Empire of Agber

Empire of Agber
Flag Coat of Arms
Capital city	Agber
Official language(s)	English
Short name	Agber
Government	Absolute Monarchy
- Empress	Empress Arlene
Established	20 September 1995 (as Kingdom of Kolios) 7 January 1998 (as Empire of Agber)
Population	108
Currency	Gulden (Imperial and Kolios)

The Empire of Agber is a micronational project that was founded on 20 September 1995 as the Kingdom of Kolios The project was reimagined in early 1998 as the Empire of Agber, with Kolios becoming a nation within the Empire. The primary focus of the Empire is activity at Renaissance Festivals and other such events where period dress is deemed acceptable.

History

Prior to Founding of the Empire

Main article: Principality of Kolios

In 1995, three friends began discussing a book one of them had been gifted for his birthday on the Order of Malta. This led to a fair amount of research and discussion on what it would be like to establish a country of their own. These early discussions primarily took place in local playgrounds and libraries. After a number of weeks and the addition of three other youths, a decision was made to found their own country as the Kingdom of Kolios on 20 September 1995. It was founded under the rule of King Stephen, who ruled until 24 May 1997, when he abdicated in favor of Queen Arlene.

In 1998, after her family moving from Augsburg, Germany, to Fort Drum, New York, Queen Arlene of Kolios decided to revamp the project as the Empire of Agber, using the capital of Kolios as the eat of a self-declared Empire.

First and Second Eras

The first era of the Empire, sometimes called the Founding Era, lasted from its founding on 7 January 1998 until 30 October 2004. During this time, the second and third nations, the Grand Duchy of Carthage and the Enclave de Cordova, saw their founding and subsequent addition to the Empire. During this phase, Empress Arlene also claimed the areas of Bir Tawil and Marie Byrd Land as protectorates. During this time, the entirety of Agber operated as a single entity or court, with the heads of individual nations serving as more of a retinue for Empress Arlene. This era ended when Empress Arlene joined the United States Air Force.

The second era, sometimes called the Transient Era, ran from 1 November 2004 until 28 February 2013 (the length of Empress Arlene's tenure in the US Air Force). This era functioned as a scaled down version of the first, with a number of appointees coming and going, Empress Arlene being the only real constant. This is owed primarily to the Empire's lack of an internet presence essentially keeping the functional government limited to the area of whichever military base the Empress was assigned to, at the time. While still active, the Empire saw no real growth or additions in terms of policy, initiatives, or additions of orders of chivalry, the last of these having become a cornerstone of the pageantry within Agber's culture.

Third Era

The Empire's third era, also known as the Renaissance, is regarded as having run from 1 March 2013 until 8 April 2020. This era saw an increase in the types of activities and stability seen in the first era. It also saw the addition of the Empire's most recent addition, Sawatch. One of the most notable changes during this era was Empress Arlene's insistence that each of the nations of the Empire were charged with developing their own cultures. Those that emerged included:

• Kolios (and Agber, as a whole) developing more of a focus on inspirations from the Holy Roman Empire.
• Carthage leaning into France's era of the House of Valois, with a few elements from early Bourbon rule.
• Cordova emerging as a society influenced by early Spanish Colonialism.
• Sawatch taking on influences from the early and mid-Ottoman Empire.

This era solidified Agber's primary existence as a vehicle for Renaissance Fair culture. A large part of court life revolved around this fact; court was often held within the confines of a Fair, and various retinues were charged with roaming the events and interacting with visitors. This often included the bestowing of knighthoods and taking oaths of fealty from those who wished to pledge service to the Empire or its subsidiary nations.

Current Era

The Empire's fourth and current era began on 9 April 2020. The groundwork for the transition in eras began when one of the founding nobles of the original Kingdom of Kolios rediscovered a notebook containing details of the Kingdom by way of his mother sorting through old items in her charge. As this individual, the Margrave of Sulli was then involved in the online micronational community as Westarctica's Prime Minister, this forgotten project was of great personal interest to him. As his record of events ceased in mid 1997, he assumed the Kingdom to be defunct and began trying to track down other members of the project.

Margrave Jordan discovered the continued existence of Kolios, and its evolution into the Empire through Empress Arlene. The beginning of their correspondence is regarded by the Empress as the start of a fourth era, when the Empire was introduced to the wider community of micronations. As this era is in its infancy, much of its earmarks and changes remain to be seen.

Government

The Empire is overseen by an Emperor or Empress. Each territory has their own head, who is known by their own title, and has autonomy over their nation. This autonomy can only be overridden by Imperial authority. The exception to this rule is the Principality of Kolios. Given that its capital of Agber is also the seat of the Empire, the Emperor or Empress also serves as the Sovereign (Prince or Princess) of Kolios. Owing to Kolios' status as a "realm of preservation," minimal governance for it is needed, and is overseen by a Chancellor, who also serves as the Imperial advisor and right-hand.

Territories and Protectorates

The Empire is broken up into four separate national territories. The Empire formerly claimed two areas as protectorates, but those claims were renounced in 2020.

Territory	Flag	Capital	Title of Head	Established	Geographical Area	Notes
Principality of Kolios		Agber	Prince/Princess	20 September 1995	Bavaria, Germany	Capital is also seat of the Empire
Grand Duchy of Carthage		Drumm Stronghold	Grand Duke/Grand Duchess	7 January 1998	New York, USA
Reino de Cordova		Mariposa	Baron/Baronesa	27 August 2002	California, USA
Sawatch Emirate	100px	Tiene Vista	Emir/Emira	31 January 2014	Colorado, USA
Tenshukyō Shogunate		Redan	Shogun	2 October 2018	Georgia, USA
Kingdom of Maevis		Vikksborg	King/Queen	17 June 2020	Shetland, Scotland
Archduchy of Verdura		Whitestone	Archduke/Archduchess	19 August 2020	Indiana, USA	Current headquarters of the government

Religion

While all faiths are welcomed with open arms, the official religion of the Empire is Christian. During the Kingdom of Kolios era, a Church of Kolios existed with the Koliosian Sovereign at the head, much like the Church of England within the United Kingdom. Although this entity still exists officially, it has not been active for a number of years.

External Links

• Empire of Agber on MicroWiki
• Agber Empire's Order on MicroWiki