Sierropotamia (1942: Differently)

*"Sierropotamia" redirects from here. For Sierropotamia in Arflingotrinidomorssicania, see Sierropotamia (ATM Timeline) or the Sierropotamian Commonwealth (ATM Timeline).*
*For rest of the article, the historic nation will be known as "**Sierra**".*

**Sierra California**, officially known as the **Imperial Pacific Republic of Sierra California** (Spanish*[cf]*: *República Imperial del Pacífico de Sierra Californiana*; French: *République Impériale du Pacifique de Sierra Californie*) , and sometimes (unofficially) referred to as *Sierropotamia*, and colloiqually just referred to as simply *Sierra* or *California*, is a fictional sovereign transcontinental country which is predominantly located in North America (known as *Metropolitan Sierra*), that spanned over its overseas territories in mostly the Pacific and Asia, and also borders the United Commonwealths to the North and North-East, Texas to the East, and Mexico to the South and South-West. In total, the country has a total of 8 provinces that have a total of 45 prefectures, and also 12 overseas territories. The country has a coast majorly in the Pacific Ocean, and as well as the Californian Strait, while also covering a total territorial area of of 1.61 million km2 of area. Its capital city is San Sacramento, with other major cities being Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas, and Phoenix.

Prior to European colonization, Sierra is one of the most culturally and linguistically diverse areas in pre-Columbian North America and contained the highest Native American population density North of what is now Mexico. European exploration in the 16th and 17th CE led to the colonization of all of the territories of what was then Sierra (and Texas) by the Crown of Spain (Portugal-Castile), later the Iberian Empire. In 1804, it was included in Alta California province within the Viceroyalty of New Spain. The area became a part of Mexico in 1821, following its successful war for independence. The country, which was then the California Republic, stayed mostly as a rump state, along with the Sovereignty of Deseret and the Sovereign State of Arizona. California along with Deseret, Texas, and Arizona were declared war upon by both the United Commonwealths and Mexico on different sides, as part of the Mexican-American War in 1829. California showed full-on resistance, but Deseret collapsed at modern-day Utah (a modern province of Sierra) and confined to the Californian army in Nevada. However, after California conquered back its territories that was militarily occupied by Mexico and liberated Arizona with the help of Texas, the armies of both Mexico and the United States were exhausted and restrained by the war, so a peace deal was signed in Phoenix, Arizona, which recognized the independence of all 4 states by both the aggressors, and also declared peace between Mexico and the United States.

The California Gold Rush started just after the end of the war, in 1848, and led to dramatic social and demographic changes. Due to being extremely hard hit with war, Arizona and Deseret officially united with California in the Charter of 1850, which formed the current sovereign nation of *Sierra California*; *Sierra* referreing to Arizona and Deseret, and also *California* which refers to its co-sovereign nation.

Notable contributions to popular culture, ranging from entertainment, sports, music, and fashion, have their origins in Sierra. The state also has made substantial contributions in the fields of communication, information, innovation, education, environmentalism, entertainment, economics, politics, technology, and religion. Sierra is the home of Hollywood, the oldest and one of the largest film industries in the world, profoundly influencing global entertainment. It is considered the origin of the American film industry, hippie counterculture, beach and car culture, the personal computer, the internet, fast food, diners, burger joints, skateboarding, and the fortune cookie, among other inventions. Many full-service restaurants were also invented in the state. The state is also notable for being home to many amusement parks, including Disneyland, Six Flags Magic Mountain, Knott's Berry Farm, and Universal Studios Hollywood. The San Francisco Bay Area and the Greater Los Angeles Area are widely seen as the centers of the global technology and Sierran film industries, respectively. Sierra's economy was also very diverse. Sierra's agriculture industry has the highest output of any South American country, to compare. From its 8 provinces, the ports and harbors of the Californian province handle about three-quarters of all Sierran imports, most originating in Pacific Rim international trade. The current commonwealth under the same name as this historic nation has morphed into a greater state as well.

Sierra is a constitutional parliamentary republic and a representative democracy. It also houses the primary headquarters of the United Nations at its capital in San Sacramento. In addition, Sierra is also a member of various other international political organizations including the Conference of American States, NATO, OCED, Organization of American States, TPAC, WTO, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and more. Its $7.1 trillion economy, based on nominal GDP, and represented the fourth largest economy in the world. It was a highly developed country with the fourth-largest economy nominally and the fourth largest economy by purchasing power parity. In terms of aggregate household wealth, it ranked 5th in the world. It is the 3rd largest importer and exporter in the world. It had the 4th highest nominal GDP per capita and ranks very high on the Human Development Index. Its industries in Hollywood and Silicon Valley has made Sierra a global influencer on the economy, politics, entertainment, culture, finance, technology, science, fashion, medicine, and sports. Its services-oriented economy is driven by Sierra's involvement in international finance. The Sierran Dollar is one of the world's most widely used currencies, and is used as one of the main reserve currencies.

## Etymology

The name "Sierra California" is derived from the country's longest and most prominent mountain range, the Sierra Nevada, which runs in a North-West–South-East direction from Central Valley in Eastern Plumas to the South-Western end of the Great Basin in North-Eastern Kings. The name *Sierra Nevada* means "snowy mountain range" in Spanish. The literal translation is "snowy mountains", from sierra; "a range of hills" from the 16th CE Spanish understanding of *sierra*; and "jagged mountain range", lit. "saw", from Latin *serra* ("a saw"). The mountains' name is traditionally credited to Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, a Spanish–Portuguese navigator, although Cabrillo used the term to refer to the Santa Cruz Mountains, a mountain range that is a part of the Pacific Coast Ranges, not the Sierra Nevada. The modern day Sierra Nevada received its name by Franciscan missionary Pedro Font in a map he produced in 1776, who applied the name to the range. The part "California" derived from the mythical island of California in the fictional story of Queen Calafia, as recorded in a 1510 work The Adventures of Esplandián by Castilian author Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo. This work was the fifth in a popular Spanish chivalric romance series that began with Amadís de Gaula. Queen Calafia's kingdom was said to be a remote land rich in gold and pearls, inhabited by beautiful Black women who wore gold armor and lived like Amazons, as well as griffins and other strange beasts. In the fictional paradise, the ruler Queen Calafia fought alongside Muslims and her name may have been chosen to echo the Muslim title caliph, used for Muslim leaders.

## History

### a. Indigenous [Pre-Columbian Era]

Sierra was home to one of the most vibrant indigenous civilization in Lower North-West America, with distinguishable cultures and traditions, at least prior to European arrival. The indigenous peoples of Sierra include the Cahuilla, Chumash, Kumeyaay, Maidu, Mojave, Miwok, Modoc, Navajo, Tongva, Washoe, and Yana. Pre-Columbian Sierra had one of the America's most linguistically and culturally diverse populations. Over a hundred languages from several dozen language families were represented in Pre-Colombian Sierra. Most of the languages spoken during Sierra's prehistory have since gone extinct or are currently endangered. The term "Amerindian" is a term of art used officially to refer to the indigenous peoples of Sierra and the rest of the Americas.

It is generally hypothesized by historians that the original inhabitants of Sierra originated from Siberia and other parts of Asia by way through the Bering land strait approximately 16,500 years ago. The bridge formed as a result of falling sea levels were the result of climatic changes during the Quaternary glaciation. The early Paleo-Americans spread throughout the Americas, forming a diverse plethora of cultures, civilizations, and tribes, including the more than hundred represented in Sierra. The earliest archaeological evidence showing signs of human habitation in Sierra are the remains of the Arlington Springs Man on Santa Rosa Island in the Channel Islands. The remains date back to approximately 13,000 years ago during the most recent ice age, the Wisconsin glaciation.

It's hard to generalize about the cultural practices of indigenous people in the West since its climate and resources varied immensely, creating microenvironments which different groups used to their advantage. Over one hundred federally-recognized tribes lived in modern California. The Great Basin—the vast expanse of land between the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevadas (the main abstract geology of Sierra as a nation)—was home to the Mono, Paiute, Bannock, Shoshone, Ute, and Gosiute peoples, among others.

Men and women generally had different roles in society. Women were often responsible for weaving, harvesting, processing, and preparing food, while men for hunting and other forms of physical labor. Most societies also had roles for people who the Spanish referred to as joyas, who they saw as "men who dressed as women". Joyas were responsible for death, burial, and mourning rituals and performed women's social roles. Indigenous societies had their own terms to refer to them. The Chumash referred to them as 'aqi. The early Spanish settlers detested and sought to eliminate them.

Pre-contact population estimates range between 130,000 and 1.52 million inhabitants, although most conservative estimates posit that the population stood around 300,000 at the time Europeans first began exploration in Sierra. Prominent Paleo-Indian groups arose during the Archaic Period including those of Picosa tradition. The Ancient Puebloans (the Anasazi) were one such ancient group that originated from the Picosa tradition, and covered a territory that included present-day Apache, Flagstaff, the southern Deseret, and the Coloradan region. Other major ancient Indian civilization that rose to prominence were the Hohokam and Mogollon of present-day Cornerstone, Flagstaff, Maricopa, and Baja California. These groups were noted for their extensive irrigation systems which sustained large agricultural projects, elaborate pottery, and distinct architecture. Such ancient civilizations disappeared within the past two millennia due to various, hypothesized factors including long-term droughts and famines.

With a number of exceptions, most Sierran natives generally lived as hunter-gatherers who resided across a variety of different environments, climates, and geography. Those further in the north along the coast and mountainous areas practiced forest gardening and even started controlled fires (using fire-stick farming methods) in the woodlands to sustain their agricultural habits. Some tribal groups such as the Chumash had larger, more sophisticated political organization including chiefdoms that encompassed large stretches of land. Trade, diplomacy, intermarriages, and military alliances were common forms of intertribal interactions. The indigenous peoples demonstrated a variety of skills and knowledge that made use of the resources of the land. The deliberate burning of the land prevented larger, catastrophic fires from occurring and revitalized plant growth that attracted consumable animals. Natives along the coast utilized boats for transport and had diets centered around fishing.

### b. European Exploration

*Main Article: European Exploration of Sierra (1942: Differently)*

Around the turn of the 16th century, knowledge and interest of Sierra's location sparked in Spain thanks to the popular romance novel *Las Sergas de Esplandián* (The Adventures of Esplandián) by Spanish author Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo. Montalvo's novel described a mythical island dubbed *California* which was inhabited by Amazon women warriors who possessed large swaths of gold and weapons. When Spanish and Portuguese explorers explored the Baja California peninsula, the name *California* was used. This name came to refer all the unexplored territory on the North American West Coast including where most of present-day Sierra lies.

The first European to explore the Sierran coast is credited to Portuguese-Castillian explorer João Rodrigues Cabrilho (Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo). Commissioned by the Viceroy of New Spain, Cabrillo explored the bay and shores of present-day San Diego. After his excursion at San Diego, Cabrillo continued northward to Point Reyes. After Cabrillo suffered a fatal accident at Catalina Island, interest in further exploration of California rescinded because there were no sights of any gold nor advanced Indian civilization as claimed by authors. Nevertheless, Cabrillo claimed the lands for Spain by right of discovery.

In spite of diminished interest in Sierra, Iberian ships frequently traveled along the coast as a trade route to the Phillipines, a Iberian colony at the time. Active Iberian presence in Sierra would not occur for two more centuries however. There were only four more documented cases of Sierra's exploration prior to the establishment of the first Spanish mission on Baja California: English privateer Francis Drake (1579), Spaniard Sebastián Vizcaíno (1602), Dutchman Hendrik Brouwer (1644), and Frenchman Louis Antoine de Bougainville (1767). Drake landed in an unknown location along the Sierra coast and claimed the land for England as "*Nova Albion*" (New England) while Vizcaíno traveled as far North as *Monterey Bay* and gave *San Diego Bay* its current name. Vizcaíno's positive accounts on both bays reignited Spanish interest. The expedition of Brouwer in Northern Sierra laid the seeds of a Dutch colony that would later be known as New Holland. The arrival of Bougainville in 1767 marked the start of French presence in the region (as French California) prior to the start of serious colonial endeavors by Spain. Within a century after the expedition of Vizcaíno, the Spanish and Dutch began mapping and exploring Sierra's land through the Portolà Expedition.

### c. Spanish Rule

Juan Bautista de Anza led a similarly important expedition throughout Sierra in 1775–76, which would extend deeper into the interior and North of Sierra. The Anza expedition selected numerous sites for missions, presidios, and pueblos, which subsequently would be established by settlers. Gabriel Moraga, a member of the expedition, would also christen many of California's prominent rivers with their names in 1775–1776, such as the Sacramento River and the San Joaquin River. After the expedition, Gabriel's son, José Joaquín Moraga, would found the pueblo of San Jose in 1777, making it the first civilian-established city in California.

During this same period, sailors from the Russian Empire explored along the Northern coast of Sierra. In 1812, the Russian-American Company established a trading post and small fortification at Fort Ross on the North Coast. Fort Ross was primarily used to supply Russia's Alaskan colonies with food supplies. The settlement did not meet much success, failing to attract settlers or establish long term trade viability, and was abandoned by 1841.

During the War of Mexican Independence, Alta California was largely unaffected and uninvolved in the revolution, though many Californios supported independence from Spain, which many believed had neglected California and limited its development. Iberia's trade monopoly on California had limited local trade prospects. Following Mexican independence, California ports were freely able to trade with foreign merchants. Governor Pablo Vicente de Solá presided over the transition from Spanish colonial rule to independent Mexican rule.

### d. Mexican Rule

*For the rest of the section coinciding History, Sierra is referred to as both Sierra and California.*

In 1821, Mexico gained independence from Spain thereby receiving control over Sierra. The Mexican government was never stable enough to exert complete control over Sierra due to the frequent changes in government back in Mexico City. For the most part, the Mexican government preserved the traditional Spanish land system by offering ranchos to Mexican citizens who settled in Sierra. These people came to be known as *Californios* and exercised political autonomy to a great extent thanks to the Mexican government's inefficiency to collect taxes and the lack of enforcement of Mexican law across the vastly unincorporated territory. Local Mexican families grew powerful with their massive rancho estates and began to develop a strong desire to form their own country. During this time, American and British immigrants began moving in to Sierra *en masse*—often bringing along their families. They were greeted with hostility by the Mexican government which viewed the immigrants as squatters and intruders because many often came without being cleared by the government.

### e. Independence

From the 1820s, trappers and settlers from the United States and Canada began to arrive in Northern California. These new arrivals used the Siskiyou Trail, California Trail, Oregon Trail and Old Spanish Trail to cross the rugged mountains and harsh deserts in and surrounding Sierra. The early government of the newly independent Mexico was highly unstable, and in a reflection of this, from 1831 onwards, California (along with Deseret and Arizona) also experienced a series of armed disputes, both internal and with the central Mexican government. During this tumultuous political period Juan Bautista Alvarado was able to secure the governorship during 1836–1842. The military action which first brought Alvarado to power had momentarily declared California to be an independent state, and had been aided by Anglo-American residents of California, including Isaac Graham. In 1840, one hundred of those residents who did not have passports were arrested, leading to the Graham Affair, which was resolved in part with the intercession of Royal Navy officials.

#### War of 1846

On June 1846, American and British immigrant rebelled against the local Mexican government, about a month after the United States declared war on Mexico. The government restricted their right to buy or rent land because of their illegal status and threatened to expel them from the land. Prior to the war, Mexico became increasingly concerned with the possibility of war with the United States because of the immigrants and the concurrent crisis in Brazoria. When the war broke out, the Mexican government decided to deport all foreigners out of California or risk invoking deadly force. Emboldened by the war and deeply dissatisfied with Mexican administration, the Californios, who were now looking for a way to create their own country, decided to join their Anglo neighbors and declared a new independent country known as the "California Republic". The United Commonwealtgs government immediately recognized the California Republic and vowed to protect it from being subdued by the Mexican government. Many Americans viewed this as temporary and believed that by the war's end, the Californians would vote for annexation into the United States as Texas did. Indeed, California was highly sought for by both the American public and government who not only coveted the coastal lands and plains of California but were impressed upon with the ideas of manifest destiny. Similarly, the British government followed suit by entering the war with the hopes of legitimizing its stance in Western North America and to reaffirm its connection with overseas British settlers.

#### Californian Republic

Mexico, overwhelmed with two foreign powers engaging war over a largely inefficient province, abandoned active campaigning in California and left the loyalists to fight for Mexico. The Californians pushed their way down to the sparsely populated Baja California peninsula and declared the entire land to be Californian soil. The Mexican army attempted to reverse the effects of Californian advancement in the Siege of La Paz but suffered spectacular losses. After Mexico City fell to the American forces, California signed the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo as a victorious party. The California Republic received not only Mexico's recognition for independence, but was awarded the land it took in the Baja Californian peninsula and the additional land in the Great Basin and Sonora Desert as specified through the Mexican Cession. Under the same document, the California Republic agreed to relinquish its claim over the North-Eastern part of the Mexican Cession to the United States. Today, the ceded land includes the states of Utah, Colorado, and Wyoming.

In exchange for the gains, the Californian government agreed to pay Mexico a "grievance tribute" every year for the next 50 years. Fearing the possibility of a Mexican backlash in the near future and without financial resources, the California Republic granted the United States military unrestricted access thus rendering the Republic a protectorate. The British government offered additional support but was prevented due to the American *Monroe Doctrine*. Mexico, to poor and unstable to protect its northern claims, avoided what would have been a disastrous two-way war with the United Commonwealth, Britain, and the Californian rebels.

The California Republic continued to rely heavily on American support although asserted its independence by blatantly rejecting twelve instances where the United Commonwealths proposed annexation similarly to how it did to Texas. The American government honored each rejection and was able to continue exercising it rights to unrestricted movement within the Republic. The failed expectation of California joining the United Commonwealths angered Americans who believed the war was fought for the purposes of acquiring California. Only about one-fourth of the Mexican Cession was given to the Americans while the rest were given to the Californians. American interest in pressuring California to join persisted for years and many claim that had the sectional issue of slavery in America not been present, the American government may have forcibly annexed California with little resistance. The hypothetical addition of California would pose the problem of allowing it to become a free state or a slave state–an issue that was considered not worth the risk of fighting for.

## Geography

### a. Political Geography

Sierra sits in North America, which was the considered as the most political and economically influential continent in both the Old World, and the new world. The territories that Sierra controls over in the Americas was termed as *Metropolitan Sierra*. In its history, Metropolitan Sierra was a part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain (and then Mexico), as *Alta California*, *Baja California*, and *Nueva Mexicá*. Texas has also had compatible history with Sierra, as it was a part of the state of *Coahuilla y Tejas*, a lot smaller than what's modern-day Texas. After their successive "independence", both Sierra and Mexico were sandwiched between Mexico and the United States and their mercy and influence. Things have not really changed since the admission of Sierra into the commonwealth.

After the Californian Gold Rush, Sierra felt a sudden charge in influence of its neighbors, especially Texas and Mexico. However, after its wild burst of rays of the "New World Inventions" (hypothesized during the times of the Atlantic Union), it astoundingly became one of the innovative parts of the New World, just like Solomorssian Isles. Sierra's geography also helped support its influence; its coast and shores and harbors became one of the major Pacific trade routes, as Solomorssian Isles' Atlantic coast transformed into the Atlantic trade hub routes. Sierra's maximum potential of a strong navy also historically strengthened and improved exponentially, over the years, proclaiming its dominance over the Pacific. The former colonies of Vanuatu, Bougainville, and the South Mindanao Island were seceded to Sierran control as a compromise from Japan after its loss in WWII.

Sierra continued to hold onto its acquired possessions still in the present day. Independence movements have been seeking up in Overseas Sierra, but as of the modern era and day, they still remain under Sierran federacy, until in the future, if they secured their independence.

#### Metropolitan Sierra

Biogeographically entailing, Metropolitan Sierra, or "*Metrosierra*" sat in the Californian Bioregion, which is culturally, sociopolitically, and geographically the most influential areas in North America. *Metrosierra* bordered the United States to the North, but it was actually the Easternmost states of the United Commonwealths (Oregona and Idaho) that actually border the nation. It also bordered Texas to the East, but it is geologically separated from Texas due to the desert and mountains wedged in between the 2 nations. Metrosierra also borders Mexico to the South, which was also where the topmost dispute of the entire nation of Sierra, the Sierro-Mexican Dispute of Baja California, starts. This started back when Sierra was formed initially; the Mexicans claimed that the entire peninsula of Baja California was fully sovereign Mexican territory, but Sierra claimed that that the peninsula was co-sovereign Californian territory. To satisfy both sides, Mexico came up with a compromise which gave away the Northern portions of the peninsula as an unincorporated semi-co-sovereign part of California under Sierran rule; but Sierra still claims what's left of the peninsula, i.e. Baja California Sur, as a part of Sierran/Californian, and not Mexican, territory.

#### Overseas Sierra

Apart from continental North American territories and landmass that the nation ruled open, Sierra also has its federacy over other territories in the Pacific and Oceania. Such territories are politically known as "Overseas Sierra"—the territories include Vanuatu New Henrides, Bougainville, South Mindanao, Guam, and most notably Hawai'i.

**Vanuatu New Hebrides** is one of the unincorporated, organized territories of Sierra consisting of 83 islands (65 of which are inhabited) which are administratively divided into five parishes: Espiritu Santo, Pénot, Pentecôte, Vate, Torrès, and Yasur. Located in the South Pacific Ocean, Vanuatu New Hebrides was originally known as just Vanuatu and was colonized by Sierra in 1861 alongside the Gilbert and Ellice Islands. Vanuatu New Hebrides was administered as a part of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands until 1901 when the French-majority inhabitants and indigenous natives sought their own autonomous government. Its executive head is the Territorial Governor, overseen by the country's representative, the Lord Proprietor of Vanuatu New Hebrides, and its legislature is the bicameral Vanuatu New Hebridean Legislative Assembly. Heavily reliant on tourism and shipping, Vanuatu New Hebrides has been described as the "Sierra's Tropical Jewel". Since the 2000s, political groups in Vanuatu New Hebrides have pushed to change the status of the islands, leaning towards either constituent country-status, or provincehood. In 2003, 52% of Vanuatu New Hebrides' citizens voted to maintain the status quo of the territory's political status. However, voter turnout was lower than expected, and pressure advocacy groups called for another vote. Another referendum regarding the future of Vanuatu New Hebrides' status is scheduled to take place in October 2028.

The **Johnston Atoll** is another unincorporated territory of Sierra, administered by the Sierra California Fish and Wildlife Service (SCFWS). It is a National Wildlife Refuge and part of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. The atoll is closed to public entry, and limited access for management needs was only granted by Letter of Authorization from the Sierran Air Force and a Special Use Permit from the Sierra California Fish and Wildlife Service. Currently, it is a special unicorporated territory of the nation.

**Guam** is an organized, unincorporated territory of Sierra in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, and the most populous village is Dededo. It is the westernmost point and territory of Sierra, reckoned from the geographic center of Sierra. In Oceania, Guam is the largest and southernmost of the Mariana Islands and the largest island in Micronesian Archipelago. People born on Guam are Sierran citizens, but, while residing on the island, are politically disenfranchised, having no vote in Sierran presidential elections. Guam has no representation in the Sierran Senate, and Guamanians delegated to the Sierran House of Representatives had no vote on the floor.

#### Hawai'i

**Hawai'i** is a representative semi-presidential democracy organized as an unicorporated federal state of *Overseas* Sierra with 8 prefectures, while also having a government under the sovereignty of the government of Sierropotamia. Hawai'i has been under the Sierran sphere of control since at least the early 1860s when Sierran businessmen, merchants, and missionaries first began settling and living on the islands alongside the natives, and other foreigners. As Sierran dominance and influence grew, Sierra was poised to have Hawaii become a strategic trading ally in the Pacific. However, the Sierrans who had transplanted in Hawai'i and developed the islands' sugar plantation economy, desired to gain political power, who had been denied so by the native Hawai'ian monarchy. In order to gain traction, the white Sierrans organized together to apply pressure on the Hawaiian government, to concede privileges and rights onto them. Although the Hawai'ian government complied to the Sierrans' demands, these were deemed insufficient, and in a rebellion in 1865 ultimately forced the Hawai'ian monarchy to sign the Bayonet Constitution, a document that stripped the Hawaiian monarchy much of its powers.

When King Kamehameha V attempted to rewrite the Constitution, the Sierran elites deemed this as a threat and a conspiracy to overthrow the Hawai'ian government completely was formed and executed in the 1869 coup d'état. Establishing the Provisional Government of Hawai'i, the Sierrans stripped the natives of their rights and created a new legislature composed entirely of landowning white males to vote for annexation into Sierra. The Sierran government, which had supported imperialist projects in the past, faced international scrutiny when it negotiated the annexation with Hawai'i. In 1870, despite international concern, Sierra declared its acquisition of Hawai'i and created the Territory of Hawai'i. The rights of the natives would be restored gradually over the years, and the government of Hawaii was formally organized through the Organic Act of 1896. Hawaii would remain a territory until the 1950 Charter when it and the Deseret were elevated to constituent countries of equal status with Sierra. Having had been the site of the Pearl Harbor bombing, Sierran politicians believed that the Hawai'ians deserved their own autonomous nation, believing that the local populace understood the islands' needs more than those in San Sacramento. Currently, throughout the reigning legacy of Sierran governance, the new Hawai'ian government has adopted Sierra's federal system, and organized itself into 8 individual states.

## Politics

### a. Internal Politics

#### Military

The armed forces of Sierra are divided into five distinct branches (the Sierran Army, the Sierran Navy, the Sierran Air Force, the Sierran Marines, and the Sierran Coast Guard), all of which are collectively known as the Sierran Armed Forces (SAF). While members of the SAF swear loyalty and allegiance to the republic, and acts as "vassals" to the government military officials, those officials serves simply as the figurehead of the forces. True authority is vested within the prime minister who functions as the SAF's commander-in-chief (referred to as the *Supreme Field Marshal*). Daily management and operations of the SAF is managed by the Ministry of Defense which works in conjunction with the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a tribunal composed of Sierra's highest-ranking generals. There are two reserve forces that are not considered part of the SAF by *de jure* but nonetheless treated equally as a SAF branch: the Sierran National Guard (dedicated primarily to national defense and crisis response) and the Sierran Auxiliary Forces (civilians prepared to go into combat before the regular draft service whitelist in times of war). In 2013, the Sierran Ministry of Defense reported that 732,181 Sierrans were actively serving the military. Another 992,281 worked as civilian employees (excluding contractors) for the military and the government bodies associated with it.

Military conscription is voluntary, but conscription is possible in times of war through the Sierran Selective Service. Both male and female citizens between the ages of 21 and 45 are automatically registered into the Royal Selective Service's draft waiting list. Those with health complications, disabilities, obligations (*a mother raising her 2-year old child*), moral objections, or other factors preventing a citizen from fulfilling their military duty are dropped out from the list (and can receive blacklisting from future drafts) or receive other options instead of the default combat role (for conscientious objectors) such as a nurse or engineer.

The military budget of Sierra is heavily technology-oriented with an annual spending of $47.65 billion. Currently, the prime focus of military spending has been centered on aircraft, missile, and naval technology. Sierra also possesses nuclear weapons although it has signed the Non-Proliferation Treaty and maintains only an active stockpile of 135 active nuclear warheads. During World War II, the American military were allowed to use Sierran land to test nuclear weapons under the condition that it would share nuclear technology and information with Sierra.

## Demographics

### a. Population

The 2010 Sierra Royal Bureau of Census officially counted 79,910,929. On August 3, 2014, the Census estimated that 83,484,232 people were living in Sierra—an estimation consistent with the continual positive population growth Sierra has experienced in recent years. Sierra has had a history of immigration and has consistently grown upward since the Gold Rush of 1849. Sierra is the 17th most populous nation in the world ahead of nations such as the United Kingdom, France, and |Germania. It, alongside Brazoria, Hani, and the United Commonwealth, are the only industrialized nations projected to have continuous large population growth.

Sierra has a very diverse population with the largest ancestry being Mexican Sierrans (12 million), German Sierrans (10 million), English Sierrans (8 million), Chinese Sierrans (7 million), and Vietnamese Sierrans (6 million).

While the largest racial group in Sierra has always been White Sierrans (both those of Hispanic and non-Hispanic origin), it has seen a decline in proportion to other races. Asian Sierrans are the largest racial minority group with the four largest ethnic groups being Chinese Sierrans, Indochines Sierrans, Korean Sierrans, Filipino Sierrans, and Thai Sierrans. There are also significant population of Japanese Sierrans, Indian Sierrans, and Southeast Asian immigrants who claim part of the 26.8% minority (2010 census). Asians, alongside Hispanic Americans are the current demographic trend although such growth has been slowing down since as recently as 2009.

The main source of immigrants have consistently come from |Mexico and Central America (530,000 a year). From Asia, immigrants from the Phillipines, Indochina, and Siam make up the second highest traffic of annual immigrants (210,000 a year). Wealthy families and prospective students from China, Manchuria, Korea and Hindustan. have also continued in lieu of the domestic workforce to meet the ongoing demand for more jobs in technology, medicine, and science.

According to the University of Gold Coast, Porciúncula (UGCP), as much as 3 million Sierrans identify themselves as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender (LGBTQ+). The highest occurrence of LGBT Sierrans have been found in the province of San Francisco with 15% of the state identifying themselves as LGBTQ+.