A Sparrow in Spring

"What's a lect?"

"A what? A lect?" Harry stared at his little sister with open derision. "What are you going on about?" he demanded.

Nicole refused to back down. "It's the new Empress init? I heard she's an Empress Lect."

"E-lect... you pillock. She's the Empress Elect." Harry rolled his eyes and implored all the paragons to save him from foolish sisters with foolish questions.

"Alright - what's an "Elect" then?" Nicole retorted in a sing-song voice. She idolised her elder brother, but ever since he'd graduated from his apprenticeship in the painthouse, he'd been full of himself.

"Er... it's like..." Harry pursed his lips and thought hard. "I think it means she's got to be elected... or something. That's why everyone isn't celebrating yet... they're waiting for her to get elected..."

"That don't make no sense!" Nicole took great pleasure in pointedly rolling her eyes. "How she'd get to be Empress if she ain't been elected already?"

"Haven't you got work to be doing? Goaty's gonna tan your hide if you don't get them barrels counted."

Nicole pulled her face at her brother but she left just the same. He wasn't wrong... Goaty would take a ring out of her wages if she didn't inventory everything in the cellar by nightfall. He'd be stocking up for weeks, what with the Empress Lect or whatever her name was.

Personal heraldry of the new Empress

Overview

The Imperial Senate has chosen Senator Vesna Borkovna Prochnost to be the new Empress. In addition to the coronation and festivities at Anvil, the election of a new Throne is traditionally met with celebrations all across the Empire. There is excitement everywhere, most especially in Ossium, with every town and vale making preparations to celebrate their new Empress. Prosperous citizens are anticipating an opportunity to demonstrate their virtue, and looking to the Senate to respond in kind. The Senate will need to have the Imperial treasury foot the bill for some truly impressive celebrations, if they wish to capitalise on this wave of jubilation.

Of course the overwhelming majority of citizens of the Empire have never met the new Throne, nor are they ever likely to. To make it possible for the common citizen to know what the Empress desires of them, their powers include the ability to grant a single citizen the right to address the Empire each summit. Once a text has been prepared, the civil service work tirelessly to distribute it across all ten nations. The words of a Throne are always important, even if they delegate the responsibility to another, but the first address, the inaugural address, is crucial for setting the tone of their reign.

These are far from the only weighty matters for the Throne and her senators to consider. The new Throne will be in a position to ratify any motions with constitutional implications that the Imperial Senate might pass and to personally appoint a number of Imperial titles.

A New Era

Proud, Loyal, and Prosperous Imperial citizens, now is the time to join together in joy and celebration, the like of which we have not seen in our lifetimes!

But let us not forget, in the midst of our revelry, that our necessary wars have a terrible cost in Imperial lives. I ask that all of us act howsoever we can, to stem this tide of Imperial blood.

Let us ensure that our sisters and brothers, fathers and mothers, daughters and sons, may continue to fight on in pursuit of our Empire’s great destiny.

Inaugural Address of Empress Lisabetta

When Empress Lisabetta was crowned, the Imperial Senate and the Imperial Synod both donated sums to support the celebrations, but the bulk of donations came directly from private citizens. All told 500 Thrones were raised to pay for the most wondrous celebrations. The resulting excitement and fervour meant that citizens across the Empire were eager to support the new Empress. Her Inaugural Address was short but clear - that everyone in the Empire should act to stem the tide of Imperial blood. The combination of wondrous celebrations and clear message created a permanent legacy - ever since every Imperial army has had the ability to launch a steady conquest, seeking to push back the barbarians with the minimum loss of life.

With a new Throne, a new era begins. If Empress Vesna's inaugural address has a clear message there is every reason to believe that it will produce a similar effect to Empress Lisabetta's first address, if the accompanying festivities enjoy the same level of support.

If the Senate wish to ensure that the celebrations are effectively organized then someone will have to take responsibility for it. A single Senate motion would identify the individual the civil service needed to liaise with - and it could also authorise the disbursement of Imperial funds if the senators saw fit. That individual could then receive any donations from wealthy individuals attending the Anvil who wish to supplement the Senate's bounty with a show of Pride and Prosperity as well as anything the Imperial Synod saw fit to allocate from the Virtue fund. The scale of the benefits is dependent on the scale of the celebrations; the nature of them will be determined by the wording of the short celebratory message dictated by The Throne.

Grand Celebrations

• Grand celebrations can be arranged for 80 thrones.

This will pay for parades, street entertainment, decorations, and food across the Empire, including the hiring of a great number of entertainers, musicians, and artists for the duration. It will significantly improve the morale of the Empire.

When Britta took the Throne she sent a message that was to loyal citizens at every celebration urging them to support her efforts to rebuild the military strength of the Empire. The surge of Imperial Pride and Vigilance that resulted saw citizens signing up to aid many of the Imperial armies or donating much-needed resources to the war effort, giving those armies not engaged in campaign additional resupply worth equivalent to five wains each. When Emperor James ascended the resulting celebrations set the tone for his rule - with citizens urged to provide what they could to help strengthen the fortifications of the Empire. The resulting donations went much of the way to repair the badly damaged Tower of the Dawn in the Barrens.

This will be a great celebration on par with those that greeted the ascension of Empress Britta, Emperor James, Emperor Hugh, and Emperor Walter.

Breath-Taking Celebrations

• Breath-taking celebrations can be arranged for 250 thrones.

This will pay for feasts to fill the bellies of all who attend glorious banquets; there will be amazing works of artifice and troupe upon troupe of musicians and actors to entertain those who attend with plays, operas, masquerades, fireworks, and displays of magical lights imported from Urizen. Grand magical auras and rituals will be created to entertain and delight the population, heralds of the Realms and foreign dignitaries invited, and visitors will gather from across the Empire to partake.

While Emperor Nicovar is rarely spoken of these days, he was considered a brilliant ruler in the early years of his reign. While his message to the citizens was a little dry, it was still sufficient to move minds and much of the expansion of the Lyceum was paid for with the grateful support of citizens urged by the Emperor to support his plans to expand the academic and civic infrastructure of the Empire.

The ascension of Thrones like Empress Giselle and Emperor Nicovar, were both accompanied by breath-taking celebrations.

Wondrous Celebrations

• Wondrous celebrations can be arranged for 500 thrones.

The enthronement of Empress Lisabetta was accompanied by wondrous celebrations, rivalling the glories that accompanied the coronations of Empress Richilde and Emperor Giovanni. The cities of the League were transformed into wonderlands for a week, bridges of magical glass were conjured to link the spires of Urizen to allow celebrants to travel from mountain to mountain. There were grand tourneys in Dawn, and festivals in the Marches. Every nation of the Empire took part, an experience that few will ever forget.

Many citizens are hoping that the election of the new Throne will be accompanied by similar celebrations and festivities. Merchants on the Bay of Catazar have begun importing consignments of wine, beer, brandy and mead in readiness. Weavers in Dawn are booked up with orders for fabric for fine new garments. Hard working mummers, sutannir, troubadours, stzena and scops are all anticipating a wealth of new patronage. Wealthy Varushkans are determined to ensure that the Prosperity of their new Throne is every bit as magnificent and memorable as that of the Merchant Prince of Holberg. If the Empire provides enough funding to pay for wondrous celebrations, they are determined to ensure that the resulting festivities are unrivalled in Imperial history.

The ascension of Thrones like Empress Richilde, Emperor Giovanni, and Empress Lisabetta were all accompanied by wondrous celebrations.

Ratification and Appointments

• The first responsibility of the new Empress will be to ratify her own election and the creation of the Citizen's Voice
• The Imperial Throne can appoint the Captain of the Throne Guard, the Queen's Rose, and the Keeper of the Imperial Menagerie

Several things call for the attention of the new Throne. Her own appointment requires ratification, as does the motion to create the position of Citizen's Voice. Without ratification by the Throne, these motions will remain in suspension until such a time as a Throne wishes to ratify them.

There are a number of titles available for the new Throne to appoint. Nobody has held the position of Captain of the Throne Guard; it being completed in the months following the disappearance of Empress Lisabetta. The Captain has the responsibility to protect the Throne in accordance with the Throne Guard oath: "in body, mind and soul". Any Imperial citizen is eligible to be appointed as Captain of the Throne Guard.

The Queen's Rose is a national position of Dawn with a responsibility to foster friendship and alliances between Dawn and other nations of the Empire. There have been two previous holders of the position, but it has stood empty since the Summer Solstice 384YE.

The Keeper of the Imperial Menagerie is a position with tenure that has been held by Kay Griffinsbain since the Summer Solstice 381YE. The Keeper is responsible for the ongoing well-being of the rakshasa and receives two thrones and three measures of heart's blood as part of their seasonal income. The title was created with tenure, meaning it would not be available for appointment unless the current holder died, retired, or was revoked.

Monarch of Dawn

• The title of Monarch of Dawn is vacant

One weighty consideration facing the new Empress will be whether to challenge for the title of Queen of Dawn. As a citizen of Varushka, Vesna would not be permitted to fight in the resulting tourney and would need to rely solely on the support of Dawnish nobles to fight on her behalf. Empress Lisabetta was the first Throne in over a century to ask the Dawnish noble houses to fight for her on the tourney field. There has been a close relationship between Varushka and Dawn in recent years, with their armies fighting side by side in the conquest of Ossium, but it remains to be seen if the new Empress will feel confident enough to stake her claim.

Further Reading

• A Crown in Winter - 385YE Winter Wind of Fortune about the coronation of the new Throne
• Iron and wine - 380YE Autumn Wind of Fortune describing the celebrations after the coronation of Empress Lisabetta
• The Throne