Blue Freedom Society

> *'The Republic shall be our only defence against the tyranny of chaos.' -* Baron Randall.
>
>

The **Blue Freedom Society** was a republican political entity which existed in some form from the First Parliamentary Era (821-935KF) up to the Restoration Coup of 1035KF. It was the most powerful of the anti-monarchist groups, and formed a great bulwark of support for the early rule of Premier Ewart Harding, but began to fracture as Harding's reign became more draconian, eventually fading into the political wilderness.

More of an ideological group than a political party, the Blue Freedom Society's exact position on any given issue (except the abolition of the monarchy) was unclear. In its early days, it was closest to the revolutionary liberals, but soon became a more centrist and less militant group. By the reign of Isabella I, the Blue Freedom Society was a highly aristocratic and traditional group, comprised of nobles who wanted to maintain the existing social order, but with a senate and parliament instead of any crowned figure. Its most valuable and famous figures were the poet and physician Dr. Halliston Royce, 5th Marquess of Castara, and the author of *A Birthright of our Own* Baron Oliver Randall of Beckdorf.

## Early History

The Blue Freedom Society was first formed as an amalgamation of the Blue League, a republican intellectual club, and the Krahull Freedom Society, a small political party of reformist liberals, in 823KF. The new entity took on characteristics of both its predecessors, combining the fluidity and casual aspects of the Blue League with the electoral prospects of the KFS, using this uniqueness to gain four seats (Northside Borough, The Old Marck, Heyeville, and South Lawford) in and around the city of Krahull during the elections of 827KF, which saw The Popular Action returned to power.

The BFS retained three of its four seats for another five elections, and in 848KF, began to field candidates in liberal districts of Saffira, though they never gained a seat there. They did however, substantially grow in membership, with over 80,000 people registered by 861KF. Blue Freedom Society clubs and meeting halls opened all over the empire, and they remained a major political entity for some time, although they never had a strong showing in Parliament.

## Resurgence

With the troubled ascension of Viktor II to the throne in 935KF, the First Parliamentary Era came to an end. None of the parliamentary parties would survive the new absolutist era intact, but since the Blue Freedom Society was, by this point essentially a large thinktank, it did not suffer very much. It became a solidly middle-class liberal discussion group for the next few decades, and did not make any attempt to enter constitutional politics during the brief Second Parliamentary Era of 945-951KF. It gradually became less and less radical as time went on, with most of the hierarchy dominated by republican aristocrats and patrician elites.

In 997KF, the group's leader, Baron Oliver Randall, published *A Birthright of Our Own,* a large volume of political theory which argued that the Kymurian people had a "birthright" to live under a republican system. It also refuted many defences of the new absolutist era, and provided an analysis of Kymurian history that placed the monarchy at the heart of the nations troubles. The book passed censorship easily, since the censorship commission decided that it would be too theoretical and cumbersome for the average citizen to understand. They were wrong. The book became available at a time when conservatives and reactionaries were defending Emperor Tyenn's disastrous rule as the "prerogative of his birthright," and so the sense of irony demonstrated by the books' title made it an eye-catching affair. The book sold out within three weeks, and publishers, seeing a great financial opportunity, began printing vast numbers of copy; despite warnings from the censors, who were essentially powerless to stop the distribution of the book. *A Birthright of Our Own* became a classic of both republican ideology and liberal thought. Randall's name became famous overnight, and the Blue Freedom Society soared in popularity. To his horror, however, the book became expressly popular in agrarianist circles, who nicknamed him "Revolution Randall." Three months later, he published *The Pillars of Capital,* which provided a defence of liberal economics and refuted many agrarianist arguments for leftist action. Randall made it expressly clear that he believed wholeheartedly in the current social order, and saw republicanism as a means of defending the Empire from a violent revolution. He personally expelled some 12,000 suspected agrarianists from the organisation and wrote an essay in support of strikebreaking practices.

## 1000-1035KF

Baron Randall retired from politics in 1003KF, becoming a grandee of the Blue Freedom Society, which had regenerated into a household name, though its character remained staunchly aristocratic and anti-agrarianist. Radical liberals, anarchists and agrarianists alike declared the Blue Freedom Society a "party of the right," but no rightist party would accept that definition on account of their republican ideology.

Ironically, the leader of the BFS had the right to designate their successor, and controversially, Randall chose the 25 year old poet, physician and "cad," Dr Halliston Royce, 5th Marquess of Castara. "Hal" Royce had made a name for himself as a poet whilst studying to be a physician at the Monsra Chamber of the Bodily Sciences, and like Randall, was a fierce defender of the current social order, arguing that the monarchy had lost its right to rule, and that only a "republic of nobles, wise in countenance," could competently take the Empire forward and prevent a total collapse. His love of drinking, parties and women made him something of a favourite among the populace, even if they did not support his policies. A rumour dating back to his schooldays suggested that he may have been bisexual, and as such, he was sometimes known as "The Saffira Palladium," in reference to that institution being "open twice nightly." Agrarianist circles detested his love of the aristocracy, but found him charming, naming him the "bounder of the bourgeoisie," in their papers.

Royce's appointment was controversial for several reasons, one of which was that he took a decidedly more militant approach than Randall ever did, and by 1004KF, he was discussing various methods of staging a coup d'etat to destroy the monarchy and install himself as president. Historians have generally agreed that Royce could have successfully achieved this if he had secured the support of key military elements, but just as such a meeting was about to take place between him and General Cyril Grey over a dinner in Krahull, a local Black Talons cell informed the Constabulary, and the meeting was raided. Royce escaped to the docks, where he boarded a ship to the Sultanate of Rum, taking up residence there until he could return. Tyenn issued an Imperial warrant for his arrest, and the Blue Freedom Society began to collapse without his charismatic leadership, with many of its upper ranks going into hiding to save themselves.

When Harding became the new leader of Kymuria, Royce returned and announced his support for the new regime, but Harding declined to give him any position in the nascent government on account of their ideological differences. Harding saw no appeal to Royce and the BFS's aristocratic conservatism, and even considered adding them to the "Black List" of state enemies. Royce was one of the signatories of the Concordance Pact in 1030KF, denouncing the Harding government's use of oppressive policies.

Royce was so repulsed by the Harding regime that, like much of the population, he began to harbour restorationist sentiments, especially after hearing the Archduchess Theodora speak on the matter at a ball in 1032. He was aware of the planning for the Restoration Coup, but his degree of involvement was unclear. He resigned from the Blue Freedom Society later that year, and instead joined the Monarchist Alliance, though he was never really excepted among its ranks.

The Blue Freedom Society faded away in power and prestige after the Restoration, and is now essentially defunct.