Kaznia

Kaznia was a European nation. The coordinates 45°9'8''N, 19°58'13''E were given as being within its borders, making it a Balkan nation. Its goverment is a hereditary monarchy. Its religion appears to be Eastern Orthodox Christianity.

History[]

Kaznia has a long-running problem with civil war and other forms of domestic unrest. It is divided between multiple factions, the most prominent of which are the Northerners and Southerners: The Northern Kaznians are composed of tribes and have the appearance of a guerrilla movement, while the Southern Kaznians have the appearance of a regular military and so may have some association with the country's "legitimate" government.

Under the Regent[]

At the time of Superman's first appearance in Metropolis,^[1] Kaznia appeared to be ruled by a "Regent" who had been sanctioned by the United States and other countries for using a squad of terrorists to eliminate his political enemies. The Regent made a secret deal with Lex Luthor to acquire a prototype of LexCorp's new military battlesuit, the Lexo-Skel. Because Kaznia was under a trade embargo, the sale was carried out by staging a theft from LexCorp using a team of hired mercenaries, led by John Corben. However, the deal was thwarted by Superman.^[2]

Later, a faction of the Kaznian military attempted to purchase a large number of high-tech weapons from Gotham City mobsters Penguin, Rupert Thorne, and the assassin Bane. The Kaznians never received these arms, thanks to the intervention of Batman.^[3]

Under King Gustav & Vandal Savage[]

In later years, the leadership of the country passed to King Gustav, who gave the appearance of a warmer leader than the Regent and other Kaznian leaders, being more receptive with the international community. He had Kaznian scientists make large labor contributions towards an international space station. Although this did bolster Kaznia's (and of course the King) reputation abroad, this came at quite a cost, as Gustav imposed high taxes on his subjects to finance such a project. The Kazian infrastructure, economy, and quality of life for the commoners suffered as a result of the taxation, spurring tax revolts and other forms of dissatisfaction with the crown.

Needing a platform from which to hatch his plans for world domination, Vandal Savage married Princess Audrey, the heir to the throne. After poisoning Gustav, Savage assumed control of Kaznia and launched an orbital weapon. The Justice League dismantled his plot, and Audrey assumed the throne as Queen.

Under Queen Audrey[]

During Queen Audrey's rule, fighting broke out between the Northern tribes and the Southern faction. Knowing that the fighting could potentially escalate into a region-wide conflict, Ares eagerly attempted to escalate the conflict. With his assistance, the Northerners, led by Nardoc, successfully repelled an offensive by the Southerners, but Ares was incensed when Nardoc said he was content with stopping there. Ares replaced Nardoc, and the fighting flared up again. The Justice League intervened at Queen Audrey's request, and a ceasefire was achieved, though with no prospect of lasting peace.

Later, the civil war appeared to have ended and a unified Kaznia joined the European Union. This may mean that Queen Audrey's accomplished her goal to rebuild the country anew.

However, a few decades later, Kaznia seems to have reverted to a less stable form, as Kaznian minister Vilmos Egans contracted with Derek Powers for a lethal chemical weapon in the late 2040s designed to eliminate the military forces of his "neighbors",^[4] though it is unclear whether this was a reference to a neighboring country or to a rival faction within Kaznia.

Background information[]

Trivia[]

In reality, the coordinates given in the Justice League Unlimited episode "The Great Brain Robbery" are in Vojvodina, an autonomous province in northern Serbia. Likewise, the coordinates shown in "Maid of Honor" also place the Kaznian royal palace in Vojvodina.
Audrey's legacy seems to have included her reputation as a party girl before she assumed the throne; in the Batman Beyond episode "Spellbound", an auction house director is locking up the "Princess Audrey Collection" of dresses.
In the Justice League episode "Maid of Honor", the name of the country is spelled as "Kasnia", with an S instead of a Z.
In the Amalgam comics series, which featured Marvel and DC superheroes, Kaznia is allied with Latveria, ruled by villain Dr. Doom. Both nations are in eastern Europe, repressive to their subjects, often on bad terms with the international community, and give the outward appearance of storybook monarchies.
Superman Adventures #1, the comic based on the Superman animated series, had the appearance of Superman attacking the Kaznian Embassy to the United States. The Kaznian ambassador is shown denouncing this as "an attack of blatant terrorism against the peace loving Kaznian people!" In actuality, the attacker is an android double of Superman, created by Lex Luthor to ruin Superman's reputation. Superman exposes the smear and forces Luthor into admitting an apology, as well as donating a lot of money to rebuild the Kaznian Embassy.