The Kingdom of Ruritania - Updated 5th Jan (pg.4)

[meldolion]

Revol,
really nice start!! Your cities looks very good

[Revol]

Welcome to the Kingdom of Ruritania!

An Introduction:

Ruritania is a small nation in Eastern Europe. It is an ethnically diverse land, full of beautiful towns and hamlets, breathtaking scenery, welcoming inhabitants and it is said the most beautiful women in Europe. It is a country with a rich and often troubled history. Ruritania has had a reputation around the world as a secretive place, full of intrigue and dark dealings. But don't worry, today, Ruritania is a peaceful, prosperous, romantic land ruled by the beloved royal family. Now let me introduce the gallant young ladies of the Royal Ruritanian Womens Infantry Brigade...they shall be your tour guides through this land! They are the personal bodyguard of the King of Ruritania, handpicked by the beloved monarch himself. Try not to let their smart uniforms distract you...

Facts:

Capital City: Streslau

Largest Cities and towns:  Streslau, Hentzau, Strackenz, Zenda.

Major Rivers: Danube, Dracu.

Borders: Serbia, Croatia, Hungary, Stropon, Slovenia, Romania, Czech Republic.

Official Languages: Ruritanische, Ruritanjic (Slavic), German, Turkish.

Currency: Domar

Government: Constitutional Monarchy
Monarch: King Alexander von Elphberg-Rassendyll II
Prime Minister: Count Gustav Von Dervolk

Demographics: 65% Ruritanian, 20% Slav, 10% Muslim, 1% Roma, 4% Other

Religion: 65% Roman Catholic, 20% Eastern Orthodox, 10% Muslim, 3% Jewish, 2% Protestant

Diplomatic Relations: The Empire of Stropon, The Republic of Liberty Islands, The Imperial Kingdom of Atlantis

The National Flag

The Royal Crest

The Royal Crest of Ruritania depicts the two headed Imperial Eagle of the Von Elphberg Royal household. The Eagle carries a traditional Ruritanian Scimitar in one claw (a symbol of the countries might) and a copy of the 1848 constitution in the other (a symbol of democracy). The Coat of Arms in the centre of the crest depicts a Gauntlet and a Rose, the emblems of the 1848 peoples revolution.

A Brief History of Ruritania - Part 1:

400 B.C - The Roman army establishes an outpost on banks of the Danube river, they name it; 'Streslium'.
300 B.C - Despite numerous attacks from the local barbarians, Streslium thrives and the foundations for the future city of Streslau begin.
545 A.D - King Argo the Drunken, a local Goth chief, invades Streslium, now a part of the Byzantine Empire, and renames it Streslau. The Byzantines flee, never to return.
648 - King Ruri Red Eyes establishes the kingdom of Ruritania.
778 - Charlemagne invades Ruritania, and introduces Christianity after slaughtering the pagan chieftans.
779 - Ruritania becomes an autonomous part of the Holy Roman Empire under the leadership of one of  Charlemagne's generals Boris of Elphberg Castle. The Von Elphberg Dynasty begins.

Charlemagne with King Boris of Elphberg.

988 - A plague sweeps the land, devastating the countryside.
1245 - Streslau has become an important trading city for the medieval world.
1315 - Members of The Knights Templar seek refuge in Ruritania. They are given sanctuary from the persecution the received in other parts of Europe. They bring with them many secret treasures, and are given a special place in Ruritanian society, a role they keep to this day.
1348 - The Black Death devastates Ruritania.
1349 - King Haarald the Elder dies from the plague.
1432 - Ruritania begins it's wars of expansion, eastwards and southwards. Gaining territory as far south as Bosnia,Serbia, and as far east as present day Romania.
1446 - Wars of expansion cease.

The Wars of Expansion

1528 - The Ottoman army invades Ruritania.
1529 - The Ottoman army defeats the Ruritanian army at the battle of Hentzau. King Janic II is killed while clutching the royal standard. The period of Ottoman rule begins in Ruritania.
1530 - The remaining members of the royal family escape into exile in Vienna.

King Janic III heroically fighting to the last against the Ottomans at Hentzau.

1530 - 1682 - The Ottoman empire brings many civic improvements to Ruritanian cities like Streslau. Many muslims settle there and become established within Ruritanian society.
1683 - A combined army of Austrian and Ruritanian troops led by the young Prince Nikolas defeats the Ottoman army after a long siege of Streslau. The war was bloody but decisive, the Ottomans flee Ruritania, and Prince Nikolas crowns himself king of Ruritania in Streslau Cathedral.

The siege of Streslau by the Ruritanian army.

The victorious Ruritanian forces after the defeat of the Ottomans.

Prince Nikolas, later King Nikolas I.

1700 - Ruritania establishes herself once again as a major regional power, the arts flourish, the borders expand ever further, and Streslau is the centre of trade for the region.
1725 - Queen Nera dies, leaving the now elderly King Nikolas with no heir. Knowing his time is short, and not wanting his hated younger brother Vladimir to win the throne after his death, he marries his 18 year old niece Mikala, the daughter of his sister.

Queen Mikala

1726 - Queen Mikala gives birth to Prince Johannes, alas due to the incestuous relationship of his parents, Johannes 'aint quite right'....
1727 - King Nikolas dies. His son becomes King Johannes the Imbecile.

King Johannes the Imbecile.

1728 - Prince Vladimir begins the war of succession against the new King. The war is quickly over and Vladimir is crowned king.
1760 - King Vladimir dies. His son Rudolf becomes King Rudolf II.
1765 - King Rudolf marries the beautiful Princess Therese. So begins the 'Time of Elegance', a peaceful time for Ruritania, when many fine new buildings and palaces are constructed throughout the kingdom. Happiness and prosperity reign.
1767 - Princess Osra is born, she will become one of the nations favourite royals. Famed throughout Europe for her beauty and elegance. Almost every eligible young royal male in Europe tries to woo her, only a lucky few succeed.

Princess Osra.

1773 - Crown Prince Alexander is born. The nation rejoices! A fine young horseman and soldier, he becomes a highly capable general in the Ruritanian army.

Crown Prince Alexander, circa 1807.

1780 - Prince Nicholas is born. The handsome prince will become one of the most eligible bachelors in all of Europe, and one of the continents finest soldiers.
1798 - While at a military academy in France, the young Prince Nicholas meets Napoleon Bonaparte. The French general takes Nicholas under his wing, and Nicholas joins the French army on it's campaign in Egypt. Prince Nicholas excels himself in battle and becomes the youngest officer in the French army. He brings home an Egyptian obelisk to Streslau as a souvenir of his adventures.

Prince Nicholas, circa 1807.

1807 - The Ruritanian-Stroponion War begins, shattering the kingdoms long peace. The Ruritanian army led by Crown Prince Alexander and his younger brother excels itself in battle, soundly defeating the Stroponion regiments. Or so it seems.....

The Battle of Sergu plain, in the Ruritania-Stropon war of 1807.

to be continued...

[bat]

A great new update! Looking forward to more...

[Revol]

TheTeaCat, Madeira aka She Who Will Not Be Named, capo, meldolion, bat - Thanks for the comments guys! 

[Strechnitz]

Ah yes, the Ruritanian Stroponian war. A memorable moment in time.

This is a great historical update my friend.
Highlighting special moments out of the long and turbulent history.
it realy is a lovely history.
The battle pics are very well done.
And my what a lovely portraits  

Strechnitz.

[Revol]

Sightseeing

University Platz

Here are some more images from Streslau City. This time the University Platz in the Neustadt area of the city.

The yellow building is the Royal University of Streslau. The white building behind it is the Royal Museum of Ruritania, also known as the White Palace.
The monument in the centre of the square commemorates the Ruritanian armies victories against Russia, in the Ruritania-Russia war of 1820.
The building in the foreground is the Streslau City Hall or Rathaus.

The square was the scene of heavy resistance fighting during the second world war, and the student revolt of 1968. It is the largest square in the city, these are only a few views of the vast University Platz. More will follow in due time.

The brown building in the foreground is the Orion Hotel and Casino. Just one of the cities many chic art deco casinos.

More to come soon!

[kwakelaar]

They couldn't unbutton the jacket of Prince Alexander before he put it on?? Must have happend a few times judging by the shape of his head.
And no offence to the history of Ruritania of course.

Nice update with the first part of Ruritanian history. And I am most impressed by the fact that the Romans were in Ruritania even before the founding of Rome. But I know I should not complain and just enjoy the fiction.
I know I will certainly enjoy reading more about Ruritania.

Edit
And just as I wrote this comment you come with something quite spectacular, a very grand square surrounded by some magnificent buildings. These are some beautiful shots from Streslau.

[bat]

Fantastic looking pictures of that area!

[Revol]

Replies

Strechnitz - Thanks! It was really fun to include a mention of Stropon  In the next update we can go into more detail about the war our two glorious nations fought in 1807.

kwakelaar -  Yeah it certainly seems that his head is getting squeezed from the jacket! And those Romans where always ahead of their time  ....thanks for pointing that out, I've changed it now to a more realistic date 

bat - Thank you!

[nedalezz]

Thats a great history session, loads of facts, good pictures to go along with them, too. Really gives a sense of history in Ruritania, and gets you closer to the MD as a whole. Great job!

[Strechnitz]

Great pics of Streslau. It shows a monumental city.
Just the kind that I like so much myself

Strechnitz.

[Asimov]

Both the historical update as well as the actual City-pics are very interesting. Since I started a Alternative-Reality-CJ once, I have an idea of how much work it is to create such an background-story.
So keep up the good work, looking forward to more.

[sebes]

Very nice start of your MD. Streslau is a beautiful city and I am looking forward to see how you will develop its history  !

[Revol]

Replies

nedalezz - Thank you very much, I am glad you enjoyed it!

Strechnitz - Monumental is certainly the look I want to achieve with certain parts of the city, although I have to remind myself at times to be realistic and not go overboard 

Asimov - Thanks! Yeah it is indeed a lot of work!

sebes - Thank you!

I know I have been slow with another update, real life taking over as usual. But I hope to get some more updates ready soon 

[CabraBuitre]

I love the classical feel!  And the GLR station fits in quite well.  Do you know where you found it?

[Revol]

I love the classical feel!  And the GLR station fits in quite well.  Do you know where you found it?

Thanks! The station is from a Japanese website, I can't remember which one though. I'm sure someone else on this forum might be able to help...


I hope you all like my little additions to my previous entries  There will be some proper updates very soon, Ruritania is coming along slowly!

[Zaphod]

nice story. thats what I love about CJs/MDs. "Prince Johannas the imbecile". lol.

Anyways, the GLR is a NOB item found here

[keyboardconfessional]

     Some of those BATs are uber beautiful, especially the way you used them. You were right...Ruritania sure has some beautiful ladies  Keep up the excellent work.

-Jamie

P.S. I wish my GLR looked as awesome as yours. Super-cool.

[Strechnitz]

Nice restyling Graham  hehe  real cute. A very nice royal guard.

Strech.

[Shadow Assassin]

One of the main reasons it took that long is that it takes forever to grow these great vda buildings...do you have any hints on how to get them faster perhaps?

Are you kidding me? These buildings grow like weeds for me.

Anyway, this is a very nice city-journal (especially the cheerleaders ). I like how the cities are built, the cobblestone roads add a little bit of an extra touch. It's quite realistic, I think.