560th anniversary of the Fall of Constantinople commemmorated

The Emperor has asked that Austenasians today commemmorate the 560th anniversary of the Fall of Constantinople in 1453, which marked the end of the Roman Empire and, in the opinion of many historians, of the medieval period. The Austenasian Star is flying vertically from the Imperial Residence today as a sign of respect – this is the customary equivalent to flying it half mast, as it lacks a flagpole. The Emperor has also uploaded a video to YouTube which can be seen here, a recording of a chant lamenting the fall of the city, with a more detailed account of the event in the video’s description. Constantinople was founded as the eastern capital of the Roman Empire in 330 by Constantine I, with the eastern half of the empire (known as the “Byzantine Empire” by later western European historians but still referred to as the “Empire of the Romans” by its citizens and neighbours) surviving the fall of the west in the 470s for almost a thousand years. The Eastern Roman Empire flourished during the Early Middle Ages but entered terminal decline after 1204 when Constantinople was temporarily taken by western crusaders. By 1400, the mighty Eastern Roman Empire had declined to the extent that it consisted of little more than Constantinople itself and a few Greek islands. In 1453, the Ottoman (Turkish) Sultan Mehmed II led an attack on Constantinople. Although heavily outnumbered (7,000:80,000) and facing vastly superior technology, the Romans held out for over a month before the city fell on 29 May. The last Roman Emperor, Constantine XI, threw off his purple regalia and died leading the last remnants of the Roman army in a final charge against the Ottomans after they breached the walls.

Pets Day commemorated

Emperor Jonathan I laid flowers on the graves in Wrythe Pet Cemetery this afternoon during an annual ceremony of remembrance for the departed pets of the Imperial Family. Pets Day has been held on 17 May each year since 2010. Minor repairs are made to Wrythe Pet Cemetery, the final resting place of four fish, a crab, and a stillborn bullmastiff puppy, before flowers are placed on the graves. Said repairs usually entail reinscribing the names on the headstones and cleaning the decorative shells which mark out the graves, but maintenance work went beyond that this year. The need for spaces for pet bullmastiffs Rose and Edd – either to bury their ashes or to build a memorial – was made apparent by Rose’s recent health scare. Space has been made by translating two of the coffins, those of fishes Daah and Flower, into the grave of goldfish Lovehearty II, reburying all three coffins inside a larger box. The coffin of still-born puppy Alpha Primus and the already shared coffin of crab Rodney and goldfish Woo-Woo were also reburied, translated closer together so as to make room for future burials. The Emperor stated that while it was “unfortunate that we had to actually move the coffins, this was done with the utmost respect. All the pets are now reburied, with their graves decorated by shiny shells and freshly picked flowers. Let us hope that the vacant space freed up shall not have to be used for a long time”.

The Empire continues to expand

The recent exponential territorial expansion of Austenasia under Emperor Jonathan I has continued with part of the house of Countess Eritoshi of Memphis being annexed as the Town of Thanasia. The new Town was annexed by an Imperial Decree earlier this afternoon after discussions about Countess Eritoshi’s home joining Austenasia began on Friday 10th. The Countess, who is a close friend of the Emperor, has been appointed Acting Representative of Thanasia until a Local Election is held, and her sister has been made Baroness of the new Town. Only part of the Countess’ house has been annexed – specifically, the territory directly underneath her room, which means that her sister’s room and part of the kitchen are also now part of the Empire, while the rest of the house has remained part of the United Kingdom. Due to the relatively lax border controls between Austenasia and the UK, this should not result in too many problems. This annexation, while not of a large territory, has continued the explosion of new territories seen so far under the reign of Jonathan I, being the fourth new acquisition of Austenasia – after New South Scotland, Axvalley, and Corinium Terentium – since he ascended the Throne less than four months ago. Thanasia is the third Austenasian Town alongside Wrythe and Zephyria (Glencrannog having been transitioned to a Territory earlier this month), and adds two new subjects to the Empire.

IGS Expedition to Headley Heath

The Imperial Geographical Society has completed an expedition around Headley Heath in the British county of Surrey. The expedition, which set out and returned yesterday, consisted of eleven people including the Emperor and the Emperor Mother. Since 2009, it has been traditional for the IGS to accompany a countryside ramble organised by Carshalton Methodist Church on the first Monday of May, which is a bank holiday in the United Kingdom. The expedition traversed heathland, fields, farms and woods, climbing some very steep hills along the way. Several photographs were taken, and a short film of the expedition can be seen here.

The Emperor celebrates Orthodox Easter

HIM Emperor Jonathan I has become the first western emperor in over 900 years to attend an Orthodox Christian Easter service. The Emperor, who converted to the Orthodox Church in May 2011 while still Crown Prince, last night attended the midnight service at the Greek Orthodox Church of Saints Constantine and Helen at Crystal Palace, celebrating the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Unlike Western Christianity, Eastern Christianity (which includes the Orthodox Church) uses the Julian instead of the Gregorian calendar to calculate the date of Easter (known as Pascha in Orthodoxy), meaning that it falls later than in the West most years. After prayers and chants, all light in the church was extinguished shortly before midnight. The congregation, all holding candles, then lit them from candles held by the priest by the altar, with the light spreading throughout the church as those with lit candles lit the candles of those standing behind them. Illuminated only by candlelight early on Easter morning, the Paschal troparian – a short Easter hymn – was sung (in Greek) by the congregation: “Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and bestowing life upon those in the tombs!” The troparian at last year’s service can be heard at this link. After celebrating the Resurrection, the 1600-year old Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom was held, with the Emperor recieving Holy Communion before the service finished at around 02:15. It is thought that this is the first time for over 940 years that an emperor ruling in the west has attended an Orthodox Easter service. The last time that this would have happened would have been when (“Byzantine”) Roman co-Emperors Michael VII and Romanos IV celebrated Easter on 4 April 1070, the year before the last territory of the medieval Roman Empire in Italy fell to the Normans.

King Alex’s Bottle rediscovered

King Alex’s Bottle, royal regalia of the Kingdom of Rushymia, has been rediscovered after being lost for nearly two and a half years. The extraordinary find was made this afternoon on Rushy Meadow Field by His Imperial Majesty the Emperor, who decided to have a quick look under the trees at the edge of the Field while passing by on the off chance that the bottle would be there. Oral tradition states that at the end of his reign, King Alex of Rushymia (reigned c. 1997 – July 2000) placed the bottle, which he had used similarly to a ceremonial mace, at the top of a fence which separated the school playground in which Rushymia – and later the Midget Empire – was located from the Field. The first person to retrieve it would be his successor as King of Rushymia. The bottle remained at the top of the fence until 17 October 2010, when it was successfully retrieved by the then Emperor Esmond III of Austenasia. The title “King of Rushymia” was merged with the Austenasian Throne four days later, and was automatically assumed by Esmond’s successors as Emperor upon their ascension to the Throne. However, the bottle itself was lost soon after it was retrieved. Esmond III had placed the bottle in his bag, which he dropped to the ground while climbing back down the fence, but a large dog being walked on the Field ran up to him, took the bag, and ran around the Field with it in its mouth. By the time the bag was recovered by the dog’s owner, the bottle had come out and was lost. Despite Esmond III and the then Crown Prince Jonathan searching the Field for the bottle, they could not find it. They had assumed it had fallen out of the bag into long grass while the dog was running around the Field with it, but did not search under the trees by the fence where the dog first took it. With the loss of the bottle, the only proof that it had ever existed outside of eyewitness testimonies was a photograph taken at a fundraising event at the school in December 2006 which shows a pixelated red object at the top of the fence. The discovery today of King Alex’s Bottle reveals that it had most likely fallen out of Esmond III’s bag the moment the dog took it. The now Emperor Jonathan I has confirmed that the size and colour of the bottle which was discovered is the same as that which was retrieved by Esmond III and lost in the area. King Alex’s Bottle has been taken back to Wrythe, and will be stored in the Imperial Residence.

Second IGS Expedition to Wimbledon Common

The Imperial Family yesterday returned to Wrythe after setting out on an expedition to Wimbledon Common on behalf of the Imperial Geographical Society. This is the first time that the IGS has sent an expedition to the same place twice – a first expedition to Wimbledon Common took place on New Year’s Day. While that expedition had twelve members, this one only had four, namely the immediate Imperial Family. The Emperor led the Imperial Family on a circular route around the common, closely following part of the route of the previous expedition and comparing how things had changed in three months with the onset of spring. Photographs were taken, and a short video can be seen here. The next IGS Expedition is planned to take place on 6 May, to British countryside near the Surrey village of Headley.

Sir J. Goldie resigns from military command

Legate Sir Joseph Goldie KCP, commanding officer of Legio I Britannica, has resigned after more than three years of military service to the Empire. Sir Joseph was recruited into the Austenasian Army on 8 March 2010, the second day of the Austenasian Civil War. A close friend of the then Emperor Esmond III, who was Monarch at the time, Sir Joseph was immediately appointed General of the 1st Inner Austenasia Division. Given the informal designation of “High General”, Sir Joseph was a leading Esmondian figure during the civil war, second only to the Emperor and Prime Minister. Instrumental in recruiting new soldiers, he retained much influence in the unofficial imperial court which grew out of the Esmondian military HQ at Esmond III’s school after the civil war ended. General Sir Joseph became known as Legate Sir Joseph when the 1st Inner Austenasian Division was renamed to Legio I Britannica in January 2011. This was part of extensive military reforms which were widely welcomed by most soldiers, one aspect of which was to remodel the Austenasian Army on Roman rather than British influences. By an Imperial Decree issued earlier this afternoon, the Emperor has appointed Countess Eritoshi of Memphis the new Legate of Legio I Britannica. He also granted the legion the battle honour of “London 2011” in recognition of the part which it played in protecting Austenasia during the riots in England in August 2011 – although the legion did not see combat, soldiers were mobilised and played a vital role in assuaging the fears of Austenasian residents away on holiday who had left their properties defenceless. Sir Joseph has been given another knighthood by the Emperor in recognition of his three years of service, being made a Knight Commander in the Austenasian Order. He will from now on be known as Sir Joseph Goldie, KCA, KCP.

Jonathan I announces temporary withdrawal from MicroWiki

Earlier today, I recieved the results for the A2 modular exams which I took in January. They weren’t bad, but I could have done better, and I will need to do better in order to achieve grades good enough to be accepted into Roehampton, the university that the Countess of Memphis and I both have offers from and plan to go to in September. I have come to the decision to partially and temporarily withdraw from the MicroWiki Community so as to be able to better focus my time and effort on revision for my final exams, which take place at the end of May and start of June. I have withdrawn my candidacy in the GUM elections for Supreme Judge, leaving Quentin as the only candidate. In the now probable event that he becomes Supreme Judge, I will send him my work on the compilation of GUM motions and conventions that I have been working on, with explanatory notes on how I was conducting my work and what the best way for him to continue with it would be. I apologise for letting down all those who voted for me. In regards to the GUM as a whole, I will not allow the Empire to remain a full member until June with no activity seen from it, but I will be missing the occasional Quorum session. An hour or so each fortnight isn’t much to ask, but from now on I shall be making revision my top priority and cannot promise to attend each and every scheduled Quorum session. I reaffirm, however, the central position of the GUM in the Empire’s foreign affairs and Austenasia’s commitment to remaining a full member. I will still be coming online on Skype pretty much as regularly as I always have done, and I will be available for private conversations, but I will withdraw from all micronational chat rooms other than the GUM rooms and the Yellow Bear Micronational. I will no longer be on the Forums, and will no longer be doing any work on wiki articles, other than perhaps to make some minor updates now and then if necessary. Production of Cool Barbie will continue, but at a much slower rate – expect to see Episode VIII released in the summer, not later this month. Do not confuse this with an announcement that Austenasia is becoming “inactive”. The Empire shall continue to function, as it always has done, in “real life”. Whether or not its head of state uses a certain website as frequently as before makes no difference to that. This period of self-imposed withdrawal shall begin immediately, and will end after my exams are over some time in early June. Getting the grades to get into Roehampton University is now my top priority. No fighting while I’m gone! ICJA Cheam, 7 March 2013

Coronation covered by British newspaper

His Imperial Majesty Jonathan I was featured on the front page of this week’s Sutton Guardian with the caption “Meet the Emperor: Micronation crowns new leader”. The Sutton Guardian, a widely read local newspaper delivered free throughout the London Borough of Sutton, published an article on page 5 on the recent coronation of Emperor Jonathan I, which was held on Saturday 23rd February and attended by various dignitaries. This is the third time that Austenasia has had an article in a local newspaper. The first time was in January 2009 when an article was run on the Empire’s foundation, and the second in September 2011 on the occasion of the third anniversary of its founding. The article, with the headline “All hail Emperor Jonathan”, includes a photograph of the Emperor with four of his guests. The article itself goes into some detail on Austenasia, its recent history, and the coronation. This most recent article has sparked widespread interest in the Empire, with several Honorary Subjects applying and the Emperor and Crown Princess being asked numerous questions about Austenasia by their classmates.