A map of Cygnia showing its 21 states
The United Cygnian States is a federation consisting of 21 States, a Federal Territory (Swan, which comprises the federal capital, Northam), and five External Territories. The 13 contiguous states and the Territory of Swan are located on the mainland of Australia. The state of Tasmania lies to the south of South Albion across the Bass Strait. Aotearoa is southeast of both the mainland and Tasmania, across the Tasman Sea. Papua and New Guinea occupy the island of New Guinea to the north of New Zealand, and the other four states are located on islands to the northeast of the mainland, including Fiji, New Caledonia, the New Hebrides and the Solomon Islands. Cygnia also possesses six external territories, which are small islands lying to the northwest and northeast of the mainland.
All the States are partially self-governing, and are represented in the Cygnian Congress; the External Territories, on the other hand, are administered exclusively by the federal government. four of the external territories are inhabited; the others are uninhabited, apart from non-permanent scientists.
North Albion is the most populous state, with 23,687,400 residents (as of the 2016); New Caledonia is the least populous, with an estimated 268,767 residents. The Territory of Swan, with an estimated 403,468 residents as of 2016, has a higher population than two states. The largest state by area is New Zealand, encompassing 1,852,642 square kilometres (263,983 square miles), while the smallest is the New Hebrides, encompassing 12,189 square kilometres (4,706 square miles). The first state to ratify the Imperial Constitution was Carolina, which it did on 2 January 1792. The newest state is New Caledonia, which was admitted into the Federation on 5 May 1999.
The most recent entity to come under the sovereignty of Cygnia in its current form is the Heard Island and McDonald Islands, which formally became an External Territory in 1910.
States
The table below lists the 21 states, with their current capital, largest city, the date they ratified the Imperial Constitution or were admitted to the Federation, population and area data, and number of representatives in the Cygnian House of Representatives (Each state is entitled to at least one Representative. Current law limits the number of representatives to 300, which are then apportioned among states every ten years according to their relative population. Each state is also entitled to four Senators.)
| State & postal abbrieviation | Cities | Statehood | Population | Area in km2 (mi2) | Rep(s) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capital | Largest | (2016 est) | |||||
| Aotearoa | AO | Wellington | Auckland | 1 January 1824 | 4,899,660 | 268,021 (103,483) | 10 |
| Auralia | AU | Esperance | Kalgoorlie | 23 April 1905 | 6,829,000 | 770,488 (297,487) | 12 |
| Avon | AV | Charlotte | 26 April 1792 | 7,259,100 | 1,043,514 (402,903) | 11 | |
| Carolina | CA | Perth | 2 January 1792 | 21,427,000 | 161,510 (62,359) | 36 | |
| Darwin | DA | Palmerston | 1 October 1900 | 4,952,308 | 1,420,970 (548,640) | 9 | |
| East Georgia | EG | Albany | 6 February 1792 | 5,380,299 | 39,007 (15,061) | 9 | |
| Fiji | FJ | Suva | 25 February 1950 | 898,760 | 18,274 (7,056) | 3 | |
| Gascoyne | GA | Carnarvon | 2 September 1890 | 18,420,000 | 138,000 (53,000) | 25 | |
| Gibson | GI | Geraldton | 14 October 1906 | 1,352,920 | 472,336 (427,336) | 4 | |
| Kimberley | KI | Broome | 19 September 1820 | 5,683,590 | 423,517 (163,521) | 10 | |
| New Caledonia | NC | Noumea | 5 May 1999 | 268,767 | 18,576 (7,172) | 2 | |
| New Guinea | NG | Port Moresby | 16 September 1975 | 8,084,999 | 462,840 (178,700) | 15 | |
| New Hebrides | NH | Port Vila | 30 July 1980 | 270,402 | 12,189 (4,706) | 1 | |
| New Zealand | NZ | Brisbane | 23 May 1792 | 9,352,190 | 1,852,642 (263,983) | 29 | |
| North Albion | NA | Sydney | 6 June 1795 | 23,687,400 | 811,870 (313,465) | 47 | |
| Papua | PA | Numbay | 15 August 1963 | 5,399,000 | 420,540 (162,371) | 10 | |
| Pilbara | PI | Port Hedland | 16 January 1885 | 7,534,190 | 507,896 (193,826) | 13 | |
| Solomon Islands | SI | Honiara | 7 July 1978 | 599,419 | 28,400 (11,000) | 2 | |
| South Albion | SA | Melbourne | 5 September 1860 | 19,076,700 | 237,659 (91,671) | 36 | |
| Tasmania | TA | Hobart | 1 June 1792 | 1,566,000 | 68,401 (26,410) | 5 | |
| West Georgia | WG | Bunbury | 9 January 1792 | 9,523,101 | 23,970 (9,255) | 6 | |
Federal Territory
| Name & postal abbrieviation | Established | Population (2016 est) | Area in km2 (mi2) | Rep(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Territory of Swan | TS | 12 March 1800 | 403,468 | 6,648 (2,567) | 5 |
External Territories
| Territory & postal abbrieviation | Capital | Acquired | Population (2016 est) | Area in km2 (mi2) | Administration | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christmas Island | CX | Flying Fish Cove | 1888 | 2,072 | 135 (52) | Administrator of the Indian Ocean Territories |
| Keeling Islands | KE | West Island | 1857 | 596 | 14 (5) | |
| Nauru | NU | Yaren | 1886 | 10,084 | 21 (8) | Administrator of Nauru |
| Norfolk Island | NO | Kingston | 1788 | 1,748 | 35 (14) | Administrator of Norfolk Island |
Uninhabited territories
| Territory | Acquired | Area in km2 (mi2) |
|---|---|---|
| Ashmore and Cartier Islands | 1881 | 199 (77) |
| Empress Alexis Land | 1908 | 1,709,400 (660,003) |
| Heard Island and McDonald Islands | 1910 | 368 (142) |
Administration
The table below presents a comparison in terminology used for the various administrative institutions in the Cygnian federal government, the States and the Territories.
| Entity | Type of entity | Tie to the Monarch | Domestic administrator | Head of Government | Upper House of Parliament | Lower House of Parliament | Member of Legislature | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upper house | Lower house | |||||||
| The Union | Federal government | Direct | The Queen | Chancellor | Congress | Senator | Representative or MC | |
| Senate | House of Representatives | |||||||
| Territory of Swan | Federal Territory | Direct | Chief Minister | Legislative Assembly | Assemblyman | |||
| Aotearoa | Federated state | Direct | Governor | Prime Minister | Parliament | MP | ||
| Auralia | Legislative Council | Legislative Assembly | MLC | MLA | ||||
| Avon | House of Assembly | MHA | ||||||
| Carolina | Legislative Assembly | MLA | ||||||
| Darwin | ||||||||
| East Georgia | ||||||||
| Fiji | ||||||||
| Gascoyne | ||||||||
| Gibson | ||||||||
| Kimberley | ||||||||
| New Caledonia | Parliament | MP | ||||||
| New Guinea | ||||||||
| New Hebrides | ||||||||
| New Zealand | Legislative Assembly | MLA | ||||||
| North Albion | Legislative Council | Legislative Assembly | MLC | MLA | ||||
| Papua | ||||||||
| Pilbara | ||||||||
| Solomon Islands | Parliament | MP | ||||||
| South Albion | Legislative Council | Legislative Assembly | MLC | MLA | ||||
| Tasmania | House of Assembly | MHA | ||||||
| West Georgia | Legislative Assembly | MLA | ||||||
| Christmas Island | External territory | Indirect (through Administrator) | Administrator | President | Council | Councillor | ||
| Keeling Islands | ||||||||
| Nauru | ||||||||
| Norfolk Island | ||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||