Basic Law of the Kingdom of Tiěyá

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Basic Law of the Kingdom of Tiěyá

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鐵崖王國根本法
BASIC LAW OF THE KINGDOM OF TIĚYÁ


Let it be known that as the lands of Tiěyá have been united at last, by trade and by gifts and by conquest, under a single rule; and as a prosperous and harmonious society desires a defined government to function on its behalf:

We hereby enact and establish this Basic Law for the governance of our kingdom.

Chapter I: Concerning the Kingdom

Article 1: Name

The state shall be officially known as 鐵崖王國 Tiěyá Wángguó (in Tieyanese); the Kingdom of Tiěyá (in Low Saxon); Königreich Tieya (in High Saxon); and 鐵崖王國 Tetsugai Ōkoku (in Sangunese).

Article 2: Form of Government

The Kingdom of Tiěyá shall be a hereditary and absolute monarchy headed by a King or Queen, who shall be the embodiment, possessor and ultimate wielder of national sovereignty and of governmental authority.

Article 3: Official Languages

The national language of the Kingdom is 鐵崖文 Tiěyáwén, or Tieyanese, defined as that dialect of the language once known as Jingdaoese which is customarily spoken within Tiěyá. The official languages of the Kingdom, in which the business of government shall be conducted, shall be Tieyanese and Low Saxon (English).

Article 4: Capital City

The official residence of the King or Queen, the royal court, and the headquarters of the institutions of the Royal Government shall reside in the city of Héchéng.

Chapter II: Concerning the Monarchy

Article 5: Titles and Style

The full title of the King or Queen shall be, in Tieyanese, 鐵崖(女)王 骨朝代長 判宗族長 牆衛士 Tiěyá (Nǚ-)Wáng, Gǔ Cháodài Zhǎng, Pàn Zōngzú Zhǎng, Qiáng Wèishì; and in Low Saxon, King (or Queen) of Tiěyá, Head of the Gǔ Dynasty, Head of the Pàn Clan, Guardian of the Walls, with the style of 強上 qiángshàn, or Superlative Highness.

Article 6: Powers

The King or Queen is head of state and head of government. He or she shall have ultimate executive, legislative, judicial, qualification, and oversight authority in the Kingdom. He or she shall also be commander-in-chief of the military forces of the Kingdom, and shall have the authority to grant or to take life and undeath. These powers may be exercised or delegated as he or she sees fit, and the institutions through which this is done shall comprise the Royal Government.

Article 7: Era Name

The reign of each King or Queen shall be reckoned a new era, and at the beginning of each reign the incumbent shall choose an era name to represent his or her rule; his or her reign shall be known by this name.

Article 8: Etiquette

The person of the King or Queen is sacred and inviolable. He or she must generally be referred to by style, by all or some of the full titulary, or as當今(女)王上Dāngjīn (Nǚ-)Wáng Shàng, the Present King (or Queen) Above. Only those who he or she has granted explicit permission may refer to him or her by another mode of address, particularly by personal name. Where it is necessary to distinguish the King or Queen from another, his or her era name may be used.

Article 9: Founder

The first Queen of Tiěyá shall be Pàn Shuānghuā, previously of other name, whose era name shall be 髞凰 Sàohuáng. The Gǔ Dynasty shall be descended from the Sàohuáng Queen, and therefore she, alone of any King or Queen, shall not be known as Head of the Gǔ Dynasty but as 骨朝代祖Gǔ Cháodài Zǔ, Founder of the Gǔ Dynasty.

Article 10: Succession

In the event of the permanent death, discorporation, or abdication of each King or Queen, the throne must pass to another member of the Gǔ Dynasty. In the absence of instruction from the defunct King or Queen, succession shall proceed according to the principle of equal primogeniture.

Chapter III: Concerning Social Order

Article 11: Classes

Society shall be divided into classes, whose rights and responsibilities shall differ from one another:

皇室 huángshì, members of the Gǔ Dynasty
諸侯 zhūhóu, nobles
大夫 dàfū, bureaucrats
庶民 shùmín, commoners

Article 12: Huángshì


Membership in the Gǔ Dynasty, and eligibility for the throne, shall be granted as follows: one must be directly descended from the Sàohuáng Queen; one must not have committed treason or disobeyed the laws or command of the King or Queen; one must not have married, procreated, or adopted without the permission of the King or Queen; one must not be more than six generations descended from a reigning King or Queen; one must not be descended from one who has lost membership in the Gǔ Dynasty. The King orf Queen may, irrespective of the above, grant or restore membership to any direct descendant of the Sàohuáng Queen who is not a member. Any direct descendant of the Sàohuáng Queen who is not a member of the Gǔ Dynasty may nonetheless retain the surname Pàn.

Each member of the Gǔ Dynasty shall have the automatic right to a courtesy title, which shall decrease in rank with descent from a reigning King or Queen:

親王 qīnwáng, Royal Prince/Princess, for the child of a King or Queen;
一等(女)公 yīděng(nǚ)gōng, Royal Duke (or Duchess), for the child of a Royal Prince or Princess;
一等(女)侯 yīděng(nǚ)hóu, Royal Marquess (or Marchioness), for the child of a Royal Duke or Duchess;
一等(女)伯 yīděng(nǚ)bó, Royal Count (or Countess), for the child of a Royal Marquess or Marchioness;
一等(女)子 yīděng(nǚ)zǐ, Royal Viscount (or Viscountess) of the First Rank, for the child of a Royal Count or Countess;
一等(女)男 yīděng(nǚ)nán, Royal Baron (or Baroness), for the child of a Viscount or Viscountess.

Each courtesy title shall carry with it a stipend appropriate to its rank, but shall have no lands attached to it. A loss of membership in the Gǔ Dynasty shall entail the loss of one's courtesy title and its associated stipend.

The child of a Royal Baron or Baroness shall, upon reaching majority, cease to remain a member of the Gǔ Dynasty and shall receive no courtesy title. Any individual who is granted, or restored to, membership of the Dynasty by the King or Queen, shall as part of the grant receive one of the above courtesy titles which shall then descend in the prescribed manner.

The membership of the Gǔ Dynasty shall be subject to no authority below that of the King or Queen and those members of the Royal Government tasked specifically by the King or Queen to deal with them.

Article 14: Zhūhóu

The nobility shall be subject to no authority below that of the King or Queen and those members of the Royal Government tasked specifically by the King or Queen to deal with them. They shall consist of five ranks:

(女)公 (nǚ)gōng, Duke (or Duchess)
(女)侯 (nǚ)hóu, Marquess (or Marchioness)
(女)伯 (nǚ)bó, Count (or Countess)
(女)子 (nǚ)zǐ, Viscount (or Viscountess)
(女)男 (nǚ)nán, Baron (or Baroness)

Each noble title shall be granted by the King or Queen as an honor for merit or service; it shall carry with it a stipend appropriate to its rank, but shall have no lands attached to it. The descendants of a grantee shall have titles decreasing in rank with each generation of descent from the grantee. The children of a Baron or Baroness shall, upon reaching majority, cease to be nobility and shall have no title.

Article 16: Dàfū

The members of the bureaucracy shall consist of all those ministers, officials, and functionaries who are directly employed in the Royal Government. The bureaucracy shall be organized in a hierarchy of positions whose holders shall be decided upon ability, experience, and merit. Each bureaucrat shall receive a salary and official residence appropriate to his or her position; he or she will be expected to carry out the commands of the King or Queen without delay, to give and receive instructions from other bureaucrats in accordance with the hierarchy, to serve the people faithfully, and to perform the duties of the position with justice and efficiency and without corruption. No member of the bureaucracy may be a noble or a member of the Gǔ Dynasty.

Article 17: Shùmín

The commoners shall consist of those who are not members of the higher classes. They shall be expected to support and obey the Royal Government and its officials, and to pay respect to nobles and to members of the Gǔ Dynasty.

Chapter IV: Concerning Rights and Responsibilities

Article 18: Marriage

Aside from members of the Gǔ Dynasty, who may marry only with the permission of the King or Queen, no subjects of the Kingdom shall be forbidden to marry provided that the participants are:
-of the age of consent;
-sound of mind;
-entering into the marriage with full knowledge and consent.

Article 19: Children

The living subjects of the Kingdom shall not be forbidden to have a reasonable number of children, taking into account economic conditions and the suitability of the parents. The undead may raise such children as were theirs when alive, or else may adopt children; but the creation of offspring for or by the undead shall be restricted and regulated. The members of the Gǔ Dynasty, living or dead, may procreate or adopt children only with the permission of the King or Queen.

Article 20: Property

Bureaucrats of the Royal Government are provided with an official residence; a bureaucrat may not buy or own land in the same jurisdiction in which he or she has authority. Subjects of the Kingdom shall not otherwise be generally forbidden to buy, own, sell, or rent property within the Kingdom, nor shall they be deprived of their property without just compensation.

Article 21: Freedom of Thought

No subject of the Kingdom shall be either required to follow any creed, philosophy, or mode of thought; neither shall any subject of the Kingdom be forbidden from following any such, except in such circumstances that it leads him or her to cause harm to other individuals, to society, or to the institutions of the Kingdom.

Article 22: Work

The commoners and nobility of the Kingdom shall not be restricted from finding employment in any such fashion as they are willing and able to undertake and be accepted, and which does not involve unlawful activity; nor shall they be compelled to work in a position against their will, for excessive hours, or without proper compensation. No subject of the kingdom shall be forbidden to apply and be tested for entrance into the bureaucracy, nor to leave its service; but any bureaucrat, once accepted, must take such positions and salaries as the Royal Government determines until he or she departs from service. Members of the Gǔ Dynasty may not take up any occupation or venture without the approval of the King or Queen.

Article 23: Punishment

No subject of the Kingdom shall be subjected to torment or unnecessarily painful forms of punishment. If a subject must be condemned to death, the execution must be carried out as quickly and painlessly as is feasible.

Article 24: Education

No subject of the Kingdom shall be deprived of education. Primary and secondary schooling shall be made available without cost, as shall libraries.

Article 25: Taxation

It shall be the responsibility of all subjects of the Kingdom to pay taxes, whether from income, property, or sales, for the support and maintenance of the nation, the King or Queen, and the Royal Government. The higher classes, being paid from the treasury by the Royal Government, shall have their income taxes deducted directly from their salaries and stipends.

Article 26: Harmony

It shall be the responsibility of all subjects of the Kingdom to maintain social harmony. Gatherings of people must be peaceful and cause no harm to property or public order; no unauthorized individual may trespass on property that is not his or hers; people must show politeness and respect in public places.

Chapter V: Concerning Undeath

Article 27: Death

Upon the death of a living subject of the Kingdom, his or her corpse shall be delivered into the custody of the Royal Government. Each living subject shall have the right, before death, to apply for a state of sapient undeath available to his or her class; if this application is accepted and the required fees paid, the appropriate necromantic rituals will be performed upon the corpse to grant the individual the requested state of undeath. If no application is made, the application is not accepted, or the fees are not paid, the corpse becomes the property of the King or Queen and its disposition shall be the prerogative and responsibility of the Royal Government.

Article 28: Creation

The creation of undead shall be the province and prerogative of the Royal Government. The relevant procedures shall be done through the offices of the trained priests and scholars retained by the Government for this purpose, and may be done only in accordance with law and regulation. The creation of undead by unapproved individuals, means, or motives shall merit prosecution and punishment of those involved.

Article 28: Regulation

Undead not being subject to natural passage, their numbers must be monitored and managed. Limits shall be placed on the numbers of each form of undead, and these limits shall be a factor in the acceptance or denial of applications for undeath.

Article 29: Status

Each sapient undead, upon being granted undeath, shall return to the same position and class as he or she had in life. Nonsapient undead are the property of the King or Queen and their disposition is the prerogative and responsibility of the Royal Government. Should any undead be found to have been created illegally, or by an act of Heaven and Earth, its status and fate shall be determined based on its sapience, corporeality, and to what extent the living individual was complicit in the act of creation.

Article 30: Phylacteries

Any undead subject of the Kingdom whose soul is housed in a phylactery shall have it placed in the custody and safekeeping of the Royal Government.

Article 31: Foreign Nationals

Should a living foreign national die within the territory of the Kingdom, the Royal Government shall notify the next-of-kin and home government of the deceased and keep the corpse preserved for up to two months in anticipation of retrieval; it shall be returned to either party upon the reimbursement of the costs of preservation and storage, as well as any costs associated with transport. Should the costs not be met or the corpse otherwise go unclaimed, it shall become the property of the King or Queen for conversion to nonsapient undead.

Chapter VI: Concerning Political Organization

Article 32: Divisions

The Kingdom shall be divided into six 省 shěng, or provinces, each named for its administrative capital:

合城 Héchéng
靉港 Àigǎng
凄山Qīshān
安水 Ānshuǐ
重建榮 Chóngjiànróng
灰岸 Huī'àn

Article 33: Provincial Administration

Each province shall be administered by a branch of the Royal Government headed by a 巡撫 xunfu, or governor, appointed by the King or Queen.

Chapter VI: Concerning Symbols

Article 34: National Flag

The flag of the Kingdom has a width two-thirds of its length. It is a horizontal bicolor, black above and blue below. A white circle, one half the flag's height and a third of its width, occupies the center; over all, separating the halves of the field and crossing over the circle, is a gray stripe from hoist to fly, whose height is one-sixth that of the flag.

Article 35: National Emblem

The emblem amd seal of the Kingdom shall be a stylized 梅花 méihuā, or plum blossom, with red petals and white stamens, surrounded between the petals by five red skulls, and upon whose center is a roundel of black in chief and blue in base, a gray stripe between them; the whole within a white circle with a red border, on the latter of which is written "鐵崖王國".

Article 36: National Animal

The national animal of the Kingdom shall be the 鳳凰 fènghuáng, or phoenix.

Chapter VII: Concerning the Basic Law

Article 37: Amendment

It shall be the exclusive province and prerogative of the King or Queen to decree the alteration, abolition, or replacement of this Basic Law.
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