Empire of the Norse

Empire of the Norse	Empire of the Norse
Flag of The Empire of the Norse	
Flag of The Empire of the Norse
General 	General
Name 	The Empire of the Norse
Capital 	Mærr
Largest City 	Mærr
National Abstract 	
 	
Government 	Government
Government Type 	Absolute Monarchy
Head of State 	Emperor Haraldr I Haraldorr
Legislature 	The Court of Nobles
Judiciary 	Court of the Priests
Demographics 	Demographics
Demonym 	Norseman
Population 	800k or more
Official Language 	The Old Tongue (Modified Old Norse)
Spoken Language(s) 	The New Tongue (87%); Swedish; Danish, Icelandic; Norwegian; English; others
Ethnic Groups 	Norsemen (88%); Swedish; Danish; Icelandic; Norwegian; Anglo-Norse; British; others
Official Religion 	Nordic Paganism
Major Religions 	Faith of the Cross; Protestantism; other minor religions
The Empire of the Norse is an empire that is located in the most northern part of the world in Northern Sweden, it's lands consisting of the former Swedish provinces of Lappland, Norbotten, Västerbotten and Jämtland as well as a few provinces of Finland. A large collection of Danish people dwell within its lands despite being in Swedish territory - most of them refugees from the Great Flood. Nevertheless, the empire harbors all of the Scandinavian races from before - whose citizens now mostly identify themselves as 'Norse' after the conquest and royal decree by the first emperor of the empire, Emperor Haraldr Haraldorr. Ruled by an absolute ruler under an absolute monarchy, the state is governed alongside with the emperor by a council of progressive nobles who fancy themselves as democratic and civilized people as well as a council of priests who can overturn any of their bills with a veto. Despite the small populace of the empire, it's largest city and capital of the empire - Mærr - has a large amount of scholars and boat builders that live in the court of the emperor, constantly researching technology and building things such as longships for the purpose of furthering the amount of territories the empire has. Currently the state religion of the empire is Nordic Paganism, which was adopted after the Conquest by most of the populace who wish to follow the old gods of their ancestors - the people they refer to as the Longlanders.
==History==
===At The Beginning===
After the Great Flood that swallowed the world, many in the southern provinces of Scandinavia moved up north to escape the encroaching sea that had swallowed most of Denmark and its capital of Copenhagen. They sought refuge with Sweden, and they happily took its fellow Nordic neighbors in. Some hoped they could escape the threat of war looming over the horizon, and some hoped they could just start over - start afresh in this new world. Refugees from the United Kingdom and the British Isles also sought refuge in the northern parts of Sweden, and the government took them in as well. Unfortunately, when the bombs came from every major nation struck every other country in the world - even having moved north, they still suffered the same fate as the rest of the world. Many died as the fires of the nuclear warheads swallowed them, leaving behind only charred remains as the shockwave of nuclear war swept through the entire world. Those who were smart had their underground bunkers, and the smarter ones were already at the northern parts of Sweden, hiding beneath bomb shelters and metro stations with reinforced steel doors that would hopefully protect them from the fires of nuclear war. As expected, the fires did not reach there, although the radiation did - killing many as the sickness overtook them.
After the destruction of most major cities in Northern Sweden, society there devolved back into small tribes that huddled around their own village settlements. This type of society remained until villages began to contact one another, opening up trade routes through the former provinces of Lappland, Norbotten, Västerbotten and Jämtland. The language of the 'Old Tongue' was soon developed around this time, but the reason for its creation and how it was created is mostly lost to time. Some whispered that the Old Tongue is a modified version of Swedish, while others speak that it was formed from Icelandic. Regardless - the names of these four provinces were long forgotten however, for people ignored education and the concept of literacy - more focused on survival then anything else. The pursuit of knowledge was not an important thing for these northerners - and they lived their lives in peaceful ignorance. Of course, those who actually cared for knowledge were given the title of 'Scholar' in their villages, and what they mostly did was translate books and texts from the society before to the Old Tongue. 
Settlements formed by the refugees from England were also making their mark in this new world, and they commonly referred to the territory that their tribes lived on as New England. They still spoke a foreign language known as English, and they brought their faith along with them. Both the Nordic and British people lived relatively in peace, trading with one another. Livestock exchange was fairly common, and sharing of farming technology was common as well. The Icelandics to the northwest also engaged in these activities.
This would be the state of northern Sweden for years to come - until the birth of one man who would change everything.
===Enlightenment===
thumb|left|200px|Painting of the Imperial Emperor Haraldr I Haraldorr Haraldr Haraldorr was born a boy to a family of woodcutters and artisans in the village of Gräns - meaning 'border' in Swedish - and was named so due to the village's close coastal border with the North Sea. His family had the surname of 'Haraldorr', a surname created under the Old Tongue, a modified version of Swedish that was heavily influenced by another foreign language across the sea. As a youth, he spent most of his time learning his family's craft - buildings boats for the fishermen of his village in the former province of Jämtland. His childhood was a quiet one - for lucky for the people of northern Scandinavia, conflict was rare due to how spread out each village was. Still, there were established trade routes, and some even attempted to improve the infrastructure of the land by trying to build roads. Unfortunately, it proved to be quite a daunting task, and most of them gave up before they even tried digging or paving the way for these roads. This disappointed young Haraldr, who usually played with the children of those the tradesmen that came to his village looking to sell resources. As he grew older, many in the village noticed his excellence and proficiency for learning things quickly - and they assigned him 'Chief Explorer', a position that basically asked you to scavenge and look for things in ruins of buildings that could benefit the village as a whole. Haraldr quickly learnt how to read Swedish, his native tongue - and the Old Tongue, which he struggled with at first but was able to pick it up after conversing with other explorers from other villages who mainly spoke this language. It would seem that the Swedish language only survived in his village of Gräns, and most of the other villages in the surrounding area had already picked up the Old Tongue as their main language. While scavenging for electronic parts to craft a design of a windmill that he had kept in his mind for awhile - he discovered a building of knowledge - a museum. 
Haraldr stepped into this building - and returned with a woven picture of a society that existed long before. A society of men who traveled the sea in their long boats adorned with dragons and colorful sails, and men who carried axes and spears who laid waste to the rest of the known world. These men were referred to as the 'Longlanders' in the old texts, and the future emperor was fascinated. 
It shocked him to know that the people, his ancestors that had existed before him - were sea-farers with boats as long as the sea. He was enlightened by his findings, and in that very museum - according to his own words, he received a vision from an one-eyed wanderer by the name of Odinn, who told him that the unification of the tribes of the north was the only way forward for his village and everyone else in the world. When Haraldr questioned how he knew this, the wanderer simply laughed and told him that 'he knew everything that all mortals do not'. Haraldr chased after this wanderer, but was stopped in his tracks by a murder of ravens flying through and into the museum and out of its windows. 
He disappeared after a blink of an eye, and Haraldr returned to his village with those words fresh in his mind.
===Unification and Formation of the Empire===
Haraldr returned to his village with the paintings and maps in hand, showing it to the scholar of his home village. It was said that this scholar, by the name of Eirikr, told Haraldr that what he had discovered was among the greatest discoveries of any village within the north, and he should be proud for uncovering these things. Despite this however, he felt quite unsatisfied. The vision he received clearly told him that he was destined for great things - and for his story to end like that and fade into obscurity? He was disgusted at that thought. So he quickly went back to the scholar, took back his discoveries and began preaching to his village about what he had saw in the building of knowledge he visited and the destiny that laid before him. The men of the village, hardened raiders and warriors, sided with the young man - and soon he had an army that dwarfed almost every force in every other village. Rallying them to his cause, he began marching up north - overtaking villages with relative ease. Some tried to put up a resistance, but most fell after a single skirmish or battle. The southern Englishmen were the ones who resisted the most, but they too fell to the axes and spears of Haraldr's army. With no-one left to oppose him, he called upon all the chieftains of each village he conquered and made them bend the knee to him, swearing both an oath of fealty and loyalty to this new conqueror. All of them did not resist, and they bent their knees without much persuasion or convincing. They would bceome the first governors of the Empire, but the Empire would not be until much later.
Haraldr's first plan was to order all the scholars of every village to look for these places of knowledge that he had discovered and transcribe everything regarding the society of the 'Longlanders'. They returned with wooden statues of the old gods, designs on how to build something called a 'longship' and maps of the world. The scholars told him that these... 'longlanders' were referred to with one word - 'Norse.' The Emperor adapted that as a word to refer to all the people under his rule, and he too - adopted the gods that they worshiped. With this new knowledge, Haraldr realized that his dreams of colonizing lands was not far ahead, and with a grin - he ordered for the construction of countless amounts of boats forged in wood. With these boats, he was able to conquer vast amounts of land near the former lands of Finland - driving out the tribal people who lived there with his army of norsemen. Afterwards, he consolidated his power by establishing a nobility once again and assigning people to be his Jarls - governors of the new provinces of the Empire. They would have some autonomy, but only if they swore loyalty to Haraldr. All of them did, and none opposed his establishment of the seven provinces that now encompass the entire empire.
Haraldr then established the Court of Nobles, picking his most trusted advisers to govern and make new laws for the untamed territories he had. The Emperor also established the Court of the Priests, ruled by zealous pagans that worshipped the old gods of the Longlanders. They were to be given special power to overturn any laws that might harm the people living within the empire as a whole with a veto - but only if Haraldr accepted the veto after a vote. With the governance of his country now safe and in the hands of capable people, he returned to his capital and ordered the construction of more buildings, houses and palaces with whatever resources they had at hand. Soon, his capital of Mærr became the largest city in the entire empire, and it had the largest population too. The Emperor then ordered the fit men of the city to start constructing roads, to fulfill his childhood dream of improving the infrastructure of the entire empire. Dirt paths were carved, and major roads were given a better treatment with some cement in them. This ensured that trade would continue after the Conquest by Haraldr, and he was right. Caravans of resources soon started to pass through every village, every town and towards the capital - and prosperity and standard of living increased for everyone as a whole. Educations set up by the scholars of the Empire began to spring up in every province, and soon a decree made it mandatory for the young youths of the state to be educated until the age of 18 - for free. Literacy increased greatly throughout the nation, and soon everyone practiced the New Tongue over the languages of old. The army that had followed Haraldr became its own regiment, and he was even able to get the Englishmen of the south to send their armies to serve under him after a series of agreements and pacts near their city of New Yorkshire.
The creation of the Empire's flag came next, and after the emperor met with all the scholars from throughout the entire state - he settled with an animal that he knew the Longlanders revered - the raven. Some argued that it should have been a longship or perhaps even a longhouse, but then again, Haraldr had the final say in almost everything - and he said that it would be the raven. All agreed.
With everything now settled and the future of his new monarchy certain, Haraldr Haraldorr declared himself 'Emperor of the Nordic People' and the 'Imperial Emperor of the Gods', two titles that are now associated with the most powerful man within the Empire.
That is where its history ends and where the present now begins.
==Politics==
(incomplete)
===Politics of the Empire===
The Empire is headed by the Imperial Emperor, and has the final say on everything that is decided by the nobles or priests within the Empire. The political system of the empire is much like medieval Scandinavia, although it is a much more modernized version of it with some aspects of democracy to it - but it is clearly an absolute monarchy, regardless of what anyone says.
The Empire's provinces are governed by 'Jarls', governors who serve under the Emperor. These Jarls help to ensure that provinces are well-fed, developed and have access to basic facilities such as schooling, health-care and food. Jarls are, strangely enough, elected by the people within the villages of the province - through a ballot system that goes through the Court of Nobles, who counts the votes and gives it to the Emperor. The Emperor can overturn and assign his own jarls, but he usually does not do that for he does not meddle with such politics most of the time. Each Jarl is also responsible for the maintenance of armies within provinces, and it is expected that they are trained to the standards of the Emperor.
==Provinces==
(incomplete)
===Höfuðborgarsvæðið===
The province of Höfuðborgarsvæðið, or more commonly and easily pronounced by non New Tongue or Icelandic speakers as Haraldr's Province - is the capital province of the Empire. Home to capital of the Empire, Mærr, it is a rather cold place with a lack of fertile land - but makes up for its infertile soil with extremely defensible positions and high mountains that prevent enemy forces from crossing into the Empire's capital too easily. The province is located in the middle of the Empire, and most of the scholars of the empire live within this province in the capital city, researching and translating texts found by expedition and scouting parties during their supply runs. Nobility such as jarls are also easily found here, in their elaborate wooden estates full of thralls captured from overseas. The Emperor rules from his seat at the Draken Mærr Palace, which was constructed after his conquest, and is constantly protected by his personal guard who keep watch 24 hours a day. The Old and New Tongue is spoken most commonly here, although it is not rare to hear the Scandinavian languages of before such as Danish or Norwegian. Haraldr's Province is also the province where the Empire's Army stays in, where its troops stay in shape, sleep in barracks, train with their weapons and prepare for the next raid. 
===New England===
New England is home to the descendants of British refugees that escaped the United Kingdom and sought refuge within the northern provinces of Sweden after the Great Flood of decades before. Unlike the other provinces of the Empire, which are fully under imperial control, New England is governed by a parliament and government separate from the Empire - and they do not answer to the Council of Nobles or the Court of Priests when it comes to declaring laws, bills or decrees. Their government system is reminiscent of the United Kingdom's government from decades before, and each city in the province has its own seat. However, the Emperor still has the final say in everything, and the English respect that fully. New England also supplies countless amount of English men to the Empire's army, and even has it's own regiment known as the 'English Regemente' where it exclusively contains only British soldiers that are highly trained and well equipped with the latest gear and technology. These men are trained in various military aspects, and the famed Sharpshooters of the Empire are all mostly English people, save for a few Anglo-Nordics born in those provnices.
Cities like New Yorkshire or Enghold are highly regarded as the best places to live in the Empire due to the amount of houses there and the amount of food that grows there, and some at the court of the Emperor - mostly the educated nobles - are also anglophiles who admire the British way of governance. Nobility is also an established system here, with plenty of 'counts' or 'sirs' participating in the governance of New England in the parliament building located in New Yorkshire. However, in recent times, some of the people in the English parliament have noted a desire to establish their own ruler - perhaps an Archduke, to govern over the province of New Yorkshire like a British King. He would serve under the Empire still, of course, and the petition to establish this archduke is currently being drafted by the nobles of the cities.
==Military==
(incomplete)
The military of the Empire consists of the Regementes, its longship naval forces and its airship forces, all currently under development and growing with each passing day.
===Haraldr Regemente===
The Haraldr Regemente is the Imperial Emperor's personal regiment that follows him wherever he goes. Created from the village army that followed the Imperial Emperor Haraldr Haraldorr during his conquest of Northern Sweden, many of the men within the regiment have a undying loyalty to the monarch - and as such, the regiment is seen as the most prestigious regiment to be assigned to if you are a soldier. Consisting of mostly Nordics, the Haraldr Regemente is the second largest land regiment of the Empire's army, with seven thousand men within its ranks. Compared to the Raiding Regemente, the Haraldr Regemente is clearly more trained and disciplined with competent commanders and officers adorning its ranks as well.
The most famous unit of the regiment are the Húskarlars, or Huscarls in the English language. They are the elite Nordic units of the army, and each huscarl is trained to use both the axe and rifle in times of warfare. In addition, the Húskarlars are equipped with the best the empire has to offer, and their morale is unbreakable, for their faith makes them willing to die both for their nation and emperor. They wear bluish-grey coats and half-helms, and are known for their battle-cries - shouting the names of their gods to intimidate their enemies.
==Current History of the Empire==
===2152===
In the morning springs of January of the year 2152, Emperor Haraldr Haraldorr of the Empire received a proposal from the lands south of the Empire. This 'New People's Republic of Sweden' sought to unify the lands of Scandinavia into one, and some were skeptical by the motives of this. After a few moments of bickering with the nobles of his court, Emperor Haraldr Haraldorr accepted the pact and signed it after counselling with his priests, who said this will only serve to strengthen the ties and power of the Empire.