Archduke Karl Heinz Seigemund Emil Assassinated at 53

(Article from The Ruvensburg Times, by Justus Nussbaum)

At 1:00 pm, on September 16th, 2024 CE (year 67 of the Emilian Imperial Calendar), the people of Ruvensburg gathered to hear an address from Archduke Karl Heinz Seigemund Emil of the Archduchy of Ruvensburg in response to an open letter to the region by the Entirely Sane Commonwealth of Pizzte Kilgot, criticizing the monarchy of our nation and calling for the assassination of the Archduke. At 1:13 pm they got their wish when he was shot by a Pizztian national. The man responsible, one Gemelli Fusilli, had come into the country 5 days ago aboard a cruise ship stopping in Ruvensburg before heading to the Eastern Isles. Instead of getting back onto the ship, Fusilli would make his way to the capital on one of the high-speed rail lines heading out of the beachside town of Ervingtherie. The following is a transcript of the speech given prior to the assassination:

"My fellow Ruvens, as you have likely seen, the leadership of Pizzte Kilgot has recently sent out a vile, slanderous, and hostile letter criticizing our nation. The letter claims that we are primitive, that we are zealots, and that our administration is without the morality that, apparently, only democracy can achieve. This is false.

It has not been so long that some of you, though young as we were at the time, will not remember the struggles we faced in the mid-twentieth century. The democracy that was founded after the collapse of the Sonnenreich in 1811 had fallen into corruption following the War of 1915 against New Yogurtopia, as the leaders used the war to place money in their pockets as the poorest of the nation lost their lives. We must not forget the riots of 1928, how close we came to a socialist coup in 1934, and the civil war fought between the liberals, socialists, and fascists between 1941 and 1952. It was our father, Seigemund Heinz Frederick Emil, who took charge of the military in 1949 and ended the civil war. The Pizztians seem to forget how he was democratically elected to the position of Chancellor and by popular referendum, declared a monarch.

Democracy is not so great that our nation was not nearly destroyed. However, under his reign we managed to pull ourselves out of chaos, we managed to forge a state in which the welfare of the poorest was prioritized, where the people could flourish in a market economy forced into an even playing field between the lowest and highest earning citizens, where the education of the people was made paramount, and where the minorities and women of our nation were given rights they never saw under that corrupt system of democracy, which allowed the people to falsely believe they had a choice in the oligarchs who controlled them. Not only that, but the institution of the monarchy gave rise to a much more secular state. The Pizztians claim we see the monarch as a god, we know that the monarch is but a servant of the people. We know that the monarch is given absolute power, because it is the only way to ensure quick and decisive action in the face of crisis. We know that the monarch is nothing but a human being performing a duty the same as any citizen, to the collective welfare of the nation.

On the other hand, under the old state, uneducated, unwashed, and ignorant religious zealots could gain power. They could repress the people. They oppressed the religious minorities of the nation, often hailing from lands such as Pizzte Kilgot or New Yogurtopia. The monarchy protected these individuals by enforcing atheism in government action, while allowing the freedom of worship amongst the members of the state and the citizens of the nation. While our nation pursues secular policy, it seems the leadership of Pizzte Kilgot has devoted itself to a blind and cultish worship of democracy, refusing to acknowledge how the flaws of this system nearly led to the ruin of our people.

It is with a heavy heart that we must announce that effective immediately, Pizzte Kilgot's privilege of an embassy in our nation shall be revoked. Furthermore, we shall annul our alliance with the Pizztians and enact an embargo on them. Next, we officially denounce the leadership of the nation as fools whose actions are fueled by little more than a psychotic devotion to ideology over reason and an enlightened analysis of the fact that democracy is not made for every nation. Finally, we would like to extend our sympathy to the Pizztians who must put up with such a blind administration and hope that they may one day see progress towards a more sophisticated sta-"

It was at this point that two bullets found their way into the chest of the Archduke. While there were snipers posted in the case of emergency, the assassin could not be taken out without risking the lives of the people in the crowd listening to the address. His son, Seigemund Heinz Karl Emil, is set to be coronated in two weeks as Archduke Seigemund II, while a private viewing ceremony is set for September 22nd, with a public funeral on the 23rd.

Already, Seigemund II has arranged a nationwide manhunt for the assassin and calls upon all nations within the region to find him should he come to their own borders, so he may be brought to Ruvensburg for trial. Should he be found, it is a guarantee that he shall face the death penalty and given the abundance of witnesses to his crime, be convincted and killed. There have also been calls across the nation for retaliation from the government, though whether it will happen and how it will happen now rest in the hands of the next Archduke.

Archduke Karl has left behind a legacy worthy of his father's name, maintaining the peace achieved in 1957 and pushing Ruvensburg to new heights in social welfare, education, and industry. There is no doubt that he will be missed. There is no doubt that he must be avenged.