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Origin Pre-War Post-War What Outsiders Know The Reality Population Territory and Locations Organization Government, National and Local Justice, Social Control, Punishment Political Factions, Dissent Famous/Infamous Persons Relationships with Other Groups Culture Ethnic Groups, Emigration and Immigration Social Divisions and Castes Religion, Beliefs and Superstition Morality and Values Progress and Failure Family, Age, Sexuality and Gender Education and Language Environment and Agriculture Food Art and Entertainment, Music, Literature, Recreation Fashion and Appearance Urban and Rural Areas, Architecture Equipment and Resources Economy Science, Medicine and Technology Weapons and Military Equipment Communications Vehicles Aircraft Watercraft

 

 

 

     A kingdom in the Middle Park and North Park valleys of Colorado. Their flag is a simple purple banner (they insist the color is ultraviolet).

Origin

 

Pre-War

     High valleys, known mostly for ranching and winter sports. The Colorado River runs through the town of Kremmling, and then dives into the Gore Canyon and out into the deserts.

 

Post-War

     While no Soviet attacks were made any closer than the Denver area, the Long Winter drove people out of the Rockies. From 1989 to 2030, snow and ice laid deep on these lands; only in a few rare years did the summer sun thaw all the snow. The Yellowstone eruption in 2020 deposited 5 meters of ash, further altering the landscape.

     In 2050, a heroic, charismatic leader -- Felix Ultraviolet -- led his many followers west from beyond the Far Desert, into the Big Rocks. The current inhabitants aren't too clear on the geography back east, but pretty clearly Felix and his people came over the Appalachian Mountains on their way west. They created a peaceful paradise high in the mountains, safe from raiders and savages. The original intention was colored by dreamy ideals of peaceful intentions, the rule of law, and universal brotherhood. Felix became the first king of Ultraviolet, as the area in the two valleys is known; he organized a cadre of elite knights, sworn to uphold chivalric ideals and to submit to the judgement of their peers.

     Of course, nothing so utopian could endure unchanged and unchallenged, but the Ultraviolet kings still rule the Kingdom.

 

What Outsiders Know

     Ranchers and farmers in some high, isolated valleys in the Big Rocks. They have a reputation for being rowdy but fun.

 

The Reality

     The kingdom is overpopulated, and young folk are being encouraged to leave.

 

Population

     5000 people live in North Park; 4000 live in Middle Park. The biggest town is named Mountain Home, on the former site of Kremmling, in Middle Park; it has a population of roughly 1000 persons. There are several other towns scattered through the kingdom, none with more than 400 persons living in them.

 

Territory and Locations

     The Kingdom of Ultraviolet encompasses Middle Park and North Park, both of which are at least 2500 meters above sea level. North Park is about 400,000 hectares; Middle Park is only 62,000 hectares. Both valleys are cool and dry.

 

The main street of Mountain Home in the 1920s; it's not too different in 2140.

 

     On the north edge of the town of Mountain Home is Ultraviolet Castle, on a butte. It has good natural defenses, and a low wall atop the edges of the butte, but isn't otherwise very militaristic.

 

View of Mountain Home from Ultraviolet Castle.

 

Organization

 

Government, National and Local

     Neither the monarchy nor the knightly class are hereditary; knights are elected by the people of a district, and the knights in turn select a king or queen from among themselves when the monarch dies or resigns. The kingdom isn't feudal, in that a knight is not required to own any land, and is not usually given land by the monarch; the knights don't bear an obligation to the king or queen, but rather to the people and to "the rules".

     There are about 120 knights, roughly one per town or village, although the town of Mountain Home selects 7 knights, and a few of the other towns select 2 knights each. The children of knights are not eligible to become knights until a year and a day after the death of their parent. Knights enforce the laws, acting as police and judges; the monarch enforces the law upon the knights, and accepts appeals of their judgements.

     The monarch is titled "king" or "queen", but the knights are all titled "sir" whether male or female. The monarch takes the last name "Ultraviolet", although their spouse or children do not change their names or receive any titles.

 

Justice, Social Control, Punishment

     While the knights and monarch enforce "the rules" as they are known, ambitious people tend to take the "rules into their own hands", hoping to be seen worthy of knighthood.

     The rules are pretty basic "old West" stuff. Horse theft is a pretty serious crime. Punishment consists of fines, whipping, or hanging -- the kingdom doesn't have any jails or prisons.

 

Political Factions, Dissent

     Power has gradually coalesced around families with lots of land and family members. While authority isn't inherited, the locals are well aware that local knighthoods tend to stay within the same families.

     The town of Mountain Home has a growing body of people working in craft and commerce. Those folk see the monarchy and "the rules" as being old-fashioned.

 

Famous/Infamous Persons

 

• Felix Ultraviolet:  the founder of the nation, and its first king. Not much is known about his life before he became king.
  

• Jubal Ultraviolet:  the fifth and current king, age 51. He's a short, broad man with gray beard. Born as Jubal Jones.

• Ben Jones:  younger brother of the king. Died a few years ago, but inspired his niece Mischief to travel.

• Mischief Jones:  a mercenary caravan guard and acquaintance of Team R54. As you might guess from her name, she is one of the children of King Jubal.
  

 

Relationships with Other Groups

     The kingdom is very isolated, so they don't get a lot of visitors. Savages and raiders will meet with swift attacks here -- "the rules" don't protect them. The Ravagers have made some attempts to invade the kingdom; so far, unsuccessfully.

      Traders from Styx, the Montanan Empire and even some Far Traders and Haulers arrive in the summer and stay a week or two.

      The Rangers have recruited a few promising youths from the kingdom in recent years.

 

Culture

 

Ethnic Groups, Emigration and Immigration

 

     While generations ago there were Mexican-American, African-American, Native-American and plain ol' white Americans in the original settlers, it would be hard to pin down an ethnic type apart from mixed-American here.

     Very few people move to the kingdom; there are some rules about land ownership that discriminate against newcomers.

     The offspring of knights and the monarchs are culturally seen as likely to "hop over the mountains" and leave the kingdom, since they can't aspire to titles themselves. How often this actually happens isn't well documented. Lately (in the most recent generation) a fair amount of children can't be supported by their families, and leave home -- and usually the kingdom -- in their late teens.

 

Social Divisions and Castes

     Town vs. rural, knights vs. everyone else ... to outsiders the differences are pretty obscure.

 

Religion, Beliefs and Superstition

     The subjects of the kingdom aren't Christians, at all. They do admit and believe that one or more deities exist, but feel humans shouldn't draw their attention. There's no organized priesthood nor any written religious texts, so their beliefs are somewhat open to individual interpretation, but a common concept is that the Atomic War was clearly due to the involvement of a god or gods.

     Animism would best describe the daily religious thought in the kingdom. There are spirits of the wind, of each animal type, of fire, the land, the sky, the rivers and water, etc. It's kind of a mish-mash of neopaganism, wicca, Norse beliefs, American Indian beliefs, and shinto. Ancestor worship is not part of their beliefs, however.

     Offerings of food, drink, and art to the appropriate spirits is common; as is dedicating a feat, activity, victory, etc. to a spirit. Complex geometric shapes are often inscribed, tattooed, etc. with a traditional runic effect, i.e. "The symbol of ice invokes authority and power, and is a symbol of masculinity."

     For reasons that even the locals can't quite explain, the concept of "perfect eyes" comes up a lot in the Kingdom. "He's strong, handsome and has perfect eyes." It includes having good vision, but since there aren't a lot of optometrists around, it's more of a statement like "He's cool."

 

Morality and Values

     Qualities the locals like to see in a person are strength and health, creativity and wisdom, boldness and daring, luck, strong ties to family and friends, and joy. Note that wealth and deep knowledge aren't on the list, nor is "following the rules". There's definitely a tension for knights between their oath to uphold "the rules", and a sense of knights as being "picky about the rules".

 

Progress and Failure

     The ultimate goal of an ambitious Valley resident is to become a knight or the monarch. Less ambitious people want to manage land, throw parties, raise a family and be respected by their neighbors.

     While leaving the valley to find a wife, get rich, and return is a common trope, the people actually leaving usually feel less than happy to do so. Certainly, less then 10% ever return.

 

Family, Age, Sexuality and Gender

     Land is jointly owned by married couples; once both are dead, the land is divided among all the offspring who are married at that time. This sometimes leads to quick, loveless marriages. The best parcel (usually the one with the main house) goes to either the oldest couple, or to the couple with the most children. When widows or widowers remarry, there is a complicated reshuffling of land ownership.

     By 2139, a lot of land-owning couples have parcels which are too small to support them. Usually, related couples still share farming duties and resources.

     12% of the population are under age 15.

 

Education and Language

     Locals speak Roadtalk, though with a more "Ancient" pronunciation. The main difference Project members will notice is the ignorance of 20th Century vocabulary.

     School teachers are hired and paid by the monarch, and there are a score of one-room schools, plus the "Big School" (with 5 teachers) at Mountain Home, and a tutor/secretary for the monarch's family (and maybe even for the monarch). Not everyone is raised within walking distance of a school, and in any case schooling ends at about age 14. The literacy rate (people who can write simple sentences) is about 30%. Knights are almost always literate; the monarch certainly is. Most teachers are outsiders, usually from Styx or the Montanan Empire.

 

Environment and Agriculture

     The valleys are in a semi-arid climate zone, with cool summers (with a few thunderstorms) and some rain and snow in the winters.

     In Middle Park, the Colorado River provides water for irrigation; tributaries  of the North Platte River provide water in North Park.

     Since the end of the 21st Century, crop failures and droughts have reduced farming yields in the kingdom; there is little large game to be found in Middle Park or North Park any more. One year in three, famine strikes the kingdom. Hunting is widely-practiced, but hunters must travel far into the mountains to find any sizable game.

     Animals raised on farms include horses, goats and sheep. Horses and wool are important trade goods for the kingdom. There are about 10,000 sheep in the kingdom.

    

Food

     Food in North Park and Middle Park is not very exciting. Potatoes and oatmeal are far too common.

     Unlike most meals, feasts are hearty and feature a wider variety of foods.

 

Art and Entertainment, Music, Literature, Recreation

     Almost everyone in the kingdom can play some musical instrument. Feasts include dancing, competing bands, recitations of (usually boastful) songs, wrestling, axe-throwing, eating contests, bonfires, etc.

 

Fashion and Appearance

     Wool tunics, heavy boots, loose trousers, leather belts. Colors are muted natural dyes. Hats tend to be personalized "art cowboy" affairs, with feathers, shiny rocks, pieces of glass, or other knick-knacks.

 

Urban and Rural Areas, Architecture

     Except for the castle of Ultraviolet, buildings in the kingdom are log cabins, uncomplicated one-story structures without hallways, attics or indoor plumbing.

 

Equipment and Resources

 

Economy

     While the usual old American coins are in circulation, over half of the economy is conducted by barter.

     Every year in the late summer, traders come to the kingdom. They buy horses, leather, wool, and oil; they sell gunpowder, cloth, musical instruments, and other "high tech" goods.

     There are a few old oil wells still producing crude in the North Park valley; the monarch controls the supply. A couple hundred barrels are sold every year, bringing in a couple hundred dollars for the treasury.

 

Science, Medicine and Technology

     There are no doctors in the kingdom; technologically, the area is in the Middle Ages.

 

Weapons and Military Equipment

     Swords, bows, spears, clubs, axes, knives, and other ancient weapons are the usual military tools in the kingdom. The locals are skilled at throwing axes and knives; their bows, on the other hand, are sad and weak. Travelers, and those subject who've left the valleys and returned successfully, might carry muzzle-loading or even cartridge weapons. Knights sometimes wear metal-reinforced leather vests, and old GI helmets, when they're acting in their military capacity.

     The castle of Ultraviolet has an armory with lots of large crossbows, a few old revolvers in random calibers, and a score of Sharps rifles in 11mm EBT caliber (EBT stands for East Broad Top, where the pre-War rifles were converted). A couple of muzzle-loading cannons, and lots of booby traps and tank traps, protect the roads leading into the valley. From the north, however, these defenses are weak, due to the wide nature of North Park in that direction.

 

Communications

     Couriers, and very recently a radio relay system set up with the assistance of the Morrow Project.

 

Vehicles

     Most transport within the kingdom is on foot, on horse, or on horse-drawn vehicles. Goat-carts are common for children and old folks. The King owns a tractor and a sort of dune buggy.

 

Aircraft

     None.

 

Watercraft

     None.