Chaucerin

Chaucerin

Flag of Chaucerin
Motto: "Oh, Just Relax..."
[[1]]
Region	Equilism
Capital	Old Hauxland
Official Language(s)	English, Farsi, Spanish, Hindi
Leader	Director General Peotyr Armagast
Population	> 3 billion
Currency	Equiliant
NS Sunset XML

The United Combines of Chaucerin (the UCC, or The Combines) is a large island nation located in the region of Equilism. Chaucerin is located near the southern terminus of the Equilism Strait. The UCC is spread across two islands, the smaller island of Hauxland and The Chaucery Island. The nation is home to a large and diverse population that has preserved a continuous government for the last 1200 years. The nation's government is federal and is divided across four state units known as Combines. The UCC has a robust economy and an eclectic mix of traditional and more progressive beliefs. The Combines are world-renown for their military and civilian naval traditions.

Note: When referred to as ‘The Combines’ the name of the nation is still conjugated as a singular noun. As such, the grammatically incorrect ‘The Combines is…” will be considered proper, albeit colloquial usage.

Present government

The present government of the Combines derives from an older, constitutional monarchy that was undone by an act of the Combine Parliament in 1544. At this time, the nation was divided into four Combines. These are;

1. The Chaucery Combine
2. The Hauxland Combine
3. The Red Coast Combine
4. The Umberin Combine (also called Umberland)

The tri-cameral legislature, called the Citadel is made up three Great Halls of government.

1.The Citadel

i. Walker’s Hall

Originally, a hall into which common citizens entered via a stone walkway to make motions or pleas before an assembled tribunal responsible bringing ‘common’ business before the rest of the Citadel. In the New Citadel Act of 1760, this house was amended to take in the local representatives of the various districts within each Combine.

ii. Parliament Hall

The primary legislative body of the Citadel, the Parliament holds the elected representatives and acts as the main national assembly of the Combines. The head of state, the Director-General is drawn from the Parliament, mirroring common Parliamentary procedure. The Director-General leads the party with the most seats and forms a government made up of elected members from the same body.

iii. Consular Hall

A holdover of the age of the monarchy, this body is an advisory group made up of the appointed Consuls who once oversaw the governance of the nations original 521 counties. The Consuls have no power to originate or undo legislation, but can return it to the Parliament with a 3⁄4 vote. Any decision of the Consular Hall can be overturned by a 2/3 vote of the Parliament.

The Parliament and the Consular Halls are referred to jointly as the Combinate Assembly.

2. The Executive

While drawn from the elected Parliament, the Director General and the Cabinet also make up the Executive Wing of the government of the Combines.

The idea of a separate Executive that is also the head of the elected legislature is a novel one. The guiding philosophy is that while representative government is the desirable normal means of running the country, it is sometimes necessary and more practical for the government to be able to act swiftly and with a minimum of debate.

In the Combines, this authority takes the form of Executive Directives. In times of crisis, war or great consternation, the Executive can pass a Directive to temporarily lay an issue to rest. These Directives are of limited duration, generally no more than six months, and require a vote of the full Combinate Assembly to be continued. In modern times, Executive Directives have been limited to acts of peace-keeping, crisis management or other forms of emergency action. In previous times, most notably in the Executive Directive on the Status of the Church of Rome (ED 1802-14) the controversy brought down a government.

The Executive, when applied in its separated form also has the sole authority to appoint federal judges, Justices of the Combine Court and direct the action of the Combine Armed Forces. As the Executive is populated by members of the elected Parliament, there are no set terms or limits on tenure.

The current Director-General is Peotyr Armagast

3. The City-States, The Rise of Nations, The Monarchy and the Empire of Chaucerin

1. The City States (?-c.195)

The old nations of Chaucerin, Hauxland, Umberland and The Red Coast were once composed of independent city-states that allied and made war as their needs dictated. During this period, the area now known as The Red Coast was the region of the greatest concentration of power owing to its extremely fertile fisheries and active trade with the nations of the mainland.

In time, this emphasis of power shifted as fortune favored other regions through shifting populations, advancements in agriculture and the early use of writing and math in the city-state of Haux (called Hox, Hockslynn, Hauxlinnd and finally the modern Hauxland).

The age of the city-states was largely the story of ancient Hauxland. As the city grew in wealth and power it became the focal point of an entire continent. Alliance rose and fell, but the one remaining element was the power of Haux. ]

The end of the age of city-states was heralded in 15 BCE when the rulers of Haux took and held their first ‘colony’ on the mainland, namely the city of Chauxer. For the next two hundred years, the power of Haux was extended across the coast until the list of client cities grew to about two dozen cities and towns. In order to maintain revenues and security, Haux issued a series of orders to organize tithes, taxes and the organization of garrisons – in all but name Haux had ceased to be a city-state and became a nation.

In the years around 195 CE the Haux cities were the victim of numerous raids by the collected fleets of raiders from the Red Coast. In order to mobilize the assets to combat this menace, the rulers of Hauxland centralized all their authority into the person of their first King, Haushmarrydd I. Haushmarrydd named himself not the king of Haux, but the king of all the “Haux Lands” – with this pronouncement, Hauxland was born into nationhood.

Gameplay

Chaucerin is the President of Equilism, presently serving a fourth term. As vice-President, Chaucerin returned to the office to fill a third, shortened term after the resignation of Moo-Cows with Guns. The brief succession crisis made Chaucerin the first unelected President of Equilism. He is the former Prime Minister and UN delegate of Equilism as well as a former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Chief Justice.