But if you aren’t even of noble blood, you aren’t a king.
Not a big selling point here in the states. I was with you until your “Worst of all”, but I’m not buying into the innate specialness of those born into it (or, as you say, named by an emperor or pope).
Another Libertarian scam that nobody will accept and will be put together towards “free market” standards of ramshackle operation and with little counsel.
First of all, whether it’s a selling point in the states doesn’t really figure into understanding the questionable state of mind of a Pole inventing a kingdom at the border between Slovenia and Croatia. You are welcome to have an opinion, and do feel free to share it, but American public opinion is just not relevant on the question of whether someone can reasonably call himself “king” of a country in Europe.
Second, you don’t need to buy into it. For my own country of Austria, monarchy and everything to do with nobility ended in 1918. Nobility, noble titles, monarchies, etc. are centuries-old traditions (that have ended in many places) that had their own rules. Being “noble” does not make you special - people whose last name is Habsburg are special in Austria the same way that people whose last name is Jefferson are in America. But it’s still not something you can proclaim for yourself without being deluded.
Another example: I am obviously not a Captain of the US Army. No amount of proclaiming will make me one. Even if I got myself a real gun and an authentic US Army uniform with the proper insignia, I’d still not be a US Army Captain. And note that it does not matter what I, you, or anyone else thinks about the US Army and its Captains. No matter whether I have the highest respect or the utmost contempt for the US Army and its traditions, no matter whether I am in an army base in the US or in a private home in Austria, where US Army captains have no business at all, there are rules on how to become an US Army captain.
By The Rules of the US Army, no amount of proclaiming will make me a (US Army) Captain. And by The Rules of nobility and kingdoms, no amount of proclaiming will make a crazy Polish guy a king, or his imaginary country a kingdom.
Even if that imaginary country somehow became real.
On the plus side, ‘which of the former Yugoslav republics owns this?’ is a question that only fools and people ignorant of history ask lightly. Based on what usually happens when you ask it, it’s not clear that there’s anyone in the EU with the stomach to do so.
I hardly expect that this will work out for the guy; but it’s worth noting that ‘nobility’ is much fuzzier and more ill defined than captaincy is. Nobles historically invested a great deal of effort in pretending the contrary, and the ones we didn’t have the sense to execute may still do some of this; but being ‘noble’ is a lot like being a nation state. The political science wonks can draw up their theories about what constitutes a de-facto nation state, or a de-facto noble; but you only get to join the club if your peers agree to treat you as a member; at which time you busily start oozing bullshit pseudohistory to help strengthen the impression that you and your forebears have always been members of the club. Nobody who is already in the club wants to leave the door open to new members, so they will studiously avoid admitting to any list of requirements, lest somebody fulfill them and petition for entry; but it’s a matter of historical fact that the club didn’t start out full, and new nations and noble lines worm their way in from time to time(and they often do this, in part, by dressing up like real members and pretending as loudly as possible until people are forced to act).
Captaincy, by contrast, is pretty straightforward, it’s just an organizational title, which the organization in question either has or hasn’t assigned to you.
Did someone need to name their daughter a princess? Is there some sort of colonial white privilege taking place?
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