Civil Militias

 

The 471

In 1185, following the collapse of the Kingdom of Tulosz, several families of orc tradespersons living in and around the Bay of Briunida formed a private militia, ostensibly to protect themselves from anti-orc sentiment in the lawless period before the major regional cities chartered themselves. They brazenly took the name of the 471 in reference to the Battle of Briunida that had ended the Orcish Conquests - perhaps as a way to intimidate anyone who might threaten them.

It didn't work. In the couple of years that followed the collapse of the Kingdom, much violence was perpetrated against orcs and goblins all across Tulosz, but this only caused the ranks for the 471 to swell with orcs from across the former kingdom who were displaced by violence. Soon the organization had seized a section of Briunida, declaring it a safe-haven for orc and goblin refugees and their sympathizers who were fleeing persecution. It didn't much matter whether the persecutions were pro-imperialist in nature (seeking to re-establish the failed imperial state) or anti-imperialist (seeking revenge against former nobility), the 471 armed themselves to prevent persecution, uprising, and revenge killings, and in this they were successful.

As the Imperial Era ended with the collapse of centralized states around the world, chapters of the 471 spung up in many cities, and in many cases, these private militias did exactly what had been done in Briunida - seized a part of their city or town from a city guard who were no longer being paid and declared it a safe haven for anyone (orc or otherwise) being persecuted. Very often these distrcts became referred to as 'Gongtowns', after an abbreviation (and likely a slur) of Golonog - the orcish language. In any case, once the violence subsided, and cities began to recharter themselves and to resestablish rule of law, many chapters of the 471 disbanded, with their members returning to their trades. In many other cities, however, chapters of the 471 demanded civil defense authority over their Gongtown Districts, and newly charted cities had to choose between attempting to form a new city guard whose first mission would be to a violent confrontation with an already organized orc militia, or allowing the Gongtowns to police themselves. Almost all chose the latter.

By the end of the 13th century, many major cities in Golanicja and Tulosz are home to vibrant Gongtown districts - usually these are lower class and working class districts, with a slightly higher percentage of orcs and goblins in their populations (sometimes reaching 10%). Often these Gongtowns are given authority under the city charter to self-police, with the contract being held by the 471. While the 471 is not exclusive to orcs, more than half of their membership are orcs, and in some Gongtowns, it goes as high as three-quarters. Members of the 471 tend to be respected in their neighbourhoods, and are considered by criminal organizations to be uncorruptible, which unfortunately leads to frequent violence between the 471 and the criminal groups they police, though many argue that this violence is better than the compounded injustices seen in districts where city guards and officials are corrupted by powerful criminal interests.

The Gatekeepers

The Gatekeepers were initially formed in 658 by contract with the Kozetje College of Engineering as a maritime security force to guard the sea gate being contructed at Kozetje's Gap. When the gate was completed in 702, the Gatekeepers were reformed under the authority of the Golanicjan Crown into an elite marine unit that would oversee the operation and protection of the sea gate, and patrol the Bay of Bones and Kovstepovi Bay.

As the conflicts of the Imperial Era expanded, and Golanicjan forces were being deployed further and further afield, the defense of Kovstepovi, the Sea of Azane and the Bay of Bones became more and more critical. Additionally, the need to be able to bring naval and cargo vessels safely across the treacherous Sea of Bones became critical. The roll of the Gatekeepers was expanded to include civil and maritime defense mandates stretching from Potovic in the north to Coal Harbour in the west and all the way down the eastern half of Golanicja to Povidovija and the Passage of Miga.

This massive scaling-up of the organization significantly watered down their reputation as an elite unit, and over the course of the 8th century as the Gatekeepers took over civil defense duties in dozens of cities and towns, their ranks became swollen with veterans returning from the Kingdom's many wars.

In 916, following several skirmishes in Kovstepovi Bay that threatened the sea gate, the Gatekeepers restructured themselves by bringing their best soldiers from across the Kingdom to reform an elite marine unit known as Brigada Nul (Zero Brigade) who would not engage in ordinary civil defense duties, and would focus entirely on the original mission of operating and protecting the sea gate, and patrolling the bays on either side of it.

When the Golanicjan Kingdom became insolvent in 1201, the Gatekeepers were a pillar of stability in eastern Golanicja, and they took over management of income that continued to be generated at the sea gate. As Kovstepovi and other major cities began to reform into character cities and city states, the Gatekeepers support these moves poltically and financially, probably avoiding a complete social collapse.

By the mid 15th century, the Gatekeepers are an established and respected force in much of eastern Golanicja and even across the sea into some areas of western Tulosz. They still have a structure similar to the created in 916, with the elite Brigada Nul responsible for policing the Bay of Bones and Kovstepovi Bay, and for manning the sea gate, while the bulk of the organization performs civil and coastal defense duties under contract with different cities.

Even centuries after their founding, the Gatekeepers maintain an extremely close relationship with the Kozetje College of Engineering. Much of the senior leadership of both organizations come from the same Great Families.

Orange Wardens

The Orange Wardens are a Civil Militia that was formed in 1272 by the City Council of Cairgherd in respose to repeated pirate raids of villages along the eastern coast of western Waeyron and even into the lower reaches of the Taeves and Llwywydin rivers. Piracy had been on the rise all around eastern Cairgherd since the end of the Imperial Era, but as pirate fleets were becoming bolder, people looked more and more to the leadership in Cairgherd to deal with the threat. More than a dozen independent militias and volunteer guard services from all across Cairgherd were recruited (and in some cases, conscripted) to form the initial companies of the Orange Wardens. Simultaneously, the Great Houses of Cairgherd put political pressure on their allies overseas (mostly in Southwestern Jumira) to combat the threats of piracy by contracting privateers to fight them at sea.

A couple of decades of conflict ensued, weakening the pirates, and forcing them to continue their radiing out of survival necessity instead of out of greed. Weakened and wounded pirate raiders would sneak ashore at night hoping to steal food and supplies instead of storming shore to destroy and pillage. As the pirates grew weaker, the Orange Wardens grew stronger, larger, and more respected. By 1350, piracy in Waeyron had gone into teep decline, and the Orange Wardens were well established. Headquesrter in Cairgherd, the Orange Wardens provide civil protection services in every coastal city, town and village along the east cost of western Waeyron from Knidrigan to Rydort, and provide supplemental forces to most coastal locations in eastern Waeyron as well.

The Steel Key Company

See private militias. The Steel Key Company also frequently contract out their work in service of civil authorities.

The Queen's Guard

During the Imperial Era, law enforcement in virtually every city in Senecia, and across the entire archipelago was centralized. Even as with the end of the Imperial Era and the fracturing of the Elven Empire, many of the branches retained their structures, continuing to serve and uphold the laws of their individual city states, while at the same time retaining and informal guild-like structure tied to a nominal leadership in Calighenna which has a purely ceremonial role. Supposedly.

The Wind Regiment

A former regiment of elite marines who operated out of Careronhas, in Marcosta. They became the principle security force for the city, and as their number expanded, they began contracting services other allied cities, before officializing themselves as a separate entity, dinstinct from the military of Careronhas. Currently, they contract services and train town guards and civic authorities in many major cities in Marcosta, western Golanicja, and parts of eastern Jumira.