Great King in Carshalton
| Great King of Carshalton | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Incumbent | |
 | |
| HIM Emperor Jonathan I since 20 January 2013 | |
| Details | |
| Style | His Majesty |
| Heir presumptive | HIH Crown Princess Caroline |
| First monarch | HR&IM King-Kaiser-Emperor Declan I, II & V |
| Formation | 12 May 2012 |
Great King in Carshalton (previously titled Shahanshah of the Carshalton Nations/Realms) is the title used by the overlord of the Carshalton Nations to denote their position as such. It has since its creation been held by the Emperors of Austenasia.
Etymology
The title of Great King is one translation of the Persian title Shāhanshāh (شاهنشاه), which was previously used un-translated. However, "Shahanshah" literally translated means "King of Kings"; on 30 September 2017, Emperor Jonathan I changed the title from Shahanshah to Great King, on the basis that the literal translation of the original Persian is a title which should belong solely to Christ.
History
Although the title Shahanshah of the Carshalton Realms was adopted in May 2012, the concept of the Carshalton Nations having a specific paramount monarch had existed for nearly two years beforehand. The political theory of Esmondianism, popular amongst the Austenasian Army from April 2010 onwards, holds that the Emperor of Austenasia holds all rightful authority in the western world due to being the de facto successor to the Western Roman Emperors. When the Caesarship of Orly was founded on 4 July 2010, the prevalence of this ideology resulted in the new nation - composed mostly of friends of Austenasian Army members - actively seeking Emperor Esmond III to hold suzerainty over them, reasoning that a monarch appointed by him would have absolute legitimacy. The Midget Nation-in-Exile had by May 2010 become a vassal nation of the Empire of Austenasia and had also adopted a similar world view; Esmond III therefore had suzerainty over both the Midget Master and the Caesar of Orly during a large part of July 2010, and began to be referred to as the "overlord of the Carshalton Sector" (an older term for the Carshalton Nations). When Orly split into the Kingdom of the Grove and the Kingdom of Copan on 19 July, Esmond III retained his suzerainty over both their monarchs (that of Copan only until 11 September later that year), and three months later on 17 October he resurrected the title King of Rushymia.
Copan had already been removed from Esmond's suzerainty by its king, Declan I, who on 8 December 2010 became head of state of the Grove and announced a reunification of Orly, formally removing the entire nation from Esmond's suzerainty the following day and so starting the War of the Orlian Reunification. The Midget Nation immediately sided with Declan (being allied with the Grove and Copan and considering this to override their overlord-vassal relationship with Esmond III), and made him Midget Master on 16 December. By then, it was unclear if the Carshalton Nations still had an overlord - if it did, it was most likely Declan I and his co-monarch Frances I as monarchs of Orly and the Midgets, two actual nations with fighting capabilities, whereas Esmond had only Austenasia (the reborn Rushymia being a nominal entity effectively based around the right to hold the title of its king). Declan I became definitive overlord of the Carshalton Nations on 19 December, when he was made joint Emperor of Austenasia and King of Rushymia alongside Esmond, who was removed from power just over three months later.
Declan I was able to consolidate his power over the Carshalton Nations over the course of 2011, and on 12 May 2012 proclaimed himself "Shahanshah of the Carshalton Realms" in recognition of his paramount position in Carshalton. When he abdicated from Austenasia on 20 January 2013, he lost not only the Imperial throne but those of the Midgets and Rushymia as well, all three of which he was succeeded in by Jonathan I, who is the incumbent overlord of the Carshalton Nations. Jonathan I changed the title to express leadership of the Carshalton Nations rather than Realms, as neither Rushymia nor the Midgets had any sovereign territory.
Jonathan I insisted on using the title even before June 2013, while Orly was no longer in personal union with Austenasia but retained Declan I as its monarch reigning from Wilton, as the Orlian people continued to recognise the Emperor of Austenasia as their rightful overlord. On 24 June 2013, Declan I planned to visit Carshalton and demand Jonathan I relinquish the title to him. This resulted in the Liberation of Orly, with Declan I deposed and the Emperor appointing new "native" monarchs for the newly independent Grove and Copan. The Liberation of Orly since became regarded as the throwing off of a foreign yoke, with the Carshalton Nations again being led by one of their own.
Jonathan I retained the title Shahanshah of the Carshalton Nations until September 2017, when he renamed the title Great King in Carshalton on the basis that the title of Shahanshah was inappropriate both in a religious (literally translated King of Kings, a title of Jesus Christ) and literal (only one of the Emperor's vassals being a King) sense. At the same time, the title was officially confirmed as being held ex officio by the Austenasian Monarch.