Duchy of Leyl

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Duchy of Leylstadt

Hertogdom Leylstadt
Flag of Leylstadt
Flag
Coat of Arms of Leylstadt
Coat of Arms
Motto: Voor Hertog, Natie en Eenheid! (For Hertog, Nation and Unity.)
Anthem: None
Location of Leylstadt
Map versions /
Capital Leylstadt
Official language(s) Southbatavian, Praeta, Alexandrian Fransch
Official religion(s) Holy Catologian Church (non-official)
Demonym Leylstadter
 - Adjective Leylstadtese
Government Unitary Semi-constitutional monarchy
 - Duke of Leylstadt Nicholas I
 - Legislature State Duma of the Duchy of Leylstadt
Establishment 1675 AN
Area
Population 368,879
Currency Royal Valer
Calendar
Time zone(s)
Mains electricity
Driving side
Track gauge
National website
National forum
National animal
National food
National drink Whisky
National tree
Abbreviation LEL

The Duchy of Leylstadt is a semi-constitutional monarchy, established as a separate state within the Green of Apollonia, in 1675 AN by Duke Nicholas des Vinandy-Windsor. The nation is composed of several ethnic groups, mainly Badaweians (the offspring of Batavian settlers in Kildare, and later Jingdao) and Transbatavians, Krasnocorians, Morovians, Gralans and tribal peoples. The nation, located between the mountain ranges, neighbours both Florian Republic and Jingdao. The nation was established as a personal project of the adventurous Nicholas, who sought a nation to call his home. Despite being squashed between larger nations and having no access to the sea, the beautiful landscape inspired Nicholas to settle. He proclaimed the Duchy as a place where anyone unwilloing to live under any other country's regime could seek refuge. Pressured by the increasing expansion of the Jingdaoese, Krasnocorians and Florians, some mountain tribes joint the venture of Nicholas the First to establish a new country, bolstering the population numbers towards 370,000 residents.

Name

The Duchy owns its name to the river Leyl, which runs through the mountain pass which surround the country. As the Leyl is both the lifeline of the country - as it delivers fresh drinking water to the town and its surroundings, and allows for transportation towards the sea - the first settlers decided upon the name Leylstadt. This means City at the Leyl.

To remember the importance of the river, the locals celebrate Leyl Festival annually halfway the year. It's seen as a national holiday and the Duke tours his country to listen to his citizen's grieves (and reveive their thanks).


History

The first steps

The portrait of Nicholas (in 1670) on a horse already betrayed certain aspirations of a man who wished to rule his own country.

Nicholas des Vinandy-Windsor was born as younger brother of Joseph des Vinandy-Windsor in 1625 AN. Born as a kinsman of Batavian noble heritage within - by then Shirerithian - occupied territory, he enjoyed a comfortable youth. He was well-versed in both Batavian and Shirerithian classics, and he soon made connections among the other noble houses of the country. His entrepreneur's spirit convinced him to move to Shirekeep in 1643 AN to join the Iron Company's branch office in the hope of amassing a fortune.

Frustrated with the lack of progress (the war hadn't helped), and eventually charged with corruption, Nicholas left the capital and fled to Jingdaoese 's Koningenwaarde in 1657. Having irritated both the Shirerithian authorities and the Iron Company, he found a lot of support among the amused Jingdaoese elite. His old connections helped him in setting up a shipping company. The allowance he received from his older brother (to stay away as far as possible from Davignon) helped him further to increase his investments.

The Bataafsche Scheepvaartmaatschappij flourished, especially as the war had opened the possibilities for traders within Jingdao. Both the Meiyo Emperor and Chidao Emperor passed legislation which opened up the market. Nicholas amassed the fortune he had dreamt of.

In 1661 AN, mainland Batavia was re-united. His company was now forced to chose: remain active in Batavia, or Jingdao. After much deliberation, Nicholas chose to remain in Batavia. This would, however, change rather rapidly, as goodwill around the initial unification stranded and he himself started dreaming aloud of himself on the Throne. When his brother, Joseph, proclaimed support for David Ayreon-Kalirion on the Throne, Nicholas understood that his chances of ever ruling the country had been ruined. His family, the House of des Vinandy-Windsor, had made itself extremely unpopular among the vinandist royalists. When Arkadius IV - with support of the Windsors - received the Crown in 1669 AN, his chances were further diminished.

He started contacting several groups who had grown increasingly frustrated with the state of affairs: both the struggle for the crown (and afterwards, limited frustration about the king himself), as corruption and lack of a decent administration made excellent partners to work with. Especially among those who had once lived in the Transbataafsche Vrystaat, he found allies to aid his cause.

In 1674, he gathered those families who he had seen fit, and - paid with the profits of his company - set of towards Apollonia. There he would, among the Green, find a new homeland.

The Valesian Expedition (1674)

The Valesian expedition of 1674 was in fact the Fourth Expedition, as Vales had personally led the resettlement of over 200,000 colonists prior to Nicholas' arrival.

Nicholas had been a fairly successful businessmen thanks to his own ability to recognise the abilities of the peoples working under him. While he himself had rather mediocre talents, he successfully placed the right employees in the right job. He recognised that establishing his own country, even with the funds he could provide, was a difficult endeavour. He needed adventurers with sufficient know how, experts who would be able to not only find a decent place to live, but also be able to negotiate with the local tribes.

The Aldurian-Batavian conquistador André Vales was hired in 1670 AN to prepare the venture. Vales, who had a decent knowledge of the central Apollonian plains and mountain regions in the Green, opted for former Aryan lands. After much deliberation, Nicholas agreed with him: the lands were fertile, the mountains gave sufficient defence against other powers, and the climate was reasonable (not too cold in winter, but not too hot in summer). Besides that, the tribes living in the region still spoke Praeta from the times that the Apollonian Republic had dominated the region, a language which most new colonists had learnt as first or second language.

Vales undertook three expeditions between 1670 and 1673 AN, in which he personally organised the settlement of over 200,000 inhabitants across the region. The local chiefs received considerable bribes from Vales in the years prior Nicholas' arrival and had been promised the benefits of a new, orderly established nation. Promises of order, wealth and a new feeling of national pride convinced many of the young locals, while the elders remained mostly indifferent.

In 1674, the Fourth Valesian Expedition arrived with new residents - around 50,000 Batavians, Krasnocorians and Morovians - at what had once been the city of Mahapur, but had since the Apollonians had left, slowly transformed into ruins and small living communities. In a short ceremony, the local chief handed over a decree with signatures of all local chiefs, which approved the establishment of a new state under Nicholas.

Leylstadt was proclaimed on 25.XV.1674 AN as an independent state.


Grant of ducal title (1675)

The Papal Donation of Dukedom, on 10.XVII.1675 AN, meant for most of the Leylstadters the official establishment of the Duchy as a country.

The proclamation of independence of Leylstadt was celebrated across the mountain range. Especially the new settlers were excited. Among them were many Batavians, some of Badaweian (former Jingdaoese or Kildarian Batavians) and others from Transbatavian descent. Most of them followed one of the variants of the catologian faith - Tianchaodao or the Holy Catologian Church - and were uneasy living in a state which did not have the endorsement of a religious institution.

Nicholas, a follower of catologism, but hardly a devote one, would therefore have told that "ruling Leylstadt is worth a mass to him" and he contacted Magister Pius II of the Holy Catologian Church with the request to grant a royal title to him. Pius was confronted with a difficult choice: while the Church had once held the power to grant noble titles (as it had done before the unification of Batavia into one country), this tradition had long ended since the Kings of Batavia had adopted that privilige. His advice to contact the Batavian king, Shirerithian Kaiser or Jingdaoese Emperor, fell onto deaf ears from Nicholas, who had no interest in endangering his country by aligning with any of them. In the end, after a series of discussions, large monetary donations and promises of establishing the Church as dominating religion, Pius II granted Nicholas the title of an independent Duke (claiming that he held no power to simply create a royal title), equal to the kind of title the House of des Vinandy-Windsor had held for centuries as Dukes of Davignon.

Reign of Nicholas the First (1675 - ... AN)

Foreign relations

Government and administration

Duke of Leylstadt

Grand Pensionary

The Grand Pensionary is the prime minister of the country. He holds considerable power and influence within the administration. However, as he has to seek both approval of the Duke (who can appoint and fire him at will) and the State Duma (which has the power to block any law coming from the cabinet) to govern, he has to find a delicate balance between the two.

State Duma

The State Duma consists of twenty elected representatives from the population across the country. 14 seats are distributed to Leylstadt, while the village of Grison hold four seats and Thurgou receives two representatives. While every citizen is allowed to vote, those who hold considerable economical power (read: pay more taxes) receive two - and in some cases three - votes. As the government actively supports the better educated merchant class to govern the lands, entrepreneurs and the richer middle class have been the dominating political elite within the State Duma.

The Duma is elected every five Norton years and is presided by the Grand Pensionary, who is not a member of the parliament.


Territory

Municipalities

Leylstadt is a small duchy, composed of several municipalities. The city of Leylstadt forms the political, cultural and economical centre of the small country, as most of the adventurers and refugees who arrived with Nicholas the First settled down in fertile valley at the river Leyl.

Every village, except Leylstadt itself, has a village elder. This is, in most cases, someone who has been appointed by the villagers themselves. He represents his town in official ceremonies and, during Leyl Festival, announces their villages praises and grievances to the Duke.


Coat of arms Municipality Population Village elder
Flag Valais.png Leylstadt (Town) 308 000 Directly administered by the Crown
File:Flag Grison.png Grison 60 007 Christiaan Weelders
File:Flag Thurgou.png Thurgou 20 872 Vukoslav Tomić
TOTAL 368 879