Hollanni Space
Forty years ago the Lystran Empire, in alliance with the brave forces of the Hollann Rebellion, cast down the tyrannical ruling regime of the Hollann Protectorate.
You can read more about the old Hollann Protectorate here
Since then the Protectorate has fragmented and the planets formerly under its dominion have gone three different ways:
A large number of planets chose to swear allegiance to the liberating forces of the Lystran Empire and are now loyal Imperial subjects, treated as any other Lystran Planet.
The League of Free States
The League of Free States contains the majority of ex-Protectorate worlds; having taken control of the infrastructure left by the previous regime. Citizens of the League are generally grateful to the Empire for their part in the Liberation, but many hold in some contempt the inhabitants of planets who swore fealty to Emperor Xanolph rather than standing united with their cultural brethren. Despite social reform since the Liberation, many citizens of the League enjoy a standard of living decades, if not centuries, behind that of their counterparts in Lystran space. Legacy technology remains near exclusively in the hands of the government, who struggle to meet the needs of the masses, while the standard level of technology throughout the League is not far beyond that of the Industrial Revolution.
The League inherited a powerful military from the Protectorate, and though many of the resources dedicated to the armed forces how now been given over to civilian pursuits, there are some doomsayers in the Empire who worry that their neighbour could all too easily become a threat once more. Given that the League lacks both the might of a Legacy Battleship, or the ability to Preserve its leaders, most in the Empire are confident that the League would never willingly go to war with their neighbour.
Not a year has past since the Liberation where less than a hundred attacks have been made on government facilities by so-called Protectorate Loyalists. In the early years the Lystran UIC provided the League government with extensive help dealing with the terrorists, but recent League governments have seen confronting the spectre of their past as an internal matter. Two years ago League President Mtandi barely survived an assassination attempt by three Loyalists who have still yet to be brought to justice.
The Independent Worlds
The last, disparate group of planets formerly in the Protectorate chose to distance themselves both from the League and the Empire, deciding upon a course of complete independence. Some have radically isolationist populaces, choosing to give up space travel altogether and shun all contact from outside. Others have simply decided they would rather try to make it alone in galaxy, without the ‘help’ of an interstellar government.
Normally the Lystran Empire would take measures to assimilate these individual planets, however the watchful eye of the League makes this a delicate matter. Empress Roweena dictated that the Lystrans would not be seen to ‘bully’ the Independent Worlds into joining the Empire, and for the past few decades countless diplomats have been tasked with coaxing these planets into the Imperial fold. The League has taken similar measures and most planets have remained firmly neutral, enjoying the attentions of both of their powerful suitors.
The Independent Worlds also have the dubious honour of being the hosts to the Migan pirates. Some worlds simply lack the security networks to identify pirate vessels, while others actively encourage the patronage of the outlaws on the understanding that the brigands won’t raid in their home space.