South Sea Islands Abdication Crisis
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| Location: | South Sea Islands | |||
| Year: | 1702 AN | |||
| Catalyst: | Abdication of King Josephus-Aelfric I following the fall of Nova England. | |||
The South Sea Islands Abdication Crisis was a constitutional upheaval in the South Sea Islands following the dramatic collapse of Nova England and the subsequent abdication of King Josephus-Aelfric I.
The crisis was eventually resolved following the conclusion of an agreement with the Republic of Mercury.
Background
The South Sea Islands share a strong historical connection with Nova England, with the Journey of the Frozen Tears establishing the people of Commonwealth as subjects of the Nova English Crown.
Although the South Sea Islands were rapidly established as an independent nation in their own right, the connection with the Nova English monarchy remained. Due to the distance between the two nations, and the governing difficulties resulting therefrom, an arrangement was established whereby the monarch would appoint a Lieutenant Governor to govern the islands on his or her behalf.
This arrangement was established in late 1560 AN and persisted until 1702 AN.
Fall of Nova England
While the South Sea Islands developed as a peaceful nation, Nova England continued to suffer from civil war and civil strife, as the central government sought to regain control of the nation's former territory. While the conflict in Nova England continued in a state of flux, with government and rebel forces gaining and losing the advantage at different, the Government of the South Sea Islands operated autonomously.
The respective national governments remained in continuous contact and, when 1702 began, it seemed that the conflict was likely to remain in a state of stalemate.
the Nova English collapse, when it happened, came as a surprise to the Government of the South Seas Islands, with the Nova English authorities having not reported any cause for alarm up until the sudden fall of the capital.
The King in Joseph Town
After the fall of the Nova English capital, the Government of the South Sea Islands rapidly developed a plan to extract the King from the warzone. This resulted in The Flight of King Josephus and the arrival of His Majesty in Joseph Town.
While the government of the islands initially hoped to come to an arrangement with the King, whereby he would assume a more direct role in the Commonwealth, it quickly became apparent that His Majesty's primary focus was on establishing a Nova English government in exile. The primary objective of their government was to continue the conflict from afar and eventually reestablish a Nova English independent state.
For that reason, His Majesty took the decision to abdicate as King of the South Sea Islands.
Constitutional discussions
Following the King's abdication, a series of discussions took place regarding what to do next. The government's initial proposal, that Lieutenant Governor George Middlemore be crowned King, was quickly dismissed after Middlemore himself refused to consider taking the crown.
Thereafter some within the Legislative Assembly, and the wider public, began to propose the establishment of a Republic of the South Sea Islands. While there was initially some enthusiasm for this idea, the small population of the islands lead to fears that there may be a shortage of suitable candidates and expertise.
Around the time that these discussions were taking place, the Republic of Mercury annexed much of the territory that formerly belonged to Nova England. The strong connections between the South Sea Islands and the people of the former Nova English territories led to a proposal that the President of Mercury be invited to take up a ceremonial role as the King of the South Sea Islands.
Outcome
This last proposal quickly gained a large degree of support among the Legislative Assembly and the wider public, and discussions began between the Commonwealth's government and the presidency of Mercury.
After intensive negotiations, an agreement was reached and the modern Monarchy of the South Sea Islands was established.
