Historically, Xyon was the last major island in the world to be permanently settled by humans, having gone unnoticed by the human population during the mid-17th century. Up until that time, no knowledge of the island existed, either in nearby Imperial China and Medieval Japan, or to the Polynesian explorers in the Pacific. The island was finally colonized on 11 May 1653 by Mikael O'Neill, an trader and explorer from Great Britain, who had been seeking his fortune in the region. He was the first of the near-human species named after him, the Mikaeans, all of whom are his offspring. O'Neill claimed the island for himself, and covertly built up the population and infrastructure for the island until his declare a monarchy in 1671. From 1653 up until 1874, Xyon remained largely isolated from th