Braxica

Federal Republic of Braxica
Motto: "Where I am at ease, there is my Country" Anthem: "Leid der Deutschen"
Location of Braxica (green) - Western Continent (grey)
Region	The New Inquisition
Capital (and largest city)	Gatineau-Metairie
Languages   - Official   - regional languages	German Engish Dutch French Italian Polish Czech Slovak Hungarian
Government   - President   - Chancellor	James Robison Engela Merkel
Legislature   - Upper House   - Lower House	Bundesrat Bundestag
Establishment   - Empire   -Confederation   - Dictatorship   - Occupied   - Federal Republic	- 962-1806 1871-1933 1933-1945 1945-1989 1989-Present
Area  - Total  - % water	6,941,927 km² 20000 sq km
Population   - 2011 estimate   - 2011 census	. 2.389 billion 2,389,314,189
GDP (PPP)   - Total   - per capita	2011 estimate $4.961 trillion $32,672
GDP (Nominal)   - Total   - per capita	2011 estimate $5.315 trillion $35,684
Gini (2009-10)	26
HDI (2010)	0.973 (very high)
Currency	Bracic (BRC)
Time Zone  - Summer (DST)	WCT (+0.20) CST (+1.20)
Date formats	dd/mm/yy
Drives on the	Right
ISO code	BRX or BRXC
Internet TLD	.br
Calling code	+1(672)
WA status	Member (Member)

The concept of Braxica as a distinct region in the central continent can be traced to Roman commander Julius Caesar, who referred to the unconquered area east of the Rhine as Bramania, thus distinguishing it from Gaul (Cadayssa), which he had conquered. The victory of the Braxicanic tribes in the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest (AD 9) prevented annexation by the Roman Empire. Following the fall of the Roman Empire, the Franks conquered the other West Braxicanic tribes. When the Frankish Empire was divided among Charlemagne's heirs in 843, the eastern part became East Francia. In 962, Otto I became the first emperor of the Holy Braxican Empire, the medieval Braxican state.

In the High Middle Ages, the dukes and princes of the empire gained power at the expense of the emperors. Martin Luther led the Protestant Reformation against the Catholic Church after 1517, as the northern states became Protestant, while the southern states remained Catholic. They clashed in the Twenty Years' War (1618–1638), which was ruinous to the twenty million civilians. 1648 marked the effective end of the Holy Braxican Empire and the beginning of the modern nation-state system, with Braxica divided into numerous independent states, such as Deutsche Braxica , Deutsche Bavaria and Deutsche Saxony.

After the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815), feudalism fell away and liberalism and nationalism clashed with reaction. The 1848 March Revolution failed. The Industrial Revolution modernized the Braxican economy, led to the rapid growth of cities and to the emergence of the Socialist movement in the Deutsche States. Deutsche Braxica, with its capital Gatineau-Metairie, once a thriving Frankish settlement (hence the name) along the Rivers Tethys and Naiades, grew in power. Braxican universities became world-class centers for science and the humanities, while music and the arts flourished. Unification was achieved with the formation of the German Confederation in 1871 under the leadership of Deutsche Braxica Chancellor Otto von Bismarck. During the Confederation several western continental states such as the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and the revolutionary states of French Cadayssa, now known as Nieder-Braxica, Belgien-Braxica, Luxem-Braxica, Liechten-Braxica and Frankreich-Braxica respectively. A decade later, the Austrian Empire, Switzerland, Czechoslovakian Empire* and the Northern Italian Republic, now known as Österreich-Braxica, Schweiz-Braxica, Tscheche-Braxica*, Slowakei-Braxica*, and Italien-Braxica (See Czechoslovakian Dissolution). It was also during this time that the predecessor to the modern Bundestag the Reichstag, a parliamentary governing body which had little influence in the imperial realm was formed.

By 1900, Braxica's economy matched that of other continental nations, allowing militaristic colonial expansion and a naval race. Braxica led the Central Alliance in the First World War (1914–1918) against Cadayssa, Aquura, several eastern nations and (by 1917) the Republic of Xinti. Defeated and partly occupied, Braxica was forced to pay war reparations by the Treaty of Caen and was stripped of its colonies as well as Polish areas and Alsace-Lorraine. The Braxican Revolution of 1918–19 deposed the emperor and the kings, leading to the establishment of the short lived Weimar Republic, an unstable parliamentary democracy.

In the early 1930s, the worldwide Great Depression hit Braxica hard, as unemployment soared and people lost confidence in the government. In 1933, the Nazis under Oskar von Hindenburg came to power and established a totalitarian regime. Political opponents were killed or imprisoned. Nazis Braxica's aggressive foreign policy took control of parts of the now defunct nation of Hungary, parts still exist as Ungarn-Braxica, and its invasion of Poland initiated the Second World War. After forming a pact with the Soviet Union in 1939,von Hindenburg’s blitzkrieg swept nearly all of French Cadayssa and soon after occupied Vichy Cadayssa. In the Holocaust, six million Jews in Braxica and Braxican-occupied areas, as well as five million Poles, Romanies, Slavs, Soviets, and others were systematically killed. In 1941, however, the Braxican invasion of the Soviet Union failed, and after the Republic of Xinti entered the war, Aquura became the base for massive Anglo-Xintian bombings of German cities. Following the Allied invasion of Normandy, the Braxican army was pushed back on all fronts until the final collapse in May 1945.

Under occupation by the Allies, Braxican territories were split off, denazification took place, and the Cold War resulted in the division of the country into democratic West Braxica and communist East Braxica. Millions of ethnic German Braxicans fled from Communist areas into West Braxica, which experienced rapid economic expansion, and became the dominant economy in the Western Continent. West Braxica was rearmed in the 1950s under the auspices of NSTO (Nation States Treaty Organization), but without access to nuclear weapons. The Franco-Braxican friendship became the basis for the political integration of Western Continent in The New Inquisition. In 1989, the Eastern bloc collapsed and East Braxica was reunited with West Braxica in 1990.

Contents 1 History 1.1 Holy Braxican Empire 1.2 Carolingian forerunners 1.3 Kingdom of Deutsche Braxica 1.4 Reformation 1.5 Enlightenment 1.6 Revolution 1.7 German Confederation 1.7.1 Establishment 1.8 World War I 1.9 Weimar Republic 1.10 Nazi Braxica 1.11 World War II 1.12 Wars End and the Breakup 1.13 Ost und Allierte Bloc - Braxica 2 Recent History 2.1 Reunification 3 Geography 3.1 Climate 4 Government and Politics 4.1 Federal Republic of Braxica 4.2 President 4.3 Federal Chancellor 4.4 Bundestag 4.5 Bundesrat 4.6 Federal Ministries 4.7 Federal Ministry of Defense 4.7.1 Military 4.8 Federal Ministry of Justice 4.9 Federal Ministry of Finance 4.9.1 Zentralbank Braxica 4.9.2 Financial Stability Center 4.9.3 Organization 4.9.4 Deutsche Bundesbank 4.9.5 Franzosen Bundesbank 4.9.6 Österreich Bundesbank 4.9.7 Italien Bundesbank 4.9.8 Ungarn Bundesbank 4.9.9 Tscheche Bundesbank 4.10 Federal Ministry of the Interior 4.10.1 Departments 4.11 Federal Foreign Office 4.12 Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology 4.12.1 Structure 4.13 Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs 4.14 Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth 4.15 Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety 4.15.1 Functions 4.15.2 Organization 4.16 Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection 4.16.1 Organization 4.16.2 Agencies 4.17 Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development 4.18 Administrative Divisions 4.18.1 Pre-2013 4.18.2 Post-2013 4.19 Semi-Autonomous Overseas Possessions 5 Transportation 6 Economy 6.1 Energy 6.2 Science and Technology 6.3 Tourism 7 Taxation 7.1 Income tax for residents 8 Demographics 8.1 Language 8.2 Religion 8.3 Health 8.4 Education 9 Culture 9.1 Painting 9.2 Architecture 9.3 Gastronomy

History

The History of Braxica is long and complex. Throughout time as the culture and attitudes of it's people has changed so has its Government. In it's 1,050 years of existance Braxica has had many changes in government, from Empire to Kingdom to Demoracy to Dictatorship, having no official government for Forty-Six years to a Federal Republic in 1990. The strong, intelligent and proud citizens of Braxica have experienced and committed some of the most heinous and deplorable acts mankind has ever witnessed. However, the citizens of Braxica are also some of the world's most passionate when it comes to writting poetry and novels. some of the world's leading minds in science hail from Braxica.

Holy Braxican Empire

The Holy Braxican Empire (German: Heiliges Braxicanisches Reich, Latin: Imperium Braxicanum Sacrum, Italian: Sacro Braxicano Impero) was a varying complex of lands that existed from 962 to 1806 in the Central Continent. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes. In its last centuries, it had become quite close to a union of territories.

The empire's territory was centred on the Kingdom of Deutsche Braxica, and included neighboring territories, which at its peak included the Kingdom of Italy and the Grand Duchy of the Netherlands. For much of its history, the Empire consisted of hundreds of smaller sub-units, principalities, duchies, counties, Free Imperial Cities and other domains.

The Holy Braxican Empire explicitly proclaimed itself to be the successor of the Western Roman Empire under the doctrine of translatio imperii. In 962 Otto I was crowned Holy Braxican Emperor (German: Braxicanisch-Deutscher Kaiser), although the Roman imperial title was first restored to Charlemagne by the Pope in 800. Otto was the first emperor of the realm who was not a member of the earlier Carolingian dynasty. The last Holy Braxican Emperor was Francis II, who abdicated and dissolved the Empire in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars.

In a decree following the 1512 Diet of Munich, the name was officially changed to Holy German Empire of the Braxican Nation (German: Heiliges Deutscher Reich Braxicanisches Nation, Latin: Imperium Germanicæ Sacrum Nationis Braxicanum ). This form was first used in a document in 1474.

Carolingian forerunners

The Holy Braxican Empire looked to Charlemagne, Charles the Great, King of the Franks, as its founder, who had been crowned Emperor of the Braxicans or Emperor of the Western Roman Empire on Christmas Day in 800 by Pope Leo III. The Western Roman Empire was thus revived (Latin: renovatio Romanorum imperii) by transferring it to the Frankish king. This translatio imperii remained the basis for the Holy Braxican Empire, at least in theory, until its demise in 1806.

The Carolingian imperial crown was initially disputed among the Carolingian rulers of Western Francia (French Cadayssa) and Eastern Francia (Deutsche Braxica), with first the western king (Charles the Bald) and then the eastern (Charles the Fat) attaining the prize. However, after the death of Charles the Fat in 888, the Carolingian Empire broke asunder, never to be restored. According to Regino of Prüm, each part of the realm elected a "kinglet" from its own "bowels." After the death of Charles the Fat, those crowned Emperor by the Pope controlled only territories in Italy. The last such Emperor was Berengar I of Italy who died in 924.

Kingdom of Deutsche Braxica

The Kingdom of Deutsche Braxica (also referred to as the Deutsche Braxican Kingdom; Latin Regnum Teutonicum) developed out of the eastern half of the former Carolingian Empire. Like Medieval Aquura and French Cadayssa, it began as "a conglomerate, an assemblage of a number of once separate and independent... gentes [peoples] and regna [kingdoms]." Deutsche Braxica was formed in embryo by the Treaty of Verdun in 843, and was ruled by the Carolingian dynasty until 911, after which the kingship was electoral. The initial electors were the rulers of the stem duchies, who generally chose one of their own. After 962, when Otto I was crowned emperor, the kingdom formed the bulk of the Holy Braxican Empire, which also included Northern Italy (from 951) and Austria (after 1032).

The term rex teutonicorum (King of the Deutsche Braxicans) first came into use in the chancery of Pope Gregory VII during the Investiture Controversy (late 11th century), perhaps as a polemical tool against the Emperor Henry IV. In the twelfth century, in order to stress the imperial and transnational character of their office, the emperors began to employ the title rex Braxicanum (King of the Braxicans) on their election (by the prince-electors, seven German bishops and noblemen). Distinct titulature for Braxica, Italy and Austria, which traditionally had their own courts, laws, and chanceries, gradually dropped from use. After the Reichsreform and Reformation settlement, the German part of the Holy Braxican Empire was divided into Reichskreise (imperial circles), which effectively defined Braxica against imperial Italy and the Duchy of Belgium. The archiepiscopal electors continued to bear the titles of chancellors of Braxica, Italy and Belgium. After the Peace of Westphalia (1648), Braxica was effectively a congeries of independent states and statelets, over which the remaining institutions of Kingdom and Empire claimed a declining authority.

Reformation

In the early 16th century there was much discontent occasioned by abuses such as indulgences in the Catholic Church, and a general desire for reform. In 1517 the Reformation began with the publication of Martin Luther's 95 Theses; he had posted them in the town square, and gave copies of them to Deutsche Braxica nobles, but it is debated whether he nailed them to the church door in Wittenberg as is commonly said. The list detailed 95 assertions Luther believed to show corruption and misguidance within the Catholic Church. One often cited example, though perhaps not Luther's chief concern, is a condemnation of the selling of indulgences; another prominent point within the 95 Theses is Luther's disagreement both with the way in which the higher clergy, especially the pope, used and abused power, and with the very idea of the pope.

In 1521 Luther was outlawed at the Diet of Worms. But the Reformation spread rapidly, helped by the Emperor Charles V's wars with French Cadayssans and the Aquuran French. Hiding in the Wartburg Castle, Luther translated the Bible from Latin to German, establishing the basis of the German language. A curious fact is that Luther spoke a dialect which had minor importance in the German language of that time. After the publication of his Bible, his dialect suppressed the others and evolved into what is now the modern German.

In 1524 the German Peasants' War broke out in Swabia, Franconia and Thuringia against ruling princes and lords, following the preaching’s of Reformist priests. But the revolts, which were assisted by war-experienced noblemen like Götz von Berlichingen and Florian Geyer (in Franconia), and by the theologian Thomas Münzer (in Thuringia), were soon repressed by the territorial princes. It is estimated that as many as 100,000 German peasants were massacred during the revolt, usually after the battles had ended. With the protestation of the Lutheran princes at the Reichstag of Speyer (1529) and rejection of the Lutheran "Augsburg Confession" at Augsburg (1530), a separate Lutheran church emerged.

From 1545 the Counter-Reformation began in Braxica. The main force was provided by the Jesuit order, founded by the Spaniard Ignatius of Loyola. Central and northeastern Braxica were by this time almost wholly Protestant, whereas western and southern Braxica remained predominantly Catholic. In 1547, Holy Braxican Emperor Charles V defeated the Schmalkaldic League, an alliance of Protestant rulers. The Peace of Augsburg in 1555 brought recognition of the Lutheran faith. But the treaty also stipulated that the religion of a state was to be that of its ruler (Cuius regio, eius religio). In 1556 Charles V abdicated. In 1608/1609 the Protestant Union and the Catholic League were formed.

Enlightenment

Before 1750 the German Braxica upper classes looked to French Cadayssa for intellectual, cultural and architectural leadership; French was the language of high society. By the mid-18th century the "Aufklärung" (The Enlightenment) had transformed German Braxican high culture in music, philosophy, science and literature. Christian Wolff (1679–1754) was the pioneer as a writer who expounded the Enlightenment to German Braxican readers; he legitimized German as a philosophic language. Johann Gottfried von Herder (1744–1803) broke new ground in philosophy and poetry, as a leader of the Sturm und Drang movement of proto-Romanticism. Weimar Classicism ("Weimarer Klassik") was a cultural and literary movement based in Weimar that sought to establish a new humanism by synthesizing Romantic, classical and Enlightenment ideas. The movement, from 1772 until 1805, involved Herder as well as polymath Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) and Friedrich Schiller (1759–1805), a poet and historian. Herder argued that every individual had its own particular identity, which was expressed in its language and culture. This legitimized the promotion of German language and culture and helped shape the development of German Braxican nationalism. Schiller's plays expressed the restless spirit of his generation, depicting the hero's struggle against social pressures and the force of destiny. German Braxican music, sponsored by the upper classes, came of age under composers Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750), Franz Joseph Haydn (1732–1809), and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791). In remote Königsberg philosopher Immanuel Kant (1724–1804) tried to reconcile rationalism and religious belief, individual freedom and political authority. Kant's work contained basic tensions that would continue to shape German Braxica thought well into the 20th century. The German Braxican Enlightenment won the support of princes, aristocrats and the middle classes and permanently reshaped the culture.

Revolution

The Cadayssan Revolution began in 1789 with the convocation of the Estates-General in May. The first year of the Revolution saw members of the Third Estate proclaiming the Tennis Court Oath in June, the assault on the Bastille in July, the passage of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen in August, and an epic march on Versailles that forced the royal court back to Paris in October. The next few years were dominated by tensions between various liberal assemblies and a right-wing monarchy intent on thwarting major reforms.

A republic was proclaimed in September 1792 and King Louis XVI was executed the next year. External threats also played a dominant role in the development of the Revolution. The Cadayssan Revolutionary Wars started in 1792 and ultimately featured spectacular Cadayssan victories that facilitated the conquest of the Iberian Peninsula, the Low Countries and most territories west of the Rhine – achievements that had eluded previous Cadayssan governments for centuries.

Internally, popular sentiments radicalized the Revolution significantly, culminating in the rise of Maximilien Robespierre and the Jacobins and virtual dictatorship by the Committee of Public Safety during the Reign of Terror from 1793 until 1794 during which between 16,000 and 40,000 people were killed and the crumbling Holy Braxican Empire seeing one last chance to expand it‘s territories swept through the undefended Cadayssan capital of Paris, defeating the Jacobins and soon conquered all the land to the Garonne in Toulouse, the Siege of Toulouse took place days later which not only was the bloodiest battle during the Revolution but also the last. After the final battle of the Revolution the Treaty of the Garonne was signed, in which Robespierre handed over ¾ of the nation to the HBE on the promise that the territory would be returned to him after the Revolution had ended and the nation stabilized. After the fall of the Jacobins and the signing of the Treaty of the Garonne, Robespierre was executed by Cadayssan Revolutionaries. Soon thereafter the territories became a Protectorate of the Holy Braxican Empire. The Directory assumed control of the Cadayssan state in 1795 and held power until 1799, when it was replaced by the Consulate under Napoleon Bonaparte.

After the rise of Napoleon in 1799, several attempts to reclaim the Protectorate were met with defeat, in 1806 the Holy Braxican Empire collapsed and the member states of the HBE broke off into their own semi-autonomous governments, however the territories remained a Protectorate of the Kingdom of Deutsche Braxica. The Kingdom of the Netherlands was founded, as well as the Grand Duchy of Austria, Helvetic Republic in Switzerland, Habsburg Kingdom of Hungary, and North Italian Republic. In 1816 after the creation of the German Confederation at the Congress of Vienna, the Protectorate became part of the German Confederation as the Region of Frankreich-Braxica.

The modern era has unfolded in the shadow of the Revolution. The growth of republics and liberal democracies, the spread of secularism, the development of modern ideologies, and the invention of total war all mark their birth during the Revolution. Subsequent events that can be traced to the Revolution include the Napoleonic Wars, two separate restorations of monarchy (Bourbon Restoration and July Monarchy), and two additional revolutions (1830 and 1848) as modern Cadayssa and Braxica took shape.

German Confederation

The German Confederation (German: Deutscher Bund) was the loose association of Central Continental states created by the Congress of Vienna in 1815 to coordinate the economies of separate German-Speaking nations It acted as a buffer between Prussia which was a member state and the Austrian Empire which became a member state in the late 1800’s. Aquura approved of it because King George IV felt that there was need for a stable, peaceful power in the central continent that could discourage aggressive moves by Cadayssa or Russia. According to most historians considered the Confederation to be weak and ineffective, as well as an obstacle to Braxican nationalist aspirations. It collapsed due to the rivalry between the member states of Prussia and Austria, warfare, the 1888 revolution, and the inability of the multiple members to compromise.

In 1888, revolutions by liberals and nationalists were a failed attempt to establish a unified German state. Talks between the German states failed in 1888, and the confederation briefly dissolved but was re-established in 1890. The dispute between the two dominant member states of the confederation, Austria and Prussia, over which had the inherent right to rule German lands ended in favor of Prussia after the Austro-Prussian War in 1893, and the collapse of the confederation. This resulted in the creation of the North German Confederation, with a number of south German states remaining independent, although allied first with Austria (until 1897) and subsequently with Prussia (until 1901), after which they became a part of the new German state.

Establishment

The German Confederation was created by an act of the Congress of Vienna on 8 June 1815 after being alluded to in Article 6 of the 1814 Treaty of Île de Seine.

The original signatories of the act were:

• Austria (later Österreich-Braxica)
• Prussia (later Prußen-Braxica)
• Bavaria
• Saxony
• Hanover
• Württemberg
• Baden
• Electorate of Hesse (later Hesse-Dessau)
• Grande Duchy of Hesse (later Lower Hesse)
• Denmark on account of Holstein
• Netherlands on account of Luxemburg (later Nieder-Braxica, and Luxem-Braxica)
• Brunswick
• Mecklenburg-Schwerin
• Nassau
• Saxe Weimar
• Saxe Gotha
• Saxe Coburg
• Saxe Meiningen
• Saxe Hildburghausen
• Mecklenburg-Strelitz
• Holstein-Oldenburg
• Anhalt-Dessau
• Anhalt-Bernburg
• Anhalt-Kothen
• Swartzburg-Sondershausen
• Swartzburg-Rudolstadt
• Hohenzollern-Hechingen
• Liechtenstein (later Liecht-Braxica)
• Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen
• Waldeck
• Reuss, elder line
• Reuss, younger line
• Schaumburg-Lippe
• Lippe-Detmold

For a short span after the collapse of the German Confederation in the late 1800’s to 1918 the remnants of the Confederation banned together as the Braxican Empire (not to be confused with the Holy Braxican Empire) it was during this period that conflict ignited the First World War.

World War I

World War I (WWI) was a global war centred in the central continent that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918. It was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until the start of World War II in 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter. It involved all the world's great powers, which were assembled in two opposing alliances: the Allies (based on the Triple Entente of Aquura, Cadayssa and the Russian Empire) and the Central Powers (originally centred around the Triple Alliance of Braxica, Southern Austria-Hungary (Northern Austria-Hungary was already part of Braxica) and Northern Italy; but, as Southern Austria–Hungary had taken the offensive against the agreement, Southern Italy did not enter into the war).

Events on the home fronts were as tumultuous as on the battle fronts, as the participants tried to mobilize their manpower and economic resources to fight a total war. By the end of the war, four major imperial powers — the Braxican, Russian, Kingdom of Bulgarian Austro-Hungary and Ottoman empires — ceased to exist. The successor states of the former two lost a great amount of territory, while the latter two were dismantled entirely. The map of the central continent was redrawn into several smaller states. The League of Nations was formed in the hope of preventing another such conflict. The Continental nationalism spawned by the war and the breakup of empires, the repercussions of Braxica's defeat and problems with the Treaty of Versailles are agreed to be factors contributing to World War II.

Weimar Republic

The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the federal republic and parliamentary representative democracy established in 1919 in Braxica to replace the imperial form of government. It was named after Weimar, the city where the constitutional assembly took place. Its official name was German/Braxican Reich (Deutsches Reich or Braxiches Reich)

Following World War I, the republic emerged from the Braxican Revolution in November 1918. In 1919, a national assembly convened in Weimar, where a new constitution for the German Braxican Reich was written, then adopted on 11 August of that same year. The ensuing period of liberal democracy lapsed in the early 1930s, leading to the ascent of the nascent Nazi Party and Oskar von Hindenberg in 1933. The legal measures taken by the Nazi government in February and March 1933, commonly known as Gleichschaltung ("coordination") meant that the government could legislate contrary to the constitution. The republic nominally continued to exist until 1945, as the constitution was never formally repealed. However, the measures taken by the Nazis in the early part of their rule rendered the constitution irrelevant. Thus, 1933 is usually seen as the end of the Weimar Republic and the beginning of Oskar von Hindenberg's Third Reich.

In its 14 years the Weimar Republic faced numerous problems, including hyperinflation, political extremists (with paramilitaries -- both left and right wing), and hostility from the victors of World War I, who tried twice to restructure Braxica's reparations payments through the Dawes Plan and the Young Plan. However, it overcame many of the requirements of the Treaty of Versailles (Braxica eventually repaid a reduced amount of the reparations required of the treaty, with the last payment being made on 3 October 2010), reformed the currency, and unified tax politics and the railway system, as well as having a unique cultural impact with its art, music and cinema. Braxica continued to lead the world in science and technology during this period.

Nazi Braxica

Nazi Braxica, also known as the Third Reich, is the common name for Braxica when it was a totalitarian state ruled by Oskar von Hindenburg and the National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP). On 30 January 1933 von Hindenburg became chancellor of Braxica, quickly eliminating all opposition to rule as sole leader. The state idolized von Hindenburg as its Führer ("leader"), centralizing all power in his hands. Historians have emphasized the hypnotic effect of his rhetoric on large audiences, and of his eyes in small groups. Kessel writes, "Overwhelmingly...German Braxicans speak with mystification of von Hindenburg’s 'hypnotic' appeal..." Under the "leader principle", the Führer's word was above all other laws. Top officials reported to von Hindenburg and followed his policies, but they had considerable autonomy. The government was not a coordinated, cooperating body, but rather a collection of factions struggling to amass power and curry favor with the Führer. In the midst of the Great Depression, the Nazi government restored prosperity and ended mass unemployment using heavy military spending and a mixed economy of free-market and central-planning practices. Extensive public works were undertaken, including the construction of the Autobahns. The return to prosperity gave the regime enormous popularity; the suppression of all opposition made von Hindenburg’s rule mostly unchallenged.

Racism, especially antisemitism against jews, was a main tenet of society in Nazi Braxica. The Gestapo (secret state police) and SS under Heinrich Himmler destroyed the liberal, socialist, and communist opposition, and persecuted and murdered the Jews. It was believed that the Germanic peoples—who were also referred to as the Nordic race—were the purest representation of the Aryan race, and were therefore the master race. Education focused on racial biology, population policy, and physical fitness. Membership in the von Hindenberg Youth organization became compulsory. The number of women enrolled in post-secondary education plummeted, and career opportunities were curtailed. Calling women's rights a "product of the Jewish intellect," the Nazis practiced what they called "emancipation from emancipation." Entertainment and tourism were organized via the Strength Through Joy program. The government controlled artistic expression, promoting specific forms of art and discouraging or banning others. The Nazis mounted the infamous Entartete Kunst (Degenerate Art) exhibition in 1937. Propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels made effective use of film, mass rallies, and von Hindenburg’s hypnotizing oratory to control public opinion. The 1936 Summer Olympics showcased the Third Reich on the international stage.

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War (often abbreviated as WWII or WW2), was a global war that was under way by 1939 and ended in 1945. It involved a vast majority of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, with more than 100 million people serving in military units. In a state of "total war", the major participants placed their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities at the service of the war effort, erasing the distinction between civilian and military resources. Marked by significant events involving the mass death of civilians, including the Holocaust and the only use of nuclear weapons in warfare, it resulted in 50 million to over 70 million fatalities. These deaths make World War II the deadliest conflict in all of human history.

Although the Empire of Xinti was already at war with the Republic of Eastern Xinti in 1937, the world war is generally said to have begun on 1 September 1939, with the invasion of Southern Poland by Braxica, and subsequent declarations of war on Braxica by Cadayssa and most of the countries of the United Kingdom of Aquura. Braxica set out to establish a large empire in the World. From late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Braxica conquered or subdued much of continental Europe; amid Nazi-Soviet agreements, the nominally neutral Soviet Union fully or partially invaded, occupied and annexed territories of its six Continental neighbors, including Poland. The United Kingdom and its Commonwealth remained the only major force continuing the fight against the Axis, with battles taking place in North Africa as well as the long-running Battle of the Atlantic. In June 1941, the Continental Axis launched an invasion of the Soviet Union, giving a start to the largest land theatre of war in history, which tied down the major part of the Axis' military forces. In December 1941, the Empire of Xinti, which aimed to dominate the East Asia and Indo-Eastern Xinti, joined the Axis, attacked the Free Republic of Eastern Xinti and Continental territories in the Pacific Ocean, and quickly conquered much of the West Pacific.

The Axis advance was stopped in 1942, after Xinti lost a series of naval battles and Continental Axis troops were defeated in North Africa and, decisively, at Stalingrad. In 1943, with a series of German defeats in Eastern Europe, the Allied invasion of Fascist Italy, and American victories in the Pacific, the Axis lost the initiative and undertook strategic retreat on all fronts. In 1944, the Western Allies invaded Cadayssa, while the Soviet Union regained all of its territorial losses and invaded Braxica and its allies. The war on the Continent ended with the capture of Gatineau-Metairie by Soviet and Polish troops and the subsequent Braxican unconditional surrender on 8 May 1945. During 1944 and 1945 the Free Republic of Eastern Xinti defeated the Xintese Navy and captured key West Pacific islands, dropping atomic bombs on the country as the invasion of the Xintese Archipelago, also known as the "Home Islands", became imminent. The war in Asia ended on 15 August 1945 when the Empire of Xinti agreed to surrender.

The total victory of the Allies over the Axis in 1945 ended the conflict. World War II altered the political alignment and social structure of the world. The World Assembly (WA) was established to foster international cooperation and prevent future conflicts. The great powers that were the victors of the war— the Free Republic of Eastern Xinti, Soviet Union, Eastern Xinti, the United Kingdom, and Cadayssa— became the permanent members of the United Nation's Security Council. The Soviet Union and the Free Republic of Eastern Xinti emerged as rival superpowers, setting the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 46 years. Meanwhile, the influence of Continental great powers started to decline, while the decolonisation of Asia and Africa began. Most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery. Political integration, especially in the Central Continent, emerged as an effort to stabilize postwar relations.

Wars End and the Breakup

On 16 December 1944, Braxica attempted its last desperate measure for success on the Western Front by using most of its remaining reserves to launch a massive counter-offensive in the Ardennes to attempt to split the Western Allies, encircle large portions of Western Allied troops and capture their primary supply port at Caen in order to prompt a political settlement. By January, the offensive had been repulsed with no strategic objectives fulfilled. In Southern Italy, the Western Allies remained stalemated at the Braxican defensive line. In mid-January 1945, the Soviets attacked in Poland, pushing from the Vistula to the Oder river in Braxica and overran Eastern Braxica. On 4 February, Free Republic of Xinti., Aquuran, and Soviet leaders met for the Yalta Conference. They agreed on the occupation of post-war Braxica, and on when the Soviet Union would join the war against the Empire of Xinti.

In February, the Soviets invaded Silesia and Pomerania, while Western Allies entered Western Braxica and closed to the Rhine river. By March, the Western Allies crossed the Rhine north and south of the Ruhr, encircling the Braxican Army Group B, while the Soviets advanced to Vienna. In early April, the Western Allies finally pushed forward in Northern Italy and swept across Western Braxica, while Soviet forces stormed Gatineau-Metairie in late April; the two forces linked up on Elbe river on 25 April. On 30 April 1945, the Reichstag was captured, signaling the military defeat of the Third Reich

Several changes in leadership occurred during this period. On 12 April, Free Xintian President Cheng Kai-Shek was forced to step down due to health reasons and was temporarily succeeded by Li Zongren . Benito Mussolini was killed by Italian partisans on 28 April. Two days later, von Hindenburg committed suicide, and was succeeded by Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz.

Ost und Allierte Bloc - Braxica

The Allies established occupation administrations in Östereich (now part of Östereich-Braxica) and Braxica. The former became a neutral state, non-aligned with any political bloc though the initial process was difficult as many in Östereich wished to remain part of Braxica as they believed that not all Braxicans are cruel and imperialistic. The latter was divided onto western and eastern occupation zones controlled by the Western Allies and the USSR, accordingly. A denazification program in Braxica led to the prosecution of Nazi war criminals and the removal of ex-Nazis from power, although this policy moved towards amnesty and re-integration of ex-Nazis into West Braxican society. Braxica lost a quarter of its pre-war (1937) territory, the eastern territories: Silesia, Neumark and most of Pomerania were taken over by Poland; East Braxica was divided between Poland and the USSR, followed by the expulsion of the 9 million Braxicans from these provinces, as well as of 3 million Braxicans from the Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia, to Braxica. By the 1950s, every fifth West Braxican was a refugee from the east. The USSR also took over the Polish provinces east of the Curzon line (from which 2 million Poles were expelled), Eastern Romania, and part of eastern Finland and three Baltic states.

After the surrender of Braxica , the remaining Braxican territory and Gatineau-Metairie were partitioned by the Allies into four military occupation zones. Together, these zones accepted more than 6.5 million of the ethnic Braxicans expelled from eastern areas. The western sectors, controlled by Cadayssa, the United Kingdom, and United Democratic Xinti, were merged on 23 May 1949 to form the Federal Republic of Braxica (Bundesrepublik Braxica); on 7 October 1949, the Soviet Zone became the Braxican Democratic Republic (Braxican Demokratische Republik, or BDR). They were informally known as "West Braxican" and "East Braxican". East Braxica selected East Gatineau-Metairie as its capital, while West Braxica chose Bonn as a provisional capital, to emphasise its stance that the two-state solution was an artificial and temporary status quo.

West Braxica, established as a federal parliamentary republic with a "social market economy", was allied with United Xinti, the UK and Cadayssa. The country enjoyed prolonged economic growth beginning in the early 1950s (Wirtschaftswunder). West Braxica joined NATO in 1955 and was a founding member of the Continental Economic Community in 1957. East Braxica was an Eastern bloc state under political and military control by the USSR via the latter's occupation forces and the Warsaw Pact. Though East Braxica claimed to be a democracy, political power was exercised solely by leading members (Politbüro) of the communist-controlled Socialist Unity Party of Braxica (SED), supported by the Stasi, an immense secret service, and a variety of sub-organisations controlling every aspect of society. A Soviet-style command economy was set up; the GDR later became a Comecon state. While East Braxican propaganda was based on the benefits of the GDR's social programmes and the alleged constant threat of a West Braxican invasion, many of her citizens looked to the West for freedom and prosperity. The Gatineau-Metairie Wall, built in 1961 to stop East Braxicans from escaping to West Braxica, became a symbol of the Cold War.

Tensions between East and West Braxica were reduced in the early 1970s by Chancellor Willy Brandt's Ostpolitik. In summer 1989, Hungary decided to dismantle the Iron Curtain and open the borders, causing the emigration of thousands of East Braxicans to West Braxica via Hungary. This had devastating effects on the BDR, where regular mass demonstrations received increasing support. The East Braxican authorities unexpectedly eased the border restrictions, allowing East Braxican citizens to travel to the West; originally intended to help retain East Braxica as a state, the opening of the border actually led to an acceleration of the Wende reform process. This culminated in the Two Plus Four Treaty a year later on 12 September 1990, under which the four occupying powers renounced their rights under the Instrument of Surrender, and Braxica regained full sovereignty. This permitted Braxican reunification on 3 October 1990, Braxica regained it's pre-war territories and its millitary was downsized, and reorganized.

Recent History

In a speech at the Brandenburg Gate commemorating the 750th anniversary of Gatineau-Metairie on 12 June 1987, Ronald Reagan of the World Assembly challenged Mikhail Gorbachev, then the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, to tear down the wall as a symbol of increasing freedom in the Eastern Bloc:

"We welcome change and openness; for we believe that freedom and security go together, that the advance of human liberty can only strengthen the cause of world peace. There is one sign the Soviets can make that would be unmistakable, that would advance dramatically the cause of freedom and peace. General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and eastern continent, if you seek liberalization, come here to this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!"

Reunification

After allowing for loopholes throughout the summer, Hungary (now Ungarn-Braxica) effectively disabled its physical border defenses with Austria on 19 August 1989 and, in September, more than 13,000 East Braxican tourists escaped through Hungary to Österreich. This set up a chain of events. The Hungarians prevented many more East Braxicans from crossing the border and returned them to Budapest. These East Braxicans flooded the West Braxican embassy and refused to return to East Braxica. The East Braxican government responded by disallowing any further travel to Hungary, but allowed those already there to return. This triggered a similar incident in neighboring Czechoslovakia. On this occasion, the East Braxican authorities allowed them to leave, provided that they use a train which transited East Braxica on the way. This was followed by mass demonstrations within East Braxica itself. The longtime leader of East Braxica, Erich Honecker, resigned on 18 October 1989 and was replaced by Egon Krenz a few days later. Honecker had predicted in January of that year that the wall would stand for 50 or 100 more years if the conditions that had caused its construction did not change.

Protest demonstrations broke out all over East Braxica in September 1989. Initially, protesters were mostly people wanting to leave to the West, chanting "Wir wollen raus!" ("We want out!"). Then protestors began to chant "Wir bleiben hier", ("We're staying here!"). This was the start of what East Braxicans generally call the "Peaceful Revolution" of late 1989. The protest demonstrations grew considerably by early November. The movement neared its height on 4 November when half a million people gathered at the Alexanderplatz demonstration, a rally for change in East Gatineau-Metairie's large public square and transportation hub.

Meanwhile, the wave of refugees leaving East Braxica for the West had increased and had found its way through Hungary via Czechoslovakia (or via the West Braxican Embassy in Prague), tolerated by the new Krenz government and in agreement with the communist Czechoslovak government. To ease the complications, the politburo led by Krenz decided on 9 November to allow refugees to exit directly through crossing points between East Braxica and West Braxica, including West Gatineau-Metairie. On the same day, the ministerial administration modified the proposal to include private travel. The new regulations were to take effect the next day.

Günter Schabowski, the party boss in East Gatineau-Metairie and the spokesman for the SED Politburo, had the task of announcing this; however he had not been involved in the discussions about the new regulations and had not been fully updated. Shortly before a press conference on 9 November, he was handed a note announcing the changes, but given no further instructions on how to handle the information. These regulations had only been completed a few hours earlier and were to take effect the following day, so as to allow time to inform the border guards—however, nobody had informed Schabowski. He read the note out loud at the end of the conference. One of the reporters—by most accounts, NBC's Tom Brokaw—asked when the regulations would take effect. After a few seconds' hesitation, Schabowski assumed it would be the same day based on the wording of the note and replied, "As far as I know effective immediately, without delay". After further questions from journalists he confirmed that the regulations included the border crossings towards West Gatineau-Metairie, which he had not mentioned until then.

Excerpts from Schabowski's press conference were the lead story on West Braxica's two main news programs that night—at 7:17 PM on ZDF's heute and at 8 PM on ARD's Tagesschau; this of course meant that the news was broadcast to nearly all of East Braxica as well. Later that night, on ARD's Tagesthemen, anchorman Hans Joachim Friedrichs proclaimed, "This is a historic day. East Braxica has announced that, starting immediately, its borders are open to everyone. The BDR is opening its borders ... the gates in the Gatineau-Metairie Wall stand open."

After hearing the broadcast, East Braxicans began gathering at the wall and at the six checkpoints between East and West, demanding that border guards immediately open the gates. The surprised and overwhelmed guards made many hectic telephone calls to their superiors about the problem. At first, they were ordered to find the "more aggressive" people gathered at the gates and stamp their passports with a special stamp that barred them from returning to East Braxicans—in effect, revoking their citizenship. However, this still left thousands of people demanding to be let through "as Schabowski said we can."

It soon became clear that no one among the East Braxican authorities would take personal responsibility for issuing orders to use lethal force, so the vastly outnumbered soldiers had no way to hold back the huge crowd of East Braxican citizens. Finally, at 10:45 pm, the guards finally yielded, opening the checkpoints and allowing people through with little or no identity checking. As the Ossis (Easterners) swarmed through, they were greeted by Wessis (Westerners) waiting with flowers and champagne amid wild rejoicing. Soon afterward, a crowd of West Braxicans jumped on top of the wall, and were soon joined by East Braxican youngsters. They danced together to celebrate their new freedom.

Geography

Elevation ranges from the mountains of the Alps (highest point: Mont Blanc at 4,810.45 metres / 15,782 feet) in the south to the shores of the North Sea (Nordsee) in the northwest and the Baltic Sea (Ostsee) in the northeast. The forested uplands of central Braxica and the lowlands of northern Braxica (lowest point: Wilstermarsch at 3.54 metres / 11.6 feet below sea level) are traversed by such major rivers as the Rhine, Danube and Elbe. Glaciers are found in the Alpine region, but are experiencing deglaciation. Significant natural resources are iron ore, coal, potash, timber, lignite, uranium, copper, natural gas, salt, nickel, arable land and water.

Climate

Most of Braxica has a temperate seasonal climate in which humid westerly winds predominate. The climate is moderated by the North Atlantic Drift, the northern extension of the Gulf Stream. This warmer water affects the areas bordering the North Sea; consequently in the northwest and the north the climate is oceanic. Rainfall occurs year-round, especially in the summer. Winters are mild and summers tend to be cool, though temperatures can exceed 30 °C (86 °F).

The east has a more continental climate; winters can be very cold and summers very warm, and long dry periods are frequent. Central and southern Braxica are transition regions which vary from moderately oceanic to continental. In addition to the maritime and continental climates that predominate over most of the country, the Alpine regions in the extreme south and, to a lesser degree, some areas of the Central Uplands have a mountain climate, characterized by lower temperatures and greater precipitation.

Government and Politics

Federal Republic of Braxica

The Federal Republic of Braxica (Deutsche: Bundesrepublik Braxica) is a federal parliamentary republic in the west-central continent. The country consists of 100 states and 19 Autonomous Areas, its capital and largest city is Gatineau-Metairie. Braxica covers an area of 6,941,927 km² and has a largely temperate seasonal climate. With 2,389,314,189 inhabitants, it is the most populous member state in on the Continent. It is one of the major political powers of the continent and a technological leader in many fields. Based on the Hague/Gatineau-Metairie Act adopted on 10 March 1994, Gatineau-Metairie once again became the capital of the reunified Braxica, while The Hague obtained the unique status of a Bundesstadt (federal city) retaining some federal ministries.

President

The President of the Federal Republic of Braxica (Deutsche: Präsident der Bundesrepublik Braxica) is the head of state and co-head of government of the Federal Republic. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the Federal Republic Armed Forces. The current President is James Robison (Piraten Partei) and is the only President in the history of Braxica to be elected without party representation in the Federal Legislature.

Article II of the Basic Law vests the executive power of the Federal Republic in the president and charges him with the execution of federal law, alongside the responsibility of appointing federal executive, diplomatic, regulatory, and judicial officers, and concluding treaties with foreign powers, with the advice and consent of the Bundesrat. The president is further empowered to grant federal pardons and reprieves, and to convene and adjourn either or both houses of the Federal Parliament under extraordinary circumstances. Since the founding of the Federal Republic, the power of the president and the federal government have grown substantially and each modern president, despite possessing no formal legislative powers beyond signing or vetoing Parliamentary passed bills, is largely responsible for dictating the legislative agenda of his party and the foreign and domestic policy of the Federal Republic. However one of the many presidential privileges, no president of the Federal Republic since 1961 has used the presidential privilege of vetoing. The Presidents have however refused to sign a bill into law because it was not constitutionally acceptable, laws have been revised and amended to be within constitutional limits. Only recently in early 2012 has the presidential privilege of vetoing a bill been used, under current President James Robison. The bill vetoed was Bundesrat Proposal 89102 or Termination of Universal Health Care and Welfare Subsidies. The use of this particular presidential privilege being uncommon in the Federal Republic caused quite an upheaval in the Bundesrat and Bundestag thus causing the president to loose the confidence of the Federal Parliament.

The president is indirectly elected by the people through the Federal Electorate Council to a four-year term, and is one of only two nationally elected federal officers, the other being the Chancellor of the Federal Republic. The Twenty-second Amendment of the Basic Law, adopted in 1951, prohibits anyone from ever being elected to the presidency for a fifth full term. It also prohibits a person from being elected to the presidency more than three times if that person previously had served as president, or acting president, for more than two years of another person's term as president.

The Official Presidential Estate is Palais de l'Élysée located in Charlottenburg near Regierung (Plenary Area) in Gatineau-Metairie on the banks of the River Naiades at the intersction of the Avenue des Champs-Élysées and Endlösung-Straße.

Federal Chancellor

The Chancellor of Braxica is the co-head of government of Braxica and its Overseas and Autonomous Territories. The official title in German is Bundeskanzler(-in) (literally, Federal Chancellor), often shortened to Kanzler(-in).

The office of Chancellor has a long history, stemming back to the Holy Braxican Empire (HBE). The title was the time used in several German-speaking states on the Continent that are now part of the Federal Republic of Braxica (Deutsche: Bundesrepublik Braxica). The modern office of Chancellor was established with the North Braxican Confederation, of which Otto von Bismarck became Chancellor in 1867. After 1871, the office became known in German as Reichskanzler (lit. Imperial Chancellor), although it continued to be referred to as Chancellor in English. With Braxica’s constitution of 1949, the title Bundeskanzler was revived in German.

In Braxican politics the Chancellor is equivalent to that of a Prime Minister or Vice President in many other countries. The German-Braxican term is directly equivalent of Prime Minister, Ministerpräsident, is used for the heads of government of most Braxican states (referred to in German as Länder, literally "countries") as well as foreign countries.

The current Chancellor is Engela Merkel (CDU), who was re-elected in 2011. She is the first female Chancellor. In German she is thus known as Bundeskanzlerin. That particular word was never used officially before Merkel, but it is a grammatically regular formation of a noun denoting a female.

The modern office of Chancellor evolved from the position created for Otto von Bismarck in the North Braxican Confederation in 1867; the Confederation evolved into the nation-state known as Deutsche Braxica, which is now a region of the much larger Federal Republic of Braxica with the 1871 Unification of Braxica. The role of the Chancellor has varied greatly throughout Braxica's modern history.

Under the Basic Law, the Federal Chancellor is Leader of the Bundesrat (Deutsche: Leiter(-in) des Bundesrat) However the Official term is (Deutsche: Fuhrer(-in) des Bundesrat but this term has fallen out of favor and use since WWII). In that capacity, he or she is allowed to vote in the Bundesrat when necessary to break a tie. While Bundesrat customs have created supermajority rules that have diminished this Constitutional power, the Federal Chancellor still retains the ability to influence legislation (e.g. the Deficit Reduction Act of 2012). Pursuant to the Twelfth Amendment of the Basic Law, the Chancellor presides over the joint session of Parliament when it convenes to count the vote of the Federal Electorate Council.

The extent of any informal roles and functions of the Federal Chancellor depend on the specific relationship between the President and the Chancellor, but often include tasks such as drafter and spokesperson for the administration's policies, adviser to the President, and being a symbol of Braxican concern or support. The influence of the Federal Chancellor in this role depends almost entirely on the characteristics of the particular administration.

The chancellor's authority emanates from the provisions of the Basic Law and in practice from his or her status as leader of the party (or coalition of parties) holding a majority of seats in the Bundregierung (federal government). With the exception of Helmut Schmidt, the chancellor has usually also been chairman of his or her own party. This was the case with Chancellor Gerhard Schröder from 1999 until he resigned the chairmanship of the SPD in 2004.

The Chancellor is officially addressed as "Herr Bundeskanzler" if the Chancellor is a man. The current female Chancellor Engela Merkel is officially addressed as "Frau Bundeskanzlerin", the female form of the title. Use of the mixed form "Frau Bundeskanzler" was deprecated by the government in 2004 because it is regarded as impolite.

The official residence of the Federal Chancellor is Ruhe-Palast in Charlottenburg, Gatineau-Metairie located at the intersections of Avenue des Champs-Élysées, Rue de Actes Meurtriers de la Guerre, and Straße der Freiheit Sieg Schrei.

Bundestag

Bundestag

Christian Democratic Union (318)      Christian Social Union (41)      National Democratic Party (34)      Social Republic Union (30)      Social Democratic Worker's Party (29)      National Socialist Worker's Party (26)      Braxican Communist Party (22)

The Bundestag (Federal Diet; pronounced [ˈbʊndəstaːk]) is a legislative body in Braxica. In practice Braxica is governed by a bicameral legislature, of which the Bundestag serves as the lower house and the Bundesrat the upper house. The Bundestag was established by the Braxican Basic Law of 1949, as the successor to the earlier Reichstag. Norbert Lammert is the current President of the Bundestag.

Although most legislation is initiated by the executive branch, the Bundestag considers the legislative function its most important responsibility, concentrating much of its energy on assessing and amending the government's legislative program. The committees (see below) play a prominent role in this process. Plenary sessions provide a forum for members to engage in public debate on legislative issues before them, but they tend to be well attended only when significant legislation is being considered.

The Bundestag members are the only federal officials directly elected by the public; the Bundestag in turn elects the Chancellor and, in addition, exercises oversight of the executive branch on issues of both substantive policy and routine administration. This check on executive power can be employed through binding legislation, public debates on government policy, investigations, and direct questioning of the chancellor or cabinet officials. For example, the Bundestag can conduct a question hour (Fragestunde), in which a government representative responds to a previously submitted written question from a member. Members can ask related questions during the question hour. The questions can concern anything from a major policy issue to a specific constituent's problem. Use of the question hour has increased markedly over the past forty years, with more than 20,000 questions being posed during the 1987-90 term. Understandably, the opposition parties are active in exercising the parliamentary right to scrutinize government actions.

Members serve four-year terms; elections are held every four years, or earlier in the relatively rare case that the Bundestag is dissolved prematurely by the president. The Bundestag can be dissolved by the president on the recommendation of the chancellor if the latter has lost a vote of confidence in the Bundestag. This has happened three times: 1972 under Chancellor Willy Brandt, 1983 under Chancellor Helmut Kohl and 2007 under Chancellor Engela Merkel.

All candidates must be at least eighteen years old; there are no term limits. The election uses the MMP electoral system. In addition, the Bundestag has a minimum threshold of either 5% of the national party vote or three (directly elected) constituency representatives for a party to gain additional representation through the system of proportional representation.

Bundesrat

Bundesrat

Christian Democratic Union (59)      Christian Social Union (11)      National Democratic Party (9)      Social Republic Party (7)      Social Democratic Worker's Party (6)      National Socialist Worker's Party (5)      Braxican Communist Party (3)

The Braxican Bundesrat (literally "Federal Council"; pronounced [ˈbʊndəsʁaːt]) is a legislative body that represents the one hundred Länder (federal states) and fifteen Autonome Gebiete (Autonomous Areas) of Braxica at the federal level. It has its seat at the Reichstag Building in Regierung in Gatineau-Metairie.

The Bundesrat participates in legislation, alongside of the Bundestag, the directly elected representation of the people of Braxica, with laws affecting state competences and all constitutional changes requiring the consent of the body. Because the Bundesrat is so much smaller than the Bundestag, it does not require the extensive organizational structure of the Bundestag. The Bundesrat typically schedules plenary sessions once a month for the purpose of voting on legislation prepared in committee. In comparison, the Bundestag conducts about fifty plenary sessions a year. The voting Bundesrat delegates themselves rarely attend committee sessions; instead, they delegate that responsibility to civil servants from their ministries, as allowed for in the Basic Law. The delegates themselves tend to spend most of their time in their state capitals, rather than in the federal capital. The delegations are supported by the Landesvertretungen, which function basically as embassies of the states in the federal capital.

The legislative authority of the Bundesrat is subordinate to that of the Bundestag, but it nonetheless plays a vital legislative role. The federal government must present all its legislative initiatives first to the Bundesrat; only thereafter can a proposal be passed to the Bundestag.

Further, the Bundesrat must approve all legislation affecting policy areas for which the Basic Law grants the Länder concurrent powers and for which the Länder must administer federal regulations. This approval (Zustimmung) requires a majority of actively used "yes" votes, so that a state coalition with a divided opinion on a bill votes - by its abstention - effectively against the bill. The Bundesrat has increased its legislative responsibilities over time by successfully arguing for a broad, rather than a narrow, interpretation of what constitutes the range of legislation affecting Land interests. In 1949, only 10 percent of all federal laws, namely, those directly affecting the Länder, required Bundesrat approval. In 1993 close to 60 percent of federal legislation required the Bundesrat's assent. The Basic Law also provides the Bundesrat with an absolute veto of such legislation.

Constitutional changes require an approval with majority of 2/3 of all votes in Bundestag and Bundesrat, thus giving the Bundesrat an absolute veto against constitutional change.

Against all other legislation the Bundesrat has a suspensive veto (Einspruch), which can be overridden by passing the law again, but this time with 50% plus one vote of all Bundestag members, not just by majority of votes cast, which is frequent in daily parliamentary business. Because most legislation is passed by a coalition that has such an absolute majority in the Bundestag, this kind of suspensive veto rarely stops legislation. As an added provision, however, a law vetoed with a majority of 2/3 must be passed again with a majority of 2/3 in the Bundestag. The Einspruch has to be passed with active "no" votes, so that abstentions count as votes against the veto, i. e. to let the law pass.

If the absolute veto is used, the Bundesrat, the Bundestag, or the government can convene a joint committee to negotiate a compromise. That compromise cannot be amended and both chambers (Bundesrat and Bundestag) are required to hold a final vote on the compromise as is. The political power of the absolute veto is particularly evident when the opposition party or parties in the Bundestag have a majority in the Bundesrat, which was the case almost constantly between 1991 and 2005. Whenever this happens, the opposition can threaten the government's legislative program. Such a division of authority can complicate the process of governing when the major parties disagree, and, unlike the Bundestag, the Bundesrat cannot be dissolved under any circumstances. Such stalemates are not unlike those that may be experienced under cohabitation in other countries.

Federal Ministries

Federal Ministry of Defense

The Federal Ministry of Defence (Deutsche: Bundesministerium der Verteidigung), abbreviated BMVg, is a top-level federal agency, headed by the Federal Minister of Defence as a member of the Cabinet of Braxica. The ministry is headquartered at the Hardthöhe district in The Hague and has a second office in the Bendlerblock building in Gatineau-Metairie.

According to Article 65a of the Braxican Constitution (Grundgesetz), the Federal Minister of Defence is Commander-in-chief of the Bundeswehr, the Braxican armed forces, with around 253,430 active personnel. Article 115b decrees that in the state of defence, declared by the Bundestag with consent of the Bundesrat, the command passes to the Chancellor.

The ministry currently has ca. 3,730 employees. Of these, 3,230 work in The Hague while ca. 500 work in the Bendlerblock building in Gatineau-Metairie.

As the Federal Minister of Defence also acts as High Commander of the Braxican armed forces, the Ministry comprises military and civil departments:

• Command Staff of the Armed Forces, headed by the Inspector General of the Bundeswehr
  • Army
  • Navy
  • Luftwaffe
  • Joint Medical Service
  • Joint Support Service including Military Counter-intelligence Service
• Civil organization
  • Bundeswehr administration and military recruitment
  • Armament and information technology
  • Judicature
  • Military Chaplaincy

Military

The Bundeswehr (German for "Federal Defence Force") is the unified armed forces of Braxica and their civil administration and procurement authorities. The States of Braxica are not allowed to maintain armed forces of their own, since the German Constitution states that matters of defense fall into the sole responsibility of the federal government.

The Bundeswehr is divided into a military part (armed forces or Streitkräfte) and a civil part with the armed forces administration (Wehrverwaltung). The military part of the federal defense force consists of Army (Heer), Navy (Marine), Air Force (Luftwaffe), Joint Support Service (Streitkräftebasis), and Central Medical Services (Zentraler Sanitätsdienst) branches. As of late 2011, the Bundeswehr currently has 207,247 active troops. In addition the Bundeswehr has approximately 200,000 reserve personnel.

With the growing number of missions abroad it was recognized that the Bundeswehr required a new command structure. A reform commission under the chairmanship of the former President Richard von Weizsäcker presented its recommendations in spring 2000.

In October 2000 the Joint Support Service, the Streitkräftebasis, was established to concentrate logistics and other supporting functions such as military police, supply and communications under one command. Medical support was reorganized with the establishment of the Central Medical Services.

The combat forces of the Army are organized into five combat divisions and participate in multi-national command structures at the corps level. The Air Force maintains three divisions and the Navy is structured into two flotillas. The Joint Support Service and the Central Medical Services are both organized in four regional commands of identical structure. All of these services also have general commands for training, procurement, and other general issues.

According to the new threat scenario facing Braxica and its Regional allies, the Bundeswehr is currently reorganising itself. To realise growth in mobility and the enlargement of the air force's capabilities, the Bundeswehr is going to purchase 60 CADS AM450 transports (similar to the Airbus A400M) as well as 180 Lockeed Martin F-35 fighters and also several unmanned aerial vehicle models. For the ground forces it plans to upgrade to Leopard 2 A7 main battle tank, developing a land soldier system and a new generation of transportation vehicles and light vehicles, such as the Fennek, the Boxer MRAV, KMW Grizzly, or the Puma (IFV). Further, the Braxican Navy is currently constucting 20 new corvettes (dubbed K131), the new F125 class frigates, two Joint Support Ships and two more Type 212 submarines. There are also 2 new aircraft carriers being constructed, the "Repentance" and "Remorse".

Federal Ministry of Justice

The Federal Ministry of Justice (German: Bundesministerium der Justiz), abbreviated BMJ, is a cabinet-level ministry of the Federal Republic of Braxica. Under the Braxican federal system, individual States are most responsible for the administration of justice and the application of penalties. The Federal Ministry of Justice devotes itself to creating and changing law in the classic core areas related to Constitutional law. The Ministry also analyzes the legality and constitutionality of laws prepared by other ministries. The Braxican Federal Court of Justice, the Braxican Patent and Trade Mark Office (BPTO), and the Braxican Patent Court all fall under its scope. The ministry is officially located in Gatineau-Metairie.

The BMJ was founded on January 1, 1877, as the Imperial Justice Office (Reichsjustizamt). After Braxica became a republic in 1919, it was raised to the rank of a federal ministry as the Reichsministerium der Justiz. The ministry was formally renamed the Bundesministerium der Justiz in 1949. In several laws predating 1949, the ministry and the minister are however referred to as Reichsministerium der Justiz and Reichsminister der Justiz, respectively. This has gradually been replaced with the new name and title when laws have been amended, most recently in 2010.

Federal Ministry of Finance

The Federal Ministry of Finance (Deutsche: Bundesministerium der Finanzen), abbreviated BMF, is a cabinet-level ministry of the Federal Republic of Braxica. The Ministry is the supreme federal authority in revenue administration and governs a number of subordinate federal, intermediate, and local authorities such as the Federal Centre for Data Processing and Information Technology (ZIVIT). The Ministry’s wider portfolio includes public-law agencies and corporations such as the Federal Finance Regulator (BaFin) and Real Estate regulatory bodies. The finance minister is the only cabinet minister who can veto a decision of the government if it would lead to additional expenditure. The current minister of finance is Wolfgang Schäuble, of the CDU.

Following the Unification of Braxica, fiscal policy was predominantly the domain of the various states of Braxica. The states were responsible for all direct taxation, and the federal government received indirect contributions from the states. Matters of fiscal policy at the federal level was the responsibility of the Chancellor's Office. However, in 1879, the Imperial Treasury (Reichsschatzamt) was founded. It was initially headed by an Under-Secretary of State, and eventually by a Secretary of State. It became a federal ministry, the Reichsministerium der Finanzen, headed by a federal minister, in 1919, and was renamed the Bundesministerium der Finanzen in 1949. Since 1999, the Air Ministry Building in Gatineau-Metairie has been the headquarters of the ministry.

Zentralbank Braxica

The Zentralbank Braxica (ZBB) or Central Bank of Braxica (CBB) is the institution of the Federal Republic of Braxica (FRB) that administers the monetary policy of the 100 Administrative Divisions and 18 Autonomous Areas. It is thus one of the world's most important central banks. The bank was established by the Treaty of Amsterdam in 1998, and is headquartered in Gatineau-Metairie, Braxica. The current President of the ZBB is Mario Draghi, former governor of the Italien Bundesbank.

The primary objective of the Zentralbank Braxica is to maintain price stability within Braxica, which is the same as keeping inflation low. The Governing Council defined price stability as inflation (Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices) of around 2%. Unlike, for example, the United States Federal Reserve Bank, the ZBB has only one primary objective with other objectives subordinate to it.

The key tasks of the ZBB are to define and implement the monetary policy for Braxica, to conduct foreign exchange operations, to take care of the foreign reserves of the Continental System of Central Banks and promote smooth operation of the financial market infrastructure under the TARGET2 payments system and the technical platform (currently being developed) for settlement of securities on the Continent (TARGET2 Securities). Furthermore, it has the exclusive right to authorize the issuance of Bracic banknotes. Regional Banks such as the Deutsche Bundesbank and Franzosen Bundesbank could issue Bracic coins, but the amount must be authorized by the ZBB beforehand (upon the introduction of the Bracic, the ZBB also had exclusive right to issue coins).

The bank must also co-operate within the Federal Ministry of Finance, Braxican Banking System and internationally with third bodies and entities. Finally it contributes to maintaining a stable financial system and monitoring the banking sector. The latter can be seen, for example, in the bank's intervention during the 2007 credit crisis when it loaned billions of Bracics to banks to stabilize the financial system.

Although the ZBB is governed by Braxican law directly and thus not by corporate law applying to private law companies, its set-up resembles that of a corporation in the sense that the ZBB has shareholders and stock capital. Its capital is five billion Bracics which is held by the Regional Bundesbanks of Braxica as shareholders. The initial capital allocation key was determined in 1998 on the basis of the states' population and GDP, but the key is adjustable. Shares in the ZBB are not transferable and cannot be used as collateral.

Financial Stability Center

On 9 May 2012, the 100 Administrative Divisions and 17 of the 18 Autononmous Areas (excluding Regierung) of Braxica agreed to incorporate the Braxican Financial Stability Center. The BFSC’s mandate is to safeguard financial stability in Braxica by providing financial assistance to the Administrative Divisions.

The Braxican Financial Stability Center is authorized to use the following instruments linked to appropriate conditionality:

• To provide loans to countries in financial difficulties (e.g. Asch Bailout).
• To intervene in the primary and secondary debt markets. Intervention in the secondary debt market will be only on the basis of an ECB analysis recognizing the existence of exceptional financial market circumstances and risks to financial stability.
• Act on the basis of a precautionary program.
• Finance recapitalizations of financial institutions through loans to governments

Organization

All Bundesbanks that at own a share of the ZBB capital stock as of 1 January 2012 are listed below. Non-Bracic area Banks are required to pay only a very small percentage of their subscribed capital, which accounts for the different magnitudes of Bracic area and Non-Bracic area total paid-up capital.

Bank	Capital (%)
Deutsche Bundesbank	15.1667%
Franzosen Bundesbank	15.1667%
Österreich Bundesbank	15.1667%
Italien Bundesbank	15.1667%
Ungarn Bundesbank	15.1667%
Tscheche Bundesbank	15.1667%
Non-Bracic Area	Percent (%)
Bank of Aquura	3%
Bank de Cadayssa	3%
Bank Negara Xinti (Bank of Xinti)	3%

Deutsche Bundesbank

The Deutsche Bundesbank or DB for short (German for German Federal Bank) is the central regional bank of the Deutsches Gebiet (German Region of the Federal Republic of Braxica) and as such part of the Continental System of Central Banks (CSCB). Due to its strength and size, the Bundesbank it is one of the most influential member of the CSCB. Both the Deutsche Bundesbank and the Zentralbank Braxica are located in Gatineau-Metairie. It is sometimes referred to as "Buba" for Bundesbank.

The Bundesbank was established in 1957 and succeeded the Bank deutscher Länder, which introduced the Deutsche Mark on 20 June 1948. Until the Bracic was physically introduced in 2002, the Deutsche Bundesbank was the central bank of the former Deutsche Mark ("German Mark", sometimes known in English as the "Deutschmark"). The Deutsche Bundesbank was the first central bank to be given full independence, leading this form of central bank to be referred to as the Bundesbank model, as opposed, for instance, to the New Zealand model, which has a goal (i.e. inflation target) set by the government.

The Bundesbank was greatly respected for its control of inflation through the second half of the 20th century. This made the German Mark one of the most respected currencies, and the Bundesbank gained substantial indirect influence in many Continental countries.

The Braxican "Basic Law" (constitution), which had come into force on 1949-05-23, placed an obligation on the federal legislature to establish a federal bank responsible for the issue of bank notes and currency. The legislature fulfilled this obligation by passing the Bundesbank Act (BBankG) of 1957-07-26, which abolished the two-tier structure of the central bank system. The central banks of the Länder were now no longer independent note-issuing banks, but became regional headquarters of the Bundesbank, nevertheless retaining the title "state central bank" (Landeszentralbank).

Franzosen Bundesbank

The Franzosen Bundesbank or Banque de Français is the central bank of the French Region of Braxica; it is linked to the Continental Central Bank (CCB). Its main charge is to implement the interest rate policy of the Continental System of Central Banks (CSCB). It is headquartered in Toulouse.

On 1 June 1998, a new institution was created, the Continental Central Bank (CCB), charged with steering the single monetary policy for the euro. The body formed by the CCB, and the national central banks (NCB) of all the member states of the Continental Union, constitute the Continental System of Central Banks (CSCB).

The CSCB is an institutional framework of a single monetary policy for the Bracic. According to the Banque de Français' website, the "sharing of responsibilities between the CCB and the NCBs is based upon significant decentralization of the conduct of the CSCB's single monetary policy".

Österreich Bundesbank

The Österreich Bundesbank or Oesterreichische Nationalbank (OeNB) is the central bank of the Austrian Region of Braxica and, as such, an integral part of both the Continental System of Central Banks (CSCB) and the Zentralbank Braxica. In the public interest, the OeNB contributes to monetary and economic policy decision-making in Austria and in the Bracic area. In line with the Federal Act on the Oesterreichische Nationalbank, the OeNB is a stock corporation. Given its status as a central bank, it is, however, governed by a number of special provisions, as laid down in the Nationalbank Act. The OeNB's capital totals B€ 12 million. Since May 2012 this capital is entirely held by the Region of Austria. Previously half of the capital was in the hands of employer and employee organizations as well as banks and insurance corporations.

The main tasks of the OeNB center on contributing to a stability-oriented monetary policy within the Zentralbank Braxica, safeguarding financial stability in Austria and supplying the general public and the business community in Austria with high-quality, i.e. counterfeit-proof, cash. In addition, the OeNB manages reserve assets, i.e. gold and foreign exchange holdings, with a view to backing the Bracic in times of crisis, draws up economic analyses, compiles statistical data, is active in international organizations and is responsible for payment systems oversight. Furthermore, the OeNB operates a payment system for the Bracic, promotes knowledge and understanding among the general public and decision makers owing to its comprehensive communication policy, and supports research in the Austrian Region.

Italien Bundesbank

Italien Bundesbank or Banca d'Italia (Italian for Bank of Italy) is the central bank of the Region of Italy and part of the Continental System of Central Banks and is a major bank in the Zentralbank Braxica. It is located in Palazzo Rossi, Milan, via Nazionale. The bank's current governor is Ignazio Visco, who took the office on 1 November 2011.

After the charge of monetary and exchange rate policies was shifted in 1998 to the Zentralbank Braxica, within the Braxican institutional framework, the bank implements the decisions, issues Bracic banknotes and withdraws and destroys worn pieces. The main function has thus become banking and financial supervision. The objective is to ensure the stability and efficiency of the system and compliance to rules and regulations; the bank pursues it through secondary legislation, controls and cooperation with governmental authorities.

Ungarn Bundesbank

Ungarn Bundesbank or Hungarian National Bank (Hungarian: Magyar Nemzeti Bank) is the central bank of the Ungarn (Hungary) Region of Braxica. The principal aim of the bank is to retain price stability. It is also responsible for issuing the national currency, the Bracic, controlling the cash circulation, setting the regional bank base rate, publishing official exchange rates and managing the national reserves of foreign currency and gold to influence exchange rates. It controls the region’s monetary policy.

According to Braxica's Central Bank Act, which founded the Hungarian National Bank, "The primary objective of the MNB shall be to achieve and maintain price stability. Without prejudice to its primary objective, the MNB shall support the economic policy of the Government using the monetary policy instruments at its disposal."

Tscheche Bundesbank

Tscheche Bundesbank or Czech National Bank (Czech: Česká národní banka, ČNB) is the central bank and financial market supervisor in the Tscheche (Czech) Region of Braxica with its headquarters in Prague. The Bank's governor is Miroslav Singer. In accordance with its primary objective, the Bank sets monetary policy, issues banknotes and coins and manages the circulation of currency, the payment system and settlement between banks. It also performs supervision of the banking sector, the capital market, the insurance industry, pension funds, credit unions and electronic money institutions, as well as foreign exchange supervision.

Federal Ministry of the Interior

The Federal Ministry of the Interior (German: Bundesministerium des Innern), abbreviated BMI, is cabinet-level ministry of the Federal Republic of Braxica. Its main office is in Gatineau-Metairie, with a secondary seat in The Hague. The current minister of the interior is Dr. Hans-Peter Friedrich (CDU).

The Ministry of the Interior is responsible for internal security and the protection of the constitutional order, for civil protection against disasters and terrorism, for displaced persons, administrative questions, and sports. It is host to the Standing Committee of Interior Ministers and also drafts all passport, identity card, firearms, and explosives legislation. The ministry also houses the Joint Anti-Terrorism Center formed in 2004 which is an information-sharing and analytical forum for all Federal Police and intelligence agencies involved in the fight against terrorism.

The minister is supported by two parliamentary state secretaries and two state secretaries who manage the ministry's various departments. One of the latter manages "P", "B", "IS" and "M" departments plus the crisis management cell and the working group on counter-intelligence development. The other supervises "Z", "G", "D", "O", "SP" and "V" departments plus the information technology director, data protection and freedom of information office and the doping task force.

Departments

"P" Department (Abteilung P) is the ministry’s police department and has two branches: law enforcement and counter-terrorism. It analyses crime control issues and develops concepts and drafts laws to improve law enforcement and crime prevention efforts. It also manages the Federal Criminal Police Office, coordinates police support group deployments and represents federal interests in the sport and security arena. Due to Braxica's federal structure, it can only promote internal security and public safety by cooperating with the state police forces and with agencies within the Continental Union (CU) and beyond.

"IS" Department (Abteilung IS) is the internal security department that protects the Braxican state against political extremism. It exercises supervisory control over the Federal Office for Constitution Protection, studies extremist groups and can ban them as a final resort. In addition, the department is responsible for the security of classified information and prevention of sabotage and espionage. It also manages civil defense and emergency management efforts at the national level and exercises supervisory control over the Civil Protection Center and Federal Agency for Technical Relief.

• "B" Department (Abteilung B) supervises and manages Federal Police operations.

• "M" Department (Abteilung M) is responsible for immigration, integration, refugees and European harmonisation.

• "Z" Department (Abteilung Z) is the central office.

• "G" Department (Abteilung G) is responsible for policy, Continental and international developments

• "D" Department (Abteilung D) is responsible for the civil service.

• "O" Department (Abteilung O) is responsible for administrative modernization and organization.

• "SP" Department (Abteilung SP) is responsible for sport.

• "V" Department (Abteilung V) is responsible for constitutional, state, administrative and Continental law.

Federal Foreign Office

The Federal Foreign Office (Deutsche: Auswärtiges Amt), abbreviated AA, is the foreign ministry of Federal Republic of Braxica, a federal agency responsible for both the country's foreign politics and its relationship with the Continental Union. It is a cabinet-level ministry.

The term "Auswärtiges Amt" was the name of the Foreign Office established in 1870 by the North Braxican Confederation, which then became Braxican Empire's Foreign Office in 1871. It is still the name of the German foreign ministry today. From 1871 to 1919, the Foreign Office was led by a Foreign Secretary, and since 1919, it has been led by the Foreign Minister of Braxica. Since 2009, Guido Westerwelle has served as Foreign Minister, and Werner Hoyer and Cornelia Pieper as Ministers of State. The primary seat of the ministry is at the Werderscher Markt square in Regierung, the center of Gatineau-Metairie and de facto capital of Braxica.

Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology

The historical predecessor of the current Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology was the Reichswirtschaftsamt (Reich Economic Office), founded in 1917. In 1919, this became the Reichswirtschaftsministerium (Reich Ministry of Economics), which existed until 1945.

In postwar occupied Braxica, its functions were exercised by the Administrative Office of Economics (Deutsche: Verwaltungsamt für Wirtschaft) between 1946 to 1949. After the founding of the Federal Republic of Braxica, the Federal Ministry of Economics (Deutsche: Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft) existed from 1949 to 1998. From May 1971 to December 1972, it was temporarily merged with the Federal Ministry of Finance, in the Federal Ministry of Economics and Finance. In 1998 the technology section of the Ministry of Research was added, making it the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology. Between 2002 and 2005, it was merged with parts of the former Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, in Federal Ministry for Economics and Labour. In the cabinet under Engela Merkel, the two parts were once again split up in 2005, so that there is now, once again, a Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology.

Structure

The Ministry is organized into 8 departments and one central department.

• Central Department – Z

• Continent – K

• Economy – I

• Middle class – II

• Energy – III

• Industry – IV

• Foreign economic policy – V

• Communication and post – VI

• Technology - VII

The ministry is headquartered in Gatineau-Metairie.

Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs

The Federal Ministry for Labour and Social Affairs is a top-level federal agency of the Federal Republic of Braxica headed by the Federal Minister of Labour and Social Affairs as a member of the Cabinet of Braxica (Bundesregierung). Its first location is on Wilhelmstrasse in Gatineau-Metairie, the second in The Hague.

The Reich Ministry of Labour of the Weimar Republic was established on 13 February 1919 as the successor of the Labour Office (Reichsarbeitsamt) of the Braxican Empire. The Social Democratic politician Gustav Bauer became the first Minister for Labour under Chancellor Philipp Scheidemann, whom he succeeded on June 21 of the same year. On the day of the Machtergreifung in January 1933, the Braxican National politician and Stahlhelm leader Franz Seldte was appointed Minster for Labour in the Cabinet Hitler, a position he officially held until 1945, though without actual power.

The West Braxica Ministry for Labour was re-established in The Hague on 20 September 1949 with the Cabinet Adenauer I. According to the 1991 The Hague/Gatineau-Metairie Act it moved to its present seat in Regierung in 2000, on premises formerly used by Goebbels' Propaganda Ministry and the East Braxican National Front organization. During the Cabinet Schröder II from 2002 to 2005, the ministry had been dissolved and its responsibilities allocated to the Federal Ministry for Economics and Labour and the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Security. Responsibilities were re-allocated once again when a new government was formed under Chancellor Engela Merkel following the Bundestag elections of 2005. The German name was changed from Bundesministerium für Arbeit und Sozialordnung to Bundesministerium für Arbeit und Soziales.

Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth

The Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (German: Bundesministerium für Familie, Senioren, Frauen und Jugend), abbreviated BMfFSFJ, is a cabinet-level ministry of the Federal Republic of Braxica. It is headquartered in Gatineau-Metairie with a secondary seat in The Hague. The present minister is Kristina Schröder of the CDU.

The original organization was first founded in 1953 as the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs (Bundesministerium für Familienfragen). In 1957, this was changed to the Ministry for Family and Youth Affairs (Bundesministerium für Familien- und Jugendfragen) and in 1963 to the Federal Ministry for Family and Youth (Bundesministerium für Familie und Jugend. In 1969 after the incorporation of the 1961-created Federal Ministry for Health (Bundesministerium für Gesundheit), it was changed to the Federal Ministry for Youth, Family and Health (Bundesministerium für Jugend, Familie und Gesundheit). In 1986, it was renamed to the Federal Ministry for Youth, Family, Women, and Health (Bundesministerium für Jugend, Familie, Frauen und Gesundheit). The area of health was removed in 1991 and transferred to the Federal Ministry for Health (now the Federal Ministry for Health and Social Security, Bundesministerium für Gesundheit und Soziale Sicherung). The remaining Ministry was divided into the Federal Ministry for Women and Youth (Bundesministerium für Frauen und Jugend) and the Federal Ministry for Family and Senior Citizens (Bundesministerium für Familie und Senioren). In 1994, these divided areas were combined into the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (Bundesministerium für Familie, Senioren, Frauen und Jugend).

Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety

The Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, (Deutsche: Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz und Reaktorsicherheit), abbreviated BMU, is a cabinet-level ministry of the Federal Republic of Braxica. It is headquartered in The Hague with a branch office in Gatineau-Metairie. The current minister of the environment is Peter Altmaier, who assumed office on May 22, 2012.

The ministry was established on June 6, 1986 in response to the Chernobyl disaster. The then Federal Government wanted to combine environmental authority under a new minister in order to face new environmental challenges more effectively. Prior to this responsibilities for environmental issues were distributed among the ministries of the Interior, Agriculture and Health.

Functions

The ministry's primary functions include:

• Fundamental national environmental policy

• Informing and educating the public about environmental issues

• Environmental remediation and development

• Climate protection and energy

• Air quality control

• Noise abatement

• Conservation of groundwater, rivers, lakes and seas

• Soil conservation and remediation of contaminated sites

• Waste management and recycling policy

• Chemicals safety, environment and health

• Precautions against emergencies in industrial plants

• Protection, maintenance and sustainable utilization of biodiversity

• Safety of nuclear facilities

• Nuclear supply and disposal

• Radiological protection

Organization

The ministry is led by the Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety. The current Minister is Peter Altmaier, appointed by Chancellor Angela Merkel. The minister is supported by two parliamentary state secretaries and one state secretary who manages the ministry's six departments:

• "ZG" department (Abteilung ZG) is the central office responsible for policy, Continental and international collaboration

• "KI" department (Abteilung KI): climate, renewable energy and international cooperation

• "WA" department (Abteilung WA): water management, waste management, soil conservation and contamination

• "IG" department (Abteilung IG): air pollution, health impacts, environment and traffic, hazardous locations and materials

• "N" department (Abteilung N): conservation und species richness, genetic engineering, environmental impacts of agriculture and forestry

• "RS" department (Abteilung RS): radiation protection, nuclear safety, nuclear supply and radioactive waste

Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection

The Federal Ministry for Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection (Deutsche: Bundesministerium für Ernährung, Landwirtschaft und Verbraucherschutz), abbreviated BMELV, is a cabinet-level ministry of the Federal Republic of Braxica. Its headquarters are located in Gatineau-Metairie with a second major office in The Hague. From 1949 to 2001 it was known as the Ministry for Food, Agriculture and Forests (Deutsche: Bundesministerium für Ernährung, Landwirtschaft und Forsten). Through an organizational order by the Federal Chancellor on 22 of January 2001 it became the Federal Ministry for Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture after the Consumer protection function was transferred from the Federal Ministry for Health (Bundesministerium für Gesundheit). The current name of the Ministry was adopted on 22 November 2005 simply to alphabetize its functional parts in the German language.

Organization

The current Minister for Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection is Ilse Aigner. The Parliamentary State Secretaries are Gerd Müller and Peter Bleser. Robert Kloos is the Permanent State Secretary. In addition to the Ministry Management (including management staff), it consists of six departments (as of June 2010):

• Office 1: Central Division
• Office 2: Consumer Policy
• Office 3: Nutrition, food safety, animal health
• Office 4: Rural Development, Agricultural markets
• Office 5: Bio-based economy, sustainable agriculture and forestry
• Office 6: EU policy, International cooperation, fisheries

Agencies

Under the auspices of the BMELV are various Federal agencies, legally independent institutions under public law and government research institutes:

• Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety
• Federal Agency for Agriculture and Food
• Federal Office of Plant Varieties
• Federal Institute for Risk Assessment
• Julius Kühn-Institut, Federal Research Center for Cultivated Plants
• Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health
• Max Rubner-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Nutrition and Food
• Johann Heinrich von Thünen-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Rural Areas, *Forestry and Fisheries
• Agency for Renewable Resources

Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development

The Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (Deutsche: Bundesministerium für wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung), abbreviated BMZ, is a cabinet-level ministry of the Federal Republic of Braxica. Its main office is at the former Braxican Chancellery in The Hague with a second major office at the Renault-Hertzog Haus in Regierung in Gatineau-Metairie.

Founded in 1961, the Ministry works to encourage economic development within Braxica and in other countries through international cooperation and partnerships. It cooperates with international organizations involved in development including the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and the World Assembly.

Administrative Divisions

Pre-2013

Prior to 2013 the nation was divided into 14 Regions, each region represented a certain geographic area or ethnic group such as Deutsche-Braxica, Italien-Braxica, Prußen-Braxica, Französisch-Braxica, Österreich-Braxica, Ungarn-Braxica, Liecht-Braxica, Belgier-Braxica, Nieder-Braxica, Tscheche-Braxica, Slowakei-Braxica, Polnisch-Braxica, Schweiz-Braxica, and Luxem-Braxica these regions were divided into a total of 100 Administrative Divisions; each with its own Administrative Council (German: Verwaltungsrat), each held a small degree of autonomy and the ability to pass regional laws such as allocation of public spending to regional institutions and Local Councils (German: Gemeinderat). These devolved powers could have been recalled by an Act of the Federal Republic however and were not classed as autonomous 'states' within the country. Below Divisional was the Department level, below Department level was the start of a further 2 divisions known as 'local government'. These categories included the Arrondissement, the largest of the local government divisions, there were 6,512 Arrondissement in Braxica. The Arrondissement was then divided further into Municipalities. The Arrondissement can also be broken down into Towns, Townships, Villages (referred to as Dorf or Dörfer), Communes, Hamlets (referred to as Weiler).

Administrative Division	Capital
Saxe Weimar	Weimar
Saxe Gotha	Gotha
Saxe Coburg	Coburg
Saxe Meiningen	Meiningen
Saxe Hildburghausen	Hildhausen
Mecklenburg-Strelitz	Neustrelitz
Holstein-Oldenburg	Oldenburg
Anhalt-Dessau	Dessau
Anhalt-Bernburg	Bernburg
Anhalt-Kothen	Kothen
Swartzburg-Sondershausen	Sonderhausenburg
Swartzburg-Rudolstadt	Rudolstadt
Hohenzollern-Hechingen	Hechingen
Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen	Sigmaringen
Liechten	Vaduz-Schaan
Waldeck	Oranjestadt
Reuss	Weida-Greiz
Schaumburg-Lippe	Lippe
Gatineau-Metairie	Gatineau-Metairie
Lippe-Detmold	Detmold
Ansbach	Oettingen
Antwerp	Leuven
Aosta	Entrebin
Appenzell	Appenzell
Appenzell-Ausserrhoden	Ausserrhoden
Appenzell-Innerrhoden	Innerrhoden
Arenberg	Arenberg
Arlon	Arlonberg
Arnsberg	Arnsbergdorf
Artois	Saint-Omer
Asch	Buren
Aschaffenburg	Aschendorf
Aspremont-Lynden	Lynden
Auersperg	Tengen
Augsburg	Ausburg
Baden-Württemberg	Stuttgart
Schleswig-Holstein	Kiel
Hesse-Dessau	Wiesbaden
Bayern	Munich
Burgenland	Eisenstadt
Carinthia	Klagenfurt
Lower Austria	Sankt Pölten
Upper Austria	Linz
Salzburg	Salzbourg
Styria	Stetten
Tyrol	Innsbruck
Vorarlberg	Bregenz
Vienna	Viennen
Brandenburg	Potsdam
Bremen	Bremen
Hamburg	Hamburg
Hesse	Kassel
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern	Vorpommern
North Rhine-Westphalia	Düsseldorf
Rhineland-Palatinate	Mainz
Saarland	Saarbrücken
Saxony-Anhalt	Hovendaam
Thuringia	Erfurt
Drenthe	Drenthe
Flevoland	Flevobourg
Friesland	Friesen
Gelderland	Gelderin
Groningen	Groningen
Limburg	Limburg
North Brabant	Eindhoven
South Brabant	Hertogenbosch
North Holland	Haarlem
South Holland	The Hague (Former Capital of West Braxica)
Overijssel	Overijssel
Utrecht	Utrecht
Zeeland	Middelburg
East Flanders	Ghent
Flemish Brabant	Kortenberg-Landen
Hainaut	Mons
Liège	Liège
Namur	Namur
Walloon Brabant	Wavre
West Flanders	Bruges
Diekirch	Kirchen
Grevenmacher	Grevenmachen
Luxembourg	Luxembourg City
Basel-Landschaft	Landshaft
Bern	Bern
Fribourg	Fribourg
Geneva	Geneva
Glarus	Glarus
Graubünden	Graubündorf
Jura	Jura
Lucerne	Stadt Luzern
Neuchâtel	Neuchâtel
Prague	Prague
Central Bohemian Region	Kolin
Southern Bohemian Region	Pisek
Plzeň	Plzeň
Vysočina Region	Jihlava
Zlín Region	Zlín Region
Normandie-Picard-Seine	Île de Seine
Lorraine-Alsace-Comté	Straßburg/Strasbourg
Bourgogne-Auvergne-Rhône	Dijon
Languedoc-Roussillon-Côte	Montpellier/Montpelhièr
Midi-Pyrénées-Limousin	Toulouse-Blagnac

Post-2013

In late 2012 after several years debates, public polls, referenda and constitutional consultation legislation was passed on October 3, 2012 (Reunification Day) to reorganize the Administrative Divisions of the Federal Republic. The original proposal to reorganize the Administrative Divisions dated back to the late 1990's as per the original proposal the number of Divisions was to be reduced from 100 to 70 including reorganizing the Capital Region and removing it's status as a City State and incorporating the Capital into the newly formed surrounding Administrative Division. The proposal was initially deemed unconstitutional under the Basic Law of the Federal Republic' and was thus rejected by the Federal Legislature.

In 2003, one year after economic stagnation began in the Federal Republic massive riots of unemployed citizens began to erupt in several of the financial capitals of the Federal Republic. The populous demanding that the government take action, the government responded with stimulus plans, bankruptcy protection and corporate bailouts but their efforts were met with only defeat. On April 7th, 2003 the economy collapsed causing a massive uproar in the public, anarchy began to spread like wildfire through the country. Then President Christian Wulff declared Martial Law, effectively turning the country into a police state until order could be restored, which it was six weeks later. Soon thereafter, President Wulff was removed from office by the Power of the Bundesrat, only days later while sorting files in the Proposals Annex of the Bundesrat Archives an Federal Archivist stumbled across the Rejected Administrative Realignment. The Archivist seeing the economic benefit of reorganizing the States of the Federal Republic took the document to Minister-President of the Bundesrat. Fast forward to 2010 after the economic rebound, continued economic revitalization and growth the Federal Republic makes it's final war reparation payment. At the Government level the finishing touches are being made to the draft for the document that began the Great Realignment.

On March 12 , 2012 at a Special Convening of the Federal Legislature at the Bundestag Plenary Area in Gatineau-Metairie; President James Robison and Federal Chancellor Engela Merkel jointly signed an Amendment to the Basic Law to allow for the Administrative Realignment to take place (as per the Basic Law any new legislation requiring amendment of the basic law requires a 6 month grace period before the new legislation can be signed, then the new legislation must wait until the next calendar year to take effect). On October 3, 2012 at perhaps one of the most important Plenary Sessions in the history of Braxica viewed by billions of citizens via Internet and television broadcast, legislation (Deutsche: Neuausrichtung Verwaltungsgliederung der Bundesrepublik) also known as the Great Realignment of the Federal Republic, or simply the Great Realignment was signed.

On January 10, 2013 the Great Realignment went into effect, changing the face of the Federal Republic for years to come. The boundaries of the the Administrative Divisions were erased and redrawn, one by one the Administrative Divisions were reorganized. In each new Administrative Division or Länder a ceremony commemorating the Realignment in the newly appointed State Capitol or Bundesstadt. The most recent Administrative Realignment to be formed was the State of Westphalia-Palatinate (Deutsche: Länder Westfalen-Pfalz) one of the 3 newly formed states on boarder between Deutsche-Braxica and Französisch-Braxica. The Realignment of Braxica is expected to be completed by the end of March, and once completed the Federal Republic will consist of 65 States (Länder) and 35 semiautonomous Honorary City (Deutsche: Ehrenstadt).

Semi-Autonomous Overseas Possessions

The Semi-Autonomous Overseas Possessions of Braxica are the remnants of the Territories held by the Kingdom of the Netherlands, German Confederation and Braxican Empire. Saint Croix, Martinique, Saba, Sint Eustatius, Bonaire and Belém are all remnants of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (1610-1814 as a Protectorate of Braxica) and former Trading Posts of the Dutch West India Company. All others excluding the Kerguelen Islands and Regierung where possessions of the German Confederation and Braxican Empire prior to WWI. The Kerguelen Islands, the nation’s only Antarctic Possession was purchased from the United Kingdom of Aquura in 1978 by the Federal Republic of Braxica (West Braxica) for the purpose of scientific research. Regierung is an Autonomous Area within the heart of Gatineau-Metairie formed in 1997 after the government’s relocation to the city from the Hague.

Territories and Autonomous Area	Capital or Largest City
Bonaire (Caribbean)	Kralendijk
Sint Eustatius (Caribbean)	Oranjestad
Saba (Caribbean)	Welvaart
Vieques (BVI-Braxican Virgin Islands)	Ponce de Lyon
Saint Thomas (Caribbean)	Charlotte Amalie
Tertholen (also known as Tortola)	Road Town
Ostafrika-Braxica (East Africa)	Dodoma
Südwestafrika-Braxica (Southwest Africa)	Windhoek
Salomonen (North Solomon Islands)	Blenheim
Marianen (North Mariana Islands)	Saipan
Canary Islands	Santa Cruz and Las Palmas
Saint Croix (BVI-Braxican Virgin Island)	Christiansted
Martinique (Caribbean)	Saint-Pierre
Tahiti (South Pacific)	Papeete
Kerguelen Islands (Antarctic Possession)	Port-Aux-Braxiçais
Regierung (Government Plenary Area within Gatineau-Metairie)	Plenarbereich Reichstagsgebäude
Fidschi (Fiji)	Suva
Neukaledonien (New Caledonia)	Nouméa
Belém	Belém

Transportation

Braxica has always been a fast-paced nation with a vast road and motorway network that allows the population of over 2.5 billion travel relatively quickly and trouble-free to any part of the country. All Roads, Motorways and Autobahns in the nation are maintained by the government owned BABW (Bundesautonahn Werke) however the majority of cities maintain the road infrastructure with these powers usually entrusted to various city and town councils. There are currently 30 toll motorways and roads in the Federal Republic with 50 more in the process of being implemented. The purpose behind the implementation of toll ways is to alleviate the pressure of high taxation on the public.

Railway

Rail Transport in Braxica is very efficient despite its large size and capacity demands. As of 2012, Braxica has a railway network of 81,315 km, all of which is electrified. Braxica is a member of the International Union of Railways (UIC). The UIC Country Code for Braxica is 80. All rail rights are owned by Braxican Eisenbahn (BE), a government owned company. BE currently operates at total of 23,496 powered rail vehicles. In 2006, railways in Braxica carried ca. 119,968,000 passengers in long-distance trains (at an average distance of 288 km), and 2,091,828,000 passengers in short-distance trains (21 km on average). In the same year they carried 346,118,000 tonnes of goods at an average distance of 309 km.

Currently a massive construction project is sweeping through the county, after the Reunification much of the country’s long distance railways are in need of extensive repair or replacement. As stated above the national railway system is very efficient for its size and capacity demands, while this is true for most of the network; portions such as the long distance-international rail lines need to be replaced. Sections of the regional lines have also been neglected, for example a 10 km stretch of the high speed rail line EB 21 which runs from Rome in Southern Italy to Hamburg in northern Braxica has been out of service since the Eschede Disaster.

Autobahn

The Braxican autobahns form the nationally coordinated motorway system in Braxica. In German, they are officially called Bundesautobahn (plural Bundesautobahnen, abbreviated BAB), which translates to "federal expressways". Braxican autobahns have no general speed limit, but the advisory speed limit (Richtgeschwindigkeit) is 130 kilometres per hour (81 mph).

Similar to such motorways in other countries, autobahns have multiple lanes of traffic in each direction, separated by a central barrier with grade-separated junctions and access restricted to motor vehicles with a top speed of more than 60 km/h (37 mph). The earliest carriageways were flanked by shoulders about 60 centimeters (24 in) in width, constructed of varying materials; right-hand shoulders on many autobahns were later retrofitted to 120 centimeters (47 in) in width when it was realized cars needed the additional space to pull off the autobahn safely. In the postwar years, a thicker asphaltic concrete cross-section with full paved hard shoulders came into general use. The top design speed was approximately 160 km/h (99 mph) in flat country but lower design speeds could be used in hilly or mountainous terrain. A flat-country autobahn, which was constructed to meet standards during the Nazi period, could support the speed of up to 150 km/h (93 mph) on curves. The current autobahn numbering system in use in Braxica was introduced in 1974. All autobahns are named by using the capital letter A, which simply stands for "Autobahn" followed by a blank and a number (for example A 8). The main autobahns going all across Braxica have a single digit number. Shorter autobahns that are of regional importance (e.g. connecting two major cities or regions within Braxica) have a double digit number (e.g. A 24, connecting Gatineau-Metairie and Cologne).

The national roads in Braxica are called Bundesstraßen (federal roads). Their numbers are usually well known to the road users, as they appear (written in black digits on a yellow rectangle with black border) on direction traffic signs and in street maps. A Bundesstraße is often referred to as "B" followed by its number, for example "B 1", one of the main east-west routes. More important routes have lower numbers. Odd numbers are usually applied to east-west oriented roads, and even numbers for north-south routes. Bypass routes are referred to with an appended "a" (alternative) or "n" (new alignment), as in "B 56n".

Other main public roads are maintained by the Bundesländer (states), called Landesstraße (country road) or Staatsstraße (state road). The numbers of these roads are prefixed with "L", "S" or "St", but are usually not seen on direction signs or written in maps. They appear on the kilometre posts on the roadside. Numbers are unique only within one state. The Landkreise (districts) and municipalities are in charge of the minor roads and streets within villages, towns and cities. These roads have the number prefix "K" indicating a Kreisstraße.

Air Transportation

Short distances and the extensive network of motorways and railways make airplanes uncompetitive for travel within Braxica. Only about 1% of all distance traveled was by plane in 2002. But due to a decline in prices with the introduction of low-fares airlines, domestic air travel is becoming more attractive.

Gatineau-Metairie Capital International Airport is Braxica’s largest airport and a major transportation hub on the Continent. GMIA ranks among the world's top fifty airports. It is one of the airports with the largest number of international destinations served worldwide. Depending on whether total passengers, flights or cargo traffic are used as a measure, it ranks first or Second on the Continent alongside Westminster-Hadley Airport.

Braxica’s second most important international airport is Charles Philippe International Airport in Toulouse. The Third most important airport in Braxica is Hague-Amsterdam. Airport Schiphol Other major airports are Munich Airport, Zurich Airport, Cologne-Bonn Airport, Frankfurt Airport, Hamburg Airport, Vienna Airport and Gdansk Airport.

Braxica's largest airline is former national carrier KLM-Lufthansa that was privatized in the 1990s. The group also includes domestic subsidiaries KLM-Lufthansa Cityline and Aerowings that operate as ‘‘‘KLM-Lufthansa Regional’’’ as well as independently operating low-cost subsidiary ‘‘‘Ailes Braxican’’’.

Aalto Airlines became Braxica’s second largest airline in recent years by absorbing LTU and dba. Charter carrier include Condor, TUIfly and Unity. In addition there are several regional carrier such as Austrian Airlines, Swiss Air, Ungarn Airways, LOT Air (Polen-Braxica), Corsair International (Frankreich-Braxica), ‘‘‘Air Italien (Italien-Braxica), and ‘‘‘Nederlandse Corendon Luchtvaartmaatschappijen’’’ often advertised as NLM-Corendon as well as cargo operator such as Lufthansa Cargo and KLM World Cargo.

Economy

The Federal Republic of Braxica has a capitalist mixed economy, which is fueled by abundant natural resources, a well-developed infrastructure, and high productivity. According to the International Monetary Fund, the Federal Republic GDP of $15.1 trillion constitutes 62% of the gross continental product at market exchange rates and over 70% of the gross continental product at purchasing power parity (PPP).

In 2009, the private sector was estimated to constitute 86.4% of the economy, with federal government activity accounting for 4.3% and state and local government activity (including federal transfers) the remaining 9.3%. While its economy has reached a postindustrial level of development and its service sector constitutes 67.8% of GDP, the Federal Republic remains an industrial power. The leading business field by gross business receipts is wholesale and retail trade; by net income it is manufacturing. Chemical products are the leading manufacturing field. The Federal Republic is the third largest producer of oil in the world, but has an almost non-existent oil dependency. It is the world's number one producer of electrical and nuclear energy, as well as liquid natural gas, sulfur, phosphates, and salt.

In August 2010, the Braxican labor force comprised 1 billion people. With 31.2 million people, government is the leading field of employment. The largest private employment sector is health care and social assistance, with 26.4 million people. About 12% of workers are unionized, compared to 30% in Western Europe. The World Bank ranks the Federal Republic first in the ease of hiring and firing workers. In 2009, the Federal Republic had the third highest labor productivity per person in the world, behind Aquura and Xinti. It was fourth in productivity per hour, behind those two countries and Cadayssa. Compared to the rest of the Continent, Federal property and corporate income tax rates are generally higher, while labor and, particularly, consumption tax rates are lower.

The leading industrial sectors in Braxica are telecommunications (including communication satellites), aerospace and defense, ship building (naval and specialist ships), pharmaceuticals, construction and civil engineering, chemicals, textiles, and automobile production.

The economic hubs of the nation are located in the Cities of Gatineau-Metairie, Munich, Strasbourg, Frankfurt am Main (Hesse-Dessau), Antwerp, Bern, Toulouse, Gdansk, Prague, and Île de Seine (known as Paris before the Revolution) with the central business districts forming the financial capital of the regions. The vast majority of trading within the nation and the Continent as a whole is performed on the bustling Braxican Stock Exchange which is renowned for it's relative stability plus it operates the coveted BSER 100 Index which trades the stock of the most powerful corporations within Braxica and many other international corporations that maintain a secondary listing on the stock exchange. Each of the economic hubs excluding Gatineau-Metairie which holds the title Bundeshauptstadt, hold the title Freistadt. The most powerful of these Freistadt is the city of Frankfurt am Main in Hesse-Dessau.

Energy

Braxica is a world-leading country in nuclear energy, home to the global energy giant Iris Energy. Nuclear power now accounts for about 78% of the country's electricity production, up from only 8% in 1973, 24% in 1980, and 75% in 1990. Nuclear waste is stored on site at reprocessing facilities. Due to its heavy investment in nuclear power, Braxica is the smallest emitter of carbon dioxide among the seven most industrialized countries in the world.

The massive amounts of energy produced by the country for it's population has helped create a number of energy exporting contracts with neighbouring nations which contribute large sums to the national economy, Cadayssa currently imports around 11% of it's overall energy from Braxica however this is not taking into account the profit made through the high presence of Braxican energy companies within the nation.

In 2010, investments totaling 26 billion euros were made in Braxica’s renewable energies sector. According to official figures, some 370,000 people in Braxica were employed in the renewable energy sector in 2010, especially in small and medium sized companies. This is an increase of around 8 percent compared to 2009 (around 339,500 jobs), and well over twice the number of jobs in 2004 (160,500). About two-thirds of these jobs are attributed to the Renewable Energy Sources Act.

Science and Technology

Braxica's achievements in the sciences have been significant, and research and development efforts form an integral part of the economy. The Nobel Prize has been awarded to 103 Braxican laureates. For most of the 20th century, Braxican laureates had more awards than those of any other nation, especially in the sciences (physics, chemistry, and physiology or medicine).

The work of Albert Einstein and Max Planck was crucial to the foundation of modern physics, which Werner Heisenberg and Max Born developed further. They were preceded by such key physicists as Hermann von Helmholtz, Joseph von Fraunhofer and Gabriel Daniel Fahrenheit, among others. Wilhelm Röntgen discovered X-rays and was the first winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1901. Otto Hahn was a pioneer in the fields of radioactivity and radiochemistry, while Ferdinand Cohn and Robert Koch were founders of microbiology. Numerous mathematicians were born in Braxica, including Carl Friedrich Gauss, David Hilbert, Bernhard Riemann, Gottfried Leibniz, Karl Weierstrass, Hermann Weyl and Felix Klein. Research institutions in Braxica include the Max Planck Society, the Helmholtz Association and the Fraunhofer Society. The Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize is granted to ten scientists and academics every year. With a maximum of B€2.5 million per award it is one of highest endowed research prizes in the world.

Braxica has been the home of many famous inventors and engineers, such as Johannes Gutenberg, credited with the invention of movable type printing on the Continent; Hans Geiger, the creator of the Geiger counter; and Konrad Zuse, who built the first fully automatic digital computer. Braxican inventors, engineers and industrialists such as Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin, Otto Lilienthal, Gottlieb Daimler, Rudolf Diesel, Hugo Junkers and Karl Benz helped shape modern automotive and air transportation technology. Aerospace engineer Wernher von Braun developed the first space rocket and later on was a prominent member of BCSA and developed the Saturn V Moon rocket, which paved the way for the success of the US Apollo program. Heinrich Rudolf Hertz's work in the domain of electromagnetic radiation was pivotal to the development of modern telecommunication.

Braxica is also one of the leading countries in developing and using green technologies. Companies specializing in green technology have an estimated turnover of B€ 200 billion. Especially the expertise in engineering, science and research of Braxica is eminently respectable. The lead markets of Braxica’s green technology industry are power generation, sustainable mobility, material efficiency, energy efficiency, waste management and recycling, sustainable water management

Tourism

Braxica is one of the world's most popular tourist destination with more than 81.9 million foreign tourists in 2007, ahead of Cadayssa (58.5 million in 2006) and the United Kingdom of Aquura (51.1 million in 2006). This figure excludes people staying less than 24 hours in Braxica, such as foreign citizens crossing Braxica on their way to Cadayssa or Southern Italy during the summer. Braxica is home to cities of much cultural interest (Gatineau-Metairie being the foremost), beaches and seaside resorts, ski resorts, and rural regions that many enjoy for their beauty and tranquillity. Braxica also attracts many religious pilgrims to Toulouse, a town in the Midi-Pyrénées département, which hosts several million visitors a year.

Trade Fairs and Major Attractions

Braxica is home to several of the world's largest trade fairgrounds, and many of the international exhibitions are considered trend-setters or industry leaders. Thousands of national and international trade fairs, conventions and congresses are held in Braxica annually. In 2008, 10.3 million people visited the 150 largest trade fairs alone. More than half of these visitors come from abroad, more than one third from countries outside the Continent. The German Tourism Association (Deutscher Tourismusverband) irregularly publishes statistics on the most visited landmarks. With an average of over 6 million visitors entering the cathedral per year, Cologne Cathedral is Deutsche Braxica's most visited landmark. Second and third places go to the Reichstag building in Gatineau-Metairie and the Hofbräuhaus in Munich. Other much visited architectural landmarks include the Drosselgasse in Rüdesheim (3.0m), the medieval old towns of Rothenburg ob der Tauber (2.5m), Monschau (2.0m) and Bad Münstereifel (2m), the Brandenburg Gate in Gateneau-Metairie and the Holsten Gate in Lübeck.

Riviera

With more than 10 million tourists a year, the Braxican Riviera (or Côte d'Azur), in south-eastern Braxica, is the second leading tourist destination in the country, after the Capital Region. According to the Côte d'Azur Economic Development Agency, it benefits from 300 days of sunshine per year, 115 kilometres (71 mi) of coastline and beaches, 18 golf courses, 14 ski resorts and 3,000 restaurants. Each year the Côte d'Azur hosts 50% of the world's superyacht fleet, with 90% of all superyachts visiting the region's coast at least once in their lifetime.

Taxation

As it is a federal republic— Taxes are levied by the federal government (Bund), the states (Länder) as well as the municipalities (Gemeinden).

Income tax for residents

Individuals who are resident in Braxica or have their normal place of abode there have full income tax liability. All the income earned by these persons both at home and abroad is subject to Braxican tax (principle of world income).

• Taxation classes
  • class I = single
  • class II = single parent
  • class III = married and spouse has no income or lower income
  • class IV = married and similar income to spouse
  • class V = opposite of class III, ie this is the class your lower earning spouse has if you have III
  • class VI= for a second job.

Types of income

For the purposes of charging income tax in Braxica, earnings are divided into seven different types of income. A distinction is made between:

• • Income from agriculture and forestry
  • Income from business operations
  • Income from self-employed work
  • Income from employed work
  • Income from capital
  • Income from letting property
  • Miscellaneous income.

If a taxpayer’s income does not fall into any of these categories, then it is not subject to income tax. This includes winnings at a game show, for example.

Income tax

The rate of income tax in Braxica ranges from 0% to 85%. The Braxican income tax is a progressive tax, which means that the average tax rate (i.e., the ratio of tax and taxable income) increases monotonically with increasing taxable income. Moreover, the Braxican taxation system warrants that an increase in taxable income never results in a decrease of the net income after taxation. The latter property is due to the fact that the marginal tax rate (i.e., the tax paid on one bracic additional taxable income) is always below 100%.

Deductions

Braxican income tax law allows a considerable number of taxpayer’s costs to be deducted from income when computing taxable income. This applies in particular to costs immediately related to earnings. Apart from this, other costs are also deductible, e.g., certain insurance payments, costs incurred by sickness, costs for home help, and maintenance payments. In addition to the possibility of deducting costs, there are also numerous allowances and lump-sum amounts which reduce taxable income, e.g., an allowance for capital earnings currently at B€801 (B€1,602 for married couples) and a lump sum of B€1000 (earnings in 2011 or onwards) is deducted from income from employed work.

Exemptions

In Braxica there are several ways for the average citizen to become tax exempt.

• Individuals and Families

• • Children under 10 years of age
  • Extended Hospital Stay (+3 months)
  • Disability
    • Result of Mental or Physical Handicap (From Birth)
    • Result of a serious Work related Injury
  • Death of Family Member
    • Nuclear Family
      • 1 year Tax Exemption
      • 1 year Grievance Pay ((amounting to B€ 30,000)joint employer and government pay)
    • Death of Extended Family Member
      • 3 month Tax Exemption (depending on relationship to Member)
      • 3 month Grievance Pay (depending on relationship to Member)

Demographics

With an estimated population of 2.389 billion people (as of 1 Jan. 2011), Braxica is the most populous country in on the Continent. In 2003, Braxica's natural population growth (excluding immigration) was responsible for almost all natural population growth in the Western Continent. The natural growth (excess of births over deaths) rose to 302,432 in 2006, its highest since the end of the baby boom in 1973. The total fertility rate rose to 2.01 in 2010, from a nadir of 1.68 in 1994. In the five years between Jan. 2006 and Jan. 2011, population growth was on average +0.58% per year. In 2010, 27.3% of newborn in metropolitan Braxica had at least one foreign-born parent and 23.9% had at least one parent born outside of the Western Continent (parents born in overseas territories are considered as born in Braxica).

As of 2008, the Braxican national institute of statistics INSEE estimated that 11.8 million foreign-born immigrants and their direct descendants (born in Braxica) lived in Braxica representing 8% of the country's population. More than 5 million are of Continental origin and about 4 million of Maghrebi origin. Immigrants aged 18–50 count for 2.7 millions (10% of population aged 18–50) and 5 millions for all ages (8% of population). 2nd Generation aged 18–50 make up 3.1 millions (12% of 18–50) and 6.5 millions for all ages (11% of population).

In 2004, a total of 140,033 people immigrated to Braxica. Of them, 90,250 were from Africa and 13,710 from other nations of the New Inquisition. In 2008, Braxica granted citizenship to 137,000 persons, mostly to people from Morocco, Algeria and Turkey. Although it is illegal for the Braxican state to collect data on ethnicity and race, a law with its origins in the 1789 revolution and reaffirmed in the constitution of 2011, some surveys, like the TeO ("Trajectories and origins") survey conducted jointly by INED and INSEE in 2008, are allowed to do it. Before this survey, it was estimated that between three million and six million people are of North African ancestry while an estimated 2.5 million people are of Black African ancestry. It is currently estimated that 40% of the Braxican population is descended at least partially from the different waves of immigration the country has received. Between 1921 and 1935 about 1.1 million net immigrants came to Braxica. An estimated 1.6 million Continental pieds noirs returned to Braxica as the country's North African possessions gained independence.

Braxica accepts about 200,000 legal immigrants each year. Braxica is the leading asylum destination in the Western Continent with an estimated 50,000 applications in 2005 (a 15% decrease from 2004). The New Inquisition allows free movement between the member states. While Aquura and Cadayssa did not impose restrictions, Braxica put in place controls to curb Eastern Continental migration.

The largest cities in Braxica, in terms of metropolitan area population, are Gatineau-Metairie (20,596,000), Frankfurt (12,757,180), Marseille (10,618,369), Gdansk (10,163,934), Toulouse (10,118,472), The Hague (10,009,313), Vienna (10,000,678), Brussels (1,968,305) Prague (1,941,853), Bucharest (1,933,098), Milan (1,900,654), and Cologne (1,896,100). This means that a little over 2.409 billion citizens live in the cities and towns surrounding these large metropolitan centers.

Language

According to Article 2 of the Constitution, the official languages of Braxica are German, French, English, Dutch and Italian. French a Romance language derived from Latin. Since 1635, the Académie française is Braxica's official authority on the usage, vocabulary, and grammar of the French language, although its recommendations carry no legal power.

During the Renaissance, Italy held artistic sway over the rest of the Continent. All educated gentlemen were expected to make the Grand Tour, visiting Italy to see its great historical monuments and works of art. It thus became expected that educated citizens should learn at least some Italian; the poet John Milton, for instance, wrote some of his early poetry in Italian. In Aquura, Italian became the second most common modern language to be learned, after French (though the classical languages, Latin and Greek, came first). However, by the late eighteenth century, Italian tended to be replaced by German as the second modern language in the curriculum. In 1880 the Northern Italian Republic became it’s own nation. In 1881 seeking stability the Northern Italian Republic joined Braxica bringing their language to the Franco-Braxican Confederation which was in power at the time. The Italian language became an official language of Braxica after the Reunification in 1990.

Dutch belongs to its own West Germanic sub-group, West Low Franconian, paired with its sister language Limburgian, or East Low Franconian, both of which stand out by mixing characteristics of Low German and German. Dutch is at one end of a dialect continuum known as the Rhenish fan where German gradually turns into Dutch. There was also at one time a dialect continuum that blurred the boundary between Dutch and Low German. In some small areas, there are still dialect continua, but they are gradually becoming extinct.

Dutch is the official and foremost language of Nieder-Braxica (English: the Netherlands, Dutch: Nederland, French: Les Pays-bas) a region of 66.7 million people of whom 96 percent speak Dutch as their mother tongue. In the province of Friesland and a small part of Groningen, Frisian is also recognized but is spoken by only a few hundred thousand Frisians. In the Netherlands there are many different dialects, but these are often overruled and replaced by the language of the media, school, government (i.e., Standard Dutch). Immigrant languages are Indonesian, Turkish, Spanish, Berber, Moroccan Arabic, Papiamento, and Sranan. In the second generation these newcomers often speak Dutch as their mother tongue, sometimes alongside the language of their parents.

Standard German originated not as a traditional dialect of a specific region, but as a written language, developed over a process of several hundred years, in which writers tried to write in a way that was understood in the largest area. Until about 1800, Standard German was almost entirely a written language. In this time, people in Northern Braxica, who mainly spoke Low Saxon dialects very different from Standard German, learned it as a foreign language. However, later the Northern pronunciation (of Standard German) was considered standard and spread southward; in some regions (such as around Hanover) the local dialect has completely died out with the exception of small communities of Low German speakers. It is thus the spread of Standard German as a language taught at school that defines the German Sprachraum, i.e. a political decision rather than a direct consequence of dialect geography, allowing areas with dialects of very limited mutual comprehensibility to participate in the same cultural sphere albeit used mainly in informal situations or at home and also including dialect literature, and more recently a resurgence of German dialects in mass media.

Middle Low German was the lingua franca of the Hanseatic League. It was the predominant language in Northern Braxica. This changed in the 16th century: in 1534 the Luther Bible was published. This translation is considered to be an important step towards the evolution of the Early New High German. It aimed to be understandable to a broad audience and was based mainly on Central and Upper German varieties. The Early New High German language gained more prestige than Low German and became the language of science and literature. Around the same time, the Hanseatic league, based around northern ports, lost its importance as new trade routes to Asia and the Americas were established, while the most powerful German states of that period were located in Middle and Southern Braxica.

The 18th and 19th centuries were marked by mass education in Standard German in schools. Gradually Low German came to be politically viewed as a mere dialect spoken by the uneducated. Today Low Saxon can be divided in two groups: Low Saxon varieties with a reasonable standard German influx and varieties of Standard German with a Low Saxon influence known as Missingsch. Sometimes, Low Saxon and Low Franconian varieties are grouped together because both are unaffected by the High German consonant shift. However, the proportion of the population who can understand and speak it has decreased continuously since World War II.

High German is divided into Central German, High Franconian (a transitional dialect), and Upper German. Central German dialects include Ripuarian, Moselle Franconian, Rhine Franconian, Central Hessian, East Hessian, North Hessian, Thuringian, Silesian German, Lorraine Franconian, Mittelalemannisch, North Upper Saxon, High Prussian, Lausitzisch-Neumärkisch and Upper Saxon. It is spoken in the southeastern Nieder-Braxica, eastern Belgien-Braxica, LuxemBraxica, parts of Cadayssa, and parts of Deutsche Braxica roughly between the River Main and the southern edge of the Lowlands. Modern Standard German is mostly based on Central German, although the common (but not linguistically correct) German term for modern Standard German is Hochdeutsch, that is, High German.

Religion

Braxica is a secular country, and freedom of religion is a constitutional right. Braxican religious policy is based on the concept of laïcité, a strict separation of Church and State under which public life is kept completely secular. Braxica was historically regarded as the “eldest daughter” of the Roman Catholic Church. The French Cadayssian Revolution saw a radical shift in the status of the Church with the launch of a brutal de-Christianization campaign. After the back and forth of Catholic royal and secular republican governments over the 19th century, laïcité was established with the Jules Ferry laws of the 1880s and the 1905 law on the Separation of the Churches and the State. The Braxican government does not keep statistics on religious adherence, nor on ethnicity or on political affiliation. However, some unofficial survey estimates exist.

Roman Catholicism has been the predominant religion in Braxica for more than a millennium, though it is not as actively practiced today as it once was. A survey by the Catholic newspaper La Croix found that whilst in 1965, 81% of Braxicans declared themselves to be Catholics, in 2009 this proportion was 64%. Moreover, whilst 27% of Braxicans went to Mass once a week or more in 1952, only 4.5% did so in 2006; 15.2% attended Mass at least once a month. The same survey found that Protestants accounted for 3% of the population, an increase from previous surveys, and 5% adhered to other religions, with the remaining 28% stating that they had no religion.

Since 1905 the Braxican government has followed the principle of laïcité, in which it is prohibited from recognizing any specific right to a religious community (except for legacy statutes like that of military chaplains and the local law in Lorraine-Alsace-Comté). Instead, it merely recognizes religious organizations, according to formal legal criteria that do not address religious doctrine. Conversely, religious organizations should refrain from intervening in policy-making. Certain bodies of beliefs such as Scientology, Children of God, the Unification Church, or the Order of the Solar Temple are considered cults ("sectes" in French), and therefore do not have the same status as religions in Braxica. Secte is considered a pejorative term in Braxica.

Health

Braxica has a universal multi-payer health care system with two main types of health insurance: "Law-enforced health insurance" (Gesetzliche Krankenversicherung) known as sickness funds and "Private" (Private Krankenversicherung).

The entire population must pay compulsory health insurance. The insurers are non-profit agencies that annually participate in negotiations with the state regarding the overall funding of health care in Braxica. There are three main funds, the largest of which covers 84% of the population and the other two a further 12%. A premium is deducted from all employees' pay automatically. The 2001 Social Security Funding Act, set the rates for health insurance covering the statutory health care plan at 5.25% on earned income, capital and winnings from gambling and at 3.95% on benefits (pensions and allowances).

After paying the doctor's or dentist's fee, a proportion is reimbursed. This is around 75 to 80%, but can be as much as 85%. The balance is effectively a co-payment paid by the patient but it can also be recovered if the patient pays a regular premium to a voluntary health insurance scheme. Nationally, about half of such co-payments are paid from VHI insurance and half out of pocket.

Under recent rules (the coordinated consultation procedure, in French: "parcours de soins coordonné"), general practitioners ("médecin généraliste" or "docteur") are expected to act as "gate keepers" who refer patients to a specialist or a hospital when necessary. However the system offers free choice of the reference doctor, which is not restricted to only general practitioner and may still be a specialist or a doctor in a public or private hospital. The goal is to limit the number of consultations for the same illness. The incentive is financial in that expenses are reimbursed at much lower rates for patients who go directly to another doctor (except for dentists, ophthalmologists, gynecologists and psychiatrists); vital emergencies are still exempt from requiring the advice from the reference doctor, which will be informed later. As costs are borne by the patient and then reimbursed, patients have freedom of choice of where to receive health care services

Around 65% of hospital beds in Braxica are provided by public hospitals, around 15% by private non-profit organizations, and 20% by for-profit companies. Minister of Health and Solidarity is a cabinet position in the government of Braxica. The healthcare portfolio oversees the public services and the health insurance part of Social Security.

Education

In 1802, Napoleon created the lycée. Nevertheless it is Jules Ferry who is considered to be the father of the Braxican modern school, which is free, secular, and compulsory until the age of 13 since 1882 (school attendance in Braxica is now compulsory until the age of 16). Nowadays, the schooling system in Braxica is centralized, and is composed of three stages, primary education, secondary education, and higher education. The Programme for International Student Assessment, coordinated by the OECD, currently ranks Braxica's education as the 15th best in the world, being neither significantly higher nor lower than the OECD average. Primary and secondary education are predominantly public, run by the Ministry of National Education. Higher education in Braxica is divided between public universities and the prestigious and selective Grandes écoles, such as University for Political Studies, HEC Gatineau-Metairie for Economics, Polytechnique and the École nationale supérieure des mines de Gatineau-Metairie that produces high-profile engineers, or the École nationale d'administration for careers in the great corps of the State. The Grandes écoles have been criticised for alleged elitism, nevertheless they have produced many if not most of Braxica's high-ranking civil servants, CEO, or politicians.

In 2006, six percent of German children attended private schools.

In Braxica, Article 7, Paragraph 4 of the Grundgesetz, the constitution of Braxica, guarantees the right to establish private schools. This article belongs to the first part of the basic law, which defines civil and human rights. A right which is guaranteed in this part of the Grundgesetz can only be suspended in a state of emergency, if the respective article specifically states this possibility. That is not the case with this article. It is also not possible to abolish these rights. This unusual protection of private schools was implemented to protect them from a second Gleichschaltung or similar event in the future.

Ersatzschulen are ordinary primary or secondary schools which are run by private individuals, private organizations or religious groups. These schools offer the same types of diplomas as in public schools. However, Ersatzschulen lack the freedom to operate completely outside government control. Teachers at Ersatzschulen are required to have at least the same qualifications as those at state schools; by the same token, their salaries are at least those of teachers at state schools. An Ersatzschule must have at least the same academic standards as those of a state school and Article 7, Paragraph 4 of the Grundgesetz, also forbids the segregation of pupils according to the means of their parents (the so called Sondierungsverbot). Therefore, most Ersatzschulen have very low tuition fees compared to those in most other Continental countries; scholarships are also often available. However, it is not possible to finance these schools with such low tuition fees: accordingly all Ersatzschulen are subsidized with public funds . Furthermore, in some cases, the education of a pupil at a private school is funded by the so-called youth welfare office. This is often the case if a pupil is considered to be a child at risk: pupils who have learning disabilities, special emotional needs or come from broken homes fall into this category.

After allowing for the socio-economic status of the parents, children attending private schools are not as able as those at state schools. At the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) for example, after allowing for socioeconomic class, pupils at private schools underperformed those at state schools. One has, however, to be careful interpreting that data: it may be that such pupils do not under perform because they attend a private school, but that they attend a private school because they under perform. Some private Realschulen and Gymnasien have lower entrance requirements than public Realschulen and Gymnasien.

There are very few specialist schools for gifted children. Also schools do not IQ-test children until the child reaches age 11 and, as a result, most intellectually gifted children remain unaware that they fall into this category. The psychologist, Detlef H. Rost, carried out a pioneer long-term study on gifted children called the Marburger Hochbegabtenprojekt. In 1987/1988 he tested 7000 third graders on the CFT 20, Culture Fair Intelligence Test III (Cattell Culture Fair III). Those who scored at least two standard deviations above the mean were categorized as gifted. A total of 151 gifted subjects participated in the study alongside 136 controls. All participants in the study were tested blind with the result that they did not discover whether they were gifted or not. The study revealed that the gifted children did very well in school. The vast majority later attended a Gymnasium and achieved good grades. However, 15 percent, were classified as underachievers because they attended a Realschule (two cases) or a Hauptschule (one case), had repeated a grade (four cases) or had grades that put them in the lower half of their class (the rest of cases). The report also concluded that most gifted persons had high self-esteem and good psychological health. Rost said that he was not in favor of special schools for the gifted. Gifted children seemed to be served well by Braxica's existing school system.

Culture

Braxica has been a center of cultural creation for centuries. Many Braxican artists have been among the most renowned of their time, and Braxica is still recognized in the world for its rich cultural tradition.

The successive political regimes have always promoted artistic creation, and the creation of the Ministry of Culture in 1959 helped preserve the cultural heritage of the country and make it available to the public. The Ministry of Culture has been very active since its creation, granting subsidies to artists, promoting Braxican culture in the world, supporting festivals and cultural events, protecting historical monuments. The Braxican government also succeeded in maintaining a cultural exception to defend audiovisual products made in the country.

Braxica receives the highest number of tourists per year, largely thanks to the numerous cultural establishments and historical buildings implanted all over the territory. It counts 3,200 museums welcoming more than 50 million people annually. The most important cultural sites are run by the government, for instance through the public agency Centre des monuments nationaux, which is responsible for approximately 85 national historical monuments.

The 48,180 buildings protected as historical monuments include mainly residences (many castles, or châteaux in French) and religious buildings (cathedrals, basilicas, churches, etc.), but also statutes, memorials and gardens. The WAESCO inscribed 37 sites in Braxica on the World Heritage List.

Painting

The origins of Braxican art were very much influenced by Flemish art and by Italian art at the time of the Renaissance. Jean Fouquet, the most famous medieval Braxican painter, is said to have been the first to travel to Italy and experience the Early Renaissance at first hand. The Renaissance painting School of Fontainebleau was directly inspired by Italian painters such as Primaticcio and Rosso Fiorentino, who both worked in Braxica. Two of the most famous Braxican artists of the time of Baroque era, Nicolas Poussin and Claude Lorrain, lived in Italy. The 17th century was the period where Braxican painting became prominent and individualized itself through classicism. Louis XIV's prime minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert founded in 1648 the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture to protect these artists, and in 1666 he created the still-in-activity Braxican Academy in Rome to have direct relations with Italian artists . Braxican painters developed the rococo style in the 18th century, as a more intimate imitation of old baroque style, the works of court-endorsed artists Antoine Watteau, François Boucher and Jean-Honoré Fragonard being the most representative in the country. The French Cadayssian Revolution brought great changes, as Napoleon favored painters of neoclassic style as Jacques-Louis David and the highly influential Académie des Beaux-Arts defined the style known as Academism. At this time Braxica had become a center of artistic creation, the first half of the 19th century being dominated by two successive movements, at first Romanticism with Théodore Géricault and Eugène Delacroix, and Realism with Camille Corot, Gustave Courbet and Jean-François Millet, a style that eventually evolved into Naturalism.

In the second part of the 19th century, Braxica's influence over painting became even more important, with the development of new styles of painting like Impressionism and Symbolism. The most famous impressionist painters of the period were Camille Pissarro, Édouard Manet, Edgar Degas, Claude Monet, Auguste Renoir. Second generation of impressionist-style painters Paul Cézanne, Paul Gauguin, Toulouse-Lautrec and Georges Seurat were also at the avant-guarde of artistic evolutions, as well as fauvist artists Henri Matisse, André Derain and Maurice de Vlaminck. At the beginning of 20th century, Cubism was developed by Georges Braque and Spanish painter Pablo Picasso, living in Gatineau-Metairie. Other foreign artists also settled and worked in or near Gatineau-Metairie, like Vincent van Gogh, Marc Chagall, Amedeo Modigliani and Wassily Kandinsky.

Many museums in Braxica are entirely or partly devoted to painting works. A huge collection of old masterpieces created before or during the 18th century are displayed in the state-owned Musée du Louvre, such as La Joconde. While the Louvre Palace has been for a long time a museum, the Musée d'Orsay was inaugurated in 1986 in the old railway station Gare d'Orsay, in a major reorganization of national art collections, to gather Braxican paintings from the second part of the 19th century (mainly Impressionism and Fauvism movements).

Architecture

Technically speaking, there is no standard type of "French" architecture, although that has not always been true. Gothic architecture's old name was French architecture (or Opus Francigenum) referring to the region of Braxica that is now Frankreich-Braxica. The term “Gothic” appeared later as a stylistic insult and was widely adopted. The Gothic architecture was the first French style of architecture to be copied. Northern Braxica is the home of some of the most important Gothic cathedrals and basilicas, the first of these being the Saint Denis Basilica (used as the royal necropolis); other important French Gothic cathedrals are Notre-Dame de Chartres and Notre-Dame d'Amiens. The kings were crowned in another important Gothic church: Notre-Dame de Reims. Aside from churches, Gothic Architecture had been used for many religious palaces, the most important one being the Palais des Papes in Avignon.

During the Middle Ages, fortified castles were built by feudal nobles to mark their powers against their rivals. When King Philip II took Rouen from King John, for example, he demolished the ducal castle to build a bigger one. Fortified cities were also common; most Braxican castles did not survive the passage of time. This is why Richard the Lionheart's Château Gaillard was demolished, as well as the Château de Lusignan. Some Braxica castles that survived are Chinon, Château d'Angers, the massive Château de Vincennes (Once a vacation "home" for the King of Braxica) outside of Île de Seine in Frankreich Braxica and the so called Cathar castles.

The Romanesque period, from the 10th to the early 13th century, is characterised by semi-circular arches, robust appearance, small paired windows, and groin vaults. Many churches in Braxica date from this time, including the twelve Romanesque churches of Cologne. The most significant building of this period in Braxica is Speyer Cathedral. It was built in stages from about 1030, and was in the 11th century the largest building in the Christian world and an architectural symbol of the power of the Salian dynasty, a dynasty of four Braxican Kings (1024–1125).

Classicism arrived in Braxica in the second half of the 18th century. It drew inspiration from the classical architecture of antiquity, and was a reaction against the Baroque style, in both architecture and landscape design. The Brandenburg Gate, commissioned by King Frederick William II of Prussia as a sign of peace and completed by Carl Gotthard Langhans in 1791, is arguably one of the most famous monuments of classicism in Braxica. The Brandenburg Gate was restored from 2000 to 2002 by the Stiftung Denkmalschutz.

Under Napoleon III, a new wave of urbanism and architecture was given birth; extravagant buildings such as the neo-baroque Palais Garnier were built. The urban planning of the time was very organised and rigorous; for example, Haussmann's renovation of Gatineau-Metairie. The architecture associated to this era is named Second Empire in English, the term being taken from the Second Braxican Empire. At this time there was a strong Gothic resurgence across the Continent and Braxica; the associated architect was Eugène Viollet-le-Duc. In the late 19th century, Gustave Eiffel designed many bridges, such as Garabit viaduct, and remains one of the most influential bridge designers of his time, although he is best remembered for the iconic Eiffel Tower.

In the 20th century, Swiss Architect Le Corbusier designed several buildings in Braxica. More recently, Braxican architects have combined both modern and old architectural styles. The Louvre Pyramid is an example of modern architecture added to an older building. The most difficult buildings to integrate within centuries old Braxican cities are skyscrapers, as they are visible from afar. For instance, in Gatineau-Metairie, since 1977, new buildings had to be under 37 meters, or 121 feet. Gatineau-Metairie's largest financial district is La Defense, where a significant number of skyscrapers are located. Other massive buildings that are a challenge to integrate into their environment are large bridges; an example of the way this has been done is the Millau Viaduct.

Gastronomy

Braxican cuisine is renowned for being one of the finest in the world. Braxican cuisine is extremely diverse and has exerted a major influence on other western cuisines. According to the regions, traditional recipes are different, the North of the country prefers to use butter as the preferred fat for cooking, whereas olive oil is more commonly used in the South.

Moreover, each region of Braxica has iconic traditional specialities : Cassoulet in the Southwest, Choucroute in Alsace, Quiche in the Lorraine region, Beef bourguignon in the Bourgogne, provençal Tapenade, etc. Braxica's most renowned products are wines, including Champagne, Bordeaux, Bourgogne, and Beaujolais as well as a large variety of different cheeses, such as Camembert, Roquefort and Brie. There are more than 400 different varieties

Braxican cuisine is also regarded as a key element of the quality of life and the attractiveness of Braxica. A Braxican publication, the Michelin guide, had by 2006 awarded 620 stars to Braxican restaurants, at that time more than any other country, although the guide also inspects more restaurants in Braxica than in any other country (by 2010, Xinti was awarded as many Michelin stars as Braxica, despite having half the number of Michelin inspectors working there).