The Council of Estia
While each city-state in the League rules themselves, questions that concern all the members are debated and voted on in the Council of Estia. The Council was modelled on the Teccan Senate, which ruled under the Emperor before the dissolution of the Empire. The major difference from the Teccan Senate is of course the lack of a monarch above the council, instead holding executive power themselves.
The total number of councilmembers have fluctuated over the years, but has generally been between 20 and 30 members. A new seat can be established by a two-thirds vote of the council, either for a settlement that has grown big enough to warrant representation in the government, or as a reward to a noble family, or if a new government position warrants it.
The Speaker of the Council is the closest thing the Estian League has to a monarch, but the Speaker is far less powerful, as they need at least half the councilmembers to vote with them on major decisions. Each Speaker is chosen for a five-year term (there are no term limits) by the other members of the Council, in a process called Conclave. The Speaker is granted the rank of Duke or Duchess, elevating them above the other nobles.
There are three types of seats on the council, each controlling one vote. The first are the inherited seats given to the oldest noble families, held by the head of their respective House. This inherited power is a major source of contention between the the factions of the Council.
Secondly, each city-state has a representative on the council. The city-states are free to choose who to send however they wish. About half of these seats are appointed by the ruler of that city-state, which lets many noble families have more than one vote on the Council. However, a handful of seats hold elections of varying fairness. Count Aurius of Greystone is unique in that he personally holds two votes on the council, an arrangement that would probably not be accepted if he did not rule over the largest member city-state.
The third type of seat are ex officio held by high governmental posts, such as the Lord Treasurer or the Archmage of the Archivists. Appointments to these posts are nominated by the Speaker, and require the approval of a majority vote. While the offices are intended to be filled with meritocratically chosen civil servants, they are liable to be granted to people loyal to the Speaker if enough policial capital can be found.
The cities that send representatives to the council are free to choose who they want to send themselves. Some have elections, other are feudal and are represented by their lord. Councilmembers from far away seats sometimes prefer to send an ambassador to vote in their stead (communicating via Sending) while they conduct their business from home.
Current members of the Council
The first section of the table are inherited noble seats. The second section are the representatives from around the islands. The last section are the government officials.
If a vote is tied, the Speaker's vote decides.
| Member | Constituency | Description | Faction | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duchess Portia | House Tuveren | Human | Nobility | Speaker |
| Count Roscoe | House Beckett | Human | Nobility | |
| Count Lucian | House Blaise | Human | Populists | |
| Count Aurius | House Dawnstar, Greystone | Human | Nobility | 2 votes |
| Baroness Miranda | House Keswick | Human | Nobility | |
| Baroness Salome | House Cassaro | Aasimar | Nobility | |
| Baron Balduin | House Villencourt | Halfling | Nobility | |
| Countess Catherine Beckett | Covenant | Human | Nobility | |
| Jarl Murkla Greatbraid | Myrknes | Dwarf | Populists | |
| Lord Jerome Delacroix | United Archipelago | Halfling | Populists | Elected |
| Michael nan Cohornae | Cottenhorn | Half-elf | Populists | Elected |
| Damien Alvaro | Tembridge | Gnome | Populists | Elected |
| Jonathan Prince | Whitport | Human | Populists | Elected |
| Chieftain Dusk Sabletail | Turquoise Islands | Tabaxi | Nobility | Defunct* |
| General Lysander Breckenridge | General of the Purple Legion | Human | Nobility | |
| Admiral Constance Arbrintirel | Admiral of the Seaguard | Half-elf | Nobility | |
| Veramell | Grand Emissary | Kalashtar | Populists | |
| Lady Calliope Beckett | Lady Treasurer | Human | Nobility | |
| Melchior Renzone | Chief Justice | Gnome | (None) | |
| Grumbel Stonechisel | Archbishop of Covenant | Dwarf | Populists | |
| Archmage Hedwig Crimeon | Archmage of the Archivists | Tiefling | Populists | |
| Lord Achilles Cassaro | Spymaster | Human | Nobility |
* - the Turquoise Islands were accepted into the League around 170 years ago, but has recently been annexed by the Pilgrim Knights, rendering the city-state defunct. It still retains its seat on the council, as there is no means of ejecting a member city-state.
Speaker Portia Tuveren was elected to her first term four years ago. She leads a fragile majority alliance of noble families. One of the issues that have eluded her so far during her term is extending a new seat to Owl Rock, her own fief. This would give her the power to appoint her husband to the Council, further cementing house Tuveren as one of the major power players in the League.
Previous speakers in reverse chronological order:
- Count Roscoe Beckett served for one term before narrowly losing the election to Duchess Portia.
- Alexander Dawnstar, father of Count Aurius, served two full terms before dying shortly after leaving office.
- Talia Graceborne served for three terms, a period of stability and growth. She was the last of her line, and her house died along with her.
- Archibald Beckett and Maxwell Tuveren alternated holding the Speakership for eight terms, cementing the rivalry between their families.
Factions
The major axis that divides the Council is the issue of the feudal structures that still governs most of Estia. The noble families are obviously in favor, but the number of councilmembers that favors abolishing it for a true democracy is becoming too large to ignore.
Nobility
The currently dominant faction of the Council is the nobility. Its members can often trace their lineage back for many generations, to when the islands were a province of the Teccan Empire. If the hardliners of this faction would have their way, the League would be ruled by a monarch, and the Council would be a purely advisory body.
Speaker Portia is the current Duchess of Estia, and leader of this faction. Lately, she has been forced to make some concessions to the Populists in order to pass some important votes. This goes doubly for appointments to the League high offices, where the internal rivalries among the noble families means that the support of the Populists is usually required.
For example, in order to appoint Lord Achilles as Spymaster (this was opposed by several noble families hoping to seat one of their own) a deal was made in exchange for the support of the populists, where taxes are now levied on the owner of the land instead of whoever farms it.
This pork-barrel dealing with the Populists have caused rifts to appear within the faction, something that the Populists keen to pounce on.
Populists
The populist faction of the council wants to curtail the inherent power structures that keep a handful of families in power over many generations. They believe the Council should be filled by elections where merit and aptitude matter more than bloodlines and wealth. While they have the support of most ordinary people, only smaller city-states hold elections for their seats.
As always with a movement of the people, there are as many different opinions as there are members. Some are of the opinion that a compromise agreement with the nobility would strengthen the League and let it focus on prosperity and foreign issues. Others want nothing less than full democracy, with no inherited power. Yet others see it as a way to carve a slice of the nobility's power for themselves.
The populists have even attracted a few noble families to their cause, albeit for different reasons entirely. Count Lucian of Cottenhorn is a firebrand figurehead for the faction, and he would be the natural Speaker if the Populists achieved a majority on the Council. Jarl Murkla, while nobility herself, have thrown her lot in with the Populists in order to claw back some of the lands and privileges that the dwarven fiefdoms once held on Estia.