The Byzantine Empire of Constantinolia is a titanic, cultured nation, ruled by Andronikos VI with an even hand, and remarkable for its barren, inhospitable landscape, keen interest in outer space, and smutty television. The hard-nosed, humorless, devout population of 15.685 billion Byzantines are fiercely patriotic and enjoy great social and economic equality; they tend to view other countries as corrupted by the hollow pageantry of sham elections.

The relatively small, corrupt government juggles the competing demands of Industry, Education, and Defense. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Constantinople. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 30.9%.

The frighteningly efficient Byzantine economy, worth a remarkable 3,751 trillion hyperpyrons a year, is broadly diversified and led by the Arms Manufacturing industry, with major contributions from Information Technology, Retail, and Furniture Restoration. Black market activity is rampant. State-owned companies are common. Average income is an amazing 239,206 hyperpyrons, with the richest citizens earning 6.8 times as much as the poorest.

All facts are created equal, the sound of silence from abandoned Violetist temples is deafening, wandering Byzantines are known for their one-track minds, and Scrabble champions have been left scrambling for scraps. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown. Constantinolia's national animal is the eagle, which teeters on the brink of extinction due to toxic air pollution, and its national religion is Catholicism.

Constantinolia is ranked 2,701^st in the world and 8^th in Christians for Largest Insurance Industry, scoring 7,533.45 on the Risk Expulsion Effectiveness Rating.