Empire of Karnia-Ruthenia
Karnia-Ruthenia, officially The Kingdoms and Lands of the Crown of Ruthenia and the Lands Represented in the Council of Karnia and also known by other names and often referred to as the Karno-Ruthenian Empire, is a confederate constitutional monarchy largely based on the culture of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and is located in America, Europe and Eastern Antarctica.
It was created as a constitutional union of the Kingdom of Ruthenia and the Empire of Karnia, as a result of the Karno-Ruthenian Compromise of 2016 and came into existence on 01 August 2016, when the compromise was ratified by the Imperial and Royal Council. Under a common government, the Empire consists of 9 constituent territories being ruled by royal families.
The entire structure of micronational government is inspired by Austria-Hungary, although there is a deep preservation of democratic values and the integration of different micronational projects that coexist harmoniously under the leadership of Emperor-King. Citizenship can be acquired on its website for free, and political participation is widely encouraged. Diplomacy also has a prominent place in the history of Karnia-Ruthenia and its predecessor, the Kingdom of Ruthenia, which until the founding of the Empire, had established diplomatic relations with more than 100 projects. The country's official languages are the Portuguese, English, Czech and the Letzembourgish. Karnia-Ruthenia's de facto capital is the city of Persenburg, seat of the Imperial and Royal Family.
Furthermore, Karnia-Ruthenia is regarded as a world micronational great power, sharing this status within the Lusophone and Brazilian sector. The country has been members of quite some intermicronational organizations, the most prominent being the Conference of Santiago, of which is a founding member.
History
On 19 November 2014, Oscar I established the Throne of Ruthenia, declaring the private property of his family in São Paulo and Piauí, Brazil as an independent kingdom. The first three months of Ruthenia's existence were plagued by uncertainty and political instability, but King Oscar was able to maintain order and develop the kingdom. An Absolute Monarchy in the beginning, everything has changed with the Ruthenian Constitution of 2015.
Karnia was founded on 2 February 2016 at Prague, Czech Republic through a political act signed by Anton Wenzel, who was elected as the first Kaiser of Karnia; Calvin Gustav, the first Minister-President and Louis Taünn, the President of the Imperial Council. Karnia was founded to preserve and celebrate the tradition of the Czech monarchy under the Habsburgs. After some weeks, the project didn't achieved the expectd result. Without a Constitution or a well established system of government, the Karnian government understood they need help to establish themselves. Then, Kaiser Anton and the President of the Reichsratt, Louis Taünn found their help in the Ruthenian Government.
The Karno-Ruthenian Compromise
For weeks, while both governments and their sovereign approached, the Ruthenian government provided help, teaching from the writing of decrees to the making of national symbols. They guided the creation of a page on Facebook and Twitter, as well as the material to be presented, but nothing was successful. With the break between the Kaiser and the Minister-President caused precisely by disagreements about the conduct of government, the government of Karnia requested Ruthenian intervention. The cost of this intervention to save the newly created project was to deliver the Imperial Crown to the King of the Ruthenians. In return, the project would be expanded and be at par with the Kingdom of Ruthenia. The result of this negotiation was the Karno-Ruthenian Compromise of 2016.
The Compromise established the dual monarchy of Karnia-Ruthenia. The Compromise established partially the sovereignty of the Empire of Karnia, separate from, and not a subject to the Kingdom of Ruthenia. Under the Compromise, the lands of the House of Ruthenia were reorganized as a real union between the Ruthenian Kingdom and the Empire of Karnia. The Cismare (Ruthenian) and Transmare (Karnian) regions of the state were governed by separate parliaments and prime ministers. Unity was maintained through rule of a single head of state, reigning as both the Emperor of Karnia and King of Ruthenia, and common monarchy-wide ministries under his direct authority. The armed forces were combined with the Emperor-King as commander-in-chief. It is attached to the treaty the document establishing the personal union between the Kingdom of Ruthenia and the Kingdom of Horvatia. This made the Ruthenian State much larger than the Karnian State, which imposed a dominant position of Cismare over Transmare. Soon after the signing, it became customary for the minorities of the empire (Acrinians and Horvatians mainly) demanded the Imperial and Royal Government to grant privileges and favors to balance the autonomy of the members of the empire.
Geography
The Karno-Ruthenian Empire consists of several constituent states, the largest of which is the Kingdom of Ruthenia. These states were once independent micronations and were joining the Empire through treaties of personal union and ultimately, joining the Empire with the commitment to submit to his suzerainty. These associated states have a high degree of autonomy under the terms of the Imperial Constitution, but are subject to interference of the Imperial and Royal Council and the Emperor-King himself, who despite being the direct ruler of most of the Empire, has influence in other regions. From 20 February 2017, after the Imperial Decree n. 078-2017 enters into force, the first protectorate of the empire, the Principality of Nossia was created. Despite the relatively peaceful period, the principality chose to maintain its independence through a referendum held on 16 March 2017, the result of which was recognized by the Emperor-King of Karnia-Ruthenia the following day.
The Principality of the Carpathia was reunited to the Empire on 22 June 2017, following the Treaty of Gretzenmarcher and raised to the status of Kingdom on 2 August 2017. On 6 February 2018, due the Treaty of Hakodate, the Empire established the first concession of its history, the Karno-Ruthenian Concession in Hakodate, that would later be merged to Cardonia.
On 16 August 2018, was signed the Treaty of Saint Michael of Socotra, in which it was agreed that the Empire of Lemuria would deliver the sovereignty over Socotra to the Empire, becoming the first imperial protectorate.
Government
The offices of Minister-President of Ruthenia and the Prime Minister of Karnia were created after the Compromise, but replaced by the office of Imperial Chancellor. The Imperial Chancellor of Karnia-Ruthenia, is the head of government of the Karno-Ruthenian Empire and leader of the Cabinet, appointing and dismissing its members. The Imperial Chancellor do not have a fixed mandate, leaving the office by resignation or motion of no confidence of the Imperial Diet.
Among its competences, are exercise the highest authority in matters concerning the Government, head the Cabinet, appoint and dismiss the members of the Cabinet, upon the consent of the Emperor, advise and be advised by the Emperor, create and regulate imperial agencies, propose bills to the Imperial Diet, monthly take part in the Imperial Diet, in Ordinary Session, to answer the Questions to the Imperial Chancellor.
Foreign affairs
The foreign relations of the Empire are implemented by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Emperor-King and the prime ministers of each part of the Empire play a role in setting policy, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs have a voice and are the one who develop this policy. Since its founding, the Kingdom of Ruthenia and after the Karno-Ruthenian Compromise of 2016, the Karno-Ruthenian Empire and its government pays special attention to foreign affairs. One of the first ministries of government was precisely the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which was founded on the same day that the kingdom, on 19 November 2014.
Diplomatic relations are conducted by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, but the leadership of Foreign Affairs is in practice, led by His Imperial and Royal Majesty, the Emperor-King. Karnia-Ruthenia monthly studies and develops diplomatic relations with several micronations around the world, maintaining cordial relations with everyone and accounting for only four international incidents, only two of whom suffered from more serious action by the government.
Their foreign affairs ministry sent a large delegation to MicroCon 2023 in Joliet, Illinois.
Relations with Westarctica
On 15 May 2023, Karnia-Ruthenia and Westarctica participated in a State Dinner in São Paulo. Prior to this event, there had been very few interactions between the governments of Westarctica and Karnia-Ruthenia, although both countries had been longtime members of the Antarctic Micronational Union.
The leaders of Westarctica and Karnia-Ruthenia strengthened the ties between their nations by signing a Treaty of Mutual Recognition, pledging to respect one another's interests in the micronational sphere. They also promised to have further state visits and diplomatic interactions during Grand Duke Travis' future trips to Brazil.
Grand Duke Travis and Emperor Oscar met for an informal dinner in São Paulo on 11 December 2023, at which time Westarctica agreed to become a signatory member of the Conference of Santiago.
Culture
The Karno-Ruthenian culture retains much of the European influence originally brought by the Imperial and Royal Family and the rulers of the states of the Empire. It places an important emphasis on family, religion, and traditions in general, such as respect for holy days. In Ruthenia, music consists mainly of traditional Hungarian folk music, especially the Csárdás, and music by prominent composers such as Béla Bartók, Vittorio Monti, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and Georges Bizet, and also makes success the current pop songs. Other aspects of Ruthenian culture include Horse racing, Hunting (banned by the Royal Family since 2014), Masses on Sundays for the Catholics, and festivals between June and August dedicated to St. Anthony and St. John the Baptist, among others, where dancing around bonfires takes place.
Language
In everyday use, Portuguese is used by the majority of the subjects in Ruthenia, Libertia and Horvatia. In Court, the official language while still the Portuguese, the English and French has also regular use, especially by the government and it is the only language used by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. But English is the official language after a plebiscite to decide which national language would be adopted by Ruthenia. Lusophones and Anglophones had split the Ruthenian government, disputing for power. The plebiscite ended with the victory of the supporters of the English language. With the formation of the Empire and the subsequent constitutional reform, English and Portuguese became the official languages of the micronation. The States of the Empire can edit legislation and make use of the Portuguese for their affairs, but in common subjects, only English is allowed. In some regions, French is also spoken among the population and in domestic affairs.