Duchenbourg

**Duchenbourg** (Duchenbourgish: *Duchenbourg*; Lungarian: *Duchenbourg*; Maldonian: *Duchenbourg*), officially the **High Kingdom of Duchenbourg** (Duchenbourgish: *Högtkongréte Duchenbourg*; Lungarian: *Högtkönigreich Duchenbourg*; Maldonian: *Haut-Deyume de Duchenbourg*), is a sovereign state located in Western Eurea, bordered by Heckerbrook to the north and northeast, Frankenland to the east, southeast, and south, Maldone to the west, and Porgium to the northwest. Its capital and most-populous city is Duchenbourg City, located on the center of the country. Duchenbourg has a population of about 767 thousand inhabitants.

Organized civilization first began in the territory of modern-Duchenbourg in the 6th-century, with various small city-states and kingdoms being established. In the 12th-century, the several small kingdoms, duchies, principalities, and city-states unified to form the High Kingdom of Duchenbourg. Through a treaty that unified the territories into a single national unit, an elective monarchy was established, the first of its kind. The High Kingdom resisted invasion from neighboring kingdoms due to its official policy of neutrality, which was adopted two decades after its foundation in the 12th-century.

Following its establishment, Duchenbourg first functioned as an absolute elective monarchy. While the Monarch had absolute power, it was an elected position. Serving for life, after the death of a Monarch, the heirs apparent of each noble family stood for election to become the successor, with voting-eligible citizens determining who the new Monarch was to be through a popular vote. In 1885, the absolute monarchy was struck down in favor of a constitutional monarchy, still using its elective system. The head of state is the Monarch, who holds only ceremonial powers. Although still an elected position, the Monarch has no term limits and serves for life. Their limited powers include officially appointing ministers, serving as the formal commander-in-chief of the armed forces, and vetoing legislation that they deem to be unconstitutional or otherwise "inappropriate," with no potential for a veto override. Most political power is vested in the Prime Minister, who is typically the leader of the governing coalition in parliament. The Prime Minister is the chief legislator of the nation, and is tasked with implementing their policy agenda and leading a council of ministers. The National Assembly is the 95-seat unicameral parliament of Duchenbourg.

Of its population of 767 thousand, approximately 71.5% identifies as ethnically Duchenbourgian. Duchenbourg has long been a bastion for immigration from neighboring nations; approximately 28.5% of the population comes from an immigrant background, often stemming from countries such as Ardwall, Dain, Escaria, Lungary, Maldone, and Porgium. There are three official languages of Duchenbourg: Duchenbourgish, Lungarian, and Maldonian; the former two are both Lungaric languages, while the latter of the three is a Proto-Regian language. Duchenbourgish is the primary native language of Duchenbourgians, and is commonly used in everyday speech and citizens' private lives; Lungarian is the language of the Duchenbourgian education system; Maldonian is commonly used in government business, international trade, Duchenbourgian media, and the entertainment industry. Officially, government officials may use any of the three languages, but Maldonian is by far the most common. Approximately 75.8% of Duchenbourgians cite Duchenbourgish as their native language, while 12.5% cite Maldonian, 3.4% cite Lungarian, and 8.3% cite other languages. However, about 94.8% of the population is proficient in all three languages, as proficiency must be demonstrated in all three in order to receive a secondary school diploma. Approximately 57.6% of the population identifies as Christian, – 30.9% adhering to Eurean Catholicism, 10.5% adhering to the Church of Lungary, 7.8% identifying as "non-denominational Christians," and 8.4% adhering to a different Christian church – while 0.9% adheres to a different religion and 41.5% identifies as atheist, agnostic, or irreligious. Weekly religious attendance is approximately 17.2%.