The History of Malacia.
Malacia's modern history starts with King Albert whose marriage to Princess Beatrice led to the birth of their only child, Princess Christine. Despite the King's efforts to change public opinion, the feeling of the majority of both the government and populace was that a woman could not lead the country. Indeed this was causing a major political split of the country with the 'Traditionalists' maintaining that only a king could rule, whilst the 'Progressives' believed that a queen could -just as Queen Victoria was ruling the British Empire. Accordingly the King asked his brother-in-law -the Duke of Demarara- to take Princess Christine on a tour of Europe in search of a husband who would be suitable as a future king of Malacia. In the spring of 1892 she was introduced to a young naval officer, Prince Alexander, the youngest son of the Prince of Wales. Princess Christine immediately took to him as he did to her, and the Duke was soon able to advise the King and the government that the Prince was eminently suitable to ensure the safe running of the country. After a long series of negotiations between the two governments as well as the two sovereigns, in the summer of 1894 the engagement was officially announced and the date for the wedding was set for May 1895.
Alexander took a great interest in the land drainage and reclamation along the coast, suggesting improvements to the pumps, co-ordinating the work of the windmills and pushing through an electric telegraph based storm and flood warning system. Realising that trying to start a railway in a country without coal would be difficult and expensive he proposed a horse-drawn trackway instead, making sure that the trackbed would able to be used for a railway at a later date. He also encouraged the start of aluminium smelting -reasoning that there would be a greater income from selling the pure metal rather than the ore- as well as a hydro-electric power project to supply the electricity.
Malacia did not take part in the First World War, although many of its young men joined the British Army, but it did maintain the supply of rubber, aluminium and food to Britain.
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Last updated: 19th December 2018.
Copyright SR Jenkins, February 2012.