Southern Columbia Protectorate
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Southern Columbia Protectorate | |
|---|---|
 Flag
 Coat of arms
| |
| Motto: Occidente ultra Occidentem (Latin) "The West beyond the West" | |
| Anthem: "God Save the King" | |
 Location of Burdyny (green) in North America (agate grey) | |
 | |
| Status | Active |
| Capital | Cookstown |
| Official languages | English |
| Recognised regional languages | Indigenous languages |
| Ethnic groups (2023) |
|
| Religion (2023) |
|
| Demonym(s) | Southern Columbian |
| Government | Self-proclaimed responsible government under a constitutional monarchy |
• Monarch | Charles III [a] |
• Governor | Dustin Carlson |
• Premier | Doug Baglot |
| Legislature | Legislative Assembly |
| Independence from the United States | |
• Established | 15 May 2023 |
• Constitution ratified | 2 December 2023 |
| Area | |
• Total | 0.001456868 km2 (0.000562500 sq mi) |
• Water (%) | 0.02 |
| Population | |
• 2023 census | 9 |
| HDI | 0.936 very high |
| Currency | Southern Columbian Pound (£) (SCP) |
| Time zone | UTC−8 (PST) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−7 (PDT) |
| Date format | mm/dd/yyyy |
| Driving side | right |
| Calling code | +1 |
| Internet TLD | .com |
Website example | |
Southern Columbia, officially the Southern Columbia Protectorate, is a micronation that claims approximately 0.36 acres of territory on Vancouver Island in Canada. It was founded by Canadian micronationalist Dustin Carlson on 15 May 2023. Southern Columbia declared its independence from Canada but its existence is not formally recognized by the United Nations or the government of any sovereign state.
The political structure of Burdyny was largely modeled on the British Overseas Territories, particularly the Falkland Islands, with internal self-governance except that it lacked formal oversight or acknowledgement from the United Kingdom. Burdyny was a parliamentary constitutional monarchy that proclaimed its allegiance to King Charles III as its monarch and head of state. Dustin Carlson served as the province's self-appointed governor, while a premier acted as head of government.
Etymology
Burdyny (bur-dah-nee) is the name of a small semi-rural region on Vancouver Island's eastern coast, where the micronation was located. Upon the purchase of the property that would eventually become the tiny, independent state, Dustin Carlson noticed an old wooden directional sign attached to a tree with arrows pointing to nearby points of interest, one of them being "Burdyny". Liking the sound of the name, and its relative uniqueness, Carlson chose it as the official name of the country.
History
The history of the Province of Burdyny dates back to 2019. Dustin Carlson became fascinated by the concept of micronations after watching a YouTube video about the Republic of Molossia [1] and subsequently doing a great deal of research about established micronationalists around the world. Carlson began to lay the groundwork for a self-proclaimed government that would combine his passion for British and Canadian history with his desire for independence.
Carlson had long been concerned by what he viewed as Canada's slow, inevitable shift away from monarchy towards republicanism, specifically comments made by New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh in 2018, where he declared himself to be a republican and was quoted as saying "I don't see the relevance of the monarchy, and I don't think that most Canadians do." [2] Carlson sought to build a country that would always remain loyal to The Crown even if Canada eventually became a republic. On 15 May 2023, the establishment of the Province of Burdyny was declared, with Carlson claiming his own property as its sovereign territory.
Burdyny created its very own flag, coat of arms and currency, with Carlson choosing Occidente ultra Occidentem (The West beyond the West) as the new country's national motto. The inspiration for the motto came from historian Jean Barman, who published the book "The West Beyond The West" about British Columbian history in 1991. [3] In October 2023, its government dissolved after a mutual decision between the province and the Principality of Burdany to unite into a single territorial unit.
Politics and government
Burdyny had a responsible government based upon the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy.
Monarch
Charles III was considered the King of Burdyny, although this position was never acknowledged by His Majesty. As an unrecognized micronation, the powers of the Burdynian monarch were mostly ceremonial although the King was legally considered the nation's de jure head of state due to his title as the King of Canada, and Burdyny existing entirely within his sovereign realm.
Governor
The Governor of Burdyny was the nation's de facto head of state acting "in His Majesty's name and on His Majesty's behalf" in the absence of the monarch. Unlike the 15 British Overseas Territories where the governor is directly appointed by the King, Burdynian governors were appointed by the legislature due the country's political status as a micronation. The position had no fixed term limit, with the governor serving at At His Majesty's pleasure so long as he/she enjoyed the confidence of the legislature.
Premier
The province's head of government was the Premier of Burdyny, a civil service position appointed by the governor on the advice of the legislature. The premier served a term of four years, which could be extended an additional two years at the request of the legislative body or a public referendum.
Legislative Assembly
The unicameral legislature of Burdyny was the Legislative Assembly, which consisted of 4 elected members. Sittings of the Legislative Assembly were normally held at Government House, the de facto headquarters and personal residence of the governor. The constitution stipulated that there must be at least one meeting of the Legislative Assembly every year, although the Assembly sometimes met as often as once per month during its short existence.
Law and order
Article VI of Burdyny's constitution stated that all Burdynian citizens shall have the same legal rights that they enjoy in Canada. Article VI Section II required every citizen of the Province of Burdyny to obey all Canadian federal and provincial laws at all times. The same rule applied to its citizens living abroad with regards to the laws of their home countries. The Supreme Court of Burdyny handled all internal disputes within the micronation, while the Burdynian National Police (BNP) was the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement.
Military
The Burdynian Security Forces were the unified military and security forces of the Burdynian government. It consistd of of the Burdynian Army, Burdynian Air Force and Burdynian Navy. Being an unrecognized micronation, the Province of Burdyny did not rely on the United Kingdom as the guarantee for their security, and instead developed its own potent and highly professional military capability.
Foreign relations
The Province of Burdyny has appointed several diplomatic agents abroad to press its rights for self-determination. While never formally recognized by the government of any macronation or intergovernmental organization, Burdyny unilaterally recognized the sovereignty of over 200 nations, both on the maconational and micronational stage.
Burdyny was part of the Western Canada sector, and had active diplomatic contacts with several other micronations in the region.
Unilateral recognition
All United Nations member states
British West Florida
Bumbunga
Confederate States
Cook Islands
Ethosia
Haida Nation
Holy See
Lostisland
Manchukuo
Molossia
Niue
Pavlov
Sealand
Slowjamastan
Somaliland
Taiwan
Westarctica
Mutual recognition
Recognition refused
Afghanistan[b]
Abkhazia
South Ossetia
Transnistria
All regions of Russian-occupied Ukraine
Geography and climate
Burdyny was a landlocked country located entirely within Canadian sovereign territory. It was situated on the eastern coast of central Vancouver Island near the Canadian town of Comox, bordered by forests on two sides and residential housing on the remaining two. The geography of Permaria featured a large flower garden, Koi pond, and numerous vegetable crops. Two large Douglas fir trees provided shade to the northern portion of the country, which housed a gazebo for hosting diplomatic summits. Cooktown, the nation's capital, was located along the nation's eastern boundary and included street access via Burdyny's main border crossing with Canada.
Burdyny has a Mediterranean climate according to the Köppen climate classification. Summers are hot and dry, with frequent heat and wildfire warnings, while winters are typically mild, but can experience heavy rain and snowfall at times.
| Climate data for Cookstown | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 6.4 (43.5) |
7.4 (45.3) |
9.6 (49.3) |
12.9 (55.2) |
16.6 (61.9) |
19.8 (67.6) |
22.8 (73) |
22.7 (72.9) |
19.0 (66.2) |
12.9 (55.2) |
8.5 (47.3) |
5.9 (42.6) |
13.7 (56.7) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 1.4 (34.5) |
1.2 (34.2) |
2.5 (36.5) |
4.6 (40.3) |
8.0 (46.4) |
11.1 (52) |
13.3 (55.9) |
13 (55) |
9.9 (49.8) |
6.0 (42.8) |
2.9 (37.2) |
0.9 (33.6) |
6.2 (43.2) |
| Source: www.climate.weatheroffice.gc.ca (archived data from 1981–2010) | |||||||||||||
Holidays
| Date | Name | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January | New Year's Day | Celebrates the start of the new year. |
| Third Monday in February | Family Day | Shared statutory holiday with British Columbia. |
| Between 20 March and 23 April | Good Friday | Commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus, on the Friday before Easter. |
| 15 May | Sovereignty Day | Celebrates the 2023 proclamation of Burdyny's independence from Canada. |
| Second Monday in June | King's Official Birthday | Celebrates the birth of the Sovereign, King Charles III. |
| 15 July | President Baugh Day | Honors Kevin Baugh, President of the Republic of Molossia and original inspiration for the establishment of a micronation. Dustin Carlson first watched a documentary about Molossia on this day in 2019. |
| 22 October | Governor's Day | Celebrates of the birth of Dustin Carlson, founding father and inaugural governor of Burdyny. |
| 11 November | Remembrance Day | Memorial holiday shared with Canada. Honors Canada's war dead. Anniversary of the armistice ending World War I in 1918. |
| 25 December | Christmas Day | Commemoration of the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. |
See also
Notes
- ↑ Charles III does not recognize Southern Columbia and has not acknowledged the existence of its government.
- ↑ The Province of Burdyny recognized the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan as the government of Afghanistan instead of the de facto ruling government, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.