How to control a city?

[Midnj]

Also to the OP, aside from moving your capital closer to these cities there's not much you can do about it. Selectively building to over-write non-culture buildings quickly can help, but not in time for your situation. Mod happiness (not law) or you'll find you're ridiculously rich because your corruption has magically dissapeared.

[Thaatu]

Just have effective governers ready to pacify the province. I think extermination isn't such an effective way to increase public order. I'm quite sure it forces unrest through the roof.

[Danest]

Your governor may have negative traits that are increasing unrest. In troubled towns, it's best to use governors with unrest-reducing ancillaries, and lots of influence.

[konny]

Just have effective governers ready to pacify the province. I think extermination isn't such an effective way to increase public order. I'm quite sure it forces unrest through the roof.

Yes that's it. When your general is not good enough he needs someone else as a civil administrator travelling with the army. A real good governor can prevent a town from rebelling without a full stack garrison, so allowing the army to move on. Some towns seems to be real poweder kegs. I had this as Karthago in the former Lusotann capital, which even after decades of Poenification instantly starts rebelling when not a high influenced governer was present.


Extermination has its downsides (appart from the general getting problems with sleep): the town takes longer to reach the next level and so allow you to overbuild the town hall what reduces masses of cultural penalty. Another thing would be to destroy every building that has nothing to do with unrest. It is faster to build your own factional equivalents than to overbuild the allready exsiting structures.

[Mediolanicus]

That's what I always do if I conquer a settlement from another culture ^^

I always destroy the buildings I don't immediately need, so I can replace them with my buildings and thus lower the culture penalty.
This, in combination with a high-influence governor - preferably with some unrest-reducing traits, can keep almost any city from rebelling.

[bovi]

Rycalawre, your improved language is very appreciated. Thank you.

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

Also, positioning a spy in the settlement is quite useful because there's a reasonable chance that enemy spies get kicked out. Each enemy spy increases unrest in about 25%.

Edit: What preposition to use with "to increase ... 25%"???

[Mediolanicus]

Indeed counter-spying to kick enemy spies out will also lower your chances of unrest being too high in your cities.

P.S.: "an increase of 25%", or am I wrong?