Austria (Das Große Vaterland)

The United States of Greater Austria is a federal constitutional monarchy, established on October 31, 1919 as the successor state to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The technical head of state is the Emperor, currently Karl II of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, with most of the governmental power being vested in the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister is nominated by the Parliament of Greater Austria, the nations federal legislative body, and is approved by the Emperor. The current Prime Minister is Werner Faymann, a member of the Social Democratic Party of Greater Austria, and has been in this position since a federal election in 2008. Austria is a part of the Triple Alliance, alongside Germany and Italy, which have been the primary powers in Europe since the end of World War I.

Greater Austria was established in 1919 after the Austro-Hungarian Empire seemed to be near collapse from conflict between numerous ethnic groups. Emperor Ferdinand II of Austria-Hungary spearheaded a governmental effort to reform the empire into a confederated monarchy with provinces based on ethnic groups and with a government to allow for equal representation. Prior to this the Dual Monarchy system of Austria-Hungary gave much of the government's power to just two ethnic groups, the Austrians and the Hungarians. As secessionist threats began to tear the empire apart it resulted in the Federal Diet of Austria-Hungary approving Ferdinand's plan and dissolving Austria-Hungary and adopting the October Constitution, officially establishing the United States of Greater Austria. Despite this several ethnic states, Yugoslavia, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia, seceded from the new nation and were followed by an insurgency of Austrian Conservatives lead by Prince Charles, determined to use absolutism to retain control of the rebellious ethnicities. After a four year conflict and intervention from the German Empire, the United States of Greater Austria encompassed former Austria-Hungary and the nation prevailed as one.

Austria is made up of 14 seperate ethnic states, each with their own provincial parliament headed by a Provincial Minister. The capital city lies in Vienna, the traditional capital of Austria, as well as the Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary, while the nation's largest city is Budapest, the traditional capital of Hungary and the nations' foremost financial center. Two other major cities, Sarajevo and Belgrade, are also traditional centers of culture in the Austrian-Empire, but mostly for the Slavs that live in the nation's south. Austria is also a founding member of the European Union, the city of Vienna being one of the European Centers of Culture and forming the Triple Crown of the European Union along with Rome and Berlin. Although an ally of Germany, Austria has come to be a significant world power in its own right, along with a strong, global-class economy.