Confederation of Mahuset/old

Mahuset, officially the Confederation of Mahuset (Dutch: Confederatie Mahuset), is a self-declared independent nation-state, commonly referred to by external observers as a micronation, established on the 3rd of January, 2016. It claims territories in Europe and Asia: the states of Matsia, Alkmaar, Geestmerambacht, Noorderhout, Ihuset, and Morburn, as well as the district of Lazia and the territories of Lundenland and Mamucium, make up mainland Mahuset in Northern Europe, and the territories of Starnia and Virgo make up Mahusetan Hasanistan in the Middle East. It is frequently ranked amongst the world's least corrupt nations, and is regarded as a minor micronational diplomatic, cultural, and political power.

Mahuset is a federal state and a constitutional semi-presidential parliamentary republic, whose parliament is known as the Lazian Chamber, so called after the capital city of Lazia. It is lead by President Emiel Sebastiaan Hardy (as head of government) and Prime Minister Stephen Fryeath (as head of state). While the laws of the states are subordinate to federal law, the federal government does not have any regulations on the means for administering states and as such the states all have their own unique system of government. Mahuset has a free market capitalist economy, but also a high level of income equality, due to its small, mostly middle-class population.

The current Confederation of Mahuset is the successor (in law, in dignity, and in territory) to the Kingdom of Mahuset and the majority of its predecessors: the Empire of Alkmaar, the Co-Kingdom of Krasota, the Royal Union of Mahuset, the Kingdom of Ihuset, the Kingdom of Matsia, the United Nations of Mahuset, and the various Cookielandic and Kittylandic States, but not the Kingdom of Radon, which was succeeded instead by the Principality of Radon. It has had a long and turbulant history, having gone through several changes in government, dis- and reëstablishments, and changes in territory before reaching its current shape and state of relative stability.

Mahuset is a "fifth world" micronation, with the highest assigned score of 12 under the Boodlesmythe-Tallini System, and a score of 4.4 on the Categoric-Gradial System, also known as Linden's (Revised) System.

Etymology
Although the exact etymology of the name "Mahuset" has been lost to the mists of time, there are two prominent theories on its etymology. The most commonly accepted etymology is for it to have originated as a portmanteau of Matsia and Ihuset, which are the two nations which merged to form the Kingdom of Mahuset, the Confederation of Mahuset's predecessor. A much less commonly accepted, yet still prominent etymology is for it to have originated as a portmanteau of "muh", an internet slang term for "my", and "huset", Norwegian for house.

Burgemeester de Wilde School
The Burgemeester de Wilde School, a Dutch primary school, was the school where Emiel, Nuri, XO, Ewout and various other people who were influential in Mahuset's history had their early education. The school was founded in 1976 by Henk de Wilde, the mayor of Schagen and member of the Dutch Labour Party. The school's main location, the Meerkoet was founded in 1976, in Schagen; another location, the Pulletje, was founded in 1980, in Hoorn; the Kievietlaan was founded in 2006, but closed in 2013; Alkmaar was founded in 2008; the Hoep, a replacement for the Kievietlaan, was founded in 2013, in Schagen; and the Hendrik Mol was founded as a high school, but separated later.

Origins (2007–2012)
Mahuset began as a fictional nation within a fictional world in 2007. It was called Emiel's World and was an empire ruled by the eponymous Emiel, known then as "Cool Emiel". It was not a serious undertaking, but there were still plans to revive it within Ihuset. If it had never been founded, Emperor (now President) Emiel never would have come in contact with politics. Emiel's World spoke a dialect of Dutch known as Emilan, which eventually developed into another known as Mærtan.

Around April of 2012, Emiel began a habit of going on Wikipedia and looking at the articles of ministates like the Vatican City, Monaco, and San Marino, and eventually found out about the Principality of Sealand, a micronation. He did more research into the subject and found information on the Republic of Molossia as well. Inspired by these two micronations, he founded the Kingdom of Ihuset, which gave him a "feeling of autonomy" that he felt he lacked at the time. Emiel proceded to make a page on MicroWikia and got unofficially involved in the many cyberwars going on at the time. This marked the beginning of Mahusetan diplomacy as it got into contact with many other micronations, like New Canada and Domus, and established official relations with them. It was welcomed by Flatland almost immediately and was soon invited into the Grand Intermicronational Alliance by a representative of Northumbria-Montebourg. Its time in the alliance didn't last, however, as it didn't want to fulfill its military obligations to the alliance.

Monarchist period (2012–2014)
After Emiel founded Ihuset, the other children at the Burgemeester de Wilde school were inspired to create micronations themselves. Mahuset was originally founded as an unification of the kingdoms of Matsia and Ihuset, but Radon soon joined as well. The union was originally known as the United Nations of Mahuset, but this was later appended to the Royal United Nations of Mahuset. It took its main aesthetic and political inspiration from the Ancient Rome and the County of Holland. Mahuset quickly became greatly significant and diplomatically prominent within the MicroWikia community. Many conflicts at MicroWikia were taken part in by Mahusetan officials, including the conflict against Brandon Rhea and Wikia and subsequent conflicts which led to the establishment and splitting of Micropedia. Vetria established diplomatic relations with Mahuset during this era.

In November 2012, the Royal United Nations of Mahuset underwent full political union between its member states, transforming into the Kingdom of Mahuset, a democratic constitutional monarchy. King Emiel soon upset this balance, however, by founding the ideology of Eniakism, whose rise and expansion was comparable in speed, scale, and international controversy (drawing condemnation from Hasanistan and Akharnes in particular) to that of communism, and which caused Mahuset to gain even more diplomatic significance and prestige. The country rapidly developed, reforming its government to include defined ministries and state-owned enterprise, and standards of living rapidly increased. This development came with a cost, however: the establishment of a single-party state under the Eniak Party, which ruled until the kingdom's eventual collapse, and the secession of Matsia and Radon. Eventually, though, the two states rejoined Mahuset after adopting Eniakism themselves, and the so-called Triumphant Era began, which would last for the rest of the kingdom's history.

Decline and revival (2014–2016)
Mahuset was briefly a part of the Empire of Constantidium, which was founded by several states in the Dutch micronational sector, but it soon fell apart due to disagreements between its member states. It was comprised of the Kingdom of Mahuset, Derskov-Viadalvia, Hoogwaard, Arnhem, Snežanopol, Timbain and Kinhu. It was only founded as a defensive bloc against the Ashukov Federation within the now-dead micronations.wiki community, with no other real purpose, a fact reflected by the speed of its collapse. Mahuset would soon collapse as well: even though the government was stable and well structured, the three states fell into arguing with one another, especially about new, controversial amendments to the constitution and generally conflicting ideals. There were three major fights between the states, the last one resulting in Ihuset leaving and declaring itself defunct, bringing Mahuset down with it. Eventually, Krasota was founded as a union of Matsia and Radon, later joining the new Royal Union of Mahuset. This was welcomed by Emiel, who was at that moment exclusively focusing on the micronation of Slin, but further disputes between Nuri and Emiel caused Krasota's collapse as well. Another nation came and went as Emiel established the Empire of Alkmaar, which rose to power in the former states of Alkmaar and Jefferson but died due to Emiel's inactivity in the community.

In 2015, Mahuset had effectively ceased to exist, as its prominent citizens were all focusing on their own personal projects: Emiel focused on developing Slin, while Nuri reformed Radon, which slowly began clawing itself back to relevance by partaking in several events in the micronational community. But on the 8th of January 2016, Emiel Hardy, Nuri van Dijk and XO rëestablished Mahuest in its current form, claiming the former territories of Matsia, Alkmaar, Geestmerambacht, Nooorderhout and Ihuset. A constitution was written based upon the Dutch and American constitutions, and the Confederation was officially founded. The newly-established Lazian Chamber was quick to pass various laws and proclamations, including but not limited to the designation of a national flag and coat of arms and the establishment of relations with Radon and the United Islands.

Early Confederal Mahuset (2016–2019)
Following its establishment on 3 January 2016 and its governments establishment on 8 January 2016, the Confederation of Mahuset has proven to be a relatively stable state, especially when compared to the Confederation of Mahuset's predecessors in the Kingdom of Mahuset and the Royal Unity of Mahuset. Early Confederal Mahusetan governance was largely shaped by the former triumvirate's desire for the Confederation of Mahuset to have a stable and active government, with an intent of preventing the series of disputes that led to the decline and eventual death of the Kingdom of Mahuset, and also for the Confederation of Mahuset to be a relatively important diplomatic and cultural force in the Vetrisphere, the MicroWiki community and the other micronational communities the Confederation of Mahuset found itself in. This led to the Confederation of Mahuset quickly establishing diplomatic relations with the Principality of Radon, Empire of Karnia-Ruthenia and the Abeldane Empire, the creation of the Constitution of the Confederation of Mahuset, multiple failed attempts at creating a civil code, multiple failed attempts at creating a Chamber of Commerce, which would have effectively mirrored the Dutch Kamer van Koophandel, failed attempts at convincing the Radonic Government of having the Principality of Radon join the Confederation of Mahuset, the annexation of the former Mahusetan territory of Starnia, the annexation of the neighbouring territory of Virgo and the overall cultural development of the Confederation of Mahuset.

Despite the Confederation of Mahuset's relatively stable and functional government succeeding in governing the Mahusetan territories, fears of inactivity and the government growing ineffective grew, largely stemming in similar events which happened in other micronations, such as the Abeldane Empire. These fears led to a growth of irridentist federalism in the micronational community at large, as could be seen with the Empire of Paravia annexing micronations such as the State of Carpathia, the State of Nedland and the Grémmian Empire. Following the State of Nedland's departure from the Empire of Paravia, these fears, together with the personal friendship between the President of Mahuset Emiel Sebastiaan Hardy and the Khan of Nedland Edward Gunderson, led to the proposal of a political union between the Confederation of Mahuset and the Khanate of Nedland, which would've been referred to as "Mahuso-Nedland". After both the Khanate of Nedland and the Confederation of Mahuset agreed to a merger of the two states through a referendum held in both the Khanate of Nedland and the Confederation of Mahuset, negotiations between the two states on the terms of a merger started with mutual enthuasiasm from the President of Mahuset and the Khan of Nedland. Negotiations between the two states quickly fell out, following large disagreements between the Nedlandic and Mahusetan delegates over the title of the soon-to-be Mahuso-Nedlandic head of state and head of government, and the flag of the soon-to-be Mahuso-Nedlandic nation. The disagreement between the Mahusetan and Nedlandic delegates was especially vicious, as Nedlandic delegates described some of the Mahusetan flag proposals as "memes" or "ugly" and criticised other Mahusetan flag proposals for being overly similar to to flags of other entities, these being the flag of Aetos, a state in the Ashukov federation, and the flag of Iceland. The Mahusetan delegates in their turn applied Article 45 of the 2016 Mahusetan Constitution, and refused any compromise with the Nedlandic delegation, and also refused to hold a second referendum on the would-be Mahuso-Nedlandic flag, which effectively led to the end of all negotiations between the Mahusetan and Nedlandic delegations with Nedland eventually merging with the Expansive Realm of Khorașan, a short-lived spiritual successor to the Empire of Pavlov, to form the Empire of Nedlando-Khorașan.

Shortly after the end of the negotations between the Mahusetan and Nedlandic delegations on merging the two states, the President of Mahuset Emiel Sebastiaan Hardy announced the start of the 2016–17 Mahusetan federal government shutdown, which was intended to update the Confederation of Mahuset’s representation on micronational and Mahusetan encyclopædias such as the Royal Wiki and MicroWiki, and to constitute and publish all laws, motions and bills passed in the Lazian Chamber. These goals largely weren't reached, with the only real activity being the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Confederation of Mahuset and several other micronations, among which were the Grand Duchy of Flandrensis and the Republic of Hasanistan, and the creation of the Coat of Arms of various government agencies, among which were the Lazian Chamber, the Supreme Court and the Council of Ministers. Despite the inactivity caused by the 2016-2017 Mahusetan federal government shutdown, the Confederation of Mahuset wasn't completely dormant with several political scandals, these being Spygate and the 2017 Mahusetan Mahuso-Nedland government scandal and constitutional crisis. Spygate was a Mahusetan government scandal, which occured after Emiel Sebastiaan Hardy, the President of Mahuset, got accused of espionage in Abel to Dabel, the official Abeldane Skype chatroom, for the Shorewellese Empire. After this dispute escalated into Emiel Sebastiaan Hardy being banned from the chatroom, he called for two emergency sessions to be convened in the Lazian Chamber about the matter, which caused a short de facto fallout of diplomatic relations between the two states although diplomatic relations have never been formally abolished. Diplomatic ties between the two states were quickly restored following the realisation of both parties that the scandal was in fact a misunderstanding.

Close to the end of the 2016-2017 Mahusetan federal government shutdown, the 2017 Mahusetan Mahuso-Nedland government scandal and constitutional crisis happened as a result of Edward Gunderson and XO desiring the Nedlandic annexation of the Confederation of Mahuset, which they both believed would have ended the Mahusetan government's inactivity caused by the 2016-2017 Mahusetan federal government shutdown. Edward Gunderson and XO attempted to exploit flaws within the 2016 Constitution of the Confederation of Mahuset, in order to force through a session of the Lazian Chamber which would have seen the Khanate of Nedland de jure annex the Confederation of Mahuset. Emiel Sebastiaan Hardy prevented his by appointing himself as Supreme Judge and interpreting the relevant rules in such a manner as to prevent Edward Gunderson and XO from holding the session. The Khanate of Nedland collapsed only shortly after the 2017 Mahusetan Mahuso-Nedland government scandal and constitutional crisis, after which Edward Gunderson gave the territories of the now former khanate to Emiel Sebastiaan Hardy. Emiel Sebastiaan Hardy reformed the former khanate into a western-style principality following this and had it join the Confederation of Mahuset as a state. The Commonwealth of Nedland quickly succumbed to the same inactivity the Confederation of Mahuset as a whole had at this point, this being amplified by the Commonwealth of Nedland's membership in international organisations, such as the International Agricultural Development Pact (IADP) being ended as a result of it joining the Confederation of Mahuset. Almost immediately after its establishment, the Commonwealth of Nedland was declared defunct however as a result of Emiel Sebastiaan Hardy respecting Edward Gunderson's wishes for the Khanate of Nedland to once again be controlled by Greiner and be independent from the Confederation of Mahuset.



The begin of October 2017 marked the end of the 2016–17 Mahusetan federal government shutdown, with the government ultimately unsuccesful in its original goal. Despite the end of the government shutdown, government activity remained largely dormant until the start of the following year, with Emiel Sebastiaan Hardy announcing Mahuset2018. Mahuset2018 being a set of proposed government reforms, similar in nature to in the Kingdom of Mahuset, marked the first proposal of what would become the National Convention of 2019, the proposal behind the Internal Communication Service, which is the government agency operating the Temae chatbot, the first proposal of Independent General Press, now an agency of the Konmalehth, the first proposal of Bleu Ultramarine SM and the first proposal of the Mahusetan Leo.

2018 was marked by the first ever Mahusetan election, although activity declined rapidly following it. Government inactivity ultimately led to the government being unable to call enough Lazian Chamber members to its sessions for it to have sessions, ultimately leading to the government calling for a constitutional referendum which led to the actual creation of the National Convention of 2019 and the indefinite suspension of the Lazian Chamber and the Supreme Court, with the National Convention of 2019 working on the creation of a new constitution, civil code, penal code and otherwise long term governmental framework in the meantime.

Geography
REWRITE THIS: Mahuset's claimed land consists of nine separate portions of land in Europe and Asia, divided into Cherrystan (Dutch Matsia),  Cambois Beach (British Matsia),  Islo Keri (British Matsia),  Ihuset, and  Mahusetan Hasanistan. Laying in the middle of the former swamplands of Noord-Holland, Ihuset, together with  Cherrystan (Dutch Matsia), make up mainland Mahuset. The particular area in which Ihuset was founded is nowadays known as Burgemeester de Wildeland, and it's the place where all former nations of the Vetrisphere were established or can trace their origin to, including  Ihuset,  Radon and  Matsia. Ihuset, together with Cherrystan (Dutch Matsia) comprised of 1.124 km2 of claimed and controlled land.

Biodiversity
Mahuset can be subdivided between a number of ecoregions because of its climate and geomorphology, the Mahusetan mainland finds itself in the Atlantic mixed forests ecoregion. The country is consequently one of the richest in Europe in terms of biodiversity, this is however because of the large geographical spread of different Mahusetan territories.

Flora and Fauna
Mahuset's wildlife is typical of the north-west of Europe, although several of the larger mammals such as the lynx, brown bear, wolf, elk and walrus were hunted to extinction in historic times. There are important populations of seals and internationally significant nesting grounds for a variety of seabirds such as European herring gulls.

Political Geography
Mahuset is a federation of numerous states and territories, who are guaranteed numerous rights outlined in the constitution.

Politics and Government
Mahuset is a federal, presidential, representative democratic republic with strong democratic traditions, with Lazia as its capital. The Mahusetan political system operates under a framework laid out in the 2019 constitutional document known as the Constitution of the Confederation of Mahuset. Amendments generally require a two-thirds majority of the Lazian Chamber; the fundamental principles of the constitution, as expressed in the articles guaranteeing human dignity, the separation of powers, the federal structure, and the rule of law are valid in perpetuity.

The head of state, head of government and commander-in-chief of the armed forces is the president, who is elected by popular vote on the same ticket as the prime minister. The president has authority over the Lazian Chamber. The president appoints the members of the executive office as his cabinet, with members being responsible for policy and administration. The deputy head of state is the prime minister, whose powers are largely ceremonial and are, in reality, only wielded in the absence or inability of the president, with the prime minister succeeding the president in case of the president being unable to carry out his duties as president, whether through sickness, death, or other means. Federal legislative power is vested in the Lazian Chamber consisting of the Lazian Council and the Executive Office of the Lazian Chamber, which together form the legislative and executive body. The Lazian Council is elected through direct elections, by Schulze STV. The members of the Lazian Council represent the governments of the six constituent states, one constituent district, and four constituent territories.

Since 2019, the party system has been dominated by the Classical Liberal Party and the Independent Chamber Group. So far every president has been a member of one of these parties. However, the social democratic Social Democratic Party (in the Lazian Chamber between 2016 and 2019), the smaller social liberal Social Liberal Party (in the Lazian Chamber between 2016 and 2020) and the Mahusetan Pirate Party (in the Lazian Chamber between 2017 and 2019) have also played important roles.

Limited direct democracy is a hallmark of the Mahusetan political system. The 2016 and 2019 Mahusetan Constitutions define a system of direct democracy (sometimes called half-direct or representative direct democracy because it is aided by the more commonplace institutions of a representative democracy). The instruments of this system at the federal level, known as popular rights, include the right to submit a federal initiative and a referendum, both of which may overturn parliamentary decisions.

By calling a federal referendum, a group of citizens may challenge a law passed by the Lazian Chamber, if they gather the signatures of $2/5$ of the Mahusetan population against the law within 100 days. If so, a national vote is scheduled where voters decide by a simple majority whether to accept or reject the law. The Lazian Chamber and the President both have the power to introduce federal referendums, which unlike referendums proposed by the general population, have the ability to introduce laws as well as challenge them.

Law
Mahuset uses a civil legal system; that is, law arises primarily from written statutes; judges are not to make law, but merely to interpret it (though the amount of judicial interpretation in certain areas makes it equivalent to case law). Basic principles of the rule of law were laid in the Civil Code of the Confederation of Mahuset, which was largely based on the Napoleonic Code, the Swiss Civil Code, the Dutch Civil Code and the German Civil Code. In agreement with the principles of the Constitution of the Confederation of Mahuset, law should only prohibit actions detrimental to society, with the intent of the restriction of freedom being the exception, with any restriction of Freedom having to be provided for by Law and having to follow the principles of necessity and proportionality.

Mahuset's judiciary plays an important role in interpreting laws and has the power to strike down Acts of Parliament that violate the constitution. The Supreme Court is the highest court and final arbiter on matters of non-constitutional law and the second-highest court of matters of constitutional law and is currently vacant. Its five members are appointed by the president on the advice of the Lazian Chamber and the Minister of Justice. All judges at the superior and appellate levels are appointed after consultation with non-governmental legal bodies. The Constitutional Court is the highest court and final arbiter on matters of constitutional law and is currently vacant. Its five members are similarly appointed to the Supreme Court.

Military
The Confederation of Mahuset maintains a small and largely ceremonial military which consists of seven different primary branches, with these being the Mahusetan Army, the Mahusetan Navy, the Mahusetan Air Force, the Mahusetan Space Force, the Mahusetan Cyber Force, the Mahusetan Marechaussee and the Mahusetan Border Force. The Armed Forces of the Confederation of Mahuset, which fall under the Ministry of Defence, are tasked with supporting Mahusetan interests, defending Mahusetan territorial integrity and defending Mahusetan neutrality. The Mahusetan Navy also has the tongue-in-cheek task of rape and pillage. The Confederation of Mahuset has not ratified any international treaties relating to war crimes, such as the Geneva Conventions, the Hague Conventions, the Genocide Convention, the Convention against Torture and the Hostages Convention.

Political Parties
As the Confederation of Mahuset is a multi-party democracy, political parties in Mahuset are very common. Since the foundation of the Mahusetan government on 8 January 2016, the Mahusetan political system has been dominated by three families of political parties: the strongest of which are the Liberals, currently represented by the Classical Liberal Party (CLP); second are the Independents, currently represented by either Independent MPs in the Lazian Chamber or the Independent Chamber Group (OKF) and third are the Social Democrats and the Christian Democrats, both represented by the Social Democratic Party (SDP). Presently, there are four political parties operating in the Confederation of Mahuset and each have their own seats in the Lazian Chamber.

Foreign Relations and Diplomacy
The Confederation of Mahuset establishes and maintains diplomatic relations with other nations through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs. The Minister of Foreign Affairs has the power to grant "states of friendship" and tacit recognition, but official recognition of another nation can only be granted by an Act of Parliament or an Executive Order.

The Confederation of Mahuset and its predecessor, the Kingdom of Mahuset, have since their foundation sought diplomatic relations in the communities it found itself in, mainly being the Vetrisphere, the Konmalehth, the MicroWikia community, the Micropedia community, the World Union, the Association of Prolific Micronations and to a more limited degree the MicroWiki community.

Being one of the most active nations in what is considered the Vetrisphere, Mahuset enjoys a minor diplomatic role as a micronational power. Considering as major allies Nedland, Hasanistan, Hortania, and Radon, the Confederation of Mahuset implements foreign relations and defines foreign policy through its Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The current Minister is Emiel Sebastiaan Hardy.

At the time of the collapse of the last incarnation of a continuously active Mahuset, the Kingdom of Mahuset enjoyed full diplomatic relations with 3 states, informal relations with 3, and recognised all members of the United Nations. However with the fall of the Kingdom, all of those relations were de facto declared null and void. At the moment, the Confederation of Mahuset has signed several treaties and is at the process of signing more. As of 28 August 2024, Mahuset is in formal relations with 16 states.

Economy
Mahuset has a free-market capitalist economy. Most, if not all, Mahusetans are lower-middle class to upper-middle class. There is very little income inequality. Major private Mahusetan businesses include Oxocero Holdings and PP Clubs. Unlike its predecessor, the Kingdom of Mahuset, the Confederation of Mahuset has a little if not negligible economy. Measures to this, such as the creation of a Chamber of Commerce have been planned but haven't yet come to fruition.

Currency
Mahuset has had various currencies over its lifetime. The unit of currency from the Kingdom of Ihuset's founding, and until the founding of the United Nations of Mahuset, was the Husetan Pound, and was pegged to one euro. The unit of currency used from joining the World Union until said union's death was the InterSol and was pegged to 0,13 euro. The unit of currency used from the end of the World Union to the start of the Eniak Era was the Mahusetan Kroner-Guilder, and was pegged to 0,50 euro. The unit of currency used from Radon and  Matsia joining until the death of Kingdom of Mahuset was the Mahusetan Vetriana-Gulda and was pegged to 0,45 euro. Currently, however the de jure currency is the Mahusetan Leo, which was previously pegged to 0,45 euro.

Culture
The diverse culture of the Confederation of Mahuset had been influenced by elements of many other cultures, most notably the customs and traditions of the Netherlands, where most activity of the kingdom took place. The nation could be considered a melting pot of contrasting cultural currents. The differetn regions of Mahuset have counted with different cultural influences each. Mahusetan culture, as a whole has been greatly influenced by Dutch, and English culture as well as artificially introduced elements of other cultures, such as the Japanese culture and Italian culture in Ihuset.

Language
Both Dutch and English are spoken natively in Mahuset. The Mahusetan population regularly speaks either Dutch or English. Several "conlangs" existed in Mahuset's history, most citizens rarely spoke these languages however and preferred to use their native tongues. The Government uses English as the nation's official and national language.

Media
Mahuset's media is comparatively well and richly written, with both freedom of speech and freedom of the press being guaranteed by the Mahusetan constitution. The first and currently only newspaper in Mahuset is the Courant of Lazia, being de facto established in January of 2016 and de jure established in July of 2016

Cuisine
The Confederation of Mahuset's cuisine is undoubtedly a mix of different cultures, having been influenced mostly by Dutch and English dishes. The country's cuisine was mostly shaped by its location in the fertile North Sea river delta of the European Plain, which gave rise to fishing, farming, including the cultivation of the soil for growing crops and raising domesticated animals, and trading over sea, especially in the former empires of Great Britain and the the Netherlands and the spice trade. Mahusetan cuisine is characterised by being largely simple and straightforward and by its reliance on the high quality of natural produce. Mahusetan cuisine contains many dairy products. Breakfast and lunch are typically bread with toppings, with cereal for breakfast as an alternative. Traditionally, dinner consists of potatoes, a portion of meat, and (seasonal) vegetables. The Dutch diet, which the Mahusetan diet largely originated from, was relatively high in carbohydrates and fat, reflecting the dietary needs of the labourers whose culture moulded the country. Without many refinements, it is best described as rustic, though many holidays are still celebrated with special foods. In the course of the twentieth century this diet changed and became much more cosmopolitan, with most global cuisines being represented in the major cities.

Smoked sausages are common, with the sausage containing a lot of fat and being very juicy. Larger sausages are often eaten alongside stamppot, hutspot or zuurkool (sauerkraut); whereas smaller ones are often eaten as a street food. Various kinds of kruidkoek, ontbijtkoek, pannenkoeken are considered typical street foods.

Because of the abundance of water and flat grass lands that are found in and around the Mahusetan Mainland, the area is known for its many dairy products, which includes prominent Dutch cheeses such as Gouda, Leyden (spiced cheese with cumin), Edam (traditionally in small spheres) as well as Leerdammer and Beemster, while the adjacent Zaanstreek is since the 16th century known for its mayonnaise, typical whole-grain mustards and chocolate industry. Mahusetan cuisine is also known for the relatively high production of butter, which contains a larger amount of milkfat than most other European butter varieties. A by-product of the butter-making process, karnemelk (buttermilk), is also considered typical for this region.

Seafood such as soused herring, mussels, eels, oysters and shrimp are widely available and typical for the region. Kibbeling, once a local delicacy consisting of small chunks of battered white fish, has become a national fast food, just as lekkerbekje and fish and chips. Pastries in this area tend to be quite doughy, and often contain large amounts of sugar; either caramelised, powdered or crystallised. The oliebol (in its modern form) and poffertjes are good examples. Cookies are also produced in great number and tend to contain a lot of butter and sugar, like stroopwafels, as well as a filling of some kind, mostly almond, like gevulde koek.

Other prominent meals include Hachee, Nasi goreng, Mie goreng, Lumpia goreng, Satay, Babi panggang, Rijsttafel, Ramen, Doner kebab, Shawarma, Spaghetti bolognese, Roti, Chicken tikka masala, Cifa (also known as Aardappel Anders, generally consisting of potato slices, bacon and grated Gouda cheese with some varieties including cut up sausages and green beans or replacing the grated Gouda cheese with other grated forms of Dutch cheeses) and the full English breakfast (generally consisting of bacon, sausages, grilled tomatoes, fried bread, black pudding, baked beans, mushrooms (especially the Agaricus bisporus) and eggs.

The traditional alcoholic beverages of this region are beer (strong pale lager) and Jenever, a high proof juniper-flavored spirit, that came to be known in England as gin. A noted exception within the traditional Dutch alcoholic landscape, Advocaat, a rich and creamy liqueur made from eggs, sugar and brandy, is also native to this region. Other common alcholic beverages include wine, ciders, bitters, such as Beerenburg, and various other beers, such as bitter, mild, stout and brown ale. Common non-alcoholic drinks include tea, the popularity of which was increased by Catherine of Braganza, coffee, hot chocolate and various juices.

In early 2014, Oxfam ranked the Netherlands, the country which most of Mahuset's cuisine derived from, as the country with the most nutritious, plentiful and healthy food, in a comparison of 125 countries.

Meme Culture
With the Confederation of Mahuset being founded by three Gen Zers, meme culture, the culture that has largely emerged, or is emerging, from the creation, adaptation and sharing of memes over social media, such as Facebook, Twitter, Reddit and Tumblr, anonymous imageboards, such as Futaba Channel, 4chan, 8chan and Krautchan and instant messagers, such as WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Skype and Discord has proven to be a large and important part of Mahusetan Culture as a whole.

Holidays and Traditions
The Confederation of Mahuset has 16 national holidays, of which 1 is only a national holiday in Mahusetan territories located in England.

Attribution

 * [[File:CC-BY-SA-80x15.png]] This article contains text available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.
 * [[File:CC-BY-SA-80x15.png]] This article contains text available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

History

 * Paul Arblaster. A History of the Low Countries. Palgrave Essential Histories Series New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2006. 298 pp. ISBN 1-4039-4828-3.
 * J. C. H. Blom and E. Lamberts, eds. History of the Low Countries (1998)
 * Jonathan Israel. The Dutch Republic: Its Rise, Greatness, and Fall 1477–1806 (1995)
 * J. A. Kossmann-Putto and E. H. Kossmann. The Low Countries: History of the Northern and Southern Netherlands (1987)