//This is the first post of the RP storyline for a new political organization in Bretonia. Certain key players have been asked to participate in this thread. If you have any questions, suggestions, corrections, etc., please PM me personally. Thanks for reading, and look for more threads very soon.//
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Leaders of Parliament had observed the dispute intensively, but quietly, given the danger inherent in taking a side. The inconclusive findings regarding Lord Mountbatten's genealogy and claim to the throne simply compounded the tension. Certainly, the royalists in the majority would be torn a number of them had been quite close to Mountbatten before his more recent activities.
The opposition party, though, saw this as yet another example of the corruption inevitable in the power games of the Crown. The populists, without question the leading group in the opposition - with their head and party leader, Richard Carlile - saw the situation as an opportunity to bring the corruption of monarchical power to light for the Bretonian people. Carlile had worked his entire career to shift the center of power in Bretonian politics away from the royal court (and its corporate base) to Parliament, but without much success. While as a leader in Parliament he had some political and corporate support - Sir Alisdair Buchanan of Gateway, for instance - he simply could not bring together sufficient resources to effectively elevate Parliaments position. Of course, this was due in large part to the majority royalist party, who blocked almost every effort to legislate in a populist vein.
If the government system could not operate for the people - and why would it, after all - then he would have to take his case directly to the citizens of Bretonia. Thus he came to appear before the large crowd gathered at the Grand Entrance of the Parliament building on New London.
"Hello friends, I thank you for gathering here today. And to those watching on the interstellar holocam, I bid you greetings.
"We stand today at a crossroads. For many years, our loyal opposition in Parliament has struggled to represent you, the people of Bretonia, in a straightforward and genuine manner. We have taken your concerns - the rising toll of the Kusari war, the pollution and general deterioration of Leeds System, the welfare of our working class, the high costs of education and proper care for human development in the nation - and we have laid them on the table before the majority party and before the Crown. We have requested proper attention to your concerns. We were not heard. Therefore, with the moral authority derived only from the will of the people, we demanded resolution.. We were again brushed aside. The interests of the monarchy and the military industrial complex that supports it seem all that occupies the attention of this government. And you suffer the consequences.
"Now, we have a new claimant to the throne, Lord Mountbatten. Lord Mountbatten has provided papers attesting to the legitimacy of his claims, but verification has proved elusive; his case stands unresolved, neither proved nor disproved. Nevertheless, he already styles himself 'king,' and the government calls him the 'pretender.' We therefore find both he and the queen in a power struggle, one that has turned violent. The queen calls this a rebellion, Lord Mountbatten calls it a last resort. Their respective fleets have battled on multiple occasions, with Mountbatten turned back to Arranmore. He vows to fight on and recruits to this day.
"But have either of them considered the cost of this struggle for the citizens of Bretonia, the people over whom they each wish to rule? Lord Mountbatten has issued policy statements that many of us find interesting; yet his behavior of late undermine his promises. For both contenders, it seems, lineage and power drive this conflict, not the interests of Bretonia or the welfare of its people. And such actions are, tragically, not exceptional for the Bretonian Crown. Is this what we want for our government?
"What we want, I think, is a fair question. For ours is a constitutional monarchy, at least for the time being. That means that the position and power of the monarch are a function of the constitution, the codified will of the people, who themselves are sovereign. Let me say that again: it is the people of Bretonia who are sovereign, and the monarchy exists to support and defend that. To defend us! Yet for years, our queen has had her own special military force, her own fleet to secure her interests, and it is this force that wars against Lord Mountbattens own loyalists. Is this the mark of a truly constitutional monarchy? I think not.
"It is time to step back from this conflict. I call for an immediate ceasefire between the forces of the queen and those of Lord Mountbatten. Moreover, I call for - nay, I plead - that we, the servants of the people, might meet together for a summit on Bretonia's future, a gathering where foes might sit together at the table and work - yes, even compromise - for the best interests of the people.
"I ask the parties directly: Queen Carina, Lord Mountbatten, Prime Minister Worthington - I implore you - may we sit together in peace just once? Can we gather for the greater good, to come to reasonable terms, not just on this situation, but on the pressing needs of the people we claim to serve?
"I pray you will accept this invitation. The welfare of the people depend on it, and history will judge us accordingly. I respectfully await your responses. Thank you."
The crowd, which had held silent through this unprecedented political statement, erupted with applause and shouts of assent. While certainly many there were already supporters, Carlile had delivered his message authoritatively and convincingly, and many others watching throughout the core worlds and beyond noted that the gauntlet had been thrown, the challenge made. What would come of it, no one was quite sure. Yet it was almost universally acknowledge that whatever the response would be, it would be most interesting.
Mr. Carlisle,
I find your invitation for a summit interesting. It is true that I have not desired violence. However, despite my attempts to resolve things peacefully, Carina's forces are intent on making this a civil war. Until this point, I have held her blameless for her ancestors crimes, but instead she has chosen to perpetuate their lies. Unless she orders her forces to stand down and reconsiders my claim, I will not relax my defenses.
In addition, reading between the lines on your speech, I am left with the impression that your true intent is to weaken the Monarchy. Since ancient times long before we even left Earth, the Monarchy has ruled our people. By what right do you tread on thousands of years of tradition?
Finally, I find your accusations that I do not have the people's best interests in mind insulting at best. For sixteen years after my father, Lord Nelson Mountbatten, revealed the truth to me on his deathbed, I kept my birthright secret for the good of Bretonia. It is precisely because Carina has mismanaged the empire that I have now chosen to make my claim publicly.
George R.
Carlile stepped up to the holomic in the Parliamentary pressroom:
"I have a short statement in response to Lord Mountbatten.
"I am glad Lord Mountbatten would be interested in a summit, though I am unsure that he accurately perceives the situation. It takes two to have a conflict, and assurances of peaceful intentions fall rather flat in view of the continued violence.
"My main point stands: if Lord Mountbatten were genuinely interested in the welfare of the Bretonian people, he would not have allowed his own claims to result in military conflict. He could have remained in hiding, or he could have dropped his claims altogether considering the potential cost to Bretonia in blood and credits. However, he has chosen to fight for control over a corrupt institution, and he therefore places himself in the same category of behavior as that of Queen Carina and her corporate allies.
"On the question of my intent, it is not necessary to read between the lines. My career is a matter of public record, and I stated quite clearly that given circumstances as they are, a restrained monarchy at the very least is quite necessary. If the monarchy as an institution is given to corruption and to neglect of the people's will, not to mention their needs, then reduced power is necessary. The monarchy as-is and the welfare of the Bretonian people are irreconcilable.
"Certainly we are a people of grand traditions, but tradition for tradition's sake is hollow, and usually costly. If Bretonia needs a seachange in politics, and we believe it does, maintaining the status quo simply for the sake of tradition is a fruitless, and even detrimental, exercise. I will take Lord Mountbatten's word that the welfare of Bretonia led him to keep his lineage a secret for so long, but if he truly wishes to help the Bretonian people, let him relinquish his claims on the current power-monarchy, and let him join us in our striving for a more democratic Bretonia.
"Thank you."
Inside her sanctum, where her name was just Carina...and now, the intrigue and the politics intruded even here.
"We await the Queen's response." Carlile's words echoed in her mind, a constant refrain of the collapse of the Bretonian Republic...Its the Mollies' fault. They started it. Taking Cork. It was amazing that the house was still standing...and no one even knew. For the past hundred years, the monarchy and the Royalist Party had concealed nearly every vestige of The Bretonian Collapse...public ignorance maintained the economy, more than anything else.
She couldn't say anything to the populist party, not really...nothing that might not destabilize something, and tears of frustration and exhaustion fell as she penned her formal refusal.
"It is my regret that I must refuse any such apperance or summit, on the grounds that any and all information I might give could be sensitive or detrimental to the security of our great house in a time of war. I would like to assure the people that my actions are in their best interest, but any such assurance falls short, because that is all I can say. I am working for the good of Bretonia, and am not at liberty to disclose how.
Carina"
//This post occurs in the story before post #4//
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PRESS RELEASE
New London
Parliament Building
Office of the Minority Leader, Mr. Richard Carlile
We have received word that Lord Mountbatten has relinquished his claims to the throne and has declared a cessation of hostility with the forces of Queen Carina. We welcome this turn of events as it ends weeks of senseless bloodshed.
However, we are dismayed that Lord Mountbatten, who rightly cited the disproportionate sway of the Admiralty in Bretonian policymaking as well as the mismanagement of the Kusari War, would now swear fealty to the same. Were his claims against Carina's court - his demands for greater justice - merely to garner public support, or were they indeed authentic demands for justice? If Lord Mountbatten is true to his word, then the question of his lineage or his father's plot should make no difference to his critique of the Crown. We therefore call Lord Mountbatten to consider the requirements of democracy, the will of the people, and to seriously evaluate his newly re-alligned allegiances.
Moreover, we have yet to hear from Queen Carina herself regarding our summit proposal. Though the instigating circumstance of the conflict between the queen and Lord Mountbatten is now virtually moot, the more fundamental reasons for that summit remain. The people of Bretonia need justice and they demand a stronger institutionalization of their will. The power center that is the Royal Court, if Carina's claims to serve her people are genuine, must give way before the people's self-determination and sovereignty. To this we have committed ourselves, and we have yet to see if Carina will accede to this higher end.
We await the queen's response.
This thread is a little out of order. Read posts as follows: 1, 2, 3, 5, 4, 6.
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"We find the queen's response inexplicable, and given the gravity of the current situation, outrageous."
Carlile was rather beside himself as he stood again before the press at the Parliament building.
"She states that she cannot attend a discussion of Bretonia's serious needs and future direction because 'any and all information' she might share is confidential for state security.
"This is preposterous. We are leaders of the people's Parliament. We already have access to military intelligence and strategic plans, to high level and confidential budget figures, to virtually everything except what Carina does with her private little navy, the QCRF. To suggest any of the current pertinent discussion is somehow privileged and cannot be shared with the people's elected representatives is absurd...and profoundly disconcerting.
"Moreover, it points to the dangerous direction in which the Crown has taken Bretonian politics. If the queen will not willingly attend to the people's interests, we are forced to direct her attention to them ourselves.
"I therefore exercise my prerogative as opposition leader under Article IV, Section II of the Bretonian Constitution and declare an official Parliamentary investigation into the activities of Queen Carina in regards to the Kusari War; the nature and operations of the QCRF; the nature and extent of royal relations with Bretonian Mining and Manufacturing, Border Worlds Exports, and any other necessary corporations; and most importantly, the balance of power - or lack thereof - between the Crown and Parliament.
"This is a grave day for Bretonia, but it is the queen who has brought us to this. It is my hope that things can progress peacefully and with all due speed toward a just and open resolution.
"I hereby call upon Prime Minister Worthington to second this constitutional measure and to proceed immediately to set up a Parliamentary Council of Inquiry to these ends. Partisanship and ideology aside, we are concerned now with our nation's very future."
"Mr. Carlile, you have visitors."
Carlile looked up at his top aide from behind a desk littered with data sheets, communiqes, a number of personal letters (including the odd death threat), and a half-empty but cold tea cup. "I wasn't scheduled to see anyone Susan," he said, exhausted. "Who is it?"
"They're professors from Cambridge," she replied with a rather serious look, "and I've already vetted them for this visit. I think you'll want to hear what they have to say, Richard."
Carlile's eyes narrowed. "All right, send them in."
Within moments, four individuals entered the opposition leader's private office, followed by the aide. Three men and a woman, they ran the gamut in terms of age and personal style, but every one had the eye of a thinker, someone critically engaged with various forms of knowledge and data, if not necessarily with other people.
"Good day. I'm Richard Carlile. How might I be of service?" he offered as generously as he could in his fatigue.
"Greetings, Mr. Carlile. I am Professor Robert MaCullough, of the Department of Bretonian History and Politics on Cambridge. These are my associates, Professors Carter, Livingston, and Goodspeed."
The other three nodded as their names were mentioned. Carlile returned the courtesy.
"We are representatives of a consortium of scholars devoted to increasing Bretonian self-understanding, that is, to the Bretonian people's understanding of their own history and culture. We represent most of the academic disciplines, including politics, religion, economics, the fine arts, music. We have delved deep into whatever archives and records we could find of Bretonian life in the attempt to provide a comprehensive picutre of our nation's development. It has been simply fascinating - you'd not believe the many things we've..."
He paused as he noticed Carlile's somewhat conspicuous attempt to remain alert and interested.
"My apologies, Mr. Carlile, but we have something to show you." MaCullough nodded to one of the others, who withdrew from an attache case something Carlile had rarely seen in person.
Paper.
"And what might this be," he asked, marginally more interested. The scholar set the papers on Carlile's desk, their antiquity standing out against the surrounding technology.
"Records, Mr. Carlile. Documents we have uncovered deep in the bowels of the Royal Archives, in sections we were not permitted to see, but gained access to nonetheless. Documents few eyes have ever seen, and almost none in the past eight centuries. These are the records of a conspiracy, sir, a conspiracy that lies at the very foundation of the Bretonian monarchy."
The opposition leader stood somewhat stunned for a moment. "I beg your pardon?"
The elderly professor sat down in a chair opposite Carlile - his colleagues did the same wherever they could find accommodation. Carlile followed suit.
"With our years of exhaustive research, we'd long suspected the monarchy was not always as powerful as it is today, royal propaganda notwithstanding. As we read further into things, our suspicions were confirmed. The British monarchy on Old Earth had given way centuries before the evacuation to a democratic government headed by Parliament and the Office of the Prime Minister. The monarchy had become mostly ceremonial, but with symbolic meaning that was crucial to British culture and the cohesion of its politics. However, years later as the Coalition advanced into system after system, and we realized we would have to leave earth, certain...opportunists in the royal family saw their chance.
"As the nations prepared their sleeper ships, various royals and nobles found willing allies in the leading mega-corporations of the day. These corporate leaders knew than in a new star system, starting from scratch as it were, there would need to be a transition from their information-based economy back to an industrial-based one. In return for exclusive government licensing in their new home, the megacorps committed huge sums of capital as well as political and logisitical support to effectively - and quite subtly - establish a power-monarchy in what would become the Bretonian House."
Carlile was now wide awake and listening intently.
"The result was a new industrial revolution, the creation of an industrial complex that would on the one hand build the Bretonian House in Sirius while simultaneously securing the centralized power of the monarchy. In the virtual chaos of the first century or so - especially as our sleeper ship arrived later than the others - the monarchy's rapidly increasing power went unnoticed. The people were too busy surviving, especially in what shortly became a polluted and dangerous section of space.
"The megacorps, however, profited nicely with the exclusive and practically limitless demand of the government. Over time, they evolved and consolidated, until they became what we know today as the Bretonian government's exclusive suppliers..."
"BMM and Bowex," Carlile said softly, almost to himself.
"The very same, sir. Only they have not remained content with their superior position. As Bretonia was not as involved in the Nomad War as the other houses, BMM and Bowex did not have quite the opportunity as did the Rheinland or Liberty corporations to...seize the day. Some other circumstance was needed, and antagonism from Kusari provided an excellent opportunity."
"You're saying the megacorps started the war?"
"No, merely that they encouraged Bretonian hostility along with certain policy developments that would end up making them rather tidy profits. The Kusari are to blame for starting the war. BMM and Bowex are directly responsible for continuing it."
Carlile was dumbfounded. Certainly, the queen had been moving of late to centralize power even more, and clearly the current military industrial complex helped secure her power - as well as its own - but even the staunch populist that he was, he never expected a conspiracy of this scale or long history.
"Have you confirmed these findings?" he asked the visitors.
"Indeed, sir," responded one of the others, Professor Carter. "We have contacts within the corporations in question, and they have conducted a thoroughgoing but secret examination of the megacorp databases and archives. The records are there; the conspiracy is real."
"Interestingly, however," interjected McCullough, "even the megacorp leaders today are likely unaware of the original conspiracy. All they know is their tight relationship with the monarchy, and they'll stop at little to nothing to secure that."
"So others are involved in this investigation with you," asked Carlile, intrigued.
"Oh yes. We've had a long and fruitful relationship with a number of disaffected current and former megacorp employees. Labor advocates as well. We know quite as much about the corporations as we do the government, and what we've found we've confirmed through multiple other sources. We are confident in our claims, Mr. Carlile, or we would have never come to see you. You may not have noticed, but you're becoming somewhat less popular with the powers-that-be these days."
"Oh, I've noticed," Carlile said wryly. "Professor, let me thank you for this serious...and seriously disturbing information. I will consider carefully what to do next."
"We thought you would, Mr. Carlile. Be assured, we stand ready to assist you in whatever you might deem necessary." And with that, the visitors quietly exited the office.
Carlile and his aide looked meaningfully at each other.
"Have the front office clear my schedule, Susan. I need you to contact Barbara Hastings and Alisdair Buchanan. I need the wisdom of trusted friends right now."
"Certainly," she said as she stood to leave. Pausing, she turned back to Carlile. "This is incredible, Richard. What are you going to do?"
"I'm not sure, Susan. I'm really not sure."
The hubbub in the House of Commons rose slightly as Lord Ronald "Rust" Worthington entered, prompting him to nod towards the Speaker as he moved in the direction of the podium. Setting down his holo-reader and straightening his suit, listening to the cacophany of voices around him. He was a middle aged man, approaching seventy years of age, with a lined, careworn face that seemed as though a smile rarely ever graced it. Such was not the case today at least, as there was a hard set to his features, waiting patiently for the noise to die down.
"Order! Order!" boomed the voice of the Speaker, as he hammered the gavel down. Slowly the curious chatter died down, leaving an air of expectant silence. Lord Worthington coughed slightly, then moved to speak.
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Now that I have your attention, honourable members of the House, I have an announcement to make. I am, by authority as Prime Minister and leader of the Crown Royalists party and by full consent of the Queen herself, moving to veto any investigations into our sovereign's activities during this difficult time for our nation. Make no mistake, honourable members of the House, I will brook no argument over this matter. We are at war with Kusari, and in times of war certain niceties must be discarded in favour of operational efficiency." said Ronald, gripping the sides of the podium as he placed an emphasis on every key word of his speech. The House erupted in shouts and angry exchanges, which went on for several minutes, until finally the Speaker hammered the gavel down again.
"Order! We will have order in this House! Thank you. Now, I believe the honourable member for the constituency of Hyde Park on planet Leeds wishes to speak." the Speaker spoke clearly, gesturing towards MP James Worthington, a fairly young man in his mid thirties and a member of the Populists opposition party, who stood to address the Prime Minister. Lord Worthington scowled as he recognised his nephew, gripping the podium more tightly than before, making an attempt at a smile.
"If am am to understand you correctly Lord Rust," Worthington said, smiling back at his uncle, drawing a sudden shocked murmur from around the House at his breach of protocol by addressing the prime minister directly. "that you intend to block every motion from this house that originates from the Populists and other parties until such a time as your government, and Queen Carina herself, sees fit to listen to us again? What then is the point of Parliament sitting when we have no say?"
The Prime Minister's mouth twitched slightly with a smile at the use of his nickname "Rust", regarding his nephew coolly, before speaking again.
"I must ask that the honourable member for the constituency of Hyde Park, and indeed the members of all this House, to make up their minds on this matter. The decision has already been made and will not be reversed until the Queen deems it necessary to do so. Thank you for your time, honourable members." The Prime Minister nodded slightly towards his nephew and collected his holo-reader, before striding towards the exit, leaving the house in an uproar behind him.
"Mr. Worthington, you forget yourself!"
The Prime Minister halted in his tracks as Carlile entered from the opposite door and stepped to the holomic. "You have forgotten your solemn duty as the people's representative, as the people's prime minister."
Worthington turned around grudgingly and headed for his seat, mindful of the protocol requiring him to be present when his opposition party counterpart addressed the chamber. The other MPs', for their part, sat silent as they awaited what would come of Carlile's unexpected arrival.
"I see the Prime Minister's announcement came while I was in committee; quite by chance, I'm sure. Fortunately, my ever-vigilant aide got me here in the nick of time." Carlile's fellow partisans chuckled while the Royalists squirmed a bit in their seats.
"As I was saying, Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has forgotten himself and his duty, to guard the people of this nation against corruption, against abuse, against negligent and self-seeking leadership at the highest levels!"
The boos and cheers were silenced shortly by the Speaker's gavel.
"Had he been more attentive, he would have recognized our constitutional right - nay, our duty - to inquire aggressively into purported abuses of power, even by the monarchy. This is a constitutional system, ladies and gentlemen, and even the monarchy is bound by our common law!"
A hail of cheers, and another pounding of the gavel.
"But it would seem the monarchy has forgotten itself, too. Perhaps our entire nation has." The members now observed Carlile quizzically, unsure of what he meant. "I recently have been made aware of some startling facts, my friends - indeed, an entire startling history. It would seem, contrary to our usual telling of history, that our government is not as it used to be. Today's corruption, our power-monarchy backed up by an extensive military industrial complex, is now far more understandable to me. It is no longer surprising, because it is the inevitable result of an eight-hundred-year-old conspiracy."
The chamber was now silent, most wondering if Carlile had lost his mind.
"I refer you to your datascreens," he said, and every member turned to the screen in front of her or his seat. The screens came alive with images of papers (surprising not a few viewers), diagrams, organizational charts, government-megacorp contracts, copies of most of what Carlile had been shown just five days before. "What you see before you is evidence, evidence which associates of mine have in safe-keeping, evidence that spells out precisely the very roots of our current political system. Centuries ago, as our ancestors prepared to leave Old Earth for Sirius, our own monarchy and attendant nobles came to an agreement with the forerunners of the corporate titans, Bretonian Mining and Manufacturing and Border Worlds Exports. I have sent this data to all of your personal staffs, to the Royal Court, and to The Times of New London and the Colony News Service.
"Simply put, in return for exclusive government licensing, these corporations would support efforts to create a strong monarchy in their new home, a Crown operating under the guise of a constutition, all but absolute, with a weak and rubber-stamp Parliament. This was necessary because in the old British system, the roles were reversed. Parliament represented the people's will in power, the instrument of the people's self-government. The monarchy existed as a symbol of tradition, and as a protector of that democratic system."
Murmuring spread through the chamber.
"Oh yes, I know that's not what we were taught in school, but it is fact, as discovered and confirmed by a consortium of reputable scholars: this government was supposed to be a democracy! Indeed, through the years the re-empowered monarchy not only took almost total control of the Bretonian government, but Queen Carina's predecessors even established their own personal militaries, a tradition she continues to this day. Most honourable members of the People's Parliament, we are not the nation we were meant to be!"
"As the direct result of this conspiracy, our workers suffer from poor safety and health conditions, and our space - surely less than ideal when we arrived - is made even worse by the vast pollution of hazardous waste. This, as the executives of the megacorps and their shareholders grow even wealthier. These gluttons of capital gorge at the expense of their own employees!
"Meanwhile, we continue to fight a war in futility, our tax money going to endless engagements with an enemy we should no longer even have, while our domestic concerns go unattended. Our culture, our educational system suffer, as does our national spirit. We are victims of the excesses of our leaders, first and foremost among them, Queen Carina!"
Murmurs turned into another cacophony of approval and dismay. "I said there WILL be order!" called the increasingly agitated Speaker.
"From this moment on, ladies and gentlemen, there must be a reckoning. It is time for those in leadership - the heads of the megacorporations and the queen herself - to come to grips with these facts. I fully realize they might not have been aware of the situation before now. But now the facts are a matter of public record, for everyone to see. It is time, as I say, to come to grips with reality, and to begin the necessary transition back to democracy for the People of Bretonia. There will be a loss of profit and power on their part, to be sure, but such is necessary for us to return to our true origins, our true identity.
"I therefore call on the queen and the megacorp heads to meet with the leaders of Parliament, of our labour organizations, of our scholarly community, and other key elements of our nation to meet as soon as is humanly possible. The goal: to re-establish a fully functional democratic system in Bretonia. The road will not be easily traveled, but the secret is out, and there is no turning back. Let us meet now, before it is too late for our nation.
"Now, I say, for the people's good, for democracy, for Bretonia!"
At this the chamber erupted in a battle of cheers and catcalls, the Speaker pounding his gavel furiously but to no avail. The other opposition party members gathered around Carlile, shaking hands and conversing earnestly about the incredible turn of events. The Prime Minister, abashed and clearly at a loss, strode quickly out of the chamber, followed by his deputies, no doubt on his way to confer with the queen herself.