Maksimilian van Grun: Biography

Maksimilian van Grun was a Charginian politician who founded the Armed Republic of Charge Island in 1953, following his takeover of the government after the resignation of Sulomon Harte. He was in power from October 19th, 1953 until his death on December 4th, 1989. Over his rule, he introduced extremely conservative laws and was regarded as a tyrant by many outside nations. On the contrary, many Charginian citizens view his rule as favourable, he was seen by many as a "benevolent dictator" and was consistently popular throughout his rule. He remains as the longest serving President of the Armed Republic of Charge Island, serving as President for just over 36 years.

Early life:
Maksimilian van Grun was born on January 9th, 1903 into the Van Grun family, which at the time, was still relatively obscure. He spent his formative years under the wing of his father, Hans van Grun. He attended Schlechtstadt University and obtained a degree in Mathematics when he was 24 years old. He then spent the next 20 years teaching Mathematics at several different colleges around Schlechtstadt.

The Charginian Political Crisis and the Van Grun takeover:
In 1953, following high social tensions and unrest, President Sulomon Harte resigned and a crisis ensued, the country was left without a leader. Maksimilian, now aged 50, saw the power vacuum and quickly thought up a plan to overtake the government and install his own regime. Because his family had prestigious connections, Maksimilian amassed a battalion of tanks and encircled the government building.

He threatened to blow up the government building if they did not give in to his demands. After about 3 days of resistance, the government let Van Grun into the building. Now that he had control of the government, he began the slow process of changing the regime and installing his own. After numerous assassination attempts and countless setbacks, he disestablished the previous Charginian Republic and formed a new nation on October 19th, 1953 which would be called The Armed Republic of Charge Island.

Presidency:
Following his rise to power, Van Grun immediately started altering existing laws and adding new ones to fit his ideology. The political atmosphere of the nation grew incredibly authoritarian. In 1954, he purged many existing officials from the government to ensure that everyone was loyal to him.

Over the 1950s and 1960s, Maksimilian's regime was characterised by constant purging due to untrustworthy government officials and rising opposition.

On July 2nd, 1968, a widely publicised assassination attempt occurred against Maksimilian. The assassin drove beside his car and fired upon him with a pistol. Fortunately, Van Grun survived and the assassin was identified as Johan Visker, a political activist who had connections to various anti-Van Grun groups.
Van Grun's presidency throughout the 1970s was characterised by constant stability. Maksimilian started a government plan in 1974 to build up the cities of Schlechtstadt, Gutendorf and Ferdvonung to be more attractive to tourists. The plan worked and tourism in Charge Island increased tenfold by the end of the 1970s.

Death:
Beginning around the Winter of 1985, Van Grun’s health started to gradually decline. In 1987, his doctors advised him to resign as he was getting less and less capable of performing his duties. He declined calls for him to step down and continued his tenure as President, albeit at a reduced scale. Frank Keller, who was then the Vice-President, stepped in to assist with the Presidency in Maksimilian's absences.

On December 4th 1989, Maksimilian van Grun died peacefully in his sleep. The cause of death was determined to be natural causes. Following his death, his son Ralf succeeded him as President and would remain as such until 2000. A 1 month mourning period commenced in the wake of his death.

Personal life:
Aside from politics, Maksimilian was known to be quiet and reserved and valued his privacy. He was a keen fisherman and was known to spend large amounts of time fishing, particularly around the Flussen river in Schlechtstadt. He was also an enthusiastic fan of football and a supporter of Schlechtstadt Futballklub. Van Grun married his wife Ingrid in 1934 and had 3 children including Ralf van Grun.

Legacy:
Maksimilian has attained an everlasting legacy in Charge Island even after his death. He is considered to be one of the most important Charge Islanders to ever exist by the majority of the population. In Schlechtstadt, there is a 82 metre tall statue of Maksimilian, which is now a tourist attraction. Almost every city in Charge Island has a street or block named after him.