by Max Barry

Latest Forum Topics

Advertisement

1

DispatchFactbookPolitics

by Las palmeras. . 274 reads.

Monarchy and Peerage in Las Palmeras (Under Revision)

Nobility before Spanish rule
The history of the Palmeran nobility is a long one which began far before the Cat Empire's vassalage to Spain in 1569, however it is one of perpetual transformations despite what the pomp of ceremony and tradition may superficially imply for the world "nobility."

Nobility did exist prior to unification around the island, but the Tohorinese State/ the City of Tamanshan purposely destroyed most records related to their vanquished rivals' lineages between the 10th and 13th Century to re-write history as they saw it fit and claim land ownership of defeated lands. The military aristocracy largely responsible for the City's dominion over the whole of the island, Hai-Beiji, or "Exalted Lineages", 201 families that were the hereditary peerage of the Tohorinese Empire and took their place as a ruling class that dominated the Imperial Court in Tamanshan.

Indirect Rule: The Empire's Blade
After the Spanish inversion and the Great Stalemate that led to vassalage to this European power, much of the remaining families kept their status as nobles but were reduced in rank as Spanish Hidalgos, or Lords. Unlike Mexico or Perú, intermixing tended to be limited to the 16th and 17th Century for a while as the majority of administration was still left in native hands through the Non-Divinity Declaration's clauses; albeit even the highest ranking of the local ruling families had to respond to Spanish advisers and select administrations, and all ranks, except those of the Exalted Figure and their retainers, were considered to be lower than that of the Western Marquis, setting a glass ceiling in the political scene but also gave way to a context in which the petty military aristocracy was emboldened with initiative to try to break the mold or keep their meager status.

The retainer families (extentions of the Imperial family), could afford to be more direct in its dealings with the Spanish governors and the handful of bureaucrats and advisers, and the Exalted Figure had the power to mediate disputes, though these could be easily overturned by the King of Spain. As a result, much of the intrigue of the Colonial Period consisted of tip-toe maneuvers and non-violent intrigue over who'd educate the next Exalted Figure and how much: Western advisers, priests from whichever order, or the local retainers?

By the 18th and 19th century the Spanish Empire saw the majority of its power weakened by its rival countries -Great Britain and France- it also saw many of its "Mainland" colonies in America being influenced by the republican ideologies of the recently independent United States. In an effort to strengthen its holdings, the Spanish Crown decided to grant higher ranking titles of nobility to much of the colonial aristocracy in the Palmeran Islands. This bestowing of royal grace made the recipients loyal to the Spanish Crown and the Imperial Emissary under Spain's tutelage, and supposedly far more assimilated to the Iberian titled nobility. No other Spanish colony received as many grants of noble titles as the Palmeran Isles, not as a jewel of the Spanish Empire, but its enforcing blade. The Modern era also saw an increase in immigration from Spanish civil servants whom were usually pooised to receive promotions from their homeland, so as a result, the latent rivalry between ethnic Tohorinese and Europeans widened.

The rank system from most to least status went as followed, practically copied from the Spanish system, though some native terms remained

  • Duke (Duque) or Tohoshi, "Tohorin's lineage", members of the Imperial Retainers decended from the Solar Deity (or historical heroine after post-Christian times)

  • Marquis (Marqués)

  • Count (Conde)

  • Viscount (Vizconde)

  • Baron (Barón)

  • Lord (Señor/Hidalgo) Pamitya ("Banner" or "Banner Bearers"); roughly equivalent to knight, military officers with land and servants and bodyguards to higher ranking nobles.

Many nobles, new and old, of administrative persuasion rose in rank, as did the old -but mostly low ranked- petty military aristocracy. The two groups were opposites; the "Civil Nobles" rose quickly and were mostly ethnically either LinkSpanish creoles or other European-descended immigrants. The Militarists" was ever-present since the 16th Century but they were bogged down by a glass ceiling previously- most were ethnic neko or mixed-race human-neko whose traditions were occasionally more in line with the old Cat Empire's customs even after centuries of some degree of Westernization.

The political projects of these two distinct groups were just as opposite: the "Civilians" favored an investment in the cities to kickstart more services. They wanted to attract investment through building things and creating services; the Palmeran "civilians" had always attempted to create a second Paris or Madrid in its main cities. Elegant, rich decorated manors, governmental buildings, opera houses, play houses, palaces, etc. were all to cover the streets of the capital of La Habana. In the long term, this group wanted to solidify Las Palmeras as a financial and agricultural hub for Spain and for friendly Euro-American clients. This group was fairly europhilic and was open to more democratic and liberal ideas (for the wealthy white minority) in theory.

The "Militarists" also championed industry and capitalism, though as a means to fund potential war efforts; which they were re-structuring and re-arming as they perpetually begged Spain to re-modernize its Navy, which would soon become obsolete by the mid-1870s. In long-term geopolitics, they envisioned a preventative and decisive naval attack against the CSA or the USA and the annexation of the Panama region for more direct access to the Asia-Pacific region -and the Philippines in specific- all to be administered though the old Cat Empire's capitol in Tamanshan alongside the Exalted Figure. This group was culturally conservative and dogmatically traditionalist, and it only occasionally responded to Madrid.

This move was intentional by part of the Spanish, who bet that even if Las Palmeras tried to rebel that the "civilians" and the "militarists" would destroy each-other first or be bogged up in debates to effectively rule, making Las Palmeras more open to direct Spanish rule than ever.

The initial winners of the rivalry -in the eyes of the general populace- were the "Militarists", whose fears were confirmed in 1898 amidst the Spanish-American War. Apart from the fact the masses identified with them ethnically and not the mostly European "Civilians", the defeat of the USA in the Home Island was seen as an achievement of the "Militarists" -who after installing a bloodless coup 'in the name of the Crown under the Spanish Crown's Tutelage' to direct the war effort- briefly prolonged their autonomous interim government. Worse still, the war had killed the former-imperial retainers, and the traditional native system, was left without its strong base of support and open to being absorbed by the European "foreigners".

After the costly stalemate that was the Tohorinese-American War (1898-1901), the weakened Military factions, and the Navy in particular, were sobered up to accept the fact that Las Palmeras was far too small to win a long-term war of attrition and many overseas ambitions were culled as the creole "Civilians" won public support even among the ethnic Tohorinese majority.

The Post-War Order

The Monarchy Today

Las palmeras

RawReport