Parva Domus

Republic of Parva Domus Magna Quies Micronation
Flag of Parva Domus Coat of arms of Parva Domus Flag Coat of arms
Motto: Parva domus magna quies Little house, great repose
Anthem: Parva Domus March
Location of Parva Domus
Demonym		Parvense
Organizational structure		Presidential constitutional republic
•	President	Bartolomé Angel Grillo
•	Vice President	Milton Marona
Establishment
•	Declared	25 August 1878
Area claimed
•	Total	0.2 km2 0 sq mi
Population
•	estimate	200, ~850,000 historical
Claimed GDP (PPP)		2017 estimate
•	Total	Est. USD 4.8M
HDI		0.94 very high
Purported currency		Parva Domus Peso

Parva Domus, officially the Republic of Parva Domus Magna Quies (Latin for "little house, great repose") is a self-proclaimed micronational republic surrounded by the city of Montevideo, Uruguay. The nation has served as a civil, cultural and recreational association since its foundation in 1878.

Origins and name

Its main promoter and founder was José "Pepe" Achinelli, who, around 1878, used to go fishing on the Río de la Plata coast every Sunday by horse-drawn tramway to a place known as Pesquero de los Viejos, in Punta Carretas, Montevideo. At the time, this was a rural area, with very few buildings and little traffic.

Tired of the inconvenience of travelling every Sunday by tram with his fishing equipment, he decided to rent one of the precarious and deteriorated dirt-floored rooms managed in that area by Liborio Echevarría, manager of the Tren del Este. He was informed of the existence of these rooms by the architect Tomás de Tezanos. For three pesos a month, he rented room no. 4 to store his belongings and to have a meeting place with friends for meals and get-togethers.

One participant in these meetings, the artist Juan Riva-Zuchelli, read the novel Jack, by the French writer Alphonse Daudet, published in instalments in 1875 in the Parisian newspaper Le Moniteur Universel and as a book the following year. The story is about a boy abandoned by his mother and punished by other older people, who finally dies after suffering all sorts of hardships: hunger, cold and above all the exploitation of child labour. In chapter five, "Sequel of the Literary Gathering at the Gymnase Moronval", Amaury d'Argenton, the future husband of Ida, Jack's mother, dreams of acquiring a beautiful country house on the outskirts of Paris, after receiving an inheritance from an elderly aunt, so that he can devote himself to literature in order to achieve fame and fortune. He had the motto Parva domus, magna quies placed above the door. In the original French text by Daudet, the motto appears in Latin, immediately followed by its French translation: "Parva domus, magna quies. Little house, great repose".

Inspired by that passage, Riva-Zucchelli wrote the same phrase on the door of the room in charcoal. When Achinelli learned of the translation, thanks to two priests, he had it carefully painted on the door and decided that it would be the name of the nascent society.

From the beginning the society was made up of whites and reds who nevertheless related fraternally. Achinelli therefore also designed a flag that could not be identified with either party. He took as a model the flag of a British shipping company, which consisted of a blue cross or crossbones on a white background. The blue came to represent the proximity of the sea and the white purity. He replaced the letters of the company with each of the company's initials, PDMQ. They are located at the corners of the cross and are red because they are the "first colour of the solar spectrum of the Fatherland". The design was the work of Geronimo "Guirumín" Machiavello.

The founding or "independence" date of Parva Domus is considered to be 25 August 1878. On that day at 4 o'clock in the morning, in front of room number 4, the Parvenian flag was raised for the first time.

A hymn was also composed, the Marcha Parva Domus, with music by Luis Longhider and lyrics by Fermín Rojas, also known as "Juan Chichizola". It was first performed by tenor José Oxilia.

Over time, the number of Parvenses "citizens" grew and the remaining available rooms were rented out for more space. The pieces of the original cottage were joined together to create a spacious first headquarters for meetings, which have since become known as "Parvenses tenidas".

A Directorate of Fine Arts was established, whose first director was the Italian painter Gino Pagano, born in Milan. His caricatures of the first citizens and paintings are preserved in the current building, where there is also a museum with elements of the history of Parva Domus. The grounds have "streets" named after illustrious Parvese "citizens".

An Extraordinary General Assembly on 4 August 1895 appointed 32 constituents to draft the constitution, which was adopted on 21 August of the same year. From then on, the society was officially renamed República Parva Domus Magna Quies. The president of the commission was José Achinelli and the vice-president was Juan Turenne.

The Constitution of Parva Domus states that it is a presidential republic and that its president is elected every two years by universal suffrage. Also according to Article 6 of the Constitution, the official state religion is joy.

Headquarters

File:Parva Domus building.png

The presidential palace

The land where the first headquarters was located, which became the property of Parva Domus, was expropriated for the construction of Artigas Boulevard. With the money obtained, another adjoining plot of land was bought, which reached the nearby Rambla, where the current headquarters were built. This land was divided up in order to sell it and pay the Association's expenses, so the proximity to the Río de la Plata was lost.8 The headquarters or "Presidential Palace" is a large neoclassical mansion in the Montevideo neighbourhood of Punta Carretas opposite the Uruguay Golf Club, surrounded by a garden with trees, statues and "avenues". Its address is Artigas Boulevard 136 on the corner of Parva Domus, a street named in his honour.

Membership and activities

File:Coin Parva Domus.jpg

Commemorative coin for the 125th anniversary of independence.

Citizenship" is only available to men who are invited by someone who is already a citizen and who share the philosophy of harmony, friendship and tolerance. Women can participate in some activities and are invited on the 29th, between March and November. In its early decades access was more restricted and membership almost secret, but over time it has become more flexible, although the founding statute restricts the maximum number of simultaneous citizens to 250.

There are no political or religious restrictions on entry, but during formal or recreational activities, current members of Parvenian citizenship are forbidden to discuss politics, religion or sports. On either side of the entrance to the headquarters are two small fountains known as the "fountains of Lethe", where, to symbolise forgetfulness of the miseries of the outside world, citizens dip their fingers to anoint themselves.

The usual gatherings are twice a week, Wednesday evenings and Saturday noon, and are always around a table, eating, drinking, singing and listening to music. Other activities include exhibitions and concerts.

Parva Domus has a flag, coat of arms, constitution and authorities such as president, vice-president and five ministers: of Government and Foreign Affairs (or chancellor), War and Navy, Development and Agriculture, Finance and Worship. It also has an "ambassador" to the Moon, who is also a Master Instructor and Catechumen of Plebeian Citizens.

Some of the best-known citizens of Parvenses were José Irureta Goyena, Juan Zorrilla de San Martín, Isidoro de María, Eduardo Rodríguez Larreta, Eduardo Fabini, Dalmiro Costa and César Zagnoli. Juan Campisteguy, Uruguayan president from 1927 to 1931, served the tables during the Sunday banquets, in the middle of his presidency. Among the visitors were the poet Rubén Darío in 1912, the Spanish baritone Ramón Novares, the musicians Arturo Toscanini and Luis Sambucetti.

Parvese members or "citizens" celebrate the "independence" of the republic every 25 August, when they parade through the streets near the headquarters, playing musical instruments and dressed in costumes that parody gala attire. They also hold meetings where they receive politicians and members of the diplomatic corps, among other guests.

Important events

The Uruguayan Postal Service issued a postage stamp in 2003 in honor of the 125th anniversary of the Republic of Parva Domus. The micronation hosted a meeting between Uruguayan and Argentinean diplomats during the pulp mill dispute in 2007.

Every year during Uruguay's Heritage Day, the nation opens to the public and offers guided visits of its national museum, gardens, and theatre.