Roycelandia
26-01-2004, 12:55
An Overview
The Empire of Roycelandia's powerful Military Forces are headed and commanded by Roycelandia's most distinguished military expert, Commander Jack Sword. For years, his name has graced countless Communiques, Proclamations, Orders, Memoranda, Commands, Statements, Broadcasts, and Press Releases, yet little is really known of the public face of Roycelandia's Imperial Defence Forces. This biography attempts to rectify the worst of this omission.
The Early Years
Jack Sword was born in Lusaka City, in what was then Roycelandian East Africa, on March 15th, 1956. His parents, Robert and Marie Sword, were a Police Officer and a Nurse, respectively. It is known that Robert Sword was a decorated officer in the Colonial Police Service, and had expressed a strong desire for Jack to follow in his footsteps, although there is little information on Marie Sword, the records having been lost during Lusaka's Struggle For Independence.
From an early age, Jack displayed a keen eye and a sharp intellect- he could read before he went to school, and even in Kindergarten he got on remarkably well with the other Colonist's children and even the Natives, something his parents strongly disapproved of.
High School bored Jack. He was an extremely intelligent young man, with an avid interest in both History and Languages. He joined the School's 1st XI Cricket Team as a Spin Bowler, a skill that would come in handy when he grew up, swapping Cricket Balls for Tear Gas and Hand Grenades. To balance out his Sporting interests, he also took up Debating, and was rewarded when he won the East African Debating Trophy in 1972, whilst he was in 6th Form.
His great leisure time activity was Hunting- he and a close group of his friends would often spend the weekends roaming the plains and Jungles near Lusaka City in search of Elephants, Tigers, Lions, Cheetah, and anything else he could bring down with his father's MK II Lee-Enfield.
A Career & Family Beckon
Jack completed High School in 1973, and immediately applied to join the Colonial Police Service- the day after his graduation, in fact.
Thanks to his Father's influence, he was readily accepted and was soon attending the Police College in Lusaka City.
It was during his time as a Colonial Police Officer (he eventually attained the rank of Sergeant in 1977) that he met the woman who was to become his wife, Elizabeth Silverwood.
The Silverwood Family were related by marriage to the Duke of Coral, who happened to be the half-brother of the Heir to the Roycelandian Throne, Prince Royce.
Initially, Silverwood's family were less than impressed by their 17 year old daughter's boyfriend and, later, fiancee. It was hoped that their Daughter would marry a leading aristocratic family, or at least an Industry Baron- but a Colonial Police Officer?
Jack eventually won them over with his very real attempts to assimilate himself with the Colonial Aristocrats- eventually, by expertly avoiding questions about his job and family, some of the stigma attached to his "lower" social standing was erased.
Late in 1976, he and Elizabeth were married- rumoured to be because she was pregnant- and in February 1977 Elizabeth gave birth to a Son, whom they christened Christopher.
Jack and Elizabeths parents were pleased with the devotion to his family Jack displayed, always making time for them despite the pressures of work.
Storm Clouds On The Horizon
Around this time, The Portuguese decided that they really couldn't be bothered supporting their African Colonies and started to pull out of Africa.
There were groups in Roycelandian East Africa (almost all Native) that suggested that maybe Roycelandia could take their cue from Portugal and perhaps pack up and head home as well?
The King at the time (David II) was preoccupied with other matters- rumoured to be whichever 14 year old girl he was sleeping with that week- and left the matter in the hands of the Colonial Authorities.
Not surprisingly, they opted to suppress any talk of Independence, which led to a series of clashes with protestors, culminating with a fiery speech- that led to a full scale riot- by a revolutionary named Colin Olongwe in December, 1976.
Olongwe was immediately arrested, but the Fuse had been ignited. Public support secured his release in February 1977, and one of his associates, Derek Igomo, had established the Social Progress Party, which was advocating a Revolution and the forcible removal of Roycelandia from the area.
Sword spent a great deal of 1977 arresting insurgents and rebels, breaking up riots, and in one notable incident, fighting off a band of Mercenaries assisting the SPP.
The Orders came down from above: Any member of the SPP was to be detained, and if they befell an "accident" in custody, then that was too bad.
Sword had deliberately ignored such orders, knowing that to arrest the SPP members meant certain death for them.
All this changed when one day, he paid a visit to his parents and discovered they had been murdered in a most grotesque way by Revolutionaries- the words "Free Africa!" in the Native Language scrawled in blood on the wall.
It soon became apparent that Derek Igomo was the man that the Authorities wanted, Sword volunteered to lead the manhunt for him.
Very nearly, they caught him in early 1978, in a remote village north of Lusaka City. The Villagers assisted his escape, along with that of many of his friends and allies.
Soviet Agents had infiltrated the territory, and before long attacks with reasonable quality weapons started- where before there had only been muskets, Martini-Henrys, and bolt-action rifles, there came AK-47s, RPGs, Degarytev DP MGs, and a host of other, non Imperial Weapons.
The Storm Breaks
March 15th, 1978 was an important date for Jack. Not only was it his 22nd birthday, it was also the day he finally arrested Derek Igomo, who had appeared in Lusaka City to make a speech and was betrayed by a Government Informer.
Jack was also in the Police Station when it was attacked by armed SPP supporters- contemporary news footage shows him on the roof with a Bren Gun, emptying entire clips into the militants that were storming the Police Station to release Igomo. The Struggle for Independence was on.
As Law and Order broke down, Jack found himself acting as more of a soldier and less of a Police Officer. All throughout 1978, he and the few loyalist Police left operated to eliminate Soviet Influence, destroy or seize arms caches, and perform the odd Hit on SPP and Revolutionary figures.
In very late 1978, it became clear that the Roycelandian Government could not keep popular support in Roycelandian East Africa. Without formally withdrawing, King David II ordered all Government departments and "non-essential" assets to be withdrawn, quite probably because whatever teenage girl he was seeing object to a Colonial Presence in Africa.
Despite deploying Tanks and aircraft against the Revolutionaries, Roycelandia could not stop the flood of rebels, mercenaries, and criminals which were flooding the East African Colony, nor could they stop the devastating PR war being waged by the Revolutionaries.
By December 1979, Roycelandia was in charge of the area in name only, and there wasn't much anyone could do when Derek Igomo declared the former colony to be The Allied States of Lusaka.
A great many of the Europeans in the area took this as their cue to leave, either for Roycelandia or to Kenya Province, which was so sparsely inhabited it was not included in the ASL. Technically, it was under Roycelandian control, but in January 1980 David II ordered all Military assets out of the region and left the Natives to it.
The resulting evacuation was a stampede- Over 750,000 Europeans decided to hang on in Kenya and Uganda for the day The Glorious Empire would return for them.
Jack put Elizabeth and Christopher on a plane for Roycelandia- and watched in horror as it was bought down by a SAM missile fired from Lusaka not long after takeoff. There were no survivors.
The Missing Years
Nothing is known of the intervening 10 years- some say Jack vanished into the Jungles to wage a one man war on the Lusakans, others say he wandered the continent, meeting as many people as possible, and learning all he could of Africa and its people. The most popular theory says he was in Rhodesia and Nyasaland, making a living as a Big Game Hunter and/or "Security Consultant" for the wealthy Whites in the nation.
What is known is that in 1990, Jack Sword surfaced in Port Royal, Roycelandia. He was deeply tanned, fluent in 5 different Native Languages, and carrying a Colonial Police Service issue revolver and No. 5 Jungle Carbine .303 rifle.
A Second Career
The closest thing Jack had to a living family in Roycelandia were the Silverwoods. However, they blamed him for Elizabeth's death and refused to acknowledge him, leaving Jack with one other person to turn to- the Heir of the Imperial Throne.
Prince Royce had a problem. King David II had granted independence to ALL of Roycelandia's former colonies. Almost all had immediately been invaded, descended into anarchy, or abandoned, and the Average Roycelandian was hurting at the loss of National Pride, and feeling the Economic Loss of Overseas Markets and Producers.
King David II was not popular- he spent most of his time indulging himself in pleasures of the flesh and a life of luxury, and it was affecting the country.
Prince Royce was popular with everyone, seen as a young, fresh, determined force who should, no, MUST be on the Throne now, not in 30 years when the King dies of Natural Causes.
Whilst it is not the place of this biography to speculate, it can hardly be dismissed as mere coincidence that not long after King David II suffered a fatal Hunting Accident (some say he was shot in the head with a .303 rifle), Jack Sword was named Commander In Chief of Roycelandia's Armed Forces by the new Emperor, Royce I.
A New Empire
Jack Sword never forgot the former Roycelandians eking out a living in Kenya and Uganda, waiting for The Empire to Return. His first act as Commander In Chief of the Imperial Defence Forces was to publicly announce his intention to establish Roycelandian East Africa, with His Majesty's Full Blessing.
A Communist uprising in The African Commonwealth provided the perfect oppurtunity to return to Africa- first with "Peacekeepers", then an airstrip, then a military base, and finally it grew to a colony on the shores of Lake Tanganyika- Port Imperial.
The uprising crushed, and under intense international and regional pressure to abanon the Colony, troops and colonists from Port Imperial were eventually evacuated to Kenya and Uganda, annexing The Sudan in the process. His Imperial Majesty Emperor Royce I and Commander Jack Sword were both present at the Official Announcement, which bought a 10 minute standing ovation from the assembled crowd.
The abandoned Colony of Coral Palm Island was re-colonised, acting as Roycelandia's military outpost in the Pacific, and under His Majesty's enlightened rule, Roycelandia and her Colonies have their highest standing of living ever.
The Future
Commander Sword is tight lipped on his plans for the Future. "I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you", he jokes to anyone who asks.
What is certain is that his position as CIC of the Imperial Military is likely to be permanent, and there is talk of a Knighthood if things continue to improve the way they have under his Command.
Expect further updates if research uncovers anything further of Commander Sword's fascinating life and careers...
The Empire of Roycelandia's powerful Military Forces are headed and commanded by Roycelandia's most distinguished military expert, Commander Jack Sword. For years, his name has graced countless Communiques, Proclamations, Orders, Memoranda, Commands, Statements, Broadcasts, and Press Releases, yet little is really known of the public face of Roycelandia's Imperial Defence Forces. This biography attempts to rectify the worst of this omission.
The Early Years
Jack Sword was born in Lusaka City, in what was then Roycelandian East Africa, on March 15th, 1956. His parents, Robert and Marie Sword, were a Police Officer and a Nurse, respectively. It is known that Robert Sword was a decorated officer in the Colonial Police Service, and had expressed a strong desire for Jack to follow in his footsteps, although there is little information on Marie Sword, the records having been lost during Lusaka's Struggle For Independence.
From an early age, Jack displayed a keen eye and a sharp intellect- he could read before he went to school, and even in Kindergarten he got on remarkably well with the other Colonist's children and even the Natives, something his parents strongly disapproved of.
High School bored Jack. He was an extremely intelligent young man, with an avid interest in both History and Languages. He joined the School's 1st XI Cricket Team as a Spin Bowler, a skill that would come in handy when he grew up, swapping Cricket Balls for Tear Gas and Hand Grenades. To balance out his Sporting interests, he also took up Debating, and was rewarded when he won the East African Debating Trophy in 1972, whilst he was in 6th Form.
His great leisure time activity was Hunting- he and a close group of his friends would often spend the weekends roaming the plains and Jungles near Lusaka City in search of Elephants, Tigers, Lions, Cheetah, and anything else he could bring down with his father's MK II Lee-Enfield.
A Career & Family Beckon
Jack completed High School in 1973, and immediately applied to join the Colonial Police Service- the day after his graduation, in fact.
Thanks to his Father's influence, he was readily accepted and was soon attending the Police College in Lusaka City.
It was during his time as a Colonial Police Officer (he eventually attained the rank of Sergeant in 1977) that he met the woman who was to become his wife, Elizabeth Silverwood.
The Silverwood Family were related by marriage to the Duke of Coral, who happened to be the half-brother of the Heir to the Roycelandian Throne, Prince Royce.
Initially, Silverwood's family were less than impressed by their 17 year old daughter's boyfriend and, later, fiancee. It was hoped that their Daughter would marry a leading aristocratic family, or at least an Industry Baron- but a Colonial Police Officer?
Jack eventually won them over with his very real attempts to assimilate himself with the Colonial Aristocrats- eventually, by expertly avoiding questions about his job and family, some of the stigma attached to his "lower" social standing was erased.
Late in 1976, he and Elizabeth were married- rumoured to be because she was pregnant- and in February 1977 Elizabeth gave birth to a Son, whom they christened Christopher.
Jack and Elizabeths parents were pleased with the devotion to his family Jack displayed, always making time for them despite the pressures of work.
Storm Clouds On The Horizon
Around this time, The Portuguese decided that they really couldn't be bothered supporting their African Colonies and started to pull out of Africa.
There were groups in Roycelandian East Africa (almost all Native) that suggested that maybe Roycelandia could take their cue from Portugal and perhaps pack up and head home as well?
The King at the time (David II) was preoccupied with other matters- rumoured to be whichever 14 year old girl he was sleeping with that week- and left the matter in the hands of the Colonial Authorities.
Not surprisingly, they opted to suppress any talk of Independence, which led to a series of clashes with protestors, culminating with a fiery speech- that led to a full scale riot- by a revolutionary named Colin Olongwe in December, 1976.
Olongwe was immediately arrested, but the Fuse had been ignited. Public support secured his release in February 1977, and one of his associates, Derek Igomo, had established the Social Progress Party, which was advocating a Revolution and the forcible removal of Roycelandia from the area.
Sword spent a great deal of 1977 arresting insurgents and rebels, breaking up riots, and in one notable incident, fighting off a band of Mercenaries assisting the SPP.
The Orders came down from above: Any member of the SPP was to be detained, and if they befell an "accident" in custody, then that was too bad.
Sword had deliberately ignored such orders, knowing that to arrest the SPP members meant certain death for them.
All this changed when one day, he paid a visit to his parents and discovered they had been murdered in a most grotesque way by Revolutionaries- the words "Free Africa!" in the Native Language scrawled in blood on the wall.
It soon became apparent that Derek Igomo was the man that the Authorities wanted, Sword volunteered to lead the manhunt for him.
Very nearly, they caught him in early 1978, in a remote village north of Lusaka City. The Villagers assisted his escape, along with that of many of his friends and allies.
Soviet Agents had infiltrated the territory, and before long attacks with reasonable quality weapons started- where before there had only been muskets, Martini-Henrys, and bolt-action rifles, there came AK-47s, RPGs, Degarytev DP MGs, and a host of other, non Imperial Weapons.
The Storm Breaks
March 15th, 1978 was an important date for Jack. Not only was it his 22nd birthday, it was also the day he finally arrested Derek Igomo, who had appeared in Lusaka City to make a speech and was betrayed by a Government Informer.
Jack was also in the Police Station when it was attacked by armed SPP supporters- contemporary news footage shows him on the roof with a Bren Gun, emptying entire clips into the militants that were storming the Police Station to release Igomo. The Struggle for Independence was on.
As Law and Order broke down, Jack found himself acting as more of a soldier and less of a Police Officer. All throughout 1978, he and the few loyalist Police left operated to eliminate Soviet Influence, destroy or seize arms caches, and perform the odd Hit on SPP and Revolutionary figures.
In very late 1978, it became clear that the Roycelandian Government could not keep popular support in Roycelandian East Africa. Without formally withdrawing, King David II ordered all Government departments and "non-essential" assets to be withdrawn, quite probably because whatever teenage girl he was seeing object to a Colonial Presence in Africa.
Despite deploying Tanks and aircraft against the Revolutionaries, Roycelandia could not stop the flood of rebels, mercenaries, and criminals which were flooding the East African Colony, nor could they stop the devastating PR war being waged by the Revolutionaries.
By December 1979, Roycelandia was in charge of the area in name only, and there wasn't much anyone could do when Derek Igomo declared the former colony to be The Allied States of Lusaka.
A great many of the Europeans in the area took this as their cue to leave, either for Roycelandia or to Kenya Province, which was so sparsely inhabited it was not included in the ASL. Technically, it was under Roycelandian control, but in January 1980 David II ordered all Military assets out of the region and left the Natives to it.
The resulting evacuation was a stampede- Over 750,000 Europeans decided to hang on in Kenya and Uganda for the day The Glorious Empire would return for them.
Jack put Elizabeth and Christopher on a plane for Roycelandia- and watched in horror as it was bought down by a SAM missile fired from Lusaka not long after takeoff. There were no survivors.
The Missing Years
Nothing is known of the intervening 10 years- some say Jack vanished into the Jungles to wage a one man war on the Lusakans, others say he wandered the continent, meeting as many people as possible, and learning all he could of Africa and its people. The most popular theory says he was in Rhodesia and Nyasaland, making a living as a Big Game Hunter and/or "Security Consultant" for the wealthy Whites in the nation.
What is known is that in 1990, Jack Sword surfaced in Port Royal, Roycelandia. He was deeply tanned, fluent in 5 different Native Languages, and carrying a Colonial Police Service issue revolver and No. 5 Jungle Carbine .303 rifle.
A Second Career
The closest thing Jack had to a living family in Roycelandia were the Silverwoods. However, they blamed him for Elizabeth's death and refused to acknowledge him, leaving Jack with one other person to turn to- the Heir of the Imperial Throne.
Prince Royce had a problem. King David II had granted independence to ALL of Roycelandia's former colonies. Almost all had immediately been invaded, descended into anarchy, or abandoned, and the Average Roycelandian was hurting at the loss of National Pride, and feeling the Economic Loss of Overseas Markets and Producers.
King David II was not popular- he spent most of his time indulging himself in pleasures of the flesh and a life of luxury, and it was affecting the country.
Prince Royce was popular with everyone, seen as a young, fresh, determined force who should, no, MUST be on the Throne now, not in 30 years when the King dies of Natural Causes.
Whilst it is not the place of this biography to speculate, it can hardly be dismissed as mere coincidence that not long after King David II suffered a fatal Hunting Accident (some say he was shot in the head with a .303 rifle), Jack Sword was named Commander In Chief of Roycelandia's Armed Forces by the new Emperor, Royce I.
A New Empire
Jack Sword never forgot the former Roycelandians eking out a living in Kenya and Uganda, waiting for The Empire to Return. His first act as Commander In Chief of the Imperial Defence Forces was to publicly announce his intention to establish Roycelandian East Africa, with His Majesty's Full Blessing.
A Communist uprising in The African Commonwealth provided the perfect oppurtunity to return to Africa- first with "Peacekeepers", then an airstrip, then a military base, and finally it grew to a colony on the shores of Lake Tanganyika- Port Imperial.
The uprising crushed, and under intense international and regional pressure to abanon the Colony, troops and colonists from Port Imperial were eventually evacuated to Kenya and Uganda, annexing The Sudan in the process. His Imperial Majesty Emperor Royce I and Commander Jack Sword were both present at the Official Announcement, which bought a 10 minute standing ovation from the assembled crowd.
The abandoned Colony of Coral Palm Island was re-colonised, acting as Roycelandia's military outpost in the Pacific, and under His Majesty's enlightened rule, Roycelandia and her Colonies have their highest standing of living ever.
The Future
Commander Sword is tight lipped on his plans for the Future. "I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you", he jokes to anyone who asks.
What is certain is that his position as CIC of the Imperial Military is likely to be permanent, and there is talk of a Knighthood if things continue to improve the way they have under his Command.
Expect further updates if research uncovers anything further of Commander Sword's fascinating life and careers...