Government related titles

There are a couple of titles that are associated with legislative and executive powers within Republic of Galicia . As the name suggests, Galicia is democratic, although only a handful of non-nobility managed to break trough into politics.

Either way, these titles are not hereditary and represent a certain functions within Galician government system.

Archduke / Archduchess

Archduke is the most powerful title, in the sense it is at the top of hierarchy. However, unlike in monarchies and similar structures, Archduke's powers are severely restricted as we shall see.

Appointment

Archduke is elected from Dukes (by Dukes and a couple of powers of Capitol such as Guild representatives, Noble houses and Notable individuals) for a single Term of office. Only Dukes who served at least 1 year in their office are eligible.

Duke in question then loses their authority over their Duchy and a corresponding Marquess is promoted to Duke. There is somewhat complicated procedure what to do when said Marquess is not eligible for becoming Duke but those are beyond the scope of this article.

Term of office for archdukes is 2 years, but a single person can be re-elected for Archduke once, thus one can remain being an Archduke for at most 4 years. However, this person can become Archduke again in future.

Removal/Dismissal

Once Archduke's term has ended (for any reason), they lose their title. In practice, usually their original Duchy appoints them as Marquess and after a year swaps them with the Duke, effectively making them eligible again for becoming Archduke.

Archduke can be dismissed for following reasons:

• They willingly resigned
• Senate called for Vote of no confidence (and succeeded)
• They used their Veto power
• They have been declared Traitor to the republic (which did not happen once so far)

If the Archduke is dismissed earlier then the end of their respective term, the elections are held immediately (or as soon as possible). This period counts as a full Term of Office, but usually the Senate (and powers of Capitol) reelect this emergency Archduke to serve another 2 years.

Powers & responsibilities

Archduke is technically just a Duke of Capitol and thus has most privileges of Duke (and all of the responsibilities). Notable exception is that they do not have right to pass new laws for review in the Senate. They also have no vote in the Senate for passing the laws.

That being said Archduke is responsible for making sure that Galicia as a whole prospers and ensures balance between different duchies. To this end, they have a couple of powers on top of their powers as Duke of Capitol:

• They can (and should) solve local disputes between Dukes and Counts (with authority of law). Any global matters calls for Senate assembly
• They appoint High judges in each Duchy and Capitol
• They have a single use of Veto power to overrule one attempt at passing a law. This law cannot be passed this Term of Office, and Archduke is dismissed.
• They can appoint Counts.
• They can call Senate assembly, without major prior notice and without approval of majority of Senate.

Duke / Duchess

Dukes constitute majority of Galician power. They have almost all legislative power in addition to almost unhindered autonomy over their duchy (as long as their regulations do not contradict the law). Galicia is divided into 5 + 1 duchies, each under supervision of one duke:

• Duchy of Capitol (under supervision of Archduke)
• Duchy of Varcceli
• Duchy of Koriicia
• Duchy of Bistont (under supervision of The Dead Duke of Bistont)
• Duchy of Clairaacia
• Duchy of Rivaly

Appointment

Each duchy is required to have appointed Marquess and Council. Should the previous Duke be dismissed (for any reason), either the Marquess or member of the Council (with a couple of exceptions) is promoted to Duke.

The Council consists of Minor Arcane advisor (usually appointed by Elvaria ). at least 2 representatives from general public (which usually end up being either mayors, nobles or guild masters) and at most 2 people appointed by previous Duke.

The exact procedure of election differs from duchy to duchy, but usually Marquess has no vote, and the Duke is elected by majority vote of the Council. Once the Duke is elected, they can remain in their office until dismissed - there is no Length of Term.

Removal/Dismissal

While Dukes could theoretically remain in power indefinitely, there are a lot of ways they can be removed:

• Voted down by The Council
• Voted down by The Senate
• Declared Traitor to the Republic
• Willingly resigning
• The Duchy is declared Under improper supervision by all Counts and Barons in the area, though this will be further investigated
• Deemed guilty of Dereliction of duty (note that other titles are not usually dismissed this way, and that this does not involve the Senate, but rather High judges)
• Promoted to Archduke
• Demoted to Marquess (usually self-imposed)

On removal of the Duke, new one is elected and all Barons (within the Duchy) lose their title. Any regulations put forward by a given Duke are subject to change and are to be reviewed. If the Duke was demoted / resigned willingly and lawfully, they may also appoint different members of the Council.

Powers & responsibilities

Primary responsibility of a Duke is to ensure Duchy is stable and prosperous, ready to aid other Duchies in need and keep other Duchies in check.

They thusly are Member of the Senate. Senate assembles every 3 months, though attendance is not mandatory during regular assemblies. However, if the the assembly is called by majority of the Senate or by Archduke, failing to attend is a serious offense. Dukes also get a full vote in the assembly and can pass new laws for the rest of Galicia as well as vote on various matters and call for assembly.

Additionally, they can pass regulations (almost unhindered) on their territory as long as it does not contradict the laws of Galicia. It must be said however, most types of regulations require approval of the Council. Also, some regulations do not affect local Counties and Baronies.

They are also Commander in Chief (within their Duchy) and this includes forces in local Counties and Baronies, though Dukes tend to refrain from using them as this tends to make the rest of the Brass unhappy.

Finally, they can appoint new Barons and gift them some of their land. This is meant to be done by similar reasons Archduke appoints Counts, but as there are no hard-limits on baronies and there is no real advantage in appointing new Barons, this is usually done for one of 3 reasons:

• Emergency - creating Baronies allows someone trusted to handle the situation locally and quickly, without severely impacting the rest of the Duchy
• Special needs - sometimes, the area is just weird... and rather than creating tongue-twisting regulations, new barony is more elegant solution (at the cost of losing some land and power)
• Decentralization - new Baronies allow for quicker response to changes

Marquess

Marquess was historically just Count of border areas. This was common as Archdukes usually wanted someone they could trust to keep the borders in check. However, as laws were changed and it became apparent that Galicia is unlikely to be invaded and if it was, these Counts were of little help, their role changed.

Today they act more like vice-dukes essentially being both support and back-up for Dukes.

Appointment

Although the land governed by Marquess does not fall under corresponding duchy, appointing new Marquess is considered an internal matter to the Duchy, and thus the process differs across Galicia.

There are still some limitation, such as Council of corresponding Duchy must make a majority vote for the Marquee and Marquee cannot be under investigation of a crime (though having criminal history is not strictly forbidden).

In practice, most duchies Duke selects a couple of candidates and a couple more are elected from general public. Council the has the final decision.

Removal/Dismissal

Similarly, each Duchy handles it differently. There are some laws that dictate some aspects, such as conditions under which Marquess must be dismissed, and when they cannot be dismissed. Despite that, these laws are not too limiting, leaving Duchies with good degree of freedom.

Powers & responsibilities

Their job is to aid their respective Duchy and maintain the borders - which either means patrols or trade. Though some regulations of Duchies do affect the March (land belonging to Marquess), they are more or less independent and free to deploy their own regulations. Interestingly, Dukes have very limited power in Marches.

First reason is to decentralize the power - allowing Marquess to be fairly independent to their Duke counterparts. Secondly, Marches usually have very different infrastructure and geography to Duchies and thus Marquess is considered more knowledgeable of the local needs.

They also have couple of privileges allowing them to step in in times of emergency, though this is heavily regulated.

Finally, they can attend Senate assemblies, but they have no vote. They can still suggest laws and give speeches, but they have no actual power. Consequently, many chose to ignore assemblies entirely, though from time to time, you can see a Marquess at assemblies.

After spending 1 year as a Marquess, they usually become eligible for becoming a Duke, and it is in fact, fairly likely if they kept the Council happy. Thus becoming Marquess is usually the first-step for ambitious politicians. Also Marquess are often used as right hand of Dukes, essentially taking their place when they are indisposed or promoted to Archdukes, though this relies on co-operation and trust between the two.

Count / Countess

Count as a title has mostly symbolic meaning, although it comes with fair bit of privileges. While less powerful then most titles in the hierarchy, Counts have a lot of flexibility. In addition, Counts are usually received fairly well by the general public and tend to be recognized as heroes and the Good Guys.

Appointment

Counts are appointed by current archduke. During a single Term of Office only one Count can be promoted (at most). Sitting an extended term also does not refresh Archduke's ability to appoint new Counts.

The title is awarded as a personal gift from Archduke, as a recognition for service to Galicia as a whole, and as a symbol of trust from Archduke. It is a great honour and is a fairly rare event, accompanied by celebrations and festivals. Becoming a Count is not easy, it requires quite heroic feat in some sense. This can involve anything ranging from military success, scientific discovery, or simply adverting an imminent crisis.

Usually, Counts do not tend to have other fancy political titles, and combined with the above prerequisites, Counts earned a very positive reputation.

Count receives some land, given by the Archduke (which traditionally comes from Archduke's former Duchy), and a small donation of goods and resources.

Currently, there are 3 counts:

• Raka'Rhan - The Count of Zolaacia
• Elrindar To'Zilien - The Count of Oriel
• Agatha Dellis - The Countess of Pier Mondeau

Removal/Dismissal

It is extremely difficult to get rid of Counts. Essentially it all boils down to one of 4 options:

• Count's death
• Count declared Traitor to the Republic
• Unanimous vote of The Senate and Archduke
• Majority vote of The Senate and Count renounced by the Archduke who awarded the title

And as it happens, the first option is the easiest - as Archduke that awarded the title is likely very fond of the Count, and likely will be present in the Senate in the next cycle.

Powers & responsibilities

Counts are supposed to represent the strength of the common people. And indeed they do, in a round-about way.

Counts have similar powers to Marquess, but there a couple of distinctions. Firstly, Counts are considered below Marquess, so should the conflict on third-party soil arise, Marquess will have the upper hand. Also, there Marquess are better equipped (politically) to deal with unruly Dukes than Counts.

In pretty much everything else, Counts are better off. They are Members of The Senate and thus get half a vote when passing laws. They still cannot put laws forward themselves, but can give speeches and initiated other forms of votes such as Vote of no confidence. There are a LOT of exception regarding which votes Counts can participate in, but those are more of a technicality than actual issue.

Baron / Baroness

Barons are the weakest political title, but make no mistake. Barons outrank anyone but their Duke on their land, so be careful around them.

Appointment

Barons are appointed by Dukes. Originally, the title was intended to fulfill similar role as Counts do, but one layer down. However, due to the lack prerequisites and celebration combined with the fact that number of Barons is not limited, appointing Baron is more pragmatic.

Baron receives some land from the Duchy and authority over this region (i.e. Barony).

Removal/Dismissal

Barons lose their title whenever the current Duke revokes their title or the Duke himself is dismissed.

This means Barons are relative short-lived title, which is one of the reasons Barons do not receive any other bonuses such as keeps and castles - they have to build them themselves, but also they get to keep it afterwards.

That being said, some Baronies are somewhat needed in the long-term as the people and the land has somewhat special needs, and in such cases Dukes tend to just default to re-appointing the same Baron again (effectively preventing their removal). It is indeed a matter of bragging rights between Barons to compare their term lengths.

Powers & responsibilities

They lack almost any special powers, but they can put forward their own regulation within their Barony. They thus end up being fairly independent, though some regulations of the Duchy still apply.

Noble titles

Somewhat orthogonal to political titles, there are so called Noble titles, these are mostly hereditary although some can be earned via various actions. While these titles carry little power on themselves (power that is backed up by law), the social status and other perks associated with them can make one's life significantly easier.

Lord

Lord is a head of Great Noble House. Great Noble Houses usually encompass Minor and Lesser Noble Houses and are more or less responsible for their structure and prosperity.

They can maintain the wealth of the noble house and should settle internal disputes (with authority). They also represent the House as a whole to the rest of the world.

Consequently, for especially powerful Noble Houses, Lords are elected to Councils or otherwise influence the politics. Most Great Noble Houses reside in Capitol and are part of Powers of Capitol.

Manor lord

Manor Lord is head of Minor Noble House. Either they are part of some greater house, in which case they answer to Lord, or are just less consequential independent house. These can usually be found outside the Capitol and can sway local politics somewhat substantially (in absence of other powers).

All in all, they are a down-scaled version of Lord.

Nobile

Nobile is another of the hereditary titles. Nobiles are descendants of great heroes or history makers. Unlike Noble Houses, Nobiles are individuals and do not form any sort of organization. Often times, Nobiles of same Patron do not know about each other.

They are well respected members of community, and thus are invited to various parties and offered premiere deals, but otherwise have little power to speak of.

They also tend to be fairly wealthy individuals, which is where their real power comes from.

Elector

Electors is, for a change, not hereditary. This title is awarded to those who had some political title in the past and lawfully resigned. It is somewhat rare to find these people, as usually they either have higher ranking title to begin with, or are still in politics (or they were dismissed in ungraceful manner).

The opinion of other nobles and general public is mixed, and usually depend on the nature of resignation. Sometimes people see Electors as great martyrs who sacrificed their power and lost the fight against bureaucracy. Sometimes they are that one cruel baron who now has nothing but his castle.

Either way, if they are regarded as knowledgeable fellows (in regards to politics) and are first stop to people who want to start their career in politics. Thus, a lot of people currently in the politics owe some Elector out there. They earned a reputation of Shadow power, pulling string from behind the curtain, although nobody is really sure how much of these stories is actually true.

Minestralis

Should Count die, their descendants (if any) are declared Minestralis. While this bears no significance, the fact that Counts are fairly popular this usually means their family is too. They are regarded with respect and honour, but no further favours are extended (unless they were specifically earned by Minestralis themselves).

As this title has no limit on depth of the family tree, the number of Minestralis can grow pretty significantly, and should they maintain coherency and unity, they are well on their way to becoming a Noble House. In fact almost all (with a 2 exceptions) of the current Great Noble Houses started this way.

Mayor

Is a title given to Knight or Dame who is in charge of village or part of a city.

This title is not hereditary but is restricted to knights only. This is somewhat confusing when non-knight is somehow put into same position, which is really rare, but does happen occasionally (in fact, it is so rare, that most people think it is impossible).

Mayors are demoted back to Knights once their term ends.

Guild Master

Pretty much what it says on the tin.

All-in all, this is relatively low-ranking title among nobility, but it does signify great skill. They are therefore well-respected within their communities, others of their trade or even other merchants and other people.

Guild masters are fairly wealthy individuals and their guilds (if they earned the title) prosper and are well-recognized in the area (maybe even whole of Galicia). Most such guilds are located in Capitol and some Guild masters even made it into Powers of Capitol.

Knight / Dame

Finally, Knights and Dame are titles usually awarded by Noble Houses, but some other entities may also be allowed to award this title.

Usually there is a hard-limit for each organization, dictating how many Knights they can appoint. This number is usually well beyond what organization would ever need, but not enough to dish out titles willy-nilly.

As a consequence, Knighthood is somewhat easy to come by, especially if you try and live in Capitol. While Knighthood earns you some respect and unlock some career options, it fundamentally give you little more than small conveniences.

It is common for most people (at least in more urban areas) to know some Knight by name and even be friends with one, which cannot be said for higher titles such as Lord - you can be pretty much certain that a random peasant has never seen a proper Lord.

See also

• Republic of Galicia - Wealth, intrigue and politics - the cornerstones of Galicia