Caranthir_

“A propaganda piece no more newsworthy than the paper with which I wipe my --“ the Everardine-affiliated priest cut off, flushing red as the nuns began to giggle. Certainly, the wine had gotten to him at this late hour.

“The needs of the laity of Kaedrin are well fulfilled with the Cardinal as their shepherd. All will do wisely to carry out these words here prescribed, as is their faithful duty as men and women of the grand imperial project.” Father Amadeus proclaimed, before salaciously sipping on his red wine.

A REASON FOR REFORM

Authored by Amadeus Ashford d’Aryn, Ph.D SSE

Published and circulated by the Imperial Everardine College

PRELUDE

It has been almost three decades since the publication of the Edict of Establishment, which constituted for the formation of two legislative houses to act as a branch of governance in our Holy Orenian Empire. 

The Imperial Senate has since proven to us all that it is perfectly capable of rising to the most difficult of challenges, and the most arduous of tasks. Even through wartime, when all seemed to be against us, the Imperial Senate stood firm against the rising tide - the stalwart seawall to which we can all call ourselves proud to serve, and proud to participate in. Never before in recorded history has any single social or political institution acted as decisively, and with such vitality as OUR Senate does. 

The purpose of our legislative body is to legislate, and legislate it certainly does. The efficiency with which the Senate passed numerous bills in short spaces of time sings its praises well in itself. However, an increasingly strong reason for wholesale reformation of our electoral system has swept our nation in the past saint’s week: the dissolution of Curon. Therefore, I argue that simple boundary reform will not ensure that each citizen of the Empire has a vote of similar value. 

THE PROBLEM FOR US ALL

Since the Edict of Establishment, we in the empire have witnessed the almost worrying charge of progress - most notably in our capital. Old traditions and feudal tenants have been replaced by an extreme wave of modernisation in which other parts of our land have struggled to catch up. Not only have they failed at the task of modernising their own communities, but they have outright rejected it. This is a problem of great magnitude facing our nation in the present era. Our main challenge now is not how we react to external enemies, but how we coalesce around that which makes us Orenian to fight off those who would be willingly prepared or disposed to be an internal one.

The most obvious problem that the Senate now faces is a shortfall of seats to make a majority meaningful or even possible. On the barebones technicality of it, the current makeup of the Imperial Senate seems untenable in both the short and long term. It will not work; it cannot work; it must not work. Our constitutional processes - indeed, our rights - are left to drift if we accept our current state for what it is. It is time for us to have a broader look as to how we conduct the business of government and of legislation in our nation. Our representatives cry for it, our people demand it, and I am afraid of what will happen if we ignore it. There must be change if we are to succeed as a nation. I believe there is now case for radical reform of our institutions, and for a review into the internal relationships between all the governments of the Holy Orenian Empire.

There exist ten large issues:

1.  What can be done to improve the effectiveness of our legislative body in the Imperial Senate?

2.  What should the relationship look like between the legislative body and the executive government?

3.  What should the relationship between vassal states and the government look like?

4.  Is the devolution of autonomy to the vassal states working as well as it possibly could?

5.  How could the structure of the executive government be reshaped to better understand the needs of the people and indeed their wants?

6.  Is there a case for further transparency into the decisions of the executive government?

7.  Is there a case for new arrangements to be made as to the accountability of the ministries overseeing the work of government?

8.  What changes need to be made in vassal government? Likewise, how large should its role be in military, economic and legal arrangements?

9.  Is there a case for major government decisions to be made on the consent of the people of Oren? 

10.  Lastly, what can be done to increase participation and decrease voter apathy? Is there a case for compulsory civic participation?

Turnout, whilst historically strong in the metropolitan Helena, falters abysmally in the various provinces in the empire that vote. I should point out now, that by no means do I intend to say that the elections of Reza for instance are lacklustre, only that they receive extreme discrepancies between the rotating election cycles, which will be elaborated further below. The reason for this generally poor turn-out is an apathy to the laws and indeed the governance of the wider imperial context. Furthermore, elections lack serious competition and indeed a candidate is usually backed by the theoretical power of the state in which they reside. Such endorsed candidates for the Imperial Senate which act as ‘their person’ in Novellen lead to poor civic participation, and are therefore unrepresentative of the true opinions of the population. Sir Terrence May and Viviaca Rutledge, whilst undoubtedly excellent legislators and frantically passionate about their respective communities, are a good example of this. Both held their positions for an unforgivingly long amount of time, which perhaps evidences the argument held above. It would be remiss of me to not to mention that there are occasionally competitive races in the provinces, however we see this usually to be the ‘junior’ race, in which secondary figures run. Apathy hurts our constitutional process; it does not produce fresh blood or effectively reflect the vastly changing opinions - especially in the last few years - that we have seen arise in our empire. When a man remains in his elected position during a period of completely polar contexts, it means that either the man is changing his views to be elected, or that elections are simply not contested well enough. Neither of these situations are helpful.

Our national infrastructure is as such that we could be fully capable of levelling up our efforts at national elections, however we refuse to. We refuse progress, and with it we refuse our own prosperity. In rejecting unstoppable modernity, we commit to ourselves an action as self-destructive as Joseph of Marna claiming the crown of Oren, thereby irking those who had no previous quarrel with him and his war for justice. The situation we face is comparable in this way: that we hinder our chances of long-lasting success with our own stubbornness and our destructive conceitedness.

Simply put, we face now an obstacle that absurdly self-destructive as it is self-imposed. A rope that is knotted too tight and with such complexity as for it to be impossible to untie may be seen by lesser men as a challenge too difficult. The finest minds of all and the most learned of scholars may work within the established parameters to attempt to untie this knot, but they will find their attempts to be made in vain. It is those who would happily draw out their sword and cut the rope in two who carry the torch of progress.

THE REASON FOR US ALL

We live, at the time of writing, in the space between representative democracy and pragmatic authoritarianism. In respect to this, it is important that we recognise what it truly means to be an Orenian. We all participate in a wider imperial project. A project that has before stood the test of time, but has ultimately failed due to its inability to connect fully with the wishes of its people, and to balance the interests of competing factions. Technocracy is not necessarily a bad thing: it works to better promote the efficiency of the state and to carry out His Imperial Majesty’s wishes, and that of the executive government that acts in his interests. The current problem, however, is that technocrats exist at the heart of our legislature. They act as government agents, rather than representatives to the people. Technocrats can only tell us how we should get to a place, not where we should be going. Technocracy is unhealthy for the empire when oversaturated. That is why moving forward, we must strive to create more competitive elections, in which seats are distributed on a national level rather than into trusted and efficient hands. For the efficient hands reside with the technocrats: the plumbers of this world. But oftimes you will find that when one’s plumbing goes wrong, the very people which will offer to fix it already have their marks left over the plumbing. Competence does not run parallel to success, some of the most competent of people can sometimes lack vision. The idea of civic participation, democracy if you will, works when people disagree and incompetence is as commonplace as actual legislation. Democracy is tiresome, it is self-deceiving, clumsy, reckless, and fatally flawed. Democracy, however, is best when it fails. Democracy is better off remaining clumsy and reckless and inefficient, otherwise we would already have our liberties taken away from us and our rights quashed. 

For this reason, and in my view, our focus should be on expanding civic participation to all people. National elections will foster a unity that cannot be created through constituent interests, or through self-serving legislation to benefit specific regions. Legislators must represent the entirety of the empire, or none of it. The way forward is as follows: a list of candidates from parties to be elected on by every citizen of Oren in one. A citizen of Helena, Haense, Kaedrin will not be voting for their local representative, they will be voting for the representatives of all of Oren. It will not work smoothly, though nothing ever does. Considerable complaints of inefficiency will be made, as will accusations of greed and corruption. But this is just as well, for a technocrat's dream world is not one I wish to ever live in. Our prosperity and unity is held back only by our petty feuds and disagreements over names, subcultures and titles. To be Imperials, one and all, this is my dream.

CONCLUSIONS

Just like the knot, we must cut through false and misleading fallacies to see what is truly right and prosperous for our empire going forward. The current system that we have, whilst grantedly efficient, does not guarantee adequate rights and powers that the Orenian population ought to hold. The electoral system now ironically reflects the Imperial Parliament of the Empire of Man in that only three constituencies of the empire are given the right to participate in our constitution. The system is not the sickness, but it is the symptom: putting it back in its box will not solve the underlying issues at stake. Opposing parties and national elections and favouring an expansion of seats in the current constituencies only prolongs the disease. It forsakes progress, it rejects modernity, and it rejects prosperity. 

Oren is for all of its citizens, not just the people of Helena. Oren is the bastion of human progress and evolution. It is a nation of which we can all be proud to call our own. It is a nation that we must defend like nothing else: otherwise we fall into the darkness of the abyss.

Humbly,

An Orenian.

Amadeus d'Aryn spins the wheel.

SURNAME: Ashford d’Aryn

FIRST NAME: Amadeus
ADDRESS OF RESIDENCE: Helena Cathedral

DATE OF BIRTH: 1735

Are you registered and eligible to vote in the province of Helena?: Yes

Do you have any other title, peerage or public service that may conflict with becoming an Imperial Senator, as per the Edict of Establishment (1736) or Edict of Election (1736)?: No

If yes, do you understand that you will be required to resign or abdicate from this position should you be elected to the Imperial Senate, and if this does not occur your seat shall be considered to be vacant?: Yes

((MC NAME)): Caranthir_

He was beginning to feel useless. His life had reached its climax years before, the orchestra its bittersweet crescendo. Everything had been downhill from there, and indeed he had lost interest in continuing to live.

The ceremony had nearly reached its end and people were beginning to get up to leave. There was a pause, one last thing to go.

“I present to you...the House of Videnz and Novellen.”

The Priest had been standing for too long without support, all the while shaking as he struggled to stay upright. As he attempted to turn, all life left his legs. The snapping was not loud, it didn’t come as a shock - rather a painful acceptance. His knees cracked in two as he fell to the ground. The thud, too, was quiet. Dull. And again, it did not come as a shock to the aged Horen.

Alexander had wondered what the sound was. Somebody had bitten into an apple, it was a loud and unforgiving noise. Quite rude, considering the situation. As crimson blood began to spill out of the crack in his brittle skull, he began to question who would chomp into an apple at a wedding. All the same, he was content to lie here, for now. 

It took him a moment to realise what had happened. He had never been afraid of dying - it had to happen one day. 

He suddenly became aware of his situation, he had reached the end of his life and promptly turned around in fear and confusion. Not him, not like this. Not now. Halfway out, he began to feel all those many pangs of regret. Death, however, is not to be denied. 

Pain was not an issue. He tried to speak to Joseph, but no words came. He tried to draw breath, but found that there was none to be had.

As the pressure mounted, his organs failed, and his lungs flooded, Alexander Frederick Horen was in terror. He was scared to die, he didn't want to go. Those few short moments before the end were filled with unbridled panic. He thought suddenly of all those he loved, thinking it would somehow save him. It did not. He called out to his God, but no reply was to be had. He tried to console himself in that final second, it would just be like sleeping. He would awake to something beyond. Surely, he had to. He had convinced himself. He would see them all again. 

All of a sudden nothing happened, and it kept on happening forever.

And with that, the spark of life was extinguished.

There was something momentous in that grim instance to the horrified onlookers. The last great imperial scion of the Johannians, sacrificing his life to usher in a new era of modernity - his final words a proclamation to a new line that would maintain the innovations of the old.

Alexander Frederick Horen, son of Charles and grandson of Peter II, left no will to speak of, nor words to his family and friends. He did not possess property, material wealth, or valuables. One moment he was there, and the next he was gone. Life went on in Helena. So died a Renatian, an Orenian, a Priest, an imperial prince, the father to an emperor, and a centenarian who witnessed Aurelius to Peter.

A passing of the imperial flame from one torch to another.

For one final time: 

Horenvs Vincit; Horenvs Reignat; Horenvs Imperiat

1654-1754

Father Alexander weeps for the Pontiff, swearing almighty vengeance on those who murdered him in cold blood. The Holy Mother Church would have its revenge.

Blessed-Father Alexander Frederick Alstion, now Rt Hon. Blessed-Father Alexander Frederick Alstion (Junior-Senator), mumbles something incoherant and senile as he reads about the election results and the opening of the ninth session.

SURNAME: Alstion

FIRST NAME: Alexander
ADDRESS OF RESIDENCE: 16 GAMBINO Lane

DATE OF BIRTH: 1659

Are you registered and eligible to vote in the province of Helena?: Yes

Do you have any other title, peerage or public service that may conflict with becoming an Imperial Senator, as per the Edict of Establishment (1736) or Edict of Election (1736)?: No?

If yes, do you understand that you will be required to resign or abdicate from this position should you be elected to the Imperial Senate, and if this does not occur your seat shall be considered to be vacant?: Yes

((MC NAME)): Caranthir_

Alexander, patriarch of the House Alstion, pledges his support in burning women, of which he is well acquainted.

A RESPONSE

TO TERRORISM

BY ALEXANDER FREDERICK

1750

To the people of Helena I say this, I know that you will not be moved into fear by the terror that certain revolutionaries attempted to instill today. God has blessed our fair city with a population that is fierce and tough, as well as compassionate and fair. I have seen many things in my long life, but the people of Helena display genuine care for their fellows. I am proud to live amongst you all, as the final act of my life draws to its close.

To the revolutionaries I say this, your attempt to spread fear and to kill will be judged harshly by our God, who is as damning as he is just. Your cause is flawed, the history books will not look lightly upon you all. If anything, you harden the resolve of the people of Helena against you.

You may destroy our homes, you may destroy our places of representation, you may kill the innocent like the brutes you are, but you will not capitulate us. You will not make us surrender to you. It will never happen.

Yet I recognise the need for a fairer world, where the problems of the common men are listened to and acted upon with benevolence. These few individuals do not represent the many poor who live amongst us all in Helena.

I continue to hold hope in this old heart of mine for a better world, one where those disadvantaged from birth are listened to, where they have true representation and true justice. Whilst we cannot allow these revolutionaries to become martyrs, we must also learn to change our ways. We must combat poverty and injustice head-on. We must not simply respond to violence with violence. Only then will Oren, and indeed the city of Helena, truly be a place for us all.

Ave Oren; Ave Imperium; Ave Helena

Alexander

ON HUMANITY

A SERMON

BY

ALEXANDER FREDERICK

1750

TRANSCRIBED

FROM A PUBLIC SERMON

IN THE

CITY OF HELENA

The sole business of man in this world is to act by that which is right and to do their duty to their fellow man. That is the worthy end of every person; do right by their kindred and seek for peace when it may seem impossible. 

It is no easy enterprise to untangle our driving self-interest, and to turn our backs on fundamental human nature, which is ultimately corrupting to the soul. The nature of the world has given all men an equal share of all things, yet it is dictated by the laws of man that few can claim them, and fewer still wield them. The governance of the many is consolidated in the hands of those few to which hardship seems not to befall, and to whom riches seem ever-present as a guarantee of life. For the one that thrives upon the loss of others, greed is the rule; charity an exception.

I come to you now as a man not removed from the pleasures of wealth and power. In my lifetime I have witnessed the enterprise of man, and have been party to its machinations. I have been witness to the industry of empire building and of empire destruction; all the while disinterested in the misery and plague it brings upon the people. 

No stronger proof of the depravity of man could be adduced than the progress of the nation - to which I have seen many in my life. They rise with virtue, and fall with the enervating influences of debauchery and blasphemy. Indeed, our inability to place restraints on iniquity has pitted us against GOD’s own law, meaning men are liable to sin in proportion to the possibility of escaping punishment and the fundamental temptation that is there within all humans. 

The most grotesque of all crimes are done by man within their national capacity. GOD’s truth is absolute and unchanging, and penance will be found one way or another. We will all atone for debauchery, yet that very same sin comes from within the national capacity. The misery of the poor is the burden that we all share, and it has come from the limitations of our social impropriety. 

Our iniquitas will be our undoing; our inability to do right by each other the price for a nation which looks at the needy with contempt.

Senatorial candidate Alexander set about penning a letter to Vozhd:

“Hail, brothers, I write you today to express my misgivings about your chosen course of action. I understand your current suffering and past toils, but I do not believe such violence will further your cause, and indeed OUR cause. I have devoted my life to reform, and so offer that you and yours meet with me with as much haste as possible so that I can present my case.

Alexander”

SURNAME: Horen (Alstion)

FIRST NAME: Alexander
ADDRESS OF RESIDENCE: 16 GAMBINO Lane

DATE OF BIRTH: 1659

Are you registered and eligible to vote in the province of Helena?: Yes

Do you have any other title, peerage or public service that may conflict with becoming an Imperial Senator, as per the Edict of Establishment (1736) or Edict of Election (1736)?: No?

If yes, do you understand that you will be required to resign or abdicate from this position should you be elected to the Imperial Senate, and if this does not occur your seat shall be considered to be vacant?: Yes

((MC NAME)): Caranthir_

Emperor Alexander's father, also named Alexander, watches on with immense pride as his son takes the throne.

The Grand Restoration

The baked sun rained down onto the small convoy, the doeskin of their dry boots crunching onto the gravels below. Hoisted onto the backs of run down mules flapped the banners, which were drenched in a repugnant brown sludge where they had run along the paths at points. The people of the convoy were rugged, their faces grim with a look of casual nervousness etched onto their expression. They stared ahead, but thereupon the thin linen sheets still flew the violaceous dragon of John, its dignified wings crusted over by the mud.

At the head of the column, two pale mares saddled by two near-identical looking young men save their attire. Their imperious features were countered by soft eyes, a light blue singed with Horenic grey. A score of men and outriders buzzed around the pair. A rag-tag collection of followers, women and children, flanked them in carts of decaying oak.

The band approached a small cabin in the woods. The chirp of the quiet robin placated to the incessant drumming of the woodpecker. A loose perimetre of men-at-arms patrolled what once was the workplace of a lumberjack. The two men dismounted, and together, entered the building unarmed.

A conclave of men stood tepidly around a circular varnished table, new and rich amongst the downtrodden carcass of the cabin. The twins stood side-by-side in the dimly lit room, their features almost exact. A few raspy whispers floated around the tight room, the same sound from each lip, until it was a resounding murmur:

“Charles”

The room fell on its knees, one twin yielded to the other. Their choice had been made. All heads were bowed in silence. A dynasty was restored.

A small gleam of light from a small crack in the ceiling danced around the face of Charles Edward Alstion, it was as if all things were frozen in that small space of time. One-hundred years on from its deposition, the line of John stepped into the limelight of humanity. As the heavens let their approval be known, all the assembled men began to stand, shouting in exaltation. Their shouts rang out as the band, fuller and better equipped than before, determinedly marched back to Helena.

“VIVAT IMPERATOR”

“VIVAT CAROLUS REX”

“VIVAT JOHANNES”

If one thing was certain, the line of the Emperors had once more returned to Oren and to humanity.

HIS IMPERIAL AND ROYAL MAJESTY, Charles I Edward of the House of Alstion, By the Grace of God Holy Orenian Emperor and rightful Emperor of Aeldin, Forever August, Apostolic King in Oren, of Marna, Mardon, Salvus, Seventis, Savoy, Vandoria, Aesterwald, Courland, Santegia and the Westerlands, Duke of the Crownlands and Blackmarsh, Count of Johannesburg, Lorath and Cantal, Baron of Darkwood and Gravelhold, Fidei Defensor, Supreme Protector of Mankind, Master of the Lions of Man, etcetera.

An old Horen across the shores sighed at what had become of his ancestors empire.

Regarding

The line of John

“There is nothing very odd about lambs disliking birds of prey, but this is no reason for holding it against large birds of prey that they carry off lambs. And when the lambs whisper amongst themselves, ‘These birds of prey are evil, and does this not give us a right to say whatever is the opposite of a bird of prey must be good?’ there is nothing intrinsically wrong with such an argument--though the birds of prey will look somewhat quizzically and say, ‘We have nothing against these good lambs; in fact, we love them; nothing tastes better than a tender lamb.’”

BELL ‘NIETZSCHE’ SANO

From an undisclosed location, Aeldin.

14th of Owyn’s Flame, 1717.

Authored: Alexandros Fridericus of the House of Horen

I.    EXORDIUM

II.    ON LINEAGE

III.    ON CLAIMS

IV.    ON CRIMINALITY

V.    POSTSCRIPT

EXORDIUM

The line of Johnannes is the foremost beating heart of Humanity. Its careful stewardship of the Imperium saw humankind rise to pre-eminence for more than a century. It has been, and always will be, the arteries with which Human supremacy was achieved. History has shown us that it will rise when threatened, when rulers claim its legacy as theirs, and when lesser men - feeling insignificant in comparison - use subtle ploys and schemes to disestablish the inextinguishable light it exudes.

ON LINEAGE

By right of fire, sword, and blood the Johannian empire united humanity and lasted for over one-hundred years. It stood the test of time against the greatest of odds. Its patriarchal authority ordains itself to rule over all other cadet lines of their Horenic blood.

HOUSE HOREN-MARNA,

HOUSE HOREN-VIMMARK,

HOUSE HOREN-CANTAL,

HOUSE D’ANPALAIS,

HOUSE PREUSSEN.

All owe their allegiance to the line of John, by right of blood and by sword. Our crown was taken from us, yet those of us living remember who it was that made these houses what they are today. Though it is through civilised war that we have gradually sunken further and further into the annals of history. A footnote with which to reference the great achievements of others in the past few decades.

By right of birth and sword, the line of Johannes today traces its lineage through Carolus Ellios, the third and final son of Petrus Sigismundus, Holy Orenian Emperor. And as his first son I, Alexandros Fridericus, passed my own titles onto Johannes Alexandros, the nominal Prince of Alstion, Duke of Alba and of Furnestock.

ON CLAIMS

By right of blood and marriage the Johannian dynasty holds the ultimate claim to the titles of Oren in its true resting state, having ruled over the Holy Orenian Empire for a century. There is no rightful claim of any other, let alone cadet, to assume this title even as it remains defunct and dissolved, not legally recognised by any true Imperial body. This is a claim held through the immortal laws of primogeniture which shall remain inextinguishable.

Likewise, by right of blood and of marriage, Johannes Alexandros holds an inalienable right of succession to the Kingdom of Hanseti-Ruska and all of its subsequent titles:

THE KINGDOM OF HANSETI

THE KINGDOM OF RUSKA

THE PRINCIPALITIES OF KUSORAEV, DULES, ULGAARD, LAHY, SORBESBORG AND SLESVIK

THE DUCHIES OF ADRIA AND CARNATIA

LORD OF THE WESTFOLK, LORD OF MARKEV, PROTECTOR OF THE HIGHLANDERS

AND ALL SUBSIDIARY TITLES

These claims are recognised through a plethora of Royal decrees and descent from his mother Analiese Barovii as sister to Sigiunus Barovii, King of Hanseti-Ruska.

ON CRIMINALITY

I hereby levy the charge of criminality in the face of ancient laws and customs, and the rights of primogeniture, against Joseph Horen-Marna. The line of Horen-Marna flagrantly disrespects fact and reason, claiming that the line of John is extinct, and assuming the role of heir to the titles of the line of Johannes.

I levy the charge of blasphemy against Joseph. By undergoing a coronation in the sight of the Lord and laying claim to the title of the Holy Orenian Empire he has committed a grievous lie. He has no right to claim a title to which superior heirs stand before him, a title which lays unclaimed due to the loyalty of the descendants of Carolus Ellios.

I levy the charge of deceit against the line of Horen-Marna. They dare to assume superiority over the line of Johann, assuming use of its ancient Coat of Arms and titles; this is a flagrant affront before all established customs and our Divinely-given rights, along with an affront to the pre-eminent personage of John I himself.

We cannot and will not allow these transgressions and falsities to further corrupt the people that we were born to serve. Human kind cannot be allowed to descend back into a dark age of balkanisation and ruin. The Lord Frederick Marna once argued that ‘humanity must be saved from itself’ following the Coup of Adelburg. His successors now destroy that notion and with it the dignity of a family descended from the line of Emperors.

    HORENVS : VINCIT : HORENVS : REIGNAT : HORENVS : IMPERIAT

    IN NOMINE DEI,

    Alexandros Fridericus.

POSTSCRIPT

I am Johannes Alexandros, Prince of Alstion and Duke of Alba and Furnestock, the firstborn son of Alexandros Fridericus who was himself firstborn of Carolus Ellios, Prince of Alstion.

The Marnanite host attempts consistently to suggest that the late decrees of the once-Emperor Antonius somehow released them from their obligations and ancient oaths. In this they obscure the true order of events. Antonius was succeeded by Godfrey III after his disappearance, and before the publication of the Nenzing Proclamation and the open rebellion of Joseph of Marna. It was to Godfrey who these men owed their fealty by right of succession - oaths which they broke. After this proclamation of open rebellion the Empire of Man - a separate entity entirely to this ‘Holy Orenian Empire’ - was renamed to the Imperium Renatum. It is I, not Joseph, who holds claim to this ancient title. He usurps my current title for his son, and my ancient claims outlined by my father.

My mother was the brutally murdered Analiese Barbanov, dear sister to the late King Siguine. My father taught me the culture of my mother and her ancestors within the decrepit monastery of Nordengrad -- wherein I grew up as a child in a hut of mud. I yearned all my life to know my mother's people, and now I weep to see them led astray by men who arrogantly claim a lineage which is not theirs.

Following the actions of Marius and those who have followed him into open dissent against the Throne which they swore to obey, the ancient duty of succession comes to rest upon my shoulders. My birthright is the Throne of Hanseti-Ruska; through treachery and maligne deception, the heirs before me have forfeited their rights to such a title. They endanger the lives and wellbeing of my people and my Kingdom. I know what it is like to lose everything. I know what it is like to grow up fearing that each day may be my last. I do not wish to see this befall upon my mother’s people. I therefore resign to take upon myself this burden, out of duty towards my ancestors and the common-folk who I now swear to protect from this day until my last of days.

Through treachery and deception have snakes and rats deceived my people, luring them into open rebellion, disrespectful to and flying in the face of ancient custom. I have had one birthright stolen from me by the Marnanite hosts who do away with any respect for our traditions or customs, instead grasping only for power, and shall not see another stolen from me.

I lay this challenge to the feet of Marius who, having forfeited his claim in treason, now resides in my rightful seat. Lay down your arms, kinsman, give up this lost fight. Surrender with the honour befitting a Barbanov, and our family may live. Spare the people, spare the kingdom. Save yourself. In your last days as king, do not let brutality and death fall upon them. If not, meet me in battle, standing for your treason with steel.

I am Johannes Alexandros, the first of my name, the Prince of Alstion, and through the rights of succession and the abdication of the Haensetic royal house in their treasonous acts, hold rightful claim to the Kingdom of Hanseti-Ruska. Through fire, sword, and blood, will my line once more hold its ancient and inalienable right to rule. Through fire, sword, and blood will pretenders fall.

    IN NOMINE DEI,

    Johannes Alexandros, Prince of Alstion, Duke of Alba and Furnestock.

[!] Attached at the bottom is a document of Haense acknowledging the claim.

https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/167758-to-save-humanity-from-itself/

Ave Imperium

ALEXANDER FREDERICK HOREN wiped a thick line of imperial sweat off of his brow, finding himself lucky now to have never married Alexandria. He then beckons his cousin Augustus to Aeldin with open arms.

11 hours ago, Parker said:

MCName: DelendeEst

Name: Gwyn

Age: Young

Race: Human.....

 

“Report to the Carolustadt cathedral.”

(add me on disc Caranthir#1962)

Good guy I support his addition to the team +1

yes

THE PONTIFICAL ENTHRONEMENT OF 1693

10th of the Harren’s Folley, 1693

The sun shone with great vibrancy in Carolustadt on the eve of the conclave as the new Vicar of God was elected. Bells tolled across cathedrals and churches in Atlas  at the knowledge of the news. The doors of the cathedral burst open with great mirth at the declaration.

The Vice Chancellor stands beside the Pontiff-Elect; he then begins to recite the Prayer of Penitence

☩

"Almighty and most merciful Creator,

we have wandered and strayed from your ways

like lost sheep.

We have followed too much the devices and desires

of our own hearts.

We have offended against your holy laws.

We have left undone those things

that we ought to have done;

and we have done those things

that we ought not to have done;

and there is no health in us.

But you, O Lord, have mercy upon us sinners.

Spare those who confess their faults.

Restore those who are penitent,

according to your promises declared to mankind

in Horen our Lord.

And grant, O most merciful Creator, for his sake,

that we may live a disciplined, righteous and godly life,

to the glory of your holy name.

So say we all."

☩

It is then that Elwood, Co-adjutor bishop of Rhodesia, was presented to his fellow clergy, bearing a humble white frock and scarlet mozzetta.

Vice Chancellor Theodoric of Markev continued; “With the Lord Creator our witness and guide, it has been divined that the Most Reverend Bishop, Elwood of Carolustadt, has been willed to fulfill the seat of the Church Pontificate. Do you heed the call of Our Creator to bear this vocation?

“I do so believe.”

“You have been ordained in our church, your household names forsaken and your life devoted in sole service to the teachings of our Creator. The vows of your past vocations remain firm; now you must make the declaration of assent.”

Vice Chancellor Theodoric of Markev then reads the Assent, preserved from a different time.

“The Church of Faithful is the One, Holy and Rightful Church of the Creator , worshiping the one true God, The Creator. It professes the faith uniquely revealed in the Holy Scrolls and set forth in the Faithful creeds, which faith the Church is called upon to proclaim afresh in each generation. Led by the Holy Light, it has borne witness to Faithful truth in its historic formulates, the Articles of Faith, The Book of Saints. In the declaration you are about to make, will you affirm your loyalty to this inheritance of faith as your inspiration and guidance under God in bringing the grace and truth of Horen to this generation and making Him known to those in your care?”

“I, Elwood, do so affirm, and accordingly declare my belief in the faith which is revealed in the Holy Scrolls and set forth in the Faithful creeds and to which the historic formularies of the Church of The Creator bear witness; and in public prayer and administration of the sacraments, I will use only the forms of service which are authorized or allowed by Canon.” Elwood replied.

Do you accept the Holy Scrolls as revealing all things necessary for eternal salvation through faith?

"I do so accept them."

"Will you be diligent in prayer, in reading Holy Scrolls, and in all studies that will deepen your faith and fit you to bear witness to the truth of the Word?"

"By the help of God, I will."

"Will you lead your people in proclaiming the glorious Word of Horen, so that the good news of salvation may be heard in every place?"

"By the help of God, I will."

"Will you teach the doctrine of Horen as the Church of Faith has received it, will you refute error, and will you hand on entire the faith that is entrusted to you?"

"By the help of God, I will."

"Will you be faithful in ordaining and commissioning ministers of the Church?"

"By the help of God, I will."

Will you be gentle and merciful for Horen’s sake to those who are in need, and speak for those who have no other to speak for them?

"By the help of God, I will."

"Will you endeavor to fashion your own life and that of your household according to the way of God and make your home a place of hospitality and welcome?"

"By the help of God, I will."

"Will you work with your fellow servants in the Church for the sake of the kingdom of God?"

"By the help of God, I will."

"Will you accept the discipline of this Church, exercising authority with justice, courtesy and love, and always holding before you the example of Horen?"

"By the help of God, I will."

"Will you then, in the strength of the Holy Light, continually stir up the gift of God that is in you, that the good news of God may be proclaimed in all the Realm?"

"By the help of God, I will."

"Speak thus then the oath of the Pontificate, with the conclave and God as witness."

"I vow to change nothing of the received Tradition, and nothing thereof I have found before me guarded by my God-pleasing predecessors, to encroach upon, to alter, or to permit any innovation therein; To the contrary: with glowing affection as her truly faithful student and successor, to safeguard reverently the passed-on good, with my whole strength and utmost effort;

To cleanse all that is in contradiction to the canonical order, should such appear; to guard the Holy Canons and Decrees of our Saints and Pontiffs as if they were the divine ordinance of Heaven, because I am conscious of Thee, whose place I take through the Grace of God, whose Vicarship I possess with Thy support, being subject to severest accounting before Thy Divine Tribunal over all that I shall confess;

I swear to God Almighty and the Favored son Horen that I will keep whatever has been revealed through Horen and His Successors and whatever the Saints and my predecessors have defined and declared.

I will keep without sacrifice to itself the discipline and the rite of the Church. I will put outside the Church whoever dares to go against this oath, may it be somebody else or I.

If I should undertake to act in anything of contrary sense, or should permit that it will be executed, Thou willst not be merciful to me on the dreadful Day of Divine Justice.

Accordingly, without exclusion, We subject to severest excommunication anyone -- be it Ourselves or be it another -- who would dare to undertake anything new in contradiction to this constituted Tradition and the purity of the Faith and the Faithful religion, or would seek to change anything by his opposing efforts, or would agree with those who undertake such a blasphemous venture."

As his oath come to close, Theodoric washes the face of Elwood and anoints his forehead with scented oils.

"Cleansed of worldly taint, you are reborn in the Creator's vision. Your heart blessed in the eternal compassion and truth of Horen; your soul aflame with the benevolent justice and fervor of Owyn; your body awash with the incredulous miracles and charisma of Godfrey; your mind attuned to the unworldly wisdom and vigor of Siegmund."

Theodoric then garbs Elwood in the pontifical cloth, and bestows the pontifical ferula.

"By this you are known to all as preserver of truths and lord spiritual."

"I announce a great Blessing; we have a new Pontiff!"

The Most Eminent and Most Reverend Elwood,  High Pontiff of the Canonist Faith who takes to himself the name

DANIEL V