Following the Ming Uprising of 1412, nearly five million former Ming subjects joined together under the ancient banner of the late former Emperor Hangzu von Atwaus, a remnant of the last Ming-Brandenburg Dynasty, before the bloody War of Siver Petals conquered its people and lands. It wasn't exactly a true republic, more like a parliamentary monarchy, but people had basic voting rights nonetheless until 1452 when an unknown force of nearly three and a quarter million foreign mercenaries stormed the Reformed Ming-Brandenburg Empire. It resulted in the extremely bloody Battle for Handong, a minor mountain city at the summit of the North Far Eastern Dragon Mountain Range, where the Imperial Army of around seven hundred thousand faced off the mercenary force of around two million mercenaries, where the Imperial forces managed to hold off the mercenaries for a stunning two months, largely thanks to the well-coordinated battle strategies of the Imperial Army, and well designed military infrastructure. Reinforcements of four million dragoons, grenadiers and Calvary from the national reserves and elite Imperial Royal Guard (but mostly Calvary and dragoons from the Imperial Reserves) arrived under General Hofferstant von Beihai and routed the mercenary force with the Battle of the Burning Snow, where Imperial grenadiers threw hundreds of thousands of firebombs of petroleum jelly mixed with gunpowder into the fray, causing massive casualties to the enemy force. The mercenaries, only equipped with medium-range muskets and cannons were stunned to be attacked with long-range rifle fire from the dragons, and even more so when the Calvary charged in and practically obliterated the entire artillery force from the east, where the formations of mercenary infantry had neglected to cover an open flank to their artillery batteries, allowing the Calvary to charge and wipe them out completely. Without artillery support, the mercenaries were beaten back and the Imperial Army proceeded to mass-charge the enemy.
The battle ended when all the mercenaries were either captured or dead, covered with brutal lacerations and bloody bullet wounds. From interrogation, the Imperial Intelligence discovered a plot by the neighboring Ardian Empire, which they did, upon the defeat of their mercenaries. The war was brutal, costing both sides millions of casualties, and lasting until 1487, when the Empire of Ardia brought its armies and allies to the Imperial Capital of Nanjing, resulting in the crushing Battle of the Burning Lead, where the remaining Imperial Army was defeated, though bringing down five times the casualties they had taken. The Emperor was killed, and his entire administration either committed suicide or took part in the Last Stand of the Shattered Sword, where the Imperial Marine-Guards and other elements of the Imperial Army stood their ground in the defense and evacuation of the Royal Emperor-to-be and hundreds of thousands of civilians. The last remnants of the Imperial military went into hiding, exile, or went with the Emperor-to-be's contingent force. Such was the end of the Restored Empire.
But the Ardian Empire failed to hold onto the Chinese lands, in 1494, when the Emperor-to-be's daughter and heiress to the throne, commanded a small army of half a million Imperial Royal Guards, Remnant Imperial Army and common peasants armed with rifles decisively defeated the enemy at Hannong, as the small army outmaneuvered the unprepared and lax occupying Ardian forces and took their regional governer hostage. The Ardian Empire figured that the bloodshed and cost of sending another force to retake the are would be far to expensive, despite being ridiculously wealthy in natural resources. They agreed on a ceaseifre, allowing the Heiress to re-establish the empire, but this time under the flag of the First Chinese Republic. Thus began the prosperous thirty years of the First Republic, with the Emperor holding the title of Imperial Admiral, beginning with Heiress Huaning, it as she was fondly nicknamed by the people for her military might and yet kindness to the commons, the Steel Blossum.
The First Republic came into being on June 23, 1498, with the Imperial Admiral Huaning and President Gubang in power, with a large parliament of 72, representing all, including minorities and common laborers.