The Equestrian Civil War

I suppose it should come as no surprise it came to this; war... A concept alien to those of us living in this fine land of Equestria, once a peaceful and prosperous realm under the guidance of our fair, even-handed, enlightened despot. That seems so far away, however; difficult at times to believe it's been a mere three years since this all began. Even more difficult to believe that it might ever come to an end. After all we've put ourselves through getting here, nopony wants to concede defeat quite yet. All the highs and lows, the campaigns which have ended in triumph and disaster... through it all, they've failed to crush our spirits. Though without a rallying figure to lead us in our just struggle against this tyranny which hath befallen our once great nation, I honestly fail to see any chance of victory against the powers that be.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. As with any story, this one needs context. I suppose, then, it's only logical I start back at the beginning...