Slobovia

The Slobovian Realm (Slobovian: Slobowienisches Rick) is a Germanic paralel society in Minnesota, in the Midwestern United States. It is bordered by North and South Dakota on the west, Lake Superior on the northeast, Iowa on the south, and Wisconsin on the east. As Slobovia is currently in the process of reorganizing, and thus does not have the necessary information concerning the population of Slobovians, for the time being the entire population of Minnesota will be numerated here. The official list of Slobovian monarchs, as of yet, starts six years ago, about as long as Slobovia has existed, and only includes the current King, Treu Raibert. Slobovia was originally founded offline, but converted to an online hobby micronation within its second year of existance. In June, 2005 the final online incarnation of Slobovia was dismanteled and plans were begun to be made to bring Slobovia back into its original offline state as a paralel society. Since then the plans have become comprehensive, and include a purposeful future economic, social and political society to be known as the Slobovian Realm. Slobovia was one of the least respected micronations until its final online incarnation was dismantled. Since then, Slobovia has been gaining respect for the ambitious and well-thought plan for the [[New Slobovia]].

History

Indian Days

White men entered the region in the last half of the 1600's. They found Dakota Indians in the northern forests. The Dakota lived in dome-shaped wigwams. They raised crops, and were skilled hunters. By 1750, large numbers of Ojibwe Indians were moving westward into Minnesota. They took over the northern forests, and forced the Dakota to move southwest. The Dakota became wanderers and the two tribes remained enemies for many years.

Exploration

According to local tradition, the first European visitors were Swedish and Norwegian Vikings in the 14th century. The evidence for this is largely based on the controversial Kensington Runestone, which most historians consider to be an elaborate hoax. Two famous French fur traders, Pierre Esprit Radisson and Médart Chouart, Sieur de Groseilliers, were the first white men proven to have set foot in Minnesota. They arrived in the area known as the Northshore of Lake Superior between 1659 ans 1661. Another Frenchman, Daniel Greysolon, Sieur Duluth (or Du Lhut), entered Minesota about 1679. Duluth was an adventurer who hoped to blaze a trail to the Pacific Ocean. Duluth landed on the shore of Lake Superior and pushed on into the interior of Minnesota. He claimed the entire region for King Louis XIV of France. In 1680, Father Louis Hennepin, a Belgian missionary, set out from the Illinois region to explore the upper Mississippi. But Dakota Indians captured Hennepin and his two companions. The Indians tool them into Minnesota. Although a captive, Hennepin saw much of the region. He became the first known white man to visit the site of present-day Minneapolis, where he discovered and named the Falls of St. Anthony. Meanwhile, Duluth heard that Indians had captured three white men. He found the Indians and successfully demanded that they release the captives.

Struggle for Control

In 1762, France gave Spain all its land west of the Mississippi River, including western Minnesota. But the Spaniards did not try to explore or settle the region, and French trappers continued to collect furs there. In 1763, the Franch and Indian War ended. France lost this war with Great Britain over rival claims in North America. France gave Britain almost all its land east of the Mississippi, including eastern Minnesota. During the next 50 years, the North West Company and other British fur trading firms established posts in the region. In 1783, the American Revolution ended. Great Britain gave its land south of the Great Lakes and east of the Mississippi to the United States. This vast area became part of the Northwest Territory, which Congress created in 1787. But British fur companies continued to trade in the region, and the United States did not gain full control until after the War of 1812.

The Louisiana Purchase

In 1800, Napoleon Bonaparte forced Spain to return the region west of the Mississippi River to France. France sold this region, called Louisiana, to the United States in 1803. Two years later, Zebulon M. Pike was sent to explore the upper Mississippi and the Minnesota wilderness. In 1820, American soldiers under Colonel Josiah Snelling began building Fort St. Anthony in the southeastern part of Minnesota. It stood at the point where the Minnesota and Mississippi rivers meet. The fort was completed in 1822, and was renamed Fort Snelling in 1825. It became a center of industry and culture, as well as of military duty. Explorers used Fort Snelling as a base from which they set out for undiscovered parts of Minnesota. These explorers included Lewis Cass, Stephen N. Long, and Henry R. Schoolcraft. In 1832, Schoolcraft discovered and named Lake Itasca, the source of the Mississippi River.