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Social Structure of Kyr
The Emperor
The people of Kyr see little need for complicated government
or legal systems. Life here is harsh and its people
equally so. The ultimate power in Kyr is the Emperor.
Usually this is a hereditary position, with the eldest
son taking over on the fathers death.
Currently, since the death of her father and in the
absence of son, Kyr is ruled by the Empress. She is
a young woman but has inherited her fathers intelligence,
guile and ruthlessness. This is just as well, since
Kyr is a male-dominated society and although women have
ruled before in similar circumstances, it is never an
easy position to hold for them. Women seldom hold other
positions of power other than in trade.
Emperor's Circle
The next tier of power is the Emperor’s circle.
This is a body of advisors chosen by the Emperor specifically
because he values their advice (or wishes to maintain
their loyalty.) The Emperors Circle consists of twelve
people which can be literally anybody, although in practice
it usually consists of a selection of powerful city
governors, members of the emperor’s family, and
perhaps a holy man or sufi thrown in for effect.
There are popular tales told among the poor of slaves,
foreigners and even harem girls who came to “wear
the circle” following some great feat, or daring
adventure. Charming as these stories are, no such lowly
member of society have joined their ranks in recent
times.
Governors
Below the Circle is the rule of the governors. Each
city has three governors. The Ra’is, or chief,
is the overall ruler of the city, responsible for civilian
administration, answering directly to the Emperor. The
Amir is the second governor, in control of the city’s
militia and the dispenser of justice and law. The third
governor is the Muhtasib, also called the “light-keeper”,
responsible for the religious morality of the people
in the worship of Kheyesa.
Statesmen
A Kyrian Statesmen is an official of a Governer, the
Circle, or the Emperor. They travel the land acting
as a liaison between their employers and others of rank.
Statesmen hold an important position and their rank
is considered to be only slightly lower than the person
on whose behalf they speak. Consequently, a statesman
of the Empress would be given respect even by a city
Governor.
Kamir and Abi-kamir
A Kamir is the chosen leader of a village or settlement.
Their rank is directly affected by the size of the settlement
for which they stand and by their favour with people
of higher power. An Abi-Kamir, which means “war
leader”, is the chief of a nomadic tribe. In civilised
society their rank is very low, but in diplomatic dealings
with large tribes it can briefly attain a more respectable
level.
The Role Of Women
Kyrian society is heavily male-dominated, but this
should not be taken to mean that women have no influence
in Kyr. It is extremely rare, but not impossible, to
find women in any major positions of power. Most commonly
women are wives and mothers for the course of their
lives. Those women who do progress to higher position
do so on force of personality, skill and extreme political
awareness.
There are no woman in any positions of power in Kyr
advocating “female equality”. Such aberrant
views would quickly have destroyed their position in
the very early days. What they are working towards “behind
the scenes” is, of course, another matter.
The majority of woman in Kyr are content with their
lot, because it is what they are used to and have grown
up knowing. They do not understand the Berenian ideals
of equal rights, thinking them both bizarre and crude.
Given that the empire currently has a female as its
ultimate ruler, there was some fear that the climate
might begin to change. This has not happened, however.
The Empress surrounds herself with men and seems to
have little regard for other women in politics. This
is just as well, since such sympathies would have quickly
plunged the empire into civil war.
Slavery
Slavery is a way of life in Kyr. Slaves are kept by
virtually every wealthy family and it is considered
entirely normal to have slaves. One can become a slave
in a variety of ways. Criminals (and indeed anybody
who falls afoul of those in positions of power) are
often bound as slaves and sold at the local market.
Debtors who cannot pay often become slaves of the one
to whom they owe. Children born of two slaves automatically
become slaves themselves. Tribal nomads are often captured
and sold into slavery. A secretive foreign slave trade
regularly brings in folk from Bereny, although this
is something which is not openly spoken of for obvious
reasons.
Society Ranking
Kyrian civilised society is heavily based around each
persons social ranking. Each person is careful to show
respect to one who is of higher rank, and to remand
respect from one who is lower. Where the exact ranking
equivalence is uncertain, both parties would usually
give respect in a perfunctory manner to avoid conflict
and potential embarrassment. The table below shows how
each rank relates to the others from highest to lowest.
Ranking LEVELS
1/ Emperor
2/ Circle
3/ Governor:- Ra’is, Militia General
4/ Governor:- Amir, Militia Captain
5/ Governor:- Muhtasib
6/ Statesman*, Kheyesan High Priest
7/ Wealthy Trader, Kheyesan Priest
8/ Kamir
9/ City Militia
10/ Craftsmen, Adventurers, Freemen.
11/ Unenslaved Workers or Servants,
Abi-Kamir*, Militia
12/ Slave*, Tribal Nomad
The wives and daughters of a man are seldom involved
in politics. For the purpose of interaction there are
deemed to be two rankings lower than their spouse, although
the rules of etiquette dictate that they are treated
the same as the man in his presence or within his sphere
of influence. The sons of a man are treated as one rank
lower, with the same etiquette. There is no lower rank
than Slave.
Slaves themselves, however, have an accrued ranking.
Although technically they are the lowest rank there
is, in practice they gain a rank three levels lower
than their master in certain circumstances, to show
great respect for the owner of the slave. A favoured
slave of the empress, for instance, would be treated
almost as an equal and certainly with respect by an
Amir, and may actually be feared by Wealthy Trader.
Statesmen have the same rank as the person on whose
behalf they speak, but only when they are deemed to
be actually issuing the command of that person. In normal
interaction, they have the standard Statesmen’s
rank.
Abi-Kamir increase in rank to Kamir if they are speaking
with a higher ranked person by invitation on behalf
of their tribe.
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