Skamania and Duloc
05-04-2008, 22:55
The United Kingdom of Skamania and Duloc
Basic Information:
Official Name: The United Kingdom of Skamania and Duloc
Form of Government: Absolute Monarchy
Head of State: HM King Louis II
Head of Government: HM King Louis II
Capital: N/A
Official Language: Skamanian, Dulocan, French
Religion: Lutheranism & Roman Catholic (neither are official)
Population: 1.003 billion
Table of Contents:
History
Image Archive
Armed Forces
Society
Culture
Government
Royal Family
Skamania and Duloc
10-04-2008, 05:01
History:
The history of Skamania and Duloc stretches back to the time in which Skamania and Duloc were individual nations with their own cultures and governments. It is commonly said by historians that Skamania was originally a collection of clans and petty states while Duloc was a kingdom under a series of successive families. The Skamanian clans, numerous and differing in power and influence, often waged wars against one another in order to prove that they were powerful while the Dulocans were led by absolute monarchs that gradually forfeited powers to the Assembly; comparable to a modern-day Parliament. The Middle Ages saw the rise of Skamania as a nation after Pharamond the Conqueror, the leader of the Ravenclaw clan eventually take power after leading a campaign against the other clans. He was able to play his enemies against each other by bringing up feelings about feuds, etc and his marriage to Melisande the Elegant, the daughter of Kato Wartooth (a prominent clan leader) consolidated his power over the subjects he now reigned over as the first King of Skamania. Since Skamania bordered Duloc, King Constantine I of Duloc was wary of the growing power of Pharamond but did not attack. Instead, he sent emissaries to him in order to secure friendship and his efforts were successful. Pharamond and Constantine both pledged to not attack the other. By their respective deaths, there had been no conflicts between them at all.
During the Middle Ages, the traditions of courtly love and chivalry grew in Duloc without European influence as troubadours traveled to cities to sing songs about the deeds of courageous knights and the beauty of damsels they had met. In Skamania, the deeds of clan members were brought to life by the growing intellectual class that was concieved in the universities built by Pharamond IV. Both nations had, in some way, people whose deeds were worthy to be remembered with pomp and dance. Relations between the two nations were relatively peaceful with traders discussing trade deals and a few cases of marriage between Skamanians and Dulocans being recorded in a census held by the Kingdom of Skamania in 1357. A golden age of culture, etc came to both nations during the Renaissance and Protestantism was adapted in both nations, primarily Lutheranism, although significant numbers of Catholics and others remained.
In 1717, the marriage of Princess Kaena of Duloc and Prince Alphonse of Skamania was contracted by the emissaries of both nations. The marriage, which was widely considered to have been based on love as the published love letters of Alphonse to Kaena attest, was the one event that pushed the two nations into unification. The Treaty of Union, signed into power on June 21st, 1717 stated that the children of Kaena and Alphonse would inherit the throne of a United Kingdom of Skamania and Duloc. Their first child, Prince George, became George I of Skamania and Duloc (respectively he would be George I of Skamania and George III of Duloc). The Houses of Clearwater (Duloc) and Kane (Skamania) became unified as the House of Clearwater-Kane.
Another significant event in the nation's history was the arrival of the Lost Dauphin, Louis XVII and his emigre royalist entourage. He had been smuggled out of the nation by sympathetic supporters of his family and they had found their way to Skamania and Duloc. In time, he grew up to become the first Bourbon monarch to lead the nation and his marriage to Princess Catherine made the Royal House become the House of Bourbon-Clearwater-Kane. French became a spoken language throughout the nation and the Catholic Church experienced a revival because of support from the King. French dress, etiquette and the like all were imported into the nation. There have been no major changes to the Royal House since the arrival of King Louis I and the nation has still maintained its French heritage. Louis I's death in 1845 paved the way for his son, Louis II, to take control of the nation. The Industrial Revolution gained power in the United Kingdom; with factories being built under government support for the belief that industrialization was necessary for the nation's survival.