A Definition of the House

A Definition of the House
a study by Sage Lochro of Peakshadow

The House is a legally recognized faction of people. There are two basic types: the blood house and the charter house. An individual may only belong to one House at a time, his loyalty to that House is supposed to be supreme.

The Blood House

From the dawn of recorded time, the various nobles of Erenth have grouped themselves into familial units. In this way, they ensure that their bloodlines remain unsullied by the commoner and so provide the longevity of their ancestors. The patriarch is the paterfamilias of each House -- that is, the legal and accepted head of the family. In some rare instances, a matriarch may be the accepted head of a House.

The Charter House

In about the 47th century, men began to organize themselves into voluntary associations called companies or charter houses. While not united by a common ancestor, charter houses have received permission of a king to be treated as though they are a familial house and have all the rights and privileges of one. A charter house might not have a landed nobleman as its patriarch, but in such a case will be headed by a baronet who is the legal head of the chartered House. 

Some examples of charter houses include Halls, Peerages and the Fraternity. Also included are the Colleges of Wizards, as well as the Church of Westrun and it's various orders. Some even say that the so-called "black princes" of each city also make up accepted Houses.

House Structure

It is the patriarch who contracts marriages for members of his House. He also conducts business and is capable of entering contracts. He has access to existing structures of commerce and banking. It is he who has the authority to set the family Vexil in wax or ink on all matter of agreements, promises and oaths. The Patriarch's edicts are considered both sovereign and binding within his own House. Moreover, he is empowered by all civilized societies to establish and revoke his own faction heir according to the customs of his particular Land or Realm.

Each House, is represented in person by the patriarch, but is better known by Vexil and Verse. The Vexil is the coat-of-arms of the family and is an official symbol of the House. The Verse is a portion of the greater anthem of the particular house -- the anthem being a song which is known to each member

Each House also has a recognized history that begins with its founder, or Primogenitor. He is the one individual who was first acknowledged and known to be vested by a competent authority. In other words, the Primogenitor was the first Patriarch of his house.

Faction Heir

The first duty of every patriarch is to establish who will inherit his title upon his death -- the faction heir. This generally flows from father to eldest son, but it need not be so. The patriarch has the unlimited right to set his own heir in writing and by registering his intent with his leige. A patriarch who neglects this duty runs the risk of having his House taken by a monarch who will accrete it into his wealth, or else give it to a lackey to control.

Of course, the king of each realm also has the unlimited right to dispossess a patriarch for abominable crimes of treason, robbery, murder, and theft (provided such crimes did not occur wholly within the confines of the House itself, and had as its victims the crown itself, or other unrelated nobles.

 A person who is not related by blood, but nonetheless designated as the faction heir, shall automatically gain the right to use the last name of the House and to carry it to his descendants and designees, as if adorned and irrespective of age.

Adornment

A person who is not a blood relative of the patriarch may nonetheless be adopted into the House by a ritual known as adornment. In the ritual, the individual will be ceremonially washed and robed, then draped with silver chains, signifying the acceptance into the family. From that moment on, the adorned have all the rights and privileges of a blood member of the House and dissolve all previous ties. Adornment can only be recognized if it occurs voluntarily. It may only happen to a male reaching at least his 18th year or a female having reached her 16th year.

House Ward

A child who is exchanged between noble families is considered a House Ward. He or she retains their membership in their actual House, but remains as a guest of their host family for a prescribed time, not to exceed the age of adulthood for boys (18) or upon marriage for girls. House Wards are sometimes given as ransom between feuding or warring Houses; and are sometimes exchanged for the sake of their education or apprenticeship.