Keeper of Oaths

Overview

This title is appointed by the Assembly of Loyalty

The Keeper of Oaths is an Imperial title appointed by the Assembly of Loyalty. The motion to construct the Forge of Bonds was passed by the Senate in Autumn 387YE. The Keeper of Oaths is responsible for the collection, preservation and upholding of important oaths. The title was created as a result of an opportunity presented in the Carved in stone wind of fortune.

The title was amended during the Spring Equinox 388YE by Cilicia of Athiliah's Handiwork, as Benefactor of Regalia, to assign the Oathspike as regalia.

Responsibilities

The Keeper of Oaths is responsible for the collection, preservation and upholding of important oaths. If the Forge of Oaths, or the pilgrims who visit, were to be threatened in any way, it would be the responsibility of the Keeper of Oaths to deal with the threat.

Powers

Carved in Stone

If the Keeper of Oaths has a congregation and is a member of either the Wintermark or Loyalty assemblies, they can use their judgement to raise a statement of principle to draw attention to an important oath. If the statement of principle is upheld, then the details of the oath will be engraved on the walls of the Forge of Bonds.

In the rare circumstance that two statements of principle are raised to draw attention to oaths, then only the oath whose judgement had the greatest margin would be engraved into the walls.

Oathspike

The Keeper of Oaths bears Oathspike, a relic of unknown provenance. It is the legal property of the title. If the Keeper loses their position, then the item must be given to the new Keeper with all appropriate haste. The Keeper of Oaths is encouraged to take all appropriate precautions to keep this item safe.

Veikko Bondforger, Keeper of Oaths

Appointment

The Keeper of Oaths is a virtue position which is appointed by judgement of the Loyalty Assembly.

The title can be held by any Imperial citizen. The Keeper has tenure and serves until they die or step down. They can be revoked by the General Assembly, the Assembly of Loyalty, and the Assembly of the Nine.

Summit	Nation	Elected	Votes
Winter Solstice 387YE	Wintermark	Veikko Bondforger	398 Votes

Recent Elections

This title is currently held by Veikko Bondforger. This title has tenure, the occupant may hold the title until it is revoked, they die or they relinquish the position. The table to the right shows the citizens who have been elected to hold this title in the years since Empress Britta died.

Forge of Bonds

An artists impression of the Forge of Bonds.

High in the mountains of Hahnmark, four jagged peaks rise above the clouds like a hand reaching toward the heavens. These are The Fingers, and it was here that the Steinr, guided by visions, first found their way to the Suaq and Kallavesi, and where the three peoples that became Wintermark were united.

Today, a small religious settlement clings to the slopes. This is a place of quiet reflection and pilgrimage where Courage, Loyalty, and Pride are honoured as the virtues that bind the nation together. The air is thin, the wind keen, and the stones are said to remember every oath spoken among them.

Set high among the peaks of The Fingers, the Forge of Bonds is carved into the mountain’s own heartstone. Its walls are rough-hewn but enduring, and inset equidistant in that stone are great panels of white granite. These panels are where the vows of heroes of the Empire are engraved, where those words will become part of the land itself. When the sun rises, the inscriptions catch the light like threads of silver.

The site is a place of ceremony beyond the oaths that are written into the walls. Some travel to swear new oaths, or renew old vows, at the Forge of Bonds. Swearing an oath here means the Keeper of Oaths, and the stone-deep words set into the mountain itself, can witness. The acoustics of the high rises of the Fingers mean that an oath spoken among them echoes across the hills.

The opportunity to construct the Forge of Bonds arose from two statements of principle raised by Hal IronBelly in the Wintermark Assembly and Veikko Bondforger in the Loyalty Assembly. Both assemblies called for the construction of an oathing place in Wintermark, a place where vows could be witnessed, recorded, and preserved for generations to come.

Oaths Recorded

The Keeper of Oaths may invite the oathing individual to journey to the Fingers in Hahnmark, where they can speak their words aloud and witness their vow carved into the white granite of the Forge, ceremoniously binding them to their words. Below are the oaths sworn at the Forge of Bonds since Autumn 387YE

Oath of Office of Emperor Vesna

I vow to stand side-by-side with my subjects and uphold what it means to be Imperial. I will recognise the virtue in struggle, service, and in hard choices made for the good of all. I will honour our oaths and treaties, act with virtue to all peoples, and extend the hand of friendship to those who would walk beside us. I will offer the hospitality of the hearth to the vulnerable, the disillusioned, and those who turn from us, and ensure that there is a place for all within the Empire. I vow to stand steadfast in the pursuit of strengthening this Empire, to place the needs of the Empire before my own, and to act with Courage, Wisdom, and Loyalty in all things so long as I am Emperor.