Swania

This article on alternate history is redacted by Mazovian Mapping. Please ask him before making relevant edits.

Republic of Swania
Repubblica SuanianaIT Res publica SuanicaLTN
April 19th, 1502 – Present
Coat of arms Flag Coat of arms
Map of Mediterranean Sea
Capital		Palermo
Languages		Italian, Latein
Recognised regional languages		Sardinian, Maltese
Ethnic groups		87.8% Swanian 5.6% Sardinian 3.5% Maltese 3.1% Others
Religion		Catholicism, Orthodoxy
Government		Unitary parliamentary constitutional republic
History
-	Independence from Aragon	1502
-	London Conference	1832
-	Union with Malta	1971
Population
-	2019	13.23 mln
Currency		Swanian lira
Time zone		UTC +1 (West) UTC +2 (East)
Internet TLD		.sn (Swania)

Swania is Mazovian Mapping's secondary nation.

Swania, officially the Republic of Swania is a country in Southern Europe, situated along Mediterranean Sea. Bordered by Italy to the west and Greece to the east. With a population of over 13 million people, Swania is the 75th most populous country in the world and the 11th most populous country in Europe. Swania is a republic divided into 8 administrative subdivisions (regions). Member of NATO and European Union.

History

Byzantine Italia

In early Medieval Era, Byzantine Empire conquered South Italian regions of Puglia and Calabria, as well as the Isle of Sicily. New regions quickly became a target of massive immigration from the whole empire. People seek new opportunities to gain wealth, as well as create a new subculture on the peninsula. They were called the Swans by other nations in Europe and seen as peaceful and kind.

So-called Swania was endangered mostly by Normans. After their defeat in Battle of Cannae, they weren't seen as much of a threat anymore. The region was also unsuccessfully invaded by the Arabs. As centuries passed, Byzantine Italia became more and more developed. New Constantinople (Messina) was establised as regional trade centre.

After fall of Constantinople in 1453 and death of Constantine XI Palaiologos, Swania was the last free Byzantine region. Due to its relative wekaness, Swania was influenced and then annexed by Aragon. New king - Alfonso V of Aragon - was crowned in New Constantinople.

Aragonese Dynasty

After annexation of Swania, Aragon expanded north into Naples. Several wars with France were fought over the region. In 1502, during one of the Franco-Spanish Wars, Swania proclaimed its independence and formed a Republic based on Venetian model. Capital was moved to Palermo, and New Constantinople was renamed.

Venetian ties

Swania formed a strong trade alliance with Venice, which also strengthened military connection between the two countries. This was the key to secure Swanian independence after decades of Spanish occupation. Over next centuries the country significantly developed itself and became one of the key players on the peninsula. Both Italian and Latein were considered official languages.

Swania was mostly neutral during the next couple centuries. It didn't gain any lands and fought very few wars, mostly on behalf of Venice. The country also improved its relations with the Pope, which was very prestigious in the era.

Alliance with Venice was weakened in late 18th century. With Papal support, the country announced its full neutrality in 1797, after Austrian annexation of Venice.

Proposed flag of the Swanian Union, adapted as the COA

Reconquest of Greece

As anti-Ottoman movements were rising in Greece, it was more than certain the independence war will break out. Some of the most important Greek activists were invited to Palermo to discuss Swanian assistance in the war. At last both sides agreeded on forming a new union, a successor of the Byzantine Empire.

In 1821 first battles took place all over Greece. Swania officially joined the war, supported by France, United Kingdom and the Russian Empire. In the first stages of the uprising, various areas elected their own regional governing councils. These were replaced by a Greco-Swanian central administration in early 1822, which also adopted the first Constitution.

By 1827 the Greek revolution had almost been extinguished on the mainland. The Great Powers had agreed to form an autonomous Greek state under Ottoman suzerainty, betraying Swania. Ottoman refusal to accept these terms led to the Battle of Navarino, which effectively secured forming of the Swanian Union.

Battle of Navarino

Swanian rule in Greece was considered unsuccessful and, as most of Greeks believed, led to another occupation. New Greek government was formed in Nafplio, however it was unrecognized by Palermo. London Conference of 1832 established new borders in the area. Swania gained historically connected regions of Arcadia and Isle of Crete. Kingdom of Greece was established with the Bavarian Prince Otto of Wittelsbach as king.

In following years Swanian lands in Greece were largely latinised, making Latein the official language in the area. Massive migration era has began, with thousand of Greeks leaving the area.

Menichini enters Naples

Risorgimento

In 1860, Giuseppe Garibaldi conquered Kingdom of Naples, just to the north of Swania. Great Powers were determined to solve the crisis peacefully, as both Italy and Swania were allied to the United Kingdom and France. Turin Conference was held in 1862, guaranteeing independence and restoration of neutrality of Swania.

Modern history

Swania remained neutral during both Balkan Wars and World War I. There were several plans of Axis invasion during World War II, however they were cancelled after unsuccessful invasion of Greece in 1941.

After the war, Swania strenghthened its ties with the West, by joining NATO in 1952, and then European Economic Community in 1981.

On September 24th, 1967 Malta held a referendum about joining Swania as an autonomous region after separation for the United Kingdom. Over 76% of Maltan people voted in favour. On January 1st, 1971 Malta officially became a part of Republic of Swania.

Geography

Mediterranean Sea

Swania is located in the Mediterranean region of Europe between latitudes 35° and 41° N and longitudes 8° and 26° E. Most of its territories are situated on large islands, including Sardinia, Sicily and Crete. The country also controlls southern Appenine Peninsula and Peloponnese.

The Swanian landscape is mostly associated with the sea, however the country also owns territiories with mountainous nature, with the highest point of Mount Etna (3,326 m), just outside Metropolitan City of Catania. Swania is located in area of pleasant Mediterranean climate with warm, dry summers and cool, mild winters.

Politics

Mapperdonian Relations

Swania is allied to Mapperdonian nations of Aneto, Balkavi, Orkojin, Tavakareluu and Biscasia. The nation also keeps close ties with Mazoverse nations, including Kingdom of Inkami and Nortminhia.

Administrative divisions

Swania is mainly located on the Isle of Sicily and southern Italy. It has some lands in Peloponnese and Crete. The country is divided into eight administrative divisions - states.

Regions of Swania

Name	Capital	Map
Sardegna	Cagliari	File:Flag of Region of Sicily (Swania).png Sicilia Sardegna Crete File:Flag of Region of Peloponnese (Swania).png Nova Suania Tsakonia Basilicata Calabria Palazzo Malta Puglia Salento
Sicily	Palermo
Calabria	Catanzaro
Basilicata	Matera
Puglia	Bari
Malta	Valletta
Arcadia	Tripoli
Crete	Heraklion

Demographics

Urban areas

Palermo Bari Catania	No.	Name	State	Population	Area	Density
	1.	Palermo	Sicilia	677 405	158 km²	4287/km²
	2.	Bari	Puglia	320 862	116.2 km²	2761/km²
	3.	Catania	Sicilia	311 584	180 km²	1731/km²
	4.	Messina	Sicilia	232 555	211.7 km²	1099/km²
	5.	Taranto	Puglia	196 702	209.8 km²	938/km²
	6.	Reggio di Calabria	Calabria	180 396	236 km²	764/km²
	7.	Heraklion	Crete	166 209	109 km²	1525/km²
	8.	Cagliari	Sardinia	154 267	85 km²	1815/km²

Immigration

In 2019, Swania had about a million foreign residents, making up 7.6% of the total population. Ever since Swania joined the European Union and Schengen Area, most immigrants are citizens of Greece, Cyprus and Balkan countries, such as Croatia or Montenegro. In recent years, Swania suffered from massive illegal migration from neighbouring North Africa, with soaring arrivals as a consequence of the Arab Spring.

Internal migration is also very typical. It is estimated, that up to 15% East Swans migrate to the Western regions, while only 2% of West Swans migrate to the East. In recent years, several EU and government grans were sent to the region in order to develop it and avoid economic recession.

Languages

Knowledge of languages in Swania (2019)
Italian			95.2%
Latein			42.7%
Sardinian			5.6%
Maltese			3.4%

The two official languages in Swania are Italian (Western regions) and Latein (Eastern regions). Italian is also a mandatory language thought in all regions of the country, either as the first or second language. Learning Latein is mandatory only in Regions of Arcadia and Crete as it's a native language, however many students from the West choose to learn it in scuola secondaria (high school) as their third language.

Sardinian and Maltese are recognized regional languages and are not spoken by majority of Swanian community.

Religion

Religion in Swania (2017)
Catholicism			65.7%
Orthodoxy			21.0%
Atheism			12.1%
Other			1.2%

Christians make up 87% of the Swanian population. Most West Swans and thus the majority of the population of Swania, are members of Roman Catholic Church, whereas most of East Swans are officially Greek Orthodox. In addition to the Christian communities, there are also minor Jewish and Muslim groups. About 12% of the population is Atheist.

Education

Università degli Studi di Bari Aldo Moro

Education in Swania is free and mandatory from ages six to eighteen, and consists of four stages: scuola dell'infanzia, scuola primaria, scuola secondaria and università. Swania is well-known for its public and private universities, with Universities of Palermo and Bari being ones of the most prestigious in Europe.

Healthcare

Swania runs a universal public healthcare system. Healthcare spending in Swania accounted for 10% of the national GDP in 2019, which is higher than the OECD countries' average of 9.3%. Life expectancy in the country is 77 for males and 82 for females.

National symbols

Flag

	Colours used
	Scheme	Navy Blue	White	Turquoise
	HEX	#002D56	#FFFFFF	#34B1BC
	RGB	0, 45, 86	255, 255, 255	52, 177, 188
	HSV	208, 100, 33	0, 0, 100	184, 72, 73
	Example

Entertainment

Francesca performing her song during the show

Festival di Villanova

Festival di Villanova is the most popular Swanian song contest and awards ceremony, held in the district of Villanova, Cagliari. The festival is used as a way of choosing the Swanian entry to the Linguavision Song Contest and Mappervision Song Contest (once - May 2020). Festival di Villanova has launched the careers of some of Swania's most successful singers. Most recognizable winners of the contest are Francesca Michielin, Francesco Gabbani and Mahmood.

Linguavision Song Contest

Swania announced its first prticipation in February 2017. The country was represented by the winner of Festival di Villanova - Francesca Michielin, and here song "Lontano". She defeated Marija Šerifović from Ijanusky by 1 point and became the winner of Linguavision Song Contest VI with 93 points.

Crystal Arena in Palermo

Francesco Gabbani during his performance

Next month's contest was held in Swania's capital - Palermo. A new venue in the city was built to host Linguavision in March 2017. It's located just by the sea, on the coast of Sicily. Architect who had designed the building decided to name it "Crystal Arena" because of its big, glass windows.

Francesco Gabbani won the following Festival di Villanova and represented Swania with song "Occidentali's Karma". He gained the second highest score of 128 points and took the second place in the competition, losing by 11 points to Ijanusky. Gabbani's participation was considered a huge success, as he gained second highest score (by points) in whole history of the contest.

In the following week Swanian broadcaster announced that Swania will withdraw from the next month's edition in Sarajevo.

On May 9th, 2020 Swania announced its interest to host 25th edition of Linguavision. EXPO Cagliari won the venue contest. Swanian broadcaster then confirmed nation's return to the contest.

It was later announced that the winner of Festival di Villanova is once again Mahmood. Together with Massimo Pericolo, he chose "Moonlight Popolare" as the song they will perform in Cagliari.

Mappervision Song Contest

On April 27th, 2020 Swanian broadcaster confirmed nation's first ever participation in the 56th edition of the contest, replacing Kingdom of Inkami as participating Mazoverse nation. Festival di Villanova was held for the first time in three years to choose the best song. Mahmood won the contest with his song "Barrio" and thus became the first Swanian representative to be sent on Mappervision stage.

Mahmood performing Barrio

Etna Arena in Catania

This song is special - stated Mahmood - it's not only deep in meaning, but also - it's the first song in Italian to represent a Mazoverse nation in MSC.

On May 24th it turned out that Mahmood won the contest, defeating Ina Wroldsen from Pannonia by 5 points. Swania was asked to provide host city and venue for the 57th edition - Etna Arena in Catania was chosen. Swania was the first country in history to host both Mappervision and Linguavision in one month (June 2020).

On the same day, Swanian broadcaster announced that the country will be represented by a foreign, Icelandic singer Daði Freyr with his song "Think About Things". The song was chosen apart from Festival di Villanova, which winner is going to represent the country in Linguavision.

See also

Disclaimer: this article on alternate history was made for purpose of entertainment and therefore shouldn't be used as a source of reliable information.