Trandrafian Nobility
The Trandrafian noble tradition began with King-Consort Vaska who established the first great noble families along bloodlines most loyal to the Red Queen. These original houses had entered in to a blood rite with the Red Queen, binding their bloodline to serve Her in perpetuity. Many of these houses claimed - and those surviving still do - direct blood ties to the Red Queen and her consort. Each of these noble families were granted a territory within Trandrafia to govern by the divine right of the Red Queen and her consort. Though the borders have changed since the beginning of the nation, today the regions are nine in number known as the Blest Duchies and are each ruled over by a Duke or Duchess who heads one of these houses. The only exception to this rule is the tenth region of Trandrafia where the capital of Zeiţăresti sits, which was once the seat of the Red Queen and, following her ascension, King-Consort Vaska, but is now governed by the Pontifex of the Claret Covenant in the absence of a new consort.
Despite the many conflicts that have threatened its stability, the tradition of nobility tied in service to the divine Queen has stood the test of time, thanks in no small part to the insistence of the national religion and the surviving nobility following the Bloodless Apostacy.
Structure & Titles
The structure of the nobility of Trandrafia began with a simple hierarchy, but as time and conflict has tested the system it has added several stipulations overall and some of the duchies have their own traditions added in to the system.
In the most basic sense, the nobility is structured thusly:
- The Queen sits above all followed by her consort and King who sits the throne on the material as she sits her own in her realm beyond
- Each of the territories, or Duchies, of Trandrafia have a Duke or Duchess who rules a heads a major noble family and governs their territory.
- Each Duke has a number of Counts or Countesses who rule territories within their Duchy granted by the Duke/Duchess called Counties.
- Within each of these Counties are a number of settlements and lands that are ruled by Barons and Baronesses.
- Least of all are the Lesser Lords who rule villages and small towns from manor houses, and are not always granted their title hereditarily.
- Knights and Landed Knights are also a part of this structure, but are not considered official nobility. However, they have the most reliable claim to a noble title if one is to be granted.
Titles & Addresses
| Noble Title | Address | Heir's Title | Other Children |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duke or Duchess | "Your Grace", "His/Her/Their Grace" | Count | Lord |
| Count or Countess | "My Lord" | Baron | Lord |
| Baron or Baroness | "My Lord" | Lord | "The Honorable" |
| Lesser Lord or Lady | "My Lord" | "The Honorable" | -- |
| Knight | "Ser" | -- | -- |
Knighthood
Knights are a long standing tradition going back before the establishment of Trandrafia. All nobles are granted the power to bequeath the title of Knight to a member of their Duchy. However, Counts, Barons, and Lords are granted different allowances of knights they can title as their own, after which the knights are considered by the Duke for their position and would be considered the Duke’s in terms of foremost loyalty. This honor is customarily bestowed upon a soldier or citizen who has proven their loyalty or gained favor with a noble, binding that individual in service to the noble or their liege lord in exchange for several benefits. A knight is granted shelter for themselves and their family upon their lord's estate or within the settlement their lord owns, usually close to the lord's own estate. They are also granted a stipend, equipment, and other supplies for them to live and perform their duties before others. A knight is granted respect of lords and carries the weight of their liege's influence with them, and as such they also are bidden to comport themselves with the manners and respect of one who holds such influence.
Landed Knights
A knight who has proven themselves worthy may be granted not just living quarters, but land as a lord might. These lands are usually plots that can be worked by the knight and grown into small communities for farmers or other laborers. Some more prominent landed knights draw other knights to their estate, forming knightly chapters under the jurisdiction of the local lord or their liege. These keeps can also be viewed as a test of the knight's ability to govern, as a number of landed knights have been granted hereditary nobility under a baron or count when they show promise.
Rules, Conventions, & Exceptions
Though it seems a simple structure to begin, time and conflict has created several exceptions, rules and conventions that complicate what would ideally be a simple hierarchy. Some of these are established for the entirety of Trandrafia while others are dependent on the duchy. Some of these are as follows:
Trandrafia
- Deathless Exception. There are some nobles that, due to ancestry or divine blessing, would live to rule their house for an extended or unending amount of time. Immortal or long-lived lords are required to rescind their title and step down after a time determined by the Claret Covenant. As an example, the currently best known, longest living ruler is Duke Raithe, who has served as the head of his house since the end of the Bloodless Apostasy nearly 400 years ago, and it is believed that he will soon be called on to leave his seat. In the past, the Death's Harvest would ensure the peaceful transition of an immortal lord should they refuse, but such extremes have not often been needed to be threatened in recent memory.
- Nomad Lords. An ancient rule harkening to the time of Trandrafia's expansion from what was the Dawn Kingdom's territory granted a few specific groups rights to rule regions of Trandrafia as though they were nobility in order to establish peaceful relations. Though there are few groups who have survived under this pretense, this exception within the structure of the nobility permits these groups to govern their own societies within Trandrafia at the price of either the Tithe or a great service that is recognized. These groups were, in the time of the King-Consort, often roaming groups of barbarians or druids, one of which still exists within the Elderoak Forest.
- The Empty Throne Exception. As the Queen has yet to name a new King-Consort to the throne, the Covenant shall be made the steward of the throne and the capital, ruling from the capital by the word of the Queen. However, the Pontifex, while having immense influence over the nobility, cannot outrightly rule over as a monarch. The Dukes and nobility are loyal to the Queen alone. Until such a time as a new King is named, the capital city of Zeitaresti and its surrounding lands are ruled by the Pontifex, the Council of Pontiffs and the Assembly of Attendants.
- Covenant Deeds. Dukes rule all lands within their respective duchy save one region determined by the capital which is to be held by one of the Pontiffs and be beholden only to the Queen and the Pontifex. These lands often hold towns from which the Pontiff governs the plot and temples also known as the greater blood vaults where the Tithe is taken.
- Bloodline Restriction. A foreigner and their descendants can be granted nobility up to the title of Count, but never Duke. Until the 10th generation and proper proof that the bloodline holds significant ties to the throne, the Claret Covenant will never allow such a house to rise to rule a Duchy.
Draebia
- One county formerly ruled by House Ticalos is now split into Baronies that serve the Duke directly. This is due in large part to Castle Ticalos being uninhabitable and no newly named Count of their lands surviving.
Ocharia
- A long standing convention stemming from the current Duke's father and before establishes a precedent for patriarchal rule within the borders of Ocharia, restricting the rule of noble houses to be passed from father to son.
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