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The Ducal Government

The Duchy of the Coeur d'Ennui is, in practice, a kingdom unto itself. Located at the keystone of Western Meditra, and backed by a fiercely competitive mercantilist economy, it wields great political influence. Happily, these pressures have resulted in a stable, sophisticated government with a modest, but adequate, division of power.

The Duke

Once the sole authority of the realm, the Duke is now best understood as the proprietor of the Duchy. He profits from the Duchy's success, and he alone has the authority to issue titles and charters, but he has little power apart from that. True power lies with the Chancellors of the Grand Chamber, the Peer Council, and, more recently, the Council of the Duchy.

The Chancellors of the Grand Chamber

High Chancellor: Earl Isair Gildorath
Chancellor of the Courts: Countess Tigraine
Chancellor of the Treasury: Earl Wrymeade
Chancellor of the War Court: Ealdor the Pious, Earl Ravenrose

The Grand Chamber

The Grand Chamber calls together the Chancellors of the Courts of Law and Equity, the Treasury, the War Court, and the State. In all, they represent the judicial and executive branches of the Ducal Court. They are typically regarded as the four most powerful people in the Coeur.

The Chancellor of the State, more commonly known as the High Chancellor, is the Duchy's foreign minister and the chairman of the Grand Chamber. He oversees all diplomatic efforts, and thus has a great amount of influence over the War Chancellor and the Chancellor of the Treasury. He is also responsible for preventing the Chamber from dissolving. In most incarnations of the Ducal Court, the High Chancellor has been the de facto head of government. Earl Isair Gildorath, the current High Chancellor, has continued this tradition.

The Chancellor of the War Court, more commonly known as the War Chancellor, is traditionally the Duchy's second executive. He is responsible not only for the Coeur's military, but for all matters relating to policing, security, and order. In times past, he has used this authority to wrest power from the High Chancellor. Though the current War Chancellor, Ealdor the Pious, has a very strained relationship with the High Chancellor, he apparently has no such ambitions himself.

The final member of the executive branch is the Chancellor of the Treasury. He is responsible for the Duchy's fiscal policy, through which he exerts a great deal of influence over foreign trade. Though he holds veto power over the other two executives, the Chancellor of the Treasury has always been the least powerful of the three. He is expected to approve all but the most absurd expenses, and to simply come up with a way of covering them. Earl Wrymeade, who has occupied the position for the last decade, has proven quite competent at this thankless work.

Last of all is the sole representative of the judicial branch, the Chancellor of the Courts of Law and Equity. He oversees all officers of the courts, and may elect to preside over a court of last resort himself. This position is currently held by the Countess Tigraine, though troubles in her county have recently prevented her from paying much attention to it.

Each of the Chancellors has full authority over the matters delegated to him, and so he has no legal obligation to discuss his decisions with the other members of the Chamber. However, all such decisions are attributed to the Chamber as a whole. If the Chamber issues a decision that he does not agree with, a Chancellor is obligated to resign. This often leads to the dissolution of the Chamber, with great embarrassment for all involved, and especially for the High Chancellor. In practice, therefore, the Chancellors of the Grand Chamber rarely make any important decisions without consulting each other.

Once elected to the Grand Chamber by the Peer Council, a Chancellor serves until he is removed by a vote of no confidence from that body.

Members of the Peer Council

The Peer Council

The Peer Council is the upper house of the Duchy's legislature. It consists of the heads of the Great Temples and of the twelve titled nobles who are not a part of the Grand Chamber.

The Peer Council serves several important functions. Its most common role is as a review board for new legislation; in typical parliamentary fashion, bills originate in the lower house -- the Council of the Duchy -- and are then sent to the Peer Council for consideration. There is one important exception to this process: the Peer Council can propose and pass legislation concerning religion and general "moral conduct" without consulting the Council of the Duchy. This is how the infamous Edicts came into being. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the Peer Council elects the various members of the Grand Chamber. In fact, in order to serve in the Grand Chamber, one must have been a Peer Councilor for a minimum of ten years.

Since a seat on the Peer Council is guaranteed by the title of earl, countess, or viscount, as well as by leadership of one of the Great Temples, one is a Peer Councilor for as long as he retains that title -- typically for life, once he's been given it. Similarly, the Peer Speaker retains his position until someone objects and another is voted in in his place. Anselm has been the Speaker for the past sixteen years, since the death of the previous Speaker.

Members of the Council of the Duchy

Council Speaker: Sir Ifeil of Danvaer Town

The Council of the Duchy

The legislature's lower house, the Council of the Duchy was originally little more than a puppet theater designed to placate the gentry and townspeople of the Duchy. It consisted of burgesses, knights, and vassals from around the Coeur, all of whom were beholden to the lords of the Peer Council and the Grand Chamber, and who could be counted on to yield to their will at all times. However, as the Coeur has shifted from feudalism to early capitalism, the Council of the Duchy has arguably eclipsed the upper house in influence.

The Council of the Duchy currently includes three representatives each from Whetfeld, Balnamoine, Tannoril, and Devils' Bowl; four from Black Hill; six each from Rook's Landing, Tarrybuck, Windymoor, and Danvaer Town; fifteen from the city of the Coeur; and two knights from each county and viscounty, for a total of 87 seats. As noted above, this originally led to a very ineffective assembly. What changed that was the rise of the merchant class. Where the first Councils consisted of appeasing and often incompetent vassals, for the past few decades it has been driven by smart, independent, and, perhaps most importantly, rich merchants who fight vigorously in their own interests. As we will see shortly, they have also found a rather powerful ally.

Once elected, a Councilor of the Duchy serves for five years. Elections are held for the entire Council at once, and there is no limit to the number of terms one may serve.

Politics of the Ducal Court

There are two conflicts at the heart of the Ducal Court. The more obvious of the two, perhaps, is that between Earl Gildorath and the Earl of Ravenrose. Though Gildorath has an enormous advantage in funds, and something of an edge in official power, he has far less influence in the Peer Council than does Ealdor. His allies on the Council -- Viscount Arundais, the Viscount of Grenora, and the recently installed Countess Danvaer -- are worth their votes and nothing more. Ealdor, on the other hand, can count on his brother Anselm, Solevien of the Illuminers, Vondaric Ironblade, the Earl of Tarrybuck, the Viscount of Bluvair, and Viscount Poynshire -- each of whom has considerably more influence than the sum of Gildorath's allies.

The second conflict is that between the landholding Peers and the merchants of the lower house. This is a simple matter of economics. The nobles make their money off the land, and so favor high tariffs to reduce competition. The merchants, of course, make their money off of trade, and thus want as little interference from the Court as possible. The only noble of any significance to break with his peers is Earl Isair Gildorath. An aggressive competitor, a connoisseur of foreign goods, and ultimately a very greedy man, he has lent his considerable influence to the merchants of the lower house. Consequently, the Duchy has never been so favorable to trade -- though it still asks for enough of a slice to drive some merchants to the lawless shores of Tannoril and Tartessos.

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