Further expansion with land ceded from Gradonia
Saturday 1st August saw the Kingdom of Gradonia cede two areas of land to the Empire of Austenasia. Gradonia is ruled by King William I, who serves as Deputy Prime Minister in Austenasia, where he prefers to be known by his title Lord William Wilson, Count of Oribrazos. Austenasia and Gradonia have held strong friendly relations since June last year. The first land claim, Campo de Jonatán, is a house inhabited by Wilson’s father – who has now become an Austenasian subject – and recently moved into by Wilson himself. Campo de Jonatán has been annexed as a March of Wilson’s hometown of Nahona, of which he serves as Representative. The second land claim, Jackson, is composed of uninhabited land situated in front of the home of Wilson’s uncle. The land contains a fallout/tornado shelter, which previously served as the Gradonian military installation Fort McLaughlin. Wilson has been appointed Governor of Jackson and Margrave of Campo de Jonatán.
Population passes 100 with the annexation of new Town
The population of the Empire of Austenasia has passed 100 for the first time in its history, now standing at 102. This comes as a result of a new town, Nahona, yesterday being annexed alongside the registration of three residents for the hitherto uninhabited crown dependency of Trebizond. Nahona consists of a 21.2 acre property which has been declared independent from the U.S. state of Texas. It is home to King William I of Gradonia and his mother. Despite being home to William I, the property has never been claimed by the Kingdom of Gradonia, a state with which Austenasia entered into mutual recognition in June last year. William I has been appointed Acting Representative of the new Town, the annexation of which has increased the number of Representatives in Parliament to ten. There were previously ten Representatives between January 2015 and September 2016; this remains the record highest number. Unfortunately both of these records are unlikely to last for long due to the upcoming secession of New Virginia on February 11th.
GUM Summit held at Birmingham
Yesterday saw the first international summit organised by the Grand Unified Micronational (GUM) held at Birmingham. With twelve attendees representing eight GUM member states and Westarctica, the summit was the largest held in the United Kingdom for small nations since PoliNation 2012, seven years ago. Organised by outgoing GUM Chairman Adam I of Adammia, the summit was held in the Guild Council Chamber of the University of Birmingham, the university at which Adam I is currently studying. Adam I was joined by Lady Hermione Peace, his Minister of National Development. Austenasia was represented by Emperor Jonathan I. The summit was, naturally, chaired by Adam I as Chairman, assisted by Jonathan I, who was as Associate Justice and Archivist the next-highest ranking GUM official in attendance. Other attendees were Lord Mike Lewis of Lundenwic, and two diplomatic representatives of Westarctica. Also in attendance were five officials from the micronation of Essexia, three of whom each also represented another GUM member state (Gradonia, Aspen, and Quebec resepectively). The summit saw presentations by attendees, as well as open discussions on law enforcement, international organisations, and economics The summit was also used as an occasion for the signing of the Edgbaston Convention, a treaty aiming to ensure higher standards of accuracy in regards to the sometimes vague or frivolous claims made in the community of small nations. As well as signing the Edgbaston Convention, Emperor Jonathan I also signed a treaty of mutual recognition with the State of Gradonia, courtesy of its Essexian representative. With so many national delegations gathered in one place, the opportunity was held to hold only the second in-person Quorum meeting of the GUM in history. The first had been held at the Tate Modern in July 2012, the day following PoliNation; Jonathan I is the only person to have been present at both. This in-person Quorum was primarily a ceremonial event, but did vote to refuse one membership application and to expel an unprofessional observer state. The summit ended with the playing of national anthems. It is hoped that a similar summit will be held next year.
