Advanced Politics (Nell du'Galle, Closed)

[Sonya]

First brightening of the fourth cycle,
The Month of Kalendryas in the Season of Winter,
Era I of the Celestine Mandate,
Era XIII Post Fractum

As Nell approached room 4, she noticed that the door was open, revealing the room inside.

It was a small room, roughly 10 by 10 feet square. At the front, opposite the door, were a chair and a desk with several volumes of books and scrolls on it. In front of the desk was a large table with two chairs. Inside the room, behind the desk, sat a female elf of rather tall stature with her blonde hair tied into a tail behind her head. Her eyes were an icy blue and her ears tapered to a perfect point slightly outways from her head in elven fashion.

She was garbed in a simple dress of sea green with bell sleeves and a cross stitch of vines around the hems of the fabric. When she sow Nell entering, she smiled warmly and began to speak in bell-like tones "Serale, miss. Are you, by chance, Nell du'Galle?"

[Nell L'Evienne]

Voices echoing down the corridor were the first sign of Nell’s approach. One female and bright in tone, laughter threading through her words, and the other male, older with a gruff undertone.

“You’re not going to sit in with us! I absolutely insist on this!” so spoke the woman’s voice with mock outrage.

“I am and you know I am, ‘tis my duty, m’lady,” came the reply. Insistent, firm, but pleasantly intended.

“No, I can’t allow it. You’ll be laughing the whole time at each mistake I make and I won’t be able to concentrate. You can wait outside and look stern instead!” was the retort, underlined with a giggle.

“And what would your husband say to that, m’lady? Eh?” the man countered.

“Oh for goodness sake, it’s just a politics class. And don’t try and pull rank on me, MacIntosh,” came the grumbling reply, as Nell came to the door and looked up at the room number. “Ah here we are!”

She stepped into the room, an open smile of eager expectation on her pretty face, as Nell saw the elven woman sat behind the desk. Such a beautiful race, Nell always thought, although she found the flaws of her own kind infinitely more interesting and attractive. “Serale,” she replied with a grin, coming forward to greet her assigned professor. “Yes, I’m Nell du’Galle. And you’re Professor Idnael, I presume. Honoured to make your acquaintance.” Nell’s voice contrasted with the Professor’s, for while the elf’s tone tinkled like bells, Nell’s was lower and warm in nature. The young woman had reverted to a light grey suit for the occasion of studying politics, a favoured outfit during her time in office as Governor it being of simple lines, the skirts long and the jacket neat and fitted. It wouldn’t be long before such outfits would have to take a back seat in her wardrobe due to her pregnancy, but for now they still fitted with no obvious signs of the impending birth visible. A cream blouse with frills at the wrists and neck added some femininity to the ensemble and Nell’s long dark locks were neatly restrained into a loose chignon at the back of her head. Nell carried with her a number of books, having borne in mind what Professor Milly had indicated the course would be about, along with a leather bound notebook with clean pages, the bundle held together with a leather strap.

As she entered, an older man appeared behind her in the doorway of roughly early forty patterns in age. He looked respectable, dressed neatly in a dark frock coat and matching trousers, a longsword hanging from his side and his hair clasped back in a ponytail. Indeed if he forsook his snowy goatee, he would look younger, despite the grey hairs that streaked his head, yet he had a tidy appearance. “Ah and this is Mister Blair,” Nell continued with reference to the man, “who will be with us for the duration, but I think he can wait outside, don’t you?” she said with a wink to the Professor. “I don’t think we need an audience.”

MacIntosh grunted in reply but could see that the small room posed no threat to his charge and so withdrew to stand in the corridor, softly closing the door behind him.

“Sorry,” Nell continued with a rueful smile to the elf. “He’s here on my husband’s orders. Security. But yes, very pleased to meet you! I can’t wait to get started!”

[Sonya]

The elf smiled toward Nell and acknowledged her comment about Mister Blair with a smile. After he closed the door behind him, she said "I guess we can start, Lady du’Galle. Would you sit down?" After Nell took her seat, the elf female took a book entitled "Nobility in the Aelyrian Empire" and put it on the table in front of the young woman.

"Since this is an advanced class, I wouldn't be reading for you the texts and telling you what is written, but I will expect from you to read them yourself, while I point a few important subjects of them and answer any questions you may have." the woman smiled "As you been probably told by Miss Milly, we will deal in the historic concept and evolution of the feudalism order in the Empire and then we will move on to Senate."

[Nell L'Evienne]

Looking at the book placed before her, Nell grinned and put the books she'd brought with her on the table too. "Oooh I brought that with me," she replied with a grin. "I've quickly read it through in the last cycle, but would you like me to read it again now, or ...?" She looked brightly at her professor, not certain as to how the class was going to proceed in this particular moment.

[Sonya]

"If you've read it then why wouldn't you summarize it for me? You can do it in writing if you feel more comfortable with that. I know that it is a long article..." Not that it was so long as it was filed with a complex of historic and politics fact mixed all together...

If Nell, wished to write down the summery, Professor Idnael handed her a piece of paper and a Quill.

[Nell L'Evienne]

Nell blinked and her smile faltered for a moment. Summarise the whole book? She glanced down at it and then back up at the elf. ”Um, okay,” she replied. ”I think I’ll just speak if that’s okay, rather than write it down?” The choice had been given to her after all, although she felt like she was being asked to undertake an exam at the start of a course rather than the end.

“Well let’s see. The nobility in Aelyria has its roots in the way that the lands were ruled before the establishment of the Empire. Society was organised on the principle of the right of inheritance for those who were deemed to have superiority over others – a quality of greatness as given to them by the gods. This manifested itself in a system where those who were superior or “noble” would create a network of allegiances to themselves in the exchange for granting ownership of land to those who were their vassals. And those vassals would be entitled to work the land for profit and so in turn increase their own greatness. This system of organizing society became known as feudalism and it grew in a way so that those who were land-owning nobles became rich and those who were vassals were provided with safety from dangers such as becoming slaves. There were many nobles of this type and there would be a single family whom all would swear fealty to so as to keep the nobles from warring amongst each other for power. Or that was the theory anyway. This top family would be the royal family and the king would bring the nobles together whenever an enemy threatened their land. So you had all these little kingdoms dotted over what is now the Empire. The problem though was … well, the natural bent of people to always want more than they have, to want more power, to extend beyond their boundaries. I suppose ambition will always be our greatest fault as well as our greatest quality. So there was lots of fighting and rivalry and little stability. Enter King Constantine.”

Nell paused for a moment. ”I say, is it possible to have a drink of water?”

“Constantine, King of the Aelyrians wanted to create a nation-state, rather than have all these little feudal kingdoms. He rather cleverly decided to exploit the ambitions of the feudal lords, knowing that he needed them at first to control the majority of the population who were unskilled and uneducated. But he didn’t like the feudal system because it was based on the principle of hereditary greatness and so didn’t allow those who weren’t noble to prosper. He believed in a system of Meritocracy instead, where the merits of a person was rewarded, rather than someone making gains because they were related to a noble family. He had the vision to see that both nobles and commoners could, if given the chance, achieve greatness. Therefore he established what came to be known as the Feudocratic Compact”

“Constantine was able to do this because of the wealth and power that was monopolized by the Aelyrians and centred in the newly built city of what would become Aelyria Prime. He refused the initial offers of fealty from established nobles and instead worked on the building of the city with trade guilds and adventuring societies, rewarding the excellence of those who aided him in his purpose. This rewarding of merit let those who were commoners see that they were able to progress socially if they worked damn hard! It was important for Constantine to do this to gain the loyalty of the common person, their trust even. And it showed the feudal lords that they would also have to earn the right to have their oaths of allegiance accepted by Constantine through their actions rather than depend on who their granddaddy was. The Feudocratic Compact was one where Constantine granted Royal Charters to families who swore fealty directly to himself. These families could then establish a fiefdom, a territory that was part of the Aelyrian Kingdom. Nobles who lacked charters then had to swear fealty to these families with Royal Charters. And those who didn’t were thought of as outsiders, or foreigners. Now the nobility went for this, because they could only get a slice of the wealth and power of the Aelyrian Kingdom, or rather what was becoming know as the Aelyrian Empire, through this Feudocratic Compact, and so have the right to work the land and make expeditions in the name of the kingdom. And it was similar to the previous system as you could still inherit a noble title through birthright, however, Constantine retained the right to choose which houses received status and to also take away their royal charters. So if they didn’t merit the right to hold their Royal Charter, it could be taken away from them.”

“Now then, the Feudocratic order was the way the noble houses were ranked from those who had Royal Charters to those who swore fealty to these families who were closest to the King. Obviously at the top of the Order you had the King, or rather Emperor as he was now known. His family was the royal family, with right of succession to rule the Empire. Then there was the Duchy, with the Charters to establish fiefdoms from swearing fealty directly to the Emperor. They had a lot of power and could take part in the governing of the emerging nation and their fiefdom was named after their house. Then the Marquisate who were privileged within the fiefdom and could lobby for succession if the Duchy ceased to exist. Then Baronies, who were still pretty powerful and usually had large networks of vassals. Then Counties who tended to be fairly new noble houses bringing wealth rather than impress through merit. Then Earldoms which were recognised for military merit and often commanded many soldiers. Then Lordships who would go out to establish territories and command knights in this regard and generally try and impress those higher up with acts of merit. And finally the Knighthood, which could possess land and accept commoners as their tenants on that land.”

Nell had been counting off each rank on her fingers as she spoke and having come to an end, grinned. “Of course, lots of lesser nobles and not so many higher nobles. So lots of Lords and Knights and perhaps only a few Marquisates within a single fiefdom depending on its size. Inheritance of the title of nobility went to the first born of the house, and the noble family continued while there was a blood relative with a claim to the title. If there was no blood relative though, then the noble house directly below in terms of the feudocratic order could petition for the right of succession. This caused problems though if there were a number of houses competing for the right, sometimes degenerating into open warfare between houses in an attempt to display their power.”

“As for the commoners, well before the Feudocratic Compact, they had little rights and were literally part of the land ruled by the noble houses. With the changes though, Constantine liberated the common person, giving them citizenship, freeing them in effect from being attached to a piece of land under someone’s rule. So they could move about, trade, be fairly paid for their work, but also be protected by whoever was in charge of where they lived. Those who were commoners, though, who didn’t accept the rule of a noble, or who were foreigners were considered barbarians and could be enslaved. The term barbarian was also applied to those noble houses who refused to swear allegiance to the Emperor. These houses were eventually forced to swear allegiance or were expelled from the Empire by force.”

Nell paused again. “Am I being too detailed?” she asked, suddenly wondering if her tutor had wanted the fifty words or under summary of the Nobility in Aelyria. There was still a lot to say, after all, and the professor might want to comment on what she'd already summarised.

[Sonya]

Professor Idnael smiled "Not a bad summery so far, Lady du’Galle and I happy that you made it so detailed. Here is a glass of water." The woman walked to the corner of the room and returned with a clean glass which she filled from a container who stood on her desk.

After giving it to Nell, she sat down and said "There is just one thing I would like to add so far. As you haven't learned history, according to my notes, you probably haven't read the Historia. In such an advanced course, we have a mix of other areas of study in one class. This subject of Nobility and feudalism in the Aelyrian Kingdom is very much linked to history.

Now, Lord Ortorius was a very educated man and know both politic and history, but he failed to mention in his work one particular fact, which have been come to my knowledge during my work with Professor Slevandar, the history teacher in the Institute of Higher Learning. In the VII book of History, there are interesting comments about the feudal structure in the Aelyrian Kingdom.

Here is the quote from the book:

The elf female put a paper down on Nell's table and let her read it.

A unique observation can be drawn from the growth of feudalism in the Aelyrian Kingdom as opposed to the feudalism in other kingdoms. Whereas other kingdoms had many different regions, townships and hamlets which came together under a single monarch - and hence, each township's local lord would hold original power from which the monarch's power was derived - the Aelyrian model differed in that the King had always appointed the nobles, which had been trained in the military institution that he had originally created. Later, the nobles - under the king's direct orders - would compete and construct towns and hamlets.

In all truth, Aelyria was feudal by structure only - all power was still derived from the King, and it was not uncommon for King Constantine to dismiss noble families and dissolve fiefdoms for any number of reasons. This set a dangerous precedent for Aelyrian government which contributed to its absolutist nature - the King had no check upon his power, and the entire Kingdom and all its people were subject to the decisions and desires of a single being.

[Nell L'Evienne]

Nell read the snippet from the histories referring to the feudal structure of other kingdoms and then the feudal structure in the Aelyrian Empire. She quirked her brow, thinking over what she’d said and how it related to this.

“I see, so this is what distinguished the feudal system before Constantine and the feudocratic compact that he went on to establish. The nobles with fiefdoms within the Aelyrian Kingdom derived their power from being connected to him and knew that if they opposed him he could take their fiefdom away, rather than Constantine deriving his power from the nobility banding under him. One must assume then, that as well as holding a Kingdom which was prosperous and rich and therefore attractive enough for the nobility to want association with it for trade purposes, a certain amount of military might must have been within Constantine’s grasp. A powerful enough force to promise protection to those who came within his Kingdom from outside threats, as well as a strong threat to deter those who might think of rebellion against Constantine’s right to dissolve their fiefdom.”

“But there then remains the question of how he became King in the first place? Other Kingdoms were established by a superior noble rising up and uniting the others so as to become King. And Constantine, if memory serves from reading Talia Songbrooke’s Epic of the Aelyrian Empire, became King through the Rite of the Aethercrown, so he was recognised by Diana as the most fitting person to rule the Aelyrians. Therfore what we have here is recognition by the Gods rather than recognition by his peers to become the King of the Aelyrians.” Nell paused and grinned at her professor. “I guess you don’t get a higher recommendation than that for being the rightful King of a kingdom. In a way because the Gods judged Constantine through merit to rule, it made sense for him to then implement a system of granting fiefdoms in a similar fashion, rather than respecting the established noble families claims on land by hereditary means.”

She paused once more and shrugged. “I suppose also, if you were a King elsewhere, knowing that the Gods had set a crown on someone’s head, well it would make you think twice about opposing him. No one wants to lose the favour of the Gods after all. And this all links to the present system of ascertaining who is the ruler of the Empire. The Gods after all, according to the Articles of Imperium, retain sovereignty over the Empire and the Emperor is the one chosen by them to rule over the people as sovereign monarch.”

"Would you tell me more about what Constantine actually did to win the favour and approval of Diana, so as to become King of the Aelyrians?"

[Sonya]

Professor Idnael nodded her head in agreement with Nell's words "I am not an expert on history, but I can tell you about the way King Constantine became king, but not much about his conversation with Diana...

There were three candidates for the Crown: the first one was Dressus, the Overseer of Colonia, who wanted to guide the Ancient Aelyrians to refine their sciences and magic, believing the mind, lifestyle and internal affairs to be the deciding factor for the future. The second candidate was Inelia, who claimed that restoring democratic government would be the first step to undoing the 'Plague of Mortality'. She was extremely unpopular and, more important, a revisionist who attacked Diana's memory. The third candidate was, of course, Constantine, who was an accomplished negotiator, advocated unificationism and stated that the Aelyrians were destined to civilize the barbarian savages of the world.

The three Arbiters who were supposed to choice Diana's successor were split between the three candidate and, so Constantine decide to do something about it.

Constantine and his supporters stood before the Arbiters and proclaimed them dissolved and contrary to the decided will of Diana. He proclaimed himself King of the Aelyrians and declared the entire Kingdom of Aelyria in a state of martial law. Only a few ares later, he performed the Rite of Ascension and got Diana's blessing."

The Professor smiled "If you don't any more questions, you may continue the summarize you started before."

[Nell L'Evienne]

Nell was very quiet as Professor Idnael explained how Constantine had come to be King. She almost appeared to be shocked, for there was no immediate response from the young woman. Eventually though she found her voice. “So … so he became King by seizing power with the backing of the military,” Nell finally managed to get out. “By disregarding the system and just … taking power.” Why was she so surprised? She frowned and rubbed her forehead. “And then Diana showed her approval of his actions by giving her blessing later on. I see. I’m sorry,” she continued with a small wry smile. “I hadn’t realised it had been a military coup.”

She felt nervous though, trying to understand the way the Gods chose their lieutenant, their monarch. It appeared from this telling of how Constantine had become King that they favoured one who took action, and then proved themselves to be worthy – to have merit. “Before I continue with the summary, Professor, may we talk some more about matters of … succession? In the Articles of Imperium it is written that when an Emperor dies, the Regent then organizes a Rite of Succession, that any person may declare themselves a candidate and should assemble on the Isle of the Crown where the rite of succession takes place. That the Gods ordain a successor … If Empress Arabella does not recover, if a new Emperor is to be chosen, how would that happen now? How does a rite of succession actually happen? I mean, the Insula Coronae is inaccessible and the Aethergem is shattered. I don’t see how the Rite of Succession, as written in the Articles can take place, so how would the Empire know how to … how to gain a new Emperor? The aethercrown spoke and proclaimed that my husband was to be the intendant, so would we have to wait and rely on the Crown to speak once more, or would something more definite have to be done?”

[Sonya]

The teacher frowned a little and started to look between the paper she had on her desk. After some time, she put in front of Nell two articles:

ARTICLE 21
State of Regency

Upon the Emperor’s death, as certified by a physician previously designated as Imperial Physician, or disappearance of the Emperor to exceed seven years, an Imperial Regent previously appointed by the Emperor shall assume the throne and declare a State of Regency, enjoying all powers and privileges of said office, and organize a Rite of Succession.

ARTICLE 22
Rite of Succession

When the Throne of Eternity is vacant, or when a State of Regency is declared, any and all persons may declare themselves as Candidates of the Throne, and assemble on Insula Coronae no later than seven years following a declaration of a State of Regency, and perform a Rite of Succession, whereupon the Gods shall ordain a proper Successor to the Throne is named through the Rite of Succession, said successor shall be titled “His (or Her) Apparent Majesty” and titled Heir Apparent to the Throne of the Aelyrian Empire. A formal, official and public Coronation Ceremony shall be held, during which time the Heir Apparent shall be crowned, in a style and manner befitting tradition and posterity, and recognized as Emperor.

"Those is all the Articles of Imperium tell us about the Rite of Succession, I'm afraid. There is no mention there, as you can see, of the possibility of the Insula Coronae being unacceseble..." Professor Idnael frown again "Maybe it will be possible to relay on past experience and check the way other Emperor were chosen from our history books or ask the priests..." suddenly she smiled "I think that a research on this subject could be a great way for you to finish your advanced learning, Lady du’Galle." she stopped for a long moment and smiled again "You see, in an advanced course like this, we usually task the student, at the end of the course, to find one subject connected with politics and research it as a test of his or hers ability to understand and put into practice what he had learned. Altou this subject would require you to search historical and religious documents, and not only politics ones, I think it would be an interesting one to you."

Professor Idnael chocked her head to one side "As you see, I can't answer your question, but maybe, in time and research, you might be able to help others and yourself to find it. What do you say?" the woman stopped for a long moment, letting Nell think about what she said before continuing "You need not answer me now, Lady du’Galle as there is still time till we will finish our studies, but think about it. You may find, during our studies, a subject that has more interest to you or you can pick this one."

"Now,"She clapped her hands "We will continue with the remaining of the summery next brightening. I am sure you have a lot to think about."

[Nell L'Evienne]

Nell’s memory of the Articles was refreshed by reading them once more as the professor found them in the tome. She gave a small smile as no answer or opinion was forthcoming, but instead a suggestion that Nell herself might try and find the answer by doing some research on the matter. It would be interesting, Nell thought, to attempt such a task, if only to learn about what had preceded regarding how the different rulers had come to power. In the back of her mind, though, was the thought that no matter what happened now with regards to what a government might try to do to establish a new Monarch, the Gods would most likely supersede any attempts by mortals, given the fact that the Aethercrown had spoken to make the wishes of the Gods clear already. It was all hypothetical anyhow, and Empress de Lylles might still recover, but from an academic view point perhaps it was worth trying.

That evening, she spent a long time thinking over what had been discussed, piqued by the notion that she would be expected to do some research on a political theme as part of the course and considering the areas that most interested her. On the following brightening Nell returned, accompanied once more by MacIntosh Blair who was again asked to wait outside during the session with Professor Idnael. After greetings were exchanged, Nell settled into her chair and continued her summary of the history of nobility, focusing at first on the rise and fall of the feudocracy in the second Empire.

“With the establishment of the Feudocratic Compact, the Empire was governed chiefly by those who held fiefdoms, Duchies who were accountable to the Emperor. The system of only the Emperor having the right to grant and revoke charters of nobility encouraged those who held power to adhere to the principles of established Aelyrian Law. Problems arose with the expansion of the Empire though, for there were too many fiefdoms to oversee by the Emperor, so reforms were brought in with the appointment of Viceroys who would supervise the fiefdoms in his name. These Viceroys became the Imperial Consuls – although the basic administration and governing continued to be in the hands of the nobility who controlled the fiefdoms and these nobles would often have their own courts and laws. The different cultures of the nobility were also retained and was reflected in culturally-specific noble ranks, for instance in the Sultanate of Arakmat, the Sultan was the equivalent of a Duke and when the Church of Aelyria grew, it too gained political power with the Archprelate ruling much as a Duchy would over its granted lands.”

“The Feudocracy eventually fell, though, because of the expansion of the Empire with large populations and resources becoming stretched. Despite Imperial Law forbidding nobles to raise their own armies, Knights trained men in secret. Nobles began to form strategic alliances and competition grew between rival factions vying for power. Open warfare began between noble houses and when the Emperor moved against Archprelate Maximilian and his fiefdome, the Prelacy of Chesley, the Empire was pitched into chaos due to the size of the conflict and fell.”

Nell paused, thinking over the events of the past as had been presented in the parchment pages on Nobility. “You know, Professor,” she said as an aside to her summary, “I remember being confused by one of the laws of the Annarian code when I first read it, the one entitled ‘Mankind’s Cruelty must be Vanquished”, but I suppose that the ambitions of the nobility in the second empire were a searing demonstration of the assertion that life is inherently selfish and self-serving. Ambition is a double-edged sword – it can lead to wonderful advances but also result in devastating destruction. I often think that the land will never be truly at peace and in a state of harmony until it is governed in all its corners by those who hold no personal ambition, but instead selflessly serve for the good of all. Finding those who are like that, though, and who also have the political acumen to make the right decisions – it must be a near impossible task.”

She spoke sadly as she thought of the ways that ambition had led to the downfall of the feudocracy. The lust for power, wealth and glory that seemed to infect certain people was an evil that would never be stamped out. It was the nature of mortals, an expansion of the survival instinct. Perhaps the Empire was just too small to contain all the egos of those residing within.

[Sonya]

Professor Idna smiled and nodded her head "You are right, Lady du’Galle. Ambition can lead to great things but it can also be very distractive, if a person puts his personal ambitions before those of the people he serves. There aren't many people who care for other as much as or more then they care for themselves." she stopped for a long moment before adding thoughtfully "You know, I am not sure that a person needs to be well versed in the political world to became a good Thane. Sometime it is better to look out for people who may not have political experience, but are good in heart and have a good head on their shoulders. They may make mistakes in the beginning, but good intentions is also important. If they are smart, they will learn from their mistakes."

The elf female smiled a little "From the other side, power tend to corrupt people. The longer a man is in the political world, he tends to forget his beginnings and the people he serves. Mens are selfish deep inside, there is no getting away from that and nobles had a long time to became, as they see it, better then others."

The teacher frowned a little "Your husband, for example. He has done good things in his past, but as far as I have heard, never wanted the position he now holds and has no noble breding. Maybe is it a good thing to have someone in charge that isn't interested in the benefits of the job, but in the welfare of the citizens. I do hope that the power wouldn't corrupt him."

[Nell L'Evienne]

“I’ll try to make sure that that power doesn’t corrupt him,” Nell replied with a small smile, thinking of Milo and how her professor had described him. “What you have heard of my husband is true. He had never actively sought any of the positions that he has gained. All were offered without his seeking them, but he has a strong sense of duty and obligation to the Empire, or rather to the citizens of the Empire. Therein lies his motivation to do the best job possible.”

She paused, considering what else Professor Idnael had said and could only agree with the elf’s comments. “You’re right, of course. A good heart and a sensible approach are perhaps the best qualities one can have when ruling a city, as long as there are advisors on hand who are able to see their way through any political quagmire that needs to be negotiated to fulfill a Thane’s plans. And then with time and experience they learn to be more discerning about how to approach a problem themselves without relying on aid from advisors. But, I must be honest, if faced with two candidates and one has a good track record of experience already, I’d be more likely to pick that candidate over one who has none. Having ideals is sometimes not enough, even with the best possible advice on hand to guide you.”

Smiling at the professor once more, Nell turned her mind back to her summary, finding the place in her thoughts as to where she’d left off. Ah yes … “What has been termed the Third Empire followed, and with this new Empire came the rule of Empress Alyssa Chrysinaria and the rise of the House of Lylles. This House became the ruling dynasty of the Empire, the Lylles already having held power in the past with rulers of kingdoms and subsequent dedication to securing the Empire and maintaining the established culture. They used their wealth to consolidate their power through merchant guilds and businesses in the province of Lauryl and also raised large armies. The House of Lylles was separated into two halves though, with the Lylles in the west being interested in culture and the Lylles in the east being more politically ambitious, seeking power and wealth.”

“Empress Chrysinaria introduced the Alyssan Civitate, a series of reforms which forbad nobles from claiming political control of their lands, and also from raising armies. Resistance to these changes was crushed by the Imperial Legions, Empress Chrysinaria’s new national military. New nobles swearing fealty to her were still accepted but their titles were mostly ceremonial. Really it is from this point that the Empire we have today was established. The provinces were established, with governors appointed by the Empress, and these replaced the fiefdoms ruled previously by the duchies. All the lands of the Empire became the possession of the Sovereign, all the provinces were under the control of the Empress and the Articles of Imperium were changed to strike out any mention of noble rights.”

“This naturally cause a great deal of disgruntlement amongst the nobility, but what was the Empire’s eventual salvation was the intervention of the Xet Alliance, who attempted to set up a puppet regime in the Empire by conspiring with a false claimant to the throne, following the end of Empress Chrysinaria’s reign. Civil war followed and although it was finally the combination of Imperial Army and commoners who repulsed the Xet Alliance, the nobility also contributed to this victory. Archduke Threllius de Lylles convened a Royal Assembly of all the dukes of the past, who together raised an army of half a million soldiers and knights and assisted with the restoration of Emperor Valerian Constantius to the throne. Hopes were raised that the Feudocracy would be restored, and the nobles made their oaths of allegiance to Constantius, with the Emperor appointing nobles to positions of governors in the provinces. There was hope that the Articles of Imperium would be amended so that only nobles would serve as governors, but with the disappearance of Constantius, the Third Empire fell into chaos before this could happen.”

Constantius established the system of Preferment and Attainder during his reign as the way to reward and control the nobility, without having to return to the Feudocracy. Although he did not enshrine the right of nobles to only become governors, he did reward those he favoured with land and titles, grants, trade monopolies, gifts and political offices. These were called Preferments and often nobles would quickly rise through the ranks of the Imperial Government, so that it consisted mainly of those of Noble blood, vying for positions that would increase the influence of their Houses. And it also became common practice that a political office would be inherited by the children of the official – which, I suppose, is how I gained by title of Governor in the Sherian, having inherited from my father.” Nell smiled quietly at this, but swiftly moved on. “Preferments were given to those whom the Emperor favoured or to candidates sponsored by a ranking noble. Attainder was the removal of Preferment for when a noble fell out of favour. It also applied to when a noble family was obliterated. Then their title would pass to someone lower, such as a Lord being raised to an Earl.”

“This system of Preferment and Attainder still exists to this brightening. During the Age of Regents following the disappearance of Constantius and during the Imperial crisis under the Rakrya, there was much uncertainty about who would succeed, and many nobles reestablished small courts, taking oaths of fealty to themselves and giving land and titles to those who followed them. It has been suggested that the only reason that the Empire remained stable during the Imperial Crisis and the blight of the Feeble Pox is due to the actions of the nobles. When Audrey de Lylles became Empress she recognised and approved these new feudal lords who had established themselves during that time, making their titles legitimate.”

Nell stopped speaking, having finished her summary. There had been a small mention, she remembered, of the Old Guard being offended by Arabella’s appointment of commoners to high position, something that had worried her somewhat, especially as her husband was such a commoner and now Intendant, but she held her peace on this.

[Sonya]

The teacher nodded her head at Nell's comment "I can understand why people would prefer to give a political position to a candidate with experience over one who have nothing but ideals and ideas. It is the most reasonable thing to do, actually. If one had succeeded in filing similar positions, it is logical to assume that he will fill the open position well." the elf moved her head to one side, her blond her moving slightly "It isn't easy to find the right candidate for a job. Sometimes a better candidate will be rejected because the employer have past relations with the other candidate or because their family or friends helped him gain his current position. It happens a lot, you know... Especially in city-level positions."

The female's icy blue eyes shone a little as she continued "But we move away from the subject, aren't we? Tell me, Nell, what do you think about the article? About the Nobles? Do you think we could divide the Nobles in groups according to the past history that you just read?"