Festival of the Two-Thousand-Year Republic
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The Festival of the Two-Thousand-Year Republic was a public celebration held in 20 TT on the island today known as La Rossa, marking the age of the unified nation, and held soon after the third re-election of Lorenzo Minestrici di Mineria as Dux. While the festival's name tends not to be changed in translation, it is to be noted that it occurred only 1024 years after the unification of the island (owing to La Rossa's octal numeral system). Nearing the end of the height of the Rossan Golden Age, the celebration surrounded a six-day marching parade, accompanied by the Dux, who held patriotic speeches across the nation. The procession traveled across all of the nation's city-provinces, spending a day in each before moving on to the following one.
Processions
Beginning in Mineria, the place of birth and center of rule of Dux Minestrici at the time, the parade marched through the historical city core, making several circles around the Minerian Stone, an ancient legal codex marked on a dark stone pillar. Carried on a large, rolling platform, the Dux held celebratory speeches across the city, all while accompanied by a number of his personal guards, the Rossan Moschettieri. Expected by major crowds, the festival saw the opening of a great number of temporary concession and souvenir stands, selling often low-quality memorabilia commemorating the occasion. In search of publicity for the recently completed project, the live reading of speeches during the occasion was decided on becoming Radio La Rossa's first public transmission, available to be heard across the nation through publicly placed radio receivers and speakers.
Following sunset, the parade and the accompanying Moschettieri would board a large vessel prepared for the occasion, using it to rest as travel began around the coastline of the island. Following a clockwise route, the celebrations proceeded in Buglio, before moving to the west coast, and finally ending in Lorma. With the voyages becoming increasingly demanding due to poor weather, and the several hours of marching necessary each day in heavy ceremonial outfits, several instances of soldiers fainting have been reported, with some sustaining varying degrees of injury due to trampling, and a single death reported.
An apparent plot to assassinate the Dux during the procession by a group of radicals was unraveled days prior to the event, leading to heightened security throughout after several arrests have been made.