Royal Family

The Royal Family of the Hapes Consortium is the highest authority within the Hapes Cluster and considered the ruler of all the Hapan peoples. The current Royal Family is House James which has ruled over the Consortium since 4027.

History

Following the conclusion of the Ta'a Chume Revolts and the end of the Lorell Raiders dominion over the Lorell and Hapan systems, the Hapes Consortium was founded. During the Foundation Era, the new government formed as a lose alliance between Hapes Prime, Lorell and some smaller colony worlds. The initial two monarchs of the Hapes Consortium were simply called Queen of Hapes. Imrald Nele'serin, the third monarch of the Consortium, invented the new title Ta'a Chume, meaning Queen-Mother. This was in honour of Ta'a Chume who had led the rebellion against the Lorell Raiders and acted as a mother figure for Enilithia Nele'serin. The title was then bestowed retroactively upon the preceding monarchs.

As the Consortium expanded throughout the Hapes Cluster, the Hapan nobility was created, mostly bestowed upon influential landowners, governors and colony administrators whose efforts had benefited the Throne. The feudal nobility system gave local nobles a great deal of self governance, but Hapes Prime ultimately remained fully in control. Systems, and in some cases planets, functioned as smaller vassal states loyal to the overall Consortium and Throne. Many dynasties rose and fell over the centuries, but little changed in the way of governance until the Decline Era.

During the final years of the Age of Queen-Mothers, the inaction of the last Queen-Mother led to growing aggression and tension between rival nobility and also allowed other members of the Royal Family to gain considerable influence. As ideologies, pride and greed clashed, the Consortium was split as the Queen-Mother died without an appointed heir. The result was the Hapan Civil War which two initial factions revolved around completely opposite forms of government, the Sword Confederacy with a central leadership and control, and the Draconian Union, preserving the rights of the conservative nobility.

At the end of the conflict, the remaining forces came to an agreement and Andrew Starfyre became the first male monarch in Hapan history, and was given the title King. His form of government retained a very central form of command, but his hands were often tied by the remnants of the powerful nobility who were unwilling to relinquish their direct authority over the military. Throughout the Phoenix Age, efforts were made to stabilize the monarchy's direct authority and influence in order to prevent another civil war. As King James came to power, nobility was once again granted authority, but only as system governors with authority over local businesses and some personal military forces, rather than the mainline armed forces of the Consortium. The current style of government has both elements of the Draconian Union and the Sword Confederacy, combining them in to a moderately conservative power base for a modern Consortium where the Throne's authority is still absolute.

Royal Titles

• Queen Mother (Ta'a Chume)
• King (Rai'ix Chume)
• Queen (Xi'a Chume)
• Crown Prince (Chume'da)
• Crown Princess (Chume'ta)
• Prince (Pal'da)
• Princess (Pelin'a)

Former Dynasties

• Nele'serin Dynasty
• Arxianic Dynasty
• Tini'duran Dynasty
• Serlanum Dynasty
• Rel'amma Dynasty
• Arwinian Dynasty
• Dal'kuran Dynasty
• Cazin'turin Dynasty
• Vali'dara Dynasty
• Pal'durath Dynasty
• Starfyre Dynasty

See Also

• Hapan Nobility