The Agrippa Sector is governed by a parliamentary process that shares power between a number of groups, and official factions. The parliament of Agrippa (Once located on Secerus but later moved to Blodsburg) is as old as the sector itself and can be traced back to the founding of Aspen Agrippa.
The Thrones of Parliament[]
When the Great Houses first embraced the light of the Emperor, they formed the nucleus of the present throne system of government. During the first age, parliament and sector governance was located on Secerus in what constituted House Fortuna territory.
In an effort to move the reigns of government out of any one particular House region, a tremendous palace was built to be a great parliament of government in the new capital of Blodsburg.
In light of the united armies of the Great Houses, and their contribution to establishing the Emperor’s glory, they retained a hold on government in a council (known as the Council of Houses) that sat in assembly to present affairs of state to the Terran appointed Governor Consul.
In the chamber of the palace three great thrones were built, some say from the melted gold of the Aspen Agrippa’s armour.
In the centre throne, the Governor Consul sat in state, flanked on each side by the authorities of the Imperium. The Governor was (and still would be today) the representative of the High Lords of Terra, wielding incredible powers to rule the sector under a strong Imperial policy.
To one side the Cardinal Duke sat as the Terran appointed spiritual leader of the Ecclesiarch with his mandate to watch over the spiritual procedures of government like a shepherd over his flock.
Likewise on the other side of the governor’s throne, armed with a Terran appointed veto on all affairs of state the Princeps Inquisitor sat, with all seeing eyes, keeping a constant vigil on the sector’s policies. Today of all the thrones, the Inquisitional throne still has a representative.
The Governor, Cardinal Duke and Princeps Inquisitor were all supported by a select staff of advisors from all facets of the Imperium (Imperial Guard, Navy, Adeptus Astartes, etc.) These men were appointed and answered only to the High Lords themselves and their model served as the early inspiration for Imperial dominance in the ascension of the sector.
Facing this powerful trinity the Great Houses contributed as the chief counsel to the thrones on the floor of Parliament where they managed trade and domestic matters. Setting aside their ancient differences, the Houses selected a leader in the form of the House Elector, to serve as the council’s leader, advisor, and spokesperson to the Governor Consul. Today this post has evolved into that of a loose Prime Minister, who although elected by a fiery storm of partisan voting, still essentially represents the entire Council.
For centuries, this system functioned reasonably well. Through several wars and internal scandals the system was tested and passed. But as time wore on, the Governor’s council became complacent. More and more, the thrones of the Ecclesiarch and Inquisition were filled by proxies, or not at all. Absence by the Governor Consul himself became chronic as he increasingly saw himself as an absolute Terran appointed ruler of the sector who did not have to answer to the Elector of the Council of Houses. Likewise, the Council passed more and more policies without the blessing of the Governor Consul, mostly out of urgent necessity but at the cost of giving themselves an independent air over all domestic affairs of the sector. In due course, this structure failed. Eventually open hostilities followed and several wars were waged between the powerful Houses and the Governor Consul. The worst of these political wars was during the age of Apostasy, when the Vandire’s appointed Governor was overthrown by the combined forces of the Cardinal Duke and Great Houses.
Following the dark age of Vandire’s Apostasy, parliament experimented with a number of political conditions inspired by the religious fervor that followed. It was not unheard in these times to see the Governor Consul’s office filled by the Cardinal Duke or a full Parliament ruled by the House Elector. Nonetheless, this system proved to have numerous flaws as was shown in late M41 when the megalomaniac, Cardinal Duke Thrackos consorted with ruinous powers in a bid to overthrow the Imperium by using the Agrippa Sector as the nucleus for a new Black Crusade.
The Trackos Scandal marked the turn of an age for the Agrippa Sector. As the evil forces of the Cardinal Duke was defeated, it was instituted that religion and state would be forever separated and the office of the Cardinal Duke was dissolved from parliament. His personal guard in the Consular Regiment “The Cardinal’s Guard” was disbanded and amalgamated into the parliamentary palace companies. The Ecclesiarches throne was to sit empty, but this quickly led to a void in power.
Terra’s last appointed Governor, (Governor Marcelles) vacated shortly after his arrival in late M41 and with both the Governor’s throne and the Cardinal Duke’s throne laying empty, power once again fell exclusively to the Elector and the Great Houses. (The Inquisitional throne did it’s best to maintain coherency in the government but as an office it refused to ‘rule’ the sector, citing that this was not the Ordos mandate.)
The Fronde and the Two Party System.[]
Prior to the Fronde, the Houses ruled with impunity, but many remained impatient for the day when Terra would send a Governor Consul to rule the sector with a strong Imperial mandate. Of those in power, the sub-governors yearned for this the most. The powerful provincial holding of Hibernia rose to become the leading element in the movement to equalize parliament.
Fractious at the abuse of the Great Houses, Hibernia avowed to take matters into its own hands, and used force in a series of conflicts that began with the Anvil Trade War and ended with what is known as The Fronde. After the final victory Hibernia had risen to considerable power. No longer did the Houses have absolute command over the Council and the rules of parliament were changed to give the sub-sector governors equal representation.
This result has largely been a massive blow to the power of the Great Houses.
As a result, the Council is now run loosely by a two faction system. The two sides are called the Loyalists and Alliance (throwbacks to the military sides of the Fronde).
Although no one House or subsector representative is locked into membership to a faction, the power balance ebbs and flows between these two groups. Who ever can sway the most votes between the Houses and subsector governors allows for sector policy to be set. The Hibernian backed Alliance, holds all House D'Hautville votes (some say reluctantly) allowing the Alliance to hold a strong majority of votes in parliament. A very small confederation of Houses forms the Loyalist Party.
At face value the trappings of parliament have not changed. The three thrones system is still in place. Agrippa still waits for the day when Terra assigns the sector a Governor Consul. If anything the faces have changed as now a Hibernian (Kitchener) sits as the Elector (which is still called the House Elector).
Although the title Cardinal Duke has been dropped for that of the more conservative “Dictat Executor” (Currently held by firebrand Dictat Executor Proctor) the Consular Guard still guards the throne.
If anything has changed, the Red Guard now form Parliaments elite guard protectors (some say police).
Death Of Kitchener and the Return of The Great Houses[]
With the death of Kitchener, the power of the Hibernian backed Alliance was massively reduced. And with Hibernian fighting off the forces of Chaos in the Hibernia Subsector; they where in no position to oppose Regent Elisse Conde becoming the new House Elector and breaking the power of the Alliance. Now House D'Hautville and House DeBourgogne have combined their votes to make sure Regent Elisse Conde has total control of parliament.
And still the Governor Consul’s throne lays empty…