Kingdom of Phokland
 | This article refers to a micronation or element of micronationalism which is defunct and no longer exists. You can help make the article reflect that or ask on the talk page for further information. |
- Not to be confused with the Falkland islands.
Kingdom of Phokland Königreich Phoklandia | |
|---|---|
 Royal Arms
| |
 Constituent holdings of the Kingdom | |
| Capital | Vundenberg |
| Largest city | New Salisbury |
| Official languages | English, Spanish, Phoklandian, German |
| Demonym(s) | Phoklandian |
| Government | Constitutional monarchy |
• Monarch | Charles |
• Prime Minister | Simon R. |
| Legislature | Royal Court |
| Independence from America | |
• Phoklandian independence | 10 February 2007 |
• Reformed | 30 October 2019 |
• Dissolved | 31 December 2019 |
| Population | |
• 2019 estimate | 37+ [1] |
| GDP (nominal) | estimate |
• Total | P$200 [2] |
| Currency | Phoklandian Imperial Dollar (PID, USD) |
| Time zone | MST |
| Date format | dd-mm-yyyy (Phoklandian Calendar) |
| Driving side | right |
| Calling code | +1 |
| Internet TLD | .com |
Phokland (officially the Kingdom of Phokland and also known as the Tsardom of Phokland or Electorate of Phokland) was an unrecognized sovereign estate of the Holy Roman Empire and (proposed) constituent of East-Erica - better known as a micronation - located in the southwestern United States and (ceremonially) north-western Antarctica. The nation was based on the Bulgarian Kingdom and to a lesser extent the Russian Empire. Therefore, the nation used many traditions and symbols associated with those states.
Phokland was formed in 2007 as a separatist state but had since transitioned into more of a community than a genuine independence movement. The governing philosophy of the state was "peace through diplomacy" and as such, the kingdom attempted to maintain constant (positive) relations with as many other nations as possible. It is for this and several other reasons that Phokland gained some notoriety within the community (particularly within the MicroWiki and Kyberian sectors)[3].
History
The Kingdom of Phokland existed in some capacity (excluding a four-year hiatus) since 2007. During this time, the country went through seven different names (and governmental structures).
Pre-Phoklandian History
The idea of Phokland was first conceived by Charles Ross in early 2007 as a way to establish an absolute monarchical kingdom in the playground of his primary school in Gilbert, Arizona. The nation officially came into existence at noon on 10 February 2007. The new nation was given the name of the Kingdom of Rosston, and Ross was given the title of King Charles I. The initial land claim of the kingdom was made up of the sandbox and play structure in the playground. However, other territories were eventually added to the nation, including King Charles' bedroom and the local swimming pool (though the claims to these territories were disputed). In addition, many of the King's friends also joined the nation as subjects during this time. Though originally fictional in nature, the Kingdom of Rosston was able to get minor recognition from the school and (to an even lesser extent) the neighborhood it resided in.
The nation continued in this capacity until late 2013, when it was decided by Charles I that the nation lacked the motivation necessary to continue its existence. Therefore, on the evening of 11 December 2013, all actions of the Kingdom of Rosston as a nation were put on hiatus and Charles I indefinitely suspended his role as monarch.
People's Republic of Phokland
Following four years of inactivity, Rosston's original founder Charles Ross and his friend Brock Lang sought to restore the Kingdom. However, unlike its previous fictional form, the new nation was designed to act as a political experiment. This experiment would be to prove that young adults (i.e. older teenagers) were capable of running a government successfully. The idea was created in response to the two founders becoming angry at their home macronation's perceived lack of respect towards younger people and its lack of governmental representation for teenagers and young adults.
On the evening of 13 December 2017, Ross (then Prime Minister) and Lang (then Minister of Defense) ratified the first Phoklandian Declaration of Independence, thus re-establishing the Kingdom of Rosston. However, it was decided soon after independence that the nation would change its name to Phokland and (for a short time) not have a monarchy, thus re-establishing the country as a democratic republic.
From 13 December 2017 until 27 April 2018, Phokland functioned as a democratic republic, with Ross serving as the nation's first Prime Minister. During this time, the country saw the establishment of its first governing body, The Phoklandian Emergency Senate, as well as the acquisition of Phokland's first official area of territory as the result of a land purchase by Prime Minister Ross. This time period also saw the beginning of Phokland's (tumultuous) relationship with the Empire of Lanzantonia.
From 26–27 April 2018 the then People's Republic of Phokland suffered a national crisis when Lang resigned from his position as Defense Minister and effectively left the nation. This event left Prime Minister Ross as the only active citizen of the country. Due to this, he decided to re-establish his status as a monarch, specifically as a Prince, and to re-establish the nation as a Principality.
Principality of Phokland
Hours after the decision to make Phokland a principality, Brock Lang changed his mind about leaving the country and was shortly thereafter appointed to the role of Prime Minister, in an event known as the "Phoklandian Unification." Lang held the position of Prime Minister until he was voted out of office during the 2018 elections, succeeded by the Chairman of the Phokland First Party, James Ellis.
Under this new government of Prince Charles I, the nation saw a rise in population, growing from two people in April 2018 to thirty three by October of that same year. The new government also formalized the military of Phokland and entered into diplomatic relations with other states such as the Republic of Bonumland and the Principality of New Eiffel.
Viceroyalty of Phokland
On 11 November 2018, Phokland was annexed by the Principality of Domanglia. This annexation was the result of a lack of resources which had led to the complete collapse of Phokland's economy, and a need for a more stable ruling government. Domanglian annexation was seen as the best option for fixing this and Phokland was given to them. Among the conditions of this annexation were that Phokland would be self-governed through a new local government, with Charles I acting as viceroy of the new state whilst retaining the title of Prince.
Tsardom of Phokland
Following the dissolution of the Principality of Domanglia on 29 January 2019, Phokland regained its independence, and was reorganized into a Tsardom, with Charles I being crowned Tsar. Following this, the nation experienced rapid growth in population, land, and recognition. Phokland quickly began forming diplomatic relations with several states and expanded its territorial size, claiming two separate areas of land within the continent of Antarctica (the disputed claims of the Lordship of Arcelia and Territory of Northarctica).
In addition, several new acts of legislation were introduced, with the most significant one being the Anti Discrimination Act of 2019. Phokland also introduced a new currency, the Phoklandian Imperial Dollar, which has an exchange rate based on the United States' currency (USD).
Reorganization
In late July 2019, the Tsardom of Phokland entered into a state of national crisis when inactivity within the nation reached a critical amount. At this time most of the government was inactive, and while a mid-July poll showed that the majority of citizens wished to continue the nation, the poll showed that they would rather the monarch reign as an absolute Tsarist Autocrat. As such, on the thirty first of July 2019 and in accordance with this and other voted upon decisions, the reigning monarch Tsar Charles I, dissolved the democratic government (choosing instead to consolidate power within a small select group of ministers) and renounced all claims to the continent of Antarctica, instead deciding to maintain a ceremonial "claim" of "land" on the geofictional planate of Micras and maintaining claims to the former U.S. Phoklandian Embassy (now renamed to the Grand Duchy of Vundenberg and designated as the nation's capital).
Project Micras
In early 2019, the Phoklandian government began a campaign to reinstate and revitalize the citizenry. To do this, it was decided that (in addition to its real Antarctic claims) Phokland would acquire a sizable piece of "land" (roughly 810,000² km) on the geofictional planet of Micras. This area came to be known as "Phoklandian Micras". This area was not recognized as a part of the country but rather as a "community project" that was designed to give the citizens of Phokland something to work on together that would hopefully add new light to the nation.
The physical makeup of the Phoklandian territory on Micras was primarily tropical in nature. The area rested in the northern most coastal regions of the continent of Eura in southern Micras. The majority of the territory was populated by junglescape terrain and tropical beaches. The only exceptions to this were parts of the southeastern portion of the nation where the climate is dramatically hotter than anywhere else in the country, and hence primarily a desert biome. South of the mainland (within the Corasaunt river) is the small island of Kaiserliche ("Imperial Island" in English). This island was (contrary to the rest of the nation) mostly forest and is primarily made up of rocky coasts and densely forested areas. The island is roughly 10,000 square kilometers in size and is home to roughly 16,000 "people". The small island was also the home of the Principality of Lisseum (a phoklandian feudal state).
These holdings would not last long however, as on 25 August 2019, Phokland surrendered all micrasian holdings to the Principality of Graustark following it's declaration of succession from Phokland.
Abdication Crisis
Between August and October 2019, Phokland entered into another state of national emergency when the incumbent monarch; Charles Ross abdicated in favor of former Prime Minister Mia Sanchez. Upon taking the throne, The new Tsar (now retitled as Empress but still commonly referred to by the old title) caused uproar amongst the citizenry due to many of them not wanting the old ruler to leave.
This disdain was further compacted by Empress Mia's lack of activity within the nation. This caused a divisive rift between the government with the new Prime Minister taking de facto leadership over the country.
The (seemingly) problematic reign of Tsar Mia ended on the evening of 9 October 2019 when the Prime Minister along with the former monarch (who had been off running the state of Graustark) and several other members of the cabinet and military took control of Phokland's capital and convinced Mia to abdicate, thus re-establishing Tsar Charles as sovereign of Phokland. One day later, he was crowned King of the Phoklandians (though like Mia, the title of Tsar continues to be popularly used).
Emosian Agreement
Once returned to the throne, King Charles soon realized that the nation lacked the necessary structure to continue on its own. Therefore, on 11 October 2019, by royal decree; the Tsardom of Phokland was officially re-organized into the Phoklandian Imperium and was reconstituted into an independent protectorate of the Empire of Emosia (in a structure similar to Japanese controlled Manchukuo). Under this new structure, Charles would be allowed to continue his reign as Phokland's ruler with Emosian monarch James I being given the position of Governor General and acknowledged as the nation's unified superior. This submission has since been referred to as the "Emosian agreement".
This agreement would be short lived as on the 30th of October, Phokland declared independence from emosian dominionship. This was due to massive amounts of inactivity and neglect on the part of the emosian government. Following independence, Phokland reorganized itself back into a royal state; becoming a de jure Kingdom while remaining a de facto Tsardom.
Dissolution
In early November 2019, talks began between Phokland and the Grand Duchy of Navārdia into the possibility of the two states unifying into a single sovereign entity. Negotiations concluded later that month and on the 31st of December 2019 at 11:59pm (EST) the Kingdom of Phokland officially ceased to exist and was reincorporated as the Homeland Province of the new Phoklandian Free State.
Geography
Phokland as a whole was comprised of five provinces, five embassies, two feudal states and one administrative district. Each of the territories were primarily self governing but still fell under the reign of the Monarch of Phokland.
| Name | Territorial Flag | Territorial Capital | Date of Founding | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Provinces | |||||||
| Principality of Gleichenberg | 
|
Lilyland | 8 April 2018 | ||||
| Clipperton Island | 
|
Port Jaouen | 9 June 2019 | ||||
| West Rhodesia | 
|
New Salisbury | 5 August 2019 | ||||
| Province of Wynland | 
|
Ellisgrad | 15 December 2017 | ||||
| Ducklandian Nation | 
|
N/A | 1 November 2019 | ||||
| Embassies | |||||||
| Emosian Phoklandian Embassy | 
|
N/A | 21 February 2019 | ||||
| Duke Phoklandian Embassy | 
|
N/A | 29 April 2019 | ||||
| Craitland Phoklandian Embassy | 
|
N/A | 20 April 2019 | ||||
| FIA Phoklandian Embassy | 
|
N/A | 30 April 2019 | ||||
| Graustark Phoklandian Embassy | 
|
N/A | 10 September 2019 | ||||
| Feudal States | |||||||
| Imperial Principality of Lisseum | 
|
Fort Harris | 28 April 2019 | ||||
| Grand Duchy of Stroma | 
|
Oscar Hill | 13 July 2019 | ||||
| Administrative District | |||||||
| Grand Duchy of Vundenberg | 
|
N/A | 30 June 2019 | ||||
Climate
The weather patters within Phokland vary greatly depending on one's location within the country.
Climate in the Capital
| Climate data for Grand Duchy of Vundenberg | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 20 (68) |
22 (72) |
26 (79) |
30 (86) |
35 (95) |
40 (104) |
41 (106) |
41 (106) |
38 (100) |
32 (90) |
25 (77) |
18 (64) |
41 (106) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 14 (57) |
16 (61) |
19 (66) |
23 (73) |
28 (82) |
33 (91) |
35 (95) |
34 (93) |
32 (90) |
25 (77) |
18 (64) |
13 (55) |
24 (75) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 8 (46) |
9 (48) |
12 (54) |
16 (61) |
21 (70) |
26 (79) |
29 (84) |
28 (82) |
25 (77) |
19 (66) |
12 (54) |
7 (45) |
7 (45) |
| Average Precipitation mm (inches) | 4.1 (0.161) |
6.8 (0.268) |
3.9 (0.154) |
0.8 (0.031) |
0.1 (0.004) |
0 (0) |
6.4 (0.252) |
6.5 (0.256) |
2.4 (0.094) |
1.4 (0.055) |
1.2 (0.047) |
4.4 (0.173) |
3.2 (0.126) |
| Source: [1] (data from 1985-2015) | |||||||||||||
Government
The Kingdom of Phokland was a feudal constitutional monarchy with a Tsar (King) as head of state and a Prime Minister as head of government. The monarch was primarily tasked with representing the nation and by ceremonially signing off on laws. The Tsar was also responsible for acting out all ceremonial roles. In addition, the Tsar was the final say on all diplomatic treaties and foreign affairs. Finally, the monarch had the ability to administer the nation as an autocrat if the Prime Minister was not able to rule over the government (this included issuing declarations of both war and peace). The Prime Minister on the other hand was responsible for "acting on the monarch's behalf" and creating laws. The Prime Minister was also tasked with building and administrating the government. The Prime Minister was appointed by the King and served until they either resigned, were fired by the monarch or found "incompetent" by the people in a 2/3 majority vote (carried out in the form of a national referendum occurring at the people's request).
Members of government
Members of the government at time of dissolution.
- Monarch: HM Tsar Charles I
- Prime Minister: Simon R.
- Deputy Prime Minister: Position Vacant
- Minister of Agriculture: Position vacant
- Foreign Minister: Pearl Thomas
- Chief Justice of the Phoklandian Court: The Honorable Kevin M. Ross
- Press Minister: Richard Seeger
- Minister of Trade and Immigration: Position Vacant
Foreign relations
Since gaining independence, Phokland engaged in many forms of diplomacy both inside and outside of the micronational realm. As a courtesy, Phokland de facto recognized all micronations and geofictional projects. However, Phokland had declared its de jure recognition of many states, and also maintained formal diplomatic relations with several nations both around and outside of the earth.
Nations formally recognized by Phokland
- All U.N. member states
- All UMLC member states
- All AMU member states (at time of dissolution)
East Germany (DDR)
Republic of Molossia
Kingdom of Ruritania
Nations with mutual diplomacy
Grand Duchy of Westarctica
Empire of Austenasia (through the HRE)
Empire of New Prussia
Republic of New Westphalia
Principality of Graustark
Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland
Kingdom of Gradonia
Principality of Duke
Principality of New Eiffel
Reylan Imperial Triumvirate (through the HRE)
Republic of Bonumland
Grand Duchy of Flandrensis
Kingdom of Genovia
Empire of Lanzantonia
Kingdom of New France
Empire of Kyberia
Commonwealth of Dracul
Kingdom of Ikonia
Kingdom of Craitland
Federation Of Imperial States
Kingdom of Quebec
Imperial State of Constancia
Kingdom of Bepistan
Republic of Alduria
Republic of Thracistan
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Culture
National holidays
| Date | Name | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January | New Year's Day | Celebrates the incoming year. |
| 10 February | King Day | Celebrates the founding of the Kingdom of Rosston. |
| 27 April | Monarch Day | Celebrates the founding of the Phoklandian monarchy. |
| 25 August | John McCain Day | Marks the date of former United States Senator John McCain's death. |
| 1 October (every other year) | Election Day | Voting Day for all (electable) government positions. |
| 7 October | Maxine Ross Memorial Day | Day of remembrance for the late Maxine D. Ross (First Director of the Phoklandian Border Patrol). |
| 13 December | Founding Day | Celebrates the day that the Kingdom of Rosston was reorganized into Phokland. |
| 25 December | Christmas | Celebration of the Christian holiday. |
Military
At time of dissolution Phokland did not have a standing army, however a small volunteer defense force was established as a regiment of the Empire of Kyberia and helped to protect Phokland in a manner equivalent to that of a National Guard.
Conflicts
Between 14 December 2017 and 27 April 2018, Phokland was engaged in the Conquest of New Persia.
On 4 April 2018, Charles I declared war against the nation of Mangolia, primarily due to its declaration of war against Iustus (a former Phoklandian ally). Two days later, Mangolia surrendered and was reconstituted as the Republic of South Mangolia with partial political control being gifted to the Phoklandian government. However, on 9 April the remnants of the Mangolian Army regrouped and declared war on the Principality of Phokland, the Principality of Gleichenberg and the Grand Imperial Empire of Lanzantonia (another former Phoklandian ally). On 7 August of the same year, Charles I declared an unofficial ceasefire with the Mangolian rebels due to the facts that the conflict had essentially turned into a "cold war" and that a financial decline in Phokland had made a continuation of the war effort seemingly impractical.
On 18 January 2019, Indecencia (a former Phoklandian ally) declared "war" on Phokland, despite the fact that at that time Phokland was a part of the nation of Domanglia and did not claim sovereignty. However, following Phokland's independence later that month, Indecencia hardened their claims of war against Phokland. Phokland refuses to admit that any war took place, and due to the nature of it refers to the conflict as a diplomatic misunderstanding as opposed to an all out war. The situation was eventually resolved in March 2019, when both sides agreed to drop all claims of diplomatic tension and return their relationship to what it had been prior to the conflict.
On 15 April 2019, Phokland participated in the Emosian Civil War. This conflict was sparked when the Khanate of Spunkia launched an invasion of the Empire of Emosia. During this invasion, the Emosian Phoklandian Embassy was overrun and ransacked. As a result of this (and following through on a mutual defense treaty signed with Emosia) Phokland declared war on the khanate. Following a two week long campaign, phoklandian forces were able to retake their embassy, and the war ended in victory for Phokland.
On 13 August 2019, Phokland declared de facto war on a gorilla militia that has engaged in several cross border raids and (pipe Bomb) bombings against PDF service members.
External links
See also
References