With the domestic stability more or less achieved, the Princesses turned their attention to outside the borders of their realm. In 2156, the Royal Sisters stepped up the training and funding of the Equestrian Military, converting the poorly-trained warriors of the Harmonious Revolution to hardened, battle-ready soldiers that would be the envy of the world. The Sisters believed that it was Equestria’s “Manifest Destiny” to spread across the continent that they were upon. Much of this land was once controlled by the Equestrian Republic, taken by the Changelings after Discord was overthrown. Finally, it was time to return to the stage of world politics and remind the world of the power of harmony.