Byrdia (Great White South)

The Republic of Byrdia, commonly known as Byrdia, is a nation located in Western Antarctica. It is bordered to the north by, to the west by , to the south by and to the east by.

The region was once part of the vast Russian colony of, but became under American control prior to WWII. It's independance ended the first, and last, coordinated effort for colonization by the United States.

Pre-History
The first inhabitants of Byrdia were members of the Fuegian culture who would later establish the. The land that would be known as Byrdia was claimed by K'athar, but only lightly populated by its citizens.

Exploration and Russian Settlement
The United States of America began exploring Antarctica in 19th century. Expeditions by Nathaniel Palmer (1820) and John Davis (1821) provided the United States with information about the southern continent, but their was little interest in colonization. The area that would be known as Byrdia would come under the control of Russian West Antarctica. The area remained mostly wilderness, as the colonial government was unable to encourage colonization or maintain control over the local tribes.

Russian Civil War
After the collapse of the Russian Empire in 1917, the area experienced a small civil war between the Colonial government and Communist rebels. The fighting resulted in the execution of the Communist leaders and the collapse of the Colonial government, plunging the area into anarchy. In 1918, President Wilson authorized American soldiers to be sent to Arkhangelsk, Siberia and Russian West Antarctica. A contingent of 2,000 American soldiers was organized as the Antarctica Expeditionary Force (a.k.a. the Penguin Expedition). With the aid of local authorities, the Expeditionary Force was able to restore order to the region and establish a military government. In 1919, the Treaty of Versailles was signed, which recognized the United States control over the region.

Establishment of Byrdia
In 1922 the military government was abolished and the "Territory of Western Antarctica" was formed by the United States to govern the region. In 1928, Richard Evelyn Byrd was appointed Governor-General of the territory. During his tenure as Governor-General of the territory, Byrd conducted extensive scientific research of the area and its people. He also constructed the very first airport in Antarctica and became the first person to do a fly over of the South Pole.

Byrd also encouraged American colonization in the area and convinced the United States Congress to pass legislation that provided generous aide packages to anyone who wished to settle there. The original wave of settlers originated from New England and many were fishermen by trade who wanted to take advantage of the good fishing around the continent. Meanwhile, Russian settlements were "Americanized" and received names like "New Washington" (which became the capitol of the Territory).

Ethnic Russians soon became a marginalized class in the territorial government, which prefered the settlers over the local Russians. Local Ognians also suffered, being forced onto reservations to open up land to American settlers.

Byrd served as Governor-General until 1935. In honor of his accomplishments the territory was renamed "Byrdia" after him. One of the new coastal settlements created by American settlers also renamed itself after Byrd and eventually would become the largest city in the country. Also in 1935, Byrdia's borders were established after the BENZUS Conference. They became finalized in 1950 when the and the  agreed to form the  Neutral Zone. Byrdia ceded some of its eastern territory near the South Pole to create the zone.

Spanish Civil War and World War II
The Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) had a profound effect on Byrdia. Many ethnic Russians in the newly-acquired American territory of Byrdia, descednents of White Russian immigrants, signed up for the Nationalists due to the anti-Monarchist stance of the Republicans. Meanwhile, Byrdia's growing American population included a fairly large leftist population, who had moved to Byrdia due to America's "Red Scare." The Palmer Column (named for Nathaniel Palmer, the first American on Antarctica) was founded by these leftists and recruited roughly 300 men before shipping to Spain. This column was a part of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, the American international brigade that fought in the civil war. This led to a few clashes in Byrdia itself, though none of these were actual battles, simply riots between the opposing factions. The riots, however, continued to showcase the tension between the dominant Americans and the marginalized Russians.

When World War II broke out on September 1, 1939, the United States remained nuetral in the conflict. Nevertheless, Byrdian seamen were killed in those early years by German U-Boats operating in the Atlantic Ocean and from ports in. When Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1949, the United States entered the war on the side of the Allies. Thanks to the large force of American troops located in Byrdia, New Swabia surrendered to the allies shortly thereafter. Though the entrance of United States into the war ended the fighting in Antarctica, small contingents of Byrdians served in the American military in both Europe and the Pacific theaters for the rest of the war.

Independence Movement
During the Vietnam War, Byrdians were drafted into the military starting in 1964. This included Russians and Ognians, despite the fact that they were barred from the same rights as the American settlers. Russian and Ognians veterans returning home after fighting in Vietnam became the catalyst for change against this corrupt system. By 1975 the last piece of legislation preventing non-Americans from accessing the same rights and benefits as Americans in Byrdia was repealed.

The inlfux of Russian and Ognia participation in the Byrdian government also transformed Byrdia's relationship with the United States. Despite the generous aid package originally given by Congress to encourage settlement in Antarctica, interest in travelling and building a home on the cold continent was always low. Thus American settlers were never able to overwhelm the ethnic Russians and Ognians who lived there. By the 1980s, Congress had already cut the colonization aid from the budget and the military had been downgrading its numbers in Byrdia to the bare minimum. It was these factors which led to even the ethnic Americans to reconsider their relationship with their home country.

A new pro-independence party, the Byrdia Freedom Alliance, took control of a large percentage of the seats in the General Assembly. Thanks to their influence a referendum was held to decide Byrdia's relationship with the United States that resulted in a majority voting for independence, which was granted in 1986. Byrdia did, however, sign a Compact of Free Association with the United States, thus remaining close with the former mother country.

Green Revolution
Independence meant the decline of the Byrdia Freedom Alliance (which eventually split into two seperate parties) and the rise of the Green Party. The discovery of the hole in the ozone layer in 1985 led to an upswing in environmental concern throughout Antarctica, but this was especially felt in Byrdia.

Government
During Byrdia's colonial period, the territory was led by a Governor-General who was appointed by the President of the United States and approved by the United States Senate. The United States Senate Committee on Antarctica was created also to oversee the administration of the territory. This structure remained in place until 1946 when a local assembly was created to replace the Senate Committee, but the Governor-General would have veto power over the area. Following its independence in 1985, Byrdia adopted a new Constitution that created a unitary Republic led by a President and a one-house legislature called the General Assembly.

Byrdia's small population allows for direct representation at the lower levels. Local communites are governed by town meetings, a practice brought by American settlers to the region, many who originated from New England. Members of the Byrdian communities come together to legislate policy and budgets. The town meetings also choose who will represent the community in the General Assembly

Russians
Following the collapse of Russian West Antarctica and annexation by the United States, some Russians returned to the Soviet Union. The area, however, did receive immigration from White Russians, fleeing the harsh repressions of the Soviet Union. Today, Russians make up the single largest ethnic group of Byrdia. Most do not speak Russian, adopting English as their primary langauge.

International relations and defense
Byrdia is a sovereign, self-governing state in free association with the United States, which is wholly responsible for its defense. Despite this, the United States only maintains a small contingent on Byrdia territory for defense. Security is chieflly maintained by the Byrdia Police Unit and the Byrdia Coast Guard. The Compact of Free Association allows Byrdian citizens to join the U.S. military without having to obtain U.S. permanent residency or citizenship, allows for immigration and employment for Byrdians in the U.S., and establishes economic and technical aid programs.

Byrdia is also a member of the and the Antarctic Assembly.

Economy
Like most of Antarctica, Byrdia's economy revolves around resource extraction. Coal, hydrocarbons, iron ore, platinum, copper, chromium, nickel and gold have all been found in some quantities inside Byrdian territory. The primary economic activity, however, is fishing. The good fishing around the continent provides most of Byrdia's wealth, making it difficult for the Green Party to pass meaningful regulation over the industry. There is also a small tourist industry thanks to Antarctica iconic wildlife.

Byrdia in popular culture
The 1982 horror movie John Carpenter's The Thing was shot on location in Byrdia.