Mercia- UDI 1995

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Historical divergence


In this version of the world, the counties of Worcestershire, Herefordshire, the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley and the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell became disgruntled and declared UDI from the UK in 1996.

There were 9 major turning points in history which don't go as in our realty.

''
 * 1) A large mass of Carboniferous and Upper Carboniferous era trees grew in a valley, which was later to be home to Worcester several billion years later. They died, rotted and became anthracite coal.
 * 2) Josiah Steven Ball opened a minor coal mine in 1820 by the then town of Worcester.
 * 3) Worcester became rather politically left wing after about 1900 and saw its population grow by about 15%-20% more than it our time line.
 * 4) Josiah's pit was closed in the run up to the 1984-85 miners’ strike (which ran pretty much was the same as in our reality).
 * 5) A local worker tried to challenge the 1989 closure of the Dudley Freightliner Terminal, which was a major local employer, in the high court.
 * 6) The dreaded Poll Tax was tried out in Worcestershire, The Metropolitan Borough of Dudley and Herefordshire (not Scotland) in 1989 due to concerns of a voter backlash, a year before the rest of the UK.
 * 7) A statue dedicated to the local Composer Sir Edward Elgar was destroyed in the 1990 Worcester Poll Tax Riot, 6 weeks after the notorious London Poll Tax Riot of our reality.
 * 8) The 1994-1996 Neil Hammitlon v. Mohamed Al-Fayed's cash for questions' scandal had also (wrongly) embroiled (in their reality) the Militant Labour MP for Worcester Josiah Colliery District after he had been falsely accused, by (in their reality) the right wing Conservative MP for Worcester Newfields, of taking cash for questions on behalf of the Ford Motor Company.
 * 9) Worcestershire, Herefordshire and Dudley councils symbolically declared UDI on August 1st, 1996, with Sandwell council joining in a day later. It was planed as a bit of a PR stunt, aimed at highlighting their plight, ''but it accidently became so much more...

Independence to 1998
.

1999-2003
The Gloucestershire Corridor was founded in 1999 as a humanitarian link to the outside world. The disliked and rather effective blockade would last for another year. Due to the heavy shortages caused and the international controversy relating to it, the total blockade was lifted in 2000 and replaced with an arms, trade and banking embargo. This was mostly due to pressure from the Netherlands, Monaco, Croatia, Albania and Algeria; all of which had politically recognised Hereford and Worcestershire in 1996.

In an attempt to reconcile their differences, the UK began diplomatic negotiations with Hereford and Worcestershire in the summer of 2003.

2004-2006
The trade, arms and banking embargo ended on Christmas day 2004.

There was a new era of glasnost and cross border co-operation between the UK and the federation beginning in 2005. This included the removal of the customs check points at Tewkesbury and Ashchurch Railway Station, B4080 B-road, the A491, A456, A449 A-roads and the M5 motorway.

2 minor pyramid schemes run by an Australian swindler collapsed, take in M£20,000 and UK£1,000,000 with them in the May of 2006.

As time passed, military expenditure fell, student exchanges took place and hostilities decline.

In 2007 the floods at Tewkesbury, Ashchurch, Bredon, Evesham and Upton-upon-Severn were (as in reality) the most severe in the towns' recorded history. The townsfolk gratefully collected the supposedly 'unofficial' humanitarian aid that both the British citizens and government had willingly offered them in Federation's hour of need.

2007-2009
The 2007 restoration of Smethwick Galton Bridge railway station and the re-biulding of the former Galton Bridge was one of was one of the first of the many Anglo-Federal Reconstruction and Reconsilliation Programs.

The credit crunch went pretty much as in reality, but the republic’s ailing currency did pick up due to the lack of major banks, corporate failure and state debt (most of the oversees aid was given free of charge).

The détente survived the floods and lead to the de facto economic and transportation assimilation of the nation in 2007. The Mercian Pound was pegged to the £ between 2008 and 2010, but then broke it's fiscal linkage and thus was re-floated during the European Economic Crisis of 2010-2012.The economy was buoyed up with continuing trade Venezuela, Algeria, Albania, Croatia, the R of Congo and the C.A.R.

2010-Today
The UK's H.R.H. Queen Elisabeth II was warmly welcomed on a tour of Hereford in the May of 2010. The then Bosnian representative at the UN Security Council, Ivan Barbalić got a similar response from Worcester in the July of that year.

As of June 2011, Ivan Barbalić and ex-Albanian president Sali Berisha have been negotiation the official separation of Hereford and Worcestershire from the UK. The UK’s Prime Minister, David Cameron had hinted to (according to the UK's Daily Telegraph newspaper) Ivan Barbalić that formal recognition will occur in the March of 2012. The rebel's president, Pieter Richard Smith, is planning not to stand for re-election in 2013.

Federal Stats




Stats

 * name = The Federal Republic of Greater Herefordshire and Worcestershire.
 * name_short = Hereford and Worcester.
 * Timeline = Worcestershire- UDI 1996
 * otl = The Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, Worcestershire, Herefordshire, the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, Longbridge, Edgebaston, Northfield, King's Norton, Dymock, Tewkesbury, Knighton (Powys), Chuchstoke (Powys), Southern Shropshire, Hay-on-Wye (Welsh: Y Gelli Gandryll), and the south western part of the former Seisdon Rural District.
 * motto =
 * Anthem =
 * capital = Worcester (population 111,250)
 * city_largest = Sandwell united urban zone (population 289,100)
 * city_other = Dudley (196,919), Redditch (79,216), Hereford (55,850), Stourbridge (55,618), Kidderminster (55,348), Halesowen (55,273), Bromsgrove (39,644) and Malvern Spa Town (28,749).
 * area =
 * population = est. 1, 465,950 (2010).
 * regime = A semi-presidential nationalist republic
 * language =English plus some Punjabi (in Dudley), (Kashmiri) in Lye, Urdu (in Tipton) and Welsh (in Hay-on-Wye and Kingstown).
 * currency = Mercian Pound
 * religion = Church of England, Secular Humanism and Sikhism (in Dudley)
 * HoStitle = President
 * HoSname = Pieter Richard Smith

Government and politics
See- Politics in the Federal Republic of Herefordshire and Worcestershire.

Constituent federal districts



 * The Independent county of Worcestershire (August 1st, 1996)
 * The Independent county of Herefordshire (August 1st, 1996)
 * The Metropolitan Republic of Dudley (August 1st, 1996)
 * The Metropolitan Republic of Sandwell (August 2nd, 1996)
 * Seisdon Sovereign Rural District (August 3rd, 1996)
 * The City state of Edgebaston, Longbridge, Northfield and King's Norton (August 5th, 1996)
 * The Freetown of Hay-on-Wye (September 1st, 1996)
 * The Freetown of Tewkesbury (December 1st, 1996)
 * Ludlow Sovereign Rural District (December 5th, 1996)

The The Stourbridge and Pedmore question of 2002-03 was a political debacle that lead to the popular division of Dudley in to it's 4 semi-autonomous provinces. At one Point Sedgley had planned to cescied from Dudley and amalgamate it's self in to Seisdon (they were both (as in fact) part of Staffordshire until 1974).

National politics
The Federal President is elected every 4 years. The Federal General Assembly is elected every 4 years and uses the former (in thier reality) Westminster constuancies, split in two new constuancies, were ever posible. County councillors are elected every 5 years. National political sentiment is generaly of a right wing, conservative nature in the countryside and a left wing, socialist stance in urban places. There is a wide spread, but mild nationalist tinge to the polatics of the republic.

Voting system
The elections use the first past the post system and is open to nationals over the age of 17.

Foreign relations
Relations were tense, but stable and mutualy respectfull with the UK, Ireland and the EU before the period of D é tente of 2006-2010. Things have inproved greatly since.

14 countries have given De jure recognition to Hereford and Worcestershire, 4 countries have given De facto recognition to Hereford and Worcestershire. and 3 countries is negotiating moving De facto to De jure recognition to Hereford and Worcestershire.

Religion
58% adhere to the Church of England [Christianity], 24% are Secular Humanist non-beavers, 8% follow Sikhism (mostly in Dudley), 5% believe in Roman Catholic Christianity, 2% are in [Hindus] (mostly in Dudley), 2% are followers of [Islam] (primarily in Tipton and Lye) and 1% are deists.Small numbers of Jews, [Rastafarians] and Buddhists also occur in Dudley and Stourbridge. The 3 Mongolians living in Dymock also worship Ot who the Mongolian goddess of marriage.

Literacy and Life expectancy
Literacy in English is 99.5% for both genders.

Literacy in Urdu, Kashmiri and Punjabi speakers is at 98.2% for men and 89.4% for women.

75% of Knighton, Chuchstoke, Hey-on Wye are bi-lingual in English and Welsh.

Life expectancy is 77 for men and 78 for women of all races.

The infant mortality rate stands at 9.12 deaths per 1,000 live births for all races.

There has been various attempts to rejuvinate both Rowley Regis, Lye, Old Hill and Cradely Health over the years. Worcester, Seisdon, Tewkesbury, Sedgely, Alvechurch and Bromsgrove are the most wealthy places in The Federation.

Over view
See- Economics in the Federal Republic of Herefordshire and Worcestershire

The economy relies on 5 sources- retail, growing tourism, agriculture, mining and the limited and sporadic output from both the Longbridge car plant and Wednesbury light industrial estate.

Trade

 * The leading market for their goods is the Netherlands, Algeria, Croatia and the C.A.R.


 * Most of their imports are from Venezuela, Algeria, Croatia and the Netherlands.

The détente survived that floods and lead to the de facto economic and transportation assimilation of the nation in 2007. The Mercian Pound was pegged to the £ between 2008 and 2010, but then broke its fiscal linkage and thus was re-floated during the European Economic Crisis of 2010-2012.

Energy
The principal power sources are small oil fired power station near Hereford and 7 wind turbines near Leominster and Worcester. Most people do not have a reliable supply and domestic power cuts are common place due to power shortages.

Defence
The lightly armed forces consist of 25,000 recruits and 24,000 reservists. Most equipment consists of remaining former British army supplies augmented with some smuggled in Dutch, Croatian, Albanian and on occasion Bosnian Serb weaponry. Most of it is safely stored in the hidden and mostly subterranean Hay-on-Wye Hill Army Depot, 5km west of Hay-on-Wye.

The 2 army regiments were named after the former 36th (Herefordshire) Regiment of Foot and 29th (Worcestershire) Regiment of Foot in the UK's army.

The elite airborne Wyvern Corps consist of 160 men, 2 CH-47 Chinook helicopters, 2 BO-105 helicopters, 2 ex-Albanian Shenyang J-6C fighters, 6 UH-1H "Huey" helicopters, 2 206 Kiowa helicopters, 2 Sea King helicopters. Training was given to volunteers by 5 renegade SAS members, who are now the Wyvern Corps’ leaders.

The tinny National Air force and the elite airborne Wyvern Corps operate from the commandeered RAF Hereford.

RAF Madley is under joint UK/Hereford and Worcester control. This was done in exchange for the UK giving the rebels access to the sea via The Gloucestershire Corridor.

The defence and homeland security minister is the Federal Conservative MP for Halesowen, Steve Wells.

The 10 battles they fought in the federal republic were-


 * 1) The battle of Swan Village
 * 2) The battle of Wednesfield
 * 3) The battle of South Worcestershire
 * 4) The battle of Tewkesbury
 * 5) The battle of King's Norton
 * 6) The battle of Northfield
 * 7) The battle of Halesowen
 * 8) The battle of Kingswinford
 * 9) The battle of Smethwick
 * 10) The battle of Dymock

National Parks


The local beauty spot and national park is situated in the sub-urban Wyre Forest. The Lickey Hills Country Park, The Clent Hills and Lower Bittell Reservoir are also protected areas. The River Wye at and around Hey on Wye was also decreed to be a national park and local beauty spot in 2002.

Clent Hill are popular for hillwalking and picnicking during the warmer weather. The hill lands are important for the survival wildlife including Fallow Deer and Common Buzzard, plus visiting Ring Ouzel and Common Crossbill.

The closed, but still waterfilled Wednesbury Old Canal was declaired to be a Urban Park and nature reserve in 2010.

Green issues
The high nitrate, ammonia and lead levels in the River Stour are the leading rural environmental concern. The heavy air pollution that is primary created by motor vehicles is of most concern in Urban Wednesbury and Dudley Port. These issues were being addressed as of 2010, but not much has happened since due to the global economic crisis.

Droitwich Spa (AKA- Droitwich) is situated on massive deposits of salt that has been extracted there since at least Roman times. The naturally occurring Droitwich brine contains 2½ lbs. of salt per gallon (roughly 10 times stronger than sea water and similar to that of the Dead Sea). Resent small scale salt mining has caused a sharp rise in the salinity of the local River Salwarpe since 2004.

The present housing, enviromentalisum and employment minister is the Labour MP for West Bromwich south, Rebeckah Lease.

The federal republic has said it will co-operate with and help inforce the CITES treaty (AkA-the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention).

The present minister for home-help, social harmony and flood eviation is the indipendent MP for Cherchstoke, Llewellin Gwilym Rees.

Transport


The former RAF air base come civil airport, RAF Shobdon, continued as such after its repair in 2005. The former air field at the once mothballed RAF Pershore become the nations second light airport in 2010.

Many major roads and motorways cross the region including the B4080 B-road, the A38, A46, A438, A491, A456, A449 A-roads and the M5 motorway.

There is also a complex network of bus routes that are both interurban and local in nature. Astons Coaches, DRM Coaches, Diamond Bus provide an intermittent service on these routes since there are frequent legal procedures to go through at the Anglo-Federal border. The is a lightly used state run bus connections from Tewkesbury and Upton-upon-Severn to the Ashchurch for Tewkesbury railway station, since most people go to and fom near by Ashchurch only. Centro sponsers many of the bus servaces once their route leave the renagade state.

There are several major railway lines wich include the-
 * 1) Stourbridge Town Branch Line
 * 2) Welsh Marches Line
 * 3) Hereford-Dorridge Line
 * 4) Birmingham-Worcester via Kidderminster Line
 * 5) Cotswold Line

The raiways are operated grudgingley by London Midland on behalf of both The Federal General Assembly and the UK's Centro organisation. Other trains are run in Herefordshire by Arriva Trains Wales. Services are provided by First Group and Chiltern railways have been withdrawn. Virgin Trains no longer stop at Sandwell and Dudley, and now only pass though it.

Malvern Link railway station was closed between May 5th 1997 and May 8th 1998 due to heavy damage caused by arsonists.

The Midland Metro route was competed in 2003, 4 years later than in reality and passes through customs check points at Wednesfield, Swan Village and Dudley, Gunn’s Village.

Tourism and some light freight use the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal, the Dudley No. 1 Canal and Stourbridge Canal. The touristic use of canal boats and canoes has become a major event since 2010.

Further railway and canal projects
There are several or were several railway and canal projects in the nation between 1999 and 2009. The most famouse were-

See-Railway and canal projets the Federal Republic of Herefordshire and Worcestershire


 * 1) The Herefordshire and Gloucestershire Canal restoration project.
 * 2) The Dymock and Ledbury Town Halt light railway project.
 * 3) The Brettell Lane to Dudley Port and Pensnett railway project.

Supplies were once smuggeld in via the The Gloucestershire Corridor.

The transport, energy and infrastucture minister is the South Wychavon and Throockmorton MP, (our time line's) Peter James Luff of the Federal Conservatives.

Health
The Hereford County Hospital, Dudley Guest Hospital and Russells Hall Hospital are the republic's leading hospitals.

The incubant pensions, health and education minister is the indipendent MP for Seisdon, Billy Hinks.

Education
The University of Worcester was granted university status in May 2006 and is the federation's leading seat of learning.

Kates Hill Primary School and Pedmore Technology College are the leading schools in the nation.

As in reality, on 15th March 1999, Sedgley's Dormston Secondary School made national headlines when more than 40 girls at the school were either sent home or withdrawn from lessons as punishment for wearing inappropriately short skirts.

Since the imrovemets in relations with the UK several schools have exstanged students for a 2 week stint each year since 2005.
 * Hagley
 * Barnt Green
 * Bloxwich
 * Abbot's Salford
 * Ashchurch
 * Derby
 * Alcester
 * Coventry
 * Derby
 * Wolverhampton
 * Sedgley
 * Cardiff
 * Gornal Wood
 * Hereford

Media
The local radio stations are Wyvern FM which broadcasted on 97.6FM, Smooth Radio on 105.7 FM and Sunshine Radio 106.2 FM and 954 kHz Am are the 3 privately run national radio stations. The Federal Press Bureau took over the non-evacuated assets and studios of the defunct BBC Radio Hereford and Worcester which started rebroadcasting in the November of 1998 on its old frequency of 94.7FM.

The Worcester News, the Stourbridge, Stourbridge Chronicle, Express & Star, Dudley News, and the Black Country Bugle, and The Hereford Times are the 7 privately held national weekly newspapers.

The Federal Press Bureau also censor out most of the news that is even mildly critical of the president and the Federal General Assembly out of the national media.

The current Culture, media and sport minister is the Federal Labour MP for West Bromwich East, (OTL) Tom Watson.

Sports
See- Sport in the Federal Republic of Herefordshire and Worcestershire.

The republic poseses several football, cricket and rugby teams. It also has a basketball team and plays host to the National Hunt horse race.

The death penalty
Murderers, sex predators, rapists, child molesters, traitors and enemy spies are executed with the hangman’s rope. the last exicution was of a murderer in 1998. It is due to be abolished, along with school caining in mid 2012.

The Minister for the justice and prions is the Federal Consevative for Dudley town, Micheál Pádraig Blaney.

The Minister for incubant interior and Policeing is the Federal Consevative for Sourbridge Angela Luce Benson.

Also see

 * 1) The Gloucestershire Corridor
 * 2) The evacuation of Coseley
 * 3) The Tipton incident