Imperium

Nation Information

 * ''The Imperium is a medium sized, well developed, and aging nation at 665 days old with citizens primarily of Caucasian ethnicity who follow no religion. Its technology is first rate and its citizens marvel at the astonishing advancements within their nation. Its citizens pay extremely high taxes and many despise their government as a result. The citizens of The Imperium work diligently to produce Cattle and Uranium as tradable resources for their nation. It is a mostly neutral country when it comes to foreign affairs. It will usually only attack another nation if attacked first. It believes nuclear weapons are necessary for the security of its people. The military of The Imperium has been positioned at all border crossings and is arresting all drug traffickers. The Imperium does not allow any form of government protests. Its armed police forces work quickly at "dissolving" any and all government protests. It has an open border policy, but in order for immigrants to remain in the country they will have to become citizens first. Free speech is considered taboo in The Imperium. The government gives foreign aid when it can, but looks to take care of its own people first. The Imperium will trade with other nations with questionable ethical treatment of their citizens but prefers to keep such trade agreements a secret.

Overview
The Imperium is fundamentally controlled by an Oligarchy, comprised of six Oligarchs who by nature of their office each preside over one of The Imperium’s six provinces. The Oligarchy itself is the sovereign source of the state’s authority as it is the only entity which possesses the power to impose its will upon the nation. This entity exists a priori to any other existing government as it is simply “the state” or the entity which has the ability to decide upon the norm. In so far as this present manifestation of the state exists anything it sanctions is therefore legitimate. This notion of the state is the founding principle of The Imperium as it is what allows it to claim right to its authority. As its first act as The Oligarchy, it issued an ordinance known as ‘’’The Articles of Order’’’ this is the document clarifying the nature of The Oligarchy, as well as establishing the functional government that runs The Imperium.

While The Oligarchy remains the sovereign source of Authority it through the establishment of the Articles of Order transferred authority to act in its stead to ‘’’The Office of Imperial Regent’’’. The individual filling this post has a broad range of powers, and is the official head of State and Government as well as the Commander in Chief of the nations armed forces. This post is filled by one of the six Oligarchs. The remaining five oligarch’s are subsequently appointed by the Regent to lead one of the five Ministries which carry out the will of the Regent. When discussing these five individuals as the Regent and his Ministers the term ‘’’Directorate Committee’’’ is used rather than ‘’’Oligarchy’’’. It is only through a two thirds majority, (four out of the six) that the will of the Regent can be contested, or that the true sovereignty of the Oligarchy can be tapped. Furthermore The Imperium is essentially governed by a Unitary Government. While there is a division of the territory it controls into provinces, the power of the local provincial administrations is limited by the fact that it can only receive resources, and manpower through the five ministries which are under the central control of the Regent. They are further limited by the fact that while each Oligarch has the responsibility to reign over their given province, their actual authority to reign stems from the Oligarchy, and by proxy the Regent himself. However, because each provincial administration is either directly or indirectly controlled by one of the Oligarch’s some independence exists. This is due to the fact that out of mutual need for each other’s ministries and trust between one another the requests which are made are often fulfilled.

The Oligarchy/Directorate Committee is an unelected body which selects its own members. There are no protected rights established by the Articles of Order, nor have any been guaranteed by the Imperial Regent. However, the government thus far has a good track record of benevolence, and has an exceptionally high approval rating among its subjects.

The Articles of Order

 * Prelude
 * Article I: Oligarchy
 * Article II: The Executive
 * Article III: Provincial Administration
 * Definitions
 * Signatures

Prelude
''As time has progressed humanity has itself become detached from things once thought certain. Absolutism the moral ideology of the past which dictated a set of norms that were inherently, and eternally true has given way to relativism. A system which dynamically adjusts itself, and dictates a set of norms based upon the coercive ability of certain notions of “form” to themselves be imposed upon others. Therefore it comes as no surprise that power no longer is decided by authority but rather authority is decided by power, there can be no illegitimate power without another power declaring itself legitimate and a committing the converse upon the other. Thus the only legitimate government is that which is capable of imposing itself upon its subjects. The true state is that which has the power to decide upon the norm. As such we being in the capacity to do so have chosen to establish unto this land a new form of government, one which holds dear to it the political and economic interests of those whom it reigns, the safety of the public, and condition of its own existence. It shall therefore with these interests in mind execute the following articles, and establish itself as the imperial regime of the land. This established all else follows…''

Article I: Oligarchy

 * Section 1: Oligarchal Sovereignty


 * Clause 1: The nation and its state shall be marshaled under the command of a single oligarchy. This entity comprising of six members, shall be the sovereign source of all legitimate authority established under these articles, and enforced under the capacity of coercive force this committee shall hold.


 * Clause 2: Being that the Oligarchy is a collective of Oligarchs the sovereign authority of this body shall only be tapped when the majority of its members are in agreement. While it is always possible for this entity to distribute power to lesser offices, it will still irrespective of its own policies remain in the capacity to revoke, and regain all power vested within it, as well as overrule, and decide upon any matter it chooses. Thus the power to rule shall perpetually be in the hands of man not law, for law is simply a tool of authority holding no ability to decide or reign on its own. Concurrently it is as an act of this entity that the following form of government is to be established.


 * Section 2: Oligarchal Powers


 * Clause 1: As a collective the Oligarchy shall have the authority to create ordinances, which shall make up Orderial Law the highest level of law within the land. All lower law known simply as Administrative Law shall be rendered null and void at any point of contradiction. An ordinance may both regulate behavior creating laws which negate certain behavior, as well as mandate behavior creating laws which prescribe and demand specific action on the part of those subjected to it.


 * Clause 2: The Oligarchy as a collective shall function as the supreme judicial authority of the state, and as an entity shall hold general jurisdiction over all peoples subjected to it. Thus it shall have the authority to pass judgment over all whom it controls as to whether they are in violation of any Orderial or Administrative Law. Said judgment may be initiated by the committee itself, or by someone granted the authority to do so. Lesser officials may be granted similar authority the limits of which may be clarified by the collective.


 * Clause 3: The Oligarchy being the retainer of power, and thus the source of authority under the state shall have the ability to establish and develop bureaucracy. The purpose of which is the fulfillment of mandates which it establishes. Likewise it may also destroy, limit, redefine, re-staff, micromanage, and effect change in anyway it sees fit upon said bureaucracy.


 * Clause 4: The Committee may amend this document in any way it sees fit as it is merely an act of the Committee.


 * Section 3: Collective Appointment


 * Clause 1: The Oligarchy shall choose its own members, these new additions shall be appointed through the process of Collective Appointment. Said process is essentially fiat by majority approval. The formal ceremony, process, and details of the action may also be determined by the Oligarchy.


 * Clause 2: Only by the collective will of the Oligarchy can an individual be appointed to it.


 * Clause 3: Just as a majority of the Oligarchy can make an individual an Oligarch, so to can it strip an existing Oligarch of their authority.


 * Section 4: Oligarch Privileges


 * Clause 1: Each Oligarch is to be made responsible for the administration of a province, and the authority to carry out the will of the Oligarchy within said province. All assets belonging to this provincial authority which are defined by each oligarch, and sanctioned by the Oligarchy, belong to the office not the occupant of said office. Thus each oligarch has the privilege to their office’s holdings.


 * Clause 2: Oligarch’s when functioning as such are subject to no law other than that which the collective will of the Oligarchy determines.


 * Clause 3: Any four Oligarch’s may call for a meeting of the Oligarchy. As a majority they may make decisions and exercise its sovereign authority over the entire state.

Article II: The Executive

 * Section 1: Description


 * Clause 1: The Oligarchy while collectively the sovereign authority shall in the interest of prudence divide up its general subject jurisdiction and allot said jurisdiction to minor authorities. (These minor authorities shall be the six Oligarchs who’s privileges are granted to them directly by the Oligarchy. These privileges shall persevere all lesser law.) In doing so it will create five ministries each led by one of the collectively appointed oligarchs. This shall establish the bureaucracy of the state. These five ministries will be as follows. The Ministry of Defense, The Ministry of Finance, The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The Ministry of the Interior, The Ministry Internal Security.


 * Clause 2: The sixth Oligarch shall be made the Imperial Regent, who shall reign and hold authority in the place of the collective. The Ministers (the other Oligarchs), shall be made to answer to him, unless acting as members of the Oligarchy.


 * Clause 3: The group of Oligarchs when under this structure shall exist and be known as The Directorate Committee. It is only when at least four of the six Oligarch’s have called a meeting that the entity would then be referred to as The Oligarchy. It is the only time that they are equal with the Imperial Regent and as a group have the ability to supersede his will.


 * Section 2: Powers of the Imperial Regent


 * Clause 1: All of the powers below are the Regent’s to exercise in so far as he has not been superseded by two thirds of the Oligarchy.


 * Clause 2: The Imperial Regent shall have the power to effect his will in the form of writs. A writ like an ordinance may both mandate behavior, and restrict it. Writs shall be what comprises Administrative Law. An Imperial Writ holds the highest authority, ensuring that only a two thirds majority of the oligarchy may override it.


 * Clause 3: An un-contested Regent functions as the head of state, head of government, and commander in chief of the military, giving him full jurisdiction over all functions of the government, and peoples subjected to it.


 * Clause 4: It is the responsibility of the Regent to define the duties of the committee members. (Eg. While the Oligarchy selects the Regent, it shall in normal operation allow the regent to choose who fills the positions of the Ministry, and what the ministry itself does; the Oligarchy by not contesting it shall offer its approval.)


 * Clause 5: The Regent may remove any Non-Committee/Oligarchy employee of the state, as well as appoint any one an employee of the state.


 * Clause 6: While the Oligarch’s are entitled to the holdings of their offices, their authority to reign does not stem from the Oligarchy but rather from the committee, and more specifically the Regent. Therefore the Imperial Regent shall have the authority to intervene in the functioning of any province.


 * Section 3: Power’s of the Ministers (Committee Members)


 * Clause 1: Each Committee Member may issue writs within their own jurisdiction in so far as those writs are not countermanded by the Regent’s.


 * Clause 2: Each Committee Member has total authority to manage their Ministry without intervention from other members of the Committee with exception to the Regent.


 * Clause 3: Each Committee Member is responsible for the staffing of their ministry, and may subsequently remove anyone within their jurisdiction on a whim.


 * Clause 4: Each Committee Member may grant authority within their jurisdiction to anyone they judge competent to do so.


 * Section 4: Executive Ministries


 * Clause 1: The policies of the State shall be carried out by five ministries each represented by its minister on the committee. Each Ministry is bound to the will of the Regent, and should, though they are not bound to do so, act upon reasonable requests made by Provincial Administrators. It is the duty of the Imperial Regent to more clearly define the jurisdiction of each ministry and may at any time intervene in their operations or issue orders to them, however as a general Guide to clarification the Oligarchy here establishes the vague ground of each ministry.


 * Clause 2: The Ministry of Defense shall be responsible for the raising, training, equipping, and overall management of the nation’s military forces, defensive structures, military relevant assets and both long-term and short-term strategic military aims. It is also responsible for gathering external intelligence on foreign entities.


 * Clause 3: The Ministry of Internal Security shall be responsible for the raising, training, and equipping, and overall management of a national police force which shall be used to enforce the law, protect the state, keep public order, and maintain internal security. It is further responsible for the gathering of intelligence on domestic subjects, and the management of assets controlled by it.


 * Clause 4: The Ministry for Foreign Affairs shall responsible for managing the nation’s diplomatic relations with foreign nations, and shall be the public representative of the nation to the world. Furthermore it shall be responsible for advising the Regent in decisions pertaining to Foreign Relations. Finally it shall be responsible for managing all assets held in foreign nations that pertain to its own affairs.


 * Clause 5: The Ministry of Finance shall be responsible for the management of the nation’s economy. It may engage in the creation of monetary policy, establish a national bank, establish market regulations, establish market mandates, create tariffs, establish tax code, manage the state’s funds, manage the nation’s resources, seize assets held by private individuals, and effect its will in matters pertaining to the economic state of the nation.


 * Clause 6: The Ministry of the Interior shall be responsible for the management of the nation’s national infrastructure, the management of public lands, and the management of all public programs which do not fall under the jurisdiction of the other ministries. All areas of jurisdiction not allotted to the other ministries shall be presided over by this ministry.

Article III: Provincial Administration

 * Section 1: Description


 * Clause 1: The sum total of the territories under the control of the Oligarchy shall be divided and allotted to each Oligarch (eg each oligarch shall receive about one sixth of the nation’s territory). Thus there shall be six provinces. Each Oligarch is from there responsible for administering the laws established by the Regent/Oligarchy and may further establish laws which are necessary and proper for the operation of their province.


 * Clause 2: In reference to an individual Oligarch in terms of their province the term “Provincial Administrator” shall be used.


 * Section 2: Powers of the Provincial Administrator


 * Clause 1: The Administrator may vest his authority into any entity or individual he deems to be competent to reign as his proxy.


 * Clause 2: The Administrator may establish Administrative law which is enforced within their province by the national police force.


 * Clause 3: The Administrator may call upon the resources of national ministries to aid in the administration of the Province. (Note: Each province is not to create its own ministries but shall make use of the nation’s existing resources).


 * Clause 4: The Administrator may make use of whatever resources are available to him to aid in the development of his province, the public good, and the management of the provincial authority.

Definitions:

 * State - The entity which has the ability to decide upon the norm.


 * Oligarchy – Used in reference to the ruling body of the state which holds sovereign authority over its jurisdiction. It is the retainer of power, and thus is the only entity which theoretically has realistic cohesive ability.


 * Collective – See Oligarchy.


 * The Directorate Committee – Used in reference to the Oligarchy when it is in its executive state. (Eg, when the Imperial Regent holds the authority of the Oligarchy, and the Oligarchs are filling the capacity as ministers responsible to the Regent).


 * The Committee – See The Directorate Committee.


 * Orderial Law – Law composed of Ordinances which are created by a majority vote of the Oligarchy.


 * Ordinance – Supreme form of law that overrules all other laws. The Articles of Order are themselves an Ordinance. Only the Oligarchy may amend or repeal Ordinances.


 * Administrative Law – Law established by officials who are granted the authority to do so by either a higher official or the Committee. Administrative Law that is created higher up in the hierarchy always over rules Administrative Law created by lower rungs of the Hierarchy. The Imperial Regent may issue the highest valued Administrative Law.


 * Writ – An Administrative Law issued by one who has the authority to do so.


 * Uncontested Regent – A regent who is not challenged by two thirds of the Oligarchy.


 * Provincial Administrator – Used in reference to an Oligarch in control of a given province.

Signatures
Michael Devereaux: Michael Devereaux
 * Imperial Regent
 * Oligarch
 * Administrator of Province One

Vladimir Kaine: Vladimir Kaine
 * Minister of Defense
 * Oligarch
 * Administrator of Province Two

James Mathus: James Mathus
 * Minister of the Interior
 * Oligarch
 * Administrator of Province Three

Thomas Alexander: Thomas Alexander
 * Minister of Foreign Affairs
 * Oligarch
 * Administrator of Province Four

Edward Dionysus: Edward Dionysus
 * Minister of Finance
 * Oligarch
 * Administrator of Province Five

Devin Avers: Devin Avers
 * Minister of Internal Security
 * Oligarch
 * Administrator of Province Six

Overview

 * It is the general consensus of informed subjects of The Imperium that the Oligarchy/Directorate Committee and upper echelons of the ministries are essentially controlled by an Aristocratic Class. Most prominent among this class are The Six Great Houses who’s patriarchs are seated members of the Oligarchy. These six Houses, Devereaux, Kaine, Alexander, Dionysus, Mathus and Avers are independent of their positions the six most influential families each controlling massive portions of the nation’s economy, and all contributing massive numbers of their retainers (private para-military forces) to the national military under the leadership of Vladimir Kaine. It is further rumored by some that a classified covenant exists between these families to mutually maintain control forever. None of the Oligarch’s have confirmed or denied this rumor. Each House exists as a separate legal entity all of which have been exempted from taxation by the Finance Ministry, despite this exemption each House contributes vast portions of their wealth actively to the functions of the state.

House Devereaux
House Devereaux’s primary source of wealth is the international energy corporation known as Solex. This entity is responsible for a large portion of international energy supplies, which is produced primarily through space based solar arrays, fusion energy, and hydrogen fuel cell distribution. Solex has signed neutrality contracts with all the nation’s it supplies as to assure the world that they possess no conflict of interest. The net wroth of Devereaux is thought to be in the hundreds of billions in pounds sterling. The House itself maintains a large security force with average training which is often associated with its corporation as it is used primarily to protect its overseas assets from seizure, and criminal acts. House Devereaux draws its heritage through Wighton, and further all the way back to the period of Old Zurich where it reigned as the imperial family. House Devereaux has long been resenting of its loss of Switzerland many centuries ago. A major aspect of its political ambition is its wish to re-obtain it at some point in the future.

The primary political allies of this house on The Oligarchy are House Kaine, and House Avers. While all the Houses are friendly, these two are thought to be the closest, and most inline with House Devereaux agenda.

House Kaine
House Kaine is seen as the research and development leaders in the nation. Their house is primarily known for its High Technology corporation known as Umbrella. This corporation is in close partnership with Solex, and is well known for being contracted to design a lot of the technology Solex became wealthy on. Their income through the royalties they receive for the use of their technology is enormous ranking House Kaine at a similar worth level to that of House Devereaux.

Umbrella’s Headquarters are located on a floating domed city, sources within Umbrella state that a contract and plan has been drawn up to build a similar structure for The Imperium.

House Kaine is world renowned for the elite soldiers that make up its retainers. Umbrella is used to equip them with state of the art weapons and armor. Rumors are circulating that the soldiers themselves are bio-chemically enhanced.

House Avers
House Avers draws the bulk of its wealth from the manufacturing sector’s goliath, Imperator Manufacturing. Much of this manufacturing is the production of chemicals, arms, and pharmaceuticals. It also has close ties with House Kaine’s Umbrella who has done the bulk of their R&D.

Due to the arms trade managed by Imperator it possesses large contributions of foreign forces which make up its para-military.

House Dionysus
House Dionysus draws the majority of its wealth out of the International Banking Sector to which it is deeply tied. Controlling The Imperium’s national bank, as well as having familial ties to the heads of other national banks the House itself prospers off the enormous funds raised through the interest generated by world debt. House Dionysus also controls a number of commercial banks as well which generate similar interest.

House Dionysus has a large highly regimented para-military force similar to that of House Devereaux. The two Houses though not unfriendly to one another, are rivals as far as political power, and world influence is concerned. While the other Great Houses consider themselves political subordinates to House Devereaux, House Dionysus considers itself an equal, and holds a strong political alliance with House Alexander. Both tend to vote as a unit when it comes to The Oligarchy.

House Alexander
House Alexander draws the majority of its income from the steel, and metallurgy industry. As of right now their corporation International Steel is the largest steel supplier in the world, though it too has signed neutrality contracts with the world powers it supplies. In addition to this House Alexander is also the second largest land owner in The Imperium, the land it owns is primarily the land rich in mineral resources used in its metallurgical operations. Behind steel its second largest product is aluminum.

House Alexander is under the protection of House Dionysus who aids in protecting its over seas assets, as well as guard its members Domestically.

House Mathus
House Mathus is the largest land owner in The Imperium, thus making it the agricultural giant in the nation. The House works diligently to supply the nation with wheat which is its primary food staple as well as cattle which is the primary meat consumed by the Nation. In addition the House owns exclusive rights to Uranium production and refinement within The Imperium reaping it huge profits as The Imperium is a nuclear capable empire.

House Mathus is considered the neutral party in The Oligarchy as it is not really dependent on any other house for assistance. The House has a massive security task force, which has existed in the region for centuries. Much of its members come directly out of the regular army, said task force historically has been used to defend the large holdings of the House.

Overview
A major criticism of The Imperium is the fact that it is located in northern Africa yet claims European ties, and contains many influences from the former Swiss region. The majority of this stems from Houses Devereaux, Kaine, and Dionysus who are all Europeans by decent and all three of them have direct ties to the former Swiss Imperium. Most prevalent among them is House Devereaux who’s patriarch Michael Devereaux (35) is the oldest living descendant of the last Emperor. A major political ambition of House Devereaux is the restoration of this territory to its holdings.

Old Switzerland
The Former Swiss Imperium was seated in the former city of Zurich (Old Zurich). It was commanded by an absolute monarchy. This Imperium stood for many centuries before falling to internal rebellion, and the formation of the Swiss Republic. This Rebellion was aided by foreign entities who were both political rivals, and ideological foes attempting to spread Democratic reforms none of whom remain alive today. However, this rebellion was detrimental, it was responsible for the destruction of much of former Switzerland’s history and culture. The climax of this rebellions was the burning of Zurich where the entire metropolis was destroyed down to the last brick. This is primarily the reason for the common ignorance of its existence. House Devereaux escaped and resided in exile under the protection of House Kaine a noble family of German decent, from there it slowly rebuilt its wealth, and overtime rebuilt itself economically; by the time of its recovery though the existing order was too well established to upset thus squelching the hopes of the House.

New Switzerland
Michael Devereaux receiving administrative powers over the lands controlled by the West Saharan Research Expedition and the classified charge to create an independent nation from the Governor of Wighton; established The Imperium. As its capital he named New Zurich, a municipality already established by himself with the help of Greater Wighton. This metropolis exists as a domed city which is entirely self sufficient, with the only exception of food production. It draws the entirety of its electricity from a fusion core housed at its heart, and has an extensive public transportation system, a respected security force, excellent schools, a world renowned university and free public housing to its inhabitants. The majority of its inhabitants are Ministry workers, the rest are state approved inhabitants, maintenance workers, students, businessmen, engineers excreta. Access into the city is extraordinarily exclusive. There is no crime in New Zurich. The city itself is located in Province One which is the dominion of House Devereaux. In addition the province’s regional administration building is located within the city. The city is divided into twenty districts each containing roughly fifty thousand people. Each district has its own locally housed, internal security task force each totaling five thousand men. Each team rotates shifts there are approximately one thousand security personal for every fifty thousand people on duty at any given time. The remaining four thousand may be called into service if need arises. Security is maintained through a massive identity logging system. Each inhabitant carries a nationally issued identification card with a RIFD tag embedded within it. This is further linked to a database containing biometric information. Retinal flash scanners rapidly analyze all retinas they detect, and can be found on the corner of any street of the city, and can match this information to the database to determine if the individual is authorized to be there. If authorization is in question the local security team will detain the individual until identity can be confirmed. The general show of force and security is highly approved by the city’s inhabitants. The Imperial Regent himself resides in a large executive mansion, and is personally guarded by the Imperial Legions (totaling one thousand members). The Legions are highly trained, biochemical augmented, and highly equipped elite soldiers. The majority of them are former Solex Security Personnel and as such are fanatically loyal to House Devereaux. The Legions frequently drill in the parade grounds located within view of the Regent’s estate, and are a central part of the nation’s annual military parade which is the only time of the year when New Zurich is open to the general public. The city has a single airport located in what is known as exclusion zone #1 which is the only area of the city exposed to open air. This is located on the eastern side of the city, and is the frequent destination of governmental officials. Finally there are a total of six exits not including the airport. Four of those six are bullet trains which link into the nation's larger transportation system. The fifth is a sixteen lane freeway used to transport and move troops, goods, and people in and out of the city. The majority of residents however make use of the public transportation system (multiple efficient monorails that stop at three different locations within each district, and the final exit is a pedestrian exit. Each exit is highly regulated the majority of which is entry into the city rather than traffic leaving it. Currently all municipalities are working on modernizing them selves up to the standards set by New Zurich. A similar ID card system is being drawn up for rural implementation as part of the larger rural modernization agenda.