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Dominion of Eduarda
Timeline: Great White South

OTL equivalent: Portions of the Australian Antarctic Territory and Queen Maud Land.
Flag Coat of Arms
Flag Coat of Arms
Location of Eduarda
Location of Eduarda
Motto
Research and Discovery (English)
Capital Cookstown
Language
  official
 
English
  others German, Māori, Russian
Religion
  main
 
Anglicanism
  others Catholicism
Demonym Eduardian
Government Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy
  Legislature Parliament
Queen Elizabeth II
Governor General Arthur Edmondson
Prime Minister Richard Harrison
Established June 28, 1921
Currency Dollar (EDD)
Internet TLD .ed
Organizations AF, CoN, UN

The Dominion of Eduarda, colloquially known as Eduarda, is a sovereign state located in Eastern Antarctica. Initially comprised of several colonies of the British Empire, Eduarda gained dominion status on June 28, 1921.

Etymology[]

Eduarda was named in honor of King Edward VII, who reigned during the gradual unification of British Antarctica.

History[]

Colonialism[]

In early 1821, at the height of the Antarctic summer, Edward Bransfield became the first European to reach modern-day Eduarda, and founded the colony of Nova Hibernia. Later that year, Great Cardiff was founded; followed by New Perthshire in 1822 and New Fenland in 1823. These four colonies would later be combined into the Dominion of Eduarda, but until 1921, they had little autonomy, and were grouped along with New Somerset and Cooksland (the two colonies which later became New Devon) as "British East Antarctica".

The division between modern-day Eduarda and New Devon began to arise during the 19th century, when the four largely maritime Eduardan colonies were quickly developed and created a thriving economy; while the two New Devonian colonies were considered the "Antarctic frontier", and remained much less developed and affluent. The term "Eduarda" dates to at least the 1880s, when a British newspaper reporting on the Antarctic colonies wrote:

"Much like in Grahamland, there exists a strong sense of patriotism and loyalty towards the Crown among the people of Nova Hibernia, Great Cardiff, New Perthshire and New Fenland, and many have taken to referring to these colonies collectively as Edwarda [sic] after His Highness the Prince of Wales."

World War I[]

The British colonies fought against the Germans in New Swabia during the war. There were many successes mostly made by Eduardans because of the Interior Antarctics-already becoming known as New Devonians-unwillingness to fight.

Dominion[]

On 28th June 1921, the British East Antarctic colonies were united into the Dominion of Eduarda. This had a profound effect on culture in British Antarctica. To prevent hostility in the South, a militaristic streak grew, especially with great Eduardan victories in the Antarctic Campaign. The British mandate on New Swabia was handed over to Eduarda and they ran it as an extension of Eduarda under the name British West Antarctica. Under British occupation, the German language was greatly discouraged, and a time-period of "Anglification" began, though it would not take into effect. The colonists of German descent began protests against occupying British. By 1933, the German government now under Adolf Hitler would begin support for the region's sovereignty. In 1936, the National Socialist German Workers' Party of New Swabia (NSDAPNS) gained in popularity in the region. On January 19, 1939, the German-speaking population united to form the Republic of New Swabia. Unlike the Motherland, New Swabia considered itself a single-party republic, headed by the Nazi Party. New Swabia refused to become a German colony once again, but did agree to form relations and cooperation with Germany. Just days later, Germany and Italy declared recognition of New Swabia. Eduarda and indeed Britain did nothing to stop this process, thinking of the German speaking populace as a liability.

British Imperial Confederation[]

In the 1920's the more Loyalist, developed colonies became a Dominion, while the more rebellious, less developed colonies remained a colony. However, the imperialists in government were keen to keep hold of the new Dominion of Eduarda. It was a younger colony than Australia, and they had already seen that there would be a day when Great Britain would lose all their colonies. A great effort was made to retain Eduarda. This lay the way for the British Imperial Confederation, still colloquially known as the British Empire. The New Devonians could not be held on to indefinitely, and they gained independence in the 1990s. When Newfoundland held a referendum on its sovereignty, they voted to join the British Imperial Confederation instead of Canada. The Empire now consists of three nations and their dependencies.

Society[]

Eduardan society is very similar to British society and many Eduardans consider themselves British as well as Eduardan. This is just as well, because under the Eduardan Nationality Act of 1940, all Eduardans by birth hold dual British and Eduardan nationality. This means an Eduardan can immigrate to Britain, vote in British elections and take a job in Britain. The Eduardan Armed Forces, actually count as a Branch of the British Armed Forces, though they act independently.

Politics[]

Government[]

As a Commonwealth Realm, Eduarda's Head of State is the Monarch of the Commonwealth – currently Elizabeth II. As the Queen usually resides in the United Kingdom, she is represented in Eduarda by a Governor-General who handles Royal responsibilities, such as opening Parliament and inducting a newly-elected Prime Minister, while the Queen is out of the country.

Constitutionally, Eduarda's legislative branch is the Parliament of Eduarda, which is composed of 67 Members of Parliament (MPs) and 20 Senators. The Prime Minister (leader of the party which controls the House of Commons) is the Head of Government.

Political Parties[]

Eduarda currently has a 3-party system which has been in place since the beginning of the Great Depression. When the country first gained independence in 1921, there were two principal parties: the Liberal Party of Eduarda (comparable to the British Liberal Party) and the Eduardan First Party (EFP), which is the country's main conservative party.

At the 1930 elections, the formerly minor Labour Party of Eduarda, a social democratic party, defeated both of the major parties; thus beginning Eduarda's three-party system. Since the rise of the Labour Party, the Liberal Party has gradually drifted further right, and is now considered generally centrist.

Among Antarctic nations, Eduarda is notable for not having a major Green party; which most other countries developed during the Green Revolution of the 1980s. While there was once a Green Party of Eduarda, it merged with the Labour Party before the Green Revolution began, and the Labour Party now holds many positions which are equivalent to the Green Parties in other nations.

International Relations[]

Eduarda maintains good relations with most democratic countries, especially those in the Commonwealth. Relations with New Swabia are shaky due to Anglification under British occupation as are relations with New Devon though this is due to the perceived inequality of treatment of New Devon by the United Kingdom. Eduarda is part of the British Empire which is now more of a loose confederacy of the United Kingdom, Eduarda and Newfoundland.