Draft:Alderoaks

Republic of Alderoaks
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: "Vetus nemus, vetus terra, novum cordis" "Old grove, old land, new heart"
Anthem:  Hymn of Alderoaks performed by the now non-existent National Band of Alderoaks
Territory of the Republic of Alderoaks within the red border
Status	Active
Location	San Juan Island, Washington, United States
Capital	Clearing
Religion (2023 CE)	90.91% Unaffiliated 9.09% Christianity
Demonym(s)	Islander (most common) Alderoakian Alderoakers
Government	Federal constitutional presidential republic
• Captain	William Leon Coburn
• First Mate	John D. Coburn
• Grand General	William R. Coburn
Legislature	Council of Officers
Independence  from United States
• Land acquired	1973
• Official independence	July 29 2022
Membership	11
Currency	United States Dollar
Time zone	UTC-08:00 (Pacific Standard Time)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-07:00 (Pacific Daylight Time)
Date format	mm/dd/yyyy
Driving side	right
Calling code	+1
Internet TLD	.com
Website alderoaks.com

Alderoaks is a micronation on central San Juan Island in the state of Washington of the United States of America. The land of Alderoaks was acquired in 1973 by the current captain of Alderoaks, William Leon Coburn from the state of Washington. It is surrounded by dense forests and overgrown thickets, and is connected to a gravel road, the only road in the micronation.

Alderoaks is governed by the captain, first mate, and grand general, all hereditary positions. Leon Coburn is the first to hold the title of captain. Alderoaks has no political parties, and no large amount of input in the government from the residents of Alderoaks, who are all seasonal. The Council of Officers is comprised of the captain, first mate, and a varying amount of high-ranking people, currently 3 people, who must be connected to the captain through blood.

Alderoaks recognizes all United Nations member states and no other micronations.

Etymology

Alderoaks' name is believed to be derived from the commonly found oak and alder trees, giving the nation its name.

History

In 1973 the incumbent captain, William Leon Coburn, recognized the growing independence movement for the self-proclaimed nation of Cascadia in the Pacific northwest region where Alderoaks is located, and purchased a roughly 6-acre plot of land on the fairly remote island of San Juan, located in the San Juan Island Chain off the northwest coast of Washington, in the Salish Sea. He reasoned that if Cascadia were to become independent it would be ideal to own land in both Cascadia and his home city of Las Vegas, Nevada, and the land was sold to him for the price of around $5,000 USD, now roughly $35,000 USD. San Juan Island was very sparsely populated and barely developed at the time of purchase, also explaining the relatively low price for the land. This land was bought before he became married. After purchasing the property, William Coburn created the Captain's Log, a record of major actions on the land. William's love of the sea contributed primarily to the titles and style of the government.

The land sat unused for some time until he and a few neighboring landowners as well as some family built the Alderoaks Cabin completely from the land, felling trees and building it without a blueprint. It was the sole structure for a time as well as a few garden beds outside the cabin, until in the late 1990s, a raised platform was built of wood to place tents on, as William Coburn's son and his wife began traveling in up to the property. People were visiting the property for many years until 2019, when William Coburn suffered a stroke, and the land lay uninhabited for around 2 years. The rabbits of the region suffered a plague in 2020, and the property became overgrown without the rabbits to control the shrubs and thickets. In 2022, the land was once again visited and cleaned up, although never the same as before the rabbit plague.

In late July of 2022, a few of William Coburn's grandchildren and extended family visiting proclaimed Alderoaks independent of the United States, which garnered no backlash from the political leaders, therefore de facto having the motion pass in the government.

Economic Boom

Following the declaration of independence, a large zipline running from the top of Cady Mountain to Clearing was constructed. It had much use and greatly increased Alderoaks' economic power, until around the 7th of August, it was taken down in the name of safety violations. As a result, the entertainment industry in Alderoaks suffered greatly.

Recession

In an attempt to revive the economy, three citizens put together a short film, hoping to gain a large audience within Alderoaks and improve the domestic economy. It was a failure, and the film was never released. In the following months many Alderoakers emigrated back to their home lands of Nevada and California, where they have stayed since. The economy never recovered, and the lack of upkeep and fewer rabbits to control the weeds combined resulted in ecological disaster as well as economic disaster. Alderoaks currently remains in economic and ecological recession.

Politics and government

Alderoaks is a largely libertarian state, with a fairly small amount of government interference in daily life. The captain is capable of nearly complete control over the territory, although the current captain and also founder of Alderoaks has given up most power over the land. The first mate, the captain's son, has most control over the land, although most actions must be given the go-ahead by the captain as the captain holds the rights to the land. The Council of Officers is comprised of the captain's wife, daughter, and son, although the captain is not a member of the council but holds a large amount of power.

There are no established political factions in Alderoaks, with the rulers of the land having inherited their title and power from their predecessor, usually their father.

Captain

The captain of Alderoaks is primarily an honorary title in present day, but was previously a title of great power. The captain still holds much power, although the incumbent has given up most control to the first mate and the Council of Officers. The captain holds the official rights and deeds to the land, so therefore all decisions must be cleared with him due to his ownership of the official papers. The incumbent captain is William Leon Coburn.

First Mate

The first mate is the de facto leader of Alderoaks, controlling major actions within the Council of Officers and with the captain. The majority of major decisions are made by the first mate. The first mate acts somewhat as an internal affairs minister.

Grand General

The grand general is the commander of the armed forces and essentially a second first mate. The grand general also acts as the foreign affairs minister and is the spokesperson of the nation. The incumbent is William R. Coburn

Council of Officers

The Council of Officers is the advising committee of the captain and first mate, with certain executive powers. The first mate and grand general may be a part of the council, although the incumbent grand general has chosen otherwise. It is currently composed of three; the first mate and two officers who are the captain and first mate's wives. The number of officers in the council varies every so often depending on the circumstances and the family of the captain and first mate.

They hold meetings rarely; around one every month or two. Most meetings are over phone, although at the occasion when all officers are at Alderoaks, meetings are held outside of the Alderoaks Cabin in the capital settlement of Clearing, typically around the stone fire.

Law and order

Insert information about the nation's judicial system and/or law enforcement.

Military

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Ministries

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Ministry of Example

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Foreign relations

Provide a general overview of the nation's foreign policy and its involvement in sectors, organizations, etc.

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Unilateral recognition

• All United Nations member states
• Molossia
• Sealand
• Kosovo

Mutual recognition

none

Recognition refused

none

Administrative regions

Alderoaks has three constituencies; Clearing, Meadow, and the Thicketshire, each called territories.

Explain your nation's claim system, and the various types of constituencies your nation may have, for example, the difference between a district and a territory. It is preferred that you do not discuss each constituency in this section. Instead, the names of each constituency in the table should be linked to their own separate articles. You can add and remove columns as you wish, but generally, include fields for the flags (which should be kept small, at most 100px wide (less if more rows listed) and have a border), name, and important fields such as area, population, and/or representative, and governor, representative, or equivalent position. You do not need to include a column for a seal, flag, or coat of arms for each constituency if it they do not have one.

Flag	Name	Area	Population	Officials	Structures
Territories
	Clearing		11	Captain and First Mate	5
	Meadow		0	Captain and First Mate	1
	Thicketshire		0	First Mate and Grand General	0

Geography and climate

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Economy

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Culture

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Holidays

The following holidays are national holidays in Alderoaks and are recognized as such, and if there are people in the nation on the day of the holiday, work shall be lowered or prohibited on said day according to the first mate and/or captain.

Date	Name	Remarks
18 April	Independence Day	A day honoring the birthday of William R. Coburn, proclaimer of independence, grandson of William Leon Coburn.
29 July	National Day	A day honoring the declaration of independence from the United States and honoring the captain of Alderoaks.
31 October	All Hallow's Eve	A night of the spirits of the forest and the monsters of San Juan, also for collecting candy from neighbors, called trick-or-treating. The latter activity is rarely done.
December 22	Captain's Day	A day to celebrate the founder and captain's birthday, recognized by Alderoakians across the world.

Media

Alderoaks is largely separated from the surrounding regions in terms of the internet and technology. There is no government tld, and obtaining access to the greater internet is difficult if not impossible, due to the general remoteness of Alderoaks and the lack of funds for a permanent internet system.

The government operates one media company, the Republic of Alderoaks. It is based in United States territory in the city of Davis, California, and operates on the internet platform YouTube.

Customs

Alderoakers have many customs.

See also

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Notes

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References

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External links

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• Government site
• Government YouTube channel
• Citizenship application

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