On Our Kingdom

Belatedly, on this day we mourn the passing of His Majesty King Aleric Nostrov.

Three years ago, in quite possibly his last-ever address to the Kingdom and the world, His Majesty would decry the separation, isolation, and splitting apart into rival factions. We should not wall off ourselves from one another, but instead unite under a "banner of hope."

We mourn the loss of a King, not a Kingdom, for the true power of Kormyre lie not in its throne, but its people.

You.

Us.

We will overcome.

Together.

We will achieve Strength Through Unity.

Mumble or roar, the message is all the same. We are one people under a banner of hope, and we will prevail.


~Nalick Underhill

Another lost to the demon wars, a shame his passing is mourned so late.

But was that your kings message or another facade?

It's true, people as a whole are far more important than a title. I believe Travance has proven that.

Why does Travance need a king?

This is a serious question, I am not attempting unrest. I do not understand the purpose of nobility like that.

-Keola

I thought we were supposed to keep this quiet.

Keola,

Travance, as all other Baronies within our structure of government, require someone with vision and direction, holding forth a lantern to lead us, as one united Kingdom, forward unto the dark night. Ours and every other barony needs a king to ensure all of our baronies and territories stand virtuous.

Seth,

I'm merely following His Grace's lead.

~Nalick

Seth,

His Grace ha' already let the proverbial feline oot th' cloth vessel.

I am very confused. I need help understanding this, but I think it would be better to talk to someone in person about it to ask my questions because I have a lot of them. Will anyone please talk with me?

-Midori Suarez
Daughter of Mercy

Seth,

More than a dozen common men and women filled the Dragon Claw's benches to hear of the tragedy. The world knows and there is no secret to be kept quiet.


Midori, I will speak with you after my trek.


~Nalick

Nalick wrote: Keola,

Travance, as all other Baronies within our structure of government, require someone with vision and direction, holding forth a lantern to lead us, as one united Kingdom, forward unto the dark night. Ours and every other barony needs a king to ensure all of our baronies and territories stand virtuous.

Seth,

I'm merely following His Grace's lead.

~Nalick

So... the Seneschal?

I have never even met this king. Though I guess I never had the chance because he died young.

It sounds like the people who run the baronies need to be holding lanterns. At least they are near the people they are guiding. A council of Seneschals pressing forward into the darkness with lanterns to shine brighter than one.

Who trusts a single person to make all the decisions? Is that how we usually do things here? I missed something.

-Keola

Make big fight pit, fighters fight, winner be warchief

Our friend Jurgur'mosh is the first, at last, to suggest a process by which a king or queen is determined. Although coarse, at least it's something to go on.
I suggest that our scholars start researching the laws of Kormyre to see if there are any succession laws or precedents - either civil or common law - by which a new ruler for the Kingdom is determined. It would be most helpful to determine who has the authority to establish the rightful king. While the strength of Kormyre lies in the people, the flourishing of people depends upon the law. We are a land of law and justice and for the sake of the Kingdom the new king must be determined quickly and lawfully.

Father Ephrem
Flagellant of the Holy Light
Pastor of the Mission Church in Alomiolande

The issue of who has authority is clear actually. The highest ranking Noble in our Kingdom, would then oversee the succession given that no heirs are available to sit the throne. He has announced his intention to do so, and as the Count is highest ranking, as well as leader of the military in the title of Earl of the Marches, he has already settled that particular matter.

So the Count has been completely within the law as acting authority; at the very worst he has simply delayed the process (for good reason it seems). The task for him will be to determine the process and the heir. It still would benefit the Kingdom (and the Count himself) if we could research the law and establish whether or not there is precedent for the determination of a new king for a vacant throne - either by written law or by custom.

I was not present when the Count made his announcement; I've only heard second hand from some of the commoners who were there in the Inn. From what I gather, it seems that the task for us in Travance will be to maintain law and order, and also guard the kingdom during this time when enemies - from without and within - would assume us to be weak.

Pardon me Father Ephrem,

The suggestion I made was quite serious. No King is required. We need rulers who actually interact with their people to know them.

-Keola

The following is written in an elegant, neat hand that does not match the rough parchment conveying it.

Keola, your point is understood, yet it is not one we can work with. The laws of Kormyre are ancient; so ancient that they have affected the surrounding lands, and perhaps are not even native to the ancient empire of the last age. We may never know for certain. But that antiquity is the very thing that creates our difficulty today. For as hard as it is to change, it is harder still when it is the only thing that an entire nation has known for thousands of years.

We already have a disruption in that our king was the last of a long-standing dynasty. To completely reject the very idea of a kingship would only create more problems. And with what would we replace it? A council? Who would be chosen for this? Who would lead it? Why would that situation not be different from the King and his advisers and nobles?

Yet even that pales next to the threat of civil war this news will bring. Even now, the kingdom is reeling in shock as the word rapidly spreads. The news has likely already reached the western baronies and is spreading to every hamlet in the realm. We must have stability. I am not aware of any situation where there was not even a cousin to take the throne since the beginning of this age thirteen hundred years ago; I may be wrong, as the topic bored me in school, but I do recall my instructor mentioning that the royal line of Kormyre dates back to the last age.

Continuity is key. I do not even pretend to understand all the precedents in Kormyrian law, but I do know that the typical succession laws of nobles are based on the Kormyrian model. Inheritance of office must go to the oldest relative in the most direct line. This is why a queen, for example, does not become monarch after the king dies, or vice versa, for the royal consort's lineage does not pass through the previous monarch.

Here, we have no such clear path. We have not even a half-overgrown path. We must blaze new ground in this present crisis, which means we must prevent wholesale destruction of any obstacle in our way. We must carefully consider the least disruptive way through this tangled forest, lest we irreparably damage the very thing we seek to save.

~ Grigori

This is Sassenach lands, an' while we Highlanders govern by a council o' Chieftains, this is na possible fra you. Let me know who needs a kickin', an' whose hearth needs guardin'.

I thought I heard Jack Thorne was next in line. after all we could rearrange the letters of his last name and call him His Grace Jack Throne.

In all seriousness though we need to find a leader of character and strength of conviction. And we need someone who will be present. Too often our leaders disappear but still hold onto their positions rather than passing their responsibilities on to another who would invest in the people. At the end of the day Jack would be a good choice. As would a few others. I suggest we take this time and truly look at what Travance needs.

I very much dislike putting any type of comment regarding this topic in writing however I do wish to note the following:

This is going to be the ruler of Kormyre.

Not of Travance.

Travance will follow this ruler as law demands however the "Best for Travance" does not equate to the "Best for Kormyre." Also, to expect this King or Queen to constantly know every single person is quite impossible. To have them at least be an ally to us is all I would personally expect.

As for the coming storm, Travance is ready for this. The politics... maybe not so much. I would appreciate incoming updates on who would be coming here and when so that the Guard is prepared.

-Gratitude.

Lieutenant Allyce of the Baronial Guard

I was enjoying my holiday, I apologize for the delay in my response.

To comment on Grigori’s idea of the kingdom, if we’re going to use natural terms:

Things so ancient and unwilling to change sometimes need to be burned and cleared away. Like a wildfire to a pine forest. The tangled underbrush you refer to is dying plants that need to be cleared out or the decay will continue building up until it snuffs out the chance for new life.

The passing of the young king with his lost family is exactly the time to attempt a change. It is the spark to help the kingdom begin to grow.

Much of my memory may be gone, but I am old like this kingdom is and I understand what it is to adapt and grow so I think we should give the people the chance to do the same. It will not happen overnight, humans take far too much of their short life span to learn things sometimes. But, give them a chance to learn and try.

-
Hm, rereading this I realized it may come across as ‘burn the kingdom down’ to anyone quick to jump on that kind of thinking. What I mean is try and establish a better form of rulership/government.

I can think of many kingdoms that can quickly be made unhappy because of their kings and queens.

-Keola