The Isocracy and Six Parties: The ruling body of Hammerfell

The second part of my Hammerfell series, this time detailing the government, politics and laws of Hammerfell.

Eyes of Ra Gada

During the Oblivion Crisis, Hammerfell was beset by daedric invaders and terrible civil strife. The various city-states and kingdoms across Hammerfell had slowly demilitarized following their annexation by the Septim Empire, their armies being absorbed by the Imperial Legion and sent elsewhere - all while the kings and queens reveled in laziness. When the Daedra Dremora invaded Hammerfell from demonic portals, there was next to nothing more than a civilian militia that stood in their way. The Dremora laughed. They wouldn't laugh again.

The militia proved to be more competent than it looked. Led by an unidentified man, lated dubbed the Crown Challenger^1, the Dremora were lured into the Alik'r Desert. Mages of varying skill and fame conjured together a massive sandstorm that completely buried the Dremora. One by one they dug themselves up, only to be slain by waiting soldiers. And then, the Crisis ended.

The nobility cheered at the militia's success, and naturally claimed they themselves were responsible for organizing this incredible defense, but the Crown Challenger would have none of it. They attacked the city-states of Sentinel, Hegathe, the monarchies of Bangkorai and Craglorn and the merchant states of Hew's Bane and Rihad. One by one, the nobility was deposed, and the monarchy was abolished.

Later dubbed the Redguard Revolution, the people of Hammerfell would no longer be ruled by incompetent kings and queens, but the Crown Challenger realized a military government wouldn't do much better either. So together with his most trusted commanders and friends he created the Isocracy^2, a democratic parliament consisting of six political factions that govern six different aspects of Redguard and Hammerfell society.

The Crown Challenger disappeared in 4E 3, but the Isocracy remained. The six factions were organized into the Six Parties; the Crowns, the Forebears, the Bronze-Hands, the Lhotunics, the Arijiana, and the Ja'haraan.

  • The Crowns^3 are descended from the old Yokudan nobility, and are responsible for maintaining Redguard traditions, laws and customs.

  • The Forebears^3 are descended from the Yokudan warriors who first conquered Hammerfell, but now handle infrastructure and trade.

  • The Bronze-Hands are composed of workers and servants, and make sure the common man doesn't get mistreated by the upper class.

  • The Lhotunics^3, the "outcasts" of the Redguards and most distrusting of foreigners, maintain law enforcement, military and penitentiaries.

  • The Arijiana (the old Yoku word for 'pleasure') are only concerned of the well-being of the citizens, which means they maintain gambling halls, brothels, dance halls, bathhouses and such.

  • The Ja'haraan, composed of teachers and sorcerers, handle education, healthcare, and the board of mages.

While the Isocracy can be described as a democracy, it is in fact a little different. Whilst the people do vote for one of the parties (usually dependent on what Hammerfell needs the most during election years), it is not to determine who rules, but who rules more. One year, the people might find the education lacking, so they vote for more power to Ja'haraan. Another year they might think the workers are not getting enough pay, so they vote for the Bronze-Hands. All the parties are in charge all the time, but their level of governance and the amount of funding they get fluctuates.

The Isocracy itself is located in the old king's palace in Sentinel, the modern capital of Hammerfell, but the parties' headquarters are in other cities: The Crowns are in Hegathe, where the Ra Gada first arrived at, the Forebears are in Gilane, the Bronze-Hands are in Skaven, the Lhotunics are in Taneth, the Arijiana are on Stros M'kai, and the Ja'haraan are on Hew's Bane.

While the parties are distrustful, they are cooperative. During the Great War and continued war with the Aldmeri Dominion, the Six Parties worked tooth and nail together to drive them back. The war unified the Redguards more than ever before, and Hammerfell is now considered powerful enough to withstand foreign pressure from both the Dominion and Empire for decades to come.

Thanks for reading! If you have any questions, I will answer them to the bestest of my abilities, and if you notice anything that doesn't make sense, I will try to rectify it.

Footnotes:

  1. Considered one of the greatest heroes of the Redguard on par with Cyrus.

  2. Derived from the Greek ἴσος, meaning "to have power", or "to have rule". In reality, an isocracy is a form of government where every citizen has equal political power. I just thought it sounded cool.

  3. The Crowns, Forebears and Lhotunics parties are different from the Crowns, Forebears and Lhotunic factions. In modern Hammerfell, the Crowns and Forebear factions have largely become social clubs, for the most part. Redguard citizens can adhere to any group, but that will not translate to any more or less power or privilege, as the Isocracy has made social status irrelevant for politics.