TEXT: The Gentry in Dyvers
  Starting with the Aerdy Empire, Dyvers has been a prominent city
  strategically situated on the Nyr Dyv at the mouth of the Velverdyva River; a
  distribution and collection point for all the lands along the Velverdyva basin as
  well as a center for mercantilism and capital pursuit.  As such, the Aerdy rulers
  situated the Provincial capital of Ferrrond in Dyvers in CY 104.  For many years
  the city grew in prosperity, and was the center of culture in the central Flanaess,
  a rival to even the opulence of Rauxes.  In CY 254, the Viceroyalty of Ferrond
  successfully ceded from the Aerdy empire in a bloody civil war led by the
  Governor of the Ferrond province, Thrommel.  This revolt benefited greatly from
  the support of the principle trade city in the central Flanaess; Dyvers.  For the
  next 34 years, Dyvers remained the capital of the new kingdom of Furyondy.
  Dyvers however, was not very central to the new kingdom, nor was it strategically
  located for the new kingdom, being located too close to the shared border
  between Furyondy and the Aerdy Empire, and so plans were almost immediately
  drawn up for the new capital of Chendl.
  The prosperity of Dyvers began to decline just as immediately with the
  absence of the King of Furyondy and the other major noble houses that came to
  court. In addition, the lands surrounding Dyvers had diminished in value, and
  prestige.  Once considered a great honor to hold a fief around the City of Sails,
  many of the nobles of the now outlying Dyvers were not as prominent as they
  once were in the Royal courts.  Merchants of the time also saw profits continuing
  to erode, with next to no effort from the court in Chendl to reverse the loss of
  market share to the city of Greyhawk, and the new shipbuilding town of Willip.
  Frustrated beyond measure, the Mayor of Dyvers with almost unanimous support
  from the local nobles and the various guild houses elected to secede from the
  kingdom of Furyondy in CY 526.  It was in preparation for this cessation that the
  Gentry of Dyvers came into being.
  Prominent merchants and guild masters demanded a greater say in the
  government of Dyvers.  They argued that no city could be profitable without
  knowledgeable business-minded men at the helm.  The six landed nobles of the
  surrounding area could not mount the revolt without the support of the city, and
  so a compromise was made.  The landed nobility would keep their lands and all
  feudal rights to it, but would accept an authority coming from an elected position
  in the city that would have ultimate authority over them.  In return, they would
  have a strong voice in the newly created Gentry Assembly, and could affect
  policies directly within the city proper.  The merchants would in turn gain
  influence in the running of the City of Sails and would have a means to remove a
  fiscally irresponsible or incompetent mayor.  With the Dyvers gentry citing
  differences with the growing Raoan influences from Veluna, King Thrommel II let
  the secession go unchallenged.  Conspiracy theories regarding the extended
  vacation of King Thrommel’s wife at the time have always existed, but no foul
  play has ever been proved, and to date the Raoan doctrinal issue has proved
  
  sufficient cause.  All allusions to abductions, blackmail, bribery, and tax evasion
  should disregarded as pure fantasy.
  The support and input from the merchant houses was a crucial component
  to revitalizing the area, as was the support of the nobles in the surrounding lands.
  With most of the prominent merchants of the city and the land-owning nobles, a
  charter was drafted and approved legitimizing the Free and independent City of
  Dyvers in CY 526.
  As is well documented in many sources, the Free and Independent City of
  Dyvers is ruled by a representative oligarchy.  This oligarchy takes the form of
  the Dyvers gentry, most of whom obtained their position by writ for the exemplary
  deeds in their lifetime, or the lifetimes of their forebearers.  These Gentry can
  generally be classified into three groups representing the era in which their family
  was elevated to Gentry status, Old, Middle and New.  Since the Gentry did not
  technically exist in Dyvers until its cessation from the Kingdom of Furyondy,
  families that were given the right to own and profit from their own land prior to the
  Independence of Dyvers will be considered gentry originating from that era. The
  first Gentry to be recognized were those from the Aerdy Empire, before the
  Viceroyalty of Ferrond ceded from the then, Great kingdom.  Most of these
  Gentry are actually classified as nobility, although some were granted privilege
  due to their support of the Malachite Throne, without obtaining a writ of nobility.
  The next to obtain writ were those of the Middle era, the time after the cessation
  of the Ferrond province from the Aerdy empire in CY 254.  Most, but not all
  members of the Middle gentry were given rights of ownership for their support
  during the war.  These included great masters of battle, but also included
  smugglers and shrewd diplomats.  Finally, members of the gentry elevated after
  the cessation of Dyvers from Furyondy in CY 526 comprise members of the New
  Gentry.
   Most common folk regard the gentry in Dyvers as nobility, and while this
  may seem to be the case in many regards, it simply is not so in most cases.  Of
  the roughly 50 members of the Gentry Assembly, only five can claim the right of
  nobility.  Unlike in a feudal system however, nobility in Dyvers can be a fleeting
  thing.  The right of nobility is gained and maintained through influence.  Some
  noble houses have garnered this influence through noble acts throughout the
  years, others have achieved it through fortuitous capital investments, whilst
  others have been just a step above thievery.  Each of these methods, however,
  has given rise to the five noble houses of Dyvers.  Such is the influence of the
  existing Noble Houses, however, that only twice has one been removed, both as
  a result of the One Day War following the Kesser Massacre in CY 595.
  Collectively, the five noble houses, the Old Gentry, the Middle Gentry, and
  the New Gentry comprise the Gentry Assembly; the ruling Oligarchy of Dyvers.
  The Assembly is responsible for authoring all laws, for recognizing each of the
  guilds sanctioned to operate within the territories controlled by Dyvers, for
  granting permits to operate a business, for approving the sale of land within the
  city, and for trying all those held for breaking the law.  The Assembly elects a
  tribunal of seven members to serve as trial judges for the year, although any
  sitting member of the Assembly can request that a special tribunal be set forth to
  
  review cases of particular importance.  The term “important” is not particularly
  well defined, and so many times a member can call for a special tribunal on
  cases of particular interest to them, and with the proper amount of influence, can
  get the members they deem “most qualified” to review the case.  Corruption and
  politicking run rampant in the Assembly, and it is frequently not a case of “right
  and wrong” but rather a case of “right friends and wrong friends” that wins the
  day.  In addition, seated gentry members can occasionally fall upon hard times,
  with only their seat on the Assembly having any value.  The votes of such
  members are often sold to the highest bidder as a means to garner additional
  capital for investment.  For this reason, with enough influence, bought or earned,
  it is possible for nearly ANY activity to become legal, at least for a while.  In fact,
  the wife of one distressed gentry member is believed to have exclaimed, “Find
  whoever took her, adventurers. Find them and kill them. I will make it legal. I am
  a <deleted>, am I not? Find my daughter and kill her captors! Bring her back to
  me!”
  The Magister of Dyvers, currently Larissa Hunter, is a position that is filled
  through election by the Gentry Assembly.  The Magister controls the day-to-day
  running of the City of Sails.  This is a position of great power and influence that is
  filled for a term of 6 years.  The Magister is principally charged with representing
  the interests of Dyvers abroad as well as maintaining order within the City.  The
  Magister is ultimately in charge of all the armed forces of the city as well as the
  Constabulary through the appointment of their respective leaders.  If a leader
  needs to be replaced, then it is the Magister’s responsibility to do so.  However,
  great care must be taken not to dismiss someone too close to an important family
  in the Gentry Assembly, as it could be a poor career move.  It is not uncommon
  for a Magister to serve multiple terms, with the election being more a vote of
  confidence than a real election.  Only in rare instances has an incumbent
  Magister not been successful in securing additional terms, and there is no limit to
  the number of terms that may be served.  Even more rare is the process by
  which a Magister may be removed mid-term.  This has only been done once in
  Dyvers short history, when Magister Margus was removed from office by the
  Gentry Assembly, and a young Captain of the Army, Larissa Hunter, instated in
  his stead.  This is no small task however, for to do so requires the support of no
  less than 2/3 of the Gentry Assembly and from one of the five nobles.  Finally,
  and perhaps most importantly, the Magister fills all empty fiefdoms in the case a
  noble is removed.
  There are five families in Dyvers controlled lands that are in fact Nobility.
  Each of these families is in control of one of the seven major fiefs, with the
  remainder, the city of Dyvers proper, being controlled directly by the Magister.
  These fiefs are the city of Caltaran and the surrounding Westlands, the city of
  Maraven, Ehlenwood, Oster County, and the Meadowloands.  The existence of
  the fiefs allows for a more regional control of the outlying areas.  Some of the
  more outlying areas are more than four days travel by road to Dyvers, and it is
  simply not feasible for all executive and judicial decisions to come from Dyvers,
  and so each noble is given the authority to enforce the laws mandated by the
  Gentry assembly and to dole out punishment consistent with those laws.  Only in
  
  cases where a gentry member requests a special tribunal is the noble’s judicial
  prowess trumped.  This of course assumes that justice has not already been
  dealt in an irreversible manner.
  Each of the noble families is also charged with providing a defense of their
  respective fiefs.  This charge carries a great of responsibility, but it also brings
  with a great deal of power. Each of the noble houses is allowed to field a house
  guard as well as a militia to serve in times of need.  Since many of the noble
  houses are also merchants, this guard can double as a caravan guard as well.
  Supporting a small army is not without cost, and so each fief is allowed to tax its
  citizenry as well as travelers that pass through their fief.  Citizens are typically
  taxed on property; travelers are typically taxed on the value of goods being
  transported.  This is easily justifiable, as it is clear that the odds of being
  assaulted by bandits are directly proportional to the value of goods a person or
  group carries.  In fact, some fiefs collect taxes from merchants and other
  travelers at several points to ensure that they are safe.  Really.
  The fief’s main source of income, however, comes in the form of rent.  It is
  against the law for someone who is not a member of the gentry to purchase land
  outside the city of Dyvers proper.  This fact allows the five noble families to lease
  the land to freemen who, in turn, work the land for whatever profit they can
  manage.  This lease is generally handled in one of several ways.
  • A lease for a specific period of time with payments made to the landed
  noble on a monthly basis.  Failure to pay the lease generally results in
  the loss of the right to work the land, and property is confiscated to
  ensure the debt is paid in full.
  • A lease for a significant period of time with all payments made up front.
  This type of arrangement is more common with individuals who have
  the ability to make an initial investment, as it makes them “immune”
  from future rate increases.
  • A member of the gentry may purchase the land outright.  This
  purchase however does not include the right of inheritance, and so
  upon the death of the original purchaser, ownership of the property
  returns to the noble.  This type of arrangement is frequently used to
  buy the favor of minor gentry houses, whereby the minor gentry house
  swears fealty to the more powerful in exchange for land.
  • A member of the gentry may purchase the land with right of
  inheritance.   This type of arrangement is rarely seen as it transfers a
  great deal of control over to another house that cannot easily be
  recouped. It is still not a true ownership of the land however, nor is it
  transferred to another fief if it was another noble who purchased the
  land.  The noble still has the right to tax the land, and if the owner dies
  without an heir, ownership of the land reverts back to the ruler of the
  fief.
  Each noble is the official power within the fief except when dealing with
  other gentry who will likely call for a special tribunal to review disputes, and
  
  during times of war.  During times of War, the Magister of Dyvers has supreme
  command over all the lands of Dyvers including the outlying fiefs.  This is
  typically only done regarding military matters however, as the noble’s
  bureaucracy is too important to be ignored completely.
  To be elevated to the status of noble, an individual must first be an active
  member of the Dyvers Gentry Assembly.  In addition, there must be a vacant fief
  for the new noble house to control.  Finally, they must be selected by the current
  Magister of Dyvers, no small task in and of itself, as such a position would be
  highly sought after and would undoubtedly not come without a lot of strings and
  favors attached.  Finding a vacant fief is no small task either.  It is within the
  realm of possibility that should an expansion of the lands of Dyvers occur, that
  additional lands would not be annexed by an existing fief, but would instead be
  amalgamated into a new fief in need of a new Lord/Lady.  Outside of a such an
  unlikely aggressive scenario, an existing noble must either be charged with high
  treason by the Magister of Dyvers, be removed due to incompetence by the
  recommendation of the Magister of Dyvers and no less than two-thirds of the
  Gentry Assembly, or to die without an heir.  The latter being the most practical by
  far, especially if it is aided by some means, magical or mundane.
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Living Greyhawk/Metaorg Material/Dyvers/The Gentry in Dyvers.pdf