Woodbridge (1983: Doomsday)

Intro.
A survivor nation in the county of Suffolk in eastern England that grew out of the airbases at Bentwaters and Woodbridge. In the aftermath of Doomsday the garrisons of those bases assumed a leadership role in their locale.

In the aftermath of Doomsday refugees fleeing from the lawlesness in the city of Ipswich made their way north as amateur radio enthusiasts had got notice of signals from Bentwaters and Woodbridge

Although the official name of the nation is the Bentwaters/Woodbridge that name is only used on official documents. Most if not all of the people who live in the nation have taken to calling it Woodbridge mainly because that is where the parliament sits and thus it has become the de facto capital.

Pre-Doomsday
Bentwaters and Woodbridge were once USAF bases

Doomsday and the immediate aftermath
Cut off from central command after DD the two bases found relatively unharmed. Seeing as how they were very close to each other and more or less a twin base the first thing the bases did was make radio contact with each other. The fact that both bases were still in working gave them hope and they dispatched survey teams into their immediate vicinity. In the days and weeks following Doomsday each base was overwhelmed with injured and non injured survivors and it became clear to the commanders of the bases that it would be best for everyone concerned, military and civilian if they would take charge of the area.

Politics
Woodbridge was, for a number of years run by the Military Command Council which consisted of the senior officers of the military bases that give the state it's name.

Over the years since Doomsday Woodbridge has taken direct control of a large part of the southern and eastern parts of the county of Suffolk. It also claims to be in control of the city of Ipswich but this "control" actually consists of semi-regular scouting missions and raids against the gangs that have made the city their home.

In 2000 after a number of large protests by the civilian population the Military Command Council agreed to hand over power to an elected civilian government. Elections were held in 2001 throughout the territory held by Woodbridge for representatives who would sit in a single-chamber parliament. The leader of the largest party in parliament forms the administration and has the title of Prime Minister. Serving members of the armed forces are not allowed to run for parliament although they are allowed to vote.

Sport
The sports that are most popular with civilians in Woodbridge are cricket and football. Each village has team for both sports which compete in league and cup competitions. In the next few years Woodbridge hopes to become a member of both the ICC and FIFA, becoming full member of the world community for both sports. Baseball and American football are still popular with the former and serving members of the ex-USAF units that once controlled the nation