History Main / PuppetState

A state under the effective control of another state. Technically independent and in charge of its own affairs, but in reality if it tries anything without the say-so of the government of the nation in charge of it its liable to end up occupied again. An old term for this is [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satrapies Satrapies]]. Calling something a vassal state, client state or satellite state is another.

*** The Horse Lords DLC introduces a new mechanic which fits this trope even better: tributaries. Any ruler can subjugate a nearby ruler which makes him a suzerain. The tributary is forced to pay 40% of their income to the suzerain and has to join each of their wars. In exchange the suzerain can't attack or raid his tributaries and tributaries can call their suzerain to their wars (though they can refuse). However, this relationship will end once the suzerain dies, making the tributary independent again.

The nation trying to break away and regain true independence may be a plot point. Normally part of TheEmpire (especially if it's a HegemonicEmpire), or TheFederation. TheGoodKingdom is usually a stand-alone thing.

If the state is nominally democratic or republican and holds elections, and those are controlled by the parent state, see CorruptPolitician. Compare VoluntaryVassal and LesCollaborateurs.

If the state is nominally democratic or republican and holds elections, and those are controlled by the parent state, see CorruptPolitician. Compare VoluntaryVassal.

* Some of the nations conquered by the Nazis during UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, such as [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vichy_France Vichy France]] and Norway under the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quisling_regime Quisling regime]]. This even gave rise to colloquial use of "Vichy" to denote puppet regimes and "Quisling" to denote treacherous sellouts, hence the trope names VichyEarth and TheQuisling referring to specific subtropes of LesCollaborateurs. Also, the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_Social_Republic Italian Social Republic]] during the latter part of the war. LesCollaborateurs aided the Nazis' control over Europe significantly in this respect, as the Germans simply didn't have the manpower to occupy or staff all of their shortlived empire directly.

* Some of the nations conquered by the Nazis during UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, such as [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vichy_France Vichy France]] and Norway under the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quisling_regime Quisling regime]]. Also, the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_Social_Republic Italian Social Republic]] during the latter part of the war. LesCollaborateurs aided the Nazis' control over Europe significantly in this respect, as the Germans simply didn't have the manpower to occupy or staff all of their shortlived empire directly.

* The Indian princely states of British India.

The nation trying to break away and regain true independence may be a plot point. Normally part of TheEmpire (especially if it's a HegemonicEmpire), or TheFederation. TheKingdom is usually a stand-alone thing.

In ''Film/StarTrekIVTheVoyageHome'', Klingon [[LargeHam Ham]]-[[AssInAmbassador bassador]] Kamarag accuses Vulcan of being this.

** Notably, the Seleucid and Sassanid Empires in ''VideoGame/Rome2TotalWar'' and ''VideoGame/TotalWarAttila'' are geared towards this playstyle. Both empires were Persian dynasties, the (first) Persian Empire being the TropeNamer for 'satrapy' and also the UrExample of a HegemonicEmpire.

** Notably, the Seleucid and Sassanid Empires in ''VideoGame/TotalWarRome2'' and ''VideoGame/AttilaTotalWar'' are geared towards this playstyle. Both empires were Persian dynasties, the (first) Persian Empire being the TropeNamer for 'satrapy' and also the UrExample of a HegemonicEmpire.

** Although that didn't stop the country from acting as a voluntary puppet state to the US *long* after independence, with the sheer level of pro-American loyalties among the Filipinos entirely eclipsing the brutalities of the Philippine-American War.

* Some of the nations conquered by the Nazis during UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, such as [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vichy_France Vichy France]] and Norway under the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quisling_regime Quisling regime]]. Also, the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_Social_Republic Italian Social Republic]] during the latter part of the war.

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* The "Bantustans" in South Africa, ridiculously-shaped and economically unviable territories chiefly existing so that the Apartheid regime could assign a new nationality to the blacks they were trying to disenfranchise. Officially they were governed by blacks but those in charge were paid large amounts of money by the South African government. Four of them (Transkei, Bophuthatswana, Venda, and Ciskei) were officially granted independence but no one except South Africa recognized them. With the fall of the apartheid regime they were abolished and said lands were reintergrated back into South Africa.

* The Philippine Islands were a fairly successful example of this despite the brutal Pacification Campaigns. This seems to have been because of a string of highly successful proconsuls (including General [=MacArthur=] who to some degree [[GoingNative went native]]). The locals fought very bravely on the US side during UsefulNotes/WorldWarII because they believed-in this case correctly-the promise of future independence.

** In ''VideoGame/{{Stellaris}}'' your empire's ruler can recruit governors to rule sectors semi-autonomously. If you uplift a pre-FTL species they become a protectorate of your empire until they achieve technological parity with your empire, then they're incorporated as a vassal.

** In ''VideoGame/{{Civilization}} V, you can't make an entire civ into one, but when you conquer an enemy city you have the option between razing it, annexing it (which simply makes it on of your civ's cities, but generates a lot of unhappiness) or making it a puppet (which gives all the science, culture, and gold it generates to your civ, but you cannot control its production, for either buildings or units). The game also introduces city-states, single-city NPC nations. They can be razed, annexed, or puppeted just like enemy cities, but you can also get them on your side through trade and diplomacy, which can have them providing you with their strategic resources, occasionally gifting you military units, and going to war with your enemies.

* Manchukuo under "{{Film/The Last Emperor}}" Puyi is the most (in)famous of Japan's puppet states in the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere.

* ''Franchise/{{Civilization}}'':

* ''Franchise/Civilization'':

* In one of the {{Expansion Pack}}s for ''VideoGame/{{Civilization}} IV'', any sufficiently powerful civ can make any sufficiently weak civ into their vassal state. If the vassal grows powerful enough (there are exact numbers), it can regain independence.
** On the subject of Civ 5, you can't make an entire civ into one, but when you conquer an enemy city you have the option between annexing it (which simply makes it on of your civ's cities, but generates a lot of unhappiness) or making it a puppet (which gives all the science, culture, and gold it generates to your civ, but you cannot control its production, for either buildings or units).