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--- geopolitical:ǣdyihozh:grand_princess [2024/01/17 13:57] – ↷ Page moved from avishraa:community:ǣdyihozh:grand_princess to geopolitical:ǣdyihozh:grand_princess shyriath
+++ geopolitical:ǣdyihozh:grand_princess [2024/01/25 10:18] (current) – shyriath
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 ====== Grand Princess of Ǣdyihòzh ======
-The **Grand Princesses** are the hereditary rulers of the maritime city-state of [[avishraa:community:ǣdyihozh:|Ǣdyihòzh]]. Their ancestors gained the position through economic means, and in many ways their rule is maintained in the same fashion: their popularity arises from their role as guarantors of prosperity. Not only do they maintain social order, but also the conditions in which anyone, by hard work or cleverness or luck, can seize their desired prize.
+The **Grand Princesses** are the hereditary rulers of the maritime city-state of [[geopolitical:Ǣdyihòzh:]]. Their ancestors gained the position through economic means, and in many ways their rule is maintained in the same fashion: their popularity arises from their role as guarantors of prosperity. Not only do they maintain social order, but also the conditions in which anyone, by hard work or cleverness or luck, can seize their desired prize.
 After all, [[ethnicity:abethine:ǣdyihozhis:|Ǣdyihòzhis]] would say, is that not the whole purpose of social order?
-The Grand Princess formally rules "by the will of the city". It is important to note that this phrase does not, in [[language:ǣdyihozhn|Ǣdyihòzhn]], necessarily refer to the inhabitants, who while //part// of the city are not its whole being. It is instead intended to convey that her rule is demanded by all its aspects: its history, its past and continued prosperity, its very [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirit_of_place|spirit of place]]. It is, in essence, a statement that the rule of the Grand Princess is part of the very fabric of Ǣdyihòzh, and inseparable from it; the two are one and cannot exist apart, any more than a body could survive with its heart removed. (That her role is also approved by the [[culture:mythology:imperial_religion:siathar:|gods]] goes without saying.)
+The Grand Princess formally rules "by the will of the city". It is important to note that this phrase does not, in [[language:ǣdyihozhn|Ǣdyihòzhn]], necessarily refer to the inhabitants, who while //part// of the city are not its whole being. It is instead intended to convey that her rule is demanded by all its aspects: its history, its past and continued prosperity, its very [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirit_of_place|spirit of place]]. It is, in essence, a statement that the rule of the Grand Princess is part of the very fabric of Ǣdyihòzh, and inseparable from it; the two are one and cannot exist apart, any more than a body could survive with its heart removed. (That her role is also approved by the [[mythology:imperial_religion:siathar:|gods]] goes without saying.)
 The current Grand Princess is [[person:ednam|Èdnam]].
 ===== Requirements and qualifications =====
-To be eligible to succeed as Grand Princess, one must be female, and must descend in female line from the heroine [[person:peirem|Peirèm]] and her only daughter [[person:kaeltam|Kæltam]]. In the event of a failure of this set of bloodlines, the [[avishraa:community:ǣdyihozh:Council of Magnates]] may choose a successor from among their own number. Considering the large number of Kæltam's descendants, there appears to be no imminent danger of this occurring.
+To be eligible to succeed as Grand Princess, one must be female, and must descend in female line from the heroine [[person:peirem|Peirèm]] and her only daughter [[person:kaeltam|Kæltam]]. In the event of a failure of this set of bloodlines, the [[geopolitical:ǣdyihozh:Council of Magnates]] may choose a successor from among their own number. Considering the large number of Kæltam's descendants, there appears to be no imminent danger of this occurring.
 While there are no formal qualifications for the role, the heirs of the Grand Princess are expected to be fully informed on the political and economic state of Ǣdyihòzh, and to be trained in the arts of manipulating both.
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 The Grand Princess is the ultimate ruler of the city of Ǣdyihòzh, its citizens, and its subjects; moreover, the foreign policies of Ǣdyihòzhis vassals are directed from her palace.
-The Grand Princess has no enumerated responsibilities; she is the territorial overlord of the city and its associated domains, with which she may in theory do as she likes, and her title signifies nothing more or less. However, in practical terms, she is responsible for the day-to-day governance of Ǣdyihòzh, for appointing and coordinating its officials, for tracking and maintaining its treasury, for decreeing laws, for directing its military and its diplomatic relations, for fostering business. Most of this is done with the input, if not the actual approval, of the [[avishraa:community:ǣdyihozh:Council of Magnates]].
+The Grand Princess has no enumerated responsibilities; she is the territorial overlord of the city and its associated domains, with which she may in theory do as she likes, and her title signifies nothing more or less. However, in practical terms, she is responsible for the day-to-day governance of Ǣdyihòzh, for appointing and coordinating its officials, for tracking and maintaining its treasury, for decreeing laws, for directing its military and its diplomatic relations, for fostering business. Most of this is done with the input, if not the actual approval, of the [[geopolitical:ǣdyihozh:Council of Magnates]].
 ===== Benefits =====
-The lifeblood of Ǣdyihòzh is fees. Fees to use docks, fees for storage space, fees for licensing businesses and guilds - but above all, the tolls on ships, passing through the [[avishraa:community:ǣdyihozh:giants_gate|Giant's Gate]], the narrow passage between the Inner and Outer [[avishraa:geography:sekhaa:marine:Abethine Sea]]. While most of the fees go directly into the treasury, by ancient convention the Grand Princesses receive one eighteenth of the proceeds for their own use. Therefore, in the absence of extremely unwise spending, they are among the wealthiest individuals in the world.
+The lifeblood of Ǣdyihòzh is fees. Fees to use docks, fees for storage space, fees for licensing businesses and guilds - but above all, the tolls on ships, passing through the [[geopolitical:ǣdyihozh:giants_gate|Giant's Gate]], the narrow passage between the Inner and Outer [[geography:sekhaa:marine:Abethine Sea]]. While most of the fees go directly into the treasury, by ancient convention the Grand Princesses receive one eighteenth of the proceeds for their own use. Therefore, in the absence of extremely unwise spending, they are among the wealthiest individuals in the world.
-Also set aside for the use of the Grand Princess is the [[avishraa:community:ǣdyihozh:Principal Palace]], a low but sprawling and luxurious edifice of marble that extends nearly a full quarter of the way around the top edge of the Great Sinkhole and which houses her, her family, her many servants, and most of the government apparatus that does not involve localized offices.
+Also set aside for the use of the Grand Princess is the [[geopolitical:ǣdyihozh:Principal Palace]], a low but sprawling and luxurious edifice of marble that extends nearly a full quarter of the way around the top edge of the Great Sinkhole and which houses her, her family, her many servants, and most of the government apparatus that does not involve localized offices.
 ===== Accoutrements and symbols =====
-Fine clothing and expensive accessories are a frequent accompaniment of the rank, but not inherent to it. The main token of office, as it is throughout much of the former [[avishraa:community:empire:|Imperial sphere]], is a horn: in this case, the [[item:horn_of_peirem|Horn of Peirem]], made of brass and silver, long and curved after the fashion of a [[species:ghyol|ghyṑl]] tusk - modeled, it is said, after a now-lost original wrested from its owner's mouth by Peirèm herself. It is attached to a finely woven and embroidered [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baldric|baldric]], from which it hangs when worn; the Grand Princess is expected to wear both horn and baldric on ceremonial or highly public occasions. The weight of the instrument has been a quiet complaint of the Grand Princesses since it was manufactured.
+Fine clothing and expensive accessories are a frequent accompaniment of the rank, but not inherent to it. The main token of office, as it is throughout much of the former [[geopolitical:empire:|Imperial sphere]], is a horn: in this case, the [[item:horn_of_peirem|Horn of Peirem]], made of brass and silver, long and curved after the fashion of a [[species:ghyol|ghyṑl]] tusk - modeled, it is said, after a now-lost original wrested from its owner's mouth by Peirèm herself. It is attached to a finely woven and embroidered [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baldric|baldric]], from which it hangs when worn; the Grand Princess is expected to wear both horn and baldric on ceremonial or highly public occasions. The weight of the instrument has been a quiet complaint of the Grand Princesses since it was manufactured.
 The banner of the Grand Princesses is a ship on the sea, with red sails. Each successive Grand Princess has tended to personalize the design in a different way; in the case of the incumbent, [[person:ednam|Èdnam]], it also depicts a [[takma:|takma]], wings spread, hovering above the waves and preparing to cast a spear at a fish. This is a reference to Èdnam's name, which is derived from the [[language:ǣdyihozhn|Ǣdyihòzhn]] //èdun//, 'short spear'.
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 ===== History =====
-The ancestor of the Grand Princesses was [[person:peirem|Peirèm]], the captain of a privateering vessel that entered the service of the city soon after its independence from [[avishraa:community:Uzhidam:]] in 52 Cloud. Her predations were bold and wide-ranging, but she was cunning enough to come out of them with significant spoils, from which she was wise enough to spend liberally on the city and its inhabitants. By the time of her death, Peirèm had become a local hero, an Ǣdyihòzhis equivalent of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Hood|Robin Hood]].
+The ancestor of the Grand Princesses was [[person:peirem|Peirèm]], the captain of a privateering vessel that entered the service of the city soon after its independence from [[geopolitical:Uzhidam:]] in 52 Cloud. Her predations were bold and wide-ranging, but she was cunning enough to come out of them with significant spoils, from which she was wise enough to spend liberally on the city and its inhabitants. By the time of her death, Peirèm had become a local hero, an Ǣdyihòzhis equivalent of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Hood|Robin Hood]].
 [[person:kaeltam|Kæltam]] was the only daughter of Peirèm, and inherited her mother's remaining wealth. Kæltam was more comfortable in an office or council chamber than on a ship, but she had a number of loyal brothers who were happy to continue sailing their mother's ship on her behalf while she looked for other ways to increase her wealth and influence. This she did with impressive single-mindedness, building an ever-expanding fortune through a combination of commercial savvy and complete lack of scruples, until she was able to buy out nearly the entirety of the harborfront district - docks, warehouses, toll facilities, inns and taverns all became hers. The cost was staggering, but it delivered near-absolute control of the city into her paws, and forced the other shipowners to bend to her will (and pay her fees) or be effectively barred from doing business.