History of Dundorf

Early History (BC 1000 - AD 801)
The modern Dundorfian language and ethnic group are thought to have developed from a single nomadic tribe in northern Artania known as the Durvin. The Durvin were broken into no less than six separate clans which possessed great autonomy. This tribe, along with numerous other tribes in the region, eventually developed a sedentary lifestyle and built a strong, yet decentralized, civilization.

The first Dundorfian culture began to spread throughout northern Artania before filling the vaccuum in the south created by the exit other tribes and ethnic groups from the invasion of the Tokundian peoples, the descendants of modern Deltaria. Here, it is firmly believed, the first Dundorfians settled amongst the mountains, forests, and valleys of modern Dundorf.

The Migration Era
Between the 600s and 400s BC, modern Dundorf's Grozvic region is thought to be the northernmost extent of the Tokundians. Here, the two groups intermixed both socially and culturally; with a few modern Dundorfian folk cultural activities directly borrowed from this time. Linguists firmly believe that the mixture of these two cultures created the hybridized language known as Dunedurven (named after an ancient ethnic Dundorfian village of the same name), which is the direct ancestor of modern Dundorfian.

As the Tokundian empire slowly began to retreat south towards Majatra, it is thought that some Dundorfians migrated with them. This movement is what is believed to have extended ethnic Dundorfian range into northern Ichredön (Ikradon).



Around 320 BC, a small number of ethnic Dundorfian tribes with newly acquired Tokundian weapon technology, culture and social influences expanded by migration and raid into modern Kirlawa and Rutania becoming permanent fixtures in these nations that has lasted to this day. It is the presence of these ethnic Dundorfians that would play a major role in the development of Dundorf as an ethnically homogenous nation-state.

For the next five centuries, from 200 BC to 200 AD, the area ethnic Dundorfians resided in remained relatively quiet. Evidence supports the idea that further migration of ethnic Dundorfians throughout the region continued and is it believed by the end of this period nearly half of modern Dundorf was settled. Evidence shows that during this same period the climate warmed slightly causing bumper crop harvests and a susequent increase in population. This population increase put pressure on the small areas of settled land. The excess population was siphoned off to the fill the ranks of Dundorfian raider groups, the venerable Feunodden (Old Ichredöne: "North Fire"; believed to derive from direction of and the torching of buildings by the raiders), which began the gradual invasion of modern Ichredön to the south.

The Ichredön Conquest
By 801 AD, a small number of Dundorfians had slowly overrun all of the rich kingdoms of modern-day Ichredön and had grafted themselves at the top of the existing social and political power structure. Mainland Ichredön was effectively under ethnic Dundorfian rule but curiously remained under ethnic Ichredön administration. As expected, during the next four centuries of occupation Dundorfians slowly adopted elements of Ichredön civilization in a more-or-less a la carte fashion, often changing ideas or technologies to fit their culture; the most prominent of which was the adoption of Catholic Christianity. However, Dundorfians showed little initiative in adopting the seafaring ways of the ethnic Ichredön groups on the coast of the Golf von Ichredön (Gulf of Ikradon). This failure in adaptation kept nearly all of Ichredön's overseas colonies free from invasion.

The First Confederation Era (AD 802 - AD 1278)
During the next two centuries the areas under ethnic Dundorfian control remained decentralized but stable. These areas were divided into small Fürstentümer (principalities), Herzogtümer (duchies) and Grafschaften (counties) each ruled by a noble family of higher or lower rank. These familes would come to be known as the Uradel or Old Nobility. Many prominent names such as von Eschenbach, von Kahr, and von Burchardinger stem from this era.

One of the adaptations from Ichredön society was governmental centralization. Traditional decentralization ended in 1057 with the creation of the Adel-Bündnis (Confederation of the Nobility). The Confederation was developed to better control the newly acquired Ichredön lands and to more adequately defend the areas under ethnic Dundorfian control.



This first Confederation was led by the Imperialer Kurfürsten-Rat (Imperial Elector Council) representing all Hochadel (High Nobles) from throughout the land. The Elector Council met very infrequently but still maintained the highest power in the land with the sole responsibility of electing the de jure head of the Dundorf Reich (Empire of Dundorf): Der König von Dundorf Reich und Ichredön. The Elector Council were originally summoned by the Catholic Archbishop of Oderveld within one month of an Emperor's death, and met within three months of being summoned to choose a successor.



The first King elected was Manfred II von Eschenbach, Großherzog von Grozvic as Manfred, König von Dundorf Reich und Ichredön (r. 1059-1064). The King held little real power but helped unify the Reich, organized defense, negotiated with foreign dignitaries and helped resolve disputes between the kingdom's nobility. Despite the advent of a King the Reich remained a strong adherrent of feudalism. Local autonomy was paramount on most matters of society and state and local nobolity retained nearly all of their previous powers.

The Loss of Ichredön
Over the nearly four centuries of ethnic Dundorfian control, Ichredön kings attempted to retake the country numerous times. The most notable incident was in 1267, when King Irkadonous III invaded the Gildark Erzherzogtum from his colonies with an enormous army. Ikradonous was met on the coast by an army led by a low nobleman, Graf Gerhard Joseph von Wittelsbach, and was soundly defeated. Von Wittelsbach was promoted and granted a Großherzogtum (Grand Duchy) by King Hans Otto III von Burchardinger, Prinz von Julstoch, König von Dundorf Reich und Ichredön (r. 1260-1275).

In 1272 Ikradonous returned again from the colonies with a small but powerful vanguard army and led the Ichredönen people in a general rebellion. On 26 February 1275, at the battle of Festung-Felsen (Fortress Felsen) Ikradonous defeated a Ritterdundorfe (Dundorfish Knights) army led by Graf Peter Sebastien von Rommel. Von Rommel's defeat not only relinquished ethnic Dundorfian control of Ichredön but it also caused the fall of the Haus von Burchardinger when King Hans Otto III was killed in a rearguard action at the river Ode a week later, leaving no surviving male heirs. Most ethnic Dundorfians settlers in Ichredön fled but those that stayed were the ancestors of the Dundorfian ethnic minority residing within the borders of Ichredön today.

The Collapse of the First Confederation
Soon after the loss of Ichredön, the Dundorf kingdom was beset by large numbers of ethnic Dundorfian refugees from the formerly conquered lands. The loss of lands, titles and the fear of possible Ichredönian invasion led to the breakdown of autonomous local order. More and more eyes were turned toward the King and the Imperial Elector Council.

In 1278, the King and Council called for a Großartiger Rat (Grand Council) of all noblemen, high and low, throughout the kingdom. This new Council met in November of the year to decide on steps to take regarding the refugee situation. The Council voted most of their powers of autonomy to centralized control under the Imperial Elector Council and the King.

The Autocratic Era (1279 - 1720)
From 1279 to 1519 the King and Council ruled the Dundorf Reich with varying degrees of loosening centralized control. A period of stability, cultural and economic growth developed throughout the kingdom but life in the countryside and small towns went on much the same as it always had. University towns, such as Chonstaat-am-Bingen (Chontaloia), Unterschloss (Oderveld), and Volzhaus (Julstoch) developed with help of the Catholic Church, thus increasing the intellectual and cultural importance of the kingdom.



In 1519, the tranquility of almost 200 years was shattered when a Dunlaker merchant named Gert von Tossel (Duntrekker: Van Tassel) and his family returned from Luthori with a new faith: Calvinism.

Formation of the Duntrekker Minority
As in most Land of Dundorf, the area around Dunlake was agriculturally-oriented but had its small proportion of wealthy merchants from the area's only large town: Nordenhaus. Gert van Tassel came from one of these wealthy merchant families.

While on an eight-year assignment in modern Luthori for the Hohe Handelszünft von Norden Haus (High Merchant Guild of Nordenhaus) van Tassel, as all merchants, moved throughout the merchant social circles of Luthori. It is within these circles that the van Tassel family is documented to have been baptized in the new Reformed Protestant faith.

In the latter part of his stay, van Tassel studied at a seminary and became an ordained minister. Upon the completion of his assignment in Luthori, he and his family travelled back to Dunlake, where he quickly gained converts and started the first Reformed Church in the small village of Treptow.

These initial converts quickly became pariahs to the majority Catholic noblemen and peasants throughout Dundorf. Religious discrimination, both official and unofficial, befell many small communities of Calvinists, soon termed Dunners by adherents. Because of this discrimination and persecution, Dunners soon came together in small communities for protection; often collecting on lands of Niederer Adel (lower nobles) who had themselves converted.

It was within these small communities, cut off from the rest of society, that the foundation of modern Duntrekker culture and language developed.

Tolerance and Persecution
In 1529, Gerhard I von Wittelsbach was elected King Gerhard I and brought in a wave of tolerance towards Dunners. Under the Protestierende Gesetze (Protestant Laws) of 1530, local noblemen were pressured to allow Dunners to worship freely under conditions that they do not attempt any further conversions of Catholic subjects. Within two years both nobles and peasants Dunners were given permanent lands in Dunlake and encouraged, sometimes violently, to migrate to them.

The reign of tolerance ended in 1534 with the death of Gerhard I. Trade and movement restrictions, forced conversion and general persecution by local lords quickly followed the coronation of Harold von Eschenbach, Großherzog von Grozvic as King Harold I. It was only a few years later that the "Great Pogrom" occured.

On Easter 1537, fueled by rumors of ritual murder and sexual pervesion, the Catholic subjects of Dunlake raided several of the autonomous Dunner communities bent on looting, and destroy property. However, the violence soon went out of control. It is documented that 24 Dunners were killed (many through torture) and an estimated dozen Dunner women, young and old, were raped. Early histories of the era often claim that local noblemen were directly responsible for ordering the pogrom but recent study has proven that the nobles were guilty only of turning a blind eye to the violence and persecution.

Many smaller pogroms and isolated acts of violence continued throughout the sixteenth century but became less and less common as more and more of the peasantry began to convert. By 1610, almost half of the peasantry of Dundorf classified themselves as Reformed Protestant, but conversion was by no means even. Dunlake, Oderveld and Julstoch regions gained the most converts while Chontaloia remained the most staunchly Catholic.

Full Protestant Conversion


Protestant conversion progressed steadily throughout the seventeenth century and was aided in 1655 by the foundation of Königliches Christliches Priesterseminar (Royal Christian Seminary). It was around this time that many noblemen began to convert. The most notable, was Graf Helmuth von Hohenstauffen in 1698. With the conversion of the Haus von Hohenstauffen, an influential family in the royal court, many of the other Uradel and lower noblemen felt compelled to follow suit with their own conversion. By 1705, Church documents show that exactly two-thirds of all noblemen in the kingdom were Calvinists.

The Catholics in the nation, facing eradication by conversion, struck back in January of 1700 in what came to be known as the Second Great Pogrom. This wave of violence struck the Dunners harder than others, since they were more isolated and perceived as more secretive of the Protestant groups. In this Pogrom, the numbers of dead reached nearly 3,000 and is considered the paramount cause of the Groote Duntrek or migration of thousands of Dunner families out of Dundorf and to various corners of the world including Saridan, Likatonia, Pontesi, and Malivia. This Duntrek lends its name to the modern ethnic Duntrekkers minority group found in Dundorf and other countries throughout Terra.

Despite the violent reaction of many Catholics, by 1718 around 88% of the populace had been baptized Protestant.



Collapse of the Autocratic Era
With the abundance of noble conversion and the Calvinist emphasis on localism the powers of the King were in steady decline. In 1718, most nobles simply retreated to their own lands, effectively ignoring the political and social power of the autocracy. It took two years of summoning but in 1720 the Elector Council finally met, only to eliminate the monarchy and then proceeded to vote itself out of existence in less than a day's time.

The Second Confederation Era (1735 - 1813)
Within only a decade the seed of a second confederation era was planted. In the period after the last Elector Council of 1720 much had changed within Dundorf to rekindle the ideas of confederation and eventual unification. The economy began to rely more on raw materials (iron ore, copper, coal), the manufacture of durable trade goods (furniture, especially clocks), and the trade of cereal grains (barley, wheat and potatoes) that on feudal self-sufficiency.

United Customs Union
In 1731, the Vereinigte Zünft der Kaufleute (United Guild of Merchants) of Dundorf met in Bergengruber, Oderveld to create a common internal customs system and end barriers that were hampering trade between the almost 200 small autonomous states. The Guild created the Vereinigte Zollverein (United Customs Union) to regulate trade and bring the economies of the separate states together.

This Customs Union, while loved by merchants, townspeople, and independent farmers, soon caught the wrath of many rural noblemen who felt it was jeopardizing their sovereignty. These complaints were spread by word of mouth in noble circles throughout Dundorf and in 1722 rural noblemen had officially organized against the customs union.

A rift formed between so-called Bürgerschaft (City Nobles) and the Rittergüter (rural nobles) over the union. A proposal developed between the Haus von Klings (city nobles) and the Haus von Hohenstauffen (rural nobles) to create the Älteres Gericht (Elder Court) to decide on the issue.

The Vereinigte Zollverein was taken to court and remained on "trial" for nearly a year before it was decided that its efforts at uniformity held greater benefits, both financial and cultural, for all noblemen and the common people than the current system of local sovereignty.

The verdict of the Court was imposed on all nobility as cities and towns began to grow with the increase of markets and capital. This shift in financial focus from land to capital, rural to urban, was a slow process but many saw the eventual change in political power.

The "Bürgers" began a rapid movement for more political integration (and many farsighted city noblemen may have foreseen even further political unification in the distant future) in the form of a second Confederation. By 1734, nobles had drawn up sides, almost based exclusively upon urban and rural lines, and began the long process of debate and negotiation for a new system of government.

Second Grand Council


The following year a Großartiger Rat (Grand Council) was called for the first time since 1278. The Council met for the same reason as the previous one: to form a confederation and elect a new monarch. In a break from the old confederation that had lasted for centuries, the nobles of this council chose to change the names of the institutions created.

The Imperiale Landtag (Imperial Diet) was created, replacing the older Imperial Elector Council. The Diet was much more institutional in nature. Only noblemen owning property or money equalling 5000 gold florins (roughly equating to 500,000 DUM as of 2000) were allowed to vote and run in designated provinces. The Council met annually for several months a year and further worked towards creating a unified economy and law system.

The new monarch was given the title Kaiser von Dundorf Reich (Emperor) but served much the same figurehead function as the previous "König von Dundorf Reich und Ichredön". On 1 January 1736 the first Kaiser-elect was the 29 year-old Friedrich Wilhelm II von Klings, Prinz von Julstoch who was crowned Christian I, Kaiser von Dundorf Reich.

From the election of the first Kaiser in 1736 until the year 1813, the Diet presided over an overwhelming series of rapid economic and cultural changes.The merchant, artisan and professional occupations were growing larger (but by no means large in numbers) and more powerful given their wealth and status in the cities. A tension grew between the traditional lords of the nobility and the new "lords of money" over taxation, representation in the Diet and ultimately over political power.

Despite these debates, events and issues, Dundorf was not truly a nation-state. It remained greatly decentralized as most politial powers still fell to local noblemen, while the Diet and Kaiser had very little real means of enforcing the laws they passed.

A series of further von Klings ruled as Kaiser, but, of course, did not govern Dundorf until the pivotal year of 1813 when the ideas of unification, centralization and nationalism became a unstoppable force throughout Dundorf.

Unification and Constitutional Monarchy (1813-1922)
"On the whole, great multinational empires are an institution of the past, of a time when material force was held high and the principle of nationality had not yet been recognized, because democracy had not been recognized."

- Klaus Bernhoff, Ph.D, Professor of Philosophy at Oderveld University

In 1813, a series of pamphlets were published professing the new ideas of nationalism, that would soon excite both the common and elite population of Dundorf. The most famous, and profound pamphlet was "Steigen von der Dundorfen Nation" ("Rise of the Dundorfian Nation") by Klaus Bernhoff, Professor of Philosophy at Oderveld University. In his pamphlet, Bernhoff spoke of the need to define a new nation dedicated to ethnic homogeneity and ultimately democracy, based upon ethnicity. However, Bernhoff did not specify nor define the ethnic characteristics of this new Dundorfian nation. Regardless of its small faults, his pamphlet sold nearly half a million copies and sparked a fierce debate in all circles regarding possible unification.

It was not until 1817 when Franz Wagener, an ethnic Dundorfian university student living in exile from Kirlawa, published his pamphlet "Der Alldundorfe Bewegung" ("The Pan-Dundorfian Movement") that strict defnitions of Dundorfian ethnicity and culture were determined. Franz Wagener wrote:

"We want to protect the eternal foundation of our life: our national identity and its inherent strengths and values ... Farmers, burghers, and workers must once and for all become one Dundorfian people."

The pamphlet outlined a movement of unification under the current Kaiser, who would no longer remain an elected office but would gain hereditary status while the powers of the Imperial Diet would be increased to that of a national parliament elected by universal manhood suffrage of those defined as ethnic Dundorfians. With this pamphlet and his other further works, Wagener became Dundorf's greatest author and the father of the idea for the modern Dundorf nation.

Wagener's ideas became popular in all classes of Dundorfian society. Workers, peasants and even wealthy merchants enjoyed the emphasis on universal manhood suffrage in the election of a national parliament. Nobles enjoyed the prominence of a national monarch and the future power implications of a future Imperial Court. All classes enjoyed the sense of belonging and exceptionalism emphasized by Dundorfian nationalism and destiny. Despite these feelings, Wagener's plans did not address the question of irredentism of ethnic Dundorfian regions of neighboring countries and this problem would plague the foundation of the new Dundorfian nation-state.

Unification
All classes of the Dundorf lands became interested in the new concept of nationalism and a movement was formed with the emphasis towards unification of all Dundorfians into a new nation-state. The movement was based closely on the ideas expressed in Franz Wagener's works and in 1820 was titled the "Der Alldundorfe Bewegung" ("The Pan-Dundorfian Movement"), or ADB, after Wagener's first and most prolific writing.





The head of the newly created ADB was Friedrich Wilhelm IV, Prince of Oderveld from the Haus von Hohenstauffen. As a prominent member of the Imperial Diet, Friedrich Wilhelm von Hohenstauffen was able to negotiate the help of other members in the organization's quest for unification of all ethnic Dundorfian lands. The ADB eventually became the largest of the informal factions within the Diet and was able to put great pressure on the Kaiser-Elects, the reigning symbols of Dundorfians everywhere. However, Friedrich Wilhelm became such a popular figure in and outside of the nobility that he became the de facto symbol of Dundorfian unity.

With the power of the ADB growing within the governments of all the major autonomous states of Dundorf, as well as in the confederal Diet, unification became a real factor and was finally put to a national audience on 8 June 1831, nearly fourteen years to the day of the publication of Wagener's "Der Alldundorfe Bewegung" pamphlet that had sparked true interest in unification.

The most powerful force aligned against unification was the inter-Diet faction led by Erzherzog Anton IX von Duisberg, Großherzog von Chontaloia. The faction held just enough seats to upset the unification process; as Diet procedure and tradition required a near unanimous 9/10 of the in-session members to support any all-encompassing legislation.

For two weeks the Diet debated as large nationalistic and pro-unification marches, sponsored by the ADB, were carried out in all major cities and numerous smaller pronvincial areas. Newspapers carried on their own debates as proponents and detractors tried to persuade the few undecided members of the public to support their respective positions.

The break in debate came on 21 June 1831 when several non-Diet members of the ADB broke into a pre-session meeting of von Duisberg's faction and susequently locked the four most prominent members, including von Duisberg himself, in the chamber until nearly noon before being overpowered and arrested by the Diet's internal security office.

Their absence gave the ADB membershin in the Diet the chance they had been waiting for and von Hohenstauffen himself stood up to voice the call for another vote on the measure around 10:30 am. The Diet subsequently voted but it was not until 11:45 am that the votes were tallied, giving the necessary numbers to pass the legislation. The normally reserved and proper Imperial Diet broke into loud celebration as the sound of the nationalistic anthem "Heil dir im Siegerkranz" ("Hail to Thee in Victor's Crown") filled the chamber.

That very day the issue was brought before Kaiser Christian VI who quickly agreed to the legislation and signed it at 4:12 pm in the afternoon. Unification was now a reality.

Constitutional Assembly
News of unification spread quickly and Dundorfians throughout the country celebrated with feasts and traditional dances and music. The 21 June came to be known as "Unification Day" and is still celebrated throughout the country as a commemoration of both the event and the culture of Dundorf.

After the celebrations had died down, the Diet proposed the election of a Verfassungsmäßige Versammlung (Constitutional Assembly) to create a new constitution for the nation. The Constitional Assembly's deputies would be a mixture of appointment and election.

It was agreed that the newly empowered Kaiser would appoint one-third of the deputies with the approval of the Diet. The nobles of Dundorf would elect from themselves another third of the delegates while the final third would be elected by the common people; common people of course referring to non-noblemen fulfilling the property qualifications.



The Assembly finally met in February of 1832 and began the process of writing a constitution. Several problems quickly plagued the Assembly:
 * 1) Several high and low noblemen, led by Großherzog Anton IX von Duisberg, refused to accept the legitimacy or jurisdiction of any constitution created and were arming themselves in the Grafschaft (County) of Grozvic.
 * 2) A questions arose over the size of the nation. Should the new ethnic Dundorfian country also include Dundorfians (Volksdundorfe) residing in lands technically outside the defined borders of the state?



Trennungskrise
The first piece of legislation decided upon by the Assembly, and with the blessing of the Kaiser, was the creation of a permanent united army, the Reichsheer Dundorf (Imperial Army of Dundorf) to force governmental authority over the breakaway Grafschaft. The conflict that followed came to known as the Trennungskrise (Breakaway Crisis).



As the Assembly debated and argued over the constitution, financing was gained from wealthy merchants and nobles for the new Reichsheer gained. The 10,000-man force began training under the command of Graf Kurt Augustus von Rommel. It was during training that the new national flag, the Kaiser Fahne (Kaiser Flag), was first unfirled for the new, national army to fight under.

The Reichsheer quickly moved against the army of von Duisburg and the other breakaway nobles. The armies met outside of Sudschloss-am-der-Czimnetz in Grozvic. The battle that ensued was short and bloody for both sides but was clearly won by the Reichsheer after the ancient wall defenses of the city were breached allowing the 1. Oderveld "Kaiser's Own" Grenadier Regiment to storm the city.

It took several months for the remaining breakaway nobles in their distant landholdings to capitulate and the situation to finally settle. It was during that time that the constitution, the so-called Kaiser Verfassung (Kaiser Constitution), was created on 20 August 1834.

Kaiser Verfassung
The Kaiser Constitution had several different branches with different powers:




 * The Kaiser
 * Hereditary Position
 * Appoint ministers and a personal Geheimer Rat (Privy Council) for advisory purposes
 * Represent the Dundorfian people at home and abroad
 * Conclude treaties with approval of the Reichstag
 * Declare war with approval of the Reichstag
 * Commander-in-Chief of the Reichsheer
 * Appoint the Reichsgeneralstab (Reichs General Staff)
 * Approved appointment of ministers
 * Power to veto and approved budgets and legislation
 * Power to call the election of a new Reichstag


 * Reichstag (Imperial Diet)
 * Parliament of Dundorfreich
 * Presided over by Reichskanzler (Chancellor of the Empire)
 * Elected by classes
 * Drei-Klassen-Wahlrecht (three class suffrage) system
 * Nobles always came out ahead
 * Equal representation of all major states (See: Diagram, right)
 * Propose budgets
 * Propose legislation


 * Reichsgerichtshof (Imperial Court)
 * Unify courts systems throughout nation-state
 * Judge issues between all states
 * Try national government officials

Kaiser Krise
However, many Assembly deputies felt the Kaiser was given too much power under this constitution. Ironically, the current Kaiser Christian VI, a known closet-autocrat, believed he was not given enough power; he especially did not like the Reichstag's power over his office concerining budgets, treaties and war. So Kaiser Christian VI rejected the constitution out of hand, much to the displeasure of the Assembly and the nation, sparking what would come to be known as the Kaiser Krise (Kaiser Crisis). On 3 September 1834 Christian VI presented himself before the Assembly to explain himself to his naysayers by giving a near-two hour speech on the rights and powers he, as a monarch with Gottesgnadentum (Divine right), should have been given:



"The powers of a monarch are as unquestionable on Terra as God's in the Heavens ... [i]t be not prudent for the present, nor future, Kaiser to bow his will to that of a selected group, given that he embodies the nation and all its asperations. The rights of kings to reign over all men is like that of the father to reign over the family. Dundorf, as other nations, is like a family with its patriarch at its head.  To forbid, through impudence, to present the Father with the proper authority during his reign can only spell disaster for any patriarch and, likewise, that of any family."

After the speech, the Assembly murmured quietly until Friedrich Wilhelm IV von Hohenstauffen, Prince of Oderveld stood up and spoke. Friedrich Wilhelm was greatly respected to both liberal and conservative minded Assemblymen. He was a widely known as a conservative and royalist but, with his training as a lawyer, was above all a staunch supporter of nobility rights. Having listened intently to the Kaiser, von Hohenstauffen quickly caught the illegality of his words. Freidrich Wilhelm spoke only one line but it would soon resound throughout Dundorfian and world history and turn him from a respected deputy into a God-like figure:

"It may be that the Kaiser reigns over Dundorf, my dear sir, but the Reichstag rules it."

The Assembly instantly understood the meaning and power of Friedrich Wilhelm's simple statement. The implication of the statement can easily be defined as "the legislature has always written the rules, and the monarch has always sat there and looked pretty". This statement roused the Assembly in a loud cheer and greatly embarrassed the Kaiser. Christian VI, embarrassed and at a loss for action, offered his resignation as a threat to the Assembly the next day. To his surprise, the Assembly, now serving as the de facto government, accepted and the last of the von Klings emperors stepped down in disgrace.

On 10 September 1834, the Assembly, acting somewhat out of its jurisdiction, elected the 63-year old Friedrich Wilhelm IV von Hohenstauffen, Fürst von Oderveld as the first Kaiser von Dundorfreich of the constitutional age. He was crowned on 15 September 1834 as Kaiser Wilhelm I von Dundorf Reich, or Dundorfer Kaiser.

The Reign of Kaiser Wilhelm I
The year 1834 was a watershed moment for Dundorf. It saw great political, social, and economic change. It was also the witness to the ascendency of one of the greatest figures in world history: the new Kaiser Wilhelm I.

Friedrich Wilhelm IV, Prince of Oderveld from the Haus von Hohenstauffen

Badarenprotektorat
In 1882, Dundorf founded the Badara Protectorate. The Sultan of Al'Badara acted as a puppet of Dundorf's government. This protectorate effectively collapsed in 1928, during Dundorf's civil war.

Editor's Notes: Badaran reform movement threatens sultan; same time Finance Minister Ludwig Grösner bought up millions of DUM bonds owed by Sultan who owed millions in excalating foreign debts, forced to have foreign Financial Controllers, began to default on payments, reform movement expanded, Sultan asks for foreign help but still owed money, Dundorf promised to cancel quarter of debt if Sultan accepted Dundorfian help and signed contract giving Dundorfian companies exclusive monopoly over lands.

First Dundorfian Civil War
In the 1920s, First Dundorfian Civil War broke out in Dundorf between Socialists and Capitalists.
 * socialists become aggressive, promoting militant trade unionism
 * enact reforms; government biased towards right, unions begin taking own control, no "rule of law"
 * capitalists/conservatives/monarchists/military/ rise in revolt
 * Kaiser stays neutral, unable to kill subjects
 * revolt put down after two years

Modern History
In the early 21st century, Dundorf was home to Kalistan's exiled House Ananto.

Dundorf hosted Dorvik's Sir James Chisem during his period in exile between 2038 and 2043.

In 2166, the International Greens held their conference in Dundorf. In 2183, the Dundorf Sovereignty Coalition was created for the purpose of ending the economic war against Dundorf.

Bareminstan Excursion
In 2262, Dundorf sent troops to Barmenistan to aid the Insurgent Tendency in their attempts at Aotearoan independence. They withdrew in 2270 after a major military defeat.

Recent History
In 2312, Adolph Dinkel of Dundorf was co-awarded the first Hero of Terra prize (with Lord Timothy Bunton of Dorvik) "[f]or founding and spearheading peace talks between the nations of Dorvik and Dundorf". This ended the hostile relations between the two nations that had been ongoing for a number of years.

During the 2320s, several Stalinist organizations, such as the KED, allowed the Deltarians to invade Dundorf. However, a staunch Right-Wing and moderate Left-Wing opposition never allowed the Deltarians to get the complete control (see Deltarian political invasion of Dundorf ). To this day, the Right-Wing never trusts the Left-Wing, especially during the recent Right-Wing rule in the 2360s, which just ended.

2330s Crisis
Starting in the 2330s, Dundorf gave aid to the Popular Militia led by Colonel 'X', the leftist forces in the Kirlawan Civil War. In March of 2335, Dundorf officially entered the war against the Fascist forces. After peace talks, Dundorf sponsored the nascent Democratic Republic of Kirlawa, the most leftist of the four nations making up divided Kirlawa. Many Dundorfian fighters fought for the DRK during both the first and second Kirlawan Civil Wars, in the 2330s and 2360s.

In 2335, the Senate building in Fairfax, Dorvik, burned down. Dundorfian interests were initally blamed, but this was never proven. Also in 2335, Dundorfian elements were accused of supporting six Socialist-linked bombings in Kundrati, famously detailed in the Spoletto Report.

In the late 2330s, rightist elements in Dundorf accused some DCMLU parties of being funded by Dundorf's socialists; these accusations led to the arrest and conviction of Green Freedom Party leader Tekno Kratt in 2339.

Recent History
Dundorf is thought to be the original location of the Dundorfian bird flu, which hit parts of Dorvik hard during the early 2360s.

In the mid 2360s, Dundorf was invaded by Rutania, who briefly unseated the Communist government. The invasion was a catalyst to the Second Dundorfian Civil War

In 2428 Dundorf was proclaimed a Kingdom with the crowning of Kovács Márton as König. König Márton's rule lasted 25 years until the election of 2453 saw a return to the republic.

In 2495 The First Church of Dundorf was established as the State Religion of Dundorf.

Early 2606 Constitutional crisis over government over Cabinet positions.