The History of Palatine

The new Palatinate is a
unique blend of monarchy, republic, and hegemony.  It is at times an absolute monarchy, at
others, an anarchic mixture of at least a dozen small states turned into a nation
state by name only.  All of this is based
in the legacy of the Palatine, the capital of the world.  In the ancient era the Palatine was either
constructed (or discovered) by the Elline Palla.  In that era, it was a meeting place where all
disputes could be solved on neutral ground by officials that we would now call
Palatines.  Any man could become one and
the status was considered that of an official instead of a warrior.  The building was the center of a small city,
named Pallas (meaning “Wisdom” in the local tongue).

According
to local myth, the original citizens of the Palatine were the children of the
goddess Pallas.  They claimed that they were
a kingdom many times, and powerful, influential ones.  But they were a people bound to the whims of
the Crownmaker and the Kingbreaker, caught in an eternal dance.  And so, Pallas took them into the south and
built a Palace fit for the greatest king in the world.  But she looked upon the people and decreed
that no man could sit enthroned in this palace and gave unto the people a code
of laws that would free them for the tyranny of the two gods.  And according to myth, the Palatines of
Pallas commanded the whole of the west (or even the whole world according to
some legends) through their wisdom and power, but kept falling.  For all mortals fall prey to the whims of the
Crownmaker and the Kingbreaker.

That was before it was
conquered by Tarë fleeing across the continent.
The Tarë revived the city-state into a regional power and adopted the
customs and roles of those who owned the Palatine previously.  When their fellow Vamatar and Saumatar
brothers came to conquer the region, the Palatine served as the meeting place
from which the southern city-states gathered and after the long war, the
Palatine served as the arbiter of the deal.

The Council of the
Palatines ruled the city for generations and acted as arbiters between
nations.  The Palatines of ancient times
were led by an elected “First Palatine” who oversaw the whole league.  This position eventually became the title of *Répalatine* (falsely translated as
Emperor).  This man would be given the
authority to determine the results of an unclear vote.  He also is considered the figurehead for the
city of Pallas.  The Répalatine had to be
a charismatic and intelligent individual, capable of furthering his own
interests without the other palatines seeing or believing that he was doing
so.  The Répalatines of Pallas of various
different kingdoms

Pallas became the
unofficial capital of a hegemonic league and though it owned nothing, the local
city-states respected the Palatines greatly.
At times, the Répalatine’s influence caused their allies to joke that
they were the avatars of the Crownmaker and their rivals accused them of being
the incarnations of the Kingbreaker.

The original state became
a regional power through a successful business model.  The Elline Palla would expand by strategic
diplomacy and an inclusive and fluid government, that assure protection and
independence from the many rising and falling empires.  They could send officials, named Palatines,
to the famous structure, where they would be allowed to directly influence the
governance of the city and protect their interests on the Council of Palatines.

These Palatines served as
a neutral judiciary system where no nation was allowed to interfere.  The Palatines were initially a chosen
group.  However, over the centuries, the
Palatine positions became more and more hereditary, as the same families were
elected over and over to administrate the cities.  These families would become the Palatine
Houses and in years to comes, these families would take on very aristocratic
attitudes.  The Palatines became the de
facto rulers of their city-states.

The
Palatine itself changed hands many times.
In third incarnation of the Empire, when the Palatines were conquered by
the Rëlines, their King ascended the Palatine and built a throne of laurel
wood, beginning “The Empire of the Laurel King.”  The Palatines ceased to be a council and the
title came to mean a regional warlord, which became the word: Paladin.  The Rëlines were eventually driven into the
far north, where the Emperors-in-exile dwelt.
A series of successor dynasties continued the legacy.  But the hegemony had long collapsed and the
title became the ruler of a city-state.
The last Palatine *Répalatine*
died childless, and the Palatines were called to elect the successor.  Just as the death came, news of a conquering
king was heard.  One had an army and
could subdue the rebellious city-states and the Tarë.  No one knows what happened during this
period, but one Palatine, Pethenon the Devout, was moved by the Godhead and he did
the unthinkable and offered Valén kingship over Pallas.

The Saint-Emperor Valén
was stunned and amazed.  He immediately
rode to the city and cast out the Palatines and prepared to proclaim himself
king.  But he soon found that the people
of Pallas identified completely with their Palatine.  He set to reconquering all of the former
city-states, placing his own men as the new Paladins.  He then held an election and the Paladins
elected Valén as the Répalatine and Reya of Pallas.  Soon after, he was proclaimed by the
Ecclesiarch and his vassals to be Répalatine of the West.  He “cast off” the title of Reya to become a
mere citizen and ruled the Palatine.

The Palatinate is a
“league” of city-states and kingdoms that all have Paladins to advise the
Répalatine.  These nations vary from
being the puppets of the Répalatine to autonomy, and even to effectively ruling
the entire Palatinate.  This has been the
case for millennium as the Répalatine only has as much authority as the other
states believe it has.  A charismatic
Répalatine with a strong power base could potentially upend the whole balance
of power in the entirety of the west.
The new Palatinate is incredibly powerful as a group but also incredibly
unstable.  All of the states within the
Palatinate have a Laurë Palatine.  The
whole system was designed to promote the interests of the Répalatine Valén and
keep the Laurë in power.  This has
translated to his successors with very mixed results, ranging from autocrats to
puppets in no predictable order.  For
though the Paladins are more warlike than ever, their authority comes from
their own personal charisma and ability to create a powerbase.  For the title is not one of ownership but of
consultation.  The Répalatine is not
inherently a king and Palatines are not inherently lords…they most likely will
have some kind of power base but there have been many recent Répalatines who
were Répalatines alone.  Most of these
rulers were weak but some were the most powerful in the world.