Dimitris the Law Giver
Establisher of law and order across Turoza.
Dimitris Gawain Binnion
Founder of the reason and law, protector of the rights of the many against the few, the creator of the bedrock upon which all civilised societies are built. The work the Dimitris the Law Giver carried out has gone down the centuries, and was, I and many other believe, instrumental in enabling the transition from nomadic tribal peoples into mighty nations and civilisations. Though the laws and statutes codified in Dimitrian Law’ do not by any means level the playing social and demographic playing field (nor were they meant to), they do at least provide basic rights to all citizens that live in nations that use the statutory code. After all, a monarch or ruler that has to at least pay lip-service to a law code is much better than one that is not bound by any!Extract from Maximilian Hoherberg von Zottehal’s History of the Known World. Known throughout the continent of Turoza, Dimitris the Law Giver is recognised and celebrated as the founder of the law system, Dimitrian Law.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Born into Clan Cadarn-Ysbryd in the penultimate century of the Nomadic Era, Dimitris Gawain Binnion grew up at in a turbulent time politically, where the Dwarven Clans were increasingly becoming more and more concentrated in the area of the Eira-Gwyn Mountains, which was already leading to increased disputes and clashes between them over which Clans had access rights to which resources. As Dimitris’ grandfather, on his mother’s side was the then leader of Clan Cadarn-Ysbryd, the young Dwarf was able to witness a plethora of tense and complicated political and diplomatic negotiations and disputes as the last century of the Nomadic Era began to draw to a close. Dimitris was himself present in the final negotiation stages, where all of the Dwarf Clans in the Eira-Gwyn and Uzkesh Mountains came together and finally agreed to put aside their differences, agreed to all settle permanently in the area and confederate together into the Union of Mishtoon, a decision that marked the end of the Nomadic Era and the beginning of the Settlement Era in Ulskandar.
Following the creation of the Union, Dimitris witnessed at first hand the initial steps of the new nation and observing the initial years of High King Medyr I’s reign and he became increasingly dissatisfied with what was happening. He observed that the High King and those close to him in the royal court were increasingly abandoning the morality of equality and respect for all that had existed when the Clans had operated as independent units, and many of those that were advising the High King, were doing so only because they saw huge opportunities to gain vast wealth at the expense of those that had entrusted them with leadership. As he was now Clan Cadarn-Ysbryd’s representative in the royal court, he began to push for the creation of a statutory code of laws, that would put a limit on what the High Kings and Queens and their courts could do, and also guarantee basic rights to those not in power, to protect them from exploitation and intimidation.
Unsurprisingly, Dimitris struggled to get the High King and his cronies to agree to accept the law code, which would have meant that they would also be bound by laws themselves. Despite this, Dimitiris continued to push the point at court, which became increasingly aggravating to the High King and the court, who became much more forceful in their continued rejection of the law code. Eventually this spilled over into more murky territory, and Dimitris began to receive anonymous threats against his life, which spiralled down further into assassination attempts against him. Leaving Ebenbirn, the capital to save his own life, Dimitris changed tack and began to tour the Union and the other clans, raising support for his idea away from the centre of power. This proved to be much more fertile ground, and soon Dimitris was able to raise a huge base of support behind him and Dimitrian Law, providing an incredibly influential block of supporters in the royal court. Seeing the wind changing, Dimitris began to leverage his growing support network and pushed for the first all-encompassing meeting of the clans since the formation of the Union, where he was much more certain he would be able to pressurise the High King and the Court to accept his code of laws. Dimitris was right in his assessment, and at the First Great Clan Moot in 45S.E., enough of the Clans supported the adoption of Dimitrian Law that High King Medyr I was forced to accept it, or face the wrath and even potential rebellion of the Clans.
Dimitrian Law continues to be the foundation of the governance and lives of the Union of Mishtoon, and in the closing years of his life, Dimitiris was able to see his law code being adopted by other nations that were emerging across the continent of Turoza. Long after his death, his law code has spread from the Union and is also used in the Kingdom of Kjörnsholm, the Kingdom of Dazscor and Aramore, the Mountain Principalities, the Republic of Castar, the Sultanate of Fashaddon and the Emirate of Taqwal. Though Dimitrian Law does not really restrict or limit the power of the monarchs and rulers of the nations that use it, it does at least provide a structure that theoretically protects the citizens of these nations, even if it is ignored or manipulated so that those in power or with significant influence can play the system.
During his lifetime, Dimitris was open in recognising the fact that he would have not been able to have maintained the strength of will necessary to not only create Dimitrian Law, but also push it through into being a reality, without the support of his Clan. As they recognised the importance of what he was doing, many other members of Clan Cadarn-Ysbryd rallied around him to canvass for support in other Clans and within the royal court so that enough support was generated for Dimitrian Law to be adopted as the recognised legal system of the Union at the first Great Clan Moot. It is also widely known that Dimitris was never seen without his loyal Zierendorf Miniature Dragon, a creature that was clearly a great source of strength and comfort to him, and was greatly mourned by Dimitris when it passed away.
Accomplishments & Achievements
Dimitris is by far best known for his work codifying the laws of the Union of Mishtoon, and achievement that is not just recognised in the Union, but in almost all of the other nations on the continent of Turoza. This is because ‘Dimitrian Law’ as it is known is the most widespread code of laws in Turoza, even if nations may claim to use it, but often choose to ignore it. It has been widely recognised by scholars across the continent that without the advent of Dimitrian Law it would have been much harder, and some claim impossible, for the transition from nomadic tribes to nation states to have been successful.
In recognition of his outstanding achievement, law courts and judicial buildings across Turoza have statues or other depictions of Dimitris the Law Giver, and in the Union of Mishtoon, all legal documents are still authenticated with a seal modelled on Dimitris’ personal coat of arms (see left).
Species
Life
130 N.E.
129 S.E.
259 years old
Birthplace
Somewhere in the Eira-Gwyn Mountains.
Children
Gender
Male
Aligned Organization
Other Affiliations
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