The Order of the Stallion

[The Kingdom of Hyspia 646]

 

THE SOVEREIGN STATE OF HYSPIA

 

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Los Caballeros de Hyspia

 

Issued on the 24th of Sofia's Beauty of the year of 124 D.R.

 

 

The Order of the Stallion

 

During eras of instability, war, peace, and serenity alike, a knight is chosen from among he most dutiful and noble individuals in the land. The ideal of a devoted and loyal knight is regarded as the highest honor one can achieve. Tasked with protecting the Crown and its people, knighthood is neither an easy accomplishment nor a simple mission.

 

 

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Pagehood

 

Every Knight needs a helping hand when the tides grow high and the winds blow over the badlands. A Page is ranked as a young child or a young adult who does not yet know if they wish to tread the path of Knighthood. They serve as an assistant to their Lord-Knight and can be seen running tasks. Pages do not necessarily always become squires, but it can be a path forward, should the page wish to follow it.

 

Becoming a page is an excellent way to honor one's family and gain noble credit to a new uprising house. It is an easy task to acquire for a younger child who cannot yet provide service for The Crown or to their house. Pagehood is also the perfect way to teach children of rowdy nature discipline and patience.

 

Squireship

 

At the leisure of the Knight Commendador, a page may be turned into a squire. If proven their worth, the Knight Commendador may accelerate a citizen to squire and bypass the page-hood altogether. To become a squire, one must petition the Knight Commendador and have at least one knight willing to sponsor and train them.

 

Once a squire is named, they are expected to uphold the Knight’s chivalric code and begin training. They are tasked with learning the valued lessons of a knight and completing several challenging trials. Once a squire has completed all Cirillan Trials, they must seek out the Knight Commendador to gain a letter of recommendation to the Sovereign to be knighted at the next court date.
 

 

The Cirillan Squire Trials

 

The trials of a knight are tedious and yet each knight must go through them. The Cirillan Trials are modeled after the tasks of the Knight Commendador’s first squire in La Dorada. A book will be given from a knight to their squire who will, over the course of their training, collect documentation on their tasks and note their experience. At the end of a squire’s journey, they will turn the book into the Commendador as their final task.

 

Practical -

The first trial of any squire is to be familiar with your lands. Squires must accompany their Knight on a journey of scouting the badlands and beyond. In this journey, documentation of each creature encountered is required, so there is written documentation of all the new species within the badlands.

 

Piety -

A Knight is nothing without DIOS. For the second trial of a knight, the squire shall journey to the Holy See, or another appropriate holy site, and learn from the Clergy there. They shall be required to notate their experience within their given book, and complete whatever tasks the Clergy find necessary to prove their faith. 

 

Poise -

Conducted by the squire’s knight mentor, a trial shall be set forth of wit and cunning. The squire is expected to follow the orders of their Knight-Lord without hesitation in a situation of high stress.

 

Precarious -

A knight must always stay on their guard. This trial will come to a squire at a time they least expect it. A brave soldier must also be loyal even in the face of death.

 

Potential -

As a show of faith to each craft, a squire’s final duty is to slay a beast and return with a trophy of this kill for the Sovereign. Typically a hide or fur, and sometimes a skull or antlers, will be presented in court for The Crown to judge. Each creature type may only be killed once- when a beast is slain and presented to the Sovereign, it shall be forbidden from being presented again while the knight who killed it is still living. 

 

Perseverance -

Once all the trials of a squire have been completed, the squire may turn in their book of records, detailing a thorough recount of their trials.

 

Though a Squire may fill out their trials and follow each step, it does not yet promise them a path of Knighthood. This can only be decided by the Commendador and Sovereign when the time of a Squire has reached the end. 

 

Knighthood

 

In promotion to that of a Knighthood, the Knight and their direct family become what is known as the Gentry class. The Knight is titled as “Ser” or “Dame”, and known as “El Caballero” or “La Dama”. Refer to The Gentry of Hyspia missive for further details.

 

A knighting ceremony shall take place at the next available royal court. When a knight is named as such with the vested authority of the Sovereign, they shall henceforth be known as a ‘Knight of the Order of the Stallion, and of Hyspia’. Along with the privilege of being elevated to the Gentry class, knights gain the honor of being permitted to fly their House banners beneath that of the Sovereign’s, and may wear their own uniform separate from the Hyspian Military. They also gain the privilege of a moniker bestowed by the Sovereign relating to personal achievement, or relating to the beast slain during the Potential Trial.

 

Knight’s Codex

 

To be a Knight is to be a man of high moral standing. Within Hyspia, the Knight’s Codex remains stalwart and unchanging, even in the face of dark or evil forces.

 

1. Remain steadfast in your faith; place DIOS above all else.
2. Maintain your honor at all times.
3. Seek only the righteous course of action; perform no ill-will, even if it is the easier path.
4. Remain loyal to the Sovereign, and the Royal Family.
5. Protect and serve the Peoples of Hyspia.
6. Do not dismiss a duel from one of equal standing.

 

Order Formation

 

The Order of the Stallion has a less rigid structure than most orders. Even still, theremust be a semblance of hierarchy. While all knights are technically equal, there are some that must take on the mantle of bureaucracy for the sake of the government. These knights, hereby known as the Knight-Commendador and their Hand, serve an important role in organizing the Order and bridging the gap between the Order and the Hyspian Military.

 

The duties of the Knight-Commendador entail the following:

 

• Overseeing and approving the education of squires.
• Personally selecting guardians for the Royal Family.
• Advising the Sovereign in matters of national security.
• Maintaining the Cirillan Records.* 
• Reassessing the Knights of the Order, and revoking their Knighthood with permission from the Crown, should they break their Oath.
• Acting as a tie-breaker during meetings pertaining to the Order.
  
  
  * See: Cirillan Records: A collection of journals notating the experiences of each squire in the order, past and present. 

 

The duties of the Hand entail the following:

 

• Handling day to day bureaucratic tasks that are too mundane for the Commendador.
• Assisting as a second in command, and filling in for the Commendador when they cannot be available.

 

The Order of Cantuta is a civil knighthood order, intended for celebrating the highest civilian honors for non-military achievements. This will be detailed further in a future missive.

 

Knight’s Oath

 

Knight:

I, state your name, do hereby swear my undying loyalty and service to you, Xiomara I, my liege and sovereign. 

Sovereign:

In the presence of these witnesses, I vow to uphold the chivalric code, to be ever faithful and true, to defend the realm, and to protect the weak. I pledge to honor the principles of bravery, justice, and mercy, and to serve with integrity and valor.

Knight: 

I so swear.

Sovereign:

I swear to defend your throne and your person with my life, to fight for your causes, and to carry out your commands without question or hesitation. I shall stand as a shield against your enemies, and wield my sword in your name.

Knight:

 I so swear.

Sovereign:

By the grace of DIOS and the honor of my knighthood, I shall uphold these vows. Let this oath be binding, and may Seven Skies strike me should I fail in my duty.

Knight:

This I swear, with my heart, livelihood, and my blade. Long live the Sovereign!

 

Z

 

DIOS LOS BENDIGA,

 

HER SERENE HIGHNESS, Xiomara I, Sovereign of Hyspia, Duchess of Pacazu, Viscountess of Banderas, Baroness of Arenisca, Del’mar, Monterro, Campagnon and Sevilla, Lady of La Dorada, Lady of Niseep, Gereon's Hold, and Ciudad de Plata, Protector of the Hyspian People, Protector of the Farfolk, etcetera.

 

EL SEÑOR, Ser Julian Salazar, Lord Protector of Her Serene Highness, Knight-Commendador de Hyspia, Thirteenth Knight of Hyspia

 

SEÑORITA, Cirilla Zafrios, Secretary to the Sovereign, Lady Protector of Her Royal Highness