Republic of Westland

Republic of Westland Republik Westlands
Flag File:Westlandian republic new coat of arms.png Coat of arms
Motto: Westland wird bis die Bergen abbröckeln stehen (state motto) (English: Westland will stand until the mountains crumble)
Anthem: The People's Song
File:Northwest London, United Kingdom
Capital	Stad Independenzia
Official languages	English, Westlandian
Demonym(s)	Westlandian
Government	Presidential Republic
• President	N/A (last incumbent A.T. Phoenix)
Establishment	30 January 2010
Currency	TBD
Time zone	Greenwich Mean Time
Website Westlandian News Network
Preceded by Principality of Westland

The Republic of Westland (English pronunciation: /ˈwɛst.ln̩d/; Westlandian: Republik Westlands) was a micronation and a member of the Delsh-Westlandian Federal Republic surrounded by Northwest London in the macronation of the United Kingdom. It was officially founded on the 30th January 2010. Originally a de jure Socialist Democracy (though in reality it was a dictatorship under the complete control of the president), on 11 July 2013 it became a constituent state of the Delsh-Westlandian Federal Republic.

Etymology

The name of Westland is derived from the English word "west", referring to a cardinal direction, and the root "land", meaning a place or country. The exact meaning of the name has long been forgotten. However, the best guesses to the exact meaning of the name are the fact Westland lies in the west of the UK's capital, London, or the location just to the west of the Greenwich Meridian.

History

As an independent state

Early Days

Westland was founded on 30 January 2010 as the Principality of Westland, after the soon-to-be President A.T. Phoenix found the Wikipedia article on micronations and decided to create one of her own. However, the Principality was not to last long, being disbanded in favour of a republican format after just five days. For the first few months of the nation's existence, Westland was effectively governed as a one-man nation, showing little to no growth, and the nation's population not rising above two in the first four months of its existence. In June of that year, Westland first appeared on the MicroWiki, though the nation would not become active in the online community for some time

Pre-MicroWiki Era

Despite having not been especially active in its early days, Westland experienced a spike in population and activity in May 2010. A presidential election was held on the last weekend of May, cementing the incumbent president as the nations leader. However, the accuracy of the result has since been questioned internally, with some believing the lack of opposition candidates to be a consequence of extremely strict regulation on candidature. Soon after the election, a provisional government of two ministers was called, and a general election was organised for July 2010. Unfortunately, a drop in activity and poor organisation prevented the election from being held, and activity levels continued to suffer from that point. It was also at this time that Westland began to expand its territorial claims, extending itself across west London and into other parts of Britain.

First MicroWiki Era

In February 2011, Westland suddenly became active on the MicroWiki scene, in spite of falling activity levels. During this time, the current constitution was written and ratified, however another election was cancelled at the last minute under controversial circumstances. At this time, the general political position of the nation gradually shifted more to the far left, and the governing of the nation became gradually more authoritarian. Despite the nation flourishing on the MicroWiki, the internal state became more desperate throughout 2011. Several measures were taken to increase activity, including reports that a coup led by the president was cancelled at the last minute. However, later in the year, things seemed to be looking up for the nation, with the nation being accepted into the MFA.

Late 2011 Inactivity, 2012 and 2013

In October 2011, Westland experienced an unprecedented fall in activity, both on- and off-line. This has been linked with lingering internal problems, as well as the president losing interest in the nation for some time. The peak of this collapse was in November, when no posts were made from the presidents MicroWiki or OAM accounts, and no internal activity was reported at all. With the advent of 2012, things appeared to be looking up for Westland, with the first rise in internal activity for months and the nation announcing it intended to bid for the 2015 MFA European Championships. However, the nation quickly descended into complete inactivity, and was on the verge of going out of existance by mid-2013.

As part of the Federal Republic

Main article: Delsh-Westlandian Federal Republic

On 23 June 2013, President Phoenix, at the time Westland's president, posted an open letter on the website of the Westlandian News Network expressing her frustration at the deep inactivity which the nation had fallen into, and revealed that she was considering disbanding the republic. As a result of this letter, she was contacted by a representative of the Republic of New Dale, who opened discussions with Phoenix about the creation of a federation between the two micronations. The talks progressed quickly, and the Federal Act was passed by the President on the 11th July 2013, confirming the creation of the Delsh-Westlandian Federal Republic. Following the foundation of the federation, elections were held on the weekend of 20–21 July 2013, with former President of New Dale D Sherman elected as President of the new nation with 100% of all votes cast being in his favour, and with Phoenix being elected unopposed as First Minister of Westland.

After the collapse of the Delsh-Westlandian Federal Republic in May 2014, the nation of Westland dwindled into defunct-ness.

Culture

Sport

Sport was popular in Westland, and the most popular sport in the nation was by far football. The Westlandian Football Association, the national footballing body of Westland, was the member of the MFA, and planned to send a team to the 2013 MFA World Cup.

Language

Main article: Westlandian language