[BROCP] - The Chamberlain

[Jim Cooper]

James Ruhland wrote:
> I combined some of these positions under the general "authority" (for lack of a better word) of the Chamberlain because of the generally
> accepted/presumed prominence of the Chamberlain of Anuire. Some of these guys would have existed in the past, and a number of them may still exist, as "Bureaux" chiefs under the supervision of the Chamberlain in current Anuire. Yes, but it is a "canon" given that the Chamberlain is a fairly prominent person in Anuire as a whole and the City in particular. IMO, the Chamberlain fills a role in Birthright/Anuire that is analogous (though not *very*) similar to the role the Bishop of Rome (the "Pope") played in early midieval history.<

This I disagree with as well. IMO, the Chamberlain has exactly zero
influence in the way things have progressed in Anuire over the past 5
centuries (relatively speaking). This is because the other regents
*don't want him to have* that influence. He is not the 'head' of the
Anuirean Empire, *nor* the head of Imperial tradition. His role is
purely ceremonial, just like the Sword and Crown. In effect, he can be
considered the third symbol, required to go with the Sword and Crown.
He is just the seat warmer for the next one (you can't expect an emperor
to sit in a cold Iron Throne!). He just tries to ensure that those
Imperial traditions are maintained, and followed, but has no power to
*enforce* them.

Basically, he is fighting to keep the Anuirean culture in a constant
state of stagnation. This isn't surprising, considering he has the most
to lose if the other regents decide not to follow his dreams of Empire
any longer. You see, the Big C's hands are tied by his very position.
He is limited because Imperial Law says that he has no authority without
the voice of an Emperor to back him up. In effect, he is
***lordless***, which is just "not right" to Anuirean thinking - he
falls out of the societal norm, and thus I should think would not be
_truly_ respected (except by those that truly respect Imperial tradition
of course). He takes public money to fulfill a job he can no longer
perform.

> *A bit more on that, since I was rather terse in my first response: it is certainly possible, if not actually likely, that the "traditional" duities are considered, or were considered (especially by the time of Michael Roele) the more important duities. But IMO their is still a distinction between the "official" duities of the Chamberlain and the more informal, but broadly respected and "traditional" ones that evolved into the possition over time.<

Wouldn't that then be a contradiction? Before, you were saying his job
was to defend tradition, yet currently he is changing those traditional
laws by assuming roles that aren't properly his! Unless, of course, you
mean that these were originally duties that were accorded the
Chamberlain, at the time of the last emperor, which now embodies the
'traditional' roles of the chamberlain.

Maybe I'm being dense again ... :)

Cheers,
Darren

[Jim Cooper]

James Ruhland wrote:
>The Chamberlain has at his disposal various organizations and tools, as well as the overwhelming respect of virtually the entire population of the city (even common criminals respect the Chamberlain. Most dissidents also respect the Chamberlain. Only a few small, secret cabals explicitly would overthrow the position of Chamberlain).

[Mark A Vandermeulen]

On Thu, 22 Oct 1998, Jim Cooper wrote:

> See, now this I disagree with. I see him being the top dog among equals
> - to the (as yet) unknown other Imperial Officiers (Butler, Steward,
> Castellan, etc). IMHO, his law holdings (and what not) merely represent
> these guys; the 'neutral' factions in the IC where, for one reason or
> another, the people (which these holdings represent) don't give one whit
> about whether so and so is the next emperor. So yes, the Chamberlain,
> being the Chief Manservant of the Imperial Court, has "general
> authority" over the rest of the Imperial Cairn and its estates, but that
> this authority has really no clout within the IC (other than to deny the
> other major players a larger piece of the pie). Influence (through
> bureaucratic red tape embodied by the Imperial Law Holdings=Imperial
> bureaucracy), yes, clout no. The Chamberlain, now, is largely and
> simply a Grand Ceremonial Bureaucrat, like Keith mentioned on the main
> list -> like the House Speaker in Canada's government. He has many
> titles and lots of prestige, but few really respect his decisions (other
> than in lip service).

Except that he does have one cheif power: the power of the Purse-strings.
If we do believe that there are vestiges of the Imperial Bureaucracy sill
alive and kicking around what little power they have left, they all need
money to operate, and that money has to come from such things like tarrifs
and imperial lisences, etc. that are still required within the confines of
the city. It must be the Chamberlain who decides how to divvy this budget
up into the hungry mouths. No doubt the Imperial Legion gets a goodly
chunk as defenders of the Imperial City, but I'm sure there's nowhere near
as much as each of the Bureaux would want.

> This I disagree with as well. IMO, the Chamberlain has exactly zero
> influence in the way things have progressed in Anuire over the past 5
> centuries (relatively speaking). This is because the other regents
> *don't want him to have* that influence. He is not the 'head' of the
> Anuirean Empire, *nor* the head of Imperial tradition. His role is
> purely ceremonial, just like the Sword and Crown. In effect, he can be
> considered the third symbol, required to go with the Sword and Crown.
> He is just the seat warmer for the next one (you can't expect an emperor
> to sit in a cold Iron Throne!). He just tries to ensure that those
> Imperial traditions are maintained, and followed, but has no power to
> *enforce* them.

I'd say you're right if you talking about outside the confines of the
Imperial City of Anuire. He has a lot of power within the walls of the
city as the de facto head of the Imperial Bureaucracy, but outside of the
walls, his only power is as a ceremonial figure (which in the hands of a
skilled wielder is not inconsiderable) or whatever influence he is able to
carve out for himself using his cheif weapons: loyal agents dedicated to a
cause (restoration of the Empire), public opinion and propaganda (Avan and
Boeruine need to remain on his good side: if the C gets pissed off and
announces that "X is not an acceptable candidate for the Iron Throne" and
can reasonably justify that statement, it sets back X's ambitions
significantly), and the ability to coordinate opposition on a large scale.
Probably only the Chamberlain is able to set in motion and coordinate
plans whose range and breadth cover the whole of the former empire, and
all because the Imperial City is such a central location for power and
information in the Empire. He can use this coordination ability to
continually throw road blocks in the plans of the major contendors (i.e.
random events).

> Basically, he is fighting to keep the Anuirean culture in a constant
> state of stagnation. This isn't surprising, considering he has the most
> to lose if the other regents decide not to follow his dreams of Empire
> any longer. You see, the Big C's hands are tied by his very position.
> He is limited because Imperial Law says that he has no authority without
> the voice of an Emperor to back him up. In effect, he is
> ***lordless***, which is just "not right" to Anuirean thinking - he
> falls out of the societal norm, and thus I should think would not be
> _truly_ respected (except by those that truly respect Imperial tradition
> of course). He takes public money to fulfill a job he can no longer
> perform.

My, aren't we cynical today. I suppose that you're right, but I expect
that he would be the FIRST to jump on the bandwagon if there WERE a
suitable and acceptable candidate for the Iron Throne, although that
person would have to prove himself extensively first. I don't imagine that
Imperial Chamberlains actually enjoy their jobs very much, it seems to me
like way too much headache and worry for an extremely dangerous job with
very little power or reward, but which the Dosiere's nevertheless feel is
their duty to do because no one else will. I think the current C would be
very happy to say to the new emperor, "great, it's your problem now, I'm
retiring to Suriene."

Mark