Estrelle

Estrelle. A beautiful country where magic and technology mixed. Rolling hills and grasslands that ended abruptly as Cities sprang up with cars, factories and other such things all run on steam engines that made life better for the people.

Ruled by an Queen, their southern border was always hostile, as Pergrande was a male run country that simply detested women. It took a lot to keep the borders secure, between the Griffon Riders - commonly called Airwolves - and various machines of war, they at least were at a standstill.

## Society:

The Crowns. The Lords, The Ladies, the upper class,the middle class, the working class. Each has its own place in the hierarchy of Estrelle.

Ruled by the Queen, who is served by the Lords, Dukes, Ladies and Duchesses, these are those that rule the country, with the Queen having final say, most of the Lords and Ladies have at least some part in the line of succession, should something happen to the Crown.

The Estrelle society is divided into nobility Upper Class, Middle Class, and the Working Class. The Estrellan Upper Class consisted of the Aristocrats, Nobles, Dukes, other wealthy families working in the Estrellan courts.

The Upper Class was in a powerful position giving them authority, better living conditions, and other facilities.

The Upper Class was by inheritance a Royal Class. Many Aristocrats did not work as for centuries together their families had been gathering enough money for each generation to live a luxurious life. However, there were a number of aristocrats who managed large industries like mining or shipping, etc.

In terms of education also those belonging to the rich families got the best tutors to provide education. The fact that they represented the royal class gave these people an advantage at everything. They could buy expensive clothes imported from Eurrsa, or afford other riches of life that was beyond the scope of others.

The Middle class was the next in social ranking. The Estrellan period was very prosperous for the middle class. Middle-class people also owned and managed vast business empires. The middle-class population at the very start of the Estrellan era was limited to a few.

The lowest among the social hierarchy were the working class. This class remained aloof to the political progress of the country and was hostile to the other two classes. This working class was further categorised as the skilled workers and the unskilled workers.

Due to the revolution, the industrial workers got jobs thus improving their living conditions. However, the unskilled workers who were placed below the skilled ones remained unemployed and were vulnerable to the exploitation.

The working class was the worst affected class in Estrelle. Lack of money resulted in a negligible food supply. For some working families, the living conditions were so pathetic that they required their children to work in order to bring home some extra income to survive.

The death of their father meant that there is no income to the family and they eventually were forced to live on streets or some public housing. There were some families which would reside in a single room just to have a shelter over their head. The conditions were so brutal for the working class that at times children were forced to work away from their parents.

Industrial Revolution attributed to the change in the status of women. According to the traditional family pattern, the women were supposed to look after the household chores and take care of children while the men would earn money. There was a strong presence of male dominance in the society. Women were to obey what men told them to do.

The revolution gave women an opportunity to work and earn money, thus changing the old beliefs. Working women not only shared the burden of earning money but it also gave them a sense of security. Their lives were no longer restricted to the house and children. The segregation of large families into nuclear ones also added to the change in the women’s lives.

Child labor is rampant throughout Estrelle. A major reason attributing to it is the amount of Orphans that are In Orphanages and this is a way for the children to “help” out the orphanages

Also, the family structure comprised of grandparents, parents, children, aunts, uncles etc. The number of family members living together was burdensome in lower class families. Thus, parents were forced to send their children to work and bring some more money. However, despite working for long hours, the children were underpaid and as such their living conditions hardly improved.

## Politics:

The government is a ‘monarchy’ but also has a Parliament, consisting of the House of The Lords and a House of the People. The House of the Lords are not elected, as they are The Lords and Dukes of Estrelle, The House of Commons are elected officials and thus can be removed from their seats in the house of commons with a general Election.

## Classes and Noble Titles In Estrelle:

* The Underclass: Skilled/Unskilled
* The Working Class: The Poort/The Prostitutes
* Middle Class: Higher level Middle Class/Lower Level Middle Class
* The Upper Class: Lower upper class/middle upper class/Royal Class

### The Upper Class

This was the highest social class of the Estrellan Social hierarchy. The people under this class did not work manually. Their income normally came from the investments made by them or from the inherited lands. Their routine work was fulfilled by the lower class people. This class further got sub divided in three parts as below –

* Royal Class – This include people from royal family and the spiritual lords.
* Middle Upper Class – This class include great officers of Estrelle, the baronets along with temporal lords.
* Lower Upper Class – This class include country wealthy gentleman and large scale business men who had made their way with the immense wealth they possessed.

### The Middle Class

These were the people who used to work meaning they had jobs to do. They made their living from the salaries they got according to the job done. This class included the following sub-classes.

* Higher Level Middle Class – These were high in terms of salaries and social status as compared to lower middle class.
* Lower Level Middle Class – These were the people who worked on the orders of the higher level middle class people.

### The Working Class

These were the group of labors which further got sub divided into two divisions.

* Skilled Class – They had unskilled labors working under their supervision.
* Unskilled Class – They were lowest category labor people.

### The Under Class

This class is sort of helpless people who depended on others.

* The Poor – These were poor people and orphans who relied on the charity of others.
* The Prostitutes – These women were at the bottom of the society and an enormous debate still continues.

## Titles:

* Queen/King
* Archduke/Archduchess
* Duke/Duchess
* Marquis/Marquessa
* Count/Countess
* Viscount/Viscountess/Vidame
* Baron/Baroness
* Baronet/Baronetta
* Knight
* Dame

## Heirarchy:

### ARISTOCRATIC SECT (HIGHEST TO LOWEST):

* Queen
* “Royal Family”
* Archdukes/Archduchesses
* Spiritual Lords
* See Clergy and Religion
* Temporal Lords
* Great officers of state
* Duke/Duchess
* Lord Hunter
* Marquis/Marquessa
* Count/Countess
* Viscount/Viscountess/Vidame
* Baron/Baroness
* Baronets/Baronetta
* Knights
* Country Gentlemen

All those of Titles can be called “Lord” or “Lady” followed by their title in formal settings.

### MIDDLE CLASS:

* Upper Middle Class:
	+ Factory owners
	+ Large Scale Businessmen
	+ Bankers
	+ Doctors
	+ Lawyers
	+ Egineers
	+ Most Clergy

* Lower Middle Class
	+ Small Scale Businessmen
	+ Shopkeepers
	+ Merchants
	+ Civil Servants

### LOWER/UNDER CLASS:

* The Working Class
	+ Laborers
	+ Factory Workers
	+ Seamstresses
	+ Miners
	+ Sweepers

* The Poor
	+ Poor/Prostitutes

## Known People of Title:

Queen: Alziel

Queen/King

Archduke/Archduchess

Duke/Duchess

Marquis/Marquessa

Count/Countess

Viscount/Viscountess/Vidame

Baron/Baroness

Baronet/Baronetta

Knight

Dame