Sudervik

Kingdom of Sudervik
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: Strength From The Sea!
Anthem: "To The Süd We Thank"
Capital and largest city	Vindhøj
Official languages	Suderviker
Recognised regional languages	Various Suderviker Dialects
Ethnic groups	Suderviker
Demonym(s)	Suderviker
Government	Absolute Monarchy
• King	Adalbert IX
• Lord High Steward	Rikkert Fleer
Legislature	Privy Council
Population
• Estimate	11,830,660
Currency	Sudervik Florin

Sudervik, officially the Kingdom of Sudervik, is a sovereign state located within the Süd Depths. Sudervik is the foremost absolute monarchy in the known world. The kingdom consists of one large island and a number of smaller dependent islands. The islands have a total area of about 463,000 square kilometres with a population of 11.8 million. The kingdom is a collection of one sovereign state and many dependent territories united under a single monarch. However, due to their separate historical and cultural identities, fringe islands have always felt disassociated with Sudervik proper. Lord-lieutenants or Viceroys have assumed administrative responsibilities in many distant islands, acting as personal representatives of the monarch.

The Kingdom of Sudervik is the name for the entire collection of islands. The kingdom did not start to consolidate until the early feudal age of the island, when the lord of the city-state of Vindhøj had entered into a dynastic union with the sovereign of the city-state of Eiriksvagr, with Eiriksvagr being the lesser partner in the personal union. After both Vindhøj and Eiriksvagr were united, the new nation increasingly became a hegemonic power in its region, exerting influence over smaller island realms nearby and coastal territories.

Etymology

The name Sudervik originates from a language used by the first settlers of Sudervik, called Old Sudervik. The langauge is no longer used, as it has been replaced by a more modern version, but is still translatable. The name Sudervik can be roughly translated to "Vines of the Süd", where 'suder' means 'belonging to Süd' and 'vik' roughly menaing 'vines' or 'vegetation'. The most most widely accepted hypothesis for "Vines of the Süd" is the first description of the islands the early settlers had came up with, likely taking note of the lush coastline and vines and moss growing on the fjords and cliffs.

History

Sudervik was first settled sometime in the early Old Age, which is a rough equivalent to a Stone Age. The first settlers, now called Ancient Sudervikers, were a seafaring and nomadic people, who used primitive ships to travel an unknown distance into the Süd Depths, eventually arriving at a place that is believed to be near the city now called Vindhøj. Their arrival and creation of a permanent settlement marked the coming of farming, improved stone tools and pottery. The Iron Age of Sudervik marked the beginning of significant cultural development. Large hill forts appeared on hill summits, smaller promontory forts created along the coastal cliffs, and settlements started to spread along the coastline as populations grew.

The second largest island to be settled was Eiriksvagr (Eirik's Vale). It is believed that a splinter group of Ancient Suderviker fishermen had explored the island and developed a permanent settlement, bestowing the name Eiriksvagr or "Eirik's Vale" after their leader, only known as Eirik the Bold. The separation between Vindhøj and Eiriksvagr eventually created disparity between cultures and language. The people of Eiriksvagr became forest-dwellers and hunters, abandoning their seafaring past while the people of Vindhøj remained fishermen and a coastal culture. The two islands would be in constant competiton with each other economically and eventually militarily.

Sometime in the late Iron Age, before the early medieval period, Vindhøj and Eiriksvagr and had become proper independent city-states. The late Iron Age had marked the discovery of numerous smaller islands, each becoming pseudo-independent from the lord of Vindhøj. These islands would also develop their own dialects of the Suderviker language and a culture slightly different from that from Vindhøj.

The early medieval age is considered the longest age in the history of Sudervik. During this time, technology and culture had made early advancements but lost momentum and eventually became stagnant. Decades of separation and isolation between the settled islands had led to further cultural differences. Fortunately the lord of the city-state of Vindhøj, Eorconweald Mynyddholm, had been working to maintain relations with the rulers of Eiriksvagr, and even supported (and likely started) a civil war in the city. Lord Eorconweald had sent money and soldiers to support a local aristocratic family, namely its patriarch Saeweard Thraesfrith, in making Eiriksvagr a monarchy with the Thraesfrith family at its head. In return, Lord Eorconweald was promised the hand of Saeweard's eldest daughter Aelfwynn in marriage.

After the oligarchy was ousted and the civil war had ended, Saeweard Thraesfrith had become the self-proclaimed Lord of Eiriksvagr. Lord Eorconweald recieved his marriage to Aelfwynn, forming an alliance with the Thraesfrith family. When Lord Saeweard had eventually fallen ill and was near death, Lord Eorconweald and his wife Aelfwynn claimed that since Aelfwynn was the eldest child, she had precedence over her younger brother Eanred and was the rightful heir. Saeweard had died, and the first major conflict between the city-states of Vindhøj and Eiriksvagr had erupted. Eanred was in a difficult position at the start of the war. The young pretender lacked the confidence, cunning and intelligence of his elder sister, and many prominent families in Eiriksvagr held him in low regard. Most of the aristocratic families of Eiriksvagr had decided to support the more mature Aelfwynn, as she had the advantage of age, prestige and alliance. Eanred had only continued the war for two and a half weeks, but eventually surrendered due to his general reluctance to fight, and failing to rally any significant support. He was forced to renounce his claim to the lordship of Eiriksvagr, and was sent to the island of Firoafylki to reside as a priest for the remainder of his life. Aelfwynn was crowned under the protection of Lord Eorconweald as the "Lady of Eiriksvagr and all possessions therein". These lordships would be the backbone of the future Kingdom of Sudervik.

During the "late" early medieval age, the amount of islands with permanent settlements began to grow more rapidly, and by the middle age most of the reasonably sized islands that are a part of Sudervik had at least one settlement.

The Kingdom of Sudervik was proclaimed well into the medieval age, when the united lordships of Vindhøj and Eiriksvagr under Lord Edric, the decendant of Lord Eorconweald and Lady Aelfwynn. Edric had launched numerous expansionist campaigns and managed to vassalize several smaller independent islands and gained suzerainty of larger mainland realms surrounding Vindhøj. Lord Edric had believed that he controlled enough of Sudervik to proclaim himself as king of Sudervik. Not everyone initially recognized Edric as king of Sudervik. After years of Edric's rule, crushed uprisings and failed secessionist movements, many weathy aristocrats and landowners had started to recognize Edric's ability to maintain his fledgling kingdom. It wasn't until Edric's son Eadmund ascended that legitimacy was sealed. Eadmund was able to retain the level of control that his father had, and claimed that it was a sign from the gods that his reign was stable, and that the kingdom lived on.

Geography

Pine forests dominate the landscape of the islands.

Sudervik and all islands and islets within are located in a body of water called the Süd Depths, where its name is derived. Most of the islands are represented by forested hilly landscapes with jagged and rocky coasts. Almost all of the islands are covered by temperate coniferous rainforests, dominated by pine, spruce, fir and larch. Some portions of the islands are wetlands or meadows, especially near the numerous rivers. A number of areas of the kingdom have been designated as Royal Preserves, protected natural areas for use of the royal family only. Along the rock-bound coasts are lighthouses, beaches, fishing villages, and thousands of offshore islands. There are jagged rocks and cliffs and many bays and inlets. Geologists describe this type of landscape as a "drowned coast", where a rising sea level has invaded former land features, creating bays out of valleys and islands out of mountain tops.

There are a large number of wild animals present on the islands, with the most common being deer, coyotes, foxes, pine squirrels and beavers. Sudervik is home to a great number of birds including Golden Eagles, Cardinals, Bluebirds, and Westland Petrels. Many species of fish live in the ocean waters surrounding the islands, and the fishing industry is a major part of the economy, including commercial whaling.

Climate

The climate of Sudervik is humid continental climate and a cool summer subtype. Surface water temperatures around the islands reach a summer average of 12 °C (54 °F) inshore and 9 °C (48 °F) offshore to winter lows of −1 °C (30 °F) inshore and 2 °C (36 °F) offshore. The sea keeps winter temperatures slightly higher and summer temperatures a little lower on the coast than inland. The maritime climate produces more variable weather, ample precipitation in a variety of forms, greater humidity, lower visibility, more clouds, less sunshine, and higher winds than a continental climate. Light to heavy fog is a common and near daily occurance on the islands

Politics

Adalbert IX Mynyddholm

Queen Griselda Januttian

The entire kingdom of Sudervik is ruled by the King or Queen, and their consort. The current king is Adalbert IX. Each territory is ruled by a Lord-Lieutenant or, in distant territories, a Viceroy. The Privy Council has varied in importance from the ultimate legitimizer of a king's rule to a mere ceremonial acknowledgment of the heir apparent. The Crown of Vines is a symbol of leadership and power of a King or Queen. It is made out of golden vines with emerald and sapphire jewels and runic inscriptions invoking the divine right of kings.

The king has absolute authority over the military, the bureaucracy, and the entire kingdom and regions itself. The king has sole power to appoint, dismiss, approve, and supervise the regional governors. The king also has the power to organize and declare the budget, economy, taxes, and trade, order a Witan into session, dismiss it from meeting at will, declare its agenda, and propose, reject, and initiate all laws. The king also controls, supervises, and disbands the courts and has the final judicial say. As such, the kings mere word is enough for the Royal hierarchy to enact his will.

Witenagemot

The essential duty of the Witenagemot (usually shortened to Witan) is to advise the king on all matters on which he chooses to ask its opinion. It attests his grants of land to temples or laymen, consents to his issue of new laws or new statements of ancient custom, and helps him deal with rebels and persons suspected of disaffection. Its composition and time of meeting are determined by the king’s pleasure. Usually attended by the greater Lord-Lieutenants, wealthy aristocrats, influential priests and important elected civil administrators of chatered cities and boroughs, the Witan is in no sense a popular assembly.

Despite the existence of the Witan, the government of Sudervik is very much centred on the king. He rules personally, usually assisted by his Council, the Privy Council. The council members are chosen by the King, and its membership varies greatly, but members often include powerful nobility and churchmen, senior civil servants, and sometimes certain members of the king's friends and family.

Early Witans began to emerge under Dúncred II, who wished to implement taxation changes and wide-ranging law reforms, and sought to gain the consent of the nation. Nevertheless, calling a Witan is an expensive and time-consuming process, requiring many personal invitations, and in chartered cities and boroughs, elections of civil servants. So Witans are only summoned on particularly important occasions. Once a Witan had finished its business, the king would dissolve it, and sometimes not summon another for an extended period; in the meantime, the Privy Council – that is, the king with his chosen advisers – makes laws ("ordinances"), spend money, and carry on the business of government.

The acknowledged powers of the Witan have grown over time. In particular, it was established that the Witan is the only body that can authorise nationwide taxation and excise. There are practical underpinnings to these powers, for those who elected representatives at this time were the same people the monarch has to rely on to collect and remit taxes on a large scale: the landed gentry. If a sovereign is to attempt to impose new taxes without consulting the gentry then the gentry can simply refuse to collect the taxes, and the monarch would have had little feasible recourse.

Once summoned, a Witan can take the opportunity to submit policy proposals to the monarch ("bills"), which would be expected to take precedence over ordinances if signed into law by the monarch, although the monarch is under no obligation to grant the Royal Assent to any such proposal. However, monarchs have increasingly used Witans more widely in lawmaking as a way of gaining popular support for their policies. One example was during the reign of Edric III, when major religious reforms were taking place due to scandals within the religion, which Edric instigated and passed a number of laws regulating the powers of priests and high ranking clergymen. However, his successor Gárdig reversed these changes, despite lacking public support.

The first of the Aberffridd monarchs to rule Sudervik, Madanach I, was perennially short of money and he was obliged to summon Witans often. Successive Witans thereupon sought to turn the king's financial woes to their advantage, requiring various policy concessions before voting taxes. Madanach was succeeded by his son Berwyn I, who had inherited the start of major economic problems in Sudervik such as poor harvests and a decline in fish populations. Berwyn refused to use the Witan to rectify the economic issues, something that its members protested, among other policies Berwyn had implimented, primarily regarding taxation and other methods of acquiring funds. Berwyns' refusal to compromise, eventually led to Berwyn dissolving the Witan. Berwyn would continue for eight years governing with only an advisory council of royal appointees.

Lord-Lieutenants

The kingdom is divided into lieutenancy areas and governed by a Lord-Lieutenant, the monarch's personal representative in each respective area. Each Lord-Lieutenant is responsible for civil administration, law and order and the organization of the local militia units. He is commander of these forces, whose officers he appoints. Each Lord-Lieutenant has the power to select a governing-council of the lieutenancy, which handles day-to-day management, administration and oversight of economic activities.

Military

Sudervik's military has a size of 7,000 active personnel, including 3,500 conscripts. The size of the military reserve is roughly 30,000. Reservists are fit-for-service individuals available to the armed forces that participate in defence exercises and deployments abroad. Any male can be conscripted by royal or lieutenancy decree. The Royal Peacekeepers have around 3200 active members. They serve as a gendarmerie tasked with maintaining order throughout the nation. During peacetime, each constituency has it's own Head Peacekeeper who is the commander of the district's respective garrison. Their duties consist of arresting political dissidents, rebels, and other lawbreakers. Peacekeepers form the bulk of both law enforcement and the military of Sudervik as they serve as foot soldiers and police.

Foreign relations

The Kingdom of Sudervik maintains no foreign relations with any other sovereign state, likely due to its isolation. Sudervik does conduct maritime trade, importing and exporting certain goods through sea trade routes.

Economy

Agriculture

Sudervik has long supported and maintainted a primarilly agrarian economy. Wheat is the single most important arable crop, but oats and barley are also cultivated extensively. In some parts of the kingdom, legumes and beans are also cultivated. On the island of Hnífsvöllur, a hybrid tobacco is grown extensively and exported to all parts of the kingdom. Sheep, cattle, oxen and pigs are the most common for animal husbandry. Watermills and windmills are common gristmills in agricultural areas.

Mining

Mining does not make up a large part of the economy, but the demand for metals and fuels in the country still exists. The main resources extracted from mining are iron, tin, lead, silver and coal. Acquiring ore through strip mining has been supplemented by more advanced techniques, including tunnels, trenches and bell-pits. Iron ore is usually processed locally at water-powered bloomeries. Exploitation of woodlands has provided ample amounts of required charcoal for the smelting process, however as commerically mined coal from bell-pits and strip mining as a bi-product of other mines becomes more efficient, charcoal has been phased out of some areas.

Huge quantities of silver are produced from a semicircle of mines on the island of Cefnffynon. Around three to four hundred tonnes of silver are mined each year. Tin mining is centred in Llwynberwyn, exploiting alluvial deposits. Tin is a valuable export good, and shipped to every island in the kingdom. Lead is usually mined as a by-product of mining for silver, with mines in Cefnffynon near the silver mines. Economically fragile, the lead mines have survived as a result of being subsidised by silver production. Mining is generally a limited practice due to the isolation of the kingdom. Export of agricultural goods in exchange for minerals is common to preserve mineral deposits on the islands.

A steam locomotive hauling tin oxide mineral in Llwynberwyn.

Industry

The dominant form of mechanized power is created from watermills. Using water towers as buffers and gears for transmission, watermills have been the primary means of industrial production in Sudervik for years. Watermills are used for grinding grain, producing flour for bread, malt for beer, or coarse meal for porridge. Hammermills use the wheel to operate hammers. Fulling mills are powered using water wheels for cloth making. The trip hammer is also used for making wrought iron and for working iron into useful shapes, an activity that is otherwise labour-intensive. The waterwheel is also used in papermaking, beating material to a pulp.

Watermills vastly outnumber steam engines.

Suderviker engineers have developed a unique style of watermill station. If a location does not have a dedicated source of flowing water, a water tower will be constructed and filled. The process of filling a water tower is time consuming, as the water must be transported by land, and lifted in large buckets using a treadwheel crane. After the water tower is filled, the tower will be connected via a system of aqueducts to the water wheel. Once used, the water is channeled into a small drainage area where it is then pumped back into the water tower using a windpump, or muscle-power via horsemill where horses, oxen or slaves are used. This system is more expensive, requires constant maintenance and periodic refilling of water due to evaporation and general water spillage. As a result of this, watermills are generally constructed along the abundant river systems found on the islands.

Windmills are also used in competition to water wheels. Certain areas of the kingdom have advantages to using windmills or watermills and vice versa. Windmills are also used to power many other industrial processes, including papermills, threshing mills, and to process oil seeds, wool, paints and stone products. There are more than 30,000 watermill stations and 18,000 windmills spread across the kingdom. The kingdom is currently undergoing a period of industrialization via steam. Imported steam engines are replacing inefficient watermills. Imported steam shovels are being used to increase the capacity of coal mining. Steamships export bulk agricultural products abroad and import machinery. With the availability of watermills, and requiring no burning fuel to power, steam engines are slow to be adopted to many industries.

Infrastructure

Sudervik maintains an extentive network of brick roads and bridges, and maintains a large public works labour force for upkeeping the vast network. In cities, brick roads are used, while in the country, gravel roads are commonplace. Prison labor provides labor for road construction and ditch digging.

Transport

Sudervik's extensive and connected systems of navigable rivers and coastal access allows for cheap and easy transportation of agricultural products. Land transport is a suppliment to the navigable rivers to enhance the all-weather shipment of cash crops to market. Roads tie farms and plantations areas to the nearest river or seaport for easier and more cost-effective shipping. Foreign steamships make transport of goods more efficient, and river traversing easier. Railroads are commonly used for transporting lumber and minerals. Bulk agricultural products are primarily transported by carriage or by river ferries.