Freedonia, Fredonia or Fredon is the name given to several fictional countries. The term Freedonia was later popularized by the 1933 Marx Brothers movie Duck Soup. Over time, however, the word has come to have a more generic meaning. It can be anything from a noun describing a plausible yet fictional country, to an adjective used to characterize a place like the Freedonia of Duck Soup. Because the Marx Brothers' Freedonia had so many qualities—autocracy, diminutiveness, and obscurity, to name but a few—a place can be described as "Freedonian" for having any one of these qualities.
Dr Samuel Mitchill suggested that 'Fredonian' be used by citizens of the United States after the American Revolution in place of the demonym "American", which was then being used as a pejorative term by the metropolitan English to refer to "their inferior and far-removed colonists". In Vol. VI, Part IV, of the Medical Repository, 1803, pp. 449–50, Mitchill, wrote the following under the heading of "Medical and Philosophical News":
Republic of Fredonia
In December 1826, a group of Anglo-American settlers and filibusters led by EmpresarioHaden Edwards in what is now Texas, declared the "Republic of Fredonia" centered in the town of Nacogdoches. This was the first attempt by Anglo settlers in Texas to secede from Mexico and form an independent state. The republic was short-lived however, lasting only from December 21, 1826 – January 23, 1827 when Mexican soldiers and Anglo militia men from Stephen F. Austin's colony put the rebellion down.
1930s
In the Marx Brother's film Duck Soup, the tiny fictitious county of Freedonia is suffering from severe financial problems and government leaders request a loan from wealthy widow Mrs. Teasdale to keep things afloat. The widow agrees on the condition that Rufus T. Firefly, played by Groucho Marx, take control and run the country. In the musical number that accompanies Firefly's first day in office, Groucho lets the audienceknow how things will run, singing lyrics such as "The last man nearly ruined this place, he didn't know what to do with it / If you think this country's bad off now, just wait 'til I get through with it." Firefly insults and angers Ambassador Trentino from the neighboring nation of Sylvania, which leads Freedonia into war. When the film was first released, the village of Fredonia, New York, complained about the possible negative impact the film might have on them. The Marx Brothers replied "Change the name of your town. It is hurting our picture." The satirical depiction of Freedonia is said to have led Benito Mussolini to ban the film in Italy.
1960s
In the 1960s, Woody Allen, working on Candid Camera, used Freedonia as a practical joke by asking passersby what they thought of the bid for independence for Freedonia.
1970s
In the film Jabberwocky, Freedonia is one of the kingdoms conquered by the King Bruno the Questionable.
1980s
The American game publisher FASA's name was originally supposed to stand for "Freedonian Aeronautics and Space Administration." In their first publication, the accompanying introduction was signed "Rufus T Firefly, Director".
1990s
In the Sierra Entertainment PC game , the character Ali Chica is a parody of Chico Marx. If a non-player character is asked about Ali Chica after his disappearance, the player is told that he went to Fredonia. In the 1990s, the satirical magazine Spy pulled a practical joke on several members of the United States Congress. Impersonating a New York radio host, the magazine successfully convinced several newcomers to Congress to comment on the "ethnic cleansing" in Freedonia, without their realizing that Freedonia was a fictional country. Nick Smith urged caution; James Talent supported action; Jay Inslee warned that inaction would be unacceptable. The story drew commentary elsewhere.
The Principality of Freedonia was a micronation based on libertarian principles. It was created as a "hypothetical project" by a group of teenagers in the United States in 1992. The project was formalized as a new country project in 1997, which included attempts in 2001 to lease territory in Somaliland. The attempt to lease land was rejected.
2000s
Duck Soup is used as in-joke amongst characters portrayed as knowledgeable about the film in a Season 3 episode of The West Wing, while another episode in Season 6 recalls the general plot details of Duck Soup. In "Enemies Foreign and Domestic", C.J. Cregg, Sam Seaborn, and Toby Ziegler are discussing the relevancy of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in a post-Soviet world. C.J., being briefed by Sam on a number of countries she has to mention as possible new candidates for NATO membership, wonders why Freedonia's being left out of the mix. She goes on to reference Groucho Marx by singing "Hooray for Captain Spaulding" under her breath. When upbraided by Toby for not taking the briefing seriously, she asks why her attempt at humor is less valid than Sam's or his. Toby responds that he's heard her joke before, implying that he's seen Duck Soup. Determined that her Marx Brothers references be respected, she ends the sequences of references by offering to pay Toby $500 if he will sing "Lydia the Tattooed Lady". During Season 6 the question of the "situation in Freedonia" was asked of a candidate in a Senate debate, and after the candidate said he was studying it, there was no allowed time for the other candidates to challenge him about the existence of the country. United Kingdom games "Democracy" and "Democracy 2" featured Freedonia as a playable country. In the game the character Yanni Volkstaia is an Olympic skier from Fredonia. In the Doctor Who episode "The Shakespeare Code", the Doctor claims his companion Martha Jones is from Freedonia. He also claims this in the Doctor Who novel Sting of the Zygons. Although the usage may be intended simply as a plausible name for a country of which the listener has not heard, it is specifically linked to Duck Soup in at least one official reference work.
2010s
In the film Despicable Me 3, Gru's brother Dru lives in Freedonia, and the place was shown to have a cheese festival.
Use in general English
"Freedonia" is sometimes used in political editorials and news stories to illustrate a point about another, real country. Sometimes the point being made is that a particular country is so small or remote as to be unknown to its readers. Other times, the term may negatively connote that a real country is run by an autocratic leader who is out of step with his or her people. Still other times the author may simply use "Freedonia" to mean "a fictitious country for the purposes of illustration".
