The Twins

Principe/Principessa

The rulers of Parquet, there may be but one ruler and by the masculine this is the Principe, and by the feminine this is Principessa. Whilst the ruler would claim a descent from kings, ordained by God and the Great Depths it is hardly a great secret that the first to use the term was a pirate. Things might be more civilised now, politer, and whilst the rule has descended from that first claimant the Principe Amaro over the years to something more dynastic still the roots of the ruler lie in those more... adventurous times. None of which bothers anyone since whilst it would hardly be brought up before the throne even the most ardent royalists would be hard pressed to deny that the true quality are but descendants of the crew of the pirate ship El Clavel.

The throne of Parquet rules absolutely and at the same time without having any great real power. The throne is a line that maintains continuity. It acts as the ultimate authority whilst at the same time since the Vague Revolution unable to really exercise it at all. As a figurehead it does very well, but it is a figurehead that has to be pandered to. The higher one rises the more important it becomes to maintain the very idea of a throne above all, to have someone to look up to, to have something with whose authority it is to act, and ultimately something to which to ascribe blame. Having an absolute monarch works extremely well for those that speak and act in its name. And if at times that means that one that occupies the throne views reality in ways not best understood by lesser mortals then such is the mysticism of monarchy. If at times very unimportant people are put to death in imaginative ways then they are after all not by definition important enough to matter, not for the greater good.

It did all work a little better however when there one was but the one ruler...