Kingdom of Frisland
Kingdom of Frisland | |
|---|---|
 Flag
 Coat of arms
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| Motto: "Gegan Ac Unfurwoðen" "Gone But Not Forgotten" | |
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| Status | Active |
| Location | United States |
| Official languages | Frislondisc and English |
| Religion | No State Religion |
| Demonym(s) | Frislander (masculine), Frislanderwif (feminine) |
| Government | Constitutional monarchy |
• King | Andrew I |
• Viceroy/Prime Minister | Yehudah Netzer |
| Independence from the United States | |
• Established | c. 600 |
• Destroyed | 1398 |
• Restoration | 29 December 2023 |
• Annexation of Agoga | 1 January 2024 |
• Constitution Ratified | 2024 |
• Creation and Annexation of Landseofon | 4 April 2024 |
| Currency | Frislander Pound |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (EST) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
Website Website | |
Frisland, officially the Kingdom of Frisland, is a micronation based in the United States which claims the archipelago of Frisland as its territory. While the archipelago no longer exists, there has been considerable effort to cover up its existence altogether, beginning with Henry Sinclair I, the Earl of Orkney. The Frislander government maintains that the archipelago did exist but was destroyed in a cataclysmic volcanic eruption. The Frislander government sees itself as the legitimate continuation of the government that existed on the archipelago before its destruction.
Etymology
The name Frisland comes from the High Frislondisc words “Frijesa land”, meaning “Frija’s land”. According to the Frislander Saga, the Kingdom of Frisland was named after Frija, the wife of Noþung, the first Frislander king.
History
Prehistory
What is known of the history of Frisland is entirely dependent on the Saga and the Chronicle, though there are scattered reports of the archipelago in European history, usually referring to the archipelago as a single island. According to the Saga, the archipelago was formed when the eoten Syrtur threw fire and rocks into the Atlantic Ocean, possibly referring to one or more volcanic eruptions. Syrtur was said to live in one of the mountains on the main island of the archipelago that would occasionally spew forth rocks and fire, which appears to be a description of a volcano. The first humans to settle the archipelago arrived at an unknown time after the archipelago was formed. While it is unknown exactly where they came from or how they arrived, the Saga describes them with dark hair, sometimes red and sometimes black, and skin the colour of ash wood.
The Saga says that there was some contact with Europe during the prehistoric period, with colonies established by some of these European seafarers. The culture that the Saga ascribes to them appears to be similar to the Norse or other Germanic cultures. Given the fact that Noþung arrives and marries a woman named after the goddess Freja, it’s safe to assume that this is the case. That assumes that Frija is cognate with Freja. By the time of Noþung’s arrival, the archipelago was divided into several different nations, some being led by a chieftain or king, and some being led by a council of elders.
Recorded History
Noþung arrives on the main island as a young man with several other members of the crew of his ship. The ship sank after a massive wave lifted it high above the sea and dropped it, the ship broke into pieces and only a few of the crew survived and eventually washed up on the eastern shore of the main island. He and the survivors sought refuge in the small kingdom where they washed ashore but soon found that several other kingdoms existed and were distrusting of each other. The citizens told the survivors about an eoten that had conquered the southernmost nations and ruled them with some kind of mind control that made them think and act as one like a hivemind. The king of the eastern kingdom urged Noþung and his companions to leave because the eoten was expanding his territory and this wasn’t their fight. Noþung instead set out with his companions to find a way to defeat the eoten. They came to one of the kingdoms in the west that was allied with their rescuers because they heard that the king of that nation knew of a way to kill the eoten. The king of the Maasecal, the western nation, told Noþung of a sword called Guenþumin that was capable of killing the eoten, but the king warned that the blade was guarded by beings called Necron who would drain the bodies of those who dared to enter their domain of blood. The king of the Maasecal promised his niece, Frija, to Noþung if he retrieved the blade. Noþung defeated the Necron and retrieved the sword Guenþumin, he was given Frija’s hand in marriage, and he led a successful campaign against the eoten.
After the eoten had been killed, the king of the Maasecal named Noþung his heir because he only had daughters. Meanwhile, the king of the eastern nation that rescued Noþung and his companions sent word to Noþung that he would become king of that nation after the king’s death as a reward for killing the eoten. After both kings died, Noþung became king of both nations and began a successful campaign to unite the nations on the main island. His son and heir, Ælfreð, brought the other islands of the archipelago under the rule of Frisland. The Chronicle gives a long list of kings and their accomplishments after Ælfreð, it also details a war between Frisland and the Earl of Orkney, Henry Sinclair I.
In 1398, King Wulfric of Frisland led a failed campaign against the Earl of Orkney from which the Frislander army had to retreat. They set sail to Frisland under skies that were "black with ash and soot", and when they arrived at where Frisland should be they found the entire archipelago was destroyed and only a boiling sea remained where the kingdom had once been. It appears that the volcano on the main island of the archipelago erupted and destroyed the entire archipelago. King Wulfric and his men sought refuge among a friendly Scottish clan and eventually worked their way to mainland Europe. After they arrived on the mainland they integrated into the society of their host nation, Frisland hasn’t existed as a country since the destruction of the archipelago.
King Wulfric is believed to have written the original Saga and Chronicle to preserve their history, the last line of what is believed to be the original Chronicle reads “Frisland will rise from the sea again, let Orkney tremble”. It is unknown if this line was meant literally or figuratively. The Chronicle has had several additions since then, probably written by the heirs of King Wulfric down to King Andrew’s late father. It appears that the Saga and Chronicle were copied by each king after Wulfric and new additions were made that reflected their achievements. Frisland does not hold any animosity against Clan Sinclair or the Earldom of Orkney at present.
Modern History
The micronation of Frisland came about after King Andrew was looking through his late father’s personal items in the summer of 2023. The king found two notebooks belonging to his father that were written in a language that the king didn’t recognize. The king reached out to his viceroy, who is a linguist with a knowledge of Indo-European and Semitic languages, for help identifying the language. Viceroy Netzer remarked that it looked similar to Old English, the language of the Anglo-Saxon settlers of Great Britain, and he began to try to translate the notebooks with Old English as a starting point. The process of translation took some time, but the notebooks appeared to contain the history of a civilisation that inhabited the archipelago of Frisland. The notebooks were named “the Frislander Saga” and “the Frislander Chronicle”, the Saga records the history of Frisland before the unification of the archipelago and includes mythological elements, while the Chronicle records the history of Frisland after the unification of the archipelago. The story of Frisland is fictional and mostly for fun, but it helps to provide a culture and help introduce the kingdom's mission and goals. The two previously worked together on the Kingdom of Agoga micronational project, but they both agreed to start a new micronation as a restoration of the original Kingdom of Frisland.
After the Saga and Chronicle were both translated into English, King Andrew and Viceroy Netzer understood that the king was heir to the Frislander throne through his paternal line and decided to resurrect the kingdom, even if only in the form of a micronation. The government of the Kingdom of Frisland was restored to its active status on 29 December 2023. The Kingdom of Agoga micronational project that the king and viceroy worked on together for two years was formally absorbed into the Kingdom of Frisland as a chivalric order on 1 January 2024. Although technically the historical Frisland was an empire, the official name appears to have always been “Kingdom of Frisland”, and that is the name the current government prefers. There are no current plans for expansion, and King Andrew has said that Frisland will not be officially referred to as an empire if other micronations formally join Frisland.
Politics and government
Frisland is a constitutional monarchy wherein the monarch exercises absolute authority within the framework of the Frislander constitution. The Head of State and Head of Government is King Andrew, a hereditary monarch who will pass on his values and his leadership roles within the government to his heir, Crown Prince Ezekiel. King Andrew relies on his body of ministers, called the King's Table ("Cyningesborð" in Frislondisc) and led by the Prime Minister, to properly govern and institute national policies. Currently, any citizen may apply to have a seat at the King's Table, though appointment to the Table is subject to the king's discretion and this policy might change as Frisland grows.
Since Frisland does not exercise sovereignty over any territory the kingdom sees itself as a government in exile and utilises the Royal Standard for the government flag. It is the conviction of the Frislander government that democratic and republican governments are little more than mob rule where 51% of the population can vote or elect candidates to oppress the other 49% of the population and elections are usually won by the most convincing liars. Because of this, political parties and political elections don't exist in Frisland, the constitution protects the rights of every citizen equally. Frisland has no interest in meaningless conflict and will remain neutral in intermicronational conflicts, though Frisland will back its allies short of engaging in conflict. The kingdom lives by the non-aggression principle (NAP), a principle that prohibits the initiation of aggressive or forceful action against another party.
The government recognises that the landmass it claims as its territory is at the bottom of the ocean due to volcanic activity, but it has already decided to claim the territory if volcanic activity causes it to resurface. Frisland's goal is to promote conservation and exploration of Earth's oceans and it will work with any interested parties to that end.
Frisland is interested in establishing relations with other micronational and macronational governments to further its causes. It is not interested in meaningless conflict, and it will not recognise other micronations claiming the same territory.
Law and order
The Frislander Constitution is the supreme law of the land and can be used even against the king if he is found guilty of a crime. Since Frisland does not have a sovereign territory, there is no police force or legally recognised court system. The king is the final authority on civil cases and the King's Table is the final authority on charges brought against the king. There are plans to institute trial by jury as Frisland grows.
Military
There is currently no Frislander military force since the kingdom does not hold legal sovereignty over any territory, military defence is left to the macronations. There is a defensive Royal Navy planned to protect Frislander exploration and research vessels and facilities. After the launch of the Royal Navy, the king will serve as the commander-in-chief with the ceremonial rank of Lord Admiral and the viceroy will hold the military rank of Lord Commander.
Foreign relations
The Kingdom of Frisland is open to establishing diplomatic relations with other micronations, a contact form can be found on the website. Formal recognition of other micronations and any other formal diplomatic relations are done so by treaty according to the laws of the two micronations. Frisland will not ally itself with any micronation that is prone to conflict or that seeks to form a military alliance with warfare in mind.
Frisland is aware that many micronations claim Atlantis as their territory, but some of those who claim Atlantis as their territory place Atlantis in the same location as Frisland. Frisland will not recognise or establish formal relations with any micronation that claims territory within our territorial claim, any such micronation must bow to the only legitimate authority of Frislander territory.
Below is a list of micronations that Frisland recognises either unilaterally or through a mutual recognition treaty.
Unilateral recognition
Mutual recognition
Frisland does not currently have a mutual recognition treaty with any micronations
Administrative divisions
Frisland currently has one subnational administrative division, a principality named Landseofon. Frisland is focused on its oceanic pursuits and cannot, as a government-in-exile, reign over a land claim. Therefore, the Principality of Landseofon was created to pursue the Frislander mission on land. Landseofon is the governing authority over land claims and has a stated mission of establishing Duchies under their banner. The Duchies will work toward greater degrees of self-reliance and the leadership of the Duchies will be mentored and helped by Landseofon. A Duchy can be established for several reasons, and the Prince of Landseofon will advise a Duchy's leadership on what needs to be done to be accepted as a Duchy within Landseofon.
| Flag | Arms/Seal/Emblem | Name | Macronational Region | Population | Leadership |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Principalities | |||||
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Landseofon | Florida | 6 | Prince Yehudah |
Interests
The Kingdom of Frisland has interests in oceanic exploration, research, and conservation. There is more known about outer space than there is about our oceans, Frisland hopes to help expand our knowledge of the world’s oceans. Given that Frisland’s territory lies at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean, it is hoped that King Wulfric’s statement that Frisland will rise from the sea again is prophetic and that the same creative forces that formed the archipelago will cause it to reemerge. If Frisland does rise from the sea again, the government of Frisland will lay claim to its birthright and reestablish the kingdom once again in its former territory.
Geography and climate
The landmass that was once Frisland currently lies at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean, ancient maps place it roughly at the coordinates 62°N latitude and 20°W longitude. This places it approximately 120 kilometres (75 miles) southwest of the village of Vik, Iceland. While it is known that there was at least one volcano on the largest island, it is believed that the other islands in the archipelago were likely also volcanic. The archipelago consisted of eight islands and an unknown number of rocky islets, but only the eight islands are thought to have been inhabited.
Flora and Fauna
It is unknown what the native flora and fauna were when Frisland was above the sea, though it’s likely that it had much of the same native life that the southern parts of Iceland have due to their proximity. At present the archipelago is likely inhabited exclusively by marine life native to the region, given the fact that it's underwater.
Culture
Religion
The religious beliefs of Frisland in prehistory are unknown. The story about Syrtur forming the islands by throwing fire and rocks shows heavy Germanic influence, so it is unknown if that is the original myth or if Germanic settlers Germanised the original myth. The author of the Saga and the original Chronicle was clearly a believer in the Germanic folk religion, and it’s clear that the royal family was also believers in that religion until King Emmanuel converted to Catholicism in the mid-15th century. There are many references to Germanic myths in the Saga and original Chronicle, including several people swearing “by Wuðen’s (Odin’s) wisdom”. The state religion may have been Germanic folk religion. The Chronicle mentions contact with Christians in the late 10th century when the island was visited by Leif Erikson on his return voyage to Greenland, though the first contact with Christianity may have occurred before this since the Chronicle refers to them by the Latin term "Cristiani" and doesn’t give any indication that this was their first contact with Christians. Both the Saga and the Chronicle appear to take for granted that the reader is familiar with various places, events, and myths.
The micronation Frisland has no state religion, Frislanders are free to believe and act as they choose within the law. The only legal restriction on religion, apart from requiring that religious observance follows the law, is a ban on nonconsensual proselytising. For those curious, the royal family practices Eastern Orthodox Christianity within the jurisdiction of the Orthodox Church in America.
Holidays
| Date | Name | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| 11 May | Sovereign's Day | A day honouring the revival of Frisland and the royal family. |
See also