Flaventia

Natopian demesne Dynastic Incarnation of the Lands of Flaventia
Flag Coat of Arms
Motto: Facciamo la baia il nostro lago
Map versions	6.7.7 - present
Capital	Anmutstadt and Tassity
Largest city	Hazelwood, Butter Cow City
Official language(s)	Natspeak, Zeigish, Neemian, Hazel, Laval, Alrodrian
Official religion(s)	Bovinism, Hazel druidism
Demonym	Flaventian
- Adjective	Flaventian
Government	Monarchy
- {{{headofstatetitle}}}	{{{headofstate}}}
- Faro	Nathan II
- Legislature	Flaventian Legislature The Quadricameral
Establishment	c.2004 (1493 AN)
- Ranked	{{{agerank}}}
Area
Population	75,200,000
Abbreviation	Official: FLV Unofficial: DILF

Flaventia, officially the Dynastic Incarnation of the Lands of Flaventia is a Demesnes of Natopia that occupies most of Yellow Island, the surrounding islands (except Augusta and Ptia) and part of the Laval Peninsula on Tapfer. It serves as the base of power for the Waffel-Paine family which controls the demesne's government. The Kingdoms of Ziegeland and Tas Neemia are the primary constituents while the Lordship of Alrodey and Principality of Sororiya have been incorporated at later dates.

Geography

Yellow Island is dominated by a large mountain, Mount Vice. Ziegeland is characterized by low-lying countryside sloping down to the bay, with excellent conditions for cotton cultivation. Western and southern Ziegeland is the world's largest cotton producing area, containing 60% of the world's exportable surplus cotton fields. Eastern Ziegeland, historically the duchy of Hazelwood, is covered in dense forests and the Great Hazel Woods. Tas Neemia, to the north, is mostly flat grasslands, ideal for cattle ranches. Beef, dairy, and butter, were important resources for early Neemites in the area and no doubt contributed to the rise of Bovinism there. The coast from Nitram to Hazelwood is mostly cliffs, which contributed to Natopian development favoring bayside growth. Large shoals and reefs south of Alrodey and around Augusta made navigation and settlement difficult in those areas.

The islands of Ferien and Micronia, serve as barrier islands to the entrance of Borders Bay, and are important naval and fishing ports, respectively.

Alrodey, occupying all of Crystal Island, is a rocky island with sheer cliffs on most of the coast line except around Ashington and Rostock. The island's economy is mostly dependent on mining and exporting gemstones.

Sororiya, on the northern coast of the Laval Pensinsula is a combination of bushland, farmland, and grasslands.

People

"Winter Landscape with Skaters," Peter Bruegel the Elder. A peaceful winter scene in Anmutstadt.

Flaventia is a cosmopolitan and diverse land. The people of Ziegeland, mainly descended from the ancient Mehl, Haas, and Andi tribes, are relatively conservative, industrious, pious, and traditional. They are a stronghold for Free Juice and Bagel Party votes, pro-monarchist, loyal and enthusiastic supporters of the Waffel-Paine dynasty, and almost exclusively members of the Dozan Bovic Church. Until Natopia expanded beyond Yellow Island, the people of Ziegeland defined the greater "Natopian culture." The Hazel people, in eastern Ziegeland, live mostly secluded lives in the Great Hazel Woods. They practice religious syncretism with their native druidism, natural magick, ancestor worship in conjunction with Bovinist cosmology.

The Neemite people, in the north, were a mostly nomadic cowherding people. Their ancient beliefs include reincarnation. A quasi-religious figure, The Dhury, is believed to be the same reincarnated soul of Taznim, the Bovic saint who received the 8 Law from the Butter Cow; Chow, the princess who resisted then allied with Nett Opaegh; Sundara, the consort of Emperor Naian; and finally Asara Sisu, the pious Empress-Martyr who fulfilled the reincarnation cycle by giving birth to a male for the first time 13 generations. It is believed that ancient Neemites may perhaps be descended from Karnali travelers, or another asiatic people from Keltia. Tassity, their largest city, grew as the only large port city in the north. Nearby Crystal Island was under Tas Neemia's control for many years, and Tassity became extremely wealthy by exporting Neemian beef and gems from Crystal Island.

Out of the Flaventian demesnes, Alrodey is the most remote and distinct. For most of its history it has been either overlooked or used for its resources. The island's mining industry, combined with insatiable demand from Tas Neemia, and the island's rugged terrain instilling a fierce individuality, lead to early organized labor on the island and a strong tradition of democracy not found in Ziegeland or Tas Neemia, where life is relatively easy and wealth is abundant. Because of the island's sparse native population, it has had waves of refugees come through over the years to take advantage of the land being a blank slate, beginning with the first Alrodrian refugees who fled the collapse of their kingdom on Caplona. The Greivar, including Tinker Sprocket, settled on this island to work in the gem mines after the collapse of the Natollonia mining colony. The present people of Alrodey continue the traditions of democracy and pro-labor.

The Sororiyan people are descended from the Lavalonians who lived in the former Lavalonian province of Klaasiya (approximately present day Vonzek excluding the Newport panhandle, and not to be confused with the similarly named demesne of Klaasiya). After the VUAS collapse, the Lavalonians in Klaasiya still saw their Natopian neighbor as Lavalon's "sister land," a romantic moniker applied to the close relationship between Natopia and Lavalon until Lavalon invalidated the Venerable Union of Aligned States and disappeared from Micras. These sympathetic Lavalonians called themselves Sororiyans, "sister landers," to show solidarity. Although loyal and supportive of their Ziegelandish neighbors to the north, Sororiyans have vastly different ideals inherited from their Lavalonian ancestors. The fertile farmlands of Sororiya have made these strong, stubborn, and resolute people quite different from their 'softer' Ziegeish neighbors. They are meritocrats, pragmatists, progressives, and religiously ambivalent. They tolerate the monarchial system imposed on them by Ziegeland because it was simply laid over their cherished university districts, which was then expanded to the rest of Flaventia in compensation. Great Sororiyan statesmen include Konrad von Zeck and Christo Eucalyptos.

Flaventian identity

Aside from the historic relation of these lands as the earliest territory of Natopia, these disparate groups of people are united almost exclusively due to the fact that inheritance, marriage, and birthright, brought all these lands under the control of the Waffel-Paine family in the person of Naian Waffel-Paine, who inherited Ziegeland from his father Nathan Waffel-Paine and Tas Neemia from his half-brother Nathaniel Ayreon-Kalirion. Alrodey was reclaimed by virtue of it being within Tas Neemia in the past, and the people of Sororiya gifted their land to Nathan II. Naian, as king of Ziegeland and raja of Tas Neemia, two very different cultures, began the process of promoting a unifying, single, Flaventian identity in addition to people's local ancestral identity. Naian was himself a product of Mehl and Hazel peoples. He took Sundara, a Neemite, as his consort and so their child Asara Waffel-Paine was a personification of Ziegeish and Tas Neemian unity. Asara's husband, Kyle Kilynn, was a Draconian, an often marginalized minority in Ziegeland. They descended from the anti-Natopians who opposed Nett Opaegh and have always carried the mark of distrust. Asara's union with Kyle, which produced two children Nathan II and Clara Waffel-Paine enhanced the public opinion of Draconians in Ziegeland.

Naian also chose a new symbol for this new amalgamation, the griffin. A blend of two powerful animals combined into something more powerful than its constituent parts. Importantly, the lion and the eagle were not symbols of Ziegeland or Tas Neemia, representing the creation of something new. The new crown of the Faro was modeled on the the Crown of Princess Chow Dhury, with a Ziegeish red velvet cap, and petrified Hazel woodstones. He was the first to formalize the house laws of the Waffel-Paine family and integrated that dynasty into the laws and institutions of Flaventia, giving him and his direct descendants a solid base of devoted supporters from which to rule the wider empire.

Government

The government of the Dynastic Incarnation is an absolute composite monarchy. The Faro is Monarch of Ziegeland, Prime of Sororiya, and Leige of Alrodey, and can rule those areas by issuing decrees. Flaventian laws are Mandates, issued simultaneously as four identical decrees in each demesnes. While the Faro is not Rah of Tas Neemia, the Faro issues decrees in the name of the Rah when issuing Mandates. As such, the Faro can choose to only issue a decree in a specific demesne to only affect that demesne. Mandates can be written, signed, and sealed in either the first capital city, Anmutstadt, at Haas House, the royal residence of the king of Ziegeland or the second capital city, Tassity, at Serribaugh Palace, the royal residence of the raja of Tas Neemia. A verified copy is deposited in the other capital city.

Legislature

Establish by a Mandate, the Flaventian Legislature is quadricameral legislature composed of the Guardian Council, the Kuhrat, the Congress of the Lands, and the People's Assembly. Each chamber represents four sectors of Flaventian society and has its meeting place in each of the four demesnes. The Guardian Council, the most prestigious, meets in Tassity and is composed of the Dukes of Haven, Hazelwood, the Punkrock Isles, the raja of Tas Neemia (presiding officer), the Dukes of Vonzek, and Valentina, and the the lord lieutenant of Alrodey. The Kuhrat meets in Anmutstadt and is composes of 16 bosarchs appointed by the Metrobosarch of Lindstrom and presided over by the king of Ziegeland. The Congress of the Lands, in Bagelston, is composed of eleven senators elected from at-large districts from each of the four demesnes. The Prime of Sororiya presides and may break ties. The People's Assembly, in Ashington, is composed of four hundred and forty-four representatives elected from constituencies of equal population drawn with compact borders. The Lord Lieutenant of Alrodey presides and may only vote to break ties.

Dynastic Guard

The Dynastic Guard of Flaventia is to be used as the Demesne Union's humanitarian service in times of peace and may be nationalized under the Natopian Defense Force or used as the Demesne Union's militia in times of foreign war. The Dynastic Guard recruits all able-bodied men and women over the age of 18 who reside in Ziegeland, Tas Neemia, Sororiya, and Alrodey; wages and bonuses to Guardsmen are paid from a tax levied on all real property in the Dynastic Lands. The Dynastic Guard has an army and navy division. The Flaventian Militia will protect the cities and countryside of Flaventia, Sororiya, and Alrodey from all threats, natural and man-made. The Flaventian Flotilla will protect the ports and seas around Flaventia, Sororiya, and Alrodey from all threats, natural and man-made.

Subdivisions

Kingdom of Ziegeland King Nathan II
Coat of Arms	Name	Duke/Duchess	Counties	Population	Notes
	Duchy of Lochhatonia	Nathan Luix Elijah	Anmutstadt, Elivia, Trias, the Punkrock Isles	9.4 million	The Faro's heir is always the Holder of the Duchy of Lochhatonia. Anmutstadt, one of the capitals of Flaventia, is located in this duchy. It is the homeland of the Haas people, a peaceful Nazarene people who eventually converted to Bovinism. Most Nazarene traditions or elements in Natopia can be traced back to the Haas people living in Lochhatonia. The islands of Micronia and Ferien have been known as the Punkrock Isles for most of Natopian history based on their first Natopian rulers.
	Duchy of Haven	Llyr Angus-Moonoak	Pavle, Andioghi, Vice, Norrstrom, Dracoheim	18.1 million	The area of the duchy of Haven was the original Barony of Ziegeland. When Ziegeland and Lochhatonia merged, they used the term United Baronies of Ziegeland-Lochhatonia. When Ziegeland-Lochhatonia merged again with Hazelwood, the term Ziegeland was applied to the larger kingdom, and the original baronial territory was renamed Haven. This is the traditional homeland of the Mehl. It now serves as the home duchy for the Angus-Moonoak branch of the Waffel-Paine family in Ziegeland.
	Duchy of Cheshunt	Kaiseress Salome	Apis, Upper Macon, Maconvale, Lower Macon, Bellerive	14.1 million	Cheshunt was divided from Hazelwood and now serves as the home duchy for the Ayreon-Kalirion branch of the Waffel-Paine family in Ziegeland. This is an ethnic and cultural border region, with elements of Hazel, Mehl, and Laval culture blending. The Duchess of Cheshunt is also the Rani of Tas Neemia, currently Salome.
	Duchy of Hazelwood	Clara Sundara	Le May, the Sacred Glade, Cape Newport, Old Hazelwood	10.3 million	The duchy of Hazelwood was often administered by the heir apparent of Flaventia, it is one of the oldest regions in Natopia. It includes areas of great cultural importance such as the Great Hazel Woods, Cape Newport, Hazelwood City, and the original baronetcies gifted to various foreign monarchs. This is the homeland of the Hazel people. The current Duchess is Clara Sundara and serves as the home duchy for the Starshade branch of the Waffel-Paine family. About 60% of the population lives in Hazelwood City.
Rājatba of Tas Neemia Rani Salome
Coat of Arms	Name	Nawab/Begum	Sarkars	Population	Notes
	Subah of Mūla		Tassity, Lee, Upasagara	17.2 million	???
	Subah of Kūla		Nitram, Hoyela, Sakhawat-Myrtilis	11.5 million	???
	Subah of Rabārṭa	Nawab Z	Marduk, Haluda	15.4 million	???
Principality of Sororiya Prince Nathan II
Coat of Arms	Name	Duke	Counties	Population	Notes
Valentina CoA	Duchy of Valentina	Janus Eadric Sr	Star, Aurochs, Lavisitya	5.1 million
Zeck CoA	Duchy of Zeck	Viktor von Zeck IV	Eucal, Bagel, Fort Newport	3.5 million	Konrad Von Zeck previously served as Prince of Sororiya. The duchy of Zeck was created to restore the Von Zeck family to prominence.
Henzelon CoA	Duchy of Henzelon	Gregor Henzelli	Zoom, Estatia, the Celestial Isles	6.6 million	Gregor Henzelli was appointed as Duke after an exhaustive genealogical search to find the closest living descendant of renown Laval statesman and linguist, Henzelli.
Soliya CoA	Duchy of Soliya	Duke of Soliya	Aristarchus, Center, Miria	9.7 million
Nova Alrodria Lord Nathan II
Coat of Arms	Name	Lord Lieutenant	Subdivisions	Population	Notes
Muckapucky CoA	Island of Muckapucky	Gwyn Moonoak	Azingrad, Rostock	1.8 million	???
Augustus CoA	Island of Augustus		Augustus City District, Augustus Military District	203,132	???

Other territory

Following the fire that destroyed the Great Hazel Woods, Naian Waffel-Paine authorized the resettlement of the Hazel people to Tarsica, within the Guinevere Dome connected to New Lindstrom Tarsica Base. The Thicket of Moonoak was established as a colony of Flaventia and is still considered an extramicran territory of the duchy of Hazelwood. With seeds and saplings, they regrew a portion of the Hazel Woods within that dome allowing the scorched earth of the former Great Hazel Woods to heal. Clara Sundara with Cledwyn Starshade, used seeds and saplings from the Thicket of Moonoak to help regrow the Great Hazel Woods on Micras. Some Hazel still live on Tarsica, while many have returned to live on Micras.

The Marquessate of Lükanburg, on Apollonia, is an ancestral title given to Nathan Waffel-Paine by the Tsars of Landingberg, as such it is considered part of the kingdom of Ziegeland. In 1681 it was ceded to neighboring Senya.

Nobility

The Faro of Flaventia often creates counties (in Ziegeland and Sororiya) and subahs (in Tas Neemia) as gifts for important citizens. At times when the Faro and Natopian Emperor are the same person, these counties are also given to foreign dignitaries. In 1684, a title reform introduced inclusive gender styles as the default title given to recipients. The Rah of Tas Neemia may choose raja or rani. The nobility may choose to use duke/duchess instead of Holder and count/countess instead of Castellan, and begum may be chosen as an alternative to Nawab. Spouses may use ['title'-consort] format, or the appropriate alternative title of their choice. The wife of a Castellan, may use the title castellan-consort or countess, for example. The husband of a Holder may use the title holder-consort or duke. The Faronic heir is now the Holder of Lochhatonia, and inherits any castellanies that the Faro may have held before they ascended the throne.

1. Emperor Nathan II, Faro of Flaventia, Monarch of Ziegeland
2. Kaiseress Salome, Rah of Tas Neemia, Holder of Cheshunt, Castellan of Upper Macon, Castellan of Anmutstadt
3. Prince Nathan III of Natopia, Holder of Lochhatonia, Castellan of Elivia, Castellan of Trias
4. Princess Clara Sundara of Natopia and Cledwyn Starshade, Holders of Hazelwood, Nawabs of Tassity
5. His Grace Llyr Angus-Moonoak, Holder of Haven, Castellan of Andiopolis
6. His Serene Highness Janus Eadric Sr, Prince of Dos Gardenias, Holder of Valentina
7. Dirk von Zeck, Holder of Vonzek
8. Francis Joseph IV, Castellan of Le May
9. Gwyn Moonoak, Castellan of Bellerive
10. The Current Kaiser of Shireroth, Castellan of Dracoheim (Salome)
11. Aldin Ayreon-Kalirion and Li Naomiai, Castellans of Maconvale
12. Ivo Angus, Castellan of Pavleton
13. Mira Octavius-Aryani, Nawab of Sakhawat-Myrtilis
14. Daniyal ibn Daniyal Simrani-Kalirion, Count of Apis
15. David Ayreon-Kalirion and Mariette of San Martín, Castellans of Lower Macon
16. Princess Vadoma Rowena Waffel-Paine of Natopia, Nawab of Hoyela
17. Princess Leonora Noor Waffel-Paine of Natopia, Castellan of Eucal
18. King John Hilding Waffel-Paine of Drak-Modan, Castellan of Rostock

Lesser Nobility

Aside from titles created directly by the Faro, there are families in Flaventia with titles in their own rights, granted to them by Natopian and Ziegish monarchs in the past, mostly from the early 1510s. Several of these titles were raised and lowered over the years, some suppressed, and some absorbed into the crowns of Ziegeland and Tas Neemia. As of 1685, the use of these noble titles has been officially restored to those living descendants of the first title-bearer. They have been adapted from landed titles, in some instance, to inheritable family titles of baronial rank.

• The Very Honorable The Lord Ziff; George Ziff, 5th Baron Ziff (Hazelwood)
• The Very Honorable The Lady Capelle; Emma Watts, 5th Baroness Capelle (Tas Neemia)
• The Very Honorable The Lord Mills; Jeffrey Mills, 4th Baron Mills (Punkrock)
• The Very Honorable The Lord Castleberry; Samuel Castleberry, 3rd Baron Castleberry (Punkrock)
• The Very Honorable The Lady Haas; Brandy Jefferson, 2nd Baroness Haas (Lochhatonia)
• The Very Honorable The Lady Brandt; Ursula Brandt-Heller, 3rd Baroness Brandt (Haven)
• The Very Honorable The Lord Floughter; Mark Floughter, 4th Baron Floughter (Alrodey)
• The Very Honorable The Lord Grass; Peier Dewgrass, 2nd Baron Grass (Hazelwood)
• The Very Honorable The Lady Abmey; Katrina Scott, 4th Baroness Abmey (Haven)
• The Very Honorable The Lord Eather; Hunter Eather, 3rd Baron Eather (Haven)

Illegal Use of Flaventian Titles

The King of Batavia continues to illegally use Flaventian titles as of 23 Novaber 1685 despite his divorce from Clara Sundara, who held several of those titles in her own right, and other titles which were removed or suppressed from Arkadius by mandate of the Flaventian font of honor following the divorce. He is therefore an illegal pretender to the following titles: Duke of Hazelwood, Nawab of Tassity, and Count of Maconvale. His continued use of titles removed from him, is a trait shared with his Vanic Doppelganger (see Vanic Elwynn).

When asked for comment, Clara replied, "While I dropped all use and claim of any title associated with the Vanic realms out of disgust, principle, and morality, my ex-husband seems to continue to find Flaventian culture of high value! It seems he considers the inclusion of Flaventian noble titles--titles he only got by marrying me or as a wedding present from my brother, by the way--as his only point of honor! Is he still hung up on me? Why else would he include those relics of our failed marriage? Or perhaps its more sinister and chauvinistic, publicly flaunting trophies he got for marrying me. A threat to me and reminder that, at one time, he thought he owned me."