White Widows: Ol-Tordos Aird
The White Widows are a religious organisation in North Kilun, the home continent of the dwarves. The group, which is made up of the spouses of the deceased sailors and warriors who fell in service of the Alliance of North Kilun Clans, gets its name from its members' practice of meticulously copying their spouse's tattoos using a bone white pigment instead of the typical black, blue or red. The organisation was originally named the Fyrir Wives and began on the island of Fyrir as a church-backed insurance system for the wives of sailors in the Eigakost navy. Over the following decades, particularly with the reunification of many of the dwarven clans, the White Widows grew in power and influence, spreading to the mainland, and opening many churches, which act as local offices and bases of power for the group.
Remembrance is important in all of the dwarven culture, and it is common for them to sing long sagas to dead heroes and leaders whenever they gather in large groups. The Widows take this practice even more seriously, with daily prayer to their dead, the aforementioned tattoos, and the recitation of each church's own dead as well as fallen Dowagers (the leader of the White Widows) before each morning and evening meal. Key to this practice are the Matrons, spiritual leaders of each church, who lead the recitation and are responsible for visiting the spouses of the deceased to offer support and to offer them a chance to join the Widows. Matrons clad themselves completely in white, wearing a square-brimmed hat from which a white veil falls concealing the head and neck, and gloves so that their skin is completely hidden. In this way they conceal their own white tattoos but are also said to bear the tattoos of all fallen warriors, and thus remember them all.
The White Widows are very influential amongst the clans of North Kilun. This power comes predominantly from the reliance of many local lords on the group. The White Widows not only financially support widow(er)s, reducing the strain on clans, but also sponsor public works near their churches, run orphanages for children of dead warriors, and even help maintain peace in some regions. As a result of this reliance, the Widows are able to lean on local lords to help mould the political landscape to their own preference. One result of this power is that the Dowager of the Widows is given an honourary seat at the table of the Nine Elders, though this is only a speaking position and she has no voting powers.
Structure
Membership to the White Widows can be given to the spouse of almost any warrior who died serving in the armed forces of the Alliance of North Kilun Clans. Upon the death of their spouse, a widow(er) is visited by a Matron of the order who offers their support and if the spouse is interested helps them begin the application process. If an applicant is not interested in joining the Widows initially, they may at any point in the 4 years following their spouses death visit any of the Widows' churches to apply, provided that they have not remarried. There are certain circumstances in which members may be judged not eligible for membership, the most painful of these is if the deceased spouse were a "Greeny", a nickname given to cowards, deserters or other shameful criminals due to their punishment of having a green band tattooed on their shield arm. Applicants will also be denied entry if their spouse died in an inter-clan battle as this is deemed to have not been in service of the Alliance. Finally, widow(er)s who are also in the armed forces themselves may not apply whilst they are serving, but have up to 2 years after retirement, or 4 years after their spouse's death to apply, whichever is later.
Members of the White Widows, who are typically referred to as Widows or Widowers, have a great number of responsibilities depending on their skill set. Most members, if they already have a means of employment will continue to work, accepting financial aid from the organisation for the first few years, and then paying membership dues each season after that. These membership dues go towards financial aid for new widow(er)s, or established members who may apply for aid should they need it, and towards the operation of the organisation. Some members will be recruited into the ranks of the organisation itself, which provides both low-skill employment for members without other options, and high-skill employment for those who show the necessary talent.
Once employed by the White Widows, members are organised into several departments, the three main departments are listed below;
The administrative department, which is further broken down by specialisation is responsible for keeping track of the organisation's actions and assets.
The outreach department, which is responsible for visiting the spouses of deceased and the upkeep of the churches that the organisation uses as it's local offices. They are also responsible for some of the larger charitable projects of the organisation.
The defence department which is responsible for guarding the churches, assets and any members of the White Widows, members of this department are normally picked from those with military experience.
The remembrance department, which works closely with the outreach department are responsible for leading the religious activity of the Widows.
Each of these departments has their own ranks, and subdivisions with some even acting as almost completely independent groups. Some of the more notable of these are given below;
Matrons are often seen as the figureheads of the organisation, these members of the outreach department are responsible for visiting the deceased's spouse and guiding applicants through the first stage of their journey.
Mark-sealers are responsible for copying the tattoos of the deceased onto the spouse to mark the end of their application process. They are also responsible for ensuring that the deceased was not a Greeny.
Blooded sisters are the elite guard of the Matriarch and are marked by the act of painstakingly carving the outline of their tattoos into their skin. They are chosen from among the best members of the defence department.
The Widowed Council oversees much of the higher level day-to-day operations of the White Widows. They are also responsible for the election of the Dowager after the death of the current holder. Members hold the position for life, and new members are chosen by the council itself, again by election. Men may not become members of the council.
The highest-ranking member of the White Widows is the Dowager. She is responsible for the overarching direction of the organisation and is typically chosen for her experience, achievements and force of will. The Matriarch is also provided an honourary seat at the Table of Nine, though unlike the other members each of whom represents one of the nine large clans that dominate North Kilun, she has no voting rights.
Culture
The Widows are perceived by most with respect and gratitude for their charitable work, and the peace-keeping performed by members of the defence department. Their appearance adds to this respect by giving a mystical appearance to their members. Upon their acceptance into the organisation, each member will have their partner's tattoos meticulously copied onto their skin, except that where their partner's tattoos would typically have been black, blue or red, they instead use a white pigment. These tattoos, which in many cases will cover significant portions of the body give the dark-skinned dwarves a pale, sometimes even skeletal appearance.
Remembrance plays a key part of life within the churches of the White Widows, as in most dwarven society, and they take part in daily rituals and prayer to remember their deceased members, as well as each members own deceased family and ancestors. This takes the form of daily group prayer and the singing of sagas.
Public Agenda
The original stated aims of the White Widows was to support the widows of soldiers who died fighting for their clan; officially this is still their aim and they receive many donations to support this goal. Although they do still provide financial, emotional, and practical aid to the wives of slain warriors they have expanded their goals and powers to exert influence on the political landscape of North Kilun. The ultimate goal of this expansion of power is to unite the clans of Northern Kilun under the rule of their matriarch or a puppet ruler, but in order to achieve this they first aim to expand their power further.
Assets
The Widows have a large treasury split between many of their churches, with the largest stash held at the Rudgard church near a large naval base on the southeast coast of the continent. They are estimated to have the largest treasury of any organisation on the continent with the exception of the nine major clans.
Despite the size of their treasury, the Widows have a relatively small amount of land, with just their churches and their associated farmland, a few convents where applicants are accepted into the organisation and new members train, and some leased land where they keep some of their assets.
Most supplies such as food, weapons, and armour are kept in the churches, but larger assets such as the small fleet of airships that their members occasionally use for urgent transport, and a larger, but still modest supply of normal ships are kept in leased harbours and docks, with the bulk of the fleets being split between Rudgard, Stirda, and Anagard.
History
The White Widows, or as it was originally known, the Fyrir Wives were initially formed in the town of Stirda on the island of Fyrir, which was home to one of the main naval ports, and recruitment areas, for the Eigakost Navy. Many of the women on the island were widows, or married to sailors and worried that they may soon be widowed too. The head of a local church, a woman named Thae Bernadon, began an insurance system in which sailors and their wives could pay a portion of their wages and in return in the event of death, the widow would receive payments proportional to their spouse's wage for a number of years after their death.
The idea became very popular, expanding to include almost every naval wife on the island over the next few years. As the organisation grew, eventually expanding to nearby islands and the mainland, the ideas of the organisation grew to include charitable work using their expanding treasury. After the reunification of the dwarves under the Alliance of North Kilun Clans, the Wives expanded their influence, opening churches down the west coast of North Kilun and at various military bases throughout the continent.
With this growth, it became apparent that the original name was no longer suitable as it did not represent the organisation's scope or size. In Stirda, there had existed a tradition for many years of wives copying their deceased husbands military tattoos, but using a white pigment derived from the white rocks of the island's cliffs, symbolising their husbands returning one final time. This tradition was adopted by the Fyrir Wives, and led to them being renamed as the White Widows.
Over time, the influence of the Widows grew as many local governments had come to rely on them, not only to care for widows of their armies but for their charitable projects, and peace-keeping work too. This allowed them to guide policies and grow their power further, securing land for their churches, and moulding the political landscape.
In remembrance, piety
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Type
Religious, Sect
Predecessor Organization
Demonym
Widow(er)s
Leader
Leader Title
Founders
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