Republic of Salania


 * This article is about the pre-Imperial parliamentary republic. For the post-Imperial presidential republic, see Grand Republic of Salania.

The Republic of Salania or Salania ([suh-LEY-nee-uh]) was a largely fictional entity created on July 8, 2008 by self-proclaimed President Jordan I Many facets of the nation sprang from the vivid imagination of its young leader, who was inspired when he read an article on micronationalism to declare independence from the United States, his macronation of origin. Because of the limitations of her President’s age and the radical, unheard of concept of a micronation in his locale, Salania never achieved much during its two years of existence.

History
On July 8, 2008, Jordan I read an article called “How to Start Your Own Country” by famed micronationalist Kevin Baugh. Fascinated by the concept, he quickly formulated plans to start his own country, including claiming his room and backyard and setting up a border fence. He enticed his siblings to join him, and despite a brief conflict with his sister (dramatized as the “Salanian Civil War”), eventually claimed the entirety of his 5 acre property and could call all of his family citizens. But this was not enough for the President. He contacted his idol, President Baugh, who exchanged several encouraging emails with him, since lost to history. He also enlisted several friends and members of his extended family to join his cause, though their interest was brief and lackluster. The Republic continually expanded and contracted in those days, with none but the President ever knowing all the citizens and territorial claims. It was at this point that the President concocted two additional narratives, the stories of the “Milligansan War” and the “War of Retribution”. These tales were obviously fictional, but they had elements of truth and were rooted in a real-world financial and territorial dispute between families in his area. These stories were not written to attract attention to Salania, as the nation was without internet access for a period of nearly two years between Autumn 2008 and Summer 2010, but merely to entertain the President and several members of his family. The Republic slipped into a period of stagnation in late 2009, to be revived again by the President, who declared himself Emperor and established the Holy Salanian Empire, in July 2010.

Military
The “Grand Republican Army” and “Salanian Police Force” were the military and law enforcement branches of Salania. Though real individuals were declared members of these groups, the organizations themselves never truly existed in any recognizable form, with the closest to any military or police training being hunting and membership in the Boy Scouts of America.

Government
The Salanian government was also largely fictional, with a plethora of departments that were not staffed, did not do anything, or both. A rare exception was the Department of Transportation, which mowed grass and picked up trash along the roadside in the summer and removed snow from the road and the President’s driveway in the winter. The legislature did vote on some issues via ballots issued them by the President, but these votes were few and far between.

Achievements
The President was always interested in writing and did publish a monthly, then quarterly newsletter for a period of about a year. The President produced a large number of maps of the various regions of his country, using local plat maps as a basis. He also created a large number of flags and coats of arms for all of these regions, coming up with a few unique Salanian symbols. In the Autumn of 2008, the President mused on the idea of a micronational version of the Red Cross, which he decided should be called the Blue Cross. He proceeded to name his sister’s room the headquarters of the Salanian Blue Cross. It is interesting to note that this predated the signing of the Gothenburg Convention by nearly two years.