What's Up Wednesday (2015 Syldavian Electorate Meeting)

The recently restored throne room of Ploch Palace in Syldavia could finally be put to official use for the first time since the restoration of the monarchy. Reichenthal craftsmen took several years to restore the neglected splendour of the very intricately decorated room to its former glory. The central feature of the room is obviously the throne presiding over a silver overlaid round table seen below.

The throne room served in its first Syldavian Electorate meeting this year, albeit it the third meeting of its kind in the history of the newly reestablished monarchy. From this year onward the room and the annual Electorate Meeting will be seen as the very heart of the Kingdom of Syldavia.

In the above picture we see the Crown of Syldavia, symbol of the monarchy present upon the round table.

The yearly Electorate Meeting gathers the Heads of the Five Noble Families in one room to officially open the national year and establish its plans and budgets and also to vote in and officiate policy. The meeting is very similar to an "Opening of Parliament" as in other monarchies except that in Syldavia, the King is seen as part of the 5-fold collective and not as an individual acting solely in his own person.

Their Majesties the King and Queen of Syldavia and the Count Von Bismarck represent the currently elected Royal Family.

The monarch of Syldavia is elected from the heads of 5 electorate families. He/she then serves for life followed by another election. Above we see the other four Electors along with the Royal Family gathered in the throne room.

King Nikolas III of Syldavia.

Queen Maxima was present as an observer...

along with the King's brother who officially represents the Von Bismarck Family.

The Countess of Bo'hemia more popularly known as the famous fashion designer, Madame Frumsetta, is one of the Electors.

The Grand Duke of Reichenthal, formerly King of Reichenthal, represents his now mediatized region of Reichenthal as an Elector.

The Grand Duke of Serbieski, another former Kingdom  is the fourth Elector at the council..

Finally we get a rare glimpse of a Royal who does not frequent the lime light. Princess Victoria Von Thurn und Taxis, the last Elector.

Even though the Electorate Meeting is an official and working meeting it also serves a ceremonial function requiring formal dress and tiaras. We hope at least the sparkle makes this seemingly mundane event more fun to watch.

What's Up Wednesday (Normandian State Visit to Syldavia)

Queen Gloria of Normandia has just completed a three day state visit to the Kingdom of Syldavia. Her Majesty has not partaken of a State Visit for a while and felt it long overdue to focus some media attention on her country and Syldavia. This event puts 2015 now in full swing as Royal routines and duties start catching momentum.

For the State Banquet on the first evening of the three day tour, Queen Gloria was entertained by the reigning King and Queen of Syldavia. Formal dress and tiaras were worn as per protocol.

Queen Gloria posed for official portraits with her Syldavian counterpart King Nikolas.

Queen Maximal looked very stately in official Royal jewels and Order of the Syldav Cross Insignia.

Queen Gloria opted for very down toned aquamarine jewellery paired with her velvet dress and Order of the Lake Insignia. The main purpose of the State Visist was to strengthen diplomatic ties for the new year and to also give both countries a media boost after last year's focus being mainly on the Arcwhite Crisis. 

Breaking News (Serbieski Power Plant Bombers Apprehended)

Shocking revelations have come to the fore and are going viral as we speak around the globe. The confessions of Frantisek Voorheest to the Mithrandir just before his execution a week ago has led to the arrest of the bombers of the Arc International Power Station in Serbieski. The bombing that took place in March 2013 caused severe tensions in the politically precarious region on the Wallachian border of Syldavia. Political dissidents have plagues that region and indeed the Syldavian stability since the 1997 Syldavian civil war that resulted from the Bloody Revolution in Scot-Britania. Intense investigations into the bombing brought forth very little evidence but suspicions have now been confirmed by Mr. Voorheest's confession.  

The Arc International Power Plant is a constant controversy in its own right as it has brought much needed power and infrastructure to an impoverished region of Serbieski. However its impact on the surrounding natural environment and its groundbreaking technology still raises many serious concerns. 

The bombing was at first believed to have been motivated by fanatic environmentalist but was soon proven to rather be motivated by political dissidents with strong anti-monarchist agendas. Serbieski has a very deeply ingrained nationalist history and its mediatized inclusion in the greater Syldavia remains difficult to this day. The return in Septemeber this year of the Serbieski Crown Jewels however has placated the region's proud people.

Frantisek Voorheest, the executed assassin that killed Empress Crystobel in 2013 on her official visit to Britania admitted to the Mithrandir minutes before his beheading that he was part of an underground political move bent on eradicating all form of monarchy in Europa. He shared information about the bombing in Serbieski that only an insider could know adding lost puzzle pieces to the investigation.

This information has lead to the arrest of a several people linked to the bombing and proves that it was financed by the theft of the Duke of Swann's emeralds as was also suspected. There statements also now add even more evidence to the mix. A golden thread can now be drawn from the theft of the emeralds to the bombing and assassination of the Empress. This has obviously also led to a few new questions and implicates a few new suspects. However much of this is still classified as it seems more has been uncovered than the authorities could have imagined and if links to the 1996 Revolution are implied then this has international repercussions on the level of war.

Wonderful Weekend (State Portrait of Serbieski)

Riding the popular wave of  the return of the Crown Jewels of Serbieski to their homeland the Grand Duke of Serbieski and his wife released a set of official State Portraits. 

Here we see their Grand Ducal Highnesses posed before the Serbieski mascot of the Lion and the Lamb inside the Grand Ducal Palace in Karadjorge. The portrait also features the Crest of the Grand Duchy of Serbieski in the top left. The Grand Duke is wearing the sash and badge of the Order of the Syldav Cross and his Chain of Office while Grand Duchess Davina is wearing her family heirloom tiara. 

Grand Duchess Davina wears the earring and necklace of the Grand Duchess Consort that were part of the collection of historic Crown jewels thought lost and now returned to Serbieski after their discovery in a secret vault in Reichenthal this year. the jewellery is made of fine gold and set with emeralds, amethysts and diamonds.

His Grand Ducal Highness, Grand Duke Paul Karageorgevich of Serbieski poses with the Relic Crown of Serbieski. This historic moment marks a turning point in the history of the region, greater Syldavia and all of Europa.

Memory Monday (The Reichenthal Secret Vault)

 Apart from the return of the Crown Prince Imperial to Scotney and Britania (to be reported in detail next week), the most exciting news to happen over the last month or so was the very unexpected discovery of a secret, walled up room in the Castle of Reichenthal. This entirely unknown room was a surprise even to the Grand Duke of Reichenthal who grew up in the castle. The story has since gone viral as upon breaking open the room it revealed the largest single historic treasure ever documented. In today's post we finally report on this most dazzling story. 

It was early June in the small province of Reichenthal in the Kingdom of Syldavia.

The "magical" Castle of Reichenthal, official residence to the Elector Grand Duke Lothair and his family, was unexpectedly going to reveal what has become the most spectacular discovery of our age in the form of a treasure horde thought lost to history forever. Little did this peaceful and almost quaint region expect to be the epicenter of such a internationally pivotal twist in history. 

The Castle of Reichenthal is a veritable maze of halls, rooms, corridors and even secret passages and hidden vaults. It is also a very old castle with some parts dating back to over a 1000 years. It is understandable that maintenance and repairs pose a huge challenge as even plans of the castle are for some parts at best, speculation. Thus in a less used part of the castle a maintenance worker doing routine sonar scans  following plumbing in need of repair unexpectedly discovered a hidden walled up room. Upon the Grand Duke's orders the wall was breached to reveal an unimaginable treasure.

For the sake of historic account and possible legal logistics, the Grand Duke wisely called in an expert to witness the entering of the room and to also take meticulous account of its content, its value and historical connections. Princess Augusta, high profile Royal and world renowned antiques dealer was the perfect lady for the job and jumped to the opportunity to assist. 

The Grand Duke, as owner of the castle and legal custodian of the discovery under international law was the first to enter the room through the wall. 

Upon first glance it is clear that the treasure is of immense size and intrinsic value but far more important historical value. It seemed by virtue of the hasty masonry and some of the immediately recognizable artifacts that the treasure was stored during the time of the outbreak of the 96 Revolution in order to protect some of the artistic and historic treasures of Europa and even to hide some of the politically volatile pieces. Reichenthal has for centuries been the artisan capital of Europa and has been responsible over generations for the manufacture and repair of many of its historic artwork. As such at any given time pieces in the process of manufacture or maintenance was present in the Reichenthal workshops and during the advent of the Revolution may have been transported to safety in order to protect them from revolutionary destruction. This seems to be the case in point of this room and also the fact of its secrecy. Over a generation all memory was lost and it seems to be the fortune of this generation to have discovered it again.

One of the main features in the room is the solid oak throne with the very obvious insignia of the Three Headed Eagle of the United Empire of Scot-Britania. The throne was especially made for the coronation of Emperor Christian and Empress Crystobel in 1993 and must have been back in Reichenthal for basic maintenance at the time of the revolution. It is a discovery of vast historical impact and serves to accurately prove when the treasure room was sealed. An artifact such as the throne was at extreme risk of destruction during the time of the revolution in Scot-Britania and the consecutive civil war in Syldavia.  

It is clear from the state of the room that its content was hastily stored and walled in. Some chests were not even closed and reveals solid gold bullion and jewellery. 

This particular crown was recognized by the Grand Duke from his history lessons as being from the Reichenthalian Crown Jewel Collection and was thought lost during the Syldavian civil war that was sparked by the 96 Revolution. 

The room also contained art work such as this illuminated manuscript in calligraphy seemingly meant for the Duke of Swann.

A very large statuette of a peacock emblazoned with Venetian glass rhinestones stands as testament of Reichenthalian artwork at its finest. 

One of the many chests revealed a lapidary masterpiece in the form of a crystal swan. 

The swan being the symbol of the Dukes of Swann and a document of its commission and payment proves it as being the property of Swann and thus will be returned to its owner. 

A big part of the treasure is tantamount to bullion in the form of solid silver cutlery and goblets of no particular artistic or historic value. 

Vast amounts of solid silver plate and gold plate along with some rare Chinois crockery can be seen gathered together in this photo. 

The chests filled with jewellery are gathered for proper accounting and separate documentation and their content will be reported in a Tiara and Trinkets Tuesday of its own. 

This close up photo of the most historic and controversial part of the treasure, the Imperial Throne of Scot-Britania shows the awesome craftsmanship. It also raises the question of its now surely appreciated return to its homeland amidst all the current developments surrounding Royal popularity in Britania and Scotney.


The discovery of the treasure room and all its content is very exciting and seems to be provedence as a lost era is reconstructed before our eyes. Every single object is impossible to record on this blog but the jewellery will be documented. Other pieces of note will obviously be mentioned if and when they feature in future posts. We hope all our Royal fans enjoyed this post as much as we did here in the Duke of Swann's media office.

Wonderful Weekends (New State Portrait of Queen Maxima of Syldavia)

For this Easter weekend we though to post a double portion of State portraits. The Kingdom of Syldavia has released a new set of State Portraits of their Queen Consort. 

The portrait shows the wife of King Nikolas III, Queen Maxima wearing a national treasure in the form of Queen Ingrid of Syldavia's diamond tiara. She also wears her new emeralds and the green sash and badge of the Order of the Syldav Cross. 

The Queen also poses with the Consort Queen's Crown. These portraits boost the glamour and historic connection of the newly restored monarchy with their people. 

Tiaras and Trinkets on Tuesday (Crown Jewels of the World)

A list of all the existing Major Crown Jewels in the world will give all our fans a sense of the grandeur of the historic collections being preserved in the greater Europa. Our list will only focus on the main Crown Regalia and not the entire collections of each country.

The nationally symbolic Crown Jewels of Syldavia consist of a King's Crown and Queen's Crown.

The Kingdom or Normandia only has a Crown for the monarch be it a King or a Queen. In the case of a King, his wife would wear the Queen Consort's Tiara.

Hispania also only employs a single Crown as the preeminent part of its historic Crown Jewels.

The Principality of Swann has a Crown, Orb and Scepter as its Royal symbols.

The Principality of Wallachia has a Crown for the reigning Prince that is rarely worn. There is a smaller Crown for a Consort which is a veritable copy of the main Crown.

The Grand Duchy of Hanoveria does not place a lot of symbolic value on the concept of Crowns. A Crown does exist and is depicted on Crests and official symbols of state.

The Islands of Arcwhite do not employ symbolic Crown Jewels per sé but they do have this Medieval Headpiece that is one of the oldest diadems in all of Europa and is worn during event of high formality in Arcwhite. 

The major element of the Monagask Crown Jewels would be this almost 2000 year old golden wreath.

Fulco D'Este, although a modern democracy that has ousted its monarchy, has retained its national symbols of which this Crown is the main feature. The Crown is made of iron and is symbolic more of the people of Fulco D'Este's independence than the former monarchs.

This Crown, along with it's female counterpart is all that remains of the spectacular Ruskian Crown Jewel Collection. It is being displayed in the Ruskian capital after its rediscovery almost 70 years after it was thought lost.

The old Empire of Perlistan used this Crown as the greatest symbol of its monarchy. An Empress' Crown, Emerald Parure and a Scepter completed the official Crown Jewels Collection. 

The Electorate Grand Duchy of Reichenthal was once a Kingdom with a complete Crown Jewel Collection. The Crown of Reichenthal is all that seemingly remains of that former collection. 

There is no greater or more spectacular Crown jewel Collection than that of the United Empire of Scot-Britania. The main elements of the collection can be seen above and was saved the destruction of the 1996 Revolution through the foresight of Empress Crystobel.

Many collections like those of  Franconia and Britania faced documented destruction and some disappeared into the recesses of history. Who knows, this list may be added to in future.