Elleore
is more than just a tiny isle in Roskilde Fjord. It is also a close-knit community
of mostly young people - the citizens, and last but not least an idealistic approach to life.
Aspects of Elleore:
The physical place - the isle in Roskilde Fjord |
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The community living it - Elleoresamfundet |
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The micronation of Elleore |
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The multitude of legends spun around Elleore |
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The wealth of collectibles from and about Elleore |
But
first, here is my view, as expressed in the pages of the 'Cinderella
Philatelist', journal of the UK-based 'Cinderella Stamp Club', Issues
July 2007 and July 2010:
| 'Cinderella
Philatelist' July 2007 - article |
|
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| 'Cinderella
Philatelist' July 2010 - article |
|
|
The Place
Where on Earth is Elleore?
GoogleMaps has the answer:
Access
to the island is restricted. On the one hand it is private property of
Elleoresamfundet. On the other hand, the island is a bird sanctuary.
This means, that over long periods of time each year the peace and
quiet of the birds living there must not be disturbed.
Visitors
who have gained permission for a visit best arrange their crossing with
the assistance of Elleoresamfundet from the nearby leisure port of
Veddelev north of Roskilde.
The Community
The
state was initiated by language teachers from a Copenhagen school many decades ago, and still today most of the members of Elleoresamfundet and thus citizens of Elleore are or were pupils from Copenhagen.
Each
year, Elleoresamfundet holds preparatory courses (somewhat similar to
Boy Scout/Girl Guide outings) for interested pupils, who can find out
about many aspects of Elleore. Many of these decide to join the society.
A
number of the older members have joined in their youth and stayed on,
now having risen into leading positions and shaping the present and
future of the society.
The Micronation
Elleore
is one of the oldest micronations on earth. From its establishment in
1944, it has gone from strength to strength. Going with the times, the
first form of government, a secret cabinet, was replaced by an ordinary
cabinet, taking care of the running of the country. The monarch is
mostly a representative, while the real power lies in the hands of the
Imperial Council (Rigsraad), who are in fact the Elleoresamfundet
heads.
All
the trappings of any self-respecting micronation and more are in place: flag,
money, stamps, universities, historians, sports and leisure activities,
sometimes even stunt 'wars' and peace negotiations with neighbouring
countries.
The Legends
Soon
after the kingdom had been established, historians presented their
first findings. The legend begins with monks fleeing from Ireland and
being washed up on the shores of Elleore by accident in 944. That was
exactly 1000 years before the kingdom was created. Their supposed
doings in and around Krune Convent in the northern part of Elleore form
a large part of the legend. This culminates in the 16th century in a
catastrophic thunderstorm and flood, supposedly resulting in a large
chunk of the island being permanently flooded. To this day, new
elements of this saga are unearthed by researchers.
The 'real' history of the isle is
covered on the 'History' subpage.
Collectibles
Starting
in 1947, Elleore issued their own postage stamps. To this day, more
than 1000 different stamps have emerged from the General Postal
Directorate, with a number of unusual items among them. There are
bottle mail, ferry mail, tourist mail and stamps for exclusive use by
the Royal household. Revenue stamps and issues for a number of colonies
complete the picture.
Since 1962,
the Scandinavian tradition of Christmas labels is also followed in
Elleore. Every year, colourful and high-quality labels are distributed
to the subscribers.
Apart
from that, the avid collector does well to look out for a large number
of coins, banknotes, picture postcards, adhesive labels as well as other
merchandise.
For details see the subpages on
'Stamps' and 'Currency'.
