Every Inch a King
Encyclopedia
Every Inch a King, ISBN 0-97559156-1-4, is a 2005 fantasy novel by Harry Turtledove
, published by ISFiC Press
. It is a fictional account of the story of Otto Witte
, who allegedly spent five days pretending to be the King of Albania
. The title is a quotation from Shakespeare's
King Lear
, Act IV scene 6, wherein the insane King, crowned with weeds, makes futile assertions of his now usurped power.
, between the First Balkan War
and the Second Balkan War
. All the countries mentioned there have real world analogues (ie: Hassocki Empire = Ottoman Empire
, Lokris = Greece
, Shqiperi = Albania
). Magic is predominant in the land and fills the same roles technology does in our world. It is also worth noting that the names given to the analogous countries all have some basis in reality. For instance Shqiperi is the Albanian name for Albania, Poland is named after Gdansk
, a city in northern Poland, the United States
is Vespucciland after Amerigo Vespucci
, Greece is named after the ancient region of Locris
, etc.
The politics of the world are almost the same as our own, as well, right down to having analogues of Catholic
Christianity, Eastern Orthodox Christianity and Islam
.
Harry Turtledove
Harry Norman Turtledove is an American novelist, who has produced works in several genres including alternate history, historical fiction, fantasy and science fiction.- Life :...
, published by ISFiC Press
ISFiC Press
ISFiC Press is the small press publishing arm of ISFiC. It often produces books by the Author Guest of Honor at Windycon, an annual Chicago science fiction convention, launching the appropriate title at the convention....
. It is a fictional account of the story of Otto Witte
Otto Witte
Otto Witte was a circus acrobat and fantasist who said that he managed to be crowned King of Albania.In 1913, when Albania broke away from the Ottoman Empire, some Albanian Muslims invited Halim Eddine, a nephew of the Sultan, to come and be crowned king...
, who allegedly spent five days pretending to be the King of Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
. The title is a quotation from Shakespeare's
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
King Lear
King Lear
King Lear is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. The title character descends into madness after foolishly disposing of his estate between two of his three daughters based on their flattery, bringing tragic consequences for all. The play is based on the legend of Leir of Britain, a mythological...
, Act IV scene 6, wherein the insane King, crowned with weeds, makes futile assertions of his now usurped power.
Plot
The book centers around Otto of Schlepsig, a circus performer and tightrope walker, who is surprised to learn that he's an almost dead-ringer for Prince Halim Eddin, recently invited to become king the newly independent country of Shqiperi. Fed up with his life in the circus, Otto, and his friend, the sword swallower Max of Witte, get some uniforms and set out to take the Prince's place as King of Shqiperi.Setting
The book takes place in a fictional version of the BalkansBalkans
The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...
, between the First Balkan War
First Balkan War
The First Balkan War, which lasted from October 1912 to May 1913, pitted the Balkan League against the Ottoman Empire. The combined armies of the Balkan states overcame the numerically inferior and strategically disadvantaged Ottoman armies and achieved rapid success...
and the Second Balkan War
Second Balkan War
The Second Balkan War was a conflict which broke out when Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Serbia and Greece, on 29 June 1913. Bulgaria had a prewar agreement about the division of region of Macedonia...
. All the countries mentioned there have real world analogues (ie: Hassocki Empire = Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, Lokris = Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, Shqiperi = Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
). Magic is predominant in the land and fills the same roles technology does in our world. It is also worth noting that the names given to the analogous countries all have some basis in reality. For instance Shqiperi is the Albanian name for Albania, Poland is named after Gdansk
Gdansk
Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...
, a city in northern Poland, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
is Vespucciland after Amerigo Vespucci
Amerigo Vespucci
Amerigo Vespucci was an Italian explorer, financier, navigator and cartographer. The Americas are generally believed to have derived their name from the feminized Latin version of his first name.-Expeditions:...
, Greece is named after the ancient region of Locris
Locris
Locris was a region of ancient Greece, the homeland of the Locrians, made up of three distinct districts.-Locrian tribe:...
, etc.
The politics of the world are almost the same as our own, as well, right down to having analogues of Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
Christianity, Eastern Orthodox Christianity and Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
.
Style
The novel is essentially a fairly light-hearted comedy. There's minor violence, but nothing too severe. Unlike in many Turtledove books, the sexual activity takes place "off screen" and is aided by a wizard who makes a magic spell that, in part, uses some little blue pills as a main ingredient.People
- Otto of Schlepsig = Otto WitteOtto WitteOtto Witte was a circus acrobat and fantasist who said that he managed to be crowned King of Albania.In 1913, when Albania broke away from the Ottoman Empire, some Albanian Muslims invited Halim Eddine, a nephew of the Sultan, to come and be crowned king...
- Max of Witte = Max Schlepsig
- Essad Pasha = Essad PashaEssad PashaEssad Pasha Toptani or Esad Pasha Toptani , primarily known as Essad Pasha, was Ottoman army officer, Albanian deputy in Ottoman parliament and politician in the early twentieth century in Albania...
- Prince Halim Eddin = Prince Haleem Ettin
Places
- Shqiperi = AlbaniaAlbaniaAlbania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
- Vyzance = ConstantinopleConstantinopleConstantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
- Hassocki Empire = Ottoman EmpireOttoman EmpireThe Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
- Torino = ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
- Tver = RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
- Vespucciland = United States of AmericaUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
- The Dual Monarchy = Austro-Hungarian Empire
- Yagmaria = HungaryHungaryHungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
- Eastmarch = AustriaAustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
- Albion = the United KingdomUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
- Narbonesis = FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
- Schlepsig = GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
- Belgora = MontenegroMontenegroMontenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
- Plovdiv = BulgariaBulgariaBulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
- Lokris = GreeceGreeceGreece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
- Vlachia = SerbiaSerbiaSerbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
- Dacia = RomaniaRomaniaRomania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
- Gdansk = PolandPolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
- Bruges = BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
- Nekemte Peninsula = the BalkansBalkansThe Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...
- Luetia = ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
- Lakedaimon = AthensAthensAthens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
- Aeneas/Ancient Aeneans = Rome/Ancient Romans
Other
- War of the Kingdoms = World War I
- Nekemte Wars = First and Second Balkan Wars
- Major Mustafa/Colonel Kemal = Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
- Zogu = King Zog I (Skander also gets his name from King Zog)
- Religion of the Quadrate God = Islam
- Zibeonite Religion = Eastern Orthodox Christianity
- Eliphaletism = Roman Catholicism
- Cytherea's Temple = Temple of Aphrodite
- Fortress Hill (in Lokris) = the Acropolis