The Kingdom of Aran (quintus) (Patreon)

In the same vein of 'new political fantasy' I thought I'd share the Kingdom of Aran.  Located on the southern continent of Aurum, it was founded by the father of Aran the Glorious, a warlord of little repute named Arn who managed to string together a number of little settlements to the north of the dwarven dominion.  Like every warlord before him, the dwarven dominion dictated terms.  Like every warlord, Arn refused them.  Unlike every warlord, Arn had a plan.  He engaged the dwarves in battle, then ran away.  The dwarves would pursue, then return to their tunnels when sunsickness became too acute.  The next day, Arn repeated, drawing the dwarves further and further out than they could travel at night.  After weeks, the dwarves were so enervated by sun poisoning that Arn encircled them and prevented them from escaping the harsh sun.  Then Arn gave his terms to the dwarves: dominion from the slopes of the Aurum Crowns to the sea, from the Flor River to the Chald River, and in return, trade would be respected.  He also requested a crown for his sun, and had him crowned himself.  Aran would be named after his boy.

For a long time, Aran was little different from other kingdoms.  Territory was divided and subdivided, given to captains and leaders that supported the crown, along with titles of duke, count, and baron.  Nobles lent soldiers to the king and the king prevented their rivals to the east and west from taking territory.  All that changed when King Veld the Golden found himself decidedly without gold.  His wastrel habits were beggering the kingdom.  If only he could find something to sell for quick money?  What about a duchy title?  Not land, of course!  Most of that was already claimed.  Just the title itself, and the privilages that came with it?  To his delight, it was purchased by the leader of a trade family.  What about a county?  There was a buyer for that as well!  Veld rolled in the cash, handing out almost worthless titles to anyone that wanted to buy them.

The noble revolt was swift and violent, as landed nobles, outraged at their titles being adulterated, marched on Veld's capital.  Fortunately for him, the palace was a fortress that would withstand most sieges for years.  Unfortunately, the chaos allowed Chaldish and Florian forces to start sharpening their knives and probe at Aran's borders.  Veld finally agreed to stop selling titles for cash.  Why, he'd even strip the titles he'd created away if it would make the nobility happy.

The revolt of the merchants was very nearly as bad as the first.  Trade ships bypassed Aran ports entirely.  Caravans refused to deliver goods to the dwarven dominion.  The whole kingdom was in an uproar and there were even whispers of 'republicism'.  It was at this point that King Veld was deposed by his nephew, the soon to be King Arent the Wise, and sent to live in a quiet estate in the north.

Arent restored the majority of the titles created by Veld.  In fact, he even added more to them, so that Aran had ten ducal titles, one hundred count titles, and one thousand baron titles, many of which were unfilled.  He then announced that each title would be up for auction when the holder of the title died.  In addition, the nobility would have the opportunity to select the king.  Any heir descended from the direct line of Aran would be eligible, and the candidate that took the majority would win.  Dukes got 100 votes, counts received 10 votes, and barons received one vote.  To prove his good faith, he allowed them to hold an election.   They promptly voted him out and elected his cousin, Hadrin, to the thone.  While many mocked Arent, he'd arranged things with Hadrin to ensure the crown passed to Hadrin, demonstrating the good faith of the king and the new system.

In reality, many of the nobles were intrigued by the new system.  Each tier had special perks, and possessing even a baronial title would guarantee protection under noble law, rather than common law.  The idea of bankrupting a rival so they could not afford to renew their title pleased schemers, and even ambitious commoners saw how they could use the system to elevate families.  It also provided the crown with a constant flow of funds.

When a title was sold, someone in the family would be selected to 'hold' it.  Their blood would be used in a ritual to illuminate a gem, held by the king.  This holder did not have to be named, and often the 'head' of a house wasn't the actual office holder.  when they died, the light would wink out and the title would have to be renewed with a gift to the crown.   If the family couldn't, it went on auction.  The highest bidder after 90 days would receive the title.  Bids had to be in increments of 1000,100, or 10 to prevent someone from trying to push a 1 gold bid on day 89 (as many attempted).  Bad faith bids could be punished by execution.

To say the arrangement was chaotic is an understatement.  Yet for the mercantile Arani people, it suited them.  Families would marry to pool their wealth and bid for a greater title, and would arrange to sell their lesser title to recoup some of the cost, since only one title could be in one family at one time.  Schemes would try to identify and kill title holders to force a premature bidding.

However, there was one major sticking point: land ownership.  Less than a third of the titles were associated with land, and while initially these title holders were able to keep and profit off their holdings extensively, the loss of one of these titles was massively disruptive.  More than once, the crown secretly supported the original holder's claim to these titles in exchange for power and privilege.  It finally came to a head when the duchy of Goldport and Roseport both became vacant in the same year, and many powerful bidders were aligned to strip these cities from the families that had held them since Aran's founding.  Mercenaries were hired, and the family head of Goldport attempted to arrange a union with Rakai and Floria rather than reliquinish family halls.  The violence escalated to the point where the ports were severely damaged before being seized by the crown.  This lead to the Edict of Distablishment, which stripped the land from the titles.  From now on, all land was held by the crown, and title holders were given permission to inhabit them.

As hard as this could be on the crown, the throne was no less susceptible to issues.  While most princes cultivated a positive relationship with title holders, elections could become harrowing.  Eligible members had to be male and one generation removed from the current holder, and if none were available, two.  Some elections could have dozens of candidates.  Every round of voting, the lowest members were disqualified... though more popular princes could be persuaded to step down from candidacy for bribes.  Murder was popular as well.  While the rules were originally for blooded male heirs, they were relaxed to permit husbands to take the throne if their wives were blooded.

This lead to the accidental conquest of Aran by the Irrynian Empire.  King Hajot died with no male heirs, and no living males in the second generation.  In desperation the rules were changed to have some candidates.  Prince Jorhaz Zeras of Irrynia had married princess Lyesse in a political marriage of convince.  Due to the unsuitability of other candidates, Jorhaz was notified a year later that he was the king of Aran.  Jorhaz was promptly arrested by the Lords General of Irrynia, who attempted to get Jorhaz to give the entirety of the Kingdom to the Empire.  The kingdom threatened to annul the monarchy, and the Empire released Jorhaz, deciding a 'friendly' monarch would be better than attempting a war on the far side of the world.

Jorhaz the Iron wouldn't be the first foreign king.  The throne would be held by Chalad, the Pashta of Selduk, Olderune, and the Ventaran Empire.  When this occurred, practicality ruled.  Monarchs that threatened order were removed by poison.  Monarchs that maintained order and the profitability of titled families were tolerated.  King Raskagan the Close never left Ventaros.  However, some reforms were needed.  The house of nobles became a deliberative that could veto royal extremes.  They also gained the power to remove a king with 2/3rds majority.  This ended the murders of extravagant monarchs and also curtailed expensive military campaigns abroad.

One curious side effect of this political system was the value of each title waxed and waned due to the profitability of holding a title.  In economic poor times, titles would only issue a third the asking price.  More than once the kingdom was effectively bankrupted when titles were so poor as to not earn any money.  When no one bid on the Duchy of Erzat, it was seen as a dark time in Aran.  The duchy was purchased solely to keep it out of the hands of the Florians.

The political system has also changed political alliances across the world.  While only one family per title, it has not prevented other nation states from simply trying to buy the country outright.  The duchy of Northpoint has been held by the Irrynians for a century.  Still, it's generally seen as too expensive for any one nation to buy the entire nation, and the crown is happy to take their money.

In the modern era, the royal family are seen more as managers, attempting to help govern ports and cities and the families that hold the titles.  In exchange, they hope to be elected to the throne when the monarch dies or abdicates.  Abdications are more frequent, as abdicated kings can expect a modest stipend, though it has necessitated a 'rule of 10 years' before the stipend can be granted as some kings would serve for a month, abdicate, and hand over the title to whomever was elected next.  The average length of a king's term is 15 years.

The political system has also threatened republicanism in the past.  The cities of Goldport and Roseport bought their titles outright, and occasionally efforts will be made to gain enough titles to enact new reforms, or elect kings that will grant cities greater autonomy.  As yet, though, only a dozen titles are in the hands of communities.