Bond Servant
Overview
A bond servant is a Tenant that has been indentured to a Laird, either to pay off a debt or as punishment for a crime. While originally seen as a respectable way for poor tenants to work off what they may owe in rents to their Laird, it has become an increasingly dangerous position, and is now often used as the severest form of punishment save execution. Under many Lairds, a bond servant is now treated as property, and it is common practice for a Laird to extort their people with high rents in order to secure free labor. Depending on where a bond servant comes from, it is likely that they are either illiterate or partially illiterate, due to lack of access to education in the lower classes.Appointment
Any Tenant can become a bond servant at the will of their Laird. Typically, a period of service is agreed upon as payment for a debt, and it is not uncommon for children of working age to be taken as bond servants until their parents can pay off a rent debt to their Laird. In more serious cases, such as instances of treason to the crown, a bond servant may be indentured for life to their Laird and his family.
Responsibilities
Whatever the Laird they serve may place upon them. Often, a bond servant is put to work in the fields, the stables, or the kitchens.
It is possible for a servant to create a good name for themselves in working for their Laird, and climb the ranks of a household, or even earn their freedom before the end of their term. For example, Caillte Dochtuir rose to the rank of Head Ostler in his service to Laird Breith Sadach, and was eventually offered his freedom in payment for his good work. Frequently, a freed bond servant that has achieved a high rank within a Laird's home will choose to continue as a paid employee, as they have nowhere to return to.
It is possible for a servant to create a good name for themselves in working for their Laird, and climb the ranks of a household, or even earn their freedom before the end of their term. For example, Caillte Dochtuir rose to the rank of Head Ostler in his service to Laird Breith Sadach, and was eventually offered his freedom in payment for his good work. Frequently, a freed bond servant that has achieved a high rank within a Laird's home will choose to continue as a paid employee, as they have nowhere to return to.
Grounds for Removal/Dismissal
A bond servant can return to their status as a Tenant at the end of their term, or in the rare instance that they are granted their freedom by the Laird at an earlier date. If they are serving a life sentence, they will continue in the service of their Laird until death, and their bond is passed down to the Laird's heir if he should die before they do.
History
Originally, bond servants arose from the need of poor tenants to pay off their debts to a Laird without threat of imprisonment or violence. After a time, this servitude became an accepted punishment for minor crimes. But generations removed from the original intent, the place of a bond servant has become an increasingly dangerous and cruel one. Rather than citizens of the kingdom, Lairds are known to treat their bond servants as property, and often use this system to gain free labor.
Under the reign of The Slánaitheoir Royal Family, this was considered an offense of human rights, and any Laird found extorting his Tenants in this way could be stripped of his lands and title. But in the time since The First Great Dynastic Shift, it has become an accepted practice among the richest and cruelest Lairds.
Under the reign of The Slánaitheoir Royal Family, this was considered an offense of human rights, and any Laird found extorting his Tenants in this way could be stripped of his lands and title. But in the time since The First Great Dynastic Shift, it has become an accepted practice among the richest and cruelest Lairds.
Notable Holders
Quick Facts
Status
In Effect
Alternative Naming
Servant
Length of Term
Decided by their Laird
Reports directly to
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