NATION: Scotland
COLOR: Dark Red
RULER NAME: Kenneth IV, Royal House of MacAlpine (lmsw08233)
ECONOMY: Recession
ARMY: 560 men
NAVY: 5 Triemes (copper)
UU: Scot Royal Trooper
CITIZEN MOOD: Depressed
EDUCATION: Huh?
GOVERNMENT: Clanhold
AGE: Bronze
CULTURE: 7
WONDERS IN PROGRESS:
The Clanhold Government
The Clanhold type Government takes the Clan based society of the Scots and incorporates it in a more formal level as system of Governance.
The Clanhold is a highly structured and decentralised Government organised in the following manner.
Gael High King - Currently a position held by the Prince of Meath
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King Royal of Scotland King Royal of Ireland
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6 Royal Houses belonging to the MacAlpin Royal Clan
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6 Noble Houses each at the head of one of the Noble Clans
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The 30 other Houses of the Noble Clans
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Houses leading each of the realms under the Noble houses
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Leading clans of each of the realms under the Noble houses
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Minor Clans under the provincial clans
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Houses of the minor Clans
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Serfs who belong to no clan
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Servants who belong to the clan they serve but not to the house they serve
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Slaves who belong to no clan, belong to no house but are owned by the clan they serve and house they serve
At the head of the great clanhold state is supposedly the High King of all the Realms of Scotland and Ireland, the position is held in name only by the Prince of the Realm of Meath(Dublin) who is also King Royal of the Irish Kingdom.
The leader of Scotland in practice however is the King Royal of Scotland - Kenneth the Fourth of the Royal house MacAlpine and the leading house of the MacAplin Royal Clan.
Below him are of course the leaders of the 5 other "Royal" Houses, and the 6 Royal houses -including the Kings own.
Then comes the Princes of the 6 realms of Scotland; Lothian, Strathclyde, Fife, Pictland, Dal Raita, Stirling, and Highland; and their Houses, then the remaining houses belonging to the same "Noble" Clans as the 6 Princes.
Below the Princes are the "Lords" of each Province within each of the Realms who lead the Provinces; after the Lords come their Houses and then Clans.
The remainder of the nation is divided roughly into two parts - those who have a House and Clan, and those who do not.
Those who have a Clan and House are ordinary workers who enjoy the honour of house and clan even though their house and clan are minor in the grand scheme of things; or servants who enter the service of another house within the same clan (InterClan servitude is forbidden).
Those who do not have a Clan or House are called Serfs - freemen who have not yet been able to find a House and CLan willing to accept their Family; these serfs enjoy the same rights as Servants and Clansmen, there is a risk attached to being a Serf in that there is no House to protect you from a Slaver should he decide to take you as his property being that there is no one of credit able to declare the serf as being a freeman and those who are not freemen or can not prove their status as freemen become slaves.
Finally at the very bottom of Scottish; and indeed Gael Clanhold Society; is the slaves - men and women who have to rights and are not protected by any law and their owners can do with them as they see fit for they are property. This aspect of Clanhold life is largely ignored by the masses and polite society and is mostly unseen to the eyes of the peoples of other nations.
The Royal Trooper UU
The Royal Trooper is a special section of the military who is set apart from the hierarchy of the Clanhold.
The Military is mostly made of units fielded from the Guards and soldiers of the Houses and Clans and maintain those House/Clan ties even during war and battle.
The Royal Trooper however does not maintain any such ties and as such even Clanless Serfs may become a Royal Trooper - upon becoming a Trooper the initiate ends all ties with House and Clan; if he is accepted into the ranks of the Royal Troop; and by adoption becomes a member of the Royal House and Royal Clan.
The Royal Troop answers, in theory to the High King, in practice to the King Royal of Scotland not to any General, Lord, or Prince but directly to the King.
Because of the set apart nature of the Royal Troop - though they are technically adopted members of the Royal House/Clan - they are somewhat alienated from the rest of Clanhold society and as such inspire both fear and respect in the populace.
A saying amongst the people goes "Whenever a Royal Trooper is near, you had best watch your neck for there is Treason in the air"; this is because in peace time the Royal Troop is used by the King to hunt down and destroy treasonous elements within the Clanhold. And in wartime they come together to form the elite core of the Scot Army.
Practical Applications of the UU =
Fierce Loyalty to the Crown.
Inspires Fear and Respect in enemies and friends alike.
Aggressiveness increases their offensive strength.
Loyalty and lack of "Red Tape" contributes to a quicker reaction to orders - ie quicker movement.