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Tristan Da Cunha & Gough Island
Timeline: 1983: Doomsday
Flag Coat of Arms
Flag Coat of Arms
Location of Tristan Da Cunha & Gough Island
Location of Tristan Da Cunha & Gough Island
Motto
Our faith is our strength
Anthem "God Save the King"
Capital
(and largest city)
Edinburgh of the Seven Seas
Language English
Religion Christianity
Demonym Tristanian, British
Government Dependent Territory of Dominion of South Africa
Population 214 
Independence May 7th 1989
Currency South African Pound
Organizations Commonwealth of Nations

Tristan Da Cunha and Gough Island are small islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. They are an overseas territory of the Dominion of South Africa, which took over this role from the United Kingdom.

History[]

Before Doomsday[]

Tristan da Cunha was annexed to the UK in 1816, mainly to prevent any Bonapartists from using it to mount a rescue mission to free Napoleon from Saint Helena. Gradually a colony took shape there. It was not until World War II that Britain organised Tristan da Cunha's government, designating it a dependency of St. Helena.

Between 1961 and 1963, the entire population was resettled in Calshot, near Southampton, England, following a volcanic eruption. When they returned home, they left behind a small Tristanian community.

Doomsday[]

Tristan da Cunha did not have any military bases, so it was not a target during World War III. Like the rest of The British overseas territories, it lost communication with London. For a while, however, it was able to maintain contact with St. Helena and the Falkland Islands. News of the Doomsday attacks was received with fear. The island's society may have looked the picture of rugged self-reliance, but all the adults could remember the evacuations of the 60s, which had shown them the extent to which they still depended on the mother country. Furthermore, everyone in the closely-related community had family members in England who had probably not survived.

The 12 South Africans manning a weather station on Gough Island were lost in a storm while sailing to Tristan da Cunha in late September.

After Doomsday[]

Tristanians managed a few perilous journeys to Cape Town and Brazil to obtain news and supplies. But as fuel ran out, Tristan da Cunha became even more isolated. In 1987, the first official relief finally came. Some ships of the Royal Navy had remained at Port Elizabeth, South Africa, to protect Andrew, the lawful British monarch who was now serving as head of state for a South African breakaway government. Many Tristanians chose to go to South Africa at this time, leaving behind fewer mouths to feed on the island.

By 1989, it was clear to the islanders that neither Great Britain nor St. Helena was capable of governing them any longer. Without renouncing their loyalty to either the kingdom or the overseas territory, they elected a new Administrator from among themselves. That same year, the Dominion formally acknowledged the extinction of the British government, the incorporation of remaining Royal Navy ships and personnel, and the takeover of British territories in the South Atlantic. Tristan da Cunha remained largely autonomous, even keeping the power to elect its own Administrator, who now was promoted to the title of Governor.

In 1995 RMS St. Helena visited Tristan da Cunha with an unexpected group of passengers: two dozen surviving Tristanians who had survived the trek from Calshot, to Weymouth, to South Africa; and who now were able to reunite with their families.

From the later 90s, essential supplies began to come to the island with more regularity. Modernity has partially come back to Tristan, but in general it still relies on subsistence farming. The Dominion government refurbished Gough Island's weather station in 2007.

When South American forces invaded Cape Town in 2006, Tristan's position halfway between the two continents suddenly became strategic. The Dominion sent a small fleet and a garrison of troops to the island to discourage any attempt to claim it for Brazil or Argentina. Like the Falklanders and South Georgians, the Tristanians were a British population who felt caught in South America's expanding sphere of influence, and the island council issued a defiant statement declaring that it would "strongly resist" any attempted occupation. In the years following, tensions eased between the Dominion and the South Americans, and the South America-sponsored RZA became a close economic partner. The troops stationed on Tristan returned home in 2009.

Government[]

The Government Of Tristan Da Cunha & Gough Island is based in English law. Its people recognize the monarch as head of state. The island is governed by a Council. The Governor is elected by the people of the Island, as is the council.

  • Head Of Communications: Trinten Glass
  • Head Of Domistic Affairs: James Hagen
  • Head Of International Affairs: Brenda Taylor
  • Governer: Alexander Swain

Military[]

The island has no real military, potentially making it vulnerable to other nations, especially South America. Law enforcement is carried out by the constabulary, consisting of one full-time officer and a few special constables. The close-knit community has very few problems with crime. The only true protection comes from the South African navy.

Foreign relations[]

Foreign affairs are handled by the DSA.

Tristan da Cunha asked to participate on its own in the Commonwealth of Nations. The island council wished to express "our own British identity, which we do not possess vicariously through South Africa." This required the Commonwealth to change its requirement that members be "fully sovereign states." The change was granted, and today Tristan participates as a full member.

Culture and Society[]

The entire island is owned in common by the inhabitants, all of whom are farmers.

Tristanians are extremely proud of their British identity. Despite receiving a new coat of arms from the DSA government, they have have kept the old Union Flag and fly it proudly together with the island's Blue Ensign.

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