Coronation of Emperor Jonathan I

Several dignitaries visited the Imperial Residence today to attend the coronation of His Imperial Majesty Jonathan I as Emperor of Austenasia.

The Emperor with his guests – left to right: Premier James Puchowski of Landashir, Emperor Taeglan I Nihilus of Reyla, Emperor Jonathan I of Austenasia, Countess Eritoshi of Memphis, Air Chief Marshal Sir Micheal Mitchell.

Jonathan I, who ascended to the Throne after the abdication of Declan I last month, crowned himself in his capacity as Founder of Austenasia with the Imperial Diadem on the spot from which he sent the Declaration of Independence via e-mail in September 2008. The guests present were Emperor Taeglan I Nihilus of Reyla, Premier James Puchowski of Landashir, Countess Eritoshi of Memphis, and Air Chief Marshal Sir Micheal Mitchell the head of the Imperial Air Force.

Declan I had been invited but was unable to attend due to illness. Acting Prime Minister Lord Marshal William was also unable to attend due to having made prior commitments.

A photographer from local newspaper the Sutton Guardian took photographs and video of the guests and the preparations for the coronation and recorded the ceremony, which began at roughly 11:45. The coronation ceremony was based on the guidelines laid out in the 2011 Constitution and the precedent set by the 2009 coronation of Emperor Terry I (now Emperor Father), with influences from the coronations of the British and Russian monarchs.

The ceremony began with Jonathan I – wearing the Imperial Robes and Imperial Chain – being seated on a chair on the exact spot where Terry I was crowned and from where the Declaration of Independence was sent. He swore an oath to rule fairly and wisely, defend Austenasia and its people, and to uphold and abide by the law. He was then annointed with holy oil before being handed the Imperial Sceptre by Countess Eritoshi, who helped to officiate as Leader of Ceremonies.

With the words “as Founder I crown myself, Imperator Caesar Jonathan Augustus, Emperor of Austenasia”, Jonathan I then placed the Imperial Diadem on his head to shouts of “Vivat Imperator” as those present bowed and saluted before the Austenasian national anthem was played.

After the ceremony, Jonathan I and Taeglan I signed the Treaty of Wrythe, in which both emperors formally gave recognition of each other’s full imperial rank while agreeing that either of them addressing another as “Emperor” would not constitute recognition of imperial rank under the Carshaltonian political doctrine of Imperium without the consent of the other, and reaffirmed an earlier treaty of friendship between the two states.

The ceremony over, Emperor Father Terry took photographs of the Emperor and his guests before joining them at the Racehorse, a pub in Carshalton, for lunch. There followed a quick visit to the (very) nearby Wessaxon constituent country of Orly and a brief (and unplanned) meeting with Lord Marshal William’s father before Taeglan I and Premier Puchowski departed.

The Emperor, his father, the Countess and Air Chief Marshal returned to the Imperial Residence, with the Air Chief Marshal and then the Countess also departing after a few hours of socialising with the Emperor and his sister Crown Princess Caroline.

The Sutton Guardian will most likely be publishing an article on the coronation on Thursday 28th February, once more bringing Austenasia to the attention of thousands of local Britons. This will be the third time the Empire has been featured in said paper, which ran articles on Austenasia in January 2009 and September 2011.

An album of photographs taken at the coronation can be seen by following this link.

South American territory joins the Empire

The Governing Commissioner’s residence in Axvalley.

Austenasia has annexed Axvalley, a nine hectare farm, as its second Crown Dependency.

Axvalley – which is bordered on all sides by Brazil – has a population of seven and is by far the largest Austenasian territory. Its founder, Rubens Machado, was appointed a Commander of the Austenasian Order earlier today moments before an Imperial Decree was passed annexing the new territory.

Machado has been appointed Governing Commissioner of Axvalley. As a Crown Dependency, Axvalley is under Austenasian sovereignty with its population considered Austenasian residents, but they do not hold the status of subjects and Austenasian law does not apply unless explicitly stated in the legislation that it does so. The Emperor holds absolute power over Axvalley, with his authority being exercised by the Governing Commissioner.

Not only is this the first time since December 2010 that the Austenasian population has increased, but the Empire now controls over a million square feet – a far cry from the estimated 3,500 sq feet of Austenasian territory held less than a month ago.

Observation balloon successfully launched

Britons living in the United Kingdom around the Austenasian capital of Wrythe had a strange sight early this afternoon as a large bunch of balloons went floating over their gardens with a camera phone attached.

A still from footage taken by the Ascension. Wrythe is the fourth house from the left.

His Imperial Majesty’s Observation Balloon (HIMOB) Ascension was launched by the Emperor and Crown Princess Caroline from the back patio of the Imperial Residence. Constructed by attaching helium balloons to a camera phone, the Ascension had fishing line tied to the balloons with which to guide the craft and pull it back to the ground.

The launch, codenamed Operation Roy in honour of the late Prince of Sealand who passed away last year, is the first time that the Empire of Austenasia has constructed and launched any form of aircraft. Developed by the Austenasian Army (with the Emperor overseeing the launch in his capacity as Dux Britanniarum), the designs of the Ascension and a report on Operation Roy will be given to the Imperial Air Force later this week, with an intention for more sophisticated craft to be built in the future.

 

The Ascension rose far into the air before drifting north due to wind, recording an aerial view of not only Wrythe but several nearby British residences. The fishing line used to guide it got caught around a chimney for some minutes, but the craft floated back around it and was able to be reeled in and the recorded footage uploaded.

 

A film of the launch of the Ascension can be seen here. Readers who suffer from vertigo or related conditions are warned that the footage is jerky and the camera rotates several times due to the way in which it was attached to the balloons.

Jonathan I announces start of filming on Cool Barbie VIII

I’m very pleased to announce that filming is currently underway for Cool Barbie VIII. I’m hoping this will be a huge success, the best episode yet since IV. I’ve understood from reviews that episodes V and VII are generally people’s least favourite (on the basis of plotlines – the less said about the horrendous effects of episode I the better), and I think that may be because they are very much “stand-alone” episodes. Cool Barbie V shows Corporal Barbie joining Spectrum, and Cool Barbie VII does tie in with the ongoing story arc of Colin, but you don’t need to watch any of V other than the opening scene to understand how VI follows on from IV, and you won’t need to watch episode number VII to understand VIII, it’ll effectively continue straight on from the end of VI. Episode VII just prolongs the storyline, building a bit of tension for the drama of VIII.

And it will be dramatic. Two old enemies will return at the same time and bring with them a new one. The ending, too, will be very surprising, although I really can’t give any clues as to what happens. This was originally going to be a two-parter, but I eventually dropped this idea simply because it would take so much time and effort to create the masterpiece originally planned. I’m talking about something maybe as long as forty minutes, with pyrotechnics and CGI required – while it would have been a great achievement to create, the story has been condensed into a single episode with few scenes demanding amazing special effects, just so that this film can be realistically made some time this year. Those of you wanting stories with more than one episode needn’t be disappointed, though, as a tetralogy will follow VIII with a trilogy as a finale afterwards.

That being said, VIII will still be a brilliant film. This story has been in the works – believe it or not – since December 2008, when the ATP scripts were first being drafted. It’s been edited quite a bit since then, but it’s great to know that this story will finally be told.

ICJA

Cheam, 7 February 2013