[LMB] non-hereditary monarchies, was re HH ch 23 OT:

[Paula Lieberman]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <CatMtn at aol.com>



> In a message dated 9/1/2006 1:41:59 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, 
> paal at gis.net
> writes:
>
> The  Highlordship belonged to the House of Knorth, and within that
> house the  old Lord chose his heir--but his choice wasn't necessarily the 
> one
> who  wound up getting the position.
>
> Sounds a bit like Barrayar--the count can name his heir, but the  heir has 
> to
> be approved by the Council of Counts.

That wasn;t what happened with the Knorth and the Highlordship.   One Knorth 
Heir died under circumstances that didn't get explained at the military 
college, while others didn't survive putting on a particular piece of 
jewelry which had somehow come to be considered a near-requirement for 
Highlords to wear to show they were true Highlords.

The High Council mostly had the authority the members could exert and 
authority that the Highlord, when present, was willing to cede to them.  In 
one of the Hodgell books, for example, the Knorth war commander was a 
beserker who had severely damaged a member of another house.  To prevent the 
other house from demanded a blood price the Highlord acceded to a marriage 
contract with the other house taking on "beautiful but so is a gilded sand 
viper" Kallystine from the other house as limited time consort.  The 
Highlord had also agreed that to go to war against enemies required the 
agreement of that house also.

Other fiction-- Ice Crown by Andre Norton had ultimogeniture, and there was 
some indication for it in ancient Israel and Judea once they  had 
semi-hereditary leaders and kings, in the Bible.  .