Rewind: The Mazaloom Kingdom

Surprise! I have since long stated that there is no Royalty in my Region 12, but this is no longer the truth! I tried to hold back for this long, but my numerous noble Houses need some organization with a little more omph than what is the current situation. So, during my ongoing journey researching today's royal family, which of course comes with a past, I came across some "older" photos from a very special occasion that took place 78 years ago:

 The coronation of the first King and Queen of the modern Era!

The biggest event of the times made a flying start for DSV's very first TV production company, Plumbob Studios.

The current King is actually the 7th Monarch of Mazaloom, with the first getting his crown in Year 1 (Perhaps you met the first two kings in my video series this Winter, «Mazaloom Medieval»). After a few generations there were riots; The goal of the Great Revolution in Year 118 was indeed to remove all nobility including the Monarch. Nobility did not get completely removed, though, but their privileges shrunk drastically. The royal family extinguished themselves by having no heir to the Crown, and the main seat of House de Froux and House von Donnersmalt, Hedgewood Castle, was vandalized.

What triggered the revolutionaries was the fact that House von Donnersmalt had no male descendant to bring on the kingdom, so for the second time during 118 years the only solution would be to instate yet another House. Such a frequent switch of Houses did not secure political stability, but more encourage corruption and rivalry. Therefore, the monarchy was replaced by today's system of a stately institution containing The People Chamber and The Court Chamber (today High Court). Regional Councils granted more power to the political parties than to individual nobles.

The Throne Room was not yet completed, but functioned well for the 3 days event.

However, there was a small group of royalists that secured as much as they could of the regalia and royal heirlooms - that is: Most was stolen or destroyed by the mob. Over the decades many royal jewelry items have been rediscovered at flea markets all over SimNation, some of them are today heirlooms owned by noble Houses. Other items, like the rumored five money trees, seemed forever gone - or perhaps they never really existed?

From Year 140 the group of royalists worked hard to plan a return of a Monarch, including the Peerage of Mazaloom. It was needed to complete the noble structure that was still a very useful community mechanism, but that had been dramatically damaged 30 years earlier. Restoring old ruins of the Hedgewood Castle, now in Britechester, would stir up the opposition. It would be wiser to find new land. They found neutral ground in what is today known as Del Sol Valley, and started to build a small castle, «Chateau Peak». Back then this district was not popular at all. The castle was the only major build with plenty of land for future expansion, at what later became The Pinnacles. At today's Mirage Park there were some small factories and tiny homes for their workers.

Then the royalist group searched for a suitable family, and their eyes fell on House of Luxe-Hamper. This family started out with trades and cargo business in Mazaloom, they got the Tredony county 150 years ago, and they built themselves a massive fortune. But the most interesting was that House of Luxe-Hamper were workers at heart, they always valued good old crafts, from woodworking and candle making to farming and arts. This would make them a popular and functional connection between the elite and the workers.

Adding to this was the fact that their current generation (Year 150) were three successful brothers, Count Tybe de Tredony, Lord Bernadine Luxe-Hamper and Lord Albard Louis Luxe-Hamper, all married with a total of 7 children. The line of successors to the Royal peerage would be solid, and no other house could provide Mazaloom with such a strong start!

King Tybe and Queen Anna at coronation. Details like crowns and robes were developed further.

Count Tybe de Tredony accepted the request, and in Year 150 he and his wife, Countess Anna (origin of the House of Panter, but also with a tie to House of Winston) were crowned King and Queen of Mazaloom. The old Letter of Patent had been adjusted for a modern time, and although there was only one Regent at a time, it was made very clear that the King and Queen would be of equal rank. The job would take two! This was proven by a double investiture, that never happened for the lower peerages, and of course the fact that their oldest child, teen daughter Evez Marabell, would be first in line of Successors, outclassing her two younger brothers - also a huge first that got lots of attention and support, especially with the female population. 

Crown Princess Evez was 1st in line of Successors to the Mazaloom Throne.

The red haired young woman wearing a green dress on front row is the soon to be HRH Crown Princess Evez, Mazaloom's main Regent some time in the future.

It was indeed a grand event taking place at the castle in Del Sol those days, and with all members of the large peerage attending. It must have been hard to organize, with a half done castle, a limited staff that was all fresh to their job, and the fact that the guests had traveled far and there was no accommodation available to most of them in the castle or elsewhere in Del Sol.

The old Mazaloom Royal Trust had been reactivated! Most of the old heirlooms had yet not been repaired, but some were in good enough condition for being exhibited as part of the three days program. And the new Monarch received plenty of gifts that later on have become valuable treasures.

More details regarding House of Luxe-Hamper (oh, I love their name combining glam and laundry!) will be available on this site shortly, including a huge family tree, list of heirlooms and more. I'm still trying to find (create) more painted portraits. On the blog I will treat them like the other high nobility Houses, but there might be a little extra focus now that I research their everything - will add a few links from this article when I know more :)